Starks + Schweizer conspire to bring back ‘Mars Attacks!’

New series featuring the zany Martians from the 1960s trading card series begins in October at Dynamite.

Dynamite Entertainment and Topps have found a way to make me want to buy a Mars Attacks! comic — and their names are Kyle Starks and Chris Schweizer.

Starting this October, the duo — who are also best friends — will team up to revive the 1960s-trading-card-series-turned-1990s-feature-film, which, as the title implies, features Martians attacking Earth.

“Mars Attacks! is coming back to comic stands and I’m thrilled to be a part of it,” said writer Kyle Starks. “I’ll be bringing my two-time Eisner nominated trademark humor and action to this totally awesome and classic franchise.”

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Dynamite announces ‘Pumpkinhead’ by Cullen Bunn

Bunn tapped to write original comic book projects based on the cult classic horror film series.

Horror writer extraordinaire Cullen Bunn will have the opportunity to put his stamp on one of his favorite monsters, Pumpkinhead, in a new series coming from Dyanmite Entertainment.

“I’ll admit, when I heard that Dynamite had acquired the rights to do this book, I immediately contacted them asking to pitch for the series,” Bunn said on his website. “Good ol’ Pumpkinhead may be my favorite movie monster, and I’ve always had the urge to add my own spin to his story.” (Bunn has already decorated his Twitter page in honor of the announcement).

Dynamite announced the series in the lead-up to New York Comic Con. No artist was announced, but the series is set to launch in February.

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Kenan Yarar joins Mike Carey on Dynamite’s ‘Barbarella’ comic

New series launches in December.

Dynamite Entertainment has announced artist Kenan Yarar will join writer Mike Carey on their upcoming Barbarella comic.

To coincide with the 55th anniversary of Barbarella, Dynamite will launch the new comic in December. Jean-Marc Lofficier, custodian of the Barbarella brand, will join Carey as supervisor on the project.

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Dynamite launches new ‘Swords of the Swashbucklers’ series

Marc Guggenheim to write the new series, which starts in December.

After successfully funding a collection of the original Swords of the Swashbucklers series published by Marvel’s Epic Comics line in the 1980s, Dynamite Entertainment has announced an ongoing series featuring new stories about the space-faring pirates.

Swords of the Swashbucklers by Bill Mantlo and Jackson Guice began life as a graphic novel from Marvel back in 1984, followed by a 12-issue series. It’s about a teenage girl whose parents are kidnapped by an alien empire, so she joins up with a crew of space pirates to try and save them.

The new series will be written by Marc Guggenheim, current writer of X-Men Gold for Marvel. “Swords of the Swashbucklers has long been a favorite of mine and it remains one of the great high concepts in all of comics, which is unsurprising when you consider that Bill Mantlo and Butch Guice were the creative forces behind it. I’m humbled to continue their work and looking forward to introducing this remarkable comic to a whole new audience,” he said in a press release.

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Tim Seeley’s ‘Hack/Slash’ returns with new series, Vampirella crossover

New creative team takes the reigns on the next chapter of Cassie Hack’s story.

Cassie Hack, the star of Hack/Slash comics, is coming back swinging in a big way, as Image Comics announces a new series and Dynamite Entertainment announces a crossover with Vampirella.

“Hack/Slash is the book people always ask me about,” said creator Tim Seeley. “I’ve been waiting for the proper time to bring it back, but I wanted to make sure I had the perfect creators first. Now that I have them, it’s time to unleash Cassie Hack on the world again.”

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Dynamite picks up Elvira, Barbarella licenses

Mike Carey to write new ‘Barbarella’ comic.

Elvira, Mistress of the Dark, and Barbarella will find new life in comics, thanks to Dynamite Entertainment. Dynamite announced today the acquisition of licenses to publish comics based on both properties.

To coincide with the 55th anniversary of Barbarella, Dynamite will launch a new comic this fall, written by Mike Carey (Lucifer, X-Men). Jean-Marc Lofficier, custodian of the Barbarella brand, will join Carey as supervisor on the project.

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Fund Me Friday: ‘Comics for Choice,’ Niobi and more

Help bring comics to life by checking out campaigns for ‘Niobe: She is Life,’ the ‘Comics for Choice’ anthology, ‘As the Crow Flies’ and more.

As crowdfunding continues to be a viable method for creators to fund their creative endeavors and connect directly with fans, comic-related projects flourish on sites like Kickstarter, Patreon and IndieGoGo. Here’s a look at a few recent campaigns that caught our eyes.

Niobe: She is Life hardcover & She is Death #1

Creators involved: Sebastian Jones, Amandla Stenberg, Ashley Woods, Sheldon Mitchell and Darrell May, plus a host of cover artists
Deadline: June 25
Goal: $21,500 (Funded!)

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Lights announces new album and comic series

Skin & Earth #1
Skin & Earth #1 by Lights
Canadian electropop queen Lights has announced her fourth studio album in conjunction with a comic series. The project, called Skin&Earth, is entirely written and drawn by Lights and published by Dynamite Entertainment.

In the official press release, Lights commented, “I feel my whole life has lead up to a project like this. It’s a complete convergence of everything I love – music, comics, post-apocalyptic romance, crystals, wine and powerful ladies, all perfectly entwined. It’ll be by far my most care-free and fierce album yet. I think now, more than ever, people need a reason to listen to a whole record, and this is mine.”

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‘Swords of the Swashbucklers’ sails again

Kickstarter for a new collection of Bill Mantlo and Jackson Guice’s classic Epic Comics series funds in under 24 hours.

Dynamite Entertainment is looking to bring Bill Mantlo and Jackson Guice’s Swords of the Swashbucklers back into print, and they’ve turned to Kickstarter to do it. And less than 24 hours into their campaign, they’re already 100 percent funded.

If the name doesn’t ring a bell, Swords of the Swashbucklers began life as a graphic novel from Marvel back in 1984, followed by a a series that ran for 12 issues under their Epic Comics banner. It’s about a teenage girl whose parents are kidnapped by an alien empire, so she joins up with a crew of space pirates to try and save them.

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Dynamite picks up ‘Blood Brothers’

Successful Kickstarter by Fabian Rangel Jr. and Javier Caba finds a publisher.

Fresh off last year’s successful Kickstarter campaign, Fabian Rangel Jr. and Javier Caba’s Blood Brothers has landed at Dynamite Entertainment.

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Gillen, Fuso enlisted for James Bond one-shot

Dynamite announces ‘James Bond: Service,’ a one-shot featuring an assassin’s plot to exterminate the “special relationship” between the U.S. and Great Britain.

Joining a list of writers that already includes Warren Ells, Andy Diggle, James Robinson and Benjamin Percy, Kieron Gillen has signed on to write Dynamite’s James Bond. He’ll team with artist Antonio Fuso to write James Bond: Service, a one-shot due out in May.

“The thing with the icons is that I’m not particularly interested in doing a one-size-fit-all story for them,” Gillen said in his email newsletter today. “You need to make them live, and that means finding something that really captures you. As such, this ends up digging into some of the interest in history and geopolitics which drives work like Uber, and merging it with the contemporary era. It is very much a Bond inspired by Brexit and realpolitik. If you can’t use a country’s icon to talk about the country, what’s the point, right?”

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Ellis, Warren Ellis declassifies his upcoming run on ‘James Bond’

Although he’s written his share of secret agents in the past — John Stone keeps popping into my head as I write this — Warren Ellis will soon get his hands on the ultimate super-spy when his run on Dynamite’s James Bond comic begins later this month.

Titled “VARGR,” the first story arc has Bond returning to London after a mission of vengeance in Helsinki, to take up the workload of a fallen 00 Section agent. In his latest Orbital Operations email, sent out this past weekend, Ellis shared several details about his upcoming run on James Bond — which, as a commission via the Ian Fleming estate, will feature the secret agent from the books rather than the movies. Or, as Ellis put it, “This is meant to be Fleming’s Bond.”

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