Lewis + Barravecchia prepare for ‘blood-splattered’ conquest in ‘Bear Pirate Viking Queen’

The three-issue high-fantasy miniseries begins in May.

Sean Lewis will team up with artist/painter  Jonathan Marks Barravecchia for “a blood-splattered story of conquest.” Bear Pirate Viking Queen, coming from Image Comics this May, is billed as a high fantasy story, and from what I can tell, it does not feature a bear who is also a queen, pirate and viking at the same time (although I’ll be pleasantly surprised if that is, indeed, the case).

Lewis said he was inspired by an Alan Moore/Eddie Campbell classic when creating the story.

“I always wanted to make something that hit me like From Hell the first time I read it,” said Lewis. “Something with historical scope, something with a really uncompromised visual beauty, and something that felt BIG. Jonathan’s work is incredible. The story is one I am incredibly proud of. We are shooting for ‘canon’ with this one.”

Continue reading “Lewis + Barravecchia prepare for ‘blood-splattered’ conquest in ‘Bear Pirate Viking Queen’”

Slugfest | Dark Horse will release Sergio Aragonés’ ‘Louder Than Words, Actions Speak’

Plus: LEGO Ninjago, free ‘Barbaric,’ 350 issues of ‘Spawn’ and more.

Slugfest is a roundup of cool announcements about projects coming to a shelf near you. Hit the links for more information.

Dark Horse has announced plans to collect Sergio Aragonés’ Louder Than Words and Actions Speak miniseries into one volume appropriately called Louder Than Words, Actions Speak.

Both volumes came out about 20 years ago and were previously collected by Dark Horse. The collection will have a new cover by Dark Horse by Aragonés and colorist Carrie Strachan.

Continue reading “Slugfest | Dark Horse will release Sergio Aragonés’ ‘Louder Than Words, Actions Speak’”

Image will publish ‘Drawing Blood’ as a 12-issue series

Originally crowdfunded as a graphic novel, the series fictionalizes Kevin Eastman’s life as a comics creator.

Drawing Blood, the semi-autobiographical tale of Kevin Eastman’s rise in the comics world that was successfully crowdfunded on Kickstarter back in 2017, is coming to Image Comics as a 12-issue maxi-series in April.

“The completely fictional true stories of Shane ‘Books’ Bookman sums it up the best,” said Eastman. “Set squarely in our collective world of Comics, part autobiographical, part tall tails and legends, I wanted a fictional character we could really put through the paces. Drawing Blood is all that and a basket of kittens…”

Continue reading “Image will publish ‘Drawing Blood’ as a 12-issue series”

Young + Corona dig up ‘Ain’t No Grave’ in May

The ‘Middlewest’ team reunites for an Old West tale.

One of my favorite creative teams is back with a new miniseries named after one of my favorite Johnny Cash songs.

Skottie Young and Jorge Corona, the award-winning team behind The Me You Love In The Dark and Middlewest, will reunite on Ain’t No Grave, a Western arriving from Image Comics in May. Young’s frequent collaborators, colorist Jean-Francois Beaulieu and letterer Nate Piekos, round out the creative team.

“I tapped into that darker side of my imagination to write Ryder’s story,” Young said on Substack. “The journey of a person who has lived a not so great life but was changed by three hearts. Her man’s, her child’s and her own. This story explores the length one will go to not lose their home after years of not knowing what that word really meant. What would you do when something, or someone threatens to take you away from all you hold dear? Ryder knows.”

Continue reading “Young + Corona dig up ‘Ain’t No Grave’ in May”

Image Comics will publish Sabir Pirzada’s ‘Dandelion’

The graphic novel anthology will include stories drawn by Martín Morazzo, Vanesa R. Del Rey, Eric Koda and more.

Ms. Marvel writer Sabir Pirzada has a new project coming from Image Comics this summer — Dandelion, an anthology graphic novel featuring “climate crisis-infused tales” drawn by several different artists.

“It’s been a grand undertaking to gather some of the industry’s hottest artists, and build a shared continuity where they could take inspiration from one another in illustrating a wide range of genres that all add up to a larger world of speculative fiction with a mystery unfolding in the background: who is the founder of the Dandelion ship?” Pirzada said. “We are excited to present a unique reading experience as can only exist in an anthology graphic novel format.”

Continue reading “Image Comics will publish Sabir Pirzada’s ‘Dandelion’”

Slugfest | Dark Horse resurrects ‘Lester of the Lesser Gods’

Plus: The Winx saga continues, Usagi turns 40, the Dreadnoks return and more!

Slugfest is a roundup of cool announcements about projects coming to a shelf near you. Hit the links for more information.

Lester of the Lesser Gods, which was originally published by Albatross Funnybooks, is finding new life at Dark Horse this year.

Written by Eric Powell and Lucky Yates, and featuring artwork by Gideon Kendall, Lester began life as unproduced animated short before finding its way to comics.

Continue reading “Slugfest | Dark Horse resurrects ‘Lester of the Lesser Gods’”

Slugfest | ‘Masters of the Universe’ starts a ‘Revolution’

Plus: Check out news and announcements on Ghost Machine, Spider-Man, Archie Horror, Dr. Frederic Wertham and more.

Slugfest is a roundup of cool announcements about projects coming to a shelf near you. Hit the links for more information.

Dark Horse has announced another miniseries tie-in to the Masters of the Universe Netflix show, which returns to the streaming platform on Jan. 25.

Masters of the Universe: Revolution is written by show producers Tim Sheridan, Rob David and Ted Biaselli, with illustrations by Daniel HDR, inking by Keith Champagne, coloring by Brad Simpson and lettering by AndWorld Design. The first issue features a variant cover by Tyler Boss:

Continue reading “Slugfest | ‘Masters of the Universe’ starts a ‘Revolution’”

‘Creature from the Black Lagoon Lives!’ rises from Skybound

Dan Watters, Ram V, Matthew Roberts and Dave Stewart bring the creature back from the depths this spring.

On the heels of James Tynion IV and Martin Simmonds’ adaptation of Dracula, Skybound and Universal have announced a second miniseries starring one of the Universal Monsters — Universal Monsters: Creature from the Black Lagoon Lives!

The miniseries will continue the story from the original movie while introducing some new characters:  journalist Kate Marsden, who is following the trail of serial killer Darwin Collier in the Amazon. Dan Watters and Ram V will team up to write the miniseries, which will feature artwork by Matthew Roberts and Dave Stewart.

“We’re so thrilled to announce our second book in the Universal Monsters line.” Said Alex Antone, editorial director at Skybound. “Dan Watters and Ram V are two of the most exciting writers in comics, and to be able to turn them loose with longtime Skybound creators Matthew Roberts and Dave Stewart has been an absolute treat. And while James and Martin’s Dracula was an adaptation of the original film, Creature is a brand-new story featuring beloved Gill-Man. Each book in the Universal Monsters line will feel different from the last, with each creative team bringing their own unique flavor and passion to these iconic horror characters. I can’t wait to share what else we have planned!”  

Continue reading “‘Creature from the Black Lagoon Lives!’ rises from Skybound”

Remender + Bengal present the explosive ‘Napalm Lullaby’ in March

Rick Remender returns to superheroes for the first time in a decade.

Death or Glory creators Rick Remender and Bengal will re-team this year for a high-octane superhero story, Napalm Lullaby. The comic will be released through Remender’s Giant Generator imprint at Image Comics.

Napalm Lullaby and The Holy Roller are my first forays into superheroes since I left Marvel a decade ago,” said Remender. “At one point in time, I promised myself never to return to this genre—but when this idea [for Napalm Lullaby] hit, it was too exciting not to make it real. Fortunately, my longtime collaborator and friend Bengal agreed, and we set out to make an apocalyptic superhero story unlike anything you’ve seen or read. We’ve been developing this story for years and it couldn’t have more love dumped into it. Ben has made sure every single page is a work of art.”

Continue reading “Remender + Bengal present the explosive ‘Napalm Lullaby’ in March”

Fleecs + Forstner continue to build the ‘pet horror’ genre in ‘Feral’

The creators of ‘Stray Dogs’ set their sights on cats in their next series at Image Comics.

Tony Fleecs and Trish Forstner will once again put household pets in terrible situations in Feral, an ongoing series coming from Image Comics next year.

This time around the Stray Dogs team will focus on cats — in particular three indoor cats who get lost outside during a rabies outbreak.

“We didn’t want to repeat ourselves with this follow up book so it really was at first, thinking about: Okay, Stray Dogs is dogs trapped in a house. So, let’s have this one be about what’s really frightening in wide open spaces. The antagonist in Stray Dogs is someone who’s evil from the inside out. So, let’s have these cats face something that’s like an infection. An external threat. The stray dogs were forgetful… So these cats remember EVERYTHING,” Fleecs told The Hollywood Reporter. “These cats hold a grudge. That’s what we did differently. But the thing we did the same way was, we tried to build the story on characters, and how they fit together and how they clash and then just… What’s the worst possible situation we can put them in?”

Continue reading “Fleecs + Forstner continue to build the ‘pet horror’ genre in ‘Feral’”

Derek Kirk Kim returns to comics for ‘The Last Mermaid’

The ongoing series launches at Image Comics next March.

After shifting from comics to animation, Derek Kirk Kim will return to the printed world for The Last Mermaid, a new ongoing series from Image Comics.

The creator of the award-winning Same Difference and Other Stories will write and draw The Last Mermaid, which, as the title suggests, is about a mermaid roaming across a post-apocalyptic landscape “on a quest beyond reason.”

“I’m so excited to be back making comics after a decade of experience in TV and animation,” said Kim. “The Last Mermaid is a culmination of everything I’ve learned and love in storytelling, and I couldn’t be prouder to present it through Image Comics. Returning to comics feels like coming home and I hope everyone will join the titular mermaid on her epic quest to find her own home in The Last Mermaid.”

Continue reading “Derek Kirk Kim returns to comics for ‘The Last Mermaid’”

Ivan Reis brings ‘Hyde Street’ to Ghost Machine

Reis will re-team with Geoff Johns on the creator-owned series.

Artist Ivan Reis will team with Geoff Johns once again on Hyde Street, an upcoming creator-owned series that will fall under the recently announced Ghost Machine imprint.

Reis joins Johns, Jason Fabok, Gary Frank, Bryan Hitch, Brad Meltzer and more at Ghost Machine, a new company that aims to be a “first-of-its-kind creator-owned and operated media company.” I’m not sure how that differs from Image Comics, which has been creator-owned and operated for 30 years and will actually publish Ghost Machine’s titles, but there you go.

Continue reading “Ivan Reis brings ‘Hyde Street’ to Ghost Machine”