King Arthur meets noir in ‘The Cold Ever After’

Jeremy Whitley and Megan Huang’s new graphic novel, which has been years in the making, will arrive from Titan Comics next year.

Jeremy Whitley and Megan Huang will combine Arthurian fantasy with a dose of detective noir in The Cold Ever After, a new graphic novel announced by Titan Comics this week at the San Diego Comic Con.

“Longer ago than I’d like to admit, I had this idea. I was stumped for a new idea for a story I wanted to tell, but I had all these genres I loved. So I thought, what if I combine a couple of very disparate genres and see what I can make out of that? One was ‘Arthurian Noir,'” Whitley, the co-creator of Princeless, said on Twitter. “Arthurian Noir really stuck with me, and I thought: the noir detective and the disgraced knight are really compatible ideas that I really like together, but also I’m really tired of Lancelot stories. I wanted a beautiful queen and a stalwart knight I had never seen so that’s how we ended up with Noelani. She was taken from her home by the church based on a holy test and trained to be the king’s Holy Champion for years. Shown no love or care, just training, until she was sent on a dangerous mission to retrieve the would-be queen.”

Huang said the idea predates her first published comics work. “This OGN was a pitch even before my first big comics work. So it’s amazing to finally talk about it,” the artist of Jia and the Nian Monster said on Twitter.

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Mail Call | Z2 to publish graphic novel inspired by All Time Low

Plus: news from Image, AdHouse, Dark Horse, BOOM! Studios and more.

Mail Call is a roundup of the announcements we’ve received from comics publishers in our mailboxes recently that we haven’t already covered. Hit the links for more information.

Z2 Comics has announced another music-related collaboration, this time with the pop-punk band All Time Low. In June, the publisher will release a graphic novel inspired by the 2017 album Last Young Renegade.

“When we wrote our album ‘Last Young Renegade’ we imagined an entire world separate of our own, almost a “what if” version of All Time Low, both with our musical sound and with the visual narrative we put together around it” says All Time Low’s Alex Gaskarth. “Creating ‘Young Renegades’ the graphic novel allows us to tell more stories in the universe we imagined and delve deeper into the mythos and thematic ideas that were at play when we were celebrating that era. ‘Young Renegades’ is another branch, another thread and another look into the LYR continuity through an incredible medium we’ve never collaborated in before. Working with the story-tellers and artists on this project has been an incredible new undertaking and we can’t wait for everyone to enjoy it with us.”

Young Renegades will be written by Tres Dean and Robert Wilson IV, with art by Megan Huang.

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Dark Horse announces ‘Jenny Zero’ for April

The ‘hard-drinking, hard-partying’ daughter of a superhero goes monster-hunting in April.

Dave Dwonch, Brockton McKinney, Magenta King and Megan Huang are teaming up on Jenny Zero, a new series about the ‘celebutante’ daughter of a superhero who tries to give up the party lifestyle to become a superhero herself.

“When Dave and I started working on Jenny Zero we wanted to get back to the idea of making ‘fun comic books’ simply for fun’s sake,” said McKinney, who is co-writing the comic with Dwonch. “And the end product, the idea of an ass-kicking lush who hunts monsters, most certainly is. But as we worked, and as series artist Magenta King began to bring Jenny and her world to life, it also took on the themes of self-responsibility, parental contrition, and the idea that no one but yourself can define who you are. All that, set against the backdrop of off-the-wall characters and otherworldly creatures. But yeah, in the end, it’s still very much about getting a good buzz on and going monster-hunting.”

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‘Jia and the Nian Monster’ explores Chinese lore

Mike Richardson and Megan Huang team up for a new original graphic novel.

When he’s not busy running Dark Horse, Mike Richardson is writing for them. In anticipation of this year’s Comic-Con International later this month, Dark Horse has announced the newest project from their founder, Jia and the Nian Monster.

Richardson is teaming up with artist Megan Huang on this new original graphic novel that’s based on an ancient Chinese legend.

“I’m pleased to work with artist Megan Huang to bring this Chinese legend to life for readers of all ages,” Richardson said. “I’ve always been interested in Chinese lore and hope to impart that interest on a new generation of readers.”

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