Tag: Richard Starkings

SDCC | Comixology Originals announce ‘Groupies’ by Helen Mullane + Tula Lotay

“Our story is a blood-soaked and acid-drenched journey into the heart of darkness …”

Superstate writer Helen Mullane and Somna co-creator Tula Lotay will turn it up to 11 in Groupies, a five-issue miniseries about sex, drugs and the “true cost of rock’n’roll.”

The supernatural tale set in a world of parties and excess will arrive in October from Comixology Originals.

“I’ve always been fascinated by the lives of groupies,” Mullane said. “The daring fashion, devil-may-care lifestyle, and the girls’ determination, getting their kicks despite most people’s censure and judgement. It’s a world of glamour and darkness, where some people have their wildest dreams come true, while others are chewed up and spat out. Our story is a blood-soaked and acid-drenched journey into the heart of darkness, where most people are out for what they can get. But just because the girls are living in a world that sees them as disposable, doesn’t make them any less extraordinary.” 

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Jeph Loeb + Tim Sale’s most beloved Batman story gets a sequel in September

Loeb will team with Eduardo Risso, Klaus Janson and more for ‘The Last Halloween.’

Prior to his death, Tim Sale was working with his frequent collaborator Jeph Loeb on a sequel to their career-defining Batman maxi-series, The Long Halloween. That sequel will continue on, according to DC, who officially announced The Last Halloween at MCM London last month.

Loeb will write the 10-issue series and will be joined by a different artist on each issue, starting with 100 Bullets artist Eduardo Risso. Klaus Janson, known for his work on books like Batman: The Dark Knight Returns and Daredevil, will draw the second issue, while Mark Chiarello, the former art director for DC, will draw the third issue. They’ll be joined by letterer Richard Starkings, who worked on the original series, and colorist Dave Stewart.

“Batman The Long Halloween: The Last Halloween is Tim Sale’s parting gift to me,” Loeb said. “Tim and I had already decided to tell this last chapter following Batman: The Long Halloween Special, which will serve as the prologue to this 10-part action-packed mystery.”

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Quick Hits | Nirvana Comics in Knoxville wins the first Image Select Retailer Award

Plus: News on Rob Liefeld, Scout Comics, G. Willow Wilson and the Robert E. Howard awards.

Nirvana Comics in Knoxville, Tennessee has won Image Comics’ inaugural Image Select Retailer Award. The winner was announced this weekend at the Emerald City Comic Con during an event hosted by Lunar Distribution.

Images Comics announced the award last month as a way to recognize retailers “that are going above and beyond to serve their customers, expand readership and grow a healthier marketplace.” Customers were able to vote for their favorite store via an online form.

“This is such a huge honor,” said Grant and Jasmine Mitchell, co-owners of the store. “Thank you Image Comics for all you’ve done to help the comic shop industry. Thank you to all our customers who nominated us. Your support and friendship is why we do this everyday. The best is yet to come!”

According to Image, the shop was in the top tier of most nominations by sheer volume from “happy customers eager to pay it forward to the store they love.” They’ll receive several prizes from Image, including a commemorative medallion and their choice of a comic with a gold foil exclusive variant cover branded with their store logo.

“The response to this award was phenomenal with thousands of nominations submitted in just a few days,” said Alex Cox, director of direct market sales at Image Comics. “Reading that many testimonials from people praising their local comic shops was a great reminder of how amazing the comics community can be, and Nirvana Comics stood out as a prime example of a store that truly values their customers, and makes new fans every day.”

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‘Parliament of Rooks’ takes flight from Comixology next week

‘Ask for Mercy’ artist Abigail Jill Harding writes and draws the five-issue gothic love story.

Comixology Originals is still alive and kicking, and have announced another new title for this month — Parliament of Rooks, a gothic love story written and drawn by Ask for Mercy artist Abigail Jill Harding.

“Parliament of Rooks is my homage to stories I grew up loving by fellow Brits like Neil Gaiman’s Sandman and Emily Bronte’s Wuthering Heights,” Harding told Daily Dead. “This is the first series I’ve written and drawn myself. It’s very ambitious, and I’m excited for people to read it.”

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Eric Powell recruits Becky Cloonan, Mike Mignola, James Harren for a spooky Christmas anthology

‘Four Gathered on Christmas Eve’ continues the Victorian tradition of telling spooky stories on Christmas Eve.

The Goon creator Eric Powell is a fan of both Christmas and horror, so it’s only natural he’d put together a crew of elves to help deliver Four Gathered on Christmas Eve, an anthology of Victorian-style Christmas Eve ghost stories coming from Dark Horse this winter.

“As someone who unapologetically loves Christmas and spooky stories, I’ve always been intrigued that telling ghost stories used to be a regular part of the tradition,” said Powell. “I’ve been kicking around the idea of doing a Victorian Christmas Ghost book for a while and was thrilled when three of my favorite comic creators agreed to join me.”

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Comics Lowdown: Judge Dredd co-creator Carlos Ezquerra passes away

Mark Waid sued, and gets a new job! Vertigo prepares for NYCC! Plus Ryan Ferrier, Jason Lutes, John McCrea and more!

Passings: Carlos Ezquerra, 2000 AD artist and co-creator of Judge Dredd, has passed away, the Guardian and the Hollywood Reporter both reported this week. The 70-year-old artist was diagnosed with lung cancer in 2010, and the disease returned this year.

“It is difficult to put this into words, but we have lost someone who was the heart and soul of 2000AD. It is no exaggeration to call Carlos Ezquerra one of the greatest comic book artists of all time, and his name deserves to be uttered alongside Kirby, Ditko, Miller, Moebius and Eisner,” reads a statement issued by 2000AD. “Yet this doesn’t really do justice to someone whose work was loved by millions and has had an influence far beyond the comic book page. From Judge Dredd to Strontium Dog, from Rat Pack to Major Eazy, Carlos has left us with a legacy of stunning and distinctive work that was and always will be 2000 AD. He has been one of the pillars, producing the same dynamic, enthralling and arresting art we always loved him for. We thought we had many more adventures to come from the master, so we are devastated to discover we were wrong.”

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comiXology expands their ‘Originals’ line with creator-owned titles, print-on-demand

comiXology moves into print comics with an ‘experiment’ using Amazon’s print-on-demand capabilities.

comiXology Originals debuted in 2016 and have since published comics in conjunction with Marvel, BOOM! Studios, Valiant Entertainment and the estate of Harvey Kurtzman — and even earned an Eisner nomination. Now the Amazon-owned company is branching out to include creator-owned comics as part of the program.

The company announced four new titles that can be found on comiXology’s storefront, with the promise of more to come. Interestingly, comiXology is expanding beyond digital and will offer three of the four books through Amazon’s print-on-demand service — giving consumers the opportunity to buy comiXology material directly, rather than through a traditional comic book publisher.

The new comiXology Originals releases include: Savage Game created by NFL player Ryan Kalil, written by Shawn Kittelsen, and art by Chris B. Murray; Superfreaks from writers Elsa Charretier and Pierrick Colinet, with artist Margaux Saltel; Elephantmen 2261: The Death of Shorty from writer Richard Starkings, and artists Axel Medellin and Boo Cook; Ask For Mercy from writer Starkings and artist Abigail Jill Harding.

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