Todd McFarlane has even more plans for expanding the Spawn Universe

The ‘New U’ titles will tackle different genres, including science fiction, true crime, fantasy and more.

Hey it’s Todd McFarlane Day — happy birthday to the creator of Spawn!

That seems like the perfect day to talk about McFarlane’s plan for growing the Spawn universe, as the shared universe he announced back in 2021 will expand with several “New U” titles this year, starting with Sam & Twitch Case Files next week.

Here’s the rundown …

Continue reading “Todd McFarlane has even more plans for expanding the Spawn Universe”

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’”

Slugfest | ‘Batman/Spawn’ gets an ‘inks only’ edition

Today’s round-up includes news and announcements on ‘Amazing Spider-Man,’ Brian Michael Bendis, Keanu Reeves, Shakespeare, ‘Star Trek: Deep Space Nine’ and more.

Slugfest is a roundup of cool announcements about projects coming to a shelf near you from comics creators, publishers and more. Most of this edition includes all those end-of-the-year announcements I missed because I was on vacation. Hit the links for more information.

DC and Todd McFarlane have announced Batman/Spawn Unplugged, an uncolored and unlettered version of the recent crossover comic by Todd McFarlane and Greg Capullo.

“It’s always exciting whenever us artists can present our work in as unfiltered a manner as possible,” said McFarlane. “This book will let you see the true skill of how Greg Capullo does his masterful storytelling… and every line that we both put down.”

Continue reading “Slugfest | ‘Batman/Spawn’ gets an ‘inks only’ edition”

Slugfest | Beware Doom the Living Planet!

Check out news and announcements about ‘Avengers Assemble,’ Miracleman, ‘Space Job,’ Spawn and more.

Slugfest is a roundup of cool announcements about projects coming to a shelf near you from comics creators, publishers and more. Hit the links for more information.

Marvel’s upcoming Avengers Assemble crossover is set to kick off in Avengers Assemble Alpha later this month, but Marvel’s already teasing what’s in store for the big multiversal event in February.

Those plans include more info on Avenger Prime, the “most important Avenger in the Multiverse,” as well as the introduction of Doom the Living Planet! You’d have to have a pretty big Ego to turn yourself into a planet, so it’s no surprise to see a multiverse version of Dr. Doom has done exactly that.

Continue reading “Slugfest | Beware Doom the Living Planet!”

Quick Hits | Graphic novels face scrutiny in Texas schools

Plus: Todd McFarlane wants ‘Batman/Spawn’ to be the biggest comic of the century! ‘Still Alive’ wins another award! And a look at Alan Moore’s funny funnybooks!

Book challenges | A police officer employed by Katy ISD, a suburb of Houston, Texas, removed a copy of the graphic novel Flamer by Mike Curato from high school shelves after a woman filed a criminal complaint alleging the district was providing “harmful” material to minors. The removal occurred last month, when school wasn’t in session, and was later returned to shelves after police concluded “the claim was unsubstantiated.”

The book had previously been challenged, reviewed and approved for high schools by a committee after earlier challenges by parents — although it was removed from junior high shelves at the time. The woman also threatened to report the district to the Texas Rangers if they didn’t remove the book.

Continue reading “Quick Hits | Graphic novels face scrutiny in Texas schools”

Slugfest | A round-up of Comic-Con news

Check out news and announcements about Godzilla, Joker, Sonic the Hedgehog, ShadowHawk, A.X.E.: Judgment Day, Star Trek and more.

Slugfest is a roundup of cool announcements about projects coming to a shelf near you from comics creators, publishers and more. Today’s edition includes some San Diego news we didn’t get to this past weekend, plus a few other items to note. Hit the links for more information.

Let’s start with a huge blast of Gotham City news that DC revealed last week in San Diego, as they revealed several new Batman-related projects by the likes of Narcisse, Ram V., Tini Howard, Matthew Rosenberg and more. Most of these announcements came right before the release of the DC solicitations for October, when many of them will kick off.

So, the rundown …

Continue reading “Slugfest | A round-up of Comic-Con news”

Lee, McFarlane + Capullo reunite at SDCC to announce Batman/Spawn

The first crossover in more than 25 years between the two characters will arrive in December.

DC’s “Jim Lee & Friends” panel at San Diego Comic-Con brought a lot of interesting news and some surprise special guests — not the least of which was Todd McFarlane, Lee’s former Image Comics partner.

Along with artist Greg Capullo — who has a long history with both Batman and Spawn — they announced a new Batman/Spawn crossover project.

Batman/Spawn #1, a 48-page one-shot, will arrive in shops Dec. 13. Unfortunately they haven’t shared any artwork from it, but I’m sure that’s coming soon.

Continue reading “Lee, McFarlane + Capullo reunite at SDCC to announce Batman/Spawn”

Mail Call | Tynion offers first ‘Blue Book’ for free

Check out news and updates from Marvel, Dark Horse, Top Shelf, Image Comics and more.

Mail Call is a roundup of cool things we’ve received in our mailboxes recently from comics publishers, creators and more. Hit the links for more information.

James Tynion IV was one of the first creators out of the gate with his plans for his premium Substack newsletter subscription, announcing a new comic called Blue Book with artist Michael Avon Oeming that he planned to share with paid subscribers.

But even if you aren’t a paid subscriber, you can still check out the first one, which he posted for free a couple days ago.

Blue Book is a passion project for myself and Michael Avon Oeming,” Tynion wrote. “We share a lifelong fascination with UFOs and a lifelong frustration with how those stories have been adapted into other media. There is a strangeness in the original accounts of UFO sightings that usually gets swept aside, but Michael and I want to lean into the strangeness. These are human stories of ordinary people who brush against the unknown and must grapple with what they see there. There is a deeper truth, whether you believe in the accounts or not, that lies in the many ways people tell these stories.”

Continue reading “Mail Call | Tynion offers first ‘Blue Book’ for free”

Image will publish John Leguizamo’s ‘PhenomX’

The comic, which was crowdfunded in 2019, will be drawn by artist Edgardo Miranda-Rodriguez.

PhenomX, a superhero comic by Spawn actor John Leguizamo and artist Edgardo Miranda-Rodriguez, will arrive in stores in November courtesy of Image Comics and Todd McFarlane, who will provide a variant cover for the first issue.

The all-Latino creative team for the project includes Miranda-Rodriguez—author of the comic series La Boriqueña—as well as cover art by Jim Muñiz, José Marzán, Jr. and Juan Fernández.

“In today’s world, it’s incredibly important to support Latin artists,” said Leguizamo. “There is a lack of Latin representation in Hollywood, and it’s important to showcase Latin superheroes.”

Continue reading “Image will publish John Leguizamo’s ‘PhenomX’”

Comics Lowdown | All hail the king as ‘King Spawn’ #1 sells nearly 500,000 copies

Spawn continues its big comeback with big numbers. Plus: news on censorship in Texas, Tim Drake’s big revelation, Kim Dwinell, ‘Chickaloonies’ and more.

Todd McFarlane’s Spawn is coming back in a big way this year, as the creator launches a universe of titles built around the character. Spawn’s Universe #1 set a sales record for the 21st Century for Image Comics, and it looks like the first issue of King Spawn has already broken it, with a reported 497,000 pre-orders.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, that puts King Spawn #1 in the same neighborhood as DC’s Action Comics No. 1,000, which has pre-orders of an estimated 504,000 copies, and Detective Comics No. 1,000 with its 574,705 copies. So it’s a respectable neighborhood.

Continue reading “Comics Lowdown | All hail the king as ‘King Spawn’ #1 sells nearly 500,000 copies”

Mail Call | Shang-Chi’s mutant sister debuts in ‘Shang-Chi’ #3

Like fireworks lighting up the night sky comes a barrage of news, previews and announcements from Marvel, Dark Horse, Image, Mad Cave 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.

Gene Luen Yang and Dike Ruan’s run on Marvel’s Shang-Chi has focused both on family and legacy, and in the third issue Marvel’s Master of Kung Fu finds out he has yet another sibling — and she’s a mutant.

Zhilan is a mutant warrior with a dazzling power: she can turn music into solidified energy. According to Marvel.com, she was exiled by Shang-Chi’s evil father years ago, and now Shang-Chi is seeking her out — as is the Krakoa mutant nation, which will lead to a confrontation with Wolverine.

Check out the variant cover by Michael Cho, along with some preview pages by Ruan, below:

Continue reading “Mail Call | Shang-Chi’s mutant sister debuts in ‘Shang-Chi’ #3”

Mail Call | ‘Spawn’s Universe’ #1 orders exceed 200,000

Check out all kinds of announcements and previews from Skybound, Marvel, Bad Idea, AfterShock 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.

Never let it be said that kids don’t still love chains. Image Comics and Todd McFarlane Productions sent out a release this week touting that the upcoming Spawn’s Universe #1 has shattered the record for “Image Comics’ top selling, first issue comic book of the 21st century by selling well over 200K units.”

The release goes on to mention that the comic is only the beginning for this year’s Spawn-pocalypse; Spawn’s Universe #1 will arrive in June, followed by King Spawn #1 in August, Gunslinger #1 in October and The Scorched #1 in December.

Continue reading “Mail Call | ‘Spawn’s Universe’ #1 orders exceed 200,000”