Comic Book News & Previews

[TheButcher]

From Kaijucast 01.13.2011:
Godzilla Kingdom of Monsters (the IDW Interview)

Happy New Year, my dearest listeners! Why on earth is the first episode of 2011 (which is the twenty-fifth episode and available for download right here) online so early? Well that’s the product of my only New Year’s resolution which is -hope you are sitting down- to do TWO EPISODES PER MONTH! I basically wanted to split these episodes up into the interview episode and the Daikaiju Discussion episode for each month. I promise I won’t burn out, since essentially this was what I’m already doing in one big push.

My special guests are from a little comic book company called IDW Publishing. You may have heard of them… they are producing a new series called Godzilla Kingdom of Monsters (note the name change, true believers!). Pictured from left to right in the photo are Chris Ryall: Chief Creative Officer / Editor-in-Chief, Chris Mowry: Senior Graphic Artist / Writer, Carlos Guzman: Assistant Editor, Ongoing and Bobby Curnow: Assistant Editor, Miniseries. They were cool enough to connect with me via the internet and it was a lot of fun to talk to them. A few listeners submitted questions made it into the show, so keep an ear out for that. Speaking of keeping an ear out, here’s what I played in the episode:

[TheButcher]

HERO COMPLEX EXCLUSIVE:
‘The Mighty Thor’: Matt Fraction’s big plan for Marvel’s ‘most DC-like character’

Matt Fraction knows that some fans, after following their favorite characters for years or decades, read the latest issues with the stern intensity of a fact-checker looking for canonical lapses. Those aren’t the fans the writer aims to please with the new Marvel series The Mighty Thor — although he does invite them to relax and take a look for fun. “It shouldn’t be homework, it should be entertainment,” the star writer says. “I don’t have to prove to anybody how deep my long box goes.”

Issue No. 1 of The Mighty Thor hits stores in April — featuring art by Olivier Coipel — as a synergy project keyed to the release of the Marvel Studios film “Thor” in May, and Fraction is candid in saying the goal is to present a wide and welcoming adventure that will satisfy curious new readers and lapsed old fans as well as the picky loyalists who make the weekly trek to the comics shop. It may not be easy to satisfy all of those constituencies, but Fraction said the upside is great considering the ”powerful opportunity” to draft off of a Hollywood franchise taking flight.

Fraction knows that comics and films have stepped on each others’ toes or danced different rhythms in the past. Some were just wrongheaded waltzes too. Fraction recalled a comic-book insert in TV Guide that was keyed to one of the “X-Men” films that he says was “just impenetrable” for anyone who was coming to the characters for the first time. “What a failure, what a missed chance that was,” Fraction said. “It was a lesson in what not to do. If someone read that they wouldn’t want to read the comics and they might not even want to see the movie. It’s sending the message, ‘This isn’t for you.’”

Fraction took over the existing thunder-god series — which is called simply Thor — last year. That series will be taken over by writer Kieron Gillen and continue its numbering but as of issue No. 622 it will go old school by changing its name to Journey Into Mystery, which was its title for the first 125 issues before switching in 1966 to put Thor at the top of the cover.

So what’s Fraction’s approach with The Mighty Thor? There’s a sense that he’s clearing away distractions for a distilled version of the hero that will live up to what has come before but also be freed up from the constraints of historic story lines.

Fraction calls it a story and approach that are “invested in clarity” and starts with his favorite core attributes of the Marvel version of the Norse god of thunder. “I went cherry-picking,” the writer said. For fans, Fraction’s work will be judged against the J. Michael Straczynski work on the character that not only won over a wider audience and critics but also set the tone and template for the Hollywood adaptation of the hero.

If you’re curious, the proud prince of Asgard won’t have that “clumsy, faux Shakespearean thing” when he speaks, but there is a formal language and “a weird meter when he speaks, because he does need to sound other,” Fraction said. The stories will be colossal in size, with melodrama played on a cosmic scale with the clang of swords, royal-court intrigue and entire planets hanging in the balance.

In a Marvel universe that was made famous by characters who have an everyman appeal or all-too-human foibles and failures in their lives, Thor is a guy who can juggle cargo ships and expects to inherit a crown.

“In a world of magic mythologies, this is the most magical of them,” Fraction said of Thor’s place in the Marvel universe. “You have to be true to that and find the right tone or the wheels can tear off the car really easily. Thor is the most DC-like character of the Marvel characters, in a way. He’s not the teenager who gets bit by a spider and gets a chance to prove himself. You have to think big with Thor. And that’s a lot of fun.”

How big? To whet your appetite, Fraction had a tasty answer to that question: “Galactus-big.”

– Geoff Boucher

[TheButcher]

From Digital Spy:
'Journey Into Mystery' to focus on Loki

Marvel Comics has revealed that original Avengers villain Loki will star as the new protagonist in Thor when it is retitled Journey Into Mystery this April.

Former Thor writer Kieron Gillen returns to the character for the relaunch alongside artist Doug Braithwaite, while current writer Matt Fraction embarks on a new ongoing series called The Mighty Thor.

Gillen's project will focus on Thor's half-brother Loki, along with a host of supporting characters who will rotate between story arcs.

"If The Mighty Thor is Avengers, then Journey Into Mystery is Secret Avengers," Gillen explained to the publisher's official site. "The Mighty Thor storms the gates of Hell, Journey Into Mystery sneaks in the back door and ends the threat with a single strike.

"It's a mythological black ops comic, with a rotating team organised by the most Machiavellian figure in the whole Norse pantheon."

Loki recently underwent a number of changes when he was resurrected as a young boy. Gillen promised that the secrets behind his return will be revealed in the series' opening story arc.

Other characters confirmed to be appearing over the course of the next year include Tyr, Hela, Mephisto and Beta-Ray Bill.

Journey Into Mystery #622 will be published in April.

[Fried Gold]

http://www.comicsalliance.com/2011/01/20/steampunk-palin-comic/

The story starts in the near future, in the immediate aftermath of a war that has destroyed all the Earth's oil. A new power source is needed, and Sarah Palin steps forward to suggest steam power as a replacement. A conglomerate consisting of big oil and nuclear power interests makes a counterproposal by blowing her up with a bomb at the meeting where she suggests this.

... Six months later Sarah Palin wakes up to find that she now has body more than half made of robot parts. Powered by steam.

..."full of hot air" jokes aplenty.

[TheButcher]

From CBR:
Powell and Marsh Enter Godzilla's “Kingdom of Monsters”

It's been more than fifteen years since the King of Monsters stomped through a major comic book metropolis, but in March the giant green lizard returns in a big way, courtesy of IDW Publishing. The new “Godzilla: Kingdom of Monsters” will feature not only the titular big-screen baddie but also a healthy selection from the rest of Toho's bestiary. The creative team behind the book is a monster, as well, with “Goon” creator Eric Powell co-writing with Tracy Marsh and artist Phil Hester bringing it all to life. Powell will also be providing covers to each issue, and “Godzilla” #1 will feature an alternate cover by Alex Ross. CBR News spoke with writers Powell and Marsh about the series and good ol' fashioned carnage.

Before the giant lizard comes to town, the world of “Godzilla: Kingdom of Monsters” is one that has never before seen the likes of such creatures. And, Marsh told CBR, “it’s about as prepared to handle the attacks as it was to handle September 11 or the earthquake in Haiti. The results are much the same as they were after those events—everything goes haywire. People are scared, hurt, dead, homeless, in need of resources they can’t get. But in 'Kingdom of Monsters,' it happens over and over. SNAFU!”

Powell added that he and Marsh were keen to look at the effects of a monster invasion beyond the initial ruined architecture and lost lives. “We set out from the very first conversation to look at the premise of giant monster attacks in a more consequential way,” Powell said. “What would really happen if giant monsters popped up? Well, your infrastructure would be screwed. It would be like Katrina and the oil spill times giant frickin' monsters.”

As to who the heroes or point-of-view characters would be, Powell told CBR that “Kingdom of Monsters” would have a revolving cast. “But,” Marsh added, "all the characters’ stories have a common thread, which is trying to cope with the increasingly deteriorating world around them. Instead of following one or two main characters, we wanted to follow the monsters themselves and show glimpses of their effects on lots of different people.”

Godzilla himself, though, will not be a point-of-view character. “We won't be giving Godzilla thought balloons, if that's what you mean,” Powell said.

Asked for their perceptions of who Godzilla is and what he represents, the writers had slightly different takes. “Godzilla was originally an allegory for the nuclear age, and we’re definitely going for a modern-day interpretation of that,” Marsh said. “But readers want to see Godzilla and his buddies eff stuff up. So that’s what they’re gonna get.”

Powell, for his part, said, “To me, he still represents what he represented when I was seven. He's a big giant cool looking monster that breathes fire and smashes buildings. Which is awesome.”

“Luckily, that’s really fun stuff to write, too, so it all works out,” said Marsh.

The writers will waste no time getting to the destruction promised by a title like “Godzilla.” “Like with every story, you have to lay the ground work. Here's what the world was like when it was normal and then... monsters. Things get bad quick and go downhill fast,” Powell told CBR. “I don't want to give too much away, but we've laid in plenty of satire about the world we live in.”

The plural “monsters” may lead readers to assume that other familiar destroyers might be on the way, and such assumptions would be entirely correct. “Yep, we got Rodan, Mothra, Anguirus, King Ghidorah, and more,” Powell said. Asked whether the appearance of so many monsters might lead people to believe the end times are nigh, Marsh said, “We don’t plan to delve too deeply into the characters’ psyches, but, like I said before, we’ll definitely try to show how they’re struggling with the whole Hell-in-a-hand-basket scenario.”

Godzilla is, of course, a universally recognizable character, but Marsh is a fairly recent convert to the monster's lore. “Yeah, I wasn’t really focused on giant monsters as a kid, unless you count the times that my brother chased me around the house with his toy Godzilla that was taller than I was,” she said. “I’ve been watching tons of movies to research the monsters and get into the spirit of things, but I’ve always known who Godzilla is. That’s what I think is so cool about getting the opportunity to work on this comic. EVERYBODY knows Godzilla.”

Powell's experience is somewhat different. “I've been a fan as far back as I can remember. Some of my earliest memories are of watching Godzilla movies that would come on sometimes on Sunday afternoon.”

Even before taking on “Godzilla: King of Monsters” for IDW, Powell's dance card was already quite full with his return to writing and drawing “The Goon.” Yeah, I'm booked up for 2011. I decided to take on Godzilla as my one outside project because I got a good idea on how I thought it should be executed,” he said. “That's what gets me excited about a project. If I'm enthusiastic about the idea.” The time constraints, though, meant he would need some help, and thus Marsh was enlisted. “We're working together on a rollerderby book and I really needed some help to write this book because I didn't want to be drawn away from working on the 'Goon,'” Powell told CBR. “Luckily, Tracy was able to help out.”

“Yeah, and I’m psyched about it,” Marsh said. “Eric and I have known each other for years, and I’d done some small writing jobs for him in the past. But nothing like this. He was so excited about the project when he approached me. His enthusiasm was catching.”

Rounding out the team is artist Phil Hester, known for writing and drawing a slew of comics including “Green Arrow,” “The Irredeemable Ant Man,” “The Darkness,” and “Firebreather,” which was recently adapted into an animated feature. “We’ve seen some of his pages, and they’re incredible,” Marsh said of Hester's work on “Kingdom of Monsters.” “I can’t think of a better way to kick off the series.”

“I was super excited to get Phil for this first arc,” Powell added. “The stuff he's doing looks great. Better than I even imagined.”

[TheButcher]

Breaking: Wizard and ToyFare magazines fold [Updated]

Wizard magazine has ceased publication after nearly 20 years, laying off its remaining staff and canceling freelance assignments. Its sibling publication ToyFare also has closed.

CEO Gareb Shamus followed a morning filled with reports of the magazines’ demise with a press release announcing the February launch of “an all-new digital magazine called Wizard World” that will target the same audience. Curiously the release, which you can read below, doesn’t mention Wizard magazine. Instead its focus is on the news that Wizard World Inc. is now a public company with Shamus as its president and CEO.

Wizard World has since confirmed the closings of Wizard and ToyFare: “Wizard Entertainment is ceasing publication of the print magazines Wizard and ToyFare. Wizard World, Inc. will begin production of the online publication ‘Wizard World’ beginning in February. We feel this will allow us to reach an even wider audience in a format that is increasingly popular and more readily accessible.”

Calls to the Wizard offices this morning office went unanswered. The Wizard bullpen blog Pie Monkey has been taken offline, with assurances from its Twitter feed to “Please stay tuned — there’s a good chance we’ll be up and operational in the next 24-48 hours.” The link to magazine subscriptions on the Wizard website is also dead.

Launched in 1991, Wizard was once a dominant, if controversial, force in the comics industry, with its price guides, Top 10 Writers and Artists lists and annual Wizard Fan Awards carrying significant weight. But in recent years the magazine’s star faded even as its scope expanded — it rebranded itself as “The Magazine of Comics, Entertainment and Pop Culture” — becoming known more for its staff firings than for its exclusive coverage. ToyFare debuted in 1997 as a companion publication devoted to toys and collectibles.

Related: Charts watcher John Jackson Miller chronicles the circulation decline of Wizard, from an estimated 100,000 copies in October 1998 — not the height of its popularity, but the last month it broke the 100,000-copy mark — to just about 17,000 copies in December 2010.

GAREB SHAMUS UNDERTAKES PUBLIC COMPANY WIZARD WORLD, INC. AND LAUNCHES NEW ONLINE PUBLICATION ‘WIZARD WORLD’

New York, NY (January 24, 2011) – Gareb Shamus, recently appointed President and CEO of public company Wizard World, Inc. (“Wizard World”) (OTC: GOEE.PK), today announced that the Comic Con Tour, which consists of pop culture conference events that provide high visibility marketing opportunities to pop culture brands and companies in multiple venues throughout the year, is now being produced by public company Wizard World. The Wizard World Comic Con Tour intends to cover 12 cities in 2011, including major cities such as New York City, Boston, Chicago, Philadelphia, Austin and New Orleans. The Tour will include sponsors ranging from major movie studios and TV networks to gaming and toy companies to content publishers.

In addition, Wizard World plans to launch in February 2011 an all-new digital magazine called ‘Wizard World’ that will appeal to pop-culture fans, the same audience to which Mr. Shamus has catered to, for over 20 years. Wizard World digital magazine will provide coverage of the world of comic books, toys and superheroes, and the personalities behind them.

“This is a very exciting day for Wizard World and the industries it serves,” said Shamus. “Having the Tour produced by a public company provides additional opportunities to expand and grow the Tour. The new digital magazine Wizard World will give consumers the content they want in a magazine format with which they are familiar, but distributed in a form that is always available at any time on any device. It is a natural evolution for us in this market.”

Wizard World Comic Con will begin its North American tour at New Orleans Comic Con held from January 29 to 30, 2011. The full event schedule can be found at http://www.wizardworld.com.

[TheButcher]

Marvel: ‘You’ll Never Look at Vampires the Same Way Ever Again’

Remember all of Marvel’s talk last summer about how important vampires were going to become to the Marvel Universe?
Or the news that Dracula was going to play a role in the company’s 2011 event series, Fear Itself?

Looks like they’re continuing to build on that promise, releasing a teaser image Monday afternoon for April’s Throne of Blood: Birth Of a Vampire comic book written by Victor Gischler (architect of much of Marvel’s vampire material in the Death of Dracula one-shot and the “Curse of the Mutants” arc on X-Men) and illustrated by Goran Parlov, which did not appear in Marvel’s solicitations for that month that were released last week. The teaser image shows a vampire surrounded by various Marvel Universe trophies — including Thor’s hammer, Captain America’s shield, Iron Man’s gauntlet, Dr. Doom’s mask and Magneto’s helmet — with accompanying text promising “a game changer in Fear Itself.”

Out Of The Shadows, Into The Marvel Universe

A game changer in Fear Itself stands revealed.

He will leave the Marvel Universe a different place.

His story begins here.

Thought you knew everything about Vampires?

Don’t be so sure.

You’ll never look at vampires the same way ever again.

[TheButcher]

From MTV:
Dark Horse President Talks 'Xerxes' And The Relaunch Of 'Dark Horse Presents'

Dark Horse Presents Returns In April With Frank Miller’s Xerxes And Paul Chadwick’s Concrete

[TheButcher]

What We Found Out About Bá & Moon's DAYTRIPPER Collection

Twin brothers Gabriel Bá and Fábio Moon have several Eisner awards between them. But they won a whole new set of accolades when the two united for the Vertigo mini-series Daytripper.

Next week, Daytripper will be released as a collection, bringing together the 10 issues that most comic reviewers have hailed as one of the best stories of the year.

Set in the creators' native Brazil, the comic's title explains the basic premise for Daytripper, as readers are taken on a trip each issue to one day in the life of the main character, an aspiring novelist named Brás.

But through the lens of his life, and the exploration of how short life really is, Daytripper shows how the small, intimate moments in a person's life can often be the most meaningful.

Best-known for their work on Casanova and The Umbrella Academy, Bá and Moon co-wrote and drew the 10 issues during 2009 and 2010 after pitching the project to Vertigo. Newsarama talked with the two of them about the series.

[TheButcher]

Image Comics Dabbles in MMOs

Nate Simpson, formerly a concept artist within the video game industry, recently took a year off to "learn how to make comics." A year later, Image Comics has announced Nonplayer, a new six-issue mini-series that blends Simpson's gorgeous artwork with the world of MMO gaming.

[TheButcher]

SPOILERS
From MTV:
Marvel's Next Big Thing: Venom (Spoilers)

From Newsarama:
And, The Identity of the New VENOM Host Is…

From CBR:
Rick Remender Reinvents "Venom"

[Pacino86845]

Isn't everyone tired of Venom already? Isn't it time to sweep the bastard under the rug, along with Bane? Oh wait-

Most interesting part is:

There’s a couple of other twists, too, as the Venom suit can only be worn for several days a time, before it starts to take over your psyche – and can only be worn twenty times total.

So being Venom is a metaphor for being a smoker.

So the moral of the story is: smoking will turn you into goofy-looking hentai creature. Watch out!

[TheButcher]

From Dread Central:
Cover Art for Godzilla Kingdom of Monsters #2!

It was last October during the New York Comic Con that we first got word of IDW's partnership with Toho Co., Ltd., to create all-new Godzilla comics, and now the first two issues - Godzilla: Monster World and Godzilla: Kingdom of Monsters - are available for pre-order. Read on for their synopses and to see the cover art.

Godzilla Monster World #1
By: Eric Powell, Tracy Marsh, Phil Hester, Alex Ross
Publisher: IDW Publishing
Pub. Date: March 23, 2011
The King of the Monsters rises again. For the first time in comics, he's bringing lots of other beloved Toho monsters with him in one destructive saga, and The Goon's Eric Powell is sounding the alarm. Powell will also paint covers for each issue of this new ongoing series, including a wraparound cover to kick things off! Acclaimed artist Phil Hester signs on for the first storyline, and Alex Ross supplies a painted 50/50 variant cover! This is the Big G storyline you've been waiting for!

Godzilla Kingdom of Monsters #2
By: Eric Powell, Tracy Marsh, Phil Hester
Publisher: IDW Publishing
Pub. Date: April 27, 2011
The world is in panic as Godzilla reduces Tokyo to rubble. No one knows where the giant lizard has come from, and even the most extreme military counter-measures prove useless. As the people of Japan struggle to survive Godzilla's wrath, the world's governments start thinking outside the box. Unfortunately, Godzilla may not be the only monster-sized threat the world faces...

[buster00]

From Newsarama:
And, The Identity of the New VENOM Host Is…

facepalm.gif

[TheButcher]

CBR Preview:
Legion of Super-Heroes Annual #1

[TheButcher]

Tony Harris Kickstarts "ROUNDEYE: For Love"

There is plenty of talk in the comics community these days of creator-owned work and how it should be championed and supported in the marketplace, but supporting independently produced material once it's made is far different from getting it made to begin with.

One of the most publicized recent examples of the pitfalls of the Do It Yourself ethic came from "Ex Machina" artist Tony Harris. In early December, Harris announced his intent to self-finance an original graphic novel called "ROUNDEYE: For Love" via the popular art fundraising site Kickstarter by asking for contributors to kick in cash adding up to $60,000. It didn't work the first time around, though. Harris had to relaunch the project several times, finally hitting -- and then exceeding -- an asked for mark of $10,000 this week, but along the way several more unique opportunities arose that look to make "ROUNDEYE" a reality at last.

With the Kickstarter page entering its final phase, CBR News caught up with Harris to find out why the book means so much to him, what barriers he had to break through to make the fundraising effort work, how promoting the initial 60K figure led to a better, more manageable publishing option and what lies ahead for the graphic novel as well as the long-delayed "War Heroes" series with Mark Millar.

[TheButcher]

From CBR:
Work begins on long-awaited third volume of Casanova
I can't cussing wait to read this.

AICN COMICS Q&@: Optimous Douche talks with DC Vertigo's DAYTRIPPER creators Fabio Moon & Gabriel Ba! Plus a review of DAYTRIPPER Vol. 1!

OD: Is there any way I can get you guys to dish on upcoming projects?

FM: My crystal ball is broken today, so I'm still uncertain about the future. I'll do more CASANOVA once Bá and Matt finish the third arc, but I'm still figuring what I might want to do before that happens.

GB: CASANOVA part 3: Avaritia! Four issues that I've just started on, so it will take me some time to finish. We hope we have new ideas to work on after we're done with this.

[TheButcher]

From CBR:
Work begins on long-awaited third volume of Casanova
I can't cussing wait to read this.

AICN COMICS Q&@: Optimous Douche talks with DC Vertigo's DAYTRIPPER creators Fabio Moon & Gabriel Ba! Plus a review of DAYTRIPPER Vol. 1!

OD: Is there any way I can get you guys to dish on upcoming projects?

FM: My crystal ball is broken today, so I'm still uncertain about the future. I'll do more CASANOVA once Bá and Matt finish the third arc, but I'm still figuring what I might want to do before that happens.

GB: CASANOVA part 3: Avaritia! Four issues that I've just started on, so it will take me some time to finish. We hope we have new ideas to work on after we're done with this.

[TheButcher]

From CBR:
The joys of Stan Sakai's "Usagi Yojimbo" artistry

YEAR OF THE RABBIT

I swear I didn't realize it was the Chinese Year of the Rabbit on Thursday when I picked out "Usagi Yojimbo" Volume 8 to read. Purely coincidental, but I like it. Dark Horse recently printed new editions of its first three trades of the series (8, 9 and 10) to go along with Fantagraphics' recent Deluxe Edition of the first 7 that came out around Christmas time. Good timing.

Even though I have all those earlier trades -- some with sketches inside from Stan Sakai, having purchased them at his table in San Diego -- I still want to eventually pick up that hardcover. Until then, I dropped in with volume 8, mostly because I knew the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles would be in there somewhere. And, sure enough, their appearance was pure magic. The look of confusion on their face to see walking and talking rabbits and other animals while Usagi saw nothing strange about it at all, just pointed out the absurdity of it all. Best of all, it showed a sense of humor about things that Sakai dribbles throughout the book. There's one story later on that's mostly wordless, telling of the time Usagi woke up to find himself surrounded by lizards, and unable to rid himself of them. It's a funny story with a dramatic moment or two. I even forgive it the moment where Usagi has to be seen losing in an almost unbelievable way just to force the plot along.

I'm not sure what else can be written about "Usagi Yojimbo" anymore. It's all been said, except not enough people are listening. When people write manifestos about creator-owned books that deserve more attention, this is the first one I think of. Sakai has a fiercely loyal and devoted fan following, but it's not nearly large enough. It's remarkable to me that such an amazing cartoonist is creating a monthly series by himself and so few people seem to notice.

The stories in this book were done in the early 90s. I loved the moments in the story titled "Shi" when Sakai draws a night battle scene and appropriates Frank Miller's "Sin City" style to highlight specific moments. Seeing Usagi drawn white around black instead of vice versa was a real kick, but also something that blended in with the story being told. It was experimentation that made sense.

Sakai has lots of tricks with his ink line that you might not notice on first view. The biggest one is the thickness of it. In one page near the end of the book, there's a montage, where young Usagi is large in the middle of the page and a series of smaller Usagis are seen around him tending to a garden. Not only does Sakai tell the story of Usagi's frustration with growing his seeds, but it does so in an economy of space, thanks to Sakai's inks. The background figures are all drawn in a very thin, almost sketchy line. The large figure has a thicker black line than usual. The difference is so great that you almost think there's some Photoshop filter applied to the smaller figures to push them back on the page, but it's not. It's pure pen-and-ink cartooning.

He uses a similar trick with a thin ink line when showing characters underwater, or through water. Just as viewing someone through water might make them a little less well defined to your eyes, Sakai imitates that by sketching out the character in a less defined manner. It's a simple, yet effective technique.

And if you study the book for long enough with an artist's eye, there's doubtless countless more lessons to be learned. Sakai puts on a Master Class in storytelling with each issue, and creates stories that you can drop in and out of at will without worry about missing so-called "important" storylines that "count." I've skipped all over the place in my reading of the series and I've never felt lost. You should feel the same. Pick up the book with the coolest cover to your eyes and go home with it. You won't be disappointed.

Next week: A European album gets translated, and more.

[TheButcher]

From CBR:
Creator-Owned Spotlight #1 by Steve Niles

Editor’s Note: With the recent discussions going on around the comics community about creator-owned comics, we’re pleased to welcome one of the voices in those discussions, 30 Days of Night and Mystery Society creator Steve Niles, to Robot 6 for a series of columns on creator-owned comics. A big thanks to Steve for agreeing to do the column, as well as to artist Stephanie Buscema for creating a killer image for it.

From CBR:
Where The Hell Am I

This week, Jason Aaron explains why he's perfectly happy to be writing "Wolverine" alongside "Scalped" and why he feels corporate vs. creator owned comics is the wrong battle to choose in today's comics industry.

From The Weekly Crisis January 31, 2011:
Jonathan Hickman to write Icon book?

[TheButcher]

Multiversity Comics Presents: John Layman

Do you mind if we talk about a different project besides Chew to start?

Layman: Sure.

Apparently you're writing a Godzilla mini-series with Alberto Ponticelli on art and Geof Darrow on covers.

Layman: Yeahhhh (excitedly).

I have to say, as someone who grew up watching Godzilla movies and is a fan of Chew, Unknown Soldier and Geof Darrow in general, that sounds like the best thing in the world.

Layman: You can't find a lot of it, because it hasn't been officially announced. Chris Ryall twittered about it and mentioned it in a CBR costume. It's not officially out there, but we're doing it and that's the team. Ryall asked me one day, because we worked together on Scarface, which was a blast, and people always credit Puffed but I think it was Scarface where I found my Chew voice. I think it was one of my favorite books ever but no one bought it.

Chris Ryall and I had a really good time and he was like "do you like Godzilla?" And I said yeah. Then he said "keep this on the down low, but we're doing some Godzilla stuff. Do you want to pitch it?" And I just had an idea that was there. So literally the next day by 11 - I got up early in the morning and just pounded out this pretty involved pitch and it was on his doorstep first thing in the morning - which for an editor 11 is first thing in the morning.

So he was pretty shocked, but then we had to go through some gyrations with Toho and they came back and said it was too violent. I was like "this is Godzilla, right?" (laughs)

It didn't fundamentally change the story. We just kind of altered it and it kind of made it for the better. I'm a huge fan of Asian cinema. I love monster movies too, but I also love Asian cop movies. I wanted to pitch something that was half Oldboy, half monster movie.

Nice! (laughter)

Layman: So I've got this framed cop whose partner had been killed. Just one of these stubborn, Asian Dirty Harry's who won't stop no matter...even if all the other cops are corrupt and his name gets smeared and his partner gets killed and it's basically him vs. the mob and the Yakuza and whatever.

He gets ahold of the Mothra twins and basically makes them make Mothra do his bidding.

YES! (laughter)

Layman: So it's half Asian gangster movie, half monster movie. So that's exciting, and then they told me Geof Darrow was on covers and I just flipped. And the Ponticelli art is beyond gorgeous.

I've actually been working on Godzilla #3 today even though I should be working on because I'm just so jazzed about it. (laughter)

Has Chris indicated as to when this would be coming out?

Layman: Summer. If it's not my own book, I don't pay too close of attention to when it comes out. The glorious thing about company owned work is it's not my headache...it's Chris'...or Bobby Curnow who is the editor.

I enjoy not worrying about that shit. (laughter) I just get my scripts in. Get what notes come in, which have been pretty minimal.

I also asked to letter it, because I love lettering my own stuff. So I get pages in and I letter it up and it's flippin' fantastic.

Circle of Confusion is putting together the Chew TV show, and they're the ones that put together The Walking Dead. You said there's been some forward movement with it. What's the status of the Chew TV show?

Layman: Well...it's not real yet.

Circle of Confusion is doing what they did with The Walking Dead, as they're putting together a team and then they took it to a network. And then they sold it.

People have been like "oh man, are you spending that money yet?" And I'm like "there's no money yet." (laughter)

Supposedly this makes it happen easier and it gives you better control over it. It was announced at SDCC that we've got Stephen Hopkins onboard, who did the first season of 24 and Californication and a really big movie resume, but his TV shows in recent years have gotten a lot of acclaim. So he's onboard, but what we haven't announced and can't is that we have a writing team now, from a "popular show" that has been on the air for many seasons. They were working on a pilot script, and then the thing I was referring to is we actually got the pilot script.

Rob read it and I should have read it by now, but I've been sort of eyes on the prize trying to finish this issue of Godzilla. I can only focus on one thing at a time.

[TheButcher]

From GQ:
A Brief Conversation With Someone Smarter Than Us: Matt Fraction on the Return of Casanova

Read More http://www.gq.com/entertainment/books/2 ... z1ElS6Bihu


From Ba and Moon's blog:
Au revoir, and hello Cass

CASANOVA-2006-2007-2008-2010-2011

Well, CASANOVA is back on full throttle. The marvelous LUXURIA TP is out and the brand new edition of GULA 1 is out there to show how awesome Fábio is and how he managed to kick my ass on the art – AND ON THE COVERS!!!. New interviews, new back-up stories, new mind blowing colors and handwritten letters.
What are you waiting for?

Oh, and yeah. New material is coming out this year. You won't wanna miss that.

Casanova snapshot

Casanova in 2011

January will explode with Casanova as both the trade from the first series, LUXURIA, and the first issue of the new series, GULA, will come out and please the readers. In GULA, I step in as artist of the series, and the LUXURIA trade has super cool never before seen bonus material. 2011 is a good year to be a Casanovonaut, as Matt used to call our readers, and it al starts as early as January. This time around, don't miss the boat.

Casanova preparatory sketch

[TheButcher]

IDW Publishing MAY 2011 SOLICITATIONS

Godzilla: Kingdom of Monsters #3

Eric Powell & Tracy Marsh (w) • Phil Hester (a) • Eric Powell, Jeff Zornow (c)

Godzilla, Rodan, and Anguirus continue their devastation, and the worldwide media begins to chime in. As people around the globe suffer, celebrities band together to save the monsters from human counterattack, and the president is criticized for being "soft on monsters." Meanwhile... a mysterious giant egg washes ashore in France. And what's with those creepy little twin girls?

FC • 32 pages • $3.99
*2 regular covers will be shipped in a 4-to-1 ratio (4 Eric Powell, 1 Jeff Zornow cover)

[TheButcher]

Matt Fraction signs for "Casanova: Gula" re-release, discusses next volume

It's Wednesday night, and Floating World Comics owner Jason Leivian remembers when Matt Fraction's Casanova first came out, back in 2006: "It was in the first issue of [Diamond Distributor's] Previews I got when I opened the shop." An aspiring writer at the time, Leivian admits to feeling jealous when he first read Casanova, but today that bad blood is gone. "I don't hate him any more," he says with a smile. Fraction (Invinclble Iron Man, Thor) is at Floating World for the re-release of Gula, the second volume in the mind-twisting sci-fi-spy adventure series Casanova. First published in 2006 for Image, the series is now under Icon, Marvel's imprint for creator-owned works, and sports full color, with new lettering and added features. "Each issue is packed with ideas," Leivian adds.

This four-issue volume or "album" will be the last of the re-released Casanova material, and Fraction confirms that the series will be continuing with Volume 3, Avaritia, expected in May. "It's being drawn right now," says Fraction, adding that original artist Gabriel Bá is back on the book. Like the previous two albums, Luxuria and Gula, Avaritia will be released in four 32-page issues. Unlike its predecessors, though, it will not be padded with interviews, so readers can look forward to more story in each book.

"It was the hardest to write," Fraction says about Avaritia. "It had been so long since the last one, and I'm a different writer now." As a result, this different writer spent more time on Avaritia than on the earlier books. "For the first one [Luxuria], I wasn't even sure I'd be able to get all seven issues out, so I wrote whatever I wanted," he recalls. "For the second [Gula], I knew what the twist was, where it would end." On the third album, though, he wanted to push himself further. "It's full of weird techniques, and comments on the nature of comics, of stories," Fraction explains. "I like the idea of parallel worlds where every possible idea exists, somewhere."

Fraction spent a great deal of his time rewriting the story for Avaritia: "I would write and rewrite it. I wanted to be sure that it was the best it could be." He stresses that this was not a slight on his mainstream work, titles such as Thor and the upcoming Marvel event Fear Itself, but that he has more on the table with Casanova. "Besides the level where it's robots and guns and action, it's also to some extent autobiographical," he points out, so evaluating his own work on the book required some soul-searching that the other titles don't. Fraction was also inspired to "re-examine and re-evaluate" his writing by other comics he had been reading, including Kane and Hines' The Bulletproof Coffin, which just wrapped up its six-issue run.

Casanova's fourth album should see a return to the "back matter," reproducing conversations Fraction has with people he has met through his work in comics. Included in the author's list of speaking companions are Brendan McCarthy, Rian Hughes, and Dustin Harbin (who also letters the re-released Casanova).

Casanova Quinn's adventures continue with Gula #1, available at local comic shops.

[TheButcher]

From SciFi Japan:
Covering Godzilla! Interview with IDW Cover Artist Matt Frank

[TheButcher]

Project : Rooftop Presenets: Aquaman: Sea Change

There are plenty of fish in the sea, but if you ever need their help, you’re gonna need a translator. Strap on your water wings, Rooftop Readers, because it’s high time we took this party to the high seas! Aquaman, King of Atlantis, needs your help.

Today, I am incredibly pleased to announce a multi-site crossover event! February 28th marks Project: Rooftop’s fifth anniversary. Since our first post in 2006, we’ve tried to promote the idea that superhero costume redesigns require a specific set of skills and and demand thoughtful consideration. Fortunately, we’ve found allies. As well as our ever-expanding cadre of commenting contributors here at P:R, several other sites have sprung up to share in the fun.

At his Whitechapel forums, Warren Ellis challenges artists to re-imagine characters with new and creative criteria. At Superhero Cocoa, a coalition of artist pals started their own inventive redesign blog. And at Superhero of the Month, Alex Getts runs an open call to redesign a new superhero every month. Like us, these sites created fun havens for artistic creativity, industry publicity, and, of course, superhero fandom.

In March, these sites will all begin posting Aquaman art, based on their own criteria, using their own guidelines and rules, showcasing their own contributors and particular methods. For me, this is easily the most exciting event we’ve done, and I’d like to invite all superhero fanart sites to join us in celebrating Aquaman this March!

Project : Rooftop's Aquaman: Sea Change Winners!

[TheButcher]

OZ Artist & Pixar Alum Partner Up For SkottieScottSketchSite

Name your favorite artist in comics. Now what if you could see more of their art – more than just comes out in the comic book and graphic novels, but a more raw and perhaps instinctual drawing style far from what you see in print. Artists have long sold sketchbooks and done sketches at conventions, and with the advent of the internet you've been able to glimpse them on websites and blogs such as the popular ComicTwart blog. But two entrepreneurial artists and friends have decided to team up and bring it to a whole new level.

Skottiescott.com is a new website set up by cartoonists Skottie Young and Scott Morse as a place for them to get their juices flowing and offering up new, original artwork every day of the week. Every day they'll pick a character and crank out their own renditions – in some cases character studies, in other experimentations. The site launched on February 21st, and in their first week out the pair cranked out various Spider-man villains from Venom to Kraven and more. The site has garnered over 10,000 unique hits, and as an added bonus, Morse and Young are aren't filing them away but putting them for sale for readers to buy and have for themselves – with several of this past week’s drawings already purchased.

With the site just launching last week, we caught up with these busy cartoonists to talk about their new collaborations.

[TheButcher]

From CBR:
Groth Discusses Gottfredson's "Mickey Mouse"

Fantagraphics' Gary Groth spoke with CBR about the coming collections of "Walt Disney's Mickey Mouse" by definitive cartoonist Floyd Gottfredson, including a frank discussion of Mickey's past and present.

Continuing its line of high-quality reprint collections of classic comic strips including "Peanuts," "Prince Valiant" and "Dennis the Menace," in May Fantagraphics launches the first volume of Floyd Gottfredson's complete run on one of the world's most famous and beloved characters in "Walt Disney's Mickey Mouse, vol. 1: The Race to Death Valley." Gottfredson, who took over the strip from Disney himself in 1930 on a seemingly temporary basis, continued to draw Mickey for the next 45 years. CBR News spoke with Fantagraphics co-publisher Gary Groth about the collections, how Mickey has changed since Gottfredson's day and handling potential controversies arising from the early Mickey strips as well as the recently-announced collections of Carl Barks' Donald Duck comics.

[TheButcher]

DC Announces Eight FLASHPOINT Miniseries Creative Teams (Continually Updated!)

DC Comics turned some heads when they announced in late January that their upcoming crossover story Flashpoint would have 14 miniseries tie-ins, and today they’re ready to reveal the creative teams for eight of those miniseries on their official blog The Source, starting with a very familiar duo taking on Flashpoint: Batman, Knight of Vengeance. Cover images and information is after the jump, and keep checking this space, as DC’s letting details of these teams slip at a pace of roughly one per hour.

Update 5:05 EST: Enter, the LEGION OF DOOM

FLASHPOINT: LEGION OF DOOM
Covers: Miguel Sepulveda
Writer: Adam Glass
Art: Rodeny Buchemi & Jose Marzan

Tagline: Whatever Happened to the World’s Greatest Supervillains?

Update 4:10 EST: More Aquaman? Sure, have some more Aquaman!

FLASHPOINT: EMPEROR AQUAMAN
Covers: Ardian Syaf & Vicente Cifuentes
Writer: Tony Bedard
Art: Ardian Syaf & Vicente Cifuentes

Tagline: He will drown the world… THEN RULE IT!

Update 3:20 EST: Hey, have another mini written by a DC Editor!

FLASHPOINT: WORLD OF FLASHPOINT
Covers: Shane Davis
Writer: Rex Ogle
Art: Paulo Siquiera

And your tagline is simply: Discover the World of Flashpoint

Update 2 p.m. EST: And another!

FLASHPOINT: HAL JORDAN
Covers: Rags Morales
Writer: Adam Schlagman
Art: Ben Oliver

Tagline for this one: “He never got the ring.”

Update 1:06 p.m. EST: We’ve got another!

FLASHPOINT: DEADMAN & THE FLYING GRAYSONS
Covers: Cliff Chiang
Writer: JT Krul
Art: Mikel Janin

Well, that’s certainly a fun cover. Tagline for this one is “For their last performance-an escape act!”

Original story: Here’s the first crop:

FLASHPOINT: BATMAN, KNIGHT OF VENGEANCE
Covers: Dave Johnson
Writer: Brian Azzarello
Art: Eduardo Risso

Yep. It’s the 100 Bullets team reunited, and note the dice — remember that “He spends his days running Wayne Casinos” teaser?Tagline: “THE KNIGHT OF VENGEANCE.”

FLASHPOINT: CITIZEN COLD
Covers: Scott Kolins
Writer: Scott Kolins
Art: Scott Kolins

That’s a lot of Scott Kolins! Obviously he’s got vast experience working with Captain Cold proper in the pages of Flash over the years. Tagline: “He loves someone he shouldn’t.”

FLASHPOINT: DEATHSTROKE & THE CURSE OF THE RAVAGER
Covers: Joe Bennett & John Dell
Writer: Jimmy Palmiotti
Art: Joe Bennett & John Dell

Palmiotti and Bennett worked together a while back on Hawkman . Also, arrr! Deathstroke’s a pirate! To drive the point home, tagline: “He will stop at nothing to find his lost treasure!”

[TheButcher]

KICKSTART DAY: Editors Jimmy Palmiotti & Larry Young

Kickstart Comics is the latest new face on the comics scene these past few months. Spiraling out of one of the most successful comics-to-film production companies in Hollywood, Kickstart was set-up to tell original stories and get them out not only to comic stores but the mass market. Through a unique distribution agreement with Wal-Mart and the strict publishing of slimline graphic novels, Kickstart has become a new place to find diversity in comics.

Although Kickstart's parent company Kickstart Productions has a long history of comics love with production credits on both Wanted and the upcoming feature Preacher, for this new comics venture they reached out to two veterans of the industry to guide the way. Jimmy Palmiotti (Marvel Knights, Black Bull, Fox Atomic) and Larry Young (AiT-PlanetLar) signed on to be editors of Kickstart Comics in 2010, ushering in their first group of titles on the marketplace late last year.

Over the past few months we've covered some of the titles Kickstart has been publishing, and now we turn to Kickstart's two leading men, Palmiotti and Young, to talk about the publisher's unique strategy and how it all came together.

KICKSTART DAY: Brothers Saving an ENDANGERED Space Hero

KICKSTART DAY: Hollywood Writers Launch Season of the WITCH

KICKSTART DAY: Screenwriting Team Help Forge BLACKSMITH

KICKSTART DAY: Burn Notice Writer Gives The Gods a HEADACHE

[TheButcher]

DARK HORSE PRESENTS #2 Covers & Creators Revealed

Dark Horse Presents #2
Covers by Neal Adams and Sanford Greene
On sale: June 22, 2011
Price: $7.99
80 pages

Creators and stories...
Sanford Greene and Chuck Brown: "Rotten Apple" Part 1 (NEW)
Robert Love and David Walker: "Number 13" Chapter 1 (NEW)
Neal Adams: "Blood" Part 2
Howard Chaykin: "Marked Man" Part 2
Paul Chadwick: "Concrete: In a Wound in the Earth"
Carla Speed McNeil: "Finder: Third World" Part 2
David Chelsea: "Snow Angel" Part 2
Richard Corben: "Murky World" Part 2
Michael T. Gilbert: "Mr. Monster vs. Oooak!" Part 2
Patrick Alexander: "The Wraith" (NEW)

As Dark Horse’s 25th year rolls on in grand fashion, so does Dark Horse Presents! Issue number 2 of Dark Horse’s landmark anthology features not only the continuation of stories by the likes of Howard Chaykin, Richard Corben, Paul Chadwick, and Carla Speed McNeil, but the premieres of all new stories by Patrick Alexander, Sanford Greene and Robert Love! Don’t miss this milestone showcase of the comics industry’s hottest talents and most esteemed legends!

[TheButcher]

Exclusive Marvel Preview: SIGIL #1 - Crossgen Returns!]Exclusive Marvel Preview: SIGIL #1 - Crossgen Returns!

[TheButcher]

ECCC: DC Nation

Wolfman also had his turn answering questions, and received a couple about the origin and status of the upcoming Teen Titans original graphic novel “Games” (with George Perez on art). Marv was pleased to talk about the project and its history.

“Years ago, George had drawn 60-70 pages of the original storyline. It was semi-integrated with what we were doing at the time – the costumes were the same but it was a standalone story. Sadly, because we’re no longer the age we were when we started it, neither of us could remember what the story was about. So what you have now is actually an incredibly different story using the same artwork that’s much more powerful and with stronger villains. We’ve worked some brand new ideas into it – we knew the basics, we just didn’t remember the specifics of all the little stuff.

“We only wished – honestly – that we could have done an extra 30 or 40 pages because we had so much fun getting back to this thing that we had started twenty-five years ago. The two of us getting back on the Titans for a long-term story…it felt – and George can tell you – it was exactly the same dynamic we had all those years before. We just fell right back into it. It felt like such a Titans story that we couldn’t believe that any time had passed.”

As for the book’s status, he said, “George is done. I’m done. Mike Perkins, the inker, is two pages short. The lettering is all done, and the coloring is almost done. It will be out this fall as promised, and I can tell you George’s work is the best I have ever seen from him. It is gorgeous.”

[TheButcher]

Greg Rucka Gets the Keys to Frank's Castle With 'The Punisher #1' in August

[TheButcher]

Gary Groth talks Barks Library in the Carl Barks Fan Club Newsletter

[TheButcher]

Nonplayer: Nate Simpson Talks About His Much-Anticipated Debut [Exclusive Art]

[Leckomaniac]

Nonplayer: Nate Simpson Talks About His Much-Anticipated Debut [Exclusive Art]

Nonplayer looks gorgeous. I mentioned it in the small press thread.

I will absolutely be picking up issue #1, if for no other reason than to marvel at those pretty pictures.

[TheButcher]

Nonplayer: Nate Simpson Talks About His Much-Anticipated Debut [Exclusive Art]

Nonplayer looks gorgeous. I mentioned it in the small press thread.

I will absolutely be picking up issue #1, if for no other reason than to marvel at those pretty pictures.

Me too.

[DennisMM]

That's impressive. He's been reading a bit of Moebius, I think.

[TheButcher]

That's impressive. He's been reading a bit of Moebius, I think.

I think your right.

From Bleeding Cool:
Nonplayer Is Coming…

[TheButcher]

Rick Baker sets sail with ‘Tales From the Grave’

[TheButcher]

From Bleeding Cool:
A Pint And A Proposal?

Vincent’s DC exclusive deal is currently scheduled to come to an end with his Pax America comic with Grant Morrison.

Can we start speculating about a Marvel Icon series by Mark Millar and Frank Quitely for late 2011?

From Millar World:
MILLAR AND QUITELY AT 'PLAN B BOOKS' NEXT FRIDAY 25TH OF NOVEMBER AT 5PM FOR DRINKS!



From Bleeding Cool:
Last Night At Plan B

And as to who Millar’s mystery artist is for Monday’s announcement, it looks like, yes, it is a new comic book, and Frank says that it’s a bigger name artist than him…

Whatever it is, Mark Millar says he wrote it six years ago, and it’s in the superhero area. And that he’s been talking at Walking Dead broadcasters, AMC about it.

I’m wondering… is it the Dave Gibbons project, the reporting of which kicked off the Bleeding Cool site eighteen months ago?

From Bleeding Cool:
Hit Girl from Mark Millar and John Romita Jr, Supercrooks from Mark Millar and Leinil Yu

a new unnamed Image book from Millar and Frank Quitely, and a name for Gibbons’ and Millar’s new book will be announced in a couple of weeks after it has been fully registered.

[TheButcher]

From IGN:
Kapow! 11: Hit Girl Gets Spin-off - Mark Millar announces four new projects.

It seemed very much as though the secretive world of espionage has left an impression on Millar, as he's keeping the details of his fourth and final project very close to his chest. What do we know? Only that it will be his first collaboration with kinsman and artistic superstar Frank Quitely in ten years, and that it will be a multi-volume epic "like Star Wars".

[TheButcher]

From CA:
Don't Ask! Just Buy It! - April 13, 2011: Hulk. The Incredible Hulk.

* ^ CASANOVA: GULA #4
The lead feature is a reprint of Casanova #14, the final issue of the original series, in which an exceptionally clever bit of plotting comes to fruition; that's followed by a new story by Matt Fraction and Gabriel Bá, leading into the new Casanova series that's expected sometime this summer.

@ ^ INCREDIBLE HULKS #626
Amadeus Cho moves back over to the mothership from the Incredible Hercules serial; Greg Pak writes, Tom Grummett draws, Jock handles the cover; the Hulk, apparently, appears as a super-spy. Why has no one ever thought to do this before, besides the obvious? In further Marvel super-spy action, this week sees the release of S.H.I.E.L.D. Infinity, a one-shot by Jonathan Hickman and Gerald Parel that I bet is a full issue's worth of Hickman's backmatter-isms.

^ THOR BY WALTER SIMONSON OMNIBUS
$125 gets you Thor #337-382 (less two fill-ins) and the four-issue Balder the Brave mini. That's a whole lot of comics to squeeze into a hardcover; they're all recolored by Steve Oliff. As part of the massive 2011 proliferation of all things Thor-related, the thunder god's series also re-assumes the title Journey Into Mystery (which it hasn't had in over forty years) with this week's #622, and Kieron Gillen and Doug Braithwaite take over. (Thor proper is relaunching as The Mighty Thor in two weeks.)

From CA:
The 10 Most Awesome Moments In Walter Simonson's 'Thor'

This week, Marvel releases an absolutely massive omnibus that collects over a thousand pages of Walter Simonson's epic run on Thor, a book that I believe isn't just the best run on Thor, but the single greatest run on comics of all time.

That's a pretty bold statement when you consider that it's up against stuff like Alan Moore's Swamp Thing and over a hundred issues of Stan Lee and Jack Kirby on Fantastic Four, but I stand by it. In his five years as the book's writer, Simonson -- along with fellow creators Sal Buscema and John Workman -- not only defined Marvel's God of Thunder in a way that very few creators have ever managed to accomplish, he told the story of a grand adventure that combined mythology, magic and the Marvel Universe perfectly with a series of truly incredible moments.

That's why today, I'm opening up my copies to bring you The Ten Most Awesome Moments From Walter Simonson's Thor! But if you haven't already gotten a copy, read at your own peril: these pages might just scratch the surface of how good that run really is, but you're definitely about to see the high points!

[Pacino86845]

I"m actually waiting for that new Walt Simonson Thor Omnibus to ship by stupid amazon.ca

amazon.com has already started shipping theirs apparently, but .ca is making us canucks wait another week or so.

That said, this will be my introduction to Simonson's Thor run... all I know is that it's supposed to be the best Thor thing ever, and that Thor SPOILER metamorphosizes at some point(s).

[TheButcher]

From CA:
(Silver) Surf's Up in 'The Mighty Thor' #1 [Preview]

[TheButcher]

From CBR:
Rozum Takes On Nuns, Guns and Xombis

In 1994, Milestone Media released a comic book radically different from the rest of its primarily African-American superhero lineup. Titled "Xombi," the series focused on the immortal Korean-American David Kim as he investigated the supernatural, the occult and the downright weird for 22 issues. In 2011, DC Comics released the first issue of a new "Xombi" ongoing series, written by original creator John Rozum with art by Frazer Irving, fresh off his run on "Batman and Robin" with Grant Morrison.

Prior to the first "Xombi" series, Rozum wrote several "What If" stories for Marvel and was pitching original comic book ideas to various companies, all of which were turned down for being, in Rozum's words, "too weird." The writer's big break with Milestone came when Dwayne McDuffie, an old friend and RA from college, contacted Rozum and brought him onboard. Their collaboration resulted in "Xombi," a series that quickly became a cult hit. Originally drawn by J.J. Birch (and Denys Cowan, for the inaugural issue #0), after Milestone folded into the DC universe David Kim all but disappeared for years, returning in an alternate reality during "Infinite Crisis"and appearing for the first time in the DC Universe proper in "Brave and the Bold" #26. Now, "Xombi" and Rozum are back, incorporating David Kim, nuns and all, into the DCU.

CBR News spoke with Rozum about the new series as well as the changing role of minorities in media since the '90s, the original superhero premise of the comic and the surprising similarities between "Doctor Who" and "Xombi."

[TheButcher]

Stussy to Unveil its Marvel Tees and Trading Cards this Week [Video]

Stussy Marvel Series 1 | T-Shirts
The first series Stussy x Marvel The Ultimate Teamup will be released on April 27th and combines vintage Marvel characters with definitive Stussy designs. These styles feature the looks from rare and collectible comic books and posters with Marvel superheroes such as Wolverine, Silver Surfer, Punisher, Ghost Rider, Doctor Octopus, Doctor Doom and Captain America.

Artist Series 2 | T-Shirts
The second series Stussy x Marvel Special Edition Artist Series will be released on May 6th and features artwork by notable international artists Will Sweeney, David Shrigley, Bill Plympton, Gary Panter, John K., James Jarvis, Todd James, Mister Cartoon and Noah Butkus.

Marvel Kids T-Shirts
There will also be some tees for the kids featuring the following designs – Captain America, Doc Ock, Silver Surfer, Wolverine, SS Link and Marvel World Tour.

Stussy x Marvel Trading Cards
For the release of the project, we're producing sets of limited edition trading cards that will be given away with each purchase. The cards feature the art used in Series 1 & 2 and include bios and fun facts for each guest artist, telling the story for the entire project.

Read More: http://www.comicsalliance.com/2011/04/2 ... z1KoQnBQjo

[TheButcher]

FLASHPOINT FACTS: Snyder and Francis Build "Project Superman"

Plotter Scott Snyder and scripter Lowell Francis speak exclusively with CBR News about "Flashpoint: Project Superman" and how the miniseries ties into DC's major alternate timeline event.

[TheButcher]

From Bleeding Cool:
Francis Manapul On Leaving Flash… In A Flash

Artist Francis Manapul didn’t draw last week’s issue of Flash, Scott Kolins did, despite Francis being listed in the solicitions, and the book having been rescheduled after previous issues were late. Francis is also no longer listed on upcoming issues, which has caused some pained internet discussion.

After an initial tweet, Francis addressed this issue head on with his blog, Art Journal 2.0. He writes;

As some of you I’m sure have noticed I didn’t draw the recently released Flash #11. I’m disappointed that I didn’t get to finish this story arc. However, in order to get the last 2 issues out before Flashpoint they had to be done in an impossible time frame that there was no way I could do it without the work suffering. Talking to my editors we felt it wasn’t the right situation for me, and that we should begin developing my next project. That said, I will state on the record that I’ve never had an issue with turning in my work and editorial has never had a problem with me. I may have stumbled a bit out of the gate as I was on the road filming during my first 3-4 issues of the Flash, but with the lead time we had we were able to avoid any major delays. I take my normal 4-5 weeks to pencil, ink, and watercolor a book which is the standard time everybody gets just to pencil it. Much of the delays were due to the multiple stops and starts in the work process that is completely out of my hands. Hopefully I won’t have to address this issue again, but I just felt the need to clarify to try and avoid further vilification.

Moving forward my next project at DC is in the works. I’m EXTREMELY EXCITED about it, and my editors enthusiasm and endless support has been great! I’ve been developing it with my collaborator and editorial soon after my last issue of the Flash. Hopefully if all goes well, we can get started on doing the new book in the next couple of weeks. In the meantime I’ve done a few covers for Flashpoint as well as other DC titles, I also ended up contributing 5 pages for Flash 12 to help close out the series.

I’m so jazzed about the future and my next project, I think a lot of people will be too. I appreciate the fans that’s stuck with me through this time and patiently waited. I really feel that the best is yet to come, and that 2011 will be an even bigger year for me. Thanks for reading!