This week Super Folk, Publishers Weekly’s superhero news rundown, looks at the new and licensed series coming from IDW, Dynamite, Image and BOOM Studios, DC’s new online store, Marvel tidbits, news from the Kapow! Con in the U.K., the Glyph and Stan Lee Award winners and more.
DC Comics in the News
Last week DC Comics debuted its new webstore, offering fans a plethora of merchandise including apparel, collectibles, DVDs and more. The new online store also has a new graphic novel section, and although it currently contains only a small selection of bestsellers, it is uncommon to see a comic publisher sell their comics (both print and digital) directly, instead of through a brick and mortar store or digital vendor.
Along with the opening of its new webstore, DC Comics dropped a number of titles from its subscription service, beginning with the recently canceled Justice League International. While the reasoning behind the exclusions usually have to do with poor sales and could be an early sign that a book on its last legs (see JLI), Aquaman and Swamp Thing, two series that sell well each month, were also curiously dropped. With rumors of some sort of upcoming JLI/ Justice League integration, some fans speculate similar plans could be in store, although DC Co-Publisher Dan Didio has stated poor subscription sales as the sole reason. For those subscribed to the dropped books, DC is offering alternative titles from its existing subscription library.
DC Comics also introduced its new HD retina display for its Apple iOS app, featuring higher resolution displays for all its digital titles. Marvel and comiXology introduced similar upgrades in March.
In issues #11,12 and the recently announced Annual, The Flash is set to face off against his arch nemeses, The Rogues, and marks the New 52 debut of a few members of the team. In an interview with Comic Book Resources, series creators Francis Manapul and Brian Buccellato talked about updating the looks of some of the Rogues, but only changed things out of necessity to the story. For the most part, they said, the characters and their costumes will remain mostly unchanged.
DC at Kapow!
At Kapow! Con in London over the weekend, DC execs including Dan Didio and senior v-p Bob Wayne discussed a number of topics such as the upcoming annuals, cancelation of JLI, but the item bound to get the most press is the reveal of a change in a major character’s sexual orientation. The members of the “DC All Access” panel, including writer Scott Snyder and artist Ian Churchill, did not identify the character, and it is currently unknown when or where the publisher will make the announcement.
Also at Kapow! DC let slip some Before Watchmen news , specifically that legendary artist Jim Steranko will draw the variant cover for the first issue of the Rorschach miniseries (written by Brian Azzarello and illustrated by Lee Bermejo), and that the villain Moloch could potentially star in his own series. In other Before Watchmen news, (very) early reviews and impressions of a handful of the miniseries have emerged, and although DC only showed mostly unfinished art, they’re mostly positive and point to the commitment the creators, specifically the artists, are bringing to the books.
New from BOOM!, IDW, Dynamite and Image
Last week, publishers announced and teased a string of upcoming series and releases including a number of well-known licensed properties. First BOOM! Studios revealed a new Planet of the Apes annual coming in August. The title will be written by Jeff Parker and illustrated by Gabriel Hardman (the two previously collaborated on Marvel’s Agent of Atlas), and feature other creators such as Carlos Magno, John Lucas ,Corinna Bechko, and Daryl Gregory, all telling new stories from the Apes world.
On Monday, BOOM! teased a new Avengers comic, based on the British action-espionage series starring Steed and Ms. Peel. The new series, which marks the first new Avengers material in decades, will be written by Mark Waid (Daredevil, Thrillbent).
IDW revealed a July release date for its new Crow series, written by original The Crow screenwriter John Shirley and illustrated by Kevin Colden, that sees the spirit of vengeance emerge in Japan to help an exchange student avenge the death of a loved one. The publisher also announced the October release of Judge Dredd: The Complete Brian Bolland, a special hardcover collection of all nineteen issues of Judge Dredd drawn by the fan favorite British artist, and written by Dredd-regular John Wagner. The publisher also announced Joe Kubert’s Tarzan of the Apes: Artist Edition, a new oversized, black and white hardcover collecting six of the legendary artist’s stories including a four-part origin story, to be released in September. Finally, IDW revealed a new Love and Capes miniseries, Love and Capes: What to Expect, arriving this August by creator Thom Zahler. The series will revisit super powered couple Mark and Abby as they expect their first child, and the series’ covers will feature guest inkers including Jerry Ordway, Rich Faber and Sean Tiffany.
Dynamite Entertainment announced the return of Thun’da, in a new ongoing series written by Robert Place Napton (Warlord of Mars) and illustrated by Cliff Richards (Dollhouse). The new series follows Roger Drum, a soldier who suffers amnesia after crash landing in a remote African jungle populated by dinosaurs and other creatures, and must use his instincts and survival skills to survive. The first issue, out in August, will also include the first story of the classic Thun’da, illustrated by Frank Frazetta.
Finally, at Kapow! Con, Image comics and publisher Eric Stephenson revealed Storm Dogs, a new crime/space exploration series by David Hine (The Bulletproof Coffin) and Doug Braithwaite (Journey Into Mystery). Hine, along with Bulletproof Coffin artist Shaky Kane, also gave the first details on their new comic, Adamski, about the real 1940s UFO witness and expert, George Adamski.
Marvel in The News
At the “Avengers Vs. X-Men” panel at Kapow! Con, chief creative officer Joe Quesada, v-p of creative CB Cebulski and writer Kieron Gillen discussed the blockbuster series and answered fans’ questions about its development stages and what to expect in the coming months. The three touched on the “No More Avengers” teaser from two weeks ago for AvX #6, as well as the upcoming inclusion of characters such as the villain Sinister, Cable, Bishop, the Young Avengers, Nova, Charles Xavier, and (most notably) Jean Grey, the original Phoenix host. All the panelists were brimming with excitement for the upcoming cliffhanger in issue #5 and latter half of the series which follows.
In an interview with Comic Book Resources from C2E2, Current Amazing Spider-Man writer Dan Slott hinted at huge developments in the series’ upcoming 700th issue to coincide with Avengers Vs. X-Men’s cataclysmic effects on the Marvel Universe. The writer colorfully likened the issue to “whack[ing] at the comic book piñata…and all the candy’s coming out. It’s not going back together.”
Last week Marvel gave the first look at August’s Avengers Assemble #6, which marks the return of the Guardians of the Galaxy to the Marvel Universe. After Thanos was revealed to be the main antagonist the series, it seemed inevitable that the rest of Marvel’s cosmic line, especially the Guardians of the Galaxy, wouldn’t be far behind. senior v-p of publishing Tom Brevoort highlighted the increased visibility of the cosmic line, both within the comics (beginning this fall) and elsewhere, such as in the cartoon, Avengers: Earth’s Mightiest Heroes, and, most notably, in Marvel’s The Avengers.
After announcing that all its titles priced at $2.99 will be self-cover, in which the paper quality of the cover is that of the interior pages, Marvel expanded the change to its $3.99 comics as well, beginning in July. Finally, artist Michael Allred (iZombie, Madman) will draw Daredevil #17 (written by Mark Waid), out in August.
Glyph and Stan Lee Awards
The Glyph Awards, for comics by and about people of color, announced its 2012 winners, with Sara Pichelli winning Best Artist for her work on Ultimate Spider-Man, as well as series protagonist Miles Morales winning Best Male Character. Pichelli also won big at the Stan Lee Awards at Kapow! Con, winning the Best Artist and Best Newcomer categories. Scott Snyder won Best Writer and Man of the Year, and his Detective Comics run (with artists Jock and Francesco Francavilla) won Best Ongoing Series. Uncanny X-Force’s “The Dark Angel Saga” won Best Limited Series and DC Comics won Best Publisher.
