Disney Publishing Worldwide Launches Disney Comics App for iPad, iPhone and iPod touch
Over 80 Years of Disney Comics Are Now Available to Readers Digitally, Including Mickey Mouse, Cinderella, Cars 2 and More
Fans can Tweet the Release Using the #DisneyComics Hashtag
WHITE PLAINS, N.Y.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Disney Publishing Worldwide announced today its new Disney Comics App for iPad, iPhone and iPod touch is now available on the App Store. Disney Comics gives readers instant access to one of the most extensive collections of comics, short stories and graphic novels ever created, ranging from classic adventures starring Mickey Mouse to brand new comics from Toy Story and Cars 2.
The launch collection includes more than 50 comics for readers of all ages and features Disney classic characters like Donald Duck; Disney-Pixar comics featuring Toy Story’s Buzz and Woody; Disney Channel-inspired content including High School Musical; and feature film-based comics based on Tron: Legacy and Tangled. Disney Publishing will release two new titles each week following the launch.
The Disney Comics App will launch in the U.S. and will also be available on the App Store in over 80 countries across the Americas, Europe, Asia, Africa, and Australia. Additional markets will launch Disney Comics later this year.
“Comics are a tremendous part of our heritage and we see great potential and interest in bringing our extensive catalog of Disney Comics to mobile devices,” said Russell Hampton, President, Disney Publishing Worldwide. “We create over 25,000 original comic pages each year and it’s critical that we deliver this content to our readers around the world. We have over 1 billion Disney comic readers today, and our Disney Comics App will further broaden that audience.”
The Disney Comics App offers a new, director-style reading experience; readers can choose portrait or landscape mode, automatic or manual smart paneling, and can view double spreads. Disney Comics also enables readers to preview comics before making a purchase, share their stories with Facebook friends, and save all content to their iPad, iPhone or iPod touch for offline reading. An added feature lets readers receive automatic updates when stories relating to a favorite Disney character become available.
The Disney Comics App is available for free from the App Store on iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch, or at www.itunes.com/appstore. Individual stories are $.99 and themed bundles are available for $3.99 through In-App Purchase.
For more information, visit www.disney.com/disneycomics and www.facebook.com/DisneyDigitalBooks, or follow @DisneyDigiBooks on Twitter.
Disney Publishing Worldwide (DPW) is the world’s largest publisher of children’s books and magazines, with over 250 million children’s books and over 400 million children’s magazines sold each year. Disney Publishing Worldwide consists of an extensive worldwide licensing structure as well as vertically integrated publishing imprints including Disney Book Group in the U.S., Disney Libri in Italy and Disney Libros in Spain. DPW publishes a range of children’s magazines globally including Topolino, Le Journal de Mickey, and Donald Duck, as well as family titles in the U.S. which include Disney FamilyFun and Phineas and Ferb. Disney English is DPW’s English language learning business which includes Disney English schools in China and a worldwide retail licensing program. DPW’s digital products include bestselling eBook titles as well as original apps. Headquartered in White Plains, NY, Disney Publishing Worldwide publishes books, magazines, and digital products in 85 countries in 75 languages. For more information visit http://www.disneypublishing.com/.
Sunday, June 26, 2011
Friday, June 24, 2011
Dark Horse Announces "Scary Godmother" for Halloween
DARK HORSE PARTNERS WITH DIAMOND TO OFFER RETAILERS A SPECIAL SCARY GODMOTHER HALLOWEEN ASHCAN!
JUNE 22, MILWAUKIE, OR—Dark Horse offers comics fans of all ages something special this Halloween that won’t rot your teeth! Sized perfectly for just about any trick-or-treat bag, this Halloween ashcan of Jill Thompson’s Scary Godmother is a perfect alternative to Halloween candy.
This special giveaway features the story “Tea for Orson,” from the Scary Godmother hardcover collection, released by Dark Horse last fall. Follow Harry and Orson on a fun eleven-page quest to sneak into a tea party, hosted by none other than Scary Godmother herself! As an added bonus, this Halloween treat features a two-page short, “Wild about Harry.”
Jill Thompson is a New York Times best-selling graphic novelist, as well as the winner of multiple Eisner Awards for her work on Scary Godmother (2001), The Dark Horse Book of Hauntings (2004), The Dark Horse Book of Witchcraft (2005), and The Dark Horse Book of Monsters (2007). Recently, she became the first female artist to win the highly coveted National Cartoonists Society Award, for her work on the Dark Horse series Beasts of Burden.
Retailers can order these special ashcans in packs of twenty-five, as a great giveaway item on the spookiest holiday of the year!
JUNE 22, MILWAUKIE, OR—Dark Horse offers comics fans of all ages something special this Halloween that won’t rot your teeth! Sized perfectly for just about any trick-or-treat bag, this Halloween ashcan of Jill Thompson’s Scary Godmother is a perfect alternative to Halloween candy.
This special giveaway features the story “Tea for Orson,” from the Scary Godmother hardcover collection, released by Dark Horse last fall. Follow Harry and Orson on a fun eleven-page quest to sneak into a tea party, hosted by none other than Scary Godmother herself! As an added bonus, this Halloween treat features a two-page short, “Wild about Harry.”
Jill Thompson is a New York Times best-selling graphic novelist, as well as the winner of multiple Eisner Awards for her work on Scary Godmother (2001), The Dark Horse Book of Hauntings (2004), The Dark Horse Book of Witchcraft (2005), and The Dark Horse Book of Monsters (2007). Recently, she became the first female artist to win the highly coveted National Cartoonists Society Award, for her work on the Dark Horse series Beasts of Burden.
Retailers can order these special ashcans in packs of twenty-five, as a great giveaway item on the spookiest holiday of the year!
Naruto: Sasuke vs. Danzo
I read Naruto, Vol. 51 (Naruto (Graphic Novels))
I posted a review at the Comic Book Bin (which has FREE smart phone apps).
I posted a review at the Comic Book Bin (which has FREE smart phone apps).
Thursday, June 23, 2011
Dark Horse Provides Retailer Incentives for Eric Powell's Chimichanga
GET YOUR CHIMICHANGA!
FRESH RETAIL INCENTIVE FROM DARK HORSE COMICS!
June 21, MILWAUKIE, OR—Eric Powell, the Eisner Award–winning creator of The Goon, takes readers on the road with a traveling show populated by a bizarre and endearing cast of characters in Chimichanga ($14.99), his first-ever tale for audiences of all ages!
In celebration of this release, Dark Horse and creator Eric Powell have extended their initial order incentive. Now through July 6, for every three copies of the hardcover that you order, you will receive one free copy of the original issue #1—signed by Eric Powell!
Originally a three-issue limited series, Chimichanga was hailed by Broken Frontier as “full of that youthful vigor that makes The Goon such a delight,” and it’s just one event in what assistant editor Daniel Chabon described to consumers as “the return of Eric Powell”:
“His hit series The Goon comes back in its bimonthly schedule, a new Billy the Kid series is on the horizon, and on September 28, get ready for his first all-ages book, Chimichanga—a story about an adorable little bearded girl who must save her ailing sideshow with the help of a large, green, googly-eyed behemoth she gets from a witch’s magic egg.
“Has that piqued your interest yet? Our deluxe hardcover edition will feature all the previously published Chimichanga comics; a brand-new ten-page story made especially for this edition and colored by Eisner Award winner Dave Stewart, and some early concept designs and sketches. Be sure to grab a copy of this book, because you’re in for a treat!”
About Dark Horse Comics
Since 1986, Dark Horse Comics has proven to be a solid example of how integrity and innovation can help broaden a unique storytelling medium and establish a small, homegrown company as an industry giant. The company is known for the progressive and creator-friendly atmosphere it provides for writers and artists. In addition to publishing comics from top talent like Frank Miller, Mike Mignola, Neil Gaiman, Gerard Way, and comics legend Will Eisner, Dark Horse has developed such successful characters as the Mask, Timecop, and SpyBoy. Additionally, its highly successful line of comics and products based on popular properties includes Star Wars, Indiana Jones, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Aliens, Conan, Emily the Strange, Tim Burton, Trigun, Serenity, and Domo. Today Dark Horse Comics is the largest independent comic-book publisher in the US and is recognized as one of the world’s leading publishers of licensed comics material.
FRESH RETAIL INCENTIVE FROM DARK HORSE COMICS!
June 21, MILWAUKIE, OR—Eric Powell, the Eisner Award–winning creator of The Goon, takes readers on the road with a traveling show populated by a bizarre and endearing cast of characters in Chimichanga ($14.99), his first-ever tale for audiences of all ages!
In celebration of this release, Dark Horse and creator Eric Powell have extended their initial order incentive. Now through July 6, for every three copies of the hardcover that you order, you will receive one free copy of the original issue #1—signed by Eric Powell!
Originally a three-issue limited series, Chimichanga was hailed by Broken Frontier as “full of that youthful vigor that makes The Goon such a delight,” and it’s just one event in what assistant editor Daniel Chabon described to consumers as “the return of Eric Powell”:
“His hit series The Goon comes back in its bimonthly schedule, a new Billy the Kid series is on the horizon, and on September 28, get ready for his first all-ages book, Chimichanga—a story about an adorable little bearded girl who must save her ailing sideshow with the help of a large, green, googly-eyed behemoth she gets from a witch’s magic egg.
“Has that piqued your interest yet? Our deluxe hardcover edition will feature all the previously published Chimichanga comics; a brand-new ten-page story made especially for this edition and colored by Eisner Award winner Dave Stewart, and some early concept designs and sketches. Be sure to grab a copy of this book, because you’re in for a treat!”
About Dark Horse Comics
Since 1986, Dark Horse Comics has proven to be a solid example of how integrity and innovation can help broaden a unique storytelling medium and establish a small, homegrown company as an industry giant. The company is known for the progressive and creator-friendly atmosphere it provides for writers and artists. In addition to publishing comics from top talent like Frank Miller, Mike Mignola, Neil Gaiman, Gerard Way, and comics legend Will Eisner, Dark Horse has developed such successful characters as the Mask, Timecop, and SpyBoy. Additionally, its highly successful line of comics and products based on popular properties includes Star Wars, Indiana Jones, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Aliens, Conan, Emily the Strange, Tim Burton, Trigun, Serenity, and Domo. Today Dark Horse Comics is the largest independent comic-book publisher in the US and is recognized as one of the world’s leading publishers of licensed comics material.
Leroy Douresseaux on CONAN ROAD OF KINGS #6
DARK HORSE COMICS
WRITER: Roy Thomas
PENCILS: Mike Hawthorne
INKS: John Lucas
COLORS: Dan Jackson
LETTERS: Richard Starkings & Comicraft
COVER: Doug Wheatley
32pp, Color, $3.50
Conan: Road of Kings is the third ongoing Conan series from Dark Horse Comics, following Conan (50 issues, 2004-2008) and Conan the Cimmerian (25 issues, 2008-2010). Scheduled to run 12 issues, Conan: Road of Kings is written by Conan storytelling legend, Roy Thomas.
Road of Kings follows Conan as he travels from the easternmost edge to the westernmost shores of the map of the Hyborian age (drawn by Robert E. Howard, the creator of Conan). To reach his destination, Conan must trek the fabled Road of Kings that winds its way through the civilized kingdoms. Along the way, he helps people fight against monsters, malevolent magic, and the power-mad, while also protecting his own skin.
As Conan: Road of Kings #6 begins, our favorite sullen-eyed, dark-haired barbarian is in the capitol of Ophir, specifically in the palace of King Kennak. There, he prepares to rescue the king’s daughter, Olivia, from a death sentence pronounced by her own father! The real culprit, however, is Olivia’s stepmother, Queen Sophonesba, whom Olivia believes killed her birth mother. Conan may have met his match, as Sophonesba has a mystic ring and the powerful astrologer, Necrodemus, on her side. Meanwhile, the sword-handed assassin, Gamesh, awaits Conan.
Roy Thomas is the most famous and prolific writer of Conan’s comic book adventures. One issue of a Roy Thomas Conan comic book is like three of another writer’s, because there are multiple subplots. This sixth issue of Road of Kings seems to be three tales: the rescue of Olivia, the guard Captain Jemal, and Olivia’s kidnapper Fharos; the royal family drama; and Conan’s battle against Gamesh. Honestly, while these stories are entertaining, they’re not slam dunk-exciting like Conan: Island of No Return, although the Gamesh battle offers a hot finish.
The art by penciller Mike Hawthorne and inker John Lucas is dynamic and clean, with excellent coloring by Dan Jackson. The art, however, looks like a better fit for an adventure comedy set in the sword and sorcery genre. The art is more slick than dramatic, although it does give the bloodletting an edge and also seems to work for the Gamesh battle at the end of this issue.
B+
Wednesday, June 22, 2011
Bluewater's Stephen King Biocomic Now in Stores
Author Stephen King, the best-selling master of horror who has terrified a generation with his nightmarish imagination, helps give voice to his own tale in a special edition of Bluewater Productions' latest biography comic title “Orbit; Stephen King”. The comic book will will hit comic shops and online retailers on June 22nd. The 32-page comic retails for $3.99.
The book, which is by Michael Lent and Brian McCarthy and penciled by Kent Hurlburt and an amazing cover by Micha_ Szyksznian. To find a comic book store near you go to http://www.comicshoplocator.com/. The comic book will also be available at Barnes & Noble as well as Amazon.
Co-author Michael Lent says: “One story we confirmed concerned a young King witnessing a friend's accident involving a train (long thought to be a source of his macabre inspirations). Until now, the story was largely apocryphal and wasn't mentioned in King's autobiography. It's a great feeling when you can resolve something once and for all.”
“Orbit: Stephen King,” follows King's career from a struggling writer to prolific best-selling author. It includes insight on his legacy as a writer, his love of the Boston Red Sox, forays into film, drug and alcohol issues, and the accident that nearly cost him his life.
In writing about his near-death in 1999, the authors used King's own account along with police reports that differed from accounts given by some of the media, according to Lent.
“What really enlightened us were the similarities we found between Stephen King and Keith Richards of the Rolling Stones. Both came from dirt-poor families. Both had talents that were shepherded by strong, supportive mothers. Both had absent fathers. Each practiced doggedly every day -- their talents weren't hobbies, but their salvation. It brought them fame and fortune, it sustained them during their darkest hours of drug addiction and it, literally, gave them both a road to recovery when their lives were nearly cut short in tragic accidents,” added co-author Brian McCarthy.
“Orbit” was launched in April 2011 with a focused skew towards a more male demographic. “When we weighed the possibilities of featuring personalities like King, Howard Stern, LeBron James, Gary Gygax and JRR Tolkien into our existing titles, the tone and tenor didn't match. Their enduring popularity and contributions to popular culture are worthy of coverage, but they needed a different voice in which to present the material. 'Orbit' fits that bill”. The biographies have been featured on CNN, The Tonight Show, Entertainment Tonight, FOX News and more.
About Bluewater Productions
Bluewater Productions Inc. is one of the top independent production studios of comic books, young adult books and graphic novels. Its extensive catalog of titles includes the bestsellers “10th Muse” and “The Legend of Isis” ”Bluewater publishes comic books in partnership with entertainment icon William Shatner (“TekWar Chronicles”), legendary filmmaker Ray Harryhausen (“Wrath of the Titans,” “Sinbad: Rogue of Mars,” “Jason and the Argonauts,” et al) and celebrated actor Vincent Price (“Vincent Price Presents”), Additionally, Bluewater publishes a highly successful line of biographical comics under the titles “Female Force” and “Political Power.”
Bluewater aims to unite cutting-edge art and engaging stories produced by its stable of the publishing industry's top artists and writers.
For more information, visit http://www.bluewaterprod.com/.
Leroy Douresseaux on RAGE #1
DARK HORSE BOOKS
SCRIPT: Arvid Nelson
PENCILS: Andrea Mutti
INKS: Pierluigi Baldassini
COLORS: Michael Atiyeh
LETTERS: Michael Heisler
COVER: Glenn Fabry (alternate cover by Stephan Martiniere)
32pp, Color, $3.50
Dark Horse Comics is publishing a comic book based upon Rage, the upcoming first-person shooter game from developer, id Software, creators of Doom and Quake, and publisher, Bethesda Softworks. The three-issue comic book miniseries is written by Arvid Nelson (the creator of Rex Mundi) and drawn by Andrea Mutti, and the story, entitled “After the Impact,” is an original tale and an introduction to the world of Rage.
In the back story of Rage, Asteroid 99942 – codename: Apophis – strikes Earth on April 13, 2037. Five billion people die within 24 hours. A tiny fraction of the population survives the attack by living in burrowing cryo arks, but they emerge to find Earth a wasteland controlled by a global military dictatorship called the Authority.
In Rage #1, Dr. Elizabeth Cadence emerges from her life-sustaining ark and is immediately confronted by murderous marauders. She is rescued by Authority forces and taken to their home base, The Dead City. Cadence is also familiar with an Authority officer, Casey. As a scientist, Dr. Cadence helps the Authority, but discovers that what she has learned is not the truth.
Between the title page synopsis and this first issue, comic book readers will have a nice introduction to the world of Rage, and they will certainly have an entertaining read in this comic book.
The script by Arvid Nelson is clean and streamlined, and Nelson manages to introduce the personalities of and the conflict between the two characters that are the focus (at least at this point), Dr. Cadence and Casey. The only problem here is that this first issue seems like a prologue to the real action, which, in the context of a three-issue miniseries, suggests that there may not be a lot of story in the series. [Of course, I could be wrong.]
Artist Andrea Mutti’s graphic style is perfect for this science fiction tale. Mutti’s clean compositions make for good storytelling, and Mutti has a knack for drawing faces that convey personality traits and complex emotions. Cover artist Glenn Fabry may be the big name here, but Mutti’s interior art is the star.
B+
http://www.rage.com/
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