Showing posts with label Jim Shooter. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Jim Shooter. Show all posts

Tuesday, July 29, 2025

I Reads You Juniors: July 2025 - UPDATE #50

by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"

You can support Leroy via Paypal or on Patreon.

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TREATS - From AnotherCookie:  There is a new online cookie retailer. It is called "AnotherCookie?" and the cookies are delicious.

NEWS:

SDCC:

EISNERS - From BleedingCool:  The winners 2025 Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards have been announced.

MARVEL/DC - From BleedingCool:  Frank Miller will contribute some "Wolverine vs. Batman" art for Marvel/DC's upcoming "Deadpool/Batman #1."

MARVEL - From BleedingCool:  There are more details about Abram ComicArts three-volume publication of John Byrne's fan-fiction, "X-Men" Elsewhen."  It was written and penciled by Byrne.  For Abrams editons, the art will be inked by Byrne and Bryen fan, Paul Wills; colored by Lovern Kindzierski and Leonard O’Grady, and lettered by Byrne and Patrick Brosseau.  There will also be guest inkers, such as comics legend, Walt Simonson.

From BleedingCoolJohn Byrne's 32-issue fan-fiction "X-Men" comic book, "X-Men: Elsewhen," will be collected in three volumes by Abrams via its "Marvel Arts."  The comic book will be inked and colored for the first time and it will be re-lettered.  The first volume is due April 2026.
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MARVEL - From BleedingCool:  Writer Jimmy Palmiotti and artist Dan Panosian are producing a four issue miniseries, "Marvel Knights: The Punisher," as part of Marvel's celebration of the late "Marvel Knights" imprint.

SUPERMAN - From TheNewYorker:  "The New Yorker" has revived a 2013 article, "Kryptonomics," by writer Deborah Friedell about how Superman's creators, Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, got a raw deal on the sale of their creation to National Periodicals.

From Deadline:  The opening weekend box office estimates for James Gunn's "Superman" range from 122 million dollars to 125 million dollars.

From Forbes:  Actor Edi Gathegi talks about trusting James Gunn's vision for "Superman."  Gathegi plays "Mister Terrific" in the film.

From THR:  Writer James Hibberd of "The Hollywood Reporter" says "Stop, Already, With Superhero Movies Ending With Big, Dumb CG Smash Battles."
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COMICS TO FILM - From THR:  There is a hot film package getting the attention of Hollywood studios heads.  It features director Taika Waititi and writer Drew Pearce bring British comic book icon, Judge Dredd, back to film.

DC STUDIOS - From ComicsBulletin:  HBO Max's "The Penguin" earned 24 nominations at the 2025 / 77th Primetime Emmy Awards.  That is the second most for a television series based on a comic book.  HBO's "Watchmen" earned 26 nominations and won 11.  The winners will be announced in a series of ceremonies that culminated in the 77th Primetime Emmy Awards ceremony on September 14th.

DC COMICS - From DCBlogMark Waid talks about his latest comics project for DC Comics, the four-issue limited series, "New History of the DC Universe."

SD COMIC-CON - From TheWrap:  At San Diego Comic Con 2500, the 6500-seat venue, "Hall H," is where Hollywood studios come to launch major franchises. However, the major studios, including Lucasfilm ("Star Wars"), Warner Bros./DC, and Marvel Studios, are skipping the film panels.

MARVEL - From BleedingCoolThe Fantastic Four return to newsstands in the "bookazine" (a book-like magazine) entitled, "Marvel Comics: The Fantastic Four."  It will be comprised of reprinted stories, but none of the stories will be from Stan Lee & Jack Kirby or John Byrne. The issue is out July 4, 2025, and each issues comes with $30 in free digital comics.  According to Amazon, the book costs $14.99 for 96 pages.

SDCC:

IMAGE COMICS - From ComicsBulletin: Image Comics has announced its full lineup of panels, signings, and variants-for-sale at the 2025 San Diego Comic-Con.  The convention takes place from Wed., July 23rd to Sun., July 27th, 2025.

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EN MEMORIAM - From Forbes:  Comic book industry writer, editor, publisher, and executive, Jim Shooter, has died at the age of 73, Monday, June 30, 2025 (of esophageal).  A pivotal and important figure in the development and modernization of the American comic book industry, it would eat up too much space to list all his accomplishments.  However, Shooter is best remembered as the Marvel Comics' Editor-in-Chief (EiC) from January 1978 to April 1987.  Shooter was Marvel ninth EiC and some believe that he issued in a second "Golden Age" at Marvel during his tenure.  After Marvel, Shooter would go on to co-found the comic book publishers, Valiant Comics, Defiant Comics, and Broadway Comics.  As a writer, Shooter wrote the 1984-85 landmark comic book miniseries, "Marvel Super Heroes Secrets Wars," which is commonly known as "Secret Wars."  Shooter started writing comic books at the age of 14 for DC Comics and made numerous important contributions to the "Legion of Super-Heroes" franchise.

From BleedingCool:  This obituary by "Bleeding Cool" summarizes and editorialized Jim Shooter's career in comic books.

From BleedingCool:  People from throughout the American comic book industry remember former Marvel Editor-in-Chief, Jim Shooter, who died on Monday, June 30th. The remembrances comes from such people as C.B. Cebulski, Erik Larsen, Jim Lee, Paul Levitz, Rob Liefeld, Chuck Rozanski, Walter Simonson, and Mark Waid, to name a few.

From TCJ:  "The Comics Journal" is apparently working on a proper obituary of Jim Shooter, the former Marvel Comics Editor-in-Chief who died Monday, June 30th. In the meantime, they have links to interviews they conducted with him.
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DC COMICS - From BleedingCool:  There are future "Batman" projects coming from Jim Cheung, Olivier Coipel, and from the team of Tom King and Steve McNiven.

IMAGE COMICS - From GamesRadar:  Robert Kirkman, famed writer of "The Walking Dead" comic book series, will take over as writer of the "Transformers" comic book series produced by his company, Skybound.  DC Comics star artist, Dan Mora, will draw the series.  There first issue is "Transformers #25," due in October.

BRITISH COMICS - From Empire:  Empire magazine has a first-look image from the animated feature film adaptation of "Rogue Trooper," the long-running comic book series from the venerable British comics magazine, "2000 AD."

MARVEL - From BleedingCool:   September's "Deadpool/Batman" crossover comic book from Marvel Comics will feature the lead Deadpool & Batman story by writer Zeb Wells and artist Greg Capullo.  It will also include these other following crossover back-up stories:

-- Captain America/Wonder Woman by Chip Zdarsky and Terry Dodson
-- Daredevil/Green Arrow by Kevin Smith and Adam Kubert
-- Jeff the Land Shark/Krypto by Kelly Thompson and Gurihiru

DC COMICS - From BleedingCool:  According to "Bleeding Cool," DC Comics will move to Universal Distribution, which is essentially the Canadian version of Diamond Comic Distributors, as the distribution of its comic books in the United States.  DC Comics is currently with Lunar Distribution.

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From BleedingCool:  Ablaze Comics for June 2025
From BleedingCool:  Ahoy Comics for June 2025
From BleedingCool:  AMP Comics for June 2025
From BleedingCool:  Antarctic Press for June 2025
From BleedingCool:  Archie Comics for June 2025
From BleedingCool:  AWA Studios for June 2025
From BleedingCool:  BOOM! Studios for June 2025
From BleedingCool:  Dark Horse Comics for June 2025
From BleedingCool:  DC Comics for June 2025
From BleedingCool:  Dren Comics for June 2025
From BleedingCool:  Dstlry Media for June 2025
From BleedingCool:  Dynamite Entertainent for June 2025
From BleedingCool:  IDW Publishing for June 2025
From BleedingCool:  Image Comics for June 2025
From BleedingCool:  Image Comics "Energon Universe" titles for June 2025
From BleedingCool:  Image Comics "Spawn" titles for June 2025
From BleedingCool:  Keensport Entertainment for June 2025
From BleedingCool:  Mad Cave Studios for June 2025
From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics for June 2025
From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics "One World Under Doom" crossover titles for June 2025
From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics "Ultimate Universe" for June 2025
From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics "Ultimate Comics" with "Scarlet Witch" for June 2025
From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics' "Ultimate Spider-Man: Incursion #1" for June 2025
From BleedingCool:  Oni Press for June 2025
From BleedingCool:  Rebellion / 2000 AD for June 202
From BleedingCool:  Titan Comics for June 2025
From BleedingCool:  Udon Entertainment for June 2025
From BleedingCool:  Zenescope Entertainment for June 2025

JULY 2025 COMICS SOLICITATIONS:
From BleedingCool:  Abrams for July 2025
From BleedingCool:  Afterlight Comics for July 2025
From BleedingCool:  Ahoy Comics for July 2025
From BleedingCool:  AMP Comics for July 2025
From BleedingCool:  Antarctic Press for July 2025
From BleedingCool:  Archie Comics for July 2025
From BleedingCool:  AWA Studios for July 2025
From BleedingCool:  Bad Idea for July 2025
From BleedingCool:  Bliss on Tap for July 2025
From BleedingCool:  BOOM Studios for July 2025
From BleedingCool:  Cosmic Lion Productions for July 2025
From BleedingCool:  Dark Horse Comics for July 2025
From BleedingCool:  DC Comics for July 2025
From BleedingCool:  DC Comics "Superman" titles for July 2025
From BleedingCool:  Devil's Due Studios for July 2025
From BleedingCool:  Dynamite Entertainment for July 2025
From BleedingCool:  Heavy Metal Magazine for July 2025
From BleedingCool:  IDW Publishing for July 2025
From BleedingCool:  Image Comics for July 2025
From BleedingCool:  Image Comics Skybound "Energon" titles for July 2025
From BleedingCool:  Image Comics "Ghost Machine" titles for July 2025
From BleedingCool:  Image Comics "Spawn" titles for July 2025
From BleedingCool:  Keenspot Entertainment for July 2025
From BleedingCool:  Mad Cave Studios for July 2025
From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics for July 2025
From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics "Bring on the Bad Guys" titles for July 2025
From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics "One World Under Doom" tie-in titles for July 2025
From BleedingCool:  Massive Publishing for July 2025
From BleedingCool:  Midnight Factory for July 2025
From BleedingCool:  Oni Press for July 2025
From BleedingCool:  Rebellion / 2000 AD for July
From BleedingCool:  Titan Comics for July 2025
From BleedingCool:  Uncivilized Comics for July 2025
From BleedingCool:  Vault Comics for July 2025

AUGUST 2025 COMICS SOLICITATIONS:
From BleedingCool:  Afterlight Comics for August 2025
From BleedingCool:  Ahoy Comics for August 2025
From BleedingCool:  AMP Comics for August 2025
From BleedingCool:  Antarctic Press for August 2025
From BleedingCool:  Archie Comics for August 2025
From BleedingCool:  Aspen MLT LLC for August 2025
From BleedingCool:  AWA Studios for August 2025
From BleedingCool:  Bad Ideas for August 2025
From BleedingCool:  BOOM! Studios for August 2025
From BleedingCool:  Cambrian Comics for August 2025
From BleedingCool:  Cosmic Lion Productions for August 2025
From BleedingCool:  Dark Horse Comics for August 2025
From BleedingCool:  DC Comics for August 2025
From BleedingCool:  DC Comics "Absolute Comics" titles for August 2025
From BleedingCool:  Dren Productions for August 2025
From BleedingCool:  Dynamite Entertainment for August 2025
From BleedingCool:  Fantagraphics Books for August 2025
From BleedingCool:  IDW Publishing for August 2025
From BleedingCool:  Image Comics for August 2025
From BleedingCool:  Image Comics "Energon" titles for August 2025
From BleedingCool:  Image Comics "Ghost Machine" for August 2025
From BleedingCool:  Image Comics "Spawn" titles for August 2025
From BleedingCool:  Keenspot Entertainment for August 2025
From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics for August 2025
From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics' "Bring on the Bad Guys" titles for August 2025
From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics' "One World Under Doom" titles for August 2025
From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics "Ultimate" titles for August 2025
From BleedingCool:  Oni Press for August 2025
From BleedingCool:  Panick Entertainment for August 2025
From BleedingCool:  Rebellion / 2000 AD for August 2025
From BleedingCool:  Titan Comics for August 2025
From BleedingCool:  Titan Comics "Conan" and "Solomon Kane" titles for August 2025
From BleedingCool:  Udon Studios for August 2025
From BleedingCool:  Valiant Comics for August 2025
From BleedingCool:  Vault Comics for August 2025
From BleedingCool:  Zenescope Entertainment for August 2025

SEPTEMBER 2025 COMICS SOLICITATIONS:
From BleedingCool:  Ablaze Publishing for September 2025
From BleedingCool:  Afterlight Comics for September 2025
From BleedingCool:  Ahoy Comics for September 2025
From BleedingCool:  AMP Comics for September 2025
From BleedingCool:  Archie Comics for September 2025
From BleedingCool:  AWA Studios for September 2025
From BleedingCool:  Bad Idea Comics for September 2025
From BleedingCool:  BOOM Studios for September 2025
From BleedingCool:  Dark Horse Comics for September 2025
From BleedingCool:  DC Comics for September 2025
From BleedingCool:  DC Comics for September 2025
From BleedingCool:  Dynamite Entertainment for September 2025
From BleedingCool:  Hexagon Comics for September 2025
From BleedingCool:  IDW Publishing for September 2025
From BleedingCool:  Image Comics for September 2025
From BleedingCool:  Image Comics "Energon Universtiy" titles for September 2025
From BleedingCool:  Image Comics' Todd McFarlane "Spawn" titles for September 2025
From BleedingCool:  Keenspot Entertainment for September 2025
From BleedingCool:  Mad Cave Studios for September 2025
From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics for September 2025
From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics "Godzilla Destroys the Marvel Universe" for September 2025
From BleedingCool:  Marvel's "One World Under Doom" titles for September 2025
From BleedingCool:  Marvel's "One World Under Doom #7" for September 2025
From BleedingCool:  Marvel "Ultimate Comics" titles for September 2025
From BleedingCool:  Oni Press for September 2025
From BleedingCool:  Rebellion / 2000 AD for September 2025
From BleedingCool:  Red 5 Comics for September 2025
From BleedingCool:  Aspen Comics for September 2025
From BleedingCool:  Shift Presents for September 2025
From BleedingCool:  Titan Comics for September 2025
From BleedingCool:  Vault Comics for September 2025
From BleedingCool:  Zenescope Entertainment for September 2025

OCTOBER 2025 COMICS SOLICITATIONS:
From BleedingCool:  Antarctic Press for October 2025
From BleedingCool:  AWA Studios for October 2025
From BleedingCool:  Bad Idea Comics for October 2025
From BleedingCool:  DC Comics for October 2025
From BleedingCool:  DC Comics collections, "Absolutes," and omnibuses for October 2025
From BleedingCool:  DC Comics "Absolute Comics" titles for October 2025
From BleedingCool:  Dynamite Entertainment for October 2025
From BleedingCool:  Image Comics for October 2025
From BleedingCool:  Image Comics "Void Rivals/Energon" titles for October 2025
From BleedingCool:  Mad Cave Studios for October 2025
From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics for October 2025
From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics "One World Under Doom" titles for October 2025
From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics five "X-Men: Age of Revelation" titles for October 2025
From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics all "X-Men: Age of Revelation" titles for October 2025
From BleedingCool:  Massive Publishing for October 2025
From BleedingCool:  Oni Press for October 2025
From BleedingCool:  Rebellion / 2000 AD for October 2025
From BleedingCool:  Titan Comics for October 2025
From BleedingCool:  Vault Comics for October 2025


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Tuesday, May 2, 2023

#IReadsYou Review: X-MEN GOD LOVES, MAN KILLS Extended Cut #1

X-MEN: GOD LOVES, MAN KILLS EXTENDED CUT #1 (OF 2)
MARVEL COMICS

STORY: Christopher Claremont
ART: Brent Eric Anderson
COLORS: Steve Oliff
LETTERS: Tom Orzechowski
EDITOR: Louise Jones (original); Jennifer Grunwald (extended cut)
EiC: Jim Shooter (original); Akira Yoshida a.k.a. C.B. Cebulski (extended cut)
COVER: Salvador Larroca with Guru-eFX
VARIANT COVER ARTISTS: Brent Anderson; Rod Reis; Giuseppe Camuncoli and Erick Arciniega
44pp, Color, $4.99 U.S. (June 2020)

Rated T+

The X-Men created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby


The X-Men are a Marvel Comics superhero team and franchise created by writer-editor Stan Lee and writer-artist Jack Kirby.  In The X-Men #1 (cover dated: September 1963), readers were introduced to a professor who was also team-leader to his students.  Each student had unique powers and abilities because he or she was a “mutant.”

X-Men: God Loves, Man Kills (Marvel Graphic Novel #5) was an original graphic novel published in 1982 by Marvel Comics.  It was written by Christopher Claremont and illustrated by Brent Eric Anderson.  Colorist Steve Oliff and letterer Tom Orzechowski completed the graphic novel's creative team.  The story pits the X-Men and their longtime enemy, Magneto, against a fanatical religious leader bent on exterminating “mutantkind.”  The graphic novel went on to become one of the most popular and beloved X-Men stories of all time.  Elements of the God Loves, Man Kills were used in the 2003 X-Men, film, X2: X-Men United.

Back in 2020, Marvel republished X-Men: God Loves, Man Kills as a two-issue miniseries, entitled X-Men: God Loves, Man Kills Extended Cut.  The series divides the story in two parts and brackets it with a new ten-page framing sequence or story produced by the original story's creating team.  The first issue of this “extended cut” opens with five pages of the framing sequence and the second issue ends with the other five pages.

In this new sequence, the member of the X-Men known as Kitty Pryde and her pet dragon, Lockheed, are in southwest Texas.  There, Kitty visits a young woman named Kate who met Erik Lehnsherr a.k.a. “Magneto.”  Kitty has decided to tell the young woman the story that is X-Men: God Loves, Man Kills.

X-Men: God Loves, Man Kills Extended Cut #1 opens in the “Gold Star Cafe,” somewhere in southwest Texas.  There, Kitty Pryde of the X-Men meets Kate, a friend of Magneto, and decides to tell her the story of a time when Kitty was new to the X-Men and was known by the code name, Ariel.

Once upon a time, there was a popular and fanatical religious leader named William Stryker who led a religious organization called the “Stryker Crusade.”  Under the guise of evangelical Christianity, Stryker hatched a plot to destroy all mutants on Earth.  To begin, Stryker targeted Charles Xavier a.k.a. Professor X, the lynch pin to his plot.

To get to Xavier, Stryker will have to go through the X-Men:  Cyclops, Storm, Wolverine, Colossus, Nightcrawler, and Kitty Pryde/Ariel.  To fight the X-Men, Stryker had a strike force, a form of armor-wearing men he called the “Purifiers.”

Professor X and his X-Men were unaware of the danger to their lives.  Colossus' younger sister, Illyana, was also living with the team.  After Professor X and two of his X-Men are captured, the X-Men begin to fight back, but they will find themselves needing help from the greatest enemy, Magneto.

THE LOWDOWN:  I read X-Men: God Loves, Man Kills several times in my youth, but prior to reading this reprint series, I don't think that I had read it in decades.  I didn't read the sequel to it that Chris Claremont wrote for his former X-Men comic book series, X-Treme X-Men (2001-04).  Entitled “God Love, Man Kills Part II, it ran from X-Treme X-Men #25 (July 2003) to X-Treme X-Men #30 (October 2003).  The entire story line was collected in the trade paperback, X-Treme X-Men Vol. 5: God Love, Man Kills (October 2003).

It turns out that I had forgotten quite a bit of “God Loves, Man Kills.”  That includes the action-packed final battle against the Purifiers and that final debate with William Stryker at the “Stryker Building.”  I also had forgotten that Claremont has Kitty Pryde use the term “nigger-lover” in anger at Stevie Hunter.  An African-America woman, Stevie was a recurring, non-mutant character, who mostly appeared in The Uncanny X-Men and New Mutants in the early 1980s.  Four decades later, I have to say that I don't like that scene very much and I'm not happy about the use of that term.  I'm not surprised that Marvel did not remove it, but I am sure that it would not be used today in a scene of a similar context.

X-Men: God Loves, Man Kills is a pivotal point in the publication history of the X-Men.  I believe that the X-Men began as a group of costume adventurers and superheroes who were defined by the fact that they were mutants and who faced prejudice because of it.  However, the original X-Men comic book series also focused on the action and was essentially an adventure serial.

After the debut of the “new X-Men” in 1974, writer Chris Claremont wrote the X-Men comic book as a serialized soap opera, although the X-Men team of the time traveled around the world having adventures and facing one peril after another.  Under Claremont, the X-Men and mutants, in general, became outcasts because of their mutant status.  No matter what they did as superheroes, being a mutant overshadowed or defined their actions.

Eventually, the X-Men, which was eventually re-titled “Uncanny X-Men,” became a comic book in which the narrative focused on prejudice, bigotry, racism, and hate.  The X-Men's struggles were a metaphor for the struggles of persecuted and hated minority groups fighting to be accepted by the wider society.  What made them different did not make them “less human” was a recurring theme, even as the traveled around the world and off it.

X-Men: God Loves, Man Kills was the point of no return.  Never again would the The Uncanny X-Men and its various spin-off series really be about adventure.  Past, present, and future – even future-past – would be about the mutant struggle and what forms the struggle would take.  Eventually, the X-Men would become a franchise that was insular and redundant.  I think that is why over time the Uncanny X-Men went from being a bestselling comic book franchise to being in the shadow of titles like Avengers, Batman, and Justice League, to name a few.

The mutant struggle became repetitive and tired and it began with a really memorable story, X-Men: God Loves, Man Kills.  The X-Men were once mutants who really wanted to prove that they could be the kind of superheroes who protected both mutants and humans and fought to save a world upon which both shared.  Then, the X-Men became just mutants.

Apparently, individual issues of comic books that are reprints of other individual comic books have been popular with buyers for more than a decade.  That is the only reason to reprint X-Men: God Loves, Man Kills Extended Cut.  The X-Men are not as relevant as they once were, and the original X-Men: God Loves, Man Kills was rendered irrelevant by repetition of its themes long ago.

As for the new framing sequence:  there is a kernel of something relevant in Claremont's scenario.  And Brent Anderson's art reminds us that he is still an important artist in the history of X-Men publications despite his small output in the franchise.  If one of the themes of X-Men: God Loves, Man Kills was and still is “hope,” then, X-Men: God Loves, Man Kills Extended Cut, at least for me, suggests that there is hope for the X-Men  It is hope that the franchise can be more than what it is now – a consumer product, an intellectual property (IP), and for some, a fetish.

I READS YOU RECOMMENDS:  Fans of the original X-Men: God Loves, Man Kills will want to give X-Men: God Loves, Man Kills Extended Cut a try.

[This comic book includes two interviews, one with Chris Claremont and one with Brent Anderson.]

A-
★★★½ out of 4 stars

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"



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Thursday, October 27, 2022

#IReadsYou Review: VOID INDIGO #1

VOID INDIGO #1
MARVEL COMICS

STORY: Steve Gerber
ART: Val Mayerik
COLORS: Val Mayerik
LETTERS: Carrie McCarthy
EDITOR: Archie Goodwin
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF: Jim Shooter
32pp, Color, $1.50 U.S., $1.95 CAN (November 1984)

Void Indigo created by Steve Gerber and Val Mayerik

Book Two: “Spikes and Demons;” Part One: “Killing to Be Clever”


Void Indigo was a short-lived and controversial comic book series written by the late Steve Gerber (1947-2008) and drawn by Val Mayerik. It was published by Epic Comics from 1983 to 1984.  The series began life as Marvel Graphic Novel No. 11: Void Indigo (1983), also from Gerber and Mayerik.

Void Indigo the graphic novel is set 11,000 years in Earth's past.  The story takes place in a kingdom called “Kur,” which is ruled by a quartet of sorcerers known as the “Dark Lords,” whose place of origin is apparently Atlantis.  Their names are Koth, Hemuth, Eeoyd, and Zepharr, and they recently conquered the nine “Citadels” kingdoms that had been at war with one another.

In order to gain even more power, the Dark Lords engage in blood sacrifice in service of their demon lord, “Kaok.”  The sorcerers slaughter great masses of people, but they don't gain the power they expected.  Their focus turns to Ath'Agaar, the fiercest of the barbarian chieftains, and his woman, Ren.  Although they kill Ath'Agaar and Ren, their ritual goes awry, and the Dark Lords, Ath'Agaar, Ren, and the entire kingdom is destroyed.

Over the next 11,000 years, the Dark Lords are reincarnated on Earth at different times.  Ath'Agaar is also reincarnated, but his reemergence occurs 50,000 light years away as the space warrior, “Jhagur,” from the planet, “Gebura.”  “Void Indigo” is the spiritual plane toward which all dead souls gravitate for reincarnation.  The Dark Lords magical activities have upset a delicate balance that must be rectified.  Jhagur returns to Earth in a spacecraft as the agent who will ensure that this balance is restored.  He is a spirit of vengeance from the Void, against the four wizards who had tortured and killed him in his previous life.

Once on Earth, Jhagur rescues a woman named Linette Cumpston, and they travel together to Los Angeles.  There, Jhagur finds the first of the Dark Lords and kills him, now a man who had been reincarnated as the Olympic medalist, David Trepper.

Void Indigo #1 (“Killing to Be Clever”) opens as the Void Indigo continues to call for revenge, and Jhagur commits another murder, this time as a warning to the remaining three Dark Lords.  Jhagur has also disguised himself as a human named “Michael 'Mick' Jagger,” and he works construction.

Meanwhile, other players have entered this game.  One of Mick's coworkers, Pete Mulgrew, found the jeweled spike that had been involved in Ath-Agaar's murder 11,000 years ago.  Now, Pete's daughter, Colleen, discovers that she is sensitive to the spike's mysticism.  Detective Wallerstein of the LAPD is investigating the second homicide that Jhagur committed.  Linette connects with a wild female psychic named “Raka.”  Taro is the leader of the Death Guild, a cult that awaits the reawakening of the Dark Lords, and he has begun to make the movies that will permanently remove any obstacles to his plans.  And the machinations of the Beyond-World emerge.

THE LOWDOWN:  Apparently, Marvel Graphic Novel No. 11: Void Indigo was “Book One” of the Void Indigo saga.  The first issue of the Void Indigo comic book series was the start of the second book.  I originally only read the graphic novel, and although I had planned to, I never got around to reading the comic book series.  Once I heard that it was canceled, I didn't bother to read the two issues that had been published.  Still, I often thought about Void Indigo as the years went by.  Eventually, I heard that Steve Gerber had planned to make the Void Indigo comic book only six-issues in length – only two of which were published.  I think that intrigued me all the more.

Reading Void Indigo #1 and #2, I find it hard to believe that the series was originally only meant to run six issues.  Gerber fills the first two issues with numerous subplots and and introduces a large cast of supporting characters.  Gerber's synopsis for the remaining four issues is available on the Internet, so, yeah, Gerber, did plan a six issue run for the second book.  Would there have been a third book?

I can also see how some people would have been put off by Void Indigo in the mid-1980s.  Murder and death are depicted as sudden, brutal, and savage.  The depictions of sex are frank, explicit, and lack romantic sentiment.  The world of Void Indigo is a hard world, but I think that does one important thing for the narrative.  It tempers Jhagur's power over the narrative.  By making him somewhat vulnerable to the violence that other characters in the narrative experience and by making him not all-powerful, Gerber leaves space in the narrative for the other characters.  The result is a comic book in which the other characters are as interesting and, in some cases, more interesting than the lead.

Val Mayerik, an extremely underrated artist and storyteller, gives Void Indigo a unique graphical look and style.  Mayerik's compositions are gritty and edgy, so the story really seems to take place in the natural world, which makes the emergence of the supernatural that much more jarring.  Mayerik's storytelling corals Gerber's narrative eccentricities, and his coloring makes the magical elements pop and crackle like wild electricity.  Mayerik's covers for this series offer some of the most visually striking cover images published by Epic Comics in the 1980s.

Void Indigo, as Gerber and Mayerik had planned it back in the 1980s, went into the Void long ago.  Still, I believe that there is a new life for that concept, a reincarnation or re-imagining that will both celebrate and re-imagine what once was and could have been, but never was.  Besides, I think those readers curious about a bygone time in Marvel Comics and in the Direct Market of comic books sales would do well to peek into the Void Indigo.

I READS YOU RECOMMENDS:  Fans of 1980s creator-owned comic books will want to try Void Indigo.

A
★★★★ out of 4 stars

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"



https://twitter.com/Marvel
https://www.marvel.com/
https://www.marvel.com/comics
https://www.comixology.com/Marvel_Comics
http://www.marvunapp.com/Appendix9/kaok-voidindigo.html


The text is copyright © 2022 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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Monday, June 6, 2022

IDW Publishing from Diamond Distributors for June 8, 2022

IDW PUBLISHING

FEB229792 CAPTAIN ACTION CLASSIC COLL HC $29.99
FEB229793 FREE PASS GN $19.99
FEB229797 GI JOE A REAL AMERICAN HERO #293 CVR A WILLIAMS II $3.99
FEB229798 GI JOE A REAL AMERICAN HERO #293 CVR B GALLANT $3.99
APR221560 GIRL AND THE GLIM GN $12.99
APR221571 ROCKETEER THE GREAT RACE #3 (OF 4) CVR A GABRIEL RODRIGUEZ $4.99
APR221572 ROCKETEER THE GREAT RACE #3 (OF 4) CVR B STEPHEN MOONEY $4.99
APR221578 SONIC THE HEDGEHOG TP VOL 11 ZETI HUNT $15.99
APR221579 STAR TREK DISCOVERY ADV IN 32ND CENTURY #4 (OF 4) CVR A HERN $3.99
FEB229807 TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES REBORN TP VOL 04 SOW WIND REAP $19.99
APR221595 TRANSFORMERS HC VOL 05 HORRORS NEAR AND FAR $49.99
APR221597 TRANSFORMERS LAST BOT STANDING #2 CVR A ROCHE $5.99
FEB228623 TRANSFORMERS LAST BOT STANDING #2 CVR B ALLISON $5.99
FEB228624 TRANSFORMERS LAST BOT STANDING #2 CVR C SIDVENBLU $5.99
FEB228625 TRANSFORMERS LAST BOT STANDING #2 CVR D STAFFORD $5.99
FEB229808 USAGI YOJIMBO ORIGINS TP VOL 03 DRAGON BELLOW CONSPIRACY $24.99

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Monday, May 30, 2022

IDW Publishing from Diamond Distributors for June 1, 2022

IDW PUBLISHING

FEB229792 CAPTAIN ACTION CLASSIC COLL HC $29.99
FEB229793 FREE PASS GN $19.99
APR221560 GIRL AND THE GLIM GN $12.99
APR221578 SONIC THE HEDGEHOG TP VOL 11 ZETI HUNT $15.99
FEB229807 TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES REBORN TP VOL 04 SOW WIND REAP $19.99
APR221595 TRANSFORMERS HC VOL 05 HORRORS NEAR AND FAR $49.99
FEB229808 USAGI YOJIMBO ORIGINS TP VOL 03 DRAGON BELLOW CONSPIRACY $24.99

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Tuesday, December 7, 2021

#IReadsYou Review: MARVEL GRAPHIC NOVEL No. 9: The Futurians


MARVEL GRAPHIC NOVEL NO. 9: THE FUTURIANS
MARVEL COMICS


STORY: Dave Cockrum
ART: Dave Cockrum
COLORS: Paty
LETTERS: Jim Novack
EDITOR: Al Milgrom
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF: Jim Shooter
80pp, Color, $6.95 U.S., $7.95 CAN (1983)

The Futurians created by Dave Cockrum

“Marvel Graphic Novel” (MGN) was a line of paperback original graphic novels published from 1982 to 1993 by Marvel Comics.  The books were published in an oversize format, 8.5" x 11", similar to French comic book “albums,” which generally had cardboard covers, full-color interiors, and slick pages.  [In response, DC Comics would also establish a competitor line known as “DC Graphic Novel.”]

Dave Cockrum (1943-2006) was an American comic book artist, who made significant contributions to both Marvel and DC Comics.  Cockrum is best known as the artist who helped Marvel Comics and writer, the late Len Wein (1948-2017), relaunch the X-Men comic book series with a new team of X-Men, first in Giant-Size X-Men #1 (cover dated: May 1975) and then, in X-Men #94 (cover dated: August 1975).  Cockrum co-created and designed the new X-Men:  Storm, Colossus, and Nightcrawler.  Cockrum was also known as one of the best designers of comic book character costumes in the 1970s and 1980s.  He updated the costumes for DC's Legion of Super-Heroes when he began drawing the series in 1972.

Dave Cockrum entered the realm of creator-owned comic books with his unusual superhero team, “The Futurians.”  The team made its debut as the ninth entry in the Marvel Graphic Novel line.  Cockrum wrote and drew the debut story of the Futurians.  His wife, Paty Cockrum, colored the story, and the great Jim Novak lettered the story, with Al Milgrom editing.

Marvel Graphic Novel No. 9: The Futurians opens in the distant future of the planet Earth.  Hundreds of empires have risen and fallen, and at its zenith, human civilization was a melange of human, alien, and robotic cultures.  Mankind conquered and colonized the stars dozens of times before finally returning to Earth and forgetting the stars.

As the story opens, Earth is dominated by two city-states, Terminus and Ghron.  Terminus is a city-state of “scientist-generals,” and Ghron is ruled by the “Inheritors” and their mutant army.  After nearly destroying the entire Earth, the Inheritors travel into Earth's past in a bid to conquer the Earth.

In response, the “Terminus Grand Council” sends “genetic time bombs” into the past.  These “bombs” will increase human potential in select bloodlines.  Scientist-General Callistrax, via “discorporeal transmission,” sends his mind three million years into the past to the year 1940 AD.  Callistrax's mind takes over the body of a homeless man known only as “Vandervecken” or “The Dutchman.”

By 1962, Vandervecken has built an advanced technology corporation called “Future Dynamics,” and its motto is “Tomorrow is Now.”  Vandervecken then begins gathering up those who have been empowered by the genetic time bombs.  They are the seven humans that he begins to prepare for a series of historic battles against the Inheritors and their leader, Lord Temujin.  Vandervecken activates these seven humans' powers with the help of Sunswift.  She is an immortal fire elemental who lives in the sun and travels back in time as an ally of Vandervecken.

The first of the seven is Avatar, an immortal (unbeknownst to Vandervecken) who gains the powers of flight, super strength, and invulnerability.  African-American geologist Harry Robins becomes “Terrayne” a living mud-man who can manipulate rock and earth.  Marine biologist Tracy Winters becomes “Silkie,” a green-skinned amphibian with the ability to breathe underwater at great depths, fire bio-electrical blasts, control and shape water, and transform into a humanoid manta ray-like form, which allows her to fly or swim at great speeds.

Matthew Blackfeather, an Native American of the Dakota tribe, becomes “Werehawk,” a clawed, flying hawk-like humanoid.  Former spy Jonathan Darknyte becomes “Silver Shadow,” a living shadow that can merge with, animate, or teleport through shadows and darkness.  Dana Morgan becomes “Mosquito,” who can fly and generate ultrasonic energy.  Walter Bonner becomes the lion-like “Blackmane,” who has razor-sharp talons and superhuman strength and agility.

The Futurians are immediately sent into action when the Inheritors strike four locations in a bid to obtain the technology that Lord Temujin will use to complete a doomsday device.  However, the Futurians cannot stop the Inheritors if they cannot learn to work together.  Plus, only two of the Futurians realize that Vandervecken has a strange power over them.

THE LOWDOWN:  One thing that Marvel Graphic Novel No. 9: The Futurians certainly confirms is that Dave Cockrum was perhaps the most inventive and imaginative designer of comic book superheroes of his time.  The Futurians are a beautiful collection of superheroes, and it is a shame that these characters have largely been kept dormant in the nearly four decades since their debuted.

Here, as a writer, Cockrum did not have the smooth storytelling chops of the elite writers of superhero comic books of that time, such as Chris Claremont, John Byrne, Frank Miller, Marv Wolfman, Gerry Conway, and Jim Starlin, to name a few.  Still, in The Futurians, Cockrum created an intriguing universe that was as much science fiction as it was superhero, and what his script lacked in “mature audience” theatrics, it made up for in imagination and pure, old-fashioned superhero fun.  This story is dialogue and exposition heavy, but every bit of it serves the story by establishing the setting, defining the characters, or advancing the plot.  I have to admit that I really enjoyed reading Cockrum's dialogue, which gets even better in The Futurians, the short-lived ongoing comic book series that followed the graphic novel.

The Futurians actually reads like a comic book from the 1960s.  It is filled with a sense of mystery, a touch of magic, and a streak of cosmic wonder and imagination.  The Futurians is like a crazy blend of elements from the X-Men, the T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents, and the Fantastic Four.  The Earth of the Futurians has a complex “future-history,” and Cockrum also teased an intriguing deep history that recalls the kind of science fiction to which Cockrum may have been exposed as a teenager and as a young man.

In retrospect, Dave Cockrum made an unfortunate decision in moving The Futurians from Marvel Comics to Lodestone Publishing, Inc., an independent publisher that ultimately could maintain neither its promises nor its business model.  Lodestone published three issues of The Futurians ongoing series from 1985 to 1986.  Cockrum produced a fourth issue that Lodestone could not publish, so it was later included in the collection, The Futurians Volume 2.  Published by Eternity, this trade paperback also collected the Lodestone published, The Futurians #1 to #3.  That unpublished fourth issue was published again, this time as The Futurians #0, which also included a character profile section and a new Futurians story drawn by Cockrum and written by his associate, Clifford Meth.

In 2010, writer-artist David Miller published a three-issue miniseries, Avatar of the Futurians, which Miller wrote and drew, through his company, David Miller Studios.  In 2011, Miller collected the miniseries in the trade paperback, Dave Cockrum's Futurians: Avatar.

What could have been?  How long could Dave Cockrum have produced an ongoing comic book featuring The Futurians?  How long would Marvel have published it?  Would Cockrum and his characters been welcomed into the fold by Image Comics?  It's all speculation, but we have Marvel Graphic Novel No. 9: The Futurians, and it was part of a line that, for a few years, delivered some very interesting and memorable comics.  Here is to hoping that The Futurians indeed have a future.

I READS YOU RECOMMENDS:  Fans of Dave Cockrum will want to read Marvel Graphic Novel No. 9: The Futurians.

A
8 out of 10

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"



https://twitter.com/Marvel
https://www.marvel.com/
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https://www.comixology.com/Marvel_Comics


The text is copyright © 2021 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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Thursday, September 30, 2021

I Reads You Juniors: September 2021 - Update #98

by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"

You can support Leroy via Paypal or on Patreon.

NEWS

MARVEL - From BleedingCool:   Ike Perlmutter, the Chair of Marvel Entertainment, is among three men accused of breaking the law by Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives. This involves Perlmutter's stint under former President Trump as an advisor to the United States Department of Veterans Affairs.

DC COMICS - From GamesRadar:  Writer Tom King and artist Greg Smallwood's upcoming 12-issue series, "The Human Target," is a "whodunit."

EN MEMORIAM - From ANN:  Takao Saito, the creator of the long-running manga, "Golgo 13," has died at the age of 84.  Saito died Friday, September 24, 2021 from pancreatic cancer.  Saito launched "Golgo 13" in 1968 and it went on to become the oldest manga still in manga still in production.  Saito reportedly wanted the series to continue after his death.

COMICS TO FILM - From Deadline:   Alice Waddington ("Paradise Hills") is set to direct Netflix’s adaptation of "Dept. H," which is based on the popular Dark Horse Comics comic book series. Mike Richardson, Keith Goldberg and Paul Schwake of Dark Horse Entertainment will produce.

COMICS - From BleedingCool:  There are apparently problems with printing and distribution in the comic book industry.

COMICS TO ANIMATION - From YouTube:  This is a teaser trailer for Netflix's anime, "Super Crooks," based on the Mark Millar comic book.  The trailer is in Japanese, and the anime is produced Japan's "Studio Bones."

COMICS TO TELEVISION - From Deadline:  Amazon Studios has given a formal series greenlight to a YA spinoff from the Emmy-nominated superhero drama "The Boys," produced by Sony Pictures Television.

COMICS - From Bloomberg:  An article about the dispute between comic book artists and Marvel and DC Comics over NFTs (non-fungible tokens).

STAN LEE - From WeGotThisCovered:   Marvel has filed five lawsuits against the families of Steve Ditko, Gene Colan, and Stan Lee, claiming that the superheroes they created are ineligible for copyright termination as they were created as works for hire on a contractual basis.

MARVEL COMICS - From BleedingCool:   On August 26th, 2021, Patrick S Ditko, a relative of the comic book writer-artist, Steve Ditko, and administrator of his estate, registered two notices of copyright termination against Marvel Entertainment for the first appearances of Doctor Strange and Spider-Man, two characters Ditko co-created, in comic books.

DC COMICS - From GamesRadar:  Here is a preview of "Batman: The Imposter #1."

COMICS - From BleedingCool:  Jason Pearson is promising the return of his "Body Bags" comic book ... again ... this time for 2022 ... although he took nearly $40,000 in Kickstarter money from fans in 2015 ...

MARVEL - From BleedingCool:   Science fiction author, Victor LaValle, is writing a "Sabertooth" comic book for Marvel Comics.  The first issue is due in December.

DYNAMITE - From BleedingCool:  Writer Scott Lobdell and artist Ariel Medal are launching a new "Evil Ernie" comic book for Dynamite Entertainment's "Chaos Comics" line.

From BleedingCool:  Vampirella and Dracula unite for "Vampirella/Dracula: Unholy!," a new comic book series by Christopher Priest and Donny Hadiwidjaja and Dynamite Entertainment.
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JACK KIRBY - From BleedingCoolChuck Rozanski, owner of Mile High Comics, has obtained a copy of the manuscript of "The Horde," an unpublished novel by the late comic book legend, Jack Kirby.

MANGA TO FILM - From THR:  "Pacific Rim: Uprising" actor, Mackenyu, and Madison Iseman, as well as Sean Bean, Famke Janssen, Nick Stahl, Diego Tinoco and Mark Dacascos, are among the cast of "Knights of the Zodiac," a live-action adaptation of the 1980s manga and anime series, "Saint Seiya," being made by Toei Animation and Sony Pictures Worldwide Acquisitions.

MANGA - From OtakuStudy:  Seven Seas Entertainment announces several new manga acquisitions for 2022.

COMICS - From WTXL:  Florida State University’s Strozier Library is missing thousands of comic books and literature. Most of the books missing are from the 1950s and 1970s. They were part of the Robert M. Ervin Jr. Collection.

MARVEL - GamesRadar: Marvel Comics' current "Guardians of the Galaxy" comic book series just ended with the publication of its 18th issue.

MARVEL - From GamesRadar:   The sites talks about "Avengers Forever," which features a "multiversal" Avengers team.

IMAGE COMICS - From BleedingCool:  The site has a first-look at Geoff Johns and Bryan Hitch's "Redcoat," which debuts in the "Geiger 80-Page Giant #1," which is due Nov. 24th.

IMAGE COMICS - From GamesRadar:  Artist Greg Capullo's cover for Todd McFarlane's "The Scorched #1" has been revealed.  The comic book is due Dec.15th.

DC COMICS - From GamesRadar:  Batgirl/Barbara Gordon hits the streets in a new costume in "Nightwing #84."

MARVEL - From BleedingCool:  There will not be any "Predator" comic books from Marvel Comics in 2021.

MARVEL - From BleedingCool:  Scholastic Books offers a preview of art from its Marvel graphic novel, "Captain America: The Ghost Army."  Written by Alan Gratz and drawn by Brent Schoonover, it is due August 2022.

#BATMANDAY - From GamesRadar: Will Brian Michael Bendis be writing DC's flagship, "Batman."

From DCBlog:  Meet the new Batman, "Jace Fox."

From DCBlog:  Get the details on the upcoming DC Black Label, three-issue comic book, "Batman: The Imposter."

MARVEL/IDW - From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics has withdrawn IDW Publishing's license to produce "Marvel Action," a line of comic books featuring Marvel characters, but aimed at "All-Ages and middle-grade readers.

IDW - From BleedingCool:  IDW Publishing and Penguin Random House Publisher Services  today announced an exclusive worldwide multi-year sales and distribution agreement for IDW's newly published and backlist comic book periodicals, trade collections, and graphic novels to the Direct Market comic shops beginning June 1, 2022. 

ARCHIE COMICS - From BleedingCool:  Archie Publications and WEBTOON's first collaboration is "Big Ethel Energy."  The first three episodes of this webcomic will debut Sept. 21, 2021.

MARVEL TV - From PinkNews:  According to the showrunner, Freeform's planed "New Warriors" TV series was cancelled because one executive thought it was "too gay."

IMAGE COMICS - From BleedingCool:  Artist Denys Cowan is drawing "Nocterra Special: Blacktop Bill," which is being written by "Nocterra" co-creator and writer, Scott Snyder.

DC COMICS - From BleedingCool:   Jeff Lemire will write and Doug Mahnke will draw "Swamp Thing: Green Hell," a three-issue miniseries for DC Comics' "DC Black Label" imprint.

DC COMICS - From BleedingCool:   Becky Cloonan, Michael Conrad and Jorge Corona are launching a new "Batgirls" series from DC Comics.  It will star Cassandra Cain and Stephanie Brown as the Batgirls, with Barbara Gordon as Batgirl Prime/Oracle, guiding their paths.

DC COMICS - From BleedingCool:  Writer Robert Venditti and artist Michael Avon Oeming are reviving the classic DC Comics title, "World of Krypton."

MARVEL COMICS - From BleedingCool:   Marvel Comics reveals some details about its Daredevil event, "Devil's Reign."

COMICS - From BleedingCool:  Matt Wagner's classic comic book character, Grendel/Hunter Rose," and his story will become an eight-episode, live-action TV series via Netflix.  Wagner and Dark Horse Entertainment (Grendel's current publisher) will be among the series' executive producers.

VIZ MEDIA - From ScreenRant:   This is an article about "Ultimo," the manga the late Stan Lee created with Hiroyuki Takei, the creator of the manga, "Shaman King."

BOOKS -  From MentalFloss:   Here is a list of 11 classic books that were adapted into graphic novels, including "A Wrinkle in Time."

MARVEL - From TheWrap:   A near-mint copy of “Amazing Fantasy #15, which featured the debut appearance of Spider-Man, was auctioned for $3.6 million, breaking the sales record for a comic book previously held by "Action Comics #1" (1939), which featured the first appearance of Superman.

DARK HORSE - From BleedingCool:   Mike Mignola will write and draw his first full-length comic book since "Hellboy in Hell" (2016). "Sir Edward Grey: Achero" is scheduled to arrive in December.

DC COMICS - From BleedingCool:  Here is a preview of "Titans United #1."

MARVEL - From GamesRadar:   Marvel spokesman tells "Newsarama" that artist Joe Bennett will not be working with the company on "any future Marvel projects."

DC COMICS - From BleedingCool:   The site is reporting that DC Comics will launch a new series, "Batman Beyond: Neo Year" in April 2022.

DISNEY+ - From TheDirect:   Today (Mon., Sept 13th) is supposedly the day in which a trailer for the Disney+/Marvel Studios series, "Hawkeye," will debut.

MARVEL STUDIOS - From ShadowandAct:   Fans, Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige, and "Blade" reboot director (Bassim Tariq), aren't having it with the erasure of the importance of "Blade" 1998 to 21st century superhero movies.

COMICS - From BleedingCool:   The superstar team of writer Ed Brubaker and artist Sean Phillips has turned down an "Substack Pro" offer.

DC COMICS - From BleedingCool:   "Batman: Wayne Family Adventures," the first WEBTOON series based on DC Comics characters, has made its debut.

MARVEL - From BleedingCool:   Marvel has released a trailer and preview art for "Amazing Spider-Man #75."  That issue apparently sees Peter Parker leaving the starring role in the series.

COMICS - From CBR:  Jeff Lemire announces "Fishflies," his first comic book series for "Substack," the online newsletter platform.

DC COMICS - From GamesRadar:   Meet Marvel Comics' weirdest pet hero, Jeff the Land Shark.

MARVEL - From BleedingCool:   Artist Joe Bennett has been dropped as one of the artists on Marvel Comics' "Timeless" one-shot.  Because of  his anti-Semitic controversies, Marvel may no longer associate with Bennett.

COMICS - From BleedingCool:   Mirage Studios, the original home and publisher of the "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles," is ceasing business this month.

COMICS - From GamesRadar:  "Batman Day 2021" (Sept. 18th) plans revealed.

MARVEL TELEVISION - From ComicBook:   One of the Marvel Comics series that almost had a TV series was "New Warriors," which was being developed for Freeform, but the pilot was cancelled and the series could not find another home.  Series creator Kevin Biegel has provided a look at the costume for Doreen Green/Squirrel Girl, who was to be played by actress Milana Vayntrub.

BOOKS - From BleedingCool:   "Hellboy" creator Mike Mignola is illustrating a new edition of Carlo Collodi's "Pinocchio."

KODANSHA - From BleedingCool:   Kodansha will publish "Akira: The Art of Wall" in June 2022, which will collect the "Akira" collage art of series creator Katsuhiro Otomo and artist Kosuke Kawamura.

MANGA TO LIVE-ACTION TV - From CrunchyRoll:   A live-action TV drama adaptation of Wataru Hinekure (story) and Aruko (art)'s shoujo manga "Kieta Hatsukoi / Vanishing My First Love" is set to be aired on Japanese terrestrial stations in October 2021.

MANGA TO ANIME - From ANN:   Sakuya Kuroda's "Rich Police Cash" (Rich Kaikan Cash) manga will have an anime that will debut on the "Coro Coro Channel" YouTube channel this fall.

MARVEL - From GamesRadar:    Miles Morales' new Spider-Man suit profiled in Chase Conley design variant for "Miles Morales: Spider-Man #30."

SONY MARVEL U - From Deadline:  In the wake of the huge box office success of Marvel Studios' "Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings," Sony has moved up the release date on its "Venom" sequel, "Venom: Let There Be Carnage," from October 15th to the new release date, October 1st.

Inverse's Eric Francisco on "SHANG-CHI"

PART ONE:  How Marvel's Shang-Chi had to "destroy" its own racist origins
 
PART TWO: Shang-Chi was your favorite superhero’s favorite superhero. (Here's why he vanished.)
 
PART THREE: How Asian American internet trailblazers gave new life to Shang-Chi - The final story in a series on Shang-Chi’s origins, rise, fall, and rebirth.

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MARVEL STUDIOS - From BleedingCool:   Bassam Tariq, the director of Marvel Studios' reboot of the "Blade" film franchise, may be suggesting that the next Blade film will not follow the comic books.

DC CINEMA - From Deadline:   On Instagram, "Aquaman" star Jason Momao has revealed two costumes from the upcoming sequel, "Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom."

COMICS - From BleedingCool:  Rich Johnston gives Bryan Seaton of problematic publisher, Action Lab Comics, a chance to do some explaining about the complaining of his comics creators.

comiXology - From BleedingCool:  The "comiXology" website will shut down this coming fall.  Visitors will be redirected to a digital comics section at Amazon.com.

IMAGE COMICS - From BleedingCool:   Italian comic book artist, Matteo Scalera, will draw Mark Millar's "King of Spies," a comic book spinoff of a movie that Mark Millar created for Netflix.

COMICS - From BleedingCool:  Grammy Award-winning recording artist, Alicia Keys, will join co-writer Andrew Weiner and artist Brittney Williams for a young adult graphic novel, "Girl on Fire."

MARVEL - From BleedingCool:   "Timeless" is a Marvel Comics initiative which will see several times published in 2021 and 2022 that celebrate the publication of Marvel Comics #1 in 1939.

MARVEL - From BleedingCool:   Legendary X-Men comic book writer, Chris Claremont, is reportedly writing a new comic book series featuring a member of the X-Men that he co-created, Gambit.

COMICS TO FILM - From Deadline:   Disney is reviving one of its cult favorite properties, "The Rocketeer" (1990), with a new Disney+ movie titled "The Return of the Rocketeer."  David and Jessica Oyelowo are producing under their Yoruba Saxon banner.  The project, written by Ed Ricourt, will also be a possible starring project for David Oyelowo, who starred in "Selma."

DC TV - From Variety:   The CW's “Batwoman” has cast actress Bridget Regan as the iconic DC Comics supervillain, "Poison Ivy," for the show’s third season.

CANADA - From TVO:   Here is the story behind Canada's very first comic book, "Better Comics #1," from Maple Leaf Publishing.

MARVEL - From BleedingCool:   Former Marvel Comics Editor-in-Chief Jim Shooter talks about signing away "Secret Wars" and "Venom" for $10,000.

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SEPTEMBER 2021 COMICS SOLICITATIONS:
From BleedingCool:  Ablaze Publishing for September 2021
From BleedingCool:  Action Lab for September 2021
From BleedingCool:  Archie Comics for September 2021 
From BleedingCool:  AWA for September 2021
From BleedingCool:  Black Mask for September 2021
From BleedingCool:  BOOM Studios for September 2021
From BleedingCool:  Dark Horse Comics for September 2021
From BleedingCool:  DC Comics for September 2021
From BleedingCool:  Dynamite Entertainment for September 2021 
From BleedingCool:  Heavy Metal Magazines for September 2021
From BleedingCool:  IDW Publishing for September 2021
From BleedingCool:  Image Comics for September 2021
From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics for September 2021
From BleedingCool:  Oni Press for September 2021
From BleedingCool:  Scout Comics for September 2021
From BleedingCool:  Source Point Press for September 2021
From BleedingCool:  Titan Comics for September 2021
From BleedingCool:  Valiant Comics for September 2021
From BleedingCool:  Vault Comics for September 2021
From BleedingCool:  VIZ Media for September 2021

OCTOBER 2021 COMICS SOLICITATIONS:
From BleedingCool:  Aardvark Vanaheim for October 2021
From BleedingCool:  Action Lab for October 2021
From BleedingCool:  AfterShock Comics for October 2021
From BleedingCool:  Ahoy Comics for October 2021
From BleedingCool:  Antarctic Press for October 2021
From BleedingCool:  AWA Studios for October 2021
From BleedingCool:  Behemoth Comics for October 2021 
From BleedingCool:  Black Masks for October 2021
From BleedingCool:  BOOM! Studios for October 2021
From BleedingCool:  Dark Horse Comics for October 2021
From CBR:  DC Comics for October 2021
From BleedingCool:  Dynamite Entertainment for October 2021 
From BleedingCool:  Heavy Metal Magazine for October 2021
From BleedingCool:  Hero Collector for October 2021
From BleedingCool:  IDW Publishing for October 2021
From BleedingCool:  Image Comics for October 2021
From CBR:  Marvel Comics for October 2021
From BleedingCool: Oni Press for October 2021
From 2000AD:  Rebellion for October 2021
From BleedingCool:  Titan Comics for October 2021
From BleedingCool:  Valiant Entertainment for October 2021
From BleedingCool: VIZ Media for October 2021

NOVEMBER 2021 COMICS SOLICITATIONS:
From BleedingCool:  Ablaze for November 2021
From BleedingCool:  AfterShock Comics for November 2021
From BleedingCool:  Archie Comics for November 2021
From BleedingCool:  Bad Idea Corp for November 2021 
From BleedingCool:  Behemoth Comics for November 2021
From BleedingCool:  Black Mask for November 2021
From BleedingCool:  BOOM Studios for November 2021
From BleedingCool:  Dark Horse Comics for November 2021
From BleedingCool:  DC Comics for November 2021
From BleedingCool:  Dead Good Comics for November 2021
From BleedingCool:  Dynamite Entertainment for November 2021
From BleedingCool:  IDW Publishing for November 2021 
From BleedingCool:  Image Comics for November 2021
From BleedingCool:  Kodansha Comics for November 2021
From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics for November 2021
From BleedingCool:  Oni Press for November 2021
From BleedingCool:  Rebellion for November 2021
From BleedingCool:  Red 5 Comics for November 2021
From BleedingCool:  Scout Comics for November 2021
From BleedingCool:  Silver Sprocket for November 2021
From BleedingCool:  Titan Comics for November 2021
From BleedingCool:  TOKYOPOP for November 2021
From BleedingCool:  Valiant Comics for November 2021
From BleedingCool:  Vault Comics for November 2021
From BleedingCool:  VIZ Media for November 2021
From BleedingCool:  Yen Press for November 2021

DECEMBER 2021 COMICS SOLICITATIONS:
From BleedingCool:  Ablaze artbooks and manga for December 2021
From BleedingCool:  AfterShock Comics for December 2021
From BleedingCool:  BOOM! Studios for December 2021
From BleedingCool:  Dark Horse Comics for December 2021
From BleedingCool:  DC Comics for December 2021
From BleedingCool:  Dynamite Entertainment for December 2021
From BleedingCool:  IDW Publishing for December 2021
From BleedingCool:  Image Comics for December 2021
From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics for December 2021
From BleedingCool:  Oni Press for December 2021


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