What a sitcom this pair would make! Both characters were superhero sidekicks who had been dead for decades and were oddly resurrected a few years ago within a few weeks of each other, despite Bucky Barnes being a Marvel character and the second Robin, Jason Todd, being a character from DC Comics. Both have pretty complex histories, but Comics Alliance’s latest Comics, Everybody! post joyfully simplifies it.
Read the whole post here.
I’ve been following fellow Aussie Garth Franklin’s film site, Dark Horizons for years now, and I recommend you do too! Up there now is, what’s sure to be a much debated, list of the so-called best films based on comic books. It’s not an exhaustive list, but is pretty close with 124 entries. Franklin has worked hard to get an average score for each film, and here’s a summary of how he did it.
To do that I combined three scores for each film using three major sites – the wide-sweeping critical countings of Rotten Tomatoes, the more selective critical assessments ofMetacritic, and the open to the public IMDb user ratings.
It’s pretty interesting and is good to see non-superhero films getting their due too. Below you can see the proud top 5, and the sad bottom 5. Go here for the full list.
I quite enjoyed the Elric #0 issue BOOM! offered during this year’s Free Comic Book Day, and I’m looking forward to this official kick-off of the new series too. Yes, what follows is a rather lengthy press release, but the point it raises of BOOM! premiering digital releases is a good one, and people tend to forget that. I remember when North Wind #1 debuted on MySpace and it being a pretty controversial move at the time. Now, however, everyone’s getting on the digital bandwagon, including The Big Two (Marvel and DC) and realising its potential.
BOOM! STUDIOS DEBUTS ELRIC: THE BALANCE LOST AS DAY-AND-DATE RELEASE
READ THE ELRIC FREE ONLINE PRELUDE AT WWW.ELRICCOMIC.COM
BUY ELRIC: THE BALANCE LOST #1 IN PRINT OR DIGITALLY TODAY
THE PIONEERS OF “DAY-AND-DATE” KEEP LEADING THE FIELD
Today BOOM! Studios launches their latest epic series ELRIC: THE BALANCE LOST #1 with a historic day-and-date release of print and digital, making this new series available through your local comic shop and online exclusively through the BOOM! Studios Comics App and the Comics by comiXology App at the same time! Paired with this epic promotion, BOOM! also gives comic fans a chance to try out ELRIC absolutely free through their web browser with the ELRIC FREE ONLINE PRELUDE available at www.elriccomic.com. That’s right! Three ways to try the all-new epic series ELRIC: THE BALANCE LOST written byNew York Times bestselling author Chris Roberson (iZOMBIE, SUPERMAN) and drawn by white-hot artist Francesco Biagini (DINGO) based on Michael Moorcock’s seminal fantasy creation. Pick up or download your copy today!
BOOM! Studios pioneered day-and-date releases in the comic industry back in January of 2008 with the debut of the NORTH WIND series and continued this innovative promotion with HEXED a year later. With ELRIC, BOOM! enters its third year as the cutting-edge leader of “day-and-date” release.
“We were the first to do day-and-date back in 2008 and now we’re doing it again with Elric! We’re pumped to offer ELRIC: THE BALANCE LOST in both print and digital on the same day partnered with a new website, www.elriccomic.com, that hosts an original 10-page story. If you love Elric or are new to the character, the website will introduce you to the series and leads directly into the new issue for sale in print or digital!” says BOOM! Studios Editor-in-Chief Matt Gagnon. “Chris Roberson and Francesco Biagini take Michael Moorcock’s seminal fantasy character to the next level with such an epic scope from the very first page that it’ll be hard to put down!”
“Jumping aboard an all-new comic series has never been this easy!” says BOOM! Studios Marketing & Sales Director Chip Mosher. “With so many ways to check out ELRIC: THE BALANCE LOST, you’d be crazy to not take advantage of these great promotions. And be sure to let your friends know that they too can check out the exciting prelude to the ELRIC series, absolutely free at www.elriccomic.com!”
“With ELRIC, we’re not only focusing on print and mobile devices exclusively, but getting out onto internet browsers that billions of people use every day,” says Marketing & Sales Director Chip Mosher. “While there are only 25 million iPads out in the marketplace, there are billions of potential readers that have the ability to find comic books through their internet browsers. With our ELRIC microsite at www.elriccomic.com we’ve not only included a complete prelude for free, but information on how and where to buy our comics both in print and digital — linking to both print, mobile vendors, and the lesser-known web-based option where you can buy and read through the browser as well.”
Comic fans, be sure to visit your local comic shop today to pick up your copy of ELRIC: THE BALANCE LOST #1. Not sure where there’s a comic shop near you? Visit http://www.elriccomic.com/local-comic-shop to find out! And for all you folks that love digital comics, you can download ELRIC: THE BALANCE LOST #1 from the BOOM! Studios Comics App or Comics by comiXology App today!
Created by Michael Moorcock, Elric has thrilled comic fans for more than 40 years beginning with an appearance in Marvel Comics’ CONAN THE BARBARIAN #15 in 1972. Neil Gaiman called Michael Moorcock “my model for what a writer was” while Warren Ellis said he is one of the “eight core sites in my creative genome” — now, the godfather of the Multiverse concept brings one of the most critically acclaimed and most recognizable figures in the history of fantasy fiction back to sequential art with BOOM! Studios’ ELRIC: THE BALANCE LOST!
And if you’ve never heard of ELRIC, you’re in luck! BOOM! Studios is offering the ELRIC FREE ONLINE PRELUDE for anyone to read online at www.elriccomic.com! Showcasing an original complete 10-page story not found in the first issue, along with artist bios and a brief history of Michael Moorcock’s Eternal Champion ELRIC!
ELRIC: THE BALANCE LOST features the return of Michael Moorcock’s legendary Multiverse, featuring some of the greatest fantasy characters of all time: Elric of Melniboné, Corum of the Scarlet Robe, and Dorian Hawkmoon in a brand-new story that will test the courage of the Eternal Champion! In this new series, the workings of Fate are being tampered with across the Multiverse, upsetting the Cosmic Balance. Elric of Melniboné must preserve the Balance and save the entire Multiverse from ruin. But no sooner has his journey begun than he is waylaid by dark forces and lost on the Moonbeam Roads. Elric finds himself stranded on a world where Chaos holds sway and where change is the only constant. Heroes are forced into action far and wide, but will they fight on the side of Law or Chaos?
With both the BOOM! Studios Comics App on the iOS platform and the Comics by comiXology App on iOS and Android devices, you can buy ELRIC on either your iPhone, iPad or Android device and enjoy it on that device. When you buy a comic on one of these mobile platforms, you can also enjoy reading the comic through the comics.comixology.com website. If you do not own a mobile device and want to read the comic digitally, all you have to do is go to comics.comixology.com to buy ELRIC to read on your PC or Mac through your browser. Utilizing www.elriccomic.com as an introduction and a portal gives comic book readers an easy way to enjoy the free prelude, then buy the first issue in print at their local comic shop, on their mobile device or on their browser.
In late August, comic book retailers everywhere will be able to participate in the sales of BOOM! Studios digital comics as BOOM! Studios and comiXology roll out retailer digital store fronts.
ELRIC: THE BALANCE LOST #1 debuts in print and digitally today, July 6, 2011, and is written by Chris Roberson (iZOMBIE, SUPERMAN) and drawn by Francesco Biagini (DINGO) and includes an afterword by Neil Gaiman. This title ships with A & B covers in a 50/50 split with art by Francesco Mattina and Francesco Biagini respectively, as well as a 1-in-10 incentive cover by Dennis Calero and a 1-in-25 incentive cover by Tim Bradstreet. This premiere issue can be purchased at your local comic shop, through the BOOM! Studios Comics App, Comics by comiXology App and the web atcomics.comixology.com for $3.99. ELRIC: THE BALANCE LOST #1 carries a Diamond Code of MAY110918.
Image Comics imprint Shadowline released 2 new upcoming series today. The killer premise of 27 (a conspiracy asking why so many famous musicians die at 27) gets collected, and a sequel, and a teaser image annoucning an October releasing project, presumably called Xenoholics.
It’s very encouraging to see the team from Sherwood Pictures, from Sherwood Baptist Church gaining more ground with each new film, and it just goes to show how much the church can do when they pull together. Sure, some cynics may scoff at its mainly amateur cast, but after the praise heaped on their previous films Flywheel, Facing The Giants, and Fireproof, this is sure to be another winner. Courageous is out on September 30.
As discovered by Bleeding Cool, what looks like most of the first 9 and a bit minutes of Cartoon Network’s upcoming ThunderCats reboot has made its way online, plus a cool new trailer. It has all the characters you know and love, including young prince Lion-O, Cheetara, Tygra (whose Lion-O’s brother here), WilyKit and Kat and more. There’s plenty of action packed exposition and it has a great anime flavour. I’m hanging out for this. It has its 1 hour premiere in July.
Hmmm…the director of the Resident Evil films takes on a literary classic and casts his wife as a balletic assassin. It’s out on October 14.
Surely Orlando Bloom must be tired of all the period costumes by now.
Avoiding this week’s Flashpoint offerings from DC Comics, I had a look at the shelf in my LCS this week and picked up a few interesting goodies from Dark Horse and am I glad I did.
The Goon #34. It’s been a while since I’ve read this delicious series and this is a great place to return to his madcap adventures, with the ugly anti-hero now going bi-monthly.
Things kick off with The Goon and his pal Franky strolling on a summer’s day before being beset, or rather, sparkled upon, by a group of pouty metrosexuals. These vamps just wanna play baseball, but The Goon mocks their manliness and a battle begins, with a great page of prose describing its “ferocity and magnitude,” before The Goon breaks the fourth wall and lets the reader know that he isn’t going to bash the cats of Twilight for the rest of the issue. It’s an unexpected and welcome approach. Deciding that the real root of the vampire popularity sweeping the world is tween girls, The Goon reluctantly goes to a home for orphans, but his timing is bad as a young, blonde with a blank stare has just been dropped off there, and she doesn’t play nice. In other words, she turns into a monstrosity and attacks the other poor kids. They manage to trap her under the floorboards while Dog (a werewolf child with a wooden leg) sits on a bucket to keep her there.
There are some genuinely LOL moments here, including the aforementioned bucket sitter, and the kids method of getting The Goon to visit their house and lay the smackdown on their new monster tenant (it involves lots of beer). No other comic you read will contain lines such as, “Ah! The sound alone is making my testes smaller!” That’s a guarantee.
There’s 2 letters pages in which creator Powell replies to fans including soldiers, a professional fighter and a former prisoner. The humour is outrageous and the art is beautiful., despite being filled with ugly characters.
Go here for a preview.
Conan #1. Adding to the multitude of mini-series Dark Horse produced over the last few years about the sword winging barbarian is this new short, sharp 2 ish mini. Written by Ron Marz (Witchblade) with gorgeous art by Bart Sears, like the issue above, this is a great story for those new to the character. Marz is one of those writers who doesn’t get the credit he deserves and is able to create interesting tales in any genre. His name and Sears on the cover made me pick this up. Sears just doesn’t do enough comics work these days, so I’m always sure to pick up whenever he gives us a new treasure.
Titled Island of no Return, this story begins with Conan doing his best rooftop dash while clutching an array of jewels and weapons. He’s just been caught sleeping with a judge’s wife and the angry man has sent a few soldiers to bring back his head. Saved by two sisters, Brenna and Venya, from the eyes of the swarming soldiers, Conan agrees to help them on a quest to snatch some treasure from a haunted and long abandoned island. All 3 thieves get to know each other a little better on their treacherous journey across raging seas and sheer cliffs and upon arriving at the rundown palace Conan discovers that it may indeed be haunted.
Marz does a great job of giving the tale some genuine ancient flavour with Conan’s proud nature and dialogue that sounds like it’s from the ages. There isn’t a lot of action here, apart from the great chase/battle in the opening pages, but there is a sense that the 2 sisters are up to something wicked. Mark Roberts’ colours make Sears already exquisitely fluid pencils pop withe even more dynamism, adding to the already adventurous feel.
Go here for a preview.
Creepy #6. I’m a sucker for a good anthology, and usually avoid horror as my comic genre of choice, but I’ve bought every one of these issues of the relaunched series as they generally offer tasty bite size morsels of..creepiness by some great legends of the biz, plus exciting new talent.
This 48 pager, black and white issue features 5 stories. The opener, called Mine is from Joe R. Lansdale and Nathan Fox and follows a cowboy who finds a corpse and steals his footwear and timepiece. The corpse wakes up and chases him into town, while the cowboy gets to the bottom of who the corpse is. Fox’s slightly sketchy style works splendidly with Lansdale’s well paced script.
Even Kramer form Seinfeld hates clowns, as does anyone who’s seen Stephen King’s It film, I’m sure. The next 10 page story is not for you if you suffer from coulrophobia as Christopher Taylor and Jason Shawn Alexander present a clown who believes he’s kind of like DC Comics’ The Spectre, and doles out God’s justice by protecting kids from demons hiding in humans. Not a lothappens, but the clown’s narration works well, as do Alexander’s violent brush strokes.
Alice Henderson and Kevin Ferrara ‘s 1880 set tale fuses two different genres, which could work with more pages, but doesn’t really with this largely silent train crash scenario.
The 3 page Loathsome Lore from Dan Braun, Craig Haffner and Gary Brown is a look at a few of they key, evil women behind Adolf Hitler, proving that real life is usually scarier than fantasty.
Fair Exchange is the final, 8 page story, from Archie Goodwin and Neal Adams. It’s a classic detailing Dr Ralph’s Courtney who is paid a fortune to give the ailing entrepreneur Mr Mannix a second chance at life by transferring his brain to a young, virile body. The twist is a good one, as after the success of the experiment, he awakens, kills the doctor and ventures outside. However, he doesn’t realise that his new body is a vampire and he burns to death in the sunlight.
The one panel Uncle Creepy introductions aren’t needed for each tale, but do serve to honour the history of the series.
Go here for a preview.
Dark Horse Presents relaunched series returned for its 2nd issue this week – an 80 pager no less. I’ve had a quick look and Paul Chadwick’s Concrete in the desert tale is great, as is a silent 8 page Batman parody called The Wraith from Jason Alexander featuring a bully Dark Knight-esque kid.
No, not a sequel to that ’80s TV show with the cool theme song, but rather, MTV Geek’s brief list of their Top 10 patriotic heroes in honour of Independence Day. It’s actually a pretty good rundown, including the evil Iron Patriot and The Tick’s American Maid, and as a surprise, this guy is at number 2.
Go here to see the complete list and discover who’s number 1.
At Relevant, there’s a great interview with muso Adam Young, AKA Owl City about his faith and feel good, pop electronica music. My dentist actually got me onto his great work, and I’m glad I discovered him. His latest album, All Things Bright and Beautiful has just been released and it’s just as good as his first 2 albums, and this one comes with the added bonus of Ronald Reagan, and rapping!
Here’s my favourite part of the interview:
I’ve always just asked the Lord that this music be useful more than anything else, and really beyond that my job is just to remain steadfast in my relationship with Him, and just kind of let these songs write themselves more or less, and ultimately never be ashamed of my faith and of my personal relationship with Jesus Christ. So yes, it’s never been my intention to really overthink, “Well, am I going to write up tons of Christian songs, or am I going to try and skirt away from it a lot?” I’ve always just kind of prayed for like, “God, just send me the songs you want me to write, because once they’re written and recorded, I’m going to send them all back to you and point all fingers back up to you.” It’s like, it’s almost none of my business in a funny way. Once these songs are done, I just want the Lord to use them however He chooses.
Read the whole interview here.
Official press release below about Sonny Liew’s pretty anthology set for an August release from Image Comics.
GRIME AND WONDER ON THE STREETS OF MALINKY ROBOT
Image Comics Collects Sonny Liew’s Inspired Short Stories
The captivating world and quirky characters detailed by award-winning artist Sonny Liew’s (LIQUID CITY VOL. 1 and 2, My Faith in Frankie, Wonderland, Sense and Sensibility) loose and emotive watercolor-drenched pencil work are set to charm readers in August, with the release of MALINKY ROBOT: COLLECTED STORIES AND OTHER BITS from Image Comics.
A recipient of the Xeric Award and Best Science Fiction Comic Album award at the Utopiales International SF Festival, MALINKY ROBOT blends dystopic sci-fi and indie sensibilities into a uniquely oddball world, where street urchins Atari and Oliver scrounge, steal bicycles and watch Giant Robot movies.
Liew says, “The stories of MALINKY ROBOT have always been the ones that I feel most personally connected with, from their rhythms and structure, to the character and architectural designs. It’s very exciting to see them collected together in this book.”
MALINKY ROBOT not only includes short stories like “Stinky Fish Blues” and “Karakuri” from the LIQUID CITY and Flight anthologies, but also a gallery of Liew’s concept and sketch art, along with pinups by incredible artists such as Mike Allred, Roger Langridge and Skottie Young. Writer Gail Simone (Birds of Prey, Secret Six, Deadpool, Wonder Woman) described the collection as “[a] book so full of wonders and treasures it feels like you should need a pirate’s map to find it. A stunningly gorgeous mix of urban fantasy and charming adventure that I plan to read until the spine falls off.”
MALINKY ROBOT: COLLECTED STORIES AND OTHER BITS TP (JUN110503), a 128-page full color collection of short sequential art stories retailing for $16.99, will be available at a comic store near you on August 3, 2011. It is available for pre-orders from Diamond Comics, and from retailers such as Amazon. For more information, please visit www.malinkyrobot.com.
50 mins. We go green and delve into the murky depths of DC’s classic monster/ hero Swamp Thing. Also leaping Superman, ostracizing Martians and non-human love.
LISTEN TO IT BELOW, DOWNLOAD IT HERE OR ON ITUNES
Email us at kris(at)extrasequential(dot)com
0:56 NEWS
DC’s Relaunch video
Comic-Con protest against DC Relaunch
12:16 THEME-SWAMP THING
Our look at Swamp Thing, including his great cartoon theme song, film appearances, superhero cross-overs, and much-loved reinvention from writer Alan Moore.
Batman: Arkham Asylum was the videogame that Batman deserved, and come October 18, we’ll get the sequel, with Catwoman, and Robin as playable characters (the latter only as a Best Buy DLC though). Baddies such as Two-Face, Riddler, Hugo Strange and Harley Quinn show up and Kevin Conroy and Mark Hamill reprise their roles from the ’90s cartoon series and the first game as Batman, and Joker. Below you can see 12 minutes of footage from Arkham City, comprised of cut scenes and great gameplay. Yes, there are 2 moments where dialogue is digitally altered so as not to reveal spoilers.
The second issue of the Dark Horse Presents anthology is out this week, and it looks much better than the debut. In DHP #4 (out on September 21, and ready for ordering in this week’s new Previews catalogue) those four legged detectives return. Official details below.
RETURN OF THE PACK IN DHP #4!
Coming to you fresh from the upcoming eighty-page spectacular, Beasts of Burden returns in Dark Horse Presents #4!
Evan Dorkin and Jill Thompson’s lovable and crafty team of critters is back in action for a story that will tempt your taste buds and leave you wanting more!
Adventure, mystery, horror, and humor thrive on every page of Beasts of Burden—a comic-book series that will capture readers’ hearts and haunt their dreams.
Award-winning comics creators Evan Dorkin (Milk and Cheese) and Jill Thompson (Scary Godmother) first introduced these very special investigators in The Dark Horse Book of Hauntings and the other Dark Horse Book of . . . anthologies, for which they won coveted Eisner Awards for Best Short Story and Best Painter.
Evan and Jill will both be in attendance at San Diego Comic-Con 2011!
Looking for more Beasts of Burden? Check out the free comic on DarkHorse.com: http://www.darkhorse.com/Features/eComics/1090/Beasts-of-Burden.
Quite the scoop for Bleeding Cool. Here’s a video, that’s just over 3 and a half minutes of Dan DiDio, Jim Lee, Grant Morrison and others talking excitedly about September’s 52 series debuts. It doesn’t reveal anything new, apart from a few seconds of Lee sketching, but I must say, their enthusiasm for the bold move is infectious.
Here’s a look at the evil (and articulated) alternate version of The Reverse Flash, otherwise known as Professor Zoom. He can be yours in August, or next month at San Diego Comic-Con. Official details below.
This summer, the bestselling series FLASHPOINT has taken the comic book world by storm. In August, four FLASHPOINT action figures (manufactured by DC DIRECT) will be shipping to retailers. And if you’re heading to San Diego next month, you’ll want to pay very close attention:San Diego Comic Con is the only place where you’ll be able to complete your FLASHPOINT action figure collection. Head over to the Graphitti Designs Booth (#2315) for your chance to purchase an extremely limited DC DIRECT action figure of one of FLASHPOINT’s central villains: Zoom.
Zoom stands approximately 6.5” inches high, features multiple points of articulation and includes a removable display base. But don’t wait too long! Due to its rare availability, attendees will each be limited to only one Zoom figure each.
comicbookjesus 