From what I’ve seen, this is looking to be a great series. I didn’t get a copy of the full debut issue from Oni Press’ Free Comic Book Day offering, but they’ve kindly put it on-line for free anyway. Thanks Oni! Here you go.
Black Canary Re-design Winners
The always excellent superhero-costume-loving website, Project: Rooftop has some great stuff up now, including Iron Man’s streamlined new duds, as seen in the new Invincible Iron Man #25, some Thor sketches from Chris Samnee’s upcoming mini-series, and a hefty array of entries for their Canary on the Catwalk costume re-design competition.
The Phantom From Dynamite
Alex Ross loves his old-time superheroes, as is evidenced by his work on DC’s Justice series with Jim Krueger who he also worked with on Dynamite’s Project Superpowers. Now he’s going back to one of the original superheroes, Lee Falk’s The Phantom. The classic character had a recent (and unsuccessful) stab at re-invention for a TV pilot, but this new series from Dynamite looks a lot more interesting. Scott Beatty scripts the new book with Eduardo Firagto as artist, with Ross offering creative guidance. The Last Phantom debuts in August. Get more details about the series here.
The Empire Strikes Back With You
Yesterday was Star Wars Day, as those like me who received multiple May the 4th Be With You e-mails would know. In honour of that, and the 30th anniversary of one of the best films ever made, (or the best as voted by the hepcats at Empire magazine) the folks at JibJab have put together a rather amusing summary of The Empire Strikes Back. As with all JibJab’s fine short videos, you can put yourself and your mates in, as seen below. Nifty.
New G.I. Joe Series
The recent G.I. Joe Resolute was an awesome animated web series/movie and much better than the embarassing live action film. Hopefully a new series, called G.I. Joe: Renegades will be of the same calibre. It was just announced at the weekend’s G.I.Joe Con. According to Animation Magazine, “the series was announced as a reboot of the classic series, with plans calling for a two-part pilot kicking off a total of 26 episodes. The series will be animated in 2D, with animation veteran Margaret Loesch serving as executive producer. The series will be aimed at a slightly older audience, with a toy line based on the new series set to debut in fall 2011.”
Arcana #1 Now Here
A print offshoot of sorts of the on-line magazine I co-created, Extra Sequential, Arcana has now been released in some comic book shops around the U.S. I got my hands on a few copies this week at my LCS in Perth, Western Australia and was so excited I just had to take a photo of it on the shelves, right next to Archie. It’s not a bad looking product, I must say and from all reports the next issue, which will be in conjunction with the team behind the great SP! Nexus magazine will be even better.
At least now I can finally add “internationally published writer” to my resume!
Inside its 80 pages, there’s interviews with creator of The Surrogates Robert Venditti, writer Marv Wolfman, superb artist David Mack and our cover feature on Aussie Star Wars: Invasion, The Authority writer Tom Taylor. If you see a copy, make sure to grab it!
Iron Man/Thor FCBD Preview
This Saturday is FCBD. Yep, Free Comic Book Day. It’s been growing for the last few years, with the majority of publishers putting out a sample of their wares. It’s a great opportunity for comic newbies to get an entry into the wonderful world of sequential art, and for fanboys and girls across the world to see what’s new, if your local shop is participating that is. Now, here’s a preview of Marvel’s FCBD offering, starring two of their new cinematic heroes.
Your First Look At Free Comic Book Day’s IRON MAN/THOR
Marvel is proud to unveil your first look at Iron Man/Thor, Marvel’s hotly anticipated Free Comic Book Day (May 1st) special from award-winning creators Matt Fraction and John Romita Jr. With the Heroic Age in full swing, Iron Man and Thor find themselves pitted against an enemy unlike any they’ve fought before! And, don’t forget, Iron Man/Thor is totally free this Saturday in celebration of Free Comic Book Dayat your local comic retailer!
“It’s exciting to see two of our most popular heroes paired with two of our top creators for Free Comic Book Day,” said David Gabriel, Senior Vice President of Sales & Circulation. “Marvel is proud to be part of this annual event– kudos to all the retailers who make this event happen year after year with outstanding success.”
Marvel encourages all comic book fans to check out the great offerings from all over the industry on Saturday, May 1st, as the historic Free Comic Book Day arrives at your local comic shop! For more information on FCBD, please visit www.freecomicbookday.com
FREE COMIC BOOK DAY 2010: IRON MAN/THOR
Written by MATT FRACTION
Penciled by JOHN ROMITA JR.
Cover by JOHN ROMITA JR.
RATED A…FREE!
IN STORES THIS SATURDAY!
Batman: Under the Red Hood Trailer and Pics
They keep cranking them out, but they keep getting better. Thanks DC! Details below about July’s animated film based on the resurrection of Jason Todd, the second Robin.
GOTHAM CITY MEETS A NEW VIGILANTE WITH A MYSTERIOUS, VIOLENT TWIST IN
BATMAN: UNDER THE RED HOOD STELLAR VOICE CAST FEATURES BRUCE GREENWOOD, JENSEN ACKLES & NEIL PATRICK HARRIS IN
ALL-NEW DC UNIVERSE ANIMATED ORIGINAL MOVIE FROM WARNER HOME VIDEO ON JULY 27, 2010
SPECIAL EDITION BLU-RAY AND 2-DISC SPECIAL EDITION DVD INCLUDE DC SHOWCASE SHORT, JONAH HEX
Batman confronts new enemies, old foes and painful memories when a powerful vigilante with a penchant for violence comes to Gotham City in the intense graphic-novel-come-to-life Batman: Under the Red Hood, the next entry in the popular ongoing series of DC UNIVERSE Animated Original PG-13 Movies coming July 27, 2010 from Warner Premiere, DC Entertainment and Warner Bros. Animation. The full-length film will be distributed by Warner Home Video as a Special Edition version on Blu-Ray™ and 2 disc DVD for $29.99 (SRP) and $24.98 (SRP), respectively, as well as single disc DVD for $19.98 (SRP). The film will also be available On Demand and for Download.
The stellar voice cast has Bruce Greenwood (Captain Pike in the 2009 blockbuster Star Trek) donning the famed cowl as the voice of Batman. Supernatural star Jensen Ackles is Red Hood, and Neil Patrick Harris (How I Met Your Mother) voices Nightwing. John DiMaggio (Futurama) and Jason Issacs (the Harry Potterfilms) round out the main cast as The Joker and Ra’s Al Ghul, respectively.
Batman: Under the Red Hood is scripted by award-winning comics writer Judd Winick and based on his popular 2005 comics storyline and subsequent comics graphic novel of the same name. Animation guru Bruce Timm returns as executive producer, as he has for all eight DC Universe animated original movies. Director is Brandon Vietti, who served as co-director of Superman Doomsday and was responsible for the first one-third of that film, including the fatal battle between the two title characters.
In Batman: Under the Red Hood, Batman faces his ultimate challenge as the mysterious Red Hood takes Gotham City by firestorm. One part vigilante, one part criminal kingpin, Red Hood begins cleaning up Gotham with the efficiency of Batman, but without following the same ethical code. Killing is an option. And when The Joker falls in the balance between the two, hard truths are revealed and old wounds are reopened.
Fans will be treated to an incredible package of DC Universe storytelling as the Special Edition Blu-Ray and 2-Disc Special Edition DVD include the second animated short in the all-new DC Showcase series – which features the popular DC Comics character, Jonah Hex. The short is scripted by renowned author Joe Lansdale and stars the voices of Thomas Jane (Hung), Linda Hamilton (The Terminator), Michelle Trachtenberg (Mercy, Buffy the Vampire Slayer) and Michael Rooker (Days of Thunder).
Batman: Under the Red Hood – 2 Disc Special Edition DVD will have more than two hours of fascinating bonus features, including:
- Featurette – Robin’s Story – It was decided it was time to add a fresh face into the story mix, which turned out to be Dick Grayson, aka Robin. This is the story of Dick Grayson and how he transformed into Robin, with Batman as his father-figure role model.
- Extended Sneak Peek at the next DC UNIVERSE Animated Original PG-13 Movie.
- Widescreen (1.78:1)
- Two title-themed episodes from of Warner Bros. Animation’s 20-year history of Batman television series, hand-picked by animation legend Bruce Timm.
Batman: Under the Red Hood Special Edition Blu-Ray will have more than three hours of bonus materials, including all the great extras from the 2-disc Special Edition DVD as well as:
- Featurette: Death in the House of Batman – The story of how DC Comics heard the fans’ cry that the new Robin was not going to fit the cape, and how the Boy Wonder was scheduled to die.
- Two additional bonus Batman-themed episodes personally selected by Bruce Timm
- Digital copy
“Batman: Under the Red Hood is another terrific entry in the groundbreaking series of DC Universe animated movies, a shining representation of the adult storytelling that comics-turned-to-film has to offer, and further evidence of the combined creative power within the collaboration of DC Entertainment, Warner Premiere, Warner Bros. Animation and Warner Home Video,” said Matt Bierman, Senior Vice President Production, Warner Premiere.
“Judd Winick’s and Doug Mahnke’s story of a Robin gone wrong introduced Batman’s most personal enemy to date. It’s unbelievably cool to see it brought to life like this,” said Geoff Johns, Chief Creative Officer of DC Entertainment.
“With each exciting new chapter of the DC UNIVERSE films, fans have come to expect more – and Batman: Under the Red Hood delivers with an action-packed tale of mystery and emotional struggle brought to animated life by an outstanding filmmaking crew and voiced by the all-star talents of Bruce Greenwood, Jensen Ackles, Neil Patrick Harris and John Dimaggio,” said Amit Desai, WHV Vice President of Family, Animation & Partner Brand Marketing.
“In his feature length solo directorial debut, Brandon Vietti has brought this dark, psychological thriller to the screen with all the action and emotion of a great Batman story,” said Sam Register, Executive Vice President, Warner Bros. Animation.”
Shadowland Teaser
Poor Spidey. Marvel released this teaser image for a July launching mini-series, with the following info.
Shadowland: Battle For The Soul Of New York
SHADOWLAND #1 (of 5)
Written by ANDY DIGGLE
Penciled by BILLY TAN
Cover by JOHN CASSADAY
Wraparound Variant Cover by BILLY TAN
Rated T+ …$3.99
ON SALE JULY 2010
Free Mobile Comics Mag Debuts
This really is exciting, and now I get to share it. I’ve been writing for comics site Broken Frontier for a while now, and the last few months have seen it brought to another level (thanks to my fellow BFers who are a lot more technically minded than me) and now we’ve just unleashed the FIRST free comics magazine for mobile devices. The press release is below, but fear not – if you’re like me and have yet to step into the iPad world, you can still grab the PDF from the Broken Frontier site.
On a related note, I recently interviewed writer extraordinaire Jonathan Hickman (The Nightly News, Fantastic Four, Shield) for the mag. It was my first ever phone interview and we talked for almost an hour. It was pretty awesome, I gotta say and he’s a very interesting guy. Well, my article stemming from that interview can now be read in the digital pages of the brand new, first issue of The Frontiersman. Oh yeah.
Broken Frontier Launches The Frontiersman, the First Mobile Comics Magazine Free magazine debuts on iPad, goes weekly on May 4
Premier comic book news site Broken Frontier (www.brokenfrontier.com) proudly unveils The Frontiersman, the world’s first digital comics magazine for mobile devices. The magazine makes its debut on iPad with The Frontiersman #1, with new issues to be released weekly on Tuesdays as of May 4, 2010.
“We’re thrilled to offer comic fans a new way to experience the richness and diversity of the comics industry,” Broken Frontier’s Editor in Chief Frederik Hautain says. The Frontiersman will act as a digital companion to the main Broken Frontier website, where readers will still find their daily dose of comics news, reviews, blogging, previews and columns.
“BF isn’t going anywhere, on the contrary,” Hautain clarifies. “What we’re doing, is presenting our more in-depth articles and interviews in a format that allows you to enjoy them at your leisure without getting lost amid the boatloads of content that the web throws at you every day.”
The Frontiersman magazine app is available for free via iTunes. While the magazine can be optimally enjoyed on iPad, it can also be downloaded free of charge in PDF on the Broken Frontier website. The Frontiersman is developed in association withNetlash, the web development partner of Broken Frontier.
The first issue features interviews with Mark Millar and John Romita, Jr. on Kick-Ass, Paul Gravett on Tove Jansson’s Moominexhibition, and Jonathan Hickman on S.H.I.E.L.D., its history and political relevance. The Frontiersman #1 also dives into the storied history of The Green Hornet and spotlights this week’s top comics.
The Frontiersman, Exploring the Comics Universe. Go mobile and download The Frontiersman #1 right now on iTunes (http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/frontiersman/id368550228?mt=8) or as a PDF at www.brokenfrontier.com.
Young Justice Cartoon
Awesome! The DC toons just keep getting better, and prove that there’s an animated series out there for everyone (thank you Batman: The Brave and the Bold!). Now this Justice League Junior series was teased a while ago, and here we have the first official pic showing the cast. There’s the expected Superboy, Robin, Kid Flash and Miss Martian. Artemis and Aqualad are the characters who are most obviously altered, with Artemis (who in the comics temporarily replaced Wonder Woman) and now seems to be similar to Arrowette or Speedy, as a female archer, and Aqualad who is now African American. The subtle costume changes look great too. There was a Young Justice comic last decade, with most of this cast in its pages and with the dynamics between the sidekicks and plenty of action, this could be one to watch – whenever it appears.
Marvel vs Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds Trailer
The trailer for the latest pop culture beat-em-up has just been released. It will be released next year on the PS3 and XBOX 360 and features an assortment of superheroes as well characters from Resident Evil, Street Fighter, Darkstalkers and more.
DC’s July Goodies
So the complete list of items being released from DC Comics in July is now out. As always, there’s a bunch of great stuff on offer. Here’s what caught my eye.
The Death and Return of Superman from the ’90s was what pulled me into the comic shop for the first time, so I’ve always had a soft spot for Cyborg Superman. Here’s his classic look from Batman: Brave and the Bold #19 and his current appearance in Green Lantern Corps #50.
Jeff Lemire, the creator of Sweet Tooth and the awesome Essex County trilogy from Top Shelf, has now hit the big time, as the scribe of Brightest Day: The Atom Special #1.
I just picked up some of Neal Adam’s TPBs showing his groundbreaking art from the ’70s with Batman and Green Lantern/Green Arrow. Now his long awaited 6 ish mini, Batman: Odyssey is almost here, with Adams taking over the writing and pencilling duties.
Detective Comics #867 is by David Hine and Scott McDaniel. That’ll be a good team, and how awesome is that cover by Peter Nguyen?
John Cassady is now doing Superman covers!
Brian K. Vaughan and Tony Harris farewell Ex Machina with issue 50.
I’m loving Demo. Brian Wood’s and Becky Cloonan’s supernatural, slice of life, self-contained stories are simply the epitome of great sequential art. I’m a new convert to this series, but after loving the current Volume 2 I picked up the TPB of the first series too. Buy this!
Iron Man Extremis Motion Comic
First it was Spider-Woman’s turn, then the Astonishing X-Men. Now, it’s the cinematic golden boy Tony Stark who gets the motion comic treatment, and I must say, this could be the best one yet. The trailer is below, as is the official synopsis.
IRON MAN: EXTREMIS Motion Comic On Sale NOW!
Marvel Knights Animation is proud to announce their newest motion comic epic: Iron Man: Extremis, is on-sale now! Now you can experience the groundbreaking motion comic, adapting the critically-acclaimed storyline by superstars Warren Ellis and Adi Granov, on iTunes, Xbox LIVE, Microsoft Zune and PlayStation®Network with an extra-sized, nearly 20 minute long debut episode! Tony Stark redefines Iron Man’s mission for the 21st century, setting the Armored Avenger on a new direction that’ll alter his life forever…if he can find a way to defeat an unstoppable force fueled by the powerful bio-engineered Extremis super-soldier serum! Each of the six episodes is only $1.99 for Standard Definition or $2.99 for HD and will be released every two weeks through June.
“Iron Man Extremis is an incredible piece of storytelling by Warren Ellis and Adi Granov. The Extremis motion comic takes their creative brilliance and seamlessly shapes it into a unique new experience within the digital animation realm,” says Ruwan Jayatilleke, lead creative and producer for Marvel motion comics. “Having the opportunity to work on Warren and Adi’s story while extending Marvel’s commitment to this new entertainment space has been hands-down phenomenal!”
The worldwide leader in bringing super heroes to life, Marvel redefined the motion comic medium with their first two releases—Spider-Woman (from Brian Bendis & Alex Maleev) and Astonishing X-Men (from Joss Whedon & John Cassaday). Staying true to their source material, Marvel Motion Comics utilize each story’s original art and scripts while adding seamless motion, dynamic voice acting, and stunning special effects to deliver a whole new way to experience some of the greatest storylines in Marvel Comics’ history.
Don’t miss the first episode of Iron Man: Extremis, on-sale now through iTunes, Xbox LIVE, Microsoft Zune and PlayStation®Network! For more information, and a first look at the groundbreaking motion comic, head over to http://www.marvel.com/extremis
Please note that Iron Man: Extremis is intended for mature audiences only.
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