This Week’s Indie Comics News Cycle
This is the latest installment of ’ Indie Comics News. This page is a revolving news cycle post and will cease updating at 12pm 24th September AEST. You will find the latest indie comics news included here that are relevant for the week ending 24/9/21. Any news submitted outside of this time frame are counted as News for the following week and as such will be included in Next Week’s News Cycle.
NOTE: Indie Comics News WILL NOT be added retrospectively. Once the week is over, the news cycle is over.
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Indie Comics News – 23rd September 2021
GREGG KATZMAN PROMOTED TO DIRECTOR OF MARKETING & PUBLICITY AT VALIANT ENTERTAINMENT
Valiant continues to look towards the future by promoting Gregg Katzman to Director of Marketing & Publicity.
As the Director of Marketing & Publicity, Gregg Katzman will continue to utilize nearly a decade of experience in comics press to help shape the future of the Valiant Universe in announcement strategies, internal feedback on everything from covers to stories, and so much more.
Since joining the company in 2018 as the Marketing Coordinator followed by his role as the Marketing Manager and then Marketing & Publicity Manager, Gregg has remained focused on expanding Valiant’s outreach through building and maintaining authentic press and fan relationships to elevate Valiant’s legacy in the industry. With a B.A. in Communications from the University of Hartford and two years serving as the Marketing & Events Manager at Midtown Comics, Gregg will help pave the way for an ambitious 2022 slate of epic new stories all working together within the iconic shared Valiant Universe.
With the upcoming launch of THE HARBINGER on October 27th and the return of SHADOWMAN in January, readers can expect a heightened focus on flagship and fan-favorite characters moving forward. “As a Valiant fan who has been proudly promoting the comics since 2012, this really is a dream job,” said Gregg. “I recognize just how incredibly lucky I am to have this opportunity and I will continue to do my best to make sure we’re always thinking of the fans first, while also welcoming newcomers to explore one of the best shared universes in comics. I am sincerely very excited about the plans for 2022, and I can’t wait to get the word out in the coming months. Stay tuned and thank you for staying Valiant.”
Publisher Fred Pierce understands the strengths Gregg brings to the team as well. “It’s great having Gregg on the Valiant team and his new position is well deserved,” said Fred. “Gregg is a true lover of the Valiant Universe and always puts the fans first. Our press coverage is ever stronger which means that more and more people are enjoying the Valiant Universe. In a world that often seems insane, Gregg lifts everyone around him up. I continue to look forward to working with him every day.”
Look for Valiant comics at a comic shop near you and more developments will be revealed soon about the Valiant Universe in 2022.
The Rez Detectives Are on the Case!
The Rez Detectives is a ground-breaking, middle-grade graphic novel from Steven Paul Judd, Tvli Jacob, and M.K. Perker, published by Literati Press Comics & Novels and available through Diamond Comic Distributors, GlobalComix, and Comixology on December 8, 2021. In the tradition of Harriet the Spy, Encyclopedia Brown, and yes, Scooby-Doo, comes the first case for the Rez Detectives: “Justice Served Cold.” Be sure to let your local comic shop know that the deadline to request The Rez Detectives for delivery on the release date is October 21, 2021 (PREVIEWS Item Code: OCT211566). Judd and IllumiNative, a native-led nonprofit that works to increase the visibility of Native peoples in American society, will supply free copies of Rez Detectives to all public and reservation libraries in Alaska and North and South Dakota.
It’s a hot summer on the Reservation. When the Ice Cream Man is a no-show, Tasembo joins forces with his neighbor, Nuseka, and his dog, Billy Jack, to take on their first case. With twists around every corner, this case won’t crack itself, but when you combine Nuseka’s brains, Billy Jack’s loyalty, and Tasembo’s . . . persistence, justice will be served. Cold, that is.
Steven Paul Judd has written on projects for Marvel, Disney, HBO, and George R.R. Martin’s production studio. He and his longtime collaborator, Tvli Jacob, have worked on short films and features including the award winning film Shouting Secrets. Judd is Kiowa and Choctaw, a visual artist and co-founder of the NTVS, a Native American streetwear company. Jacob is Choctaw, specializes in media content that addresses health in Native American Indian, Indigenous, and First Nations communities through community-based participatory methods, is a Clinical Assistant Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences in Tulsa, and has a daughter, Nuseka. Eisner-nominee M.K. Perker shows the talent previously on display in work for Image, Vertigo, and The New Yorker. Cover Artist Cynthia Canada is a Kiowa-Comanche painter and illustrator from Oklahoma, and work has been featured in the Sovereign Santa Fe 2020 exhibition at La Fonda on the Plaza and Tribes 131 Gallery in Norman, OK.
Back to the 80s and forward to the future in DOWNLOAD
For fans of THE GOONIES, GREMLINS and classic AMBLIN style films what’s old is new again Red 5 Comics‘ paean to classic 80s sci-fi adventure Download, in stores this December.
A bolt of light from the sky strikes young Eric one evening and life will never be the same for him or his friends. When Eric comes to his mind is filled with plans and schematics for strange devices. Devices for which he has no idea what they do or how they work, only that he is compelled to build them and turn them on…
“DOWNLOAD is a love letter to 80’s sci-fi and action movies with kids like THE GOONIES, EXPLORERS, FLIGHT OF THE NAVIGATOR, and MY SCIENCE PROJECT,” creator and Red 5 Comics co-publisher Scott Chitwood said. “As a kid growing up in the 70’s and 80’s, we used to run around my neighborhood in packs. We’d build forts, pull pranks on neighbors, catch weird critters, play with fire, and generally get in trouble. When we saw the kids in those Amblin-esque movies, we saw ourselves up on the screen. With DOWNLOAD I wanted to recapture that nostalgic feel and throw those familiar characters into new and unexpected situations. I also wanted to create a comic accessible for all-ages, and that’s not always easy to find these days. It was also a pleasure to re-team with Danny Luckert, my artist on HAUNTED and RIPTIDE. He’s an incredible talent and it’s like Christmas every time I open his emails with new art. I hope readers enjoy the ride as much as we had making it.”
Channeling that love and nostalgia for classic 80s films, Download will re-visit and re-invent classic sci-fi adventure this Christmas as a four issue monthly series beginning December 2021.
Kaiju mayhem erupts this Christmas in MEGA
Giant monsters, strange happenings and immaculately constructed art — Mega has it all as auteur Salvador Sanz takes on kaiju in a way no one has ever seen before. Mega comes to stores this December in a stunning oversized premium edition from Red 5 Comics.
Something is wrong with nature: birds are gathering in unusual ways; strange crystals are growing in the Arctic; alarm bells are ringing and no one is listening. No one but a single little girl who dreams of monsters. What does it mean and will the world find out before the MEGA creatures destroy everything in their path?
“ANGELA DELLA MORTE was one of the best series we launched in 2019 or even in all of the years I’ve been with Red 5 Comics,” co-publisher Joshua Starnes said. “Salvador just has a different way of looking at things. When you combine that with giant monsters, you just know you’re going to get something amazing. MEGA delivers on every level.”
Mega will emerge as a two-issue premium series in oversized 8×11 inch editions with 48 pages of story and bonus material per issue, offering the largest possible palette for Sanz’ incredible artwork.
The monster mayhem begins December 2021 in Mega, written and drawn by superstar artist Salvador Sanz, premiering wherever Red 5 Comics are sold.
Indie Comics News – 22nd September 2021
Valiant Announces New Groupees Bundle!
Valiant Entertainment has partnered with Groupees to announce a brand-new SHADOWMAN inspired bundle with a portion of the proceeds going directly to benefit The Hero Initiative.
Valiant has launched a brand-new Groupees SHADOWMAN build-a-bundle featuring an assortment of exciting opportunities to score great deals on comics, win exclusive prizes and help give back to The Hero Initiative. The Hero Initiative is a nonprofit group which creates a financial safety net for comic creators who may need emergency medical aid, financial support for essentials of life, and an avenue back into paying work. The Groupees SHADOWMAN bundle is live HERE for 3 weeks now through October 12th.
With this special Groupees SHADOWMAN bundle, fans will be able to build their own unique bundle from a list of over twenty of their favorite Valiant digital comics.
The more titles you add to your bundle the greater the discount!
Anyone who purchases a bundle will instantly receive access to a discount code giving 25% off their next purchase at the all new and improved Valiant Store featuring new SHADOWMAN merch like a replica necklace torn from the pages of the comic. Fans who spend over $40 on their Groupees bundle will be given a special grab bag to get $100 worth of assorted Valiant merchandise including pins, t-shirts, hats, mugs and more.
The first 25 contributors who spend over $200 will receive a special limited edition of the Shadowman Classic Omnibus Vol. 1 Hardcover with a sketched bookplate from series artist Bob Hall!
There will also be tiered rewards for the TOP 5 contributors to the Groupees SHADOWMAN bundle as well. Top contributor prizes include limited edition, out of print, and unique one-of-a-kind exclusive incentives that are sure to excite both new and longtime fans alike such as a print copy of the classic Shadowman #1 from 1992, a limited edition Shadowman print by Tony Moore signed by Shadowman series writer Cullen Bunn, a copy of Shadowman (2021) #1 Black Glass variant signed by Cullen Bunn and even an original commissioned Shadowman sketch from Shadowman artist Stephen Segovia.
Show your support for the Hero Initiative and buy a digital build-a-bundle from a selection of the complete library of SHADOWMAN trades HERE including nearly every crossover appearance beginning now through October 12th. With access to special discounts at the Valiant Store plus an array of limited edition, out of print, and unique one of a kind prizes for the TOP 5 contributors, this is one bundle fans won’t want to miss.
Set in the not-so-distant eco/solar punk future, vaccines are currency.
Look no further for a very timely sci-fi thriller, Pandemic Punk #1, now live on Kickstarter! Written by TJ Walker (Phoenix Run) and Will Strode (Bojack Horseman), with art by Ari Syahrazad (Black Dahlias), Remus Brezeanu (Beethoven Immortal Genius), and Armin Ozdic. Colors by Dimitris Martin (Skies of Fire) and Łukasz Juśkewicz, letters by Micah Myers (He-Man Masters of the Universe: The Newspaper Comic Strips). Interactive cover and standard cover by Leo Colapietro (XO Manowar).
The world is sick. There is danger waiting at every turn. People who would do anything to get their hands on PHOENIX… people who would pay any price, do any deed, and surpass any limits.
In the not-so-distant eco/solar punk future, vaccines are currency. Man is alive. And there are decisions to be made. A new world order has come about. The dividing lines have shifted, no longer focusing on borders and boundaries. Instead, the concern for many is the deadly XE virus that is gripping the globe. No one has escaped the wrath of this vicious disease. For many, this was a death sentence.
Around the clock work managed to produce a vaccine. One that must be taken daily. If even a single dose is missed, then you run the risk of turning into one of them. It’s almost funny that people are just now finding out that there are worse fates than simply dying. This, of course, has created a divide. Enter Man – a smuggler that is well known for being able to get you anything that you could ever want, need, or dream about having. A smuggler who has just found the global cure for the pandemic, PHOENIX, in the palm of his hand.
How The Phoenix Run App Works
The Phoenix Run app is intended as a bridge for the story on each platform, the app will also add the interactive element to the story by allowing the reader/viewers to choose their own path.
With trans-media we are working on telling the story over multiple platforms, print, video and audio (music).
“For 10 years now I’ve had the pleasure of collaborating with artists, filmmakers, musicians, and other creatives to build the world of Phoenix Run,” said TJ Walker. “It’s not only been a success but the ride of my life, and now I’m launching the first extension of the Phoenix Run world, Pandemic Punk. Now that phone and app technology is advanced far beyond when I first thought of the story, we are now able to tell these stories as they were intended, in a trans-media interactive format over multiple platforms.”
“It has always been a story about a world custom-built for inequality,” said Will Strode. “Most importantly, what does that do to people? It’s a story where people from all walks of life struggle against the same inevitable fate – take your dose or turn into a monster. Its world is one where the people on the bottom struggle to maintain their humanity while the people up top worry about acquiring more happiness and power, quite literally. It’s also about how all of those constructs eventually fall apart, because they are just that—constructs. At its heart, it’s about broken people finding a way to heal themselves. Through connection, through conquest, through acceptance, it’s a story about people from all walks of life realizing they are on the same level playing ground and dealing with it in whatever way they see fit.”
The Pandemic Punk #1 Kickstarter runs out Oct. 21. For additional press queries, please contact Don’t Hide PR Publicity Director, Melissa Meszaros: .
HOUSE OF SLAUGHTER #1 Hits Industry Record-Breaking Numbers
BOOM! Studios announced today that the highly anticipated series premiere of HOUSE OF SLAUGHTER #1 received record-breaking orders of over 460,000 copies, making it the best-selling original comic book series in BOOM! Studios history after Keanu Reeves’ BRZRKR, and resulting in a new release date of October 27, 2021, to accommodate the volume of orders and ensure quality.
HOUSE OF SLAUGHTER #1 is a brand new ongoing original series set in the world of creators James Tynion IV (The Department of Truth, The Nice House on the Lake) and Werther Dell’Edera’s (Razorblades) Eisner Award-nominated global phenomenon Something is Killing the Children. The series is co-written by James Tynion IV and writer Tate Brombal (Barbalien), and illustrated by Werther Dell‘Edera and artist Chris Shehan (The Autumnal), colorist Miquel Muerto (Something is Killing the Children), and letterer AndWorld Design (The Many Deaths of Laila Starr).
You know Aaron Slaughter as Erica’s handler and rival. But before he donned the black mask, Aaron was a teenager training within the House of Slaughter. Surviving within the school is tough enough, but it gets even more complicated when Aaron falls for a mysterious boy destined to be his competition. Discover the inner workings of the mysterious House of Slaughter in this new horror series exploring the secret history of the Order that forged Erica Slaughter into the monster hunter she is today.
“In 2019, James and Werther took the industry by storm with a new original horror series, Something is Killing the Children. It quickly became a worldwide sensation, selling over 1.1 million copies in its first 18 months, garnering numerous award nominations,” said Filip Sablik, President, Sales & Publishing. “The nearly half a million copies ordered of HOUSE OF SLAUGHTER #1 is a thunderous show of support from our retail partners, but necessitated we adjust the release date by one week to ensure the world class production quality retailers and fans have come to expect from BOOM! Studios.”
HOUSE OF SLAUGHTER #1 features main cover art by series artists Dell’Edera and Shehan, as well as variant cover art by acclaimed illustrators Alvaro Martinez Bueno (The Nice House on the Lake), Jenny Frison (Wonder Woman), Mike Del Mundo (X-Men, Thor), Gabrielle D’Otto (Detective Comics) and more.
“I’m thrilled we’re able to expand the rich world that James and Werther crafted within the bestselling Something is Killing the Children,” added BOOM! Studios Editor-in-Chief, Matt Gagnon. “It truly opens the doors to endless opportunities to explore everything the HOUSE OF SLAUGHTER has to offer, a vast tapestry of brilliant horror stories just waiting to be told. We’re excited to embark on this new journey with James, Werther, Tate, and Chris as they lead us ever deeper into the world that birthed Erica Slaughter and the monsters she hunts.”
HOUSE OF SLAUGHTER is the newest release from BOOM! Studios’ eponymous imprint, home to critically acclaimed original series, including BRZRKR by Keanu Reeves, Matt Kindt, and Ron Garney; Something is Killing the Children by James Tynion IV and Werther Dell’Edera; Once & Future by Kieron Gillen and Dan Mora; We Only Find Them When They’re Dead by Al Ewing and Simone Di Meo; Seven Secrets by Tom Taylor and Daniele Di Nicuolo; Proctor Valley Road by Grant Morrison, Alex Child, and Naomi Franquiz; The Many Deaths of Laila Starr by Ram V and Filipe Andrade; and Eve by Victor LaValle and Jo Mi-Gyeong. The imprint also publishes popular licensed properties, including Dune: House Atreides from Brian Herbert, Kevin J. Anderson, and Dev Pramanik; Mighty Morphin and Power Rangers from Ryan Parrott, Marco Renna, and Francesco Mortarino; and Magic from Jed McKay and Ig Guara.
Something is Killing the Children is the bestselling, Eisner Award-nominated hit series created by acclaimed comics writer James Tynion IV and illustrator Werther Dell’Edera. It has sold over one million copies worldwide, has been nominated for Eisner, Harvey, and Ringo Awards, and garnered widespread critical acclaim. As reported by The Hollywood Reporter, Netflix is developing a Something Is Killing The Children series with Intrepid Pictures’ Trevor Macy and Mike Flanagan (The Haunting of Hill House). Readers and fans can find the first three volumes collecting the first fifteen issues of the ongoing series in bookstores everywhere. Something is Killing the Children Book One Deluxe Edition will be available in hardcover and slipcase format in October 2021.
Print copies of HOUSE OF SLAUGHTER #1 will be available for sale on October 27, 2021 exclusively at local comic book shops (use comicshoplocator.com to find the nearest one) or at the BOOM! Studios webstore. Digital copies can be purchased from content providers, including comiXology, iBooks, Google Play, and Kindle.
For continuing news on SOMETHING IS KILLING THE CHILDREN and more from BOOM! Studios, stay tuned to www.boom-studios.com and follow @boomstudios on Twitter.
Indie Comics News – 21st September 2021
Dangerous Revelations Jeopardize Everything in BRZRKR #5
BOOM! Studios today revealed a first look at BRZRKR #5, the start of a new story arc in the top-selling twelve-issue limited series by the iconic Keanu Reeves and New York Times bestselling co-writer Matt Kindt (Folklords, Bang!), acclaimed artist Ron Garney (Wolverine, Captain America), colorist Bill Crabtree (BPRD), and letterer Clem Robins (Hellboy), about an immortal being’s eternal struggle with the hidden truth behind his existence, available in comic book stores worldwide on September 29, 2021.
What shocking new discovery will bring B. one step closer to understanding his origins? As B. and Diana’s bond continues to grow, B. opens up about a recurring trauma from his past. Will this new revelation jeopardize B. and Keever’s latest mission? Or is it all part of a plan by Caldwell to trigger more memories?
BRZRKR #5 features main cover art by superstar illustrator Lee Garbett (Skyward) and variant covers by acclaimed artists Giuseppe Camuncoli (Undiscovered Country) and Declan Shalvey (Moon Knight).
BRZRKR is the newest release from BOOM! Studios’ eponymous imprint, home to critically acclaimed original series, including Proctor Valley Road by Grant Morrison, Alex Child, and Naomi Franquiz; We Only Find Them When They’re Dead by Al Ewing and Simone Di Meo; Seven Secrets by Tom Taylor and Daniele Di Nicuolo; Something is Killing the Children by James Tynion IV and Werther Dell’Edera; Once & Future by Kieron Gillen and Dan Mora; The Many Deaths of Laila Starr by Ram V and Filipe Andrade; Eve by Victor LaValle and Jo Mi-Gyeong; and the upcoming Maw by Jude Ellison S. Doyle and A.L. Kaplan. The imprint also publishes popular licensed properties, including Dune: House Atreides from Brian Herbert, Kevin J. Anderson, and Dev Pramanik; Mighty Morphin and Power Rangers from Ryan Parrott, Marco Renna, and Francesco Mortarino; and Magic from Jed McKay and Ig Guara.
Print copies of BRZRKR #5 will be available for sale on September 29, 2021 exclusively at local comic book shops (use comicshoplocator.com to find the nearest one) or at the BOOM! Studios webstore. Digital copies can be purchased from content providers, including comiXology, iBooks, Google Play, and Kindle.
Print copies of BRZRKR VOL 1 SC will be available for sale in local comic shops on September 29, 2021 and in bookstores everywhere on October 5, 2021.
For continuing news on BRZRKR series and more from BOOM! Studios, stay tuned to www.boom-studios.com and follow @boomstudios on Twitter.
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