Day of the Silent but Dead

So, years before I took the gig at IDW, I was running Kevin Smith's old pop-culture site, Movie Poop Shoot.com (a good array of the archives are available for perusal here). I was the site's editor-in-chief, but other familiar faces at IDW now were there with me in one form or another--Josh Jabcuga, Dara Naraghi and especially Scott Tipton, who was my right hand the entire time the site was running. And one thing I did there was somehow persuade talented artists to do the occasional holiday-themed banner image for me. Folks like Mike Hawthorne, J. Bone and Ben Templesmith, who offered up this image of zomb-me in between Jay and Bob. The image is years old but it seems like the perfect thing to run here the day before Halloween, too. So happy Halloween, and another nod to Mssr. Templesmith for doing the image in the first place.

For Whom the Bell Tolls

We've been doing our SPARROW art book series primarily with painters and fine artists, but now we're doing one that will appeal to, well, me in 1988 (and beyond), as well as the skateboard crowd and beyond. In February, we're doing a SPARROW book with Pushead, the artist who's primarily known for his work with the band Metallica (hence '88-me's affection for him) and on skateboard decks, too. And if you're not familiar with Pushead, this fan page gives you even more of a sense of what this book will be than the image I posted above.

Apple of my eye

Tomorrow, to coincide with the launch of JENNIFER LOVE HEWITT'S MUSIC BOX #1 comic book tomorrow in print form and as an iTunes app at the same time, Scott Lobdell, the book's co-creator with JLH, will be doing an appearance at the Apple Store on the 3rd Street Promenade in Santa Monica from 7 PM to 8 PM tomorrow night. And since Scott's not supposed to be left without a chaperone, I'll be doing the presentation with him. We'll run through the creative development of the comic, as well as the process of formatting the comic for iTunes, too. Anyone in the area or in line at the Genius Bar tomorrow is encouraged to come by and hang out with us.*

*Note: Jennifer Love Hewitt will be signing copies of the comic itself at Meltdown Comics on Sunset at the same time, but since it's hard to get from the West Side over to that part of town, hopefully we'll have some people show up for our part, too.

Bringing "Balance" to the Force

As I was reading through the script and looking at the art for the first issue of John Byrne's upcoming comic STAR TREK: LEONARD McCOY, FRONTIER DOCTOR series (4 issues, spring 2010), it occurred to me that there's one other bit of Byrne TREK that hasn't really been talked up much yet.

When Byrne's assorted STAR TREK Romulans comics (the original Alien Spotlight issue, plus the two-part Hollow Crown and the three-part Schism miniseries) are collected into a TPB in early 2010, there will be an added bonus in the collection--a 12-page adaptation of the episode that links all of these stories together, "Balance of Terror" (as told from the Romulan P.O.V.). Page one of this extra story is shown here, with colors by "Schism" colorist, Lovern Kindzierski.

IDW's new releases for October 28

Barack Obama Biography HC
G.I. Joe: Cobra TPB
Jennifer Love Hewitt's Music Box #1
Sherlock Holmes Vol 1 HC
Transformers: All Hail Megatron Vol. 3 TPB

As the Weekly World turns

The January Previews that's out now has the first issue of WEEKLY WORLD NEWS officially available for pre-order (page 242, order code NOV09 0841). And what you see here is the art (minus all the newspaper headlines and text for now) for issue 3's cover by Alan Robinson, along with the variant homage cover by J.K. Woodward (apologies to Jodie Foster...).

Zombies vs Robots: Zuvembies

The third story being serialized in each issue of the coming 4-part ZOMBIES VS ROBOTS AVENTURE book is called "Zuvembies," and it creates an entirely new kind of zombie. The art on this chapter is being handled by CLIVE BARKER'S THE THIEF OF ALWAYS artist Gabriel Hernandez. So that's what you're in for come February next year, three serialized stories in each issue, "Kampf," "Masques," and "Zuvembies." Two of the four issues are done now--makes me wish I could get them out sooner. But February will be here soon enough...

Zombies vs Robots: Kampf

Rejected blog entry title: "Mine Kampf." Just felt wrong.

Anyway, in the coming ZOMBIES VS ROBOTS: AVENTURE relaunch in February, the next story (actually, this one will appear first in the book) is subtitled "Kampf." The artist on this one is Menton Matthews III, who is painting every page of the story.

Because he's doing two-page spreads on the entire story, I'm reticent to show any finished pages here at this point--they're all just great, and since there's really only four spreads in the first issue, I'd like to preserve those for the issue's release. Instead, below are his tests, early sketches, rough painted samples and other preliminary images. They're all unrefined, unfinished, and already pretty great.

"Kampf" is more serious than "Masques," which has a pretty playfully dark tone--as befits its title, it's more of our big battle storyline. And it's Menton's interpretations of some of the new characters being introduced in issue 1 and 2 that has actually helped change the story's later chapters a bit (a couple characters looked so cool that they actually got a reprieve from being killed in gruesome fashion).

M3 (as I think of Menton) has done a great job evolving the robots' designs to create his own characters and differentiate them from what Ash Wood did before. So as you can see yesterday, today (and tomorrow, when I show some "Zuvembies" art from Gabriel Hernandez, the third interior artist on the series), this book's gonna look great no matter how it reads.

Focus on the Family

Up now at iTunes' App Store is another free comic app from us, this time previewing the upcoming THE FAMILY CIRCUS LIBRARY, VOLUME 1 hardcover collection. (it joins the free BLOOM COUNTY and DANGER GIRL apps, already available there.

Zombies vs Robots: the return!

ZOMBIES VS ROBOTS is coming back--and no, the title isn't "The Return," that's just the blog entry.

In February, ZOMBIES VS ROBOTS AVENTURE, a 4-issue miniseries, will return. Two issues are already fully done. Ash Wood will be doing covers, but from there, we've changed things up a bit. I'll still be writing all the stories, but each issue will now feature three serialized tales (as was the plan when we solicited the book originally a few months back) illustrated by new artists.

I'll be talking more about the stories to come, and showing more of the art, too. But for now, here's a preview of one. The story is called "Masques," and it spins directly out of the prequel tale we told in D'AIRAIN AVENTURE (the same stories were collected in the COMPLETE TPB, too). The art is being done by UK artist Paul McCaffrey. There's a brief look at it below.

Each story will run four chapters, so issue 1 features "Masques" Part 1, as well as two others, "Kampf, part 1" and "Zuvembies, Part 1." Details on those to come later this week.

For those who've been e-mailing and asking when the book would be back, I appreciate your patience. February, it's back monthly for four issues.

IDW's new releases for October 21

Angel vs Frankenstein #1
Frankenstein Mobster TPB
G.I. Joe: Snake Eyes #1
G.I. Joe #10
The Last Resort #3
Spike Omnibus
Star Trek: Mission's End TPB
Star Trek: Nero #3
Transformers: Tales of the Fallen #3
The Waiting Place TPB

My first time

SCOOP at Diamond Galleries has started a new feature this week, called ORIGIN STORY, where they talk to comic book folks about what got them collecting comics in the first place. I'm the person kicking off this feature for them, and it starts out like this:

Everyone remembers their first time. Especially if their first time involved two girls… as well as a guy who could stretch himself into any position required, along with another made of rocks, and a third with a big, sandy fist.

You can read the rest about my first time here.

#1 with a Bill-et

Well, #1 with a Bill the Cat, anyway...

Angel-It Cool News

Ain't It Cool News had a nice write-up about Brian Lynch & Stephen Mooney's ANGEL 26, which hit stores last week. Among other things, they said:

This issue, however, was a keeper. Inspired, even. So many great little touches: casting the ubiquitous Nick Cage as Angel. Gunn as a fat white guy. George the dog. And Spike as…well, if you haven’t read it, I won’t spoil. But as a person who is getting a crash course on what an original script looks like, and what everyone else involved thinks it ought to look like, and how the finished product is somewhere between… just spot on. I could not help but laugh at some of the zingy one-liners, both the intentionally cheesy ones, and the ones uttered by our actual characters.

Read the entire review here.

And you can read an all-new interview with Lynch about those comics and the coming ANGEL ANNUAL by the same creative team here at Buffyfest.

Who could dislike Family Circus? Not Me!

And not Augie DeBlieck, either, who says some very nice things about both the first BLOOM COUNTY book, in stores now, and the first FAMILY CIRCUS collection, coming soon. Read Augie's entire Pipeline column here.

It's their Weekly World, we just live in it

Today's trades featured a story with the following headline:
"Weekly World News signs with CAA."

Which makes the idea of us doing comics based on that same property positively prescient (we even got a mention at the bottom of the article. Read the full Hollywood Reporter piece right here).

This is great news all around, but certainly nice to see ahead of our comic book series, which starts in January (and will be available for pre-order in the next issue of Previews).

I've shown a bit of Bat Boy art here so far, but above is a page that features a couple of the other stars of the miniseries, Ed Anger and UFO Alien (the talk show host is modeled after a real person, and the red beret might serve as a giveaway to some people, especially those of you on the East Coast, but I ain't naming names. I'll just say that we've filled the series will all kinds of ridiculous pop culture references and cameos. The book'll probably need annotations when it comes out...). Art is courtesy of Alan Robinson and Tom Smith's Scorpion Studios (on colors). The writing will be solely blamed on me... but until then, enjoy the art itself without any goofy words to get in the way.

New York in Bloom

NEW YORK Magazine ran a nice piece on Berkeley Breathed and the new BLOOM COUNTY book series. You can read the whole piece here.

IDW's new releases and 5-page previews for October 14

Act-I-Vate Primer HC
Angel: Only Human #3
Beyond the Wall #1
Clive Barker's Seduth 3-D
Detectives Inc. HC
Doctor Who #4
G.I. Joe: Origins #8
Groom Lake TPB
Hammer of the Gods, Vol. 1
Jon Sable, Freelance: Ashes of Eden #1 (note: final cover is full-color)
Star Trek: Countdown HC
Star Trek: Crew TPB
Star Trek: Spock Reflections #4
Transformers: All Hail Megatron #16
The Veil #4

New printings:

Classic G.I. Joe, Vol. 1 TPB [3rd]
Classic G.I. Joe, Vol. 2 TPB [2nd]
Classic Transformers, Vol. 1 [2nd]
Wormwood, Vol. 1 TPB [5th]
Wormwood,,Vol. 2 TPB [3rd]


Click here for an interview with SEDUTH co-writer Chris Monfette at FearNet.com.

Decade of Angel

Joss Whedon's ANGEL turned 10 years old this week. So as a special way to celebrate that, how about a very-advance look at Bill Willingham and Brian Denham's first issue (#28), available for pre-order in the current issue of Previews (the one with ANGEL 28 on the back cover of the magazine) and shipping in December.

There'll be one other bit of ANGEL 28 news to share soon, a cool little something, but for now, happy anniversary, ANGEL. Here's to another 10 or more under our stewardship...

Army of Us

This week, we announced a partnership with videogame giant EA Games. The first book we'll be doing together is based on their ARMY OF TWO videogame. It's coming in January, written by Peter Milligan (who's been doing great things in American comics since SHADE THE CHANGING MAN at least, not to mention his current projects like THOR and GREEK STREET). The cover image is above but MTV Splash Page has some exclusive pages from issue 1 and some additional details on the series and what else is to come.

Pressing charges

Some good press for various IDW projects this week.


First, creator Alan Robert did this "Twinterview" with BleedingCool.com's Rich Johnston to talk about his book, WIRE HANGERS, coming in early 2010.


Also, Pendragon's Post had a nice early review of ANGEL #26, which just hit stores today.


Finally, TrekWeb.com gave another rave review to John Byrne's STAR TREK run, this time with a look at today's STAR TREK: ROMULANS: SCHISM #2.

Willingham and able

Bill Willingham's first issue of ANGEL, #28, is being solicited in the current issue of Previews, and today, the day Lynch and Mooney's ANGEL #26 is being released, there's a new piece up at Things From Another World, the first time Bill's spoken at length about his ANGEL plans.

You can read the entire interview here.

Clive Barker in vivid 3-D

CLIVE BARKER'S SEDUTH, a special 3-D one-shot by Barker, co-writer Chris Monfette, and artists Gabriel Rodriguez, Jay Fotos and Ray Zone, hits stores next Wednesday. And two weeks after that, fans in Los Angeles will have a chance to meet Barker, Monfette and Zone (and maybe me, if my schedule allows) at Meltdown Comics for a Q&A event on the 28th. Details of the appearance can be found here at the Meltdown Comics site.

Change is on the way

Since there seems to be growing discontent on both sides with the political situation in our country, it seems important to let everyone know that true change is coming in January, with issue 1 of the WEEKLY WORLD NEWS miniseries...

Every vote counts here. Up for pre-order in the Previews that hits shops on October 28.

Bloom week

This week, to showcase the launch of the first volume of THE BLOOM COUNTY LIBRARY, USA Today is featuring a different BLOOM strip along with commentary from Berkeley Breathed at their site.

There was also a great piece on Berkeley, the BLOOM book and Breathed's new prose novel, FLAWED DOGS, in the LA Times this weekend. The piece can be found here.


Finally, Berkeley (seated in this pic next to IDW's Marketing/Public Relations Manager, AnnaMaria White) made his first-ever comic convention appearance at the Long Beach Comic Con this weekend, and was met by legions of appreciative fans. Some of whom brought old merch like this Opus phone as well as the book:


And COMPLETE BLOOM proofreader and IDW writer Scott Tipton was among the crowds:

New releases and 5-page previews for October 7

Angel #26
Angel: Not Fade Away TPB
Bloom County, Vol. 1
Desperate Times TPB
Doctor Who: Classics Series II #11
Fallen Angel: Reborn #4
From the Ashes #5
Ghostbusters: Displaced Aggression #2
GrimJack: Manx Cat #3
Star Trek: Romulans: Schism #2
Starstruck #2
Transformers: Best of U.K.: Prey #3

Technicolor Dream Crown

Earlier this week, I ran the pencils and inks for LOCKE & KEY: CROWN OF SHADOWS #3's cover. Now here's Gabriel Rodriguez's finished cover (colors also by Gabe):

LBC-Con

The inaugural Long Beach Comic Con takes place in Southern California this weekend. IDW will be there with a booth located front and center in the convention hall (booth #460). And we're going to have the following special guests at our booth:


FRIDAY, OCTOBER 2:

4-5 PM: Tom Jane: In addition to promoting his directorial debut, Tom will also spend an hour alongside artist Tim Bradstreet signing copies of SHOCK FESTIVAL, a hardcover collection of hundreds of the greatest movie posters you've never seen. The book was created by screenwriter Stephen Romano, and Tom Jane served as the model for many of the posters, and Tim Bradstreet served as art director on many of the posters.


SATURDAY, OCTOBER 3:

11 AM-12 PM and 1:45-2:45 PM: Berkeley Breathed: Berkeley will be making his first-ever comic book convention appearance, signing advance copies of his brand-new THE BLOOM COUNTY LIBRARY, VOLUME 1 hardcovers. He'll also be on a panel from 3-4 PM in Room B, where in addition to talking about BLOOM and the new book, he'll also be auctioning off an original Sunday strip for one fan in attendance. (Click here for BLOOM COUNTY Sunday strip raffle information.)

12-1 PM: Jimmy Palmiotti: Multi-instrumentalist Jimmy P. will be signing copies of THE LAST RESORT, his RESISTANCE trade paperback, and likely any other the hundreds of comics he's presided over.

I'll also be in attendance on Friday evening and Saturday, as will Special Projects Editor Scott Dunbier, Marketing/PR Manager AnnaMaria White, COO Greg Goldstein and Shipping Manager Alonzo "El Torres" Simon.

And we'll be featuring, among other books, this special con exclusive edition of TRANSFORMERS: ALL HAIL MEGATRON #16, featuring a special "Endless Summer" rendition of the TFs by new father of twins E.J. Su. If you're coming to the show, hope to get a chance to say hi to ya there.

Press Hangers

Earlier this week, we announced that in 2010 we'd be doing a book called WIRE HANGERS, a comic being written and drawn by musician Alan Robert (Life of Agony, Spoiler NYC). And the announcement garnered some nice mentions in places that don't normally cover comics, like some of the below:

ICv2

Anti-Music

Comics Continuum

Comic Monsters

San Diego Reader

Plug In Music

Bleeding Cool

Blabbermouth

Digital Spy