New Comics In Stores This Week: June 13, 2012
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Author: ComicMix Staff
Kaui Hart Hemmings Discusses Her Novel, The Descendants, Tuesday
To celebrate the upcoming release of The Descendants to Blu-ray and DVD March 13, author Kaui Hart Hemmings will be participating in a special Featured Author Group Chat on social media network GoodReads next Tuesday.
GoodReads members can join the group and be notified when it officially starts and begin submitting questions. If not a GoodReads user, it’s easy to sign up and then join in the fun. DVD/book bundles are also being given away on the site to commemorate the release!
ComicMix recommends GoodReads where several of our contributors and friends including Robert Greenberger, Aaron Rosenberg, and David Mack are regulars.
ComicMix’s Bob Greenberger Chronicles Career of Howard Chaykin
Legendary for what he has done on the page and infamous for what he has said off it, Howard Chaykin ranks among the superstars of modern comics. In [[[The Art of Howard Chaykin]]], written by Robert Greenberger, go behind the scenes with the creator whose pioneering works include American Flagg!, The Shadow, Batman, New Avengers, Dominic Fortune, Black Kiss and more. Experience the stories of Howard Chaykin’s life as only he can tell them. Filled with no-holds-barred perspective from his longtime friends and colleagues, and featuring an extensive selection of artwork from throughout his career, including many never-before-published pieces from Chaykin’s own archives, The Art of Howard Chaykin takes readers on an in-depth journey from the 1970s to today with one of the medium’s great storytellers.
“Big thanks to everybody at Dynamite for the incredibly flattering job they’ve done, making me look good in this volume,” stated Howard Chaykin. “Since I’m always willing to mistake attention for affection, I’m basking in the love.”
“At a time when many fresh new art styles while gracing the pages of comics, there was a boldness to Howard Chaykin’s figures that set him apart,” states The Art of Howard Chaykin writer Robert Greenberger. “He carved his own path, first as an artist, then as a writer exploring the limits of what can be done in graphic arts, informed by the great illustrators that came before him. Like his work, the man is larger-than-life filled with provocative observations that are always informed and defensible. Getting to know him has never been less than fascinating and getting to write his story was an opportunity to learn more about what him tick.”
“Howard Chaykin is a good friend and is an unparalleled creator in the comics medium,” says Dynamite President and Publisher Nick Barrucci! “We made sure to pull out all the stops to make this the definitive guide for Chaykin fanatics everywhere. Also, having a Brian Michael Bendis forward and afterward by Walter Simonson is just icing on the cake!”
Peter David’s New Novel Launches Crazy 8 Press
Crazy 8 Press exists because the founders — Peter David, Michael Jan Friedman, Bob Greenberger, Glenn Hauman, Aaron Rosenberg, and Howard Weinstein — have found selling their original works to mainstream publishers increasingly difficult. Illogical barriers have been erected and the website was conceived to directly connect the authors with the readers.
The concept was conceived by Friedman at last summer’s Shore Leave convention and now, a year later, the site is officially open for business this afternoon. Its initial offering is an original novel, The Camelot Papers, which is unrelated to David’s previous Camelot trilogy. The novel is available in all eBook formats in addition to Print on Demand.
At a launch panel Saturday at noon, the founders will outline their plans for the future, addressing issues such as frequency, backlist, and if non-member authors will be published through the site. “It’s not a business,” Greenberger said. “It’s a consortium with a handshake binding friends together. Our goal is to have all our audiences come to one source to find our older and newer original works.”
To bring attention to the new operation and to raise much-needed funds for the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund, the six authors will collaborate on a short story, written in shifts during the convention, based on an opening line supplied by a fan during Friday night’s Meet the Authors event.
Since most of the authors write for ComicMix, we’re particularly proud of their accomplishment.
Dave Sim Doing ‘Wonder Woman’; Scott Adams on Backups
Wonder Woman has been through a lot lately. J. Michael Straczynski — the writer best known for the universally-beloved Spider-Man: One More Day — signed on in the last half of 2010 for a storyline that completely revamped the Amazon princess’ origins. But after the success of Superman: Earth One, the original graphic novel that saw JMS completely break out of his comfort zone by revamping the Last Son of Krypton’s origins, he decided to focus on the sequel and leave Wonder Woman to Phil Hester. But now Hester is leaving, too, unable to resist the temptation of working on the hotly-anticipated 2012 relaunch of Marville for the other guys.
But Diana of Themyscira is in good hands with Dave Sim, the self-publishing legend and creative force behind the eight million-page Cerebus the Aardvark saga, writing and drawing her monthly adventures starting with April’s issue #401. And if that weren’t enough, cartoonist Scott Adams of Dilbert fame, who recently rose to prominence with some enlightened treatises on the feminist movement, will be providing eight-page “Tales Of Diana” backups.
Details are still scarce, but early word has it that Sim will keep with the “Odyssey” timeline established by JMS and Hester in his feature stories. The younger, angrier Princess Diana will meet this timeline’s version of Steve Trevor, an ex-Air Force pilot who quit when he realized that society wasn’t advanced far enough to deserve his servitude.
Under Sim’s guidance, Trevor is expected to teach Diana to embrace the aspects of womanhood she has ignored for so long – namely, submission to the powerful men around her. On Justice League missions, Diana will choose to stand back in the face Superman and Batman’s leadership, deferring to their wisdom. Unfortunately, Wonder Woman cannot be a “normal” woman. It becomes clear the joys of femininity must remain unknown to her, as her repressed aggression manifests into a demon that the men around her have to defeat alone.
As for the Scott Adams backup stories, the Dilbert scribe is aiming for humor over dramatics, as you might expect. Wonder Woman attempts to find Mr. Right in New York City while defeating a slew of villains who roll over and turn themselves into the police rather than fight her. Over the course of his six issues, you can expect to see Adams address such hot-button topics as premenstrual syndrome, shoe shopping, and cubicle life. David E. Kelley has reportedly seen the scripts early and may integrate elements into the new TV series.
Here at ComicMix, we’re very excited to see what may well be the most empowering and popular take on a female superhero since Frank Miller’s All-Star Batman and Robin The Boy Wonder.
Related articles
- Scott Adams argues as well as he draws (comicsbeat.com)
Marvel names Axel Alonso Editor-in-Chief
Via press release:
Marvel Worldwide, Inc announced today that it has promoted Axel
Alonso to Editor-in-Chief, Marvel Entertainment. In this new role, Mr.
Alonso will report to Dan Buckley Publisher & President, Print,
Animation & Digital Divisions, Marvel Worldwide Inc. Mr. Alonso will
oversee all day to day aspects of Marvel’s Publishing division,
including advising on the editorial creative direction, developing new
storylines and brainstorming new initiatives. Additionally, Mr. Alonso
will work on creative aspects of development of larger corporate
initiatives involving Marvel’s popular library of characters. The
announcement was made today by Joe Quesada, Chief Creative Officer of
Marvel Entertainment.
Mr. Quesada stated, “It’s with
tremendous pride that I announce Axel Alonso’s promotion to
Editor-In-Chief. For over a decade, Axel’s been instrumental in bringing
fresh new voices to Marvel and reinventing our biggest characters like
Spider-Man, the X-Men, Wolverine and so many more. He’s fought to create
unique imprints like Marvel MAX while also bringing fresh new voices to
the Marvel family.”
Working in comics for over 15
years, Mr. Alonso began working at Marvel in 2000 as a Senior Editor and
was promoted to Vice President, Executive Editor in 2010. Overseeing
acclaimed runs of AMAZING SPIDER-MAN and X-MEN, in addition to
shepherding groundbreaking projects such as X-STATIX and RAWHIDE KID,
Mr. Alonso developed a reputation for bringing readers the unexpected
and the electrifying. He also oversaw cross-promotional projects such as
the creative collaboration between Marvel Entertainment and ESPN The
Magazine on their recent NBA Preview issue, which drew attention across
the world from mainstream media for it’s innovation.
“Marvel has a great history of the most dynamic and memorable EiCs in
comics history and I’m honored to step into this role,” said Axel
Alonso. “I’ve been blessed to work with some of the most creative men
and women in the world, bringing to life some of the most compelling
stories you’ll find in any medium. This new role provides me with
exciting challenges and prospects I’ve never encountered before, but I
know one thing—Marvel’s getting even bigger in 2011.”
“Most of you know Axel from his high profile job as Vice President,
Executive Editor and the man behind some of our very best and edgiest
books,” added Joe Quesada. “Time and time again, Axel has proven that he
is one of the very best story editors in the history of our medium and
one of the finest people I know. And, like everyone here at Marvel, he
has one single focus, bringing you the best stories with the best
characters in all of comicdom. That’s why I have no doubt that Axel
will bring Marvel Comics to greater heights than it’s ever known!”
As part of this strategic initiative, Joe Quesada will focus on his
duties as Chief Creative Officer, overseeing Marvel’s creative endeavors
in film, television, publishing, digital and more. In his ten-year
tenure as Editor-In-Chief, Mr. Quesada was instrumental in Marvel’s rise
to prominence as a global entertainment juggernaut and the increased
profile of the comic book medium. Mr. Quesada brings his expertise and
experience to further strengthen the Marvel brand as a leader in
worldwide entertainment.
ComicMMXI: ComicMix Predicts 2011
Now that we’ve taken a look back at the year – and boy oh boy, was that an interesting year – we can now look over the rainbow at what’s coming down the pike. Intelligent theories meet best guesses with a dash of wild-eyed visions; crystal ball, there’s so many things I gotta know… what’s coming in the New Year?
We’ve seen what the growth figures have been like for electronic reading, and now we can say there is no sign of slowing down. An estimated 70 different types of e-readers are expected to be on display at the Consumer Electronics Show later this month, and rumors have it that Apple is looking to purchase 65 million screens for iPads in the coming year, where book reading platforms are in the top 5 and two comics reading apps are in the top 20.
With the departure of Paul Levitz, Karen Berger is now the longest serving editorial employee at DC. But she’s on the other end of the country from where the action seems to be moving, and her sales figures haven’t been super-inspiring. Yes, Sandman moves lots of trade paperbacks a year– but what has she done for them lately? How many Big Events can they shove into the ever-narrowing pipeline? What if Green Lantern bombs? How do these new kids on the block respond? More THUNDER Agents? We will be told Wonder Woman is being given a bold new direction by a
new writer. This time the jacket will have fringe on it. The
DCU will get a few steps closer to being right back in the silver age.
Kyle Rayner and Wally West should buy some plots next to Ryan Choi any
day now.
How many Thor miniseries came out last year, in preparation for trade collection in time for the movie release? How about Captain America minis? Will the Spider-Man musical take flight – or will somebody get killed? Spider-Man himself will not die. Marvel’s Fear Itself will tie into Phobos being angry that daddy Ares was killed during Siege. The Avengers line-up will change and a new Avengers title will rise. Then, towards the end of 2011, we’ll have more Avengers mini-series than Richie Rich has tax shelters.
And then there’s the sword of Damocles hanging over the entire print industry. Steve Geppi’s financial problems are still touchy, not noticed as much because everybody’s had a softer year than most. Right now, we get the impression that Diamond’s treading water and has been able to refinance any cash flow problems, but shutting down their West Coast warehouse has to worry some folks about their future viability. But the real problem is with the Borders Book Chain: they closed the year not paying its creditors and returning tons of warehoused product. Sadly, Barnes and Noble and Books-A-Million aren’t doing all that much better.
The Green Lantern movie will be better than Spider-Man Turn On The Dark… we think. The Green Hornet movie will not. Please, please, please prove us wrong.
Beware the FINAL PICKLE. It’s coming.
Dr. Mid-Nite, Dr. Doom, Dr. Who, and Dr. Strange will start a competing talk show to take on the syndicated The Doctors. The show will however fail when Dr. Doom’s “Top Ten Super Health Tips for 2011” begin with SUCCUMB TO DOOM’S WILL!
The JLA line-up will change and spin-off into a new title, and no one will buy that book either. DC will quickly reconsider their no-crossover policy to jump on the Avengers bandwagon. Marvel will laugh.
Reed Dies. Sue Dies. Johnny Dies. Ben Dies. Franklin Dies. …. H.E.R.B.I.E. Dies. His parts will be distributed at random in the “final” bagged edition of Fantastic Four.
With the entire Disney Animated Universe being milked dry by BOOM! (and, increasingly Disney-owned Marvel),
look out for Avatar’s cleaning of the wonderful world of DiC.
Odin will return from the dead in a very angry state of mind. And a new pair of glasses.
Stan Lee’s characters for BOOM! will be forgotten by the summer, but don’t worry… Striperella will hit the shelves in the fall. And get ready to forget Stan’s new Archie titles!
The Walking Dead series will end with a unique twist: It was all a dream. Then Tom Welling shows up.
Marvel’s relaunching of the CrossGen Line will prove once and for all there was a good reason CrossGen went out of business.
Robert Kirkman will release only 17 new IP’s for Image.
And the surprise of the year: that Aunt May is going to outlive Miss Grundy.
How about you? What does your magic 8-ball reveal?
(Marc Alan Fishman, Mike Gold, Glenn Hauman, and Alan Kistler contributed to this piece.)
