Dynamite Entertainment, four years ago, announced a licensing deal with Atari that included art books and comic reprints. Art of Atari came out in 2016. The Swordquest pack-in mini comics were reprinted as Atari Classics: Swordquest in 2017. But the book I really wanted, the Atari Classics: Atari Force, never arrived. It was due in January 2019. A book catalog website lists it as Cancelled. Here’s the original description: A compilation of the extremely rare comics originally given away in […]

Are we seeing the end of the comic book miniseries (at least, outside of the corporate superhero)? Two enjoyable comic series have recently had issues cancelled with the plan of releasing paperback collections instead. It makes a lot of sense to me — who needs the slippery short comics to store, when it’s a much better experience to get the whole story at once? It’s better for the publisher, as well, to avoid having to manage four or five months […]

As the comic market continues to change and mature, creators and publishers are experimenting with various ways to make comic production financially viable. Thom Zahler, the creator of the superhero romantic comedy Love and Capes, began in traditional print self-publishing in 2006, putting out issues that were then collected into book formats. There are four out so far, with the most recent coming out in 2013. The last two were published by IDW, which also took over the print serialization. […]

Oni Press, which has had great success with licensed publications, has announced a new deal. They will be working with Sanrio (home of Hello Kitty and many other merchandise characters) to put out a series of comic books featuring Gudetama, the “lazy egg”. (I discovered the character at this year’s TCAF, and I found him adorable, particularly when napping on a bed of rice as sushi. You more often see him uncooked, though, as a yolk.) Oni will put out […]

Rumors were circulating over the past week that DC will be shutting down Vertigo. The imprint, which launched in 1993, was created for more mature content, and over the years, it’s been the home of some revolutionary titles (mostly horror and fantasy related), including Sandman, Swamp Thing, and Preacher. However, these days, the Comic Code Authority no longer exists, so there’s less need for a strong wall between types of comics; the visionary editors who gave Vertigo its unique feel […]

Goldie Vance was an entertaining Nancy-Drew-type series featuring an energetic young woman of color in a retro beach hotel setting. It launched in May 2016 as a miniseries by Hope Larson and Brittney Williams; shortly became an ongoing series; and had movie interest announced at the end of 2017. It’s had four stories collected so far: Volume 1, October 2016; Volume 2, May 2017; Volume 3, November 2017; and Volume 4, by another creative team, and the first after it […]

Ted Adams, founder of IDW, was replaced as CEO in July 2018. (His replacement was replaced seven months later.) There was mention at that time of him returning in a new role. Now we know what that will be. The parent “integrated media company”, IDW Media Holdings, will be launching Clover Press, a “joint book publishing venture… led by the company’s co-founders Ted Adams and Robbie Robbins.” Clover Press is skipping out on the comic book market, focusing instead on […]

It’s a tough road for a small indie comic that doesn’t have a publisher great at marketing (because there are so few of those) or some kind of big-name tie-in (such as a well-known creator or media interest). It’s impressive when, often due to the sheer stubbornness of its creators, a story makes it to its conclusion. James F. Wright and Jackie Crofts launched Nutmeg four years ago. He describes it as Breaking Bad meets Betty & Veronica. The premise […]