Welcome back to another month of Soliciting Multiversity! As always, we take a week to break down each comic publishers’ most recently released solicitations. This is our look at Image Comics’ solicitations for the month of October 2015 and as it’s a pretty big month for the publisher, I’m just going to skip right to the honourable mentions.
Honourable Mentions:
- This month, both “Satellite Sam” and “Wayward” are getting the Deluxe Hardcover treatment. While I haven’t read “Wayward”, I am very happy that this is happening for “Satellite Sam”.
- New $9.99 paperbacks this month: “Southern Cross”, “Jupiter’s Circle”, and “Injection”. “Kaptara”, meanwhile, is getting a first trade at $9.98. Because that’s how that comic rolls.
- Image will be selling the ‘Comics Are For Everybody’ t-shirts created by Jordie Bellaire and Fonografiks. The shirts were originally only available through Diesel Sweeties.
- “Southern Bastards” #11 will be an issue written and illustrated by Jason Latour.
Now… onto the Top Ten!
10. The Final Chapter In The Menu Of Life
This month, we’re starting with an ending. Well, more like the beginning of the end as “Chew” #51 is set to jump two years ahead and begin its final story arc. This is something I don’t honestly mind happening as I love “Chew”, but I’ve been reading the series collected and with a finite ending point it will make it all that much easier to catch up.
I’m sure it’s sad for people who have been keeping up with the series in single issues, though. Unless the series turned to crap at some point and I haven’t heard. That would be a bummer.
CHEW #51
STORY: JOHN LAYMAN
ART / COVER: ROB GUILLORY
OCTOBER 28 / 32 PAGES / FC / M / $3.50Hey, remember when DC did “One Year Later” and it was the greatest, most creative, and most revolutionary thing in comics EVER? We thought long and hard about how we could do something that awesome, and we came up with something TWICE as amazing. That’s right! “Two Years Later…”
Presenting a bold new chapter in CHEW, which just so happens to be the FINAL chapter. “The Last Suppers,” Part 1. The countdown begins.
9. Boy, They Really Want You To Read “Invincible”, Huh?
Remember when they were selling that one issue of “Invincible” for a quarter? Well, the books new big storyline push to get everyone reading it is the same tactic that Marvel and DC have been doing for years: just hit that reboot button. However, as usual, Kirkman has a slight twist to this up his sleeve. He and Ryan Ottley will be taking the Invincible character back to the beginning… but with a knowledge of everything that he’s experienced up until now.
Now, if that doesn’t get you reading “Invincible”, nothing will at this point.
INVINCIBLE #124
STORY: ROBERT KIRKMAN
ART: RYAN OTTLEY, CLIFF RATHBURN, & JEAN-FRANCOIS BEAULIEU
COVER: RYAN OTTLEY & JEAN-FRANCOIS BEAULIEU
OCTOBER 21 / 24 PAGES / FC / T+ / $2.99“REBOOT?” Part One!
This one is big, folks. We’re going back to square one. Mark suddenly finds himself without powers. BACK HOME…but aware of everything he’s lived through. What does he change, who can he save…and how will he deal with his father now that he’s knows what’s coming?
8. The End Of An Era… I Think?
I’ve never read a “Witchblade” comic, I just felt like a series that has somehow reached 185 issues any time after the 70s finally ending was something worth mentioning. Even though I haven’t read the book, I have a cursory knowledge of it and it always seemed like something, along with “The Darkness”, that I would want to dive into at some point. Now, barring some kind of reboot, I’ll finally be able to read it all through to the end.
I can just only hope that it’s an ending worth reading almost 200 issues for.
Continued belowWITCHBLADE #185
STORY: RON MARZ, MATT HAWKINS, MARC SILVESTRI
ART: KEU CHA, STJEPAN SEJIC, & ABHISHEK MALSUNI
BRIAN CHING, RANDY GREEN, MICHAEL TURNER, ISAAC GOODHART, NELSON BLAKE II, LINDA SEJIC, & MARC SILVESTRI
COVER A (MEMORIAL COVER): MICHAEL TURNER
COVER B: KEU CHA
OCTOBER 14 / 48 PAGES / FC / T+ / $5.99SERIES FINALE!
An era comes to a close with the double-sized final issue of Sara Pezzini’s twenty-year run. Several previous Witchblade artists return to the title to send her off in style. The story resolves Sara’s return to New York and her relationship with Gleason and her attempt to find a suitable bearer to give the Artifact to.
7. Shane Davis, Now With 100% Less Emo Superman
I have to admit that while I’m not the biggest fan of the “Superman: Earth One” graphic novels, I loved Shane Davis’ art on the first two volumes and was majorly bummed when he didn’t return for the third. Now, though, I don’t have to trudge through mediocre Superman writing to enjoy Davis’ art because with “Axcend” I can enjoy his art and his writing at the same time.
Also, stories about video games becoming reality is one of the few tropes that will win me over no matter what. Unless you’re Pixels, of course. Then you can go die in a fire.
AXCEND #1
STORY: SHANE DAVIS
ART / COVER: SHANE DAVIS, MICHELLE DELECKI, & MORRY HOLLOWELL
OCTOBER 7 / 32 PAGES/ FC / M / $3.50Superman Earth One co-creator SHANE DAVIS returns to comics for an all-new ONGOING SERIES! What happens when a video game decides to come to our reality to play? When there are no extra lives, and Armageddon looms on the horizon, when your life revolves around gaming like teenager Eric Morn, you Press Start.
Writer/artist SHANE DAVIS (Superman: Earth One), MICHELLE DELECKI (JLA,Venom) and MORRY HOLLOWELL (Civil War, Old Man Logan) bring you an epic sci-fi/thriller that’s like Tron meets Inception with a cheat code! This special introductory issue features 28 full pages and no ads! Each issue of the series will feature a VS. linking cover variant by DAVIS showcasing the book’s cast.
6. One Day Namedropping “Preacher” In A Solicit Won’t Get Me Interesting, But It’s Not This Day
When your solicit describes itself as a mixture of Dexter and “Preacher”, you automatically get a spot on this list. While I don’t really have much to say about this book as I don’t either of the creators involved, that description has me interested already.
This may definitely be one to keep an eye on.
SAINTS #1
STORY: SEAN LEWIS
ART / COVER: BENJAMIN MACKEY
OCTOBER 7 / 40 PAGES / FC / M / $2.99Award-winning playwright and This American Life personality SEAN LEWIS teams with red-hot artist BENJAMIN MACKEY for an all-new ONGOING SERIES! Dexter-style action collides with a Preacher-esque sensibility in this crime/horror series for mature readers. Blaise, Lucy, and Sebastian discover a Holy War is erupting and they, unwittingly, are the next generation of Saints poised to fight for a heaven that God has abandoned. The occult rises in a spectacular, action-packed first issue crammed full of heavy metal, sex, and deadly one-liners.
5. The Stjepan Sejic Webcomic That Isn’t About BDSM
Stjepan Sejic is on a roll at Image. From taking over as artist on “Rat Queens” (though, sadly, it was a short lived stint) to getting his webcomic “Sunstone” collected in print, he’s had some great stuff come out of Image recently. That streak will hopefully continue with “Switch”, a series that seems to be a continuation of Sejic’s webcomic of the same name. With the promise of characters from other series showing up, I’m very excited to see who might show up.
(For the record: I know Sejic has a ling history with Image and Top Cow, but I just haven’t read any of that stuff and I didn’t know how else to introduce this paragraph. Don’t hate me.)
SWITCH #1
STORY / ART / COVER: STJEPAN SEJIC
OCTOBER 14 / 48 PAGES / FC / T+ / $3.99After millions of views on DeviantArt, this popular web comic finally gets its own series. A teenage girl gets a mighty artifact that grants her immense powers…the catch? It’s a bit haunted! This self-contained “universe” includes Artifacts and characters from other series (with permission!) in a delectably STJEPAN SEJIC fashion!
4. I’m Getting All Nostalgic For Are You Afraid Of The Dark? Up In Here
One of the more difficult genres to create in comics is horror, I think. Film has become the most resonant medium for horror largely due to the fact that the mix of visuals and music and cinematography can create an amazingly dreadful atmosphere that, combined with the cramped and dark space of the cinema, can be inherently scary regardless of how good the film actually is. Taking some of those tools away and teaming the visuals with words forces creators to dig into the subtlety of ideas that spawn great horror novels.
Continued belowBut you know what’s even hard to create? Horror for all ages. While it’s been done before, like with stuff like Goosebumps, it can be difficult to strike the balance between being scary and being accessible for younger readers. Seeing Steven T. Seagle’s name on what looks to be an all ages horror graphic novel, then, makes me very excited. I’m hoping for good things from this.
CAMP MIDNIGHT OGN
STORY: STEVEN T. SEAGLE
ART / COVER: JASON ADAM KATZENSTEIN
OCTOBER 7 / 248 PAGES / 6” x 8” / FC / E / $16.99Ben 10 and Big Hero 6 creator STEVEN T. SEAGLE returns to comics with New Yorker Magazine cartoonist JASON ADAM KATZENSTEIN for a new graphic novel. Reluctant Skye is accidentally sent to the wrong summer camp. Not wanting to please her “step monster,” Skye is dead-set on not fitting in. That won’t be a problem, as everyone at Camp Midnight—with the exception of fellow camper and fast-friend Mia—is a full-fledged monster! The perfect book for readers who love Raina Telgemeier’s Smile but wish it had more bowls of gooey eyeballs in the lunch scenes and was just in time for Halloween.
3. Not Your Daddy’s Skottie Young
Skottie Young has been a well known artist for a while, but his variant covers for Marvel and his recent work on books like “Giant-Size AvX” (or whatever the actual full title is) have really catapulted him into the spotlight to the point where I know people who don’t read comics and recognise his art. It’s interesting, then, not only that he will be writing and drawing a creator owned series at Image, but also that his rather kid-friendly style will be paired with unrelenting and incredibly gory violence.
I’m looking forward to this book a lot, but I’m looking forward even more to the stories of parents buying this book for their kids without reading it first.
I HATE FAIRYLAND #1
STORY / ART / COVER: SKOTTIE YOUNG
COLORS: JEAN-FRANCOIS BEAULIEU
OCTOBER 14 / 32 PAGES / FC / M / $3.50Superstar SKOTTIE YOUNG (Rocket Raccoon, Wizard of Oz) makes his Image debut with an ALL-NEW SERIES! The Adventure Time/Alice in Wonderland-style epic that smashes its cute little face against Tank Girl/Deadpool-esque violent madness has arrived. In an adventure that ain’t for the little kiddies, (unless you have super cool parents, then whatever), you’ll meet Gert—a six year old girl who has been stuck in the magical world of Fairyland for thirty years and will hack and slash her way through anything to find her way back home. Join Gert and her giant battle-axe on a delightfully blood soaked journey to see who will survive the girl who HATES FAIRYLAND!
2. Nothing’s More Goth Than Witch Noir
Let’s clear the air here a little: I love Greg Rucka. I think it’s impossible not to love Greg Rucka. As a writer and personality, he might be one of my favourites in the industry and I don’t think I’ve been disappointed by anything he’s written in the past. So the fact that he’s teaming with Nicola Scott to tell a “witch noir” detective story has me so hype, I can barely contain. I need this book and I need it now. And if you don’t believe me, check out this (very NSFW) preview art of the first issue.
Continued belowBLACK MAGICK #1
STORY: GREG RUCKA
ART / COVER A: NICOLA SCOTT
COVER B: JILL THOMPSON
OCTOBER 28 / 40 PAGES / FC / M / $3.99The hammer falls this Halloween! From New York Times bestselling and Eisner Award-winning writer GREG RUCKA (LAZARUS, Stumptown, Gotham Central) and superstar artist NICOLA SCOTT (Birds of Prey, Secret Six, Earth 2)! Detective Rowan Black works robbery/homicide for the Portsmouth PD, but her greatest mystery is the truth about herself…both who she has been, and who she will become. Yet there are others in Rowan’s world with very long memories, and the power that one person holds, another will always covet. PLUS, each issue also features an all-new work of original fiction by GREG RUCKA! A new gothic-noir ongoing series about legacy, destiny, redemption…and the price of magic.
1. It’s Gonna Be Like Super 8 Except It Won’t Be Mostly Terrible
You know how you can tell it’s going to be a good month for Image’s comics? We get a new #1 issue written by Brian K. Vaughn. You know what makes it even better? When Brian K. Vaughn teams with Cliff Chiang for a new series. While I still haven’t had a chance to read Vaughn’s other new series, “We Stand On Guard” with Steve Skroce, this is one that might have me even more interested. Pitched as a coming of age story about four young newspaper delivery girls that may or may not also include aliens, this feels like the Spielbergian 80s film that never happened.
PAPER GIRLS #1
STORY: BRIAN K. VAUGHAN
ART: CLIFF CHIANG & MATT WILSON
COVER: CLIFF CHIANG
OCTOBER 7 / 48 PAGES / FC / T+ / $2.99SAGA writer BRIAN K. VAUGHAN launches a brand-new ONGOING SERIES with superstar Wonder Woman artist CLIFF CHIANG! In the early hours after Halloween of 1988, four 12-year-old newspaper delivery girls uncover the most important story of all time. Stand By Me meets War of the Worlds in this mysterious young adult adventure, starting with a spectacular DOUBLE-SIZED FIRST ISSUE for the regular price of just $2.99!
