Welcome to Multiversity’s look at the “Best of the Rest” of what’s coming your way in the now-available August 2016 Previews catalog. Having already taken a look at what Marvel, Dark Horse, DC, and Image have lined up for us, it’s now time to check out the other 75% of the catalog. Before we jump into the things you should keep an eye out for, a quick reminder:
As one-half of the Robots From Tomorrow podcast, I go through the whole Previews catalog each and every month with co-host Mike Romeo, talking about things that catch our eye and quicken our pulse. If you listen to those episodes, you should still read this column because there will not be a 100% overlap, and if you don’t listen to those episodes, they are a great way to hear Mike & I go into further detail about some of the things I’ve spotlighted here.
That said, let’s dive in!
10. FORGET IT, JANET…IT’S ANGEL CITY!
As should come as a surprise to absolutely no one, I love a good noir story. Especially Golden-Age Hollywood noir, as the sun-bleached decor and landscape contrasts nicely with the dark humanity within. So when I saw this cover, I thought, “Oh, Hollywood noir with female PI — that could be interesting!” Then I read the solicit and saw it was even twistier than that! Read on to see what I mean, but if this sounds like something you’ve seen before, THAT would be a surprise!
Angel City #1 (of 6)
Written by Janet Harvey
Illustrated by Megan Levens
Published by Oni Press, Inc.Introducing ANGEL CITY, a hard-boiled 1930s noir starring Dolores Dare, previous Hollywood hopeful and current enforcer for the Volante mob. When her best friend turns up dead in a dumpster behind the Chinese Theater, Dolores starts her own investigation of the “April Fool’s Killer.” As she gets closer to the truth, the studios, the corrupt homicide division, and even her own gangland contacts work to cover up the scandal. Has she bitten off more than she can chew?
9. I’D BUY THAT FOR A DOLLAR!
Before getting tapped by Robert Rodriguez for his “Sin City” and then flaming out with “The Spirit”, Frank Miller did a short stint as a Hollywood screenwriter in the early 1990’s. The most memorable things to come out of that period were his scripts for the two Robocop sequels. Neither of them made it to the screen intact, or even at all in any appreciable form, so over the years they’ve been adapted into comics from Avatar and BOOM! Studios. Miller had to direct involvement apart from covers for the Robocop 2 issues, but Grant (and eventually Brisson) do a decent job of bringing that late 80’s blacker-than-black sci-humor from the film scripts to the page.
FRANK MILLER’S ROBOCOP OMNIBUS
Written by Steven Grant, Ed Brisson, Frank Miller
Illustrated by Juan Jose Ryp, Korkut Oztekin
Published by BOOM! StudiosThe complete collected adaptation of legendary storyteller Frank Miller’s original vision of RoboCop. Included in this omnibus are writer Steven Grant’s (2 Guns) adaptations of the unproduced screenplays for RoboCop 2 and RoboCop 3 originally written by Frank Miller (Sin City, 300). Bear witness to the wall-to-wall violence, black comedy, science fiction, and neo-noir that never made it to the big screen.
8. SO METAL IT SETS OFF ALARMS AT AIRPORTS!
This story, currently occupying the creator-owned slot in “Judge Dredd Megazine”, is one of the meanest vampire & vampire hunting stories I’ve seen in a long while. Worley is taking inspiration and cues from death metal while Parr is channeling late 80’s Matt Wagner something fierce and in all the right ways. Check this out to see what all the fuss is about, but make sure you aren’t faint of heart first!
Continued belowREALM OF THE DAMNED GN
Written by Alec Worley
Illustrated by Pye Parr
Published by Werewolf PressThere’s no one left to protect us from what lurks in the dark. The monsters have won. Our world now belongs to them. The Vatican’s last line of paranormal defence – The Congregation – has finally been overrun by the supernatural forces of darkness. Among them is Abraham Van Helsing – addict, murderer, survivor – and the creatures that were once his prey are now hunting him. Van Helsing’s quest for salvation and survival takes him through the ruins of a neo-gothic Europe, where he must face the vampire queen of the Vatican, a man-made monster with the heart of a storm, the lycanthropic lord of the forest, the mummified ruler of the slums of Egypt, and the crazed vampire demi-god who threatens to devour them all.
7. ART IS IN THE EYE OF THE BEHOLDER!
I know absolutely zero about this book that isn’t in the solicit, but look at that cover. And the idea that art can drive you crazy is something I think we can all relate to!
TITLE
Written by W. Maxwell Price
Illustrated by Martin Morazzo
Published by IDW Publishing“Art is anything you can get away with… destroy it all.” Welcome to THE ELECTRIC SUBLIME-where art history, madness, and expression meet in a Pollock-splatter of thrilling crime adventure! When a mysterious change in the composition of a famous painting begins poisoning the minds of its spectators, Margot Breslin-director of the Bureau of Artistic Integrity-must pull famed “art detective” Arthur Brut out of a mental institution and back into the insanity that sent him there in the first place. Featuring a treasure trove of classical works, under-the-radar art, and a seven-foot talking mannequin, this is comics, imitating art, imitating life.
• From the writer of Judas: The Last Days (IDW) and the artist of Great Pacific and Snowfall (Image)!
• The X-Files meets Alice in Wonderland, by way of The Da Vinci Code!
6. WHAT IF HITLER JUST KEPT PAINTING ROSES?
If that wasn’t the starting point for Fabien Vehlmann to put together this story, I’d be shocked. but what isn’t shocking is that Cinebook is putting out another book I want to read ASAP. Between one-offs like this one and ongoing series like “Valerian and Laureline”, they seem to bring the best of Eurocomics to our bookshelves every time they put something out. And I can’t wait to see what “Clear Blue Tomorrows” brings!
CLEAR BLUE TOMORROWS
Written by Fabien Vehlmann
Illustrated by Ralph Meyer & Bruno Gazzotti
Published by CinebookWhen a traveler from the future recounts his memories, it’s a vision both frightening and touching that unrolls before us. In the future, the entire population is under a de facto dictatorship because of cerebral implants invented by one F.G. Wilson. Nolan Ska, an engineer, manages to travel back in time, with the intention of changing history by encouraging Wilson first career: novelist. But the man who will eventually become a seemingly immortal despot turns out to be a poor writer, and it will be up to Nolan to use his own memories to be his ghost writer.
5. IF SUPER-HORROR HAD A NAME, IT WOULD BE KELLEY JONES!
For me that is certainly true. From his work on “Sandman” and “Batman: Red Rain”, Jones has spent his career moving away from his Wrightson-influenced roots and into his own, bizarrely twisted roots. None of his work looks quite…right, but I definitely don’t see anything wrong with it! Jones is given the cover spot for this issue of Jon B. Cooke’s “Comic Book Creator” and I can’t wait to learn more about his career and approach to making creepy but beautiful comics!
COMIC BOOK CREATOR #14
Written by John B. Cooke
Illustrated by Kelley Jones
Published by Twomorrows PublishingComprehensive Kelley Jones interview, from early years as Marvel inker to present-day greatness at DC depicting Batman, Deadman, and Swamp Thing (chockful of rarely-seen artwork)! Plus Will Murray examines the nefarious legacy of Batman co-creator Bob Kane in an investigation into tragic ghosts and rapacious greed. We also look at Raina Telgemeier and her magnificent army of devotees, and more!
4. THE DEMN WITHIN…IS NOW OUT!
I have the first issue of this but missed the rest, so Im. totally looking forward to getting this book and seeing what all the hubbub is about.
Continued belowDEMON HC
Written & Illustrated by Jason Shiga
Published by :01 First Second BooksJimmy cannot die. When the body he is occupying is killed, Jimmy’s consciousness simply takes over the body of the living person in closest proximity to him. Simple, right? Not once Jimmy gets started. Because Jimmy is an insurance actuary. His mind is sharp and highly analytical, and he cares about nothing but his own survival and the survival of his adorable daughter. To avoid the shadowy government agency on his tail, Jimmy will do anything to protect his family, even if it means tearing the world down around them in the most mind-bogglingly complex and fiendishly clever way possible.
3. ARTIST EDITIONS, GALLERY EDITIONS…NOW STUDIO EDITIONS!
There’s another Fantagraphics AE that’s gonna grab my attention when its officially announced, but until then I have glorious Hal Foster artwork contained in these pages to salivate over. I don’t think there’s any doubt that the street value for the art reprinted here is in the millions; Hal Foster was a legend and inspiration, and the work of people like him is appropriately out of the reach of most of us unless it’s at a gallery showing. Thankfully, you can have a studio show at your convenience anytime with this bad boy.
FANTAGRAPHICS STUDIO EDITION: HAL FOSTER’S PRINCE VALIANT
Written by Illustrated by Hal Foster
Published by FantagraphicsHal Foster’s Prince Valiant Artist’s Edition is a 192-page collection scanned from Foster’s original pages and printed in full color, capturing every nuance of Foster’s masterly brush strokes. Each page is so rare that the sum total of the original art reprinted in this book would likely cost millions. From Foster’s very first Prince Valiant page to his very last the public will be treated to a selection of some of the most iconic and beautiful comic art ever made.
2. BRAVO FOR TOTH ORIGINALS!
Toth Artist Edition? Sold. SOLD! TAKE MY MONEY — I MUST HAZ THIS NOWZ!!!!!!!
(SLAP!)
*ahem*
I heartily recommend purchasing this lovely book at your earliest opportunity, for I will assuredly be doing so.
ALEX TOTH’S BRAVO FOR ADVENTURE AE HC
Written & Illustrated by Alex Toth
Published by IDW PublishingOf every comics story Alex Toth ever drew, the only one that he kept the complete original art to was Bravo for Adventure. This Artist’s Edition is a virtual “how-to” course in drawing comics the Toth way. We see how he would draw all the detail in a scene, only to black it out in order to focus the reader’s eye on what really counted. “Simplify, simplify, simplify,” he said. Also included are variant versions of the Bravo saga featuring Noah Chance and the experimental aircraft called Condor, plus dozens of never-before-seen pencil roughs, preliminary drawings, and story fragments, as well as all twelve pages of Toth’s own coloring for an edition that never saw print, and-freed from storage after 40 years-all of the coloring for what was intended to be Bravo’s original 1975 first printing in France!
1. ONE MORE SCORE!
This isn’t the last of the Cooke adaptations of the “Parker” novels. It isn’t even the first time this book has been released. But it is the first time that Cooke’s adaptation of a part of another Parker book, “The Man With The Getaway Face”, is available in a mass-market format. which means it will be unread Darwyn Cooke work for a large chunk of comics and non-comics readers alike. And for THAT, this book gets the lead spot this month.
RICHARD STARK’S PARKER: THE OUTFIT TPB
Written by Donald Westlake & Darwyn Cooke
Illustrated by Darwyn Cooke
Published by IDW PublishingAfter evening the score with those who betrayed him, and recovering the money he was cheated out of from the syndicate, Parker is riding high, living in swank hotels and enjoying the finer things in life again. Until, that is, he’s fingered by a squealer who rats him out to the Outfit for the price they put on his head… and they find out too late that if you push Parker, it better be all the way into the grave!
• First time in trade paperback!
• Darywn Cooke won SEVEN Eisner Awards for his work adapting Richard Stark’s Parker Novels, as well as FOUR Harvey Awards!
• Expanded edition-Featuring THE MAN WITH THE GETAWAY FACE!
Well, that was fun! Be sure to check out the Robots From Tomorrow August 2016 Previews episode and hear us talk about these books and a whole lot more. And let me know what books YOU’RE excited for in the comments section.
