It’s that time again! Soliciting Multiversity rolls on for another week where we look ahead at the comics being released by Image Comics this September. There’s some real interesting and unique stuff coming out this month that’s worth keeping an eye on so without further ado, let’s get to it!
As always, you can check out the full Image solicitations for September on Image’s website.
10. A New Millarwold Acquisition
Mark Millar has made a strange space for himself in comics, at the head of his own burgeoning shared universe. What that has also allowed him to do is continue series he’s written with new talent. Case in point: “Kingsman.” Originally, “The Secret Service” was Millar’s riff on James Bond as an asbo-touting youth with Dave Gibbons. Then it became an international blockbuster under a new title and is now comic to Image with a new writer and artist. It’s a pretty unique situation and I wonder how Rob Williams and Simon Fraser will handle this.
KINGSMAN: THE RED DIAMOND #1 (OF 6)
STORY: ROB WILLIAMS
ART / COVER: SIMON FRASER
VARIANT COVER: DAVE GIBBONS, FRANK QUITELY, ROB DOYLE, SIMON FRASER
SEPTEMBER 06 / 32 PAGES / FC / M / $3.99Kingsman: The Golden Circle (starring Channing Tatum and Colin Firth)is in cinemas in September, and we’re launching the sequel to the hit comic book series by MARK MILLAR and DAVE GIBBONS with KINGSMAN: THE RED DIAMOND. Working-class super-spy Eggsy follows in his mentor’s footsteps but is still rough around the edges for a Kingsman agent. Rejected by his high school crush and hot on the heels of a rescue mission to save Prince Phillip, he embarks on an international terror plot in a story that starts where James Bond draws the line. ROB WILLIAMS (Suicide Squad, Action Comics) and SIMON FRASER take the helm for this stunning six-issue miniseries.
9. Despite That Cover…
Okay, so that cover is one of the weirdest things I’ve ever seen, but I’m interested in this. Mark Millar using his intellectual properties as a platform for new talent is an initiative I can get behind and I even know someone in this annual! Stephanie Cooke is a great writer and is very like in good company. While I may have my own grievances with Millar’s own work, I can really get behind this way of showcasing new talent.
MILLARWORLD ANNUAL 2017
STORY: EMMA SAYLE, MARTIN RENARD, SIMON JAMES, STEPHANIE COOKE, STEVE LAWRENCE, WILLIAM MCLAREN
ART: ALEX AGUILAR, EDGY ZIANE, JAKE ELPHICK, LUANA VECCHIO, MARCELO SALAZA, ROBERT CAREY
COVER: ROB DOYLE
SEPTEMBER 20 / 32 PAGES / FC / M / $2.99The MILLARWORLD ANNUAL is back! After an international hunt for the world’s best new comic book talent, a fresh crop of creators are taking on MARK MILLAR’S hit characters. With stories from HUCK to SUPERIOR, EMPRESS to NEMESIS, the second ANNUAL is an instant collector’s item.
8. Lap 2 Begins
“Motor Crush” is just the best. It takes the wild, inventive energy of Stewart, Fletcher and Tarr’s “Batgirl” run and marries it with a manic pace and impressive world building. A new arc kicks off in September with a story illustrated by Cameron Stewart which is great in and of itself, but also with four covers from the likes of Babs Tarr, Jake Wyatt, Kevin Wada and Kris Anka! This comic was made specifically for me and I can’t wait for it.
Continued belowMOTOR CRUSH #6
STORY: BABS TARR, BRENDEN FLETCHER, CAMERON STEWART
ART: CAMERON STEWART
COVER: BABS TARR
VARIANT COVER: JAKE WYATT, KEVIN WADA, KRIS ANKA
SEPTEMBER 06 / 32 PAGES / FC / T+ / $3.99The critically acclaimed series returns with a new 6-issue arc, kicking off with a special story guest-illustrated by co-creator CAMERON STEWART, and featuring four breathtaking covers by fan-favorites BABS TARR, KRIS ANKA, JAKE WYATT, and KEVIN WADA! While Domino Swift struggles to comprehend her jump forward in time, we cycle backwards to learn more about her father’s former racing career, the story of his missing leg, and his secret connection to the machine narcotic Crush.
7. The Return Of A Classic
“Five Fists Of Science” is an underrated classic and one of Matt Fraction’s best ever comics. While everyone falls over “Casanova,” this is the Matt Fraction comic that I mess with. Steve Sanders’s artwork is similarly as fantastic as the writing and the idea is simply the best. It’s basically the X-Men, but with real world scientists of the late 19th century. It’s the coolest thing you’ve never read and now is the time to get on this.
FIVE FISTS OF SCIENCE TP
STORY: MATT FRACTION
ART / COVER: STEVEN SANDERS
SEPTEMBER 13 / 112 PAGES / FC / T+ / $16.99True story: in 1899, Mark Twain and Nikola Tesla decided to end war forever. With Twain’s connections and Tesla’s inventions, they went into business selling world peace. So, what happened? Only now can the tale be told—in which Twain and Tesla collided with Edison and Morgan, an evil science cabal merging the Black Arts and the Industrial Age. Turn-of-the-century New York City sets the stage for a titanic battle over the very fate of mankind. Now back in print, this new edition of the steampunk classic features new cover art by artist STEVEN SANDERS.
6. The Graphic Novel “Iron Fist” Wants To Be
I’m somewhat wary of the fact that this solicit tacks on that fact that the film rights have already been sold, but there’s something dynamic about the rest of the solicit text here. Despite my complaints of Iron Fist on Netflix, stories about kung fu are something that continually interests me and I love to see them done well. Hopefully, this is one that’s done well, but I’m unfamiliar with Jay Longino as a writer and I pretty much only know Caanan White from Avatar Press’s “Uber.” We’ll see.
SON OF SHAOLIN OGN
STORY: JAY LONGINO
ART / COVER: CAANAN WHITE
SEPTEMBER 20 / 120 PAGES / FC / T+ / $16.99A kung-fu epic set in the back alleys and subway tunnels of Harlem, New York. Kyrie, an aspiring street artist who is struggling to make ends meet, learns that he is the last living descendant of a secret sect of ancient Shaolin elders. Confused and unsure of where to turn, he finds a father figure in the mysterious Master Fong. Fong trains Kyrie in martial arts in anticipation of an attack from Red Fist, a relentless killer who has already murdered the rest of Kyrie’s bloodline. Introduction by AISHA TYLER. Film rights recently sold to Sony / Columbia Pictures with DWAYNE “THE ROCK” JOHNSON attached to produce.
5. Fantasy “Shirtless Bear-Fighter”
You may have noticed that we here at Multiversity are huge fans of recently released “Shirtless Bear-Fighter” #1. It should come as no surprise, then, that a comic written by one of “SBF”‘s co-writers and is an all-ages fantasy comic is going to show up on this list. I love high fantasy and I’m glad we’re beginning to see more of them and more accessible comics at Image instead of the usual drab and dreary urban fantasies about tortured detectives with tragic pasts. Give me a land brimming with magic and mystery, “Scales & Scoundrels!”
Continued belowSCALES & SCOUNDRELS #1
STORY: SEBASTIAN GIRNER
ART / COVER: GALAAD
SEPTEMBER 06 / 32 PAGES / FC / E / $3.99It’s hard to make an honest living in a land brimming with magic and mystery, and treasure hunter Luvander is tired of being a penniless adventurer. Ever in search of gold and glory, she sets off for a fabled dungeon, “the Dragon’s Maw,” an ancient labyrinth, at the bottom of which slumbers endless wealth…or certain doom! But what starts out as a road to riches becomes the first step on an epic journey to destiny, for Luvander holds a secret in her heart that will shatter the chains of fate and bring light to a world encroached upon by an ancient darkness. Writer SEBASTIAN GIRNER (SHIRTLESS BEAR-FIGHTER!) and artist GALAAD are proud to present SCALES & SCOUNDRELS, a colorful and exciting new monthly fantasy adventure from Image Comics, for scoundrels of all ages!
4. When Meta Goes Meta
One of my favourite genres of comic book storytelling is comic books about comic books. That kind of metanarratives that explore the medium and the industry of comics through their narrative. With a solicit text that takes pot shots at Marvel and DC, I’m pretty curious to see what this story shapes out to be. I’m fairly unfamiliar with both of creators listed here so I’m included this here based on the interest generated by the soliciting alone. Hopefully, this doesn’t disappoint.
RETCON #1
STORY: MATT NIXON
ART / COVER: TOBY CYPRESS
SEPTEMBER 13 / 24 PAGES / FC / M / $3.99“TPTB,” Part One The reboot of a comic book miniseries that has never existed begins with an all-new, all-different issue #1! Time to travel back and jump in on this comic while it was new!
3. You Had Me At Post-Apocalyptic High Fantasy
One of Image’s strength as a publisher is how it showcases twists in genres and style through the series it publishes. “The Realm” is one of those series, by the looks of it. The idea of taking Tolkien-esque high fantasy and giving it the Mad Max treatment is a wild idea and I’m very into it. While I’m not very familiar with Seth Peck’s writing, I’m very familiar with Jeremy Haun’s artwork thanks to “The Beauty” and I’m very interesting to see what this turns out to be like.
THE REALM #1
STORY: SETH M. PECK
ART / COVER: JEREMY, NICK FILARDI
VARIANT COVER: TONY MOORE
SEPTEMBER 13 / 32 PAGES / FC / M / $3.99Fifteen years ago, our world was overrun by creatures of myth; orcs, dragons, and other nameless horrors threw the entire planet into total chaos. Today, the shattered remnants of civilization must fight just to survive in a deadly new era of violence and mayhem. While a powerful sorcerer marshals his forces, a group of warriors embark on a journey to reclaim our world from the growing darkness. An all new post-apocalyptic high-fantasy adventure series from co-creators SETH M. PECK (X-Men) and JEREMY HAUN (THE BEAUTY) featuring colors by NICK FILARDI and letters by THOMAS MAUER.
2. The Best Action In Comics, All In One Place
“The Strange Talent Of Luther Strode” was one of the first comics I ever read from Image and it was one of the first reasons why I knew they were a publisher to pay attention to. Across three series, the artistic evolution of Tradd Moore, Felipe Sobreiro and Tradd Moore is right there on the page and it’s one of the greatest overarching series in comics I’ve ever seen.
Now, all 500+ pages of the “Luther Strode” series will be collected in the hardcover format that will show off Tradd Moore and Felipe Sobreiro’s deserves to be seen in. I can’t wait to see the murder mall double page splash from “The Legend Of Luther Strode” #6 in this format.
LUTHER STRODE: THE COMPLETE SERIES HC
STORY: JUSTIN JORDAN, TRADD MOORE
ART / COVER: FELIPE SOBREIRO, TRADD MOORE
OCTOBER 04 / 544 PAGES / FC / M / $49.99Luther Strode is an average teenage nerd until he sends away for The Hercules Method, a bodybuilding course that promises to give him the body of his dreams. But the powers he unleashes make him a target for a murder cult as old as mankind, cost him almost everything, and take him across the world in the fight to take back his life. The complete series collected for the first time in one edition. Collects THE STRANGE TALENT OF LUTHER STRODE #1-6, THE LEGEND OF LUTHER STRODE #1-6, and THE LEGACY OF LUTHER STRODE #1-6.
1. By Their Powers Combined
I’ve been so excited for this to show up in the solicitations because Simon Spurrier and Caspar Wijngaard are two of my favourite creators currently. Spurrier is killing it on every book he writers, especially stuff like “Cry Havoc” and “Godshaper,” while Wijngaard is a personal favourite from his work on “Limbo” and I’ve continually spotlighted his work in Art Of The Week.
Continued belowSo to see the two of them working together on such a different and weird book for Image is incredibly cool. Image has a drought of kid-friendly comics and this is the kind of comic I’ve love to see more of. Y’all should be checking this one out.
ANGELIC #1
STORY: SIMON SPURRIER
ART / COVER: CASPAR WIJNGAARD
SEPTEMBER 20 / 32 PAGES / FC / T / $3.99NEW ONGOING SERIES PREMIERE! – WINGED MONKEYS! TECHNO-DOLPHINS! QUANTUM ALLEYCATS! – Humanity’s long gone. Its memory lingers only as misunderstood rituals among mankind’s leftovers: the genetically modified animals they used and abused for eons. – But for one young flying monkey, QORA, the routines are unbearable. All she wants is to explore. Instead she’s expected to settle down, to become a mother…to lose her wings. – Eisner nominee SIMON SPURRIER (The Spire, CRY HAVOC, X-Men Legacy) and rising-star CASPAR WIJNGAARD (LIMBO, Dark Souls, Assassin’s Creed) present your new bittersweet adventure obsession: teenage rebellion and animal antics amidst the ruins of civilization! – Think WALL-E by way of Watership Down. Fly, my pretties!
