Not content with being the one of the lead runners for Best Mini of 2014, it looks like Ryan Ferrier and Valentin Ramon’s “D4VE” will be eligible for Best Mini of 2015 as well, thanks to a just announced print run from IDW.
Originally released as a digital comic via MonkeyBrain, “D4VE” tells the story of D4VE, a former kick-ass robot now stuck in a boring, dull, soul-sucking desk job after robots take over the Earth. But when a surprise invasion gives D4VE the opportunity to step up (to the streets) and reclaim his glory days, he takes life by the balls and kicks it raw. Now, starting in February, IDW will release all 5 issues of the series in print, at which point Ryan and Valentin’s robot comic will continue it’s global domination before seeing some eventual collection.
Oh, and the first issue will come wrapped up in the above cover by Fiona Staples, as if this comic needed another reason to be extra awesome.
For those who have been following the site for some time now, “D4VE” has certainly seen a fair deal of love. Smart and irreverent, funny and full of heart, “D4VE” is one of those comics that is a three-punch combo of wonderful comics: it’s relatable, it’s hilarious, and most importantly it’s honest. As Ferrier told us in an interview earlier this year,
I think D4VE has helped me find my voice a little more. My style, my interests, and the kind of stories I want to tell. I really want to continue telling stories that are rooted in human feelings, stories that have a point and a message, other than just cool shit happening. It’s taught me the value in collaboration, in trusting your partners. It’s certainly taught me to be grateful and humble, but also to hustle; in comics, your work is never done, and nothing is owed nor are you entitled to anything. Really, D4VE has just confirmed once more that making comics is what I have to do, and what I love to do.
Plus it’s literally full of moments like this:
So, you know, no reason not to re-buy the comic in print, even if you purchased it digitally. And if you’ve never read it, there’s certainly the option currently available. Get on it, ya butthorns.
Congrats to Ferrier and Ramon, and we can’t wait to experience “D4VE” again in print. For the full press release from IDW, please see below.
IDW Press Release
The partnership between IDW Publishing and Monkeybrain has brought some of the most critically acclaimed digital comic-book series to an entirely new readership, and both are pleased to welcome another to the printed page: D4VE.
A war for Earth was fought and the robots have won but the results are far less “brave new world” and more of the “same old, same old.” Starting February 2015, fans of print comics will get the opportunity to meet D4VE, a great robot war hero who now is trapped behind a desk at a soul-sucking day job.
D4VE is the brainchild of series writer Ryan Ferrier and artist Valentin Ramon. In the five-issue series, D4VE battles traffic, mortgage payments, and the mundane when all he wants to do is battle monsters like in his glory days. But those days are gone…right? Little does D4VE know that something big is going to help snap him out of this mid-life: crisis.
“D4VE is a story so close to our hearts, and to be able to bring our special brand of bizarre to the monthly print market is, frankly, insanely freaking cool,” said series writer, Ferrier. “Monkeybrain blessed us with the opportunity to tell this story digital-first, and IDW is the perfect home—one built on unique and daring storytelling—for our madness to reach even more readers. We’d have to invent a new word to express our excitement, so we did: we are totally superextribbulated for D4VE to come out through IDW.”
“Having D4VE find a new audience in print through IDW is a huge honor,” said series artist, Ramon. “They are a publisher that inspires so much of what we have aimed to do with our story—pushing boundaries and expectations, featuring characters you can connect with. We hope our readers love D4VE as much as we loved creating it.”
Continued belowCome early 2015, you can check out the five-issue miniseries that Bloody Disgusting calls “a master class in robotic mid-life crisis… ripe with laughs” and featuring a first-issue cover by Fiona Staples (Saga).
About IDW Publishing
IDW is an award-winning publisher of comic books, graphic novels and trade paperbacks, based in San Diego, California. Renowned for its diverse catalog of licensed and independent titles, IDW publishes some of the most successful and popular titles in the industry, including: Hasbro’s The TRANSFORMERS, G.I. JOE and MY LITTLE PONY; Paramount’s Star Trek; Nickelodeon’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles; 2000AD’s Judge Dredd; The Rocketeer; Toho’s Godzilla; Wizards of the Coast’s Magic: The Gathering and Dungeons & Dragons; V-Wars from New York Times best-selling author Jonathan Maberry; Ragnarök from Eisner Award-winner Walter Simonson; Winterworld, created by Chuck Dixon and Jorge Zaffino; and Little Nemo from the award-winning duo of Eric Shanower and Gabriel Rodriguez. IDW is also home to the Library of American Comics imprint, which publishes classic comic reprints, Yoe! Books, a partnership with Yoe! Studio, and the multiple award-winning Artist’s Edition imprint.
IDW’s critically- and fan-acclaimed series are continually moving into new mediums. Currently, Jerry Bruckheimer Films and Disney are creating a feature film based on World War Robot; Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and Warner Brothers are producing a film based on Ashley Wood’s Lore; Michael Bay‘s Platinum Dunes and Sony are bringing Zombies vs. Robots to film, Kurtzman/Orci are producing a movie based on Locke & Key at Universal.
