Welcome back to The Rundown, our daily breakdown on comic news stories we missed from the previous day. Have a link to share? Email our team at rundown@multiversitycomics.com.
In case you missed it, we had the chance to discuss “The Resistance” mini-series with writer J. Michael Straczynski and artist Mike Deodato and to chat about JMS’s return to comics.
– IDW Publishing (“Locke & Key,” “Wynonna Earp,” “October Faction”) reported massive financial losses in 2019. The company reports an operational loss of $26.4 million, despite the revenue that Netflix’s Locke & Key will be bringing in. Chairman and CEO Howard Jonas remains positive and promises that IDW is on track to attain steady profits in 2021, thanks to renewals of their current lineup, the distribution of Wynonna Earp with Cineflix and Syfy, as well as new deals that are being developed behind the scenes from their IP. IDW plans to focus on franchise monetization through merchandising, games, video-on-demand, and more.
– Greg Capullo tweeted a new Wonder Woman teaser for his next project with Scott Snyder, described as an “encore.” The former “Batman” creative team have worked together on the DC event, “Dark Nights: Metal,” and on DC Black Label’s “Batman: Last Knight on Earth,” which just recently wrapped up. The teaser is likely pointing to a sequel to “Dark Nights: Metal.”
– Comic creator and artist Esther McManus (“Between Friends”) received this year’s Arts Foundation Futures Award for Comic for her self-published works that tend to weave together comic and book forms. Esther McManus was nominated alongside Jess Taylor, Zara Slattery, and Danny Noble. This marks the first Arts Foundation Comics Award in a decade.
– Eisner-winning cartoonist Hazel Newlevant sent out a tweet asking for support for the Defend the 11 defamation lawsuit that they, along with many other comic artists, are involved in. In late 2018, 11 independent comic creators were served a defamation lawsuit because of concerns raised about another creator’s sexual misconduct. They are now in the final stages of the lawsuit and are seeking support to help close the case.
– Amasia Entertainment has acquired the motion picture rights to Green Hornet. Former Marvel Studios president Michael Helfant and Bradley Gallo are revamping the hero for the big screen. After Sony’s 2011 iteration didn’t do as well as expected, Helfant is thrilled to “create something fresh and truly worthy of this legacy property.” Helfant promises to bring a new relevant, thrilling world while respecting and honoring co-creator George W. Trendle’s original vision.
– In a recent Wired article, three cartoonists shared how parenting has transformed their art and their creativity. The cartoonists, Lucy Knisley (“Go to Sleep (I Miss You),” “French Milk”), Sylvia Nickerson (“Creation”), and Emily Flake (“Parent as a Verb,” “Mama Tried”) all share how parenthood could change your life, and despite popular opinion, could even enhance your creativity, rather than extinguish it.
– Popular manga series “One Piece” is coming to Netflix as a 10-episode, live-action series. Tomorrow Studios will be teaming up with Netflix and Shueisha to develop the series. Steven Maeda (Lost, The X-Files) will serve as the showrunner, writer, and executive producer, alongside Matt Owens (Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Luke Cage) who will act as writer and executive producer. The franchise, created by Eiichiro Oda, began in 1997, and still runs today. The comic follows Monkey D. Luffy as he searches the high seas in search of the One Piece artifact and to claim himself King of the Pirates. Details regarding the cast and dates for the series have yet to be revealed.
– Finally, a new Star Wars novel, written by Alex Segura, with cover art by Alice X. Zhang, will shine light on Poe Dameron’s past as a teenager. Star Wars: Poe Dameron: Free Fall will follow Poe Dameron as he struggles to connect with his father and tries to figure out what kind of man he is meant to be. The novel will feature Poe Dameron’s days on the planet Kijimi and will also include popular The Rise of Skywalker character, Zorii Bliss. The novel will be released on August 4, 2020.
