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, Dark Horse announced several new series, including Gerard Way, Shaun Simon, and Chris Weston’s “Paranoid Gardens.”
– Mike Mignola announced his first New York art gallery show will be held this September, and that it will be accompanied by a hardcover catalog release, Hell, Ink, and Water: The Art of Mike Mignola. The 64-page book, due out from IDW Publishing on October 15, will feature 31 new watercolor pieces by Mignola, plus scans of the original art for various Hellboy comics. It will retail for $39.99. The art show it will coincide with will be held in the meantime at the Philippe Labaune Gallery from September 20, to October 26, 2024 (not far from where the New York Comic Con will be held at the Jacob Javits Convention Center.)
– Marvel revealed next month’s “Daredevil” #8 will celebrate the Man Without Fear’s 60th anniversary with several stories. In addition to Saladin Ahmed and Aaron Kuder’s continuing main arc, it will include an Elektra spotlight by Ahmed and Tommaso Bianchi; a throwback segment by Ann Nocenti and Stefano Raffaele featuring Turk Barrett; a Erica Schultz and Jan Bazaldua story with Elektra’s ward Alice; an exploration of Matt Murdock’s impact by Elsa Sjunneson and Erica Koda; and a ’90s era battle with the Punisher by D.G. Chichester and Ken Lashley. The 88-page comic goes on sale April 17, with a host of covers by John Romita Jr., Frank Miller, Romita Sr., and more.
– Mad Cave will release “Clay Footed Giants,” an award-winning Quebecois graphic novel by writer Mark McGuire, and co-writer/artist Alain Chevarier, in English. “A tragicomic meditation on masculinity, violence, and parenthood,” the book follows brothers Pat and Mathieu, who are both 40-something stay-at-home dads, as they try to be better parents than their own alcoholic father. Pat in particular struggles with the example he was set, having been “crippled by rage since childhood. He must find the origins of this darkness before he transmits it to his own kids.” It will be published in paperback on October 8.
– Bleeding Cool reports a Spawn cover art contest, held by Todd McFarlane in January, was won by an AI user named Luis Ruiz (aka Robot9000). Ruiz claims he did not use AI for the winning pieces, despite highly similar ones appearing on his Midjourney gallery (which were created using Ashley Wood’s work as a prompt.) McFarlane and Diaz did not respond to a request for comment. The site also reported on mounting concerns DC is running more generated artwork in the wake of Andrea Sorrentino’s controversial art in “Batman,” which the publisher have said they are currently investigating.
– In media news, the BBC and Disney+ released the official trailer for the next season of Doctor Who (premiering 7pm ET on May 10), while Max dropped a new teaser for The Penguin, The Batman spin-off series starring Colin Farrell this fall. Speaking of Batman villains, Variety reported this fall’s sequel, Joker: Folie à Deux (out October 4) will be a jukebox musical, consisting of composer Hildur Guðnadóttir’s arrangements of 15 well-known songs, although the door is still open for the film to feature an original one. The trade also reported Warner Bros. is looking to expand its investment in anime projects, suggesting more projects similar to the upcoming Suicide Squad Isekai will be greenlit in the near-future.
– French western “Lucky Luke” will be adapted into an eight-part, half-hour comedy series from public broadcaster France Televisions. It will be produced by and star Alban Lenoir (Lost Bullet, Bigbug), and helmed by Benjamin Rocher, who previously directed Lenoir in The Squad films. Created by Belgian cartoonist Morris in 1946, “Lucky Luke” revolves around the titular sharpshot, his intelligent horse Jolly Jumper, and the stupid dog Rantanplan, as they battle various ne’er-do-wells, and encounter historical figures in the Old West. It has been adapted into various films and TV shows, with this set to mark the second live-action TV version, following an Italian take starring Terence Hill in 1992.
– “Webcomic Name” (aka the “Oh no” meme) creator Alex Norris has reopened the GoFundMe for their ongoing legal battle over the rights to the comic, which an unnamed board game company has been claiming was sold to them by Norris when they partnered with them for an adaptation of the property. Norris states, “They have launched a SECOND lawsuit against me. The case that began in 2019 is mostly over, and I have basically won. I wish it was as simple as leaving it there and walking away. But this new case is taking up even more of my life and unfairly forcing me to spend more and more in legal fees.” They add, “If this was intended to wear me down even further, I won’t let it. The end is in sight, despite their ridiculous conduct and attempts to complicate things.”
– Finally, via The Mary Sue, website Cartoonists for Palestine was launched last week ahead of the release of a planned print edition this June. The site collects various cartoons speaking out against Israel’s ongoing invasion of Gaza, by artists like Sophie Yanow, Jen Sorensen, Matt Bors, Ben Passmore, Khalid Albaih, Joseph Kai, and more. It is currently seeking more submissions, with proceeds from the eventual anthology set to go to Medical Aid for Palestinians, American Near East Refugee Aid (ANERA), and Palestine Children’s Relief Fund (PCRF). You can find out more, donate, and submit artwork at all the links provided. At the time of writing, the conflict — which has spread to other parts of the Middle East — has claimed the lives of over 32,142 Palestinians and 1,410 Israelis, and caused the UN’s International Court of Justice to make a ruling reminding Israel to abide by the laws established in the 1948 Genocide Convention.
