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, Negan is getting a quote book, and something is going to happen to the original five X-Men in “Extermination.”
– Berger Books has announced their next new series in “She Could Fly,” featuring Halt and Catch Fire co-creator/showrunner Christopher Cantwell’s comics debut, and art by Martin Morazzo (“Nighthawk,” “Elektra”). The story centers around “disturbed” 15-year-old Luna Brewster, after she and the rest of the world witness the fiery death of a mysterious flying woman. The event inspires myriad of conspiracy theories, and Luna becomes obsessed. The 32-page first issue goes on sale July 11.
– Alex Ross and co-author Chip Kidd are heading to the Marvel Universe for “Marvelocity,” an art book similar to DC Comics’s “Mythology.” The book will contain covers, sketches, and character designs, along with a brand new 10-page story featuring Spider-Man battling the Sinister Six. J.J. Abrams will provide the introduction. “Marvelocity” will be on sale October 2 from Pantheon Books.
– Japanese dance metal band Babymetal will be expanding upon their own mythology in a new graphic novel from Z2 Comics. “Apocrypha: The Legend of Babymetal” will explore how their producer, Kobametal, communicated with a Fox God to select the group’s lineup and sound. The book releases in October.
– Wizard World, the company behind many of the big comic cons, announced an operation loss of $880k for Q4 of last year. While the number is an improvement over previous quarters, it brings them to a total loss of $5.73 million for 2017, and the bad news doesn’t end there. The company now has a negative net worth of $3.37 million as of the end of 2017. They have taken drastic cost cutting measures starting in 2017 Q4, with plans for several new shows in 2018 to try and recover.
– The 2018 Inkwell Awards nominees have been announced. The categories include Favorite Inker: Favorite ink artist over the pencil work of another artist, Most-adaptable: Artist showing exceptional ink style versatility over other pencil artists, Props award: Ink artist deserving of more attention for their work over other pencil artists, The S.P.A.M.I: Favorite Small Press And Mainstream/Independent ink work over another pencil artist (non-Marvel or DC work), and the All-in-one award: Favorite artist known for inking his/her own pencil work.
– May’s issue of Game Informer will have the release date and first hands-on details of the highly anticipated new Spider-Man game from Insomniac Games. The issue will go through the opening, first mission, a little open world exploration, and reveal some of the villains. It will also include new screenshots, concept art, and lots of game details from Insomniac’s creative director Bryan Intihar, game director Ryan Smith, art director Jacinda Chew, lead writer Jon Paquette, and more.
– “Love and Rockets” co-creator Jaime Hernandez released a bilingual graphic novel for young readers yesterday, called “The Dragon Slayer: Folktales from Latin America.” The book contains three Latin folk tales, which co-authors Alma Flor Ada and F. Isabel Campoy helped Hernandez adapt. Toon Books is publishing the graphic novel simultaneously in hardcover and paperback, and in English and Spanish language versions.
– The Army Cyber Institute has released an online comic, called “Silent Ruin,” depicting a fictional battle between NATO and Russia in 2027. ACI spokesman Lieutenant-Colonel Terrence Kelley says it’s to “help U.S. soldiers be better prepared for future cyberbattle threats.” The comic was written by Brian David Johnson and illustrated by Don Hudson & Kinsun Lo. It’s available on Scribd.
– Image Comics is releasing a set of colorist appreciation variants for May’s “Spawn” #286 as part of their #WeBelieve campaign. Todd McFarlane’s black and white main cover will be colored by seven different colorists, including Moreno Dinisio, Frank Martin, Matthew Wilson, Owen Gieni, Annalisa Leoni, Nikos Koutsis, and Jean-Francois Beaulieu. The issue (and variants) will be released on May 30.
– Lynda Carter, star of the 1970s Wonder Woman TV series, received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame yesterday. CBS CEO Leslie Moonves presented the star, along with Wonder Woman (2017) director Patty Jenkins.
– And lastly, Avengers: Infinity War must have some big surprises, because director duo the Russo Brothers are pleading with fans not to spoil it in an open letter released on Twitter.
