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The Rundown: April 8, 2020

By | April 8th, 2020
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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, Mignolaversity has a new debrief with writer Chris Roberson, artist Christopher Mitten, and colorist Michelle Madsen on “Witchfinder: The Reign of Darkness” #5.

'Weavers' #1

– Si Spurrier (“John Constantine: Hellblzer,” “Doctor Aphra”) has released the first issues from three of his BOOM! Studios comic series free through comiXology to help people struggling with lockdown. “I became painfully aware this week that readers are having a shitty old time of it too; whether unable to visit their local store, unable to justify the cost of alternatives during tight times, or just stuck in the house with a dangerously bored teenager,” said Spurrier. “If you like what you read for free, please please please buy the collected volume from your local store as soon as you safely can — and gift it to someone who’ll love it.” Readers can get three issues of “Godshaper,” “Six-Gun Gorilla” and “Weavers” free of charge, and all of Spurrier’s other BOOM! comics are on sale as well, including “Coda” and “The Spire.” Check out the full sale here.

TOKYOPOP will be delaying all new book releases, but advancing digital ones in an effort to work around COVID-19. The manga publisher will delay all April/May print releases indefinitely, but will be finding new ways to get content to readers, including accelerating e-book publishing and negotiating more with freelancers to outsource work.”Our current focus is getting things back up and running – with people’s health and safety in mind, of course – so our retailer friends can maintain their businesses and keep getting comics and manga to their customers,” said Kae Winters, TOKYOPOP’s Marketing Associate. In the meantime a selection of manga will be free digitally through their Community Free Manga Program.

– Tapas Media, the South Korean webcomic platform, will be waiving all their support and ad revenue fees usually placed on creators as a part of their new initiative InThisTogether. This will mean creators will make the full profits from all advertising and readership. InThisTogether will also promote ways for readers to help out, often suggesting some of the best new series including “Mrs Frollein,” “Berkeley Mews” and Heartstopper.”

– Humanoids, the publishing company behind “Metal Hurlant,” “The Metabarons” and “The Incal,” has released a statement by publisher Mark Waid on the decision to delay all new releases to September. “Though COVID-19 has temporarily impacted our schedule, we aren’t wasting any time to ensure that our future is filled with new stories that we can share with you as soon as possible,” said Waid. “We are actively working with creators, guaranteeing that previously announced projects arrive while signing new projects.” Humanoids will return with “Omni” vol. 1 in September, followed by “The Incal” trade paperback, “Wings of Light,” “Versailles: My Father’s Palace,” “The Fire of Theseus,” “The Metabarons: Second Cycle,” “Strangelands” Vol. 2, “The Seven Lives of Alejandro Jodorowsky,” “Barbarella” and “Dog Days.”

– The Doug Wright awards, a celebration of Canadian cartoonists and comic artists, has announced this year’s nominees. The contestants for The Doug Wright Award for best book are “This Place: 150 Years Retold,” “The Cursed Hermit,” “Bezimena,” “Death Threat,” “Bradley of Him,” and “Agnes, Murderess.” Nominees for The Nipper, the award for emerging talent, are D. Boyd, Jason Bradshaw, Sylvia Nickerson, Ben O’Neil and Cole Pauls. The Pigskin Peters award for best small or micro-press book is contested by “Boumeries, Vol. 9,” “Gleem,” “Baby in the Boneyard,” “Curb Angels” and “Dejects.” Nominees for The Egghead (best kids’ book) are “Brick Breaks Free,” “The Worst Book Ever,” “Lunch Quest,” “Dakwäkãda Warriors” and “Alma and the Beast.” The awards had 151 submissions from 36 different publishers. This will be its 16th year.

– In more awards news, CoNZealand announced the finalists for the 2020 Hugo Awards. Candidates for Best Graphic Story or Comic include “Die” Vol. 1, “LaGuardia,” “Monstress” Vol. 4, “Mooncakes,” “Paper Girls” Vol. 6 and “The Wicked + The Divine” Vol. 9. Included in the nominees for Best Dramatic Presentation, Long Form were Avengers: Endgame, Captain Marvel, Good Omens, Russian Doll, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker and Us. The finalists for Best Dramatic Presentation, Short Form were The Good Place‘s “The Answer,” The Expanse‘s “Cibola Burn,” Watchmen‘s “A God Walks into Abar” and “This Extraordinary Being,” The Mandalorian‘s “Redemption,” and Doctor Who‘s “Resolution.” The awards will be presented online from July 29 to August 2.

Continued below

– Starlight Media, a Chinese film production company, and Lion Forge Animation are partnering for a long-term movie deal, with a host of new projects to come. The original animation films will be co-financed and co-produced by the two companies. The first project will be an animated retelling of Journey to the West, followed by a short film on the COVID-19 pandemic. “We have a great deal of admiration and respect for the incredible work that is being done out of Lion Forge Animation and are very excited about this new multi-year, multi-picture partnership that will allow us to create groundbreaking content with family friendly messaging,” said Starlight Media CEO Jason Luo. “We want to be in business with Lion Forge Animation because we share a common vision, not just on taste and preferences of films, but on the execution of a business model that will bring high quality, very entertaining films to the marketplace.”

Superman & Lois has found its Lana Lang in the form of actress Emmanuelle Chriqui (The Passage, The Mentalist). Chriqui will be playing “the loan officer at Smallville Bank who stayed in Smallville when others left for something bigger and brighter,” according to Deadline. “Lana re-establishes her friendship with her old friend, Clark Kent, during one of the most difficult periods in her life.” She will be starring alongside Tyler Hoechlin and Elizabeth Tulloch as Superman and Lois, respectively. The series recently had its pilot filming delayed due to COVID-19, and will be filmed in full once production recommences.

Extraction, the live-action adaptation of Ande Parks and Fernando Leon Gonzalez’s “Ciudad,” got its first trailer. The film is directed by Captain America: Civil War stunt coordinator Sam Hargrave, written by Captain America and Avengers director Joe Russo, produced by the Russo Brothers’ company AGBO, and stars Chris Hemsworth. The film follows mercenary Tyler Rake as he’s sent to India to find and protect the son of an infamous drug lord. It releases exclusively on Netflix on April 24.


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James Dowling

James Dowling is probably the last person on Earth who enjoyed the film Real Steel. He has other weird opinions about Hellboy, CHVRCHES, Squirrel Girl and the disappearance of Harold Holt. Follow him @James_Dow1ing on Twitter if you want to argue about Hugh Jackman's best film to date.

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