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, Marvel revealed the last three ‘Fall of X’ series, while Mignolaversity took a look at July’s solicits.
Cover by Guillem March
– DC unveiled (an unlucky) 13 two-part tie-in series for July and August’s ‘Knight Terrors’ event, each pitting a hero against a nightmare. First up on July 4 are “Knight Terrors: Batman” #1 by writer Joshua Williamson and artist Guillem March (plus a back-up with David Lafuente); and “Ravager” #1 by Ed Brisson and Dexter Soy.
July 11 will commence “Knight Terrors: Robin” (starring Jason Todd and Tim Drake) by Kenny Porter and Miguel Mendonça; “The Flash” (Barry Allen) by Alex Paknadel and Daniel Bayliss; “Shazam” (Mary Bromfield) by Mark Waid and Roger Cruz; “Green Lantern” (Hal Jordan and Sinestro) with Jeremy Adams, Alex Segura, Eduardo Pansica, and more; and “Zatanna” (co-starring Robotman) by Dennis Culver and David Baldeon.
July 18 will kick off the “Wonder Woman” tie-in, starring Diana & Detective Chimp and Nubia, whose nightmares were respectively written by Josie Campbell and Stephanie Williams, with art by Juan Ferreyra and Meghan Hetrick; it will also mark the start of Williamson and Tom Reilly’s “Superman” (Clark Kent); and Becky Cloonan, Michael W. Conrad, and Daniele Di Nicuolo’s “Nightwing.”
July 25 will round out the debuts with “Knight Terrors: Action Comics” #1, featuring a Power Girl tale by Leah Williams & Vasco Georgiev, and a Super-Twins one by Phillip Kennedy Johnson & Mico Suayan; “Detective Comics” #1 (starring Jim Gordon) by Dan Watters and Riccardo Federici; and “Teen Titans” #1 by Andrew Constant and Scott Godlewski.
– Top Shelf Productions announced “Lisa Cheese and Ghost Guitar: Attack of the Snack,” the debut graphic novel of cartoonist, musician, and teacher Kevin Alvir. An urban fantasy, it follows a unicorn girl working an office job in “Earth City,” after her attempts to make it as a folk singer left her “with a bionic arm and an identity crisis.” But when she gets into a fight “with a gang of hamburger-headed goons” working for “sinister megacorporation Beef is Burger,” Lisa must step up to lead an uprising against the company. The first in a series, “Lisa Cheese and Ghost Guitar: Attack of the Snack” will be released in September, and retail at 168 pages for $19.99.
– In cover reveal news, Mad Cave Studios announced their first creator-owned graphic novel, Stephen Desberg and Dan Panosian’s bounty hunter caper “John Tiffany,” will be released on July 18. Meanwhile, Ten Speed Press revealed the cover for “Watership Down: The Graphic Novel” via Christian site The Rabbit Room. The book, an adaptation of Richard Adams’s 1972 classic by writer James Sturm and artist Joe Sutphin, will be released on October 17, 2023.
– Publishers Weekly states HarperAlley will publish two middle-grade graphic novels by Brenna Thummler (“Sheets,” “Delicates,” and this fall’s conclusion to the trilogy, “Lights”). The first book, planned for Winter 2026, is called “Gumshoe,” and follows Willa, a shy girl who dreams of becoming a mail carrier. When she has a “run-in with a traveling girl gang, [she discovers] the power she ultimately finds in connection and staying true to herself.”
– Cat Kid Comic Club: The Musical, a production based on Dav Pilkey’s children’s graphic novels, will premiere at New York City’s Lucille Lortel Theatre this summer. Written by Kevin Del Aguila and composed by Brad Alexander, the musical follows Cat Kid and Molly Pollywog, as they teach 21 baby frogs to make their own comics. It will run from July 21 to August 27. And in further kids’ comics news, a Raina Telgemeier exhibition will be held at the Billy Ireland Cartoon Library and Museum in Columbus, Ohio, from May 24 to November 5, 2023.
– The Beat announced the winners of the Center for Cartoon Studies’ 2023 Cartoonist Studio Prize. Best Print Comics went to James Spooner for his coming-of-age memoir “The High Desert: Black. Punk. Nowhere.,” while Best Webcomics was awarded to Hal Schrieve for his paranormal comedy “Vivian’s Ghost.” Each winner received $1,000, and a Wacom One Creative Pen Display courtesy of sponsors Wacom and Felix Comic Art.
– Finally, an update was posted to the GoFundMe page for Peter David by his wife Kathleen, stating the veteran writer, 66, is no longer able to walk after the strokes he suffered last year, and that he has been on leave from writing for Marvel while undergoing rehabilitation. Kathleen herself has had to spend less time at her part-time job to look after him, and as a result, their family are very much dependent on the GoFundMe, Patreon, and Marvel “go[ing] to bat” for him with Disney Insurance. She expressed gratitude to those who have donated so far, saying the money has kept them afloat, and has helped them prepare for when Peter returns to living at home. At the time of writing, they have raised $117,047 of their $175,000 goal.
