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, the comics reading app Madefire has shut down. We also had an exclusive preview of “The Amazing Spider-Man” #65, and interviewed co-writers Duncan Jones and Alex de Campi about their sci-fi road trip “MADI: Once Upon A Time In The Future.”
– Marvel and Scholastic have unveiled the new graphic novel “Ms. Marvel: Stretched Thin” for Scholastic’s Graphix line. The middle-grade OGN comes from writer Nadia Shammas and artist Nabi H. Ali, and follows Kamala Khan as she struggles to balance her school work and personal life with her duties as a superhero. When a mysterious robot tries to infiltrate Avengers Tower, Ms. Marvel must pull herself together, learn to ask for help, and fix the mess she’s made before anyone gets hurt. “Like so many others, I fell in love with Kamala from the start, and recognized in her so much of my own nerdy awkwardness, community, and family dynamics,” Shammas said. “I know what it would have meant to me to have Kamala in my life even sooner, and so I’m really honored to be able to add to her story and that of her family and friends.” “Ms. Marvel: Stretched Thin” hits shelves September 7.
– Artist David López is jumping from his run on “Captain Marvel” back to his creator-owned series “BlackHand and IronHead.” Via Newsarama, the YA comic series follows two teenage sisters — one a superhero, one a supervillain — who are forced to co-exist after their family history (and a bigger family secret) brings them together. Originally serialized online at Panel Syndicate in 2019, the first volume of “BlackHand & IronHead” was collected and published by Image Comics last year. Colorist Kike J. Diaz is joining the book for its second volume, which will be written and drawn by López with editing by David Muñoz and translation by Alejandro Arbona. “BlackHand & IronHead” launches Vol. 2 on Panel Syndicate May 12.
– A number of high profile writers have joined the #DisneyMustPay campaign, reigniting a battle between creators and the entertainment company over unpaid royalties for the properties they have acquired through their several recent mergers. Via Publishers Weekly, the genre writers Neil Gaiman, Chuck Wendig, Tess Gerritsen, Mary Robinette Kowal, and more have signed on to the DisneyMustPay Joint Task Force. The Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America aligned with the Author’s Guild, Horror Writers Association, National Writers Union, Novelists, Inc., Romance Writers of America and Sisters in Crime after writer Alan Dean Foster accused Disney of withholding royalty agreements on his novelizations of Star Wars and Alien. Disney has acquired a number of companies in the past several years, including Lucasfilm, Marvel, and 20th Century Fox. You can head to the Writers Must Be Paid website for information on how to help.
– Dark Horse is collecting a number of comics from the Halo franchise for the new “Halo: The Legacy Collection.” Via ComicBook.com, the collection will bring the previously published “Halo Uprising,” “Halo: Helljumper,” and “Halo: Blood Line” back into print. The collected comics were written by Brian Michael Bendis, Peter David, and Fred Van Lente, with art by Alex Maleev, Eric Nguyen, and Francis Portella, and colors by Matt Hollingsworth, Jose Villarrubia, June Chung, and Ulises Arreola. “Halo: The Legacy Collection,” is due out August 11.
– Amazon’s animated comic adaptation Invincible has smashed its way to a series renewal. Variety has the news that the series will return for season 2 and 3. Comics co-creator Robert Kirkman also made the announcement on Twitter alongside series star Steven Yeun. The show is based on the comic by Kirkman and artists Cory Walker and Ryan Ottley, and follows the teenaged hero Invincible (Yeun) as he tries to live up to the legacy of his father Omni-Man (J.K. Simmons). Kirkman is an executive producer on the series alongside showrunner Simon Racioppa. The season finale of Invincible is set to stream today.
Continued below– A number of TV premiere dates were unveiled at Netflix and the CW, shedding light on the returns of several established shows as well as the launches for some highly anticipated new adaptations. Via Variety, a number of CW programs will be seeing sizable midseason gaps. Season 2 of DC’s Stargirl will premiere on August 10, while Riverdale’s midseason hiatus comes to an end on August 11. Then, the final episodes of Supergirl ahead of its series finale will pick up on August 24. Meanwhile over at Netflix, the upcoming post-apocalyptic Jeff Lemire adaptation Sweet Tooth received its first teaser trailer to accompany the news of its upcoming premiere this summer. All eight episodes of the show from co-showrunners Ben Schwartz and Jim Mickle will premiere on the service on June 4.
– The Los Angeles Times surveyed the state of Black comics and creators, looking at depictions and representation within the complicated and often racist history of the industry. Among those interviewed for the article was Manuel Godoy, president of Black Sands Entertainment, who revealed that the company was planning an upcoming animated series as well as the Black Sands Publishing app. The app will offer free access to 26 original comic books when it launches tomorrow on May 1.
– “Caravaggio: A Light Before the Darkness” by Ken Mora has won an Independent Press Award in the category of Graphic Novel. The story follows the artist Caravaggio as he flees to Rome to protect his lover from the Inquisition, sparking a saga of penitence, peril, intrigue and murder. The Independent Press Award is judged by experts from the book industry, including publishers, writers, editors, book cover designers, and professional copywriters. Winners are awarded from a pool of entries from around the world.
– Finally, several upcoming entries in comic book film franchises have received casting news. First from Deadline, Dominique Fishback (Judas and the Black Messiah) has joined Anthony Ramos (In the Heights) as the female lead in the next Transformers film. The still-untitled film will be directed by Steven Caple Jr. (Creed II), with writers Darnell Metayer and Josh Peters working from a script by Joby Harold. The film is currently set to premiere on June 24, 2022.
Next, also from Deadline, actor Uli Latukefu, who plays the college football era Dwayne Johnson on the TV series Young Rock, will join Johnson on the upcoming Black Adam from director Jaume Collet-Serra. Latukefu’s role has yet to be revealed. Black Adam is scheduled for July 29, 2022. Lastly, via The Wrap, a spokesperson for Latukefu and Johnson’s Black Adam co-star Noah Centineo has confirmed that he is no longer attached to lead Masters of the Universe as Prince Adam/He-Man. Little movement has been seen on the movie reboot since directors Aaron and Adam Nee cast him in the project two years ago.
