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, AfterShock announced “10 Years to Death” by Aaron Douglas and Cliff Richards.
– TKO Studios have shown off a new range of TKO Shorts in time for the releases of “Djeliya” and “Scales & Scoundrels.” “River of Sin” by Kelly Williams and Chas! Pangburn follows a group of secretive townsfolk searching for their lost children and looking to free them from the grasp of a homicidal swamp witch. Alex Paknadel and Ian MacEwan’s “Roofstompers” is a rural thriller following a woman’s recovery from a bear attack in the home of elderly strangers, who increasingly appear not to have her best interests at heart. Finally, “The Walk” from Michael Moreci and Jesús Hervás tells the story of a group of deep-sea explorers on a precarious journey across a mysterious ocean floor. All three shorts are available from TKO right now for US$2.99 each.
– Heavy Metal are going digital, bringing their slate of comic magazines to the online platform GlobalComix. For US$7.99 a month, Heavy Metal will give readers access to their full catalogue of online magazines, comics, manga and graphic novels as a part of the GlobalComix GOLD subscription. “We are extremely delighted to be bringing the world of Heavy Metal to comic fans worldwide,” said Christopher Carter, the CEO of GlobalComix. “Not only do they produce really high quality art and stories that fit well with our horror and science fiction communities, but perhaps more importantly, Heavy Metal is keenly aware that digital publishing extends beyond just simply putting comics in an app and rather goes further into the realm of community building and fan engagement.” Heavy Metal comics are available to purchase now on GlobalComix.
– Charles M. Schulz, the cartoonist and creator behind “Peanuts,” is having his Hagemayer strips exhibited posthumously for the first ever at the Charles M. Schulz Museum in Santa Rosa, California this June. The exhibit, Adults by Schulz, consists of seven four-panel strips that follow a cast of grown-ups in their daily struggles, all while carrying Schulz’s familiar “Peanuts” style. “Peanuts” ran from October 1950 to February 2000, and remains one of the most popular comic strips in history.
– The winners of the American Library Association’s 33rd Annual Lambda Literary Awards, honoring the best LGBTQ+ fiction of the year, were announced. Best Comics went to “Apsara Engine” by Bishakh Som, while Mike Curato’s memoir and graphic novel debut “Flamer” won LGBTQ Young Adult. Congratulations to all the winners, which were were selected from more than 1000 book submissions from over 300 publishers, by a panel of over 60 literary professionals.
– Spider-Man’s rogues gallery are taking center stage this June in a series of variant covers to celebrate ‘The Chameleon Conspiracy’ and “Sinister War,” Nick Spencer and co.’s “Amazing Spider-Man” events of the Summer. All 20 of the “Sinister Villains of Spider-Man” covers can be seen over at Newsarama.
– In a new rights report from Publishers Weekly, it was revealed that writer Veronica Park Anderson and artist Tatiana Hill will be publishing their debut YA vampire roller-derby graphic novel, “Blood City Rollers,” through Labyrinth Road in Summer 2023. It was also reported cartoonist Mel Valentine Vargas will be adapting Meg Medina’s Yaqui Delgado Wants to Kick Your Ass to the comics medium. The book follows a Latina girl’s strategy to stop her persistent bully, and will release on the original YA novel’s 10th anniversary in 2024.
– Seth Rogen’s animated Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie now has a set release date of August 11, 2023. The picture, produced by Rogen through his company Point Grey Pictures, is being written by Neighbors scribe Brendan O’Brien, and directed by Jeff Rowe (The Mitchells vs. the Machines). The CG-animated film will be distributed by Paramount.
– Lastly, Anime News Network published an editorial by Lynee Loveridge about the Sailor Moon franchise, which states that voice actor — and alleged rapist — Todd Haberkorn directed the English dub of Sailor Moon Eternal. Loveridge detailed how, after scheduling an interview with Haberkorn to determine his narrative on the events surrounding the alleged assault, he terminated all contact with Loveridge, and contacted her male colleagues to ask “if they could guarantee [her] professionalism for this interview due to [her] status as a ‘self-proclaimed feminist’ and ‘sexual assault survivor.'” Loveridge stated that Haberkorn has continued to find work despite his supervisors being fully aware of the accusations against him. Sailor Moon Eternal will be released internationally on Netflix tomorrow; Haberkorn is also scheduled to work on Funimation’s dub of Pretty Boy Detective Club.
