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 an anthology comic for comic retailers called “S.O.S.”; BOOM! announced “An Unkindness of Ravens” by Dan Panosian and Marianna Ignazzi; and Marvel announced the creative team relaunching “Iron Man” in September. We also said goodbye to Murray Olderman, the award-winning sports cartoonist, who died at the age of 98, and Dennis O’Neil, the “Batman” writer and editor, who died aged 81.
– Writer Michael Moreci (“Wasted Space”) revealed that he will be relaunching “Star Wars Adventures,” with artist Ilias Kyriazis (“Collapser”) and writer/artist Nick Brokenshire (“The Once and Future Queen”). Francesco Francavilla will be providing the cover art. The stories told in the series will take place between Star Wars: The Last Jedi and Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. Moreci stated that “Once upon a time, we toyed with the idea [of telling stories that take place after Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker], but things changed along the way.” “Star Wars Adventures” #1 will be released by IDW Publishing on October 7.
– Following the announcement that DC will cut all ties with Diamond Comics Distributors, DC temporarily extended their working relationship. In the US, Direct Market comic book retailers will be able to reorder any DC comic that is in stock, and was released before June 23, until July 31. The equivalent for graphic novels released as part of, or before, the Final Order Cut Off of June 1, has been extended until mid-December. DC’s relationship with Diamond will continue as normal for UK retailers who use Diamond UK, with an extension being granted for new and backlisted comics and graphic novels until the end of 2020. DC are recommending that comic shops in Eastern Canada, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, contact distributor UCS, and those in Western Canada, the Asia-Pacific region (including Australia and New Zealand), and Latin America, contact Lunar.
– DC Comics also announced a trio of updates regarding some of their upcoming releases:
– NBC News partnered with Upshot Studios, an AWA imprint, to publish “Covid Chronicles, Vol 1: A nurse’s anguish in the ICU” by writer Ethan Sacks (“Old Man Hawkeye”), artist Dalibor Talajić (“Deadpool Kills the Marvel Universe”), and letterer and producer Bosung Kim. The webcomic tells the true story of a nurse’s shift in the ICU of a New York City hospital on April 2, 2020. The are five entries in the series planned, each showing the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, ranging from a retelling of a near-death experience of a COVID-19 survivor, to an Italian opera singer who went viral after posting his balcony performance online. A release schedule for the series has not been given. You can read the first webcomic here.
Continued below– The New York Times published a comic strip by Malik Sajad called “We Have Been in a Lockdown for Three Decades.” The strip focuses on Sajad’s home region of Kashmir, which is controlled by India, and has been the subject of military curfews and general strikes since 1990. It chronicles Sajad’s memories of growing up in the political climate, spending time at a British university, and then returning to the region where “relentless violence and authoritarianism… overshadow our fear of the virus.” You can read the strip here.
– Co-creator of “Locke & Key” Gabriel Rodríguez has revealed he is working on designs for new keys for the second season of Netflix’s adaptation. On Twitter, Locke & Key showrunner, Meredith Averill, stated that while she doesn’t know when the second season will restart production, she has days where she talks to Rodríguez about designs for new keys via Zoom. Rodríguez replied “I’m honored to be invited to cook some awesome surprises for viewers.” Locke & Key season one debuted earlier this year on February 7, with its second season currently unscheduled for release.
– THR detailed that Warner Bros. have delayed the release of Wonder Woman 1984 again, with the film moving from August 14 to October 2. This is the third instance of the Patty Jenkins-helmed sequel having its release date moved, after being initially scheduled for November last year before being shifted to a date later this month. It was then delayed to August in response to the closure of cinemas following the global outbreak of COVID-19, and moved again after it remained unclear how and when cinemas will be reopening around the globe.
– Netflix announced four new cast members for the upcoming second season of The Neighbor, based on “El Vecino” by Santiago García and Pepo Pérez. For those unfamiliar with the Spanish series, it follows the adventures of four friends after one of them, Javier, gains superpowers, and uses them to fight crime under the guise of Titán. In the second season, Gracia Olayo will play the Mayor of Madrid, who is seeking to have a successful bid for the Olympic Games, with Fran Perea set to portray a famous actor employed by the Mayor to impersonate Titán, and draw attention to the city. The other two announced cast members are Javier Botet, who will play an official seeking the real Guardian, and Celia de Molina, whose character details have not been revealed. The Neighbor season two does not have a release date at this time.
