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, Zoe Thorogood is crafting the prequel series “Hack/Slash: Back to School.”
– BOOM! Studios unveiled “Ranger Academy,” a Power Rangers spin-off by novelist Maria Ingrande Mora (The Immeasurable Depth of You), artist Jo Mi-Gyeong (“Eve”), and colorist Fabiana Mascolo (“Alice Ever After”). The series, which received a Free Comic Book Day issue earlier this year, follows Sage, a 13-year old space colonist who enrols in the titular school for potential Power Rangers. The first issue proper will be released on October 4. In the meantime, the creators will offer a second glimpse into this world with a new story in “Mighty Morphin Power Rangers 30th Anniversary Comic Special,” due out August 30.
– Massive Publishing will publish “Zorro: Man of the Dead,” a four-part series by Sean Gordon Murphy imagining a present day take on the classic hero. Specifically, Diego (de la Vega) will be a young man whose parents were murdered by the drug cartel when he was a child, and who now believes himself to be Zorro reborn, battling the narcos with only his mask, whip and sword (albeit with a muscle car instead of his horse Tornado.) The first issue will be released in October. It is the first Massive comic to star Zorro, whose license was most recently held by American Mythology, and Dynamite beforehand.
– AHOY announced “Captain Ginger: The Last Feeder,” the third installment of writer Stuart Moore and artist June Brigman’s sci-fi cat series. The two-parter will begin on November 8, and find Captain Ginger “and his crew scattered across a thousand light-years, facing the twin mysteries of the Captain’s long-missing father — and the final fate of the human race.”
– Marvel, Dark Horse and Archie all revealed new anthologies for Halloween. Marvel will revive their ’70s horror title “Crypt of Shadows” for the second year in a row with contributions from Al Ewing, Steve Orlando, Sarah Gailey, Declan Shalvey and more, on October 18; while Dark Horse will publish “The Headless Horseman Halloween Annual,” containing five stories by Angela Slatter, Olivia Stephens, David Dastmalchian, Phillip Sevy, Valeria Burzo, Tyler Crook, and more, on October 23. Archie’s announcement was for “Fear the Funhouse Presents: Toybox of Terror,” a follow-up to last year’s children’s horror comic, dropping October 18; it will contain three stories by writers Timmy Heague, Danielle Paige, and Michael Northrop, and artists Ryan Caskey, Tango, and Ryan Jampole.
– Meanwhile, Marvel announced “Capwolf and the Howling Commandos,” a four-issue series by Stephanie Phillips and Carlos Magno. Inspired by Mark Gruenwald and Rik Levins’s infamous 1992 story (from “Captain America” #402-407), the comic sees Steve Rogers become a werewolf during World War II, while teaming up with the Howling Commandos to fight a group of occult Nazis. Issue #1 will be released October 11. The company also announced “Captain Marvel: Assault on Eden,” a one-shot by Anthony Oliveira and Eleonora Carlini, releasing the same day.
– In more Marvel news, a four-part Polaris story by Alex Segura, Alberto Alburquerque, and Pete Pantazis, titled ‘Control,’ was launched in “X-Men Unlimited” #96. New chapters will be released on Marvel Unlimited every Monday. Likewise, a three-part Black Widow and Wonder Man story by Sean McKeever, David Baldeon, and Israel Silva, called ‘Helled to Account,’ was launched in “Avengers Unlimited” #55; the next chapters of that will drop every Tuesday.
– Netflix’s live-action Masters of the Universe movie is officially dead. The film, which was set to be directed by Adam and Aaron Nee (The Lost City) and star West Side Story‘s Kyle Allen, was reportedly scrapped over budget concerns, with the streamer having already spent $30 million on developing the picture. Producer Todd Black and He-Man owner Mattel are both hoping the success of Barbie, another movie based on one of their toy lines, will help shore up interest from a new distributor.
– Arsenal Pulp Press will publish “Erdoğan: A Graphic Biography — The Rise of Turkey’s Modern Autocrat,” a book about Turkey’s 12th and current president by writer Can Dündar and artist Anwar. The 336-page paperback will be released on October 3. The publisher also announced “40 Men and 12 Rifles: Indochina 1954,” a 296-page book by Marcelino Truong set shortly before the end of the First Indochina War in 1954, that tells the story of a young man who’s forcibly recruited into Ho Chi Minh’s People’s Army. It will also be released on October 3.
Continued below– A print edition of This Winter: A Heartstopper Novella by Alice Oseman, will be released in the U.S. by Scholastic on September 5. The book, which debuted digitally in 2015, sees Tori Spring, her brother Charlie, and Charlie’s boyfriend Nick reunite during “a particularly difficult festive season” (specifically between chapters five and six of “Heartstopper” Vol. 4.) The American edition will feature a new cover by Oseman, as well as an exclusive bonus: “The Twelve Days of Christmas,” as seen “through the lens of Nick and Charlie,” and “illustrated with captions” by Oseman. You can preorder a copy here.
– In mobile game news, Ubisoft announced Invincible: Guarding The Globe. The game, which marks the series’ first, is a squad RPG that lets players help the Global Defense Agency battle a deadly clone army. No release date was announced, but you can pre-register to download the app now. Meanwhile, Crunchyroll and Chinese developer Perfect World announced One Punch Man: World, a multiplayer action game that’ll also be playable on PC, and FunPlus and Warner Bros. revealed DC: Dark Legion, a game starring the Batman Who Laughs as the main villain. More details on all these games will be announced in the near future.
– Finally, Babylon 5 will be released on Blu-ray for the first time on December 5. The entire series will be fully remastered in HD, and available in a single box set. The decision will help mark the 30th anniversary of the show, which premiered February 22, 1993, alongside the animated film The Road Home, due out August 15.
