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. Usually we don’t post Rundowns on Saturdays, but it’s SDCC weekend and there’s too much news to be left until Monday.
In case you missed it, Dark Horse announced a new “Skulldigger + Skeleton Boy” maxi-series, Titan Comics will reimagine Robotech in “Robotech Remix,” IDW acquired Sunday Press Books, DC Comics is creating a new imprint for young adults, and Image announced a collaboration between Scott Snyder and Charles Soule titled “Undiscovered Country.” Also, Marvel dropped several announcements of new series, including “Doctor Doom,” “The Amazing Mary Jane,” “Future Fight Firsts,” and “Spider-Verse.”
— Marvel’s Red Goblin returns in a new one-shot being released later this year. According to a retailer panel at yesterday’s San Diego Comic Con, the comic will include stories written by Pat Gleason, Rob Fee, and Sean Ryan, with artists to include former DC exclusive Pete Woods.
— Dark Horse is releasing a new hardcover collection celebrating 75 years of EC Comics. “Choke Gasp! The Best of 75 Years of EC Comics” will include 528 pages of some of EC Comics’ most famous stories from creators like Al Feldstein, Harvey Kurtzman, Johnny Craig, Jack Davis, Wally Wood, and more. It’s available for pre-order now, and goes on sale this December 4.
— Miracleman will be the focus of Neil Gaiman and Mark Buckingham’s one-page story in “Marvel Comics” #1000, which releases this August 28. As Newsarama notes, this is the third surprise character announced for the book following Darth Vader and Conan.
— Fear the Walking Dead has been renewed for a sixth season, according to Scott Gimple, Chief Creative Officer of The Walking Dead franchise, with Colby Minifie, Peter Jacobson, and Colby Hollman joining the cast. Gimple also revealed plans for a new series featuring the first generation to come of age in the post-apocalyptic world. It will star Annet Mehndru, Aliyah Royale, Alexa Mansour, Nicolas Cantu, and Hal Cumpston, and is due out in the spring of 2020.
In further The Walking Dead news, executive producer Gale Ann Hurd revealed that Thora Birch (Ghost World, American Beauty) and Kevin Carroll (The Leftovers) will be joining the cast in season 10, which is set to debut October 6. Sadly, it was also confirmed that Danai Guirra will be leaving the show; she addressed her exit during the San Diego Comic Con panel, telling fans that this will be her last season playing Michonne. However, it was also revealed that Andrew Lincoln will be making a return to the series as Rick Grimes, but not on TV screens. The Walking Dead plans to release a trilogy of films starring Lincoln, expanding the universe onto the big screen. No word yet on a release date.
— Tyler Hoechlin and Brandon Routh, both actors who have previously portrayed Superman, are suiting up as the Man of Steel for the annual Arrowverse crossover event on the CW. Hoechlin and Routh will be portraying Superman in different time frames. Titled “Crisis on Infinite Earths,” the crossover will unite the entire franchise, including Arrow, The Flash, Supergirl, DC’s Legends of Tomorrow, and Batwoman, in a five-episode epic beginning in December and concluding in January.
In other Arrowverse news, Supergirl star Mehcad Brooks, who’s played James Olsen since the show debuted, is leaving the show in season five, according to an exclusive at Entertainment Weekly. There are no details yet on how the character will be written out of the show; however, showrunners Robert Rovner and Jessica Queller teased in a statement that they would leave room for Brooks’s character to return to National City in the future.
— Joe and Anthony Russo’s AGBO Studios announced that it’s in development on two new projects. The first is Battle of the Planets, an adaptation of the 1978 anime series originally created by Tatsuo Yoshida and Tatsunoko Studios. The second project is an Amazon series based on “Grimjack Comics,” the post-apocalyptic mercenary series originally created by John Ostrander and Tim Truman. The adaptation is being written by Kevin Murphy (Defiance, Heathers the Muscial, Reefer Madness).
Continued below— “She Could Fly,” the comic series created by Christopher Cantwell and Martín Morazzo, has been optioned for television development, according to Dark Horse. This marks the first property from the publisher’s Berger Books line to be optioned for film or television. “She Could Fly” tells the story of Luna, a disturbed 15-year-old who becomes obsessed with a mysterious woman who suddenly appears, and then dies in a fiery explosion, flying above in the Chicago sky.
— WWE Champion Kofi Kingston made a surprise appearance at SDCC to announce a new full-length graphic novel featuring the WWE trio the New Day. It is set to release in 2020; no further details have been announced, but the cover is drawn by Daniel Bayliss.
— Finally, Tony Husband, a cartoonist best known for his work with Private Eye magazine, is lending his talents to helping people living with dementia. A team at Lancaster University is conducting research using Husband’s art to help understand what matters most to people living with the condition.
