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, Stan Sakai’s “Usagi Yojimbo” is returning to Dark Horse for the launch of Sakai’s new imprint Dogu Publishing.
– BOOM! Studios has announced the new limited series “Know Your Station” from Sarah Gailey and Liana Kangas. The series continues Gailey’s interest in high concept takes on economic inequality, with the “Eat the Rich” writer presenting a murder mystery in space centered on the ultra-rich. The story follows Elise, an employee working at a private sanctuary in space, where the 1% live in luxury while Earth deals with the cataclysmic fallout of climate change. When a serial killer targeting the ultra-wealthy strikes, Elise finds herself “wrapped up in a deadly investigation.” “I could not be more excited to explore new frontiers of wealth and violence in ‘Know Your Station,’ a series in which space is no longer the one place that hasn’t been corrupted by capitalism,” said Gailey. The first issue of the series features a main cover by Kangas, with variants by Jenny Frison, Becca Carey, Jenn Woodall, and more. “Know Your Station” #1 takes off in December 2022.
– “Batman: Hush” is getting a special edition in honor of its 20th anniversary, and the original creative team is taking the occasion to reunite for a brand-new short story. Via IGN, Jeph Loeb, Jim Lee, Scott Williams, Alex Sinclair, and Richard Starkings have created a five-page story for “Batman: Hush 20th Anniversary Edition,” that is set after the conclusion of the original storyline in “Batman” #619. The new pages will give a hint as to what unfolded after the close of “Batman: Hush,” promising to provide “the first clues to Hush’s fate on that dark night.” The special edition will also include a collection of sketches and behind-the-scenes materials curated by artist Jim Lee. “Batman: Hush 20th Anniversary Edition” carves out a spot on the shelves on October 18.
– “Ice Cream Man” creators W. Maxwell Prince and Martín Morazzo are reworking one of their early collaborations for a new release at Image Comics. Via Popverse, the upcoming “Art Brut” is a revamped version of the duo’s comic “The Electric Sublime,” originally published at IDW in 2017. The story follows the titular Arthur Brut (who happens to share a name with the French term meaning “outsider art”), billed as the only man who can save the world of fine art when paintings begin to seemingly change in front of people’s eyes. “How lucky we all are, to have Arthur Brut keeping watch over the world of art and keeping us all safe,” said W. Maxwell Prince. “A lot of people don’t know he exists, but we’re happy to remedy that this December.” Image Comics and the creators refer to the book’s new release as its “intended form,” featuring new lettering, new covers from Morazzo, and a new “Silver Age” back-up story. “Art Brut” #1, featuring colors by Mat Lopes and a variant cover by Alex Eckman-Lawn, is set to release on December 7.
– Marvel Comics have confirmed the upcoming “Avengers” crossover ‘Avengers Assemble’ will mark the end of Jason Aaron’s run on the series. The story, previously described in solicitations as the “capstone” to his tenure, will unite the Avengers, their counterparts from 1,000,000 BC, and the multiversal cast of “Avengers Forever,” in an epic struggle to stop Doom Supreme and the Multiversal Masters of Evil from erasing all of history. Aaron has been writing the current volume of “Avengers” since 2018, and launched “Avengers Forever” with artist Aaron Kuder last year. The crossover begins November 30 with an oversized “Alpha” issue featuring art by Bryan Hitch, before continuing in the pages of “Avengers” and “Avengers Forever.”
– The Beat has a couple of morsels of news about the weekly online comic “Bite Sized Archie,” from writer Ron Cacace and artist Vincent Lovallo. As the series approaches its 100th installment, it is kicking off its first multi-part storyline, beginning in this week’s “Bite Sized Archie” #92. Cacace describes the storyline as a celebration of the series so far, culminating in “Bite Sized Archie” #100. “It’s been a dream to work on ‘Bite Sized Archie’ with Vincent and to have the support of our fans and the folks at Archie Comics,” he said. “Publishing a weekly webcomic for almost two years straight is not a simple feat and we wanted to celebrate by doing something exciting as we get towards the end of Year Two.” Also on the docket for the webcomic is its second print collection, “Bite Sized Archie: Going Viral,” which will collect the strips from the comic’s second year. “Bite Sized Archie: Going Viral” hits shelves in April 2023.
Continued below– Academy Award-nominee Catherine Keener is the latest to join the ensemble of the upcoming Joker sequel Joker: Folie à Deux. Via Deadline, Keener’s role remains under wraps, much like the plot details for the upcoming film, which is believed to feature musical elements and take place in Arkham Asylum. Keener joins stars Joaquin Phoenix and Lady Gaga, as well as returning cast member Zazie Beetz and the recently announced Brendan Gleeson. Todd Phillips is returning to direct from a script he co-wrote with his Joker collaborator Scott Silver. Filming is expected to begin in December for Joker: Folie à Deux, which is currently eyeing an October 4, 2024 release date.
– Superman & Lois has found its replacement for departing cast member Jordan Elsass. Via Deadline, Australian actor Michael Bishop (Spin) is joining the cast of the third season, taking the role of the titular couple’s son Jonathan Kent. Elsass had previously told the Studio that he would be departing the cast of the show for “personal reasons.” Bishop joins the returning Tyler Hoechlin and and Elizabeth Tulloch as Superman and Lois, respectively, as well as cast members Alexander Garfin, Erik Valdez, Inde Navarrette, Wolé Parks, Adam Rayner, Dylan Walsh, and Emmanuelle Chriqui. Filming of the third season is scheduled to begin this week.
– Fortnite is debuting its first trans character courtesy of the DC superhero Dreamer. Via CBR, Dreamer will be introduced to the online game as part of this year’s Rainbow Royale LGBTQ+ pride event, that will run through the month of September. The Dreamer skin is based on the likeness of trans actress and advocate Nicole Maines, who portrayed the character on the CW series Supergirl, and co-wrote the issue of “Superman: Son of Kal-El” that saw Dreamer’s introduction to the primary DC comics continuity. Maines will be streaming herself playing as the character later this month as part of the event.
– A flurry of anime news has revealed when to expect the premiere of some fan favorite series. Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War will premiere at New York Comic Con on October 8, ahead of its debut in Japan on October 10. The Chainsaw Man anime will premiere in Japan the following day on October 11, while Netflix announced the final season of Beastars will be released in 2024. And in more anime news, a new film adaptation of “Rose of Versailles” was announced, intended to mark the 50th anniversary of Riyoko Ikeda’s classic 1972-73 manga: no other details were confirmed at this time.
– Finally, Chinese authorities have found a group of Hong Kong children’s book publishers guilty of sedition, for including content that painted China as being “ruled by a cruel dictator” in their illustrations of sheep and wolves. Via The Washington Post, the five creators, all speech therapists, face up to two years in prison. The children’s books in question allegedly depict Chinese authorities as wolves and the people of Hong Kong as sheep. The conviction comes amidst an ongoing crackdown on freedom of expression by China, after local resistance to Chinese rule in the region led to the passage of a draconian national security law in 2020 that harshly punishes dissent. The creators pleaded not guilty to the charge of conspiracy to publish, print, distribute, display or reproduce seditious material, but they did acknowledge the use of “fables and fairy tales” to help children understand current social issues.
