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.
– Dark Horse will release a print version of the fantasy webcomic “Sparks,” by Australian-Canadian cartoonist Revel Guts. An LGBTQ+ coming-of-age romance, “Sparks” takes place in a world where humans and satyrs co-exist, and follows Atlas and Philo, a mismatched pair who are respectively the best and worst students at a magic academy. When they’re accidentally teleported far from home, they must work together to return in time for graduation day. The 176-page “Sparks Volume 1: Portals” will be released in bookstores on July 16, and comic book stores July 17, 2024.
– Ablaze released advance solicits for their February titles, which include “The Kalevala: The Graphic Novel,” an adaptation of the Finnish national epic by writer/artist Sami Makkonen (“Deadworld”). The 308-page book emphasizes the horror elements of Elias Lönnrot’s 1835 poem, which recorded and compiled all of Karelian and Finnish oral folklore and mythology, including the creation of the world, and the story of Kullervo. It will retail for $29.99 on February 14.
– Marvel announced Nao Fuji’s Infinity Comics series “Marvel Meow” will make its print debut in January. The one-shot compilation of the comic, which explores the relationships between the MU’s heroes & villains and their pet cats, will have an exclusive new story. It will retail for 56 pages for $5.99, and have covers by Fuji, Doaly, and Chrissie Zullo.
– Amazon Prime Video are developing a TV show based on Curt Pines and Luca Casalanguida’s comiXology series “Money.” Released earlier this year, “Money” tells the story of the five families who secretly rule the world. “Every 10 years, an election is held to see who will lead the group,” reads the official synopsis. “Who will steer the direction of the world, who has the best vision of the future. This is the story of what happens next. This is the story of how the world ends.” Pires will serve as an executive producer with Marvel Television veteran Karim Zreik.
– Scholastic have reversed their decision to allow schools and libraries to opt out of offering their diverse titles. Ellie Berger, president of Scholastic Trade Publishing, apologized in a statement, saying “We understand now that it was a mistake to segregate diverse books in an elective case. We sincerely apologize to every author, illustrator, licensor, educator, librarian, parent, and reader who was hurt by our action.”
The decision, which saw Scholastic place 64 ethnically and sexually diverse titles under the catalog Share Every Story, Celebrate Every Voice, was widely condemned by critics as pandering to racist, homophobic, and transphobic book banners. Scholastic said the line will be ended in January, and voiced their support for the fight against the right-wing assault on diverse offerings in schools and libraries.
– Per a filing obtained by Variety, prosecutors in the Jonathan Majors case are trying to get a copy of a London Metropolitan Police report of an incident from September 2022, when Majors was in the UK filming Loki season two. While the contents of the report are unclear, it mentions medical care received from his then-girlfriend, Grace Jabbari. Jabbari, a dancer who worked as a movement coach on Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, reported Majors to the NYPD after he allegedly attacked her in March.
– Finally, Shaft star Richard Roundtree died yesterday, following a battle with pancreatic cancer. He was 81. Roundtree portrayed P.I. John Shaft in the original film and all of its sequels and spin-offs from 1970 to 2019, and also appeared in Earthquake, Se7en, Once Upon a Time… When We Were Colored, George of the Jungle, and Brick. He was a prolific TV actor too, with countless recurring and guest roles to his name. His comic book-related credits consisted of Steel, Painkiller Jane, Blade: The Series, Heroes, and Speed Racer. He was married twice, and is survived by five children.
