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, Vault Comics teamed with Worldbuilders for a Vampire: The Masquerade charity livestream, DC Comics announced a slate of new titles to follow ‘Future State,’ and Shueisha and Marvel Comics announced “Deadpool: Samurai.”
– Abrams ComicArts announced their Spring 2021 lineup which will see the launch of their line of nonfiction and speculative stories by and about people of color, called Megascope.
The rest of Abrams ComicArts’ Spring 2021 releases, which include an Alex Ross poster book and a visual history of Marvel Value Stamps, can be seen here.
– Marvel Comics partnered with AHN for a new comic, “The Vitals: True Nurse Stories” by writer Sean Ryan, colorist Ian Herring, and letterer VC’s Joe Sabino, with art by Marcio Fiorito and Roberto Poggi, José Carlos, and Mirko Colak. The comic tells three stories about different nurses’ experiences during the pandemic to honor their heroic efforts. You can read the comic for free here.
– Newsarama reported that “Non-Stop Spider-Man” has been delayed for a second time, and is now scheduled for release on March 3, 2021, with the second issue pushed back to April 7. The series by writer Joe Kelly (“Uncanny X-Men”) and artist Chris Bachalo (“Deadpool”) has also added Dale Eaglesham (“Fantastic Four”) as a second artist for the series. It had initially been scheduled for release in June, but was delayed because of the pandemic until January 2021. Reasons for the second delay and the additional artist were not stated.
– Publisher Tapas Media announced that “Magical Boy” has been optioned by the production company, Madison Wells. The webcomic by The Kao follows Max, who comes out as trans to his parents after he learns that he is the next in a line of Magical Girls who have been defending the world for generations. The news came at the same time as Tapas Media announced Studio Tapas, a division to develop and produce original webcomics and novels, as well as the hiring of veteran producer Corey Sienega as head of business development to oversee film, TV, and cross-platform partnerships. Gabrielle Luu was promoted to the head of Studio Tapas, having previously been content manager and acquisitions executive for Tapas Media.
– Variety detailed the development of a new DC Comics adaptation, Naomi, at The CW, with Ava DuVernay and Jill Blankenship (Arrow) set to write and executive produce. The series would follow the titular teen girl, as she seeks to discover what caused the supernatural event in her northwestern hometown, only to uncover something that will challenge what we believe about our heroes. The character debuted in 2019 in her own comic book series by writers Brian Michael Bendis and David F. Walker, artist Jamal Campbell, and letterer Josh Reed. A release schedule for the series has not been announced.
Continued below– Writer Cat Vasko joined the upcoming Plastic Man to take the film in a new female-centric direction. A change to the title of the film has not been detailed at this point. Vasko replaces Amanda Idoko, who joined the project two years ago with the intention of the film being a comedic action-adventure. Plastic Man, whose real name is Patrick “Eel” O’Brian, is a criminal who turns good after being shot and covered in a mysterious chemical during a botched heist, which gave him shape-shifting abilities. The film does not currently have a release date.
– Amazon added a host of new actors to the cast of their adaptation of “Invincible” by Robert Kirkman and Cory Walker. Mahershala Ali will voice Titan, Clancy Brown will voice Damien Darkblood, Nicole Byer will voice both Vanessa and Fiona, Jeffrey Donovan will be Machine Head, Jonathan Groff will be Rick Sheridan, Jon Hamm will be Steve, and Djimon Hounsou will play the Martian Emperor, while Ezra Miller will play D.A. Sinclair. They join the already star-studded cast which includes Steven Yeun as the titular superhero, and J.K. Simmons as his father, Omni-Man. Invincible is scheduled for release in 2021.
– Boss Fight Studio announced a partnership with King Features Syndicate to create action figures and collectables based on the Popeye the Sailor comics and cartoons. The first products from the partnership will be the Popeye Classics figure line, which is set to debut in Summer 2021 with Popeye, Olive Oyl, Bluto and Castor Oyl. Popeye was created by E.C. Segar for his comic strip “Thimble Theatre” in King Features in 1929, and he quickly grew in popularity, with the strip later being renamed “Popeye.” Popeye has since gone on to appear in cartoons and adverts as well as video games and a feature film adaptation.
– Finally, the trailer for Vincent Paronnaud’s solo directorial debut Hunted was released. The film is a modern take on the Little Red Riding Hood story, with Eve (Lucie Debay) having to fight for her survival, as she is chased by two men through a forest and then turns her mind to revenge. Vincent Paronnaud is best known for co-directing Persepolis with Marjane Satrapi, and for writing and drawing “Pinocchio” under his pen name Winshluss. You can watch the trailer for yourself here, and the movie itself on Shudder on January 14.
