Rob Liefeld Has Been Making an Ass of Himself, As Per Usual

The other day I was talking with someone about the OG Image series and which ones were still around. The subject came up in regard to, "The Savage Dragon," and, "Spawn." We mentioned how there was also Rob Liefeld with his, "Youngblood," comic which had given us a bunch of mini-series and random reprints. I said, "Well, would we expect less from Liefeld?" and my friend said in a joking manner, "Yes, please, he should do less!" Liefeld is known by many for being a jerk. He loves to take credit for anything he had major or minor involvement in and feuds with anyone who denies his immense genius. It seems every ten years or so a new generation of comic-book readers discovers that Rob Liefeld is an asshole, as illustrated by a story about him being a total egotistical dick on a Whatnot stream the other day.

Liefeld was on the popular platform that focuses on live shows for various collectibles. He was selling the latest relaunch of, "Youngblood," and became positively infuriated when a fan suggested he draw an, "Absolute Batman," cover sometime. Liefeld said he would only do such a thing for an astronomical sum of money because he'd rather do creator-owned work than stuff for Marvel or DC. Liefeld then proceeded to ban the fan from the stream when they informed him, "Just wanted to see your art on it dude," with Liefeld enraged at being called, "Dude." As with many things involving Liefeld, there is a nugget of truth/wisdom amongst all the self-aggrandizement. DC and Marvel often are pretty terrible towards the people who make their comics; that is accurate! However, going off on somebody simply because they're a fan who told you how they'd love your take on another character is...quite a choice. There are creators where I like their work but they are apparently awful in real-life. There are creators whose work I just don't vibe with, but I hear they are genuinely wonderful folks. Then, you get a comic creator who has art many struggle to vibe with and a personality that sounds abhorrent. Well, Liefeld being self-centered and unpleasant for all these years at least shows he's consistent about some things, if not getting many of his promised projects out on time--"Brigade," anyone?

Hot Comics Revue 24: More Like, "Raunchy," Dragon, Am I Right? I Said, "Am I Right?" Wow, Quiet Crowd Tonight

 

When Image Comics launched back in 1992 (over 30 years ago, damn I'm old), I wonder how many people thought some of those earliest series would, somehow, continue to this day. Certain titles from that first decade occasionally had series off-and-on and grew into a complicated publishing history ("Youngblood," for example). Other lines went over to DC (Wildstorm in 1998). Some books arrived with a splash before being forgotten--"Tribe," anyone? Still, "Spawn," grew to be almost the face of Image at points, persisting with a consistent schedule for years and years. Todd McFarlane and various folks he worked with kept pumping out, "Spawn," comics even when it seemed they were being released more as a favor to McFarlane by Image than actually moving units. Inexplicably, Spawn had its popularity return, and now it is a hit again with spin-offs and ongoing chatter of another movie being possible (the original one was a bit of a mess). That said, this post isn't about, "Spawn," and now that I've got you too in deep to quit this piece, it is time to pull the rug and reveal this post is about the other long-running Image book. Yes, "The Savage Dragon," has also become the talk of the town lately, albeit for reasons, "Spawn," probably wouldn't ever dream of.

Created by Erik Larsen in the 1980's and originally just known as, "Dragon/The Dragon," the debut issue of, "The Savage Dragon," hit shelves in 1992, and ever since then Larsen has been the sole writer and artist. He puts out issues sporadically, and the series seems to feature whatever is on his mind, or he fancies discussing. Dragon was an amnesiac hero who became a police officer. Later on, he's in a dystopian reality. Big powered wars happen. Characters seemed to age in real time; the original Savage Dragon died, and his son took over the series. The book started occasionally getting a bit raunchy. It often riffed on politics. A public domain Mickey Mouse showed up and was a jerk, quite recently. Describing, "Savage Dragon," is best done by saying, "Random and weird stuff happens," and that is meant as a compliment. This is a comic that has kept coming out and has a die-hard fanbase, but is generally ignored by shops who only order it for said fans. Then issue #280 did something creatively raunchy--and baby, sex sells.

Without spending a whole paragraph explaining the lore, I will just say that issue #280 involved Malcom Dragon (the son of the original who now is the focus of the book) arriving home to find his beloved involved in a group-sex session of sorts with other heroes. For some years now, "Savage Dragon," has been racy, yes, but Larsen did something funny with this issue. The, "A," cover also features a different last page than the, "B," cover with a retro trade dress. In, "A," cover copies, the last page is a bit less (how to put this) visceral in the fluids pictured. In issues with the, "B," cover, things are quite visible and messy. It is absurd and crass, yes, and boy did it light a fire under the comic for some reason, with people learning there was a surprise, "Dirtier," iteration of the comic causing mayhem. The A and C covers (the C has the same interior as A) were sought-after, and B has gone nuclear. Issue #281 came out last week with various covers and no interior changes, but it has been desired by fans who hadn't cared about, "Savage Dragon," in years. Meanwhile, with #280, the A cover is an easy 20 bucks, and the B cover is over $100. There is going to be a second printing this week that is specifically the B cover and its interior--which is a bit unique to hear. As I said, sex sells. I suppose gimmicks sell too, so combine them and there ya go!

"Terminal," #1 Advance Review

The debut issue of "Terminal," arrives in comic shops in two days. Skybound (an imprint of Image), putting out this new series, was kind enough to send digital copies out for the purpose of review more than a month before the book was set to hit stands (with the request that all reviewers wait until the Monday before its release to share their thoughts). Written by Robert Kirkman and Joe Casey, those two names have a lot of skill and a number of hits under their belt. This first issue is illustrated by the also extremely talented Andy Kubert. That makes it interesting that I wasn't disappointed in this first issue, but perhaps one could say slightly underwhelmed with a hint of optimism?

"Terminal," features two secret groups fighting to seemingly either save or doom Earth. The people involved have powers, there are long-lost siblings, weird otherworldly beings, and other concepts you've seen in many other stories. Kubert's art is fantastic, but I found myself waiting the whole time I was reading for the story to really hook me in. Outside of a bit of a twist regarding who I thought would be the main character for the book, there wasn't much meat here. Still, "Invincible," didn't really get going with its reveal about Omni-Man until around the seventh issue and, "The Walking Dead," needed a chunk of issues before really picking up steam. This goes to say that I somewhat expect there is more to, "Terminal," than the first issue indicates. Kirkman is known for his slow-burn style with some stories and Casey is excellent as spinning a yarn full of twists and quirks as well (his, "Uncanny X-Men," run remains underrated and his, "Codeflesh," is a grim and surreal masterpiece). It wouldn't surprise me if, "Terminal," manages to, well, surprise me! For now, it has a good-but-not-great first issue and has me at least a bit curious where things could go next.

3 out of 5 Stars.

Witchblade and Vampirella Are Getting Into the Publisher Crossover Craze!

We've seen a lot of crossovers between Marvel and DC lately. The trend has been that we get one comic with a character's name featured, followed by another issue that flips the headliner. Hence, "Deadpool/Batman," as well as, "Batman/Deadpool" and more. I suppose Top Cow (an imprint of Image) and Dynamite wanted to get a piece of the fun (and make some scratch) because, for the first time in 20 years Witchblade and Vampirella are teaming-up for, "Witchblade/Vampirella," #1, by Marguerite Bennett and Laura Braga as well as, "Vampirella/Witchblade," #1, by Erica Schultz and Valentina Pinti.

I'm all for different comic-book companies having fun crossovers, as in a worst-case scenario, we just get silly fan-service, but in a best-case scenario, we'll be able to enjoy some creative takes on popular characters having some new/rarely seen interactions. Both characters have a slight horror and sci-fi bent, are popular for occasionally cheesecakey art, and the creative teams are great writers and artists. Keep your eyes peeled for the first crossover issue in late August; it should be a fun read!

Hot Comics Revue 23: Just a Sweet, Sweet, "Lost Fantasy," Baby

When I first heard about and saw, "Lost Fantasy," in comic shops about a year ago, I have to admit it didn't grab my attention. I've enjoyed other things written by its author, Curt Pires, and the art by Luca Casalanguida looked good, but my response was, "Eh?" An action-adventure comic about secret magic, monsters, and a dude with a big sword...I shrugged. That was my mistake, however, as the buzz has continuously been positive for the series, a spin-off focused on the, "Fireborn," character has started, and issues are heating up for no other reason than it being a great read. There is no talk about it being optioned or anything, just lots of love for the series. 

Some of the covers have been popular thanks to an attractive female character from the series gracing them, but a lot of the biggest money-makers have been the debut issue and the fifth (where the aforementioned Fireborn first appears). The ninth issue came out on April 15th and they are all pretty sought-after. You don't often hear bout a book slowly heating up and eventually getting red hot for no reason other than being a stellar read, but I personally like it when that happens. Organic growth occurring for a series that is simply good is nice to witness, and now I want to find those early issues--or more likely, read the trade paperback collections to save my scratch!

Violent Ends and Beginnings--"The Power Fantasy," #16 and, "The Punisher," #1 (2026)

Two comics came out this week. One isn't completely ending so much as taking a break for a bit after an epic 16-issue run (so far). It is the superb series known as, "The Power Fantasy," which I have often expressed fondness for on this blog (Image publishes it). Another series is a fresh-ish start, "The Punisher," #1--the latest relaunch of Frank Castle's vigilante identity. Both comics show the impetus and downfalls brought about by violence--either on a worldwide or relatively small and personal scale. One features people where the idea of having a superpower means they could single-handedly destroy the planet, with the fact a handful of individuals more powerful than 100 atomic bombs hold each other in check being the only reason our planet as survivied. The other comic features a single man who exists in a World of powered beings, overshadowed by metal claws, flying, laser beams, and so forth, but he still persists in his compulsory urge to, "Fight," crime in a brutally violent manner. Both comics examine the hollow reward of violence, just with differing stakes. Let's discuss.

"The Power Fantasy," has been quite the read. The World as we know it was the same until the first atomic bomb test gave birth to a literal angel on Earth. From there, other beings with powers that could utterly wreck our planet emerged, with only the risk of Mutually Assured Destruction keeping things from getting out of hand. That said, with the last handful of issues...things really got out of hand. Some characters died, the balance was thrown off, and this issue opens with Earth barely escaping ruin...before (spoiler alert) it all blows up anyway, and the one surviving being who witnesses it from the Moon goes back to early in the story to try and fix things. It almost should feel like a cheat to say, "Hey, let's have a re-do," but from the very start, writer Kieron Gillen told us if any of these characters ever did let loose, it would literally end Earth...and he and artist Caspar Wijngaard made good on that promise this issue. 

Gillen admits in some backmatter of the comic that he debated ending things here, with a sad-yet-kinda-hopeful note, but it was decided to take a little break and come back with more later in 2026. I, personally, am glad he and Wijngaard want to do more, because this is such a great comic. A series where the whole point is, "Nobody can fight or everybody dies," sounds dull, but this book has been anything but, and hey, we got some fighting finally, and the end result of, "Everybody dies," did indeed occur. 

People with the ability to end all life on Earth if they decided to resort to fisticuffs is a scary thought to the degree that the idea of one man roaming around New York City killing criminals he deems, "Dangerous," sounds a lot less frightening, yet the latest relaunch of, "The Punisher," manages to fill the reader with dread and comment on how in some ways Frank Castle being a mere mortal who manages to make an impact in a World full of gods, mutants, and so forth is itself astonishing. Yes, the, "The Punisher: Red Band," mini-series was a hit that brought Frank Castle back to our reality after his last, "The Punisher," series, where he led the Hand (for some reason) was critically panned, hated by readers, and ended with him going to another dimension. In the five-issue mini, it is addressed how he came back (the reason isn't given and can probably be glossed over anyway) and found himself under the influence of the Kingpin due to a mind control chip that really messed him up. 

Anything you need to know about Frank Castle/the Punisher is covered in this issue, so don't worry if you skipped the, "The Punisher: Red Band," mini, even though with this having the same creative team of Benjamin Percy and José Luis Soares Pinto, it flows into this new ongoing well. Frank's returned, and it is back-to-basics as he tears through the criminal underground. We see one reporter trying to cover it, but she's told he's of little interest when the news should focus on superheroes. The idea of Frank being, "Just," a human despite everything he's been through in the Marvel Universe (and depending on what stories you think count, there were times he's been fighting literal demons or turned into a Frankenstein's monster-style creature) is examined heavily in this debut. After all these years and attempts at continuity tweaks, the heart remains the same--he keeps persisting due to a single-minded mission of killing the killers. Castle even knows it's a lost cause and brings no reward, but he just can't stop because there is nothing else for him.

We had a comic this week where the main characters could not be violent without mass death, and a comic where the protagonist knows only violence. Both books illustrate the pointlessness of brutality while reveling in it for readers to enjoy the snazzy artwork of Earth going, "Boom," or anyone who gets in Frank's way exploding into a pile of bloody viscera due to his bullets. A story scolding us for enjoying the very thing it provides is not a new concept, of course, but it is fun to compare and contrast these two comics and their approach to, "Might makes right, or wrong. Very, very wrong." That both comics are fantastic reads helps too. This week, we read a comic where Earth ends savagely in, 'The Power Fantasy," #16, before a hopeful reboot/rebirth. Within this week, we also got the debut of the latest volume of the story of a man who will never know happiness as long as Marvel keeps putting out comics about the fellow, as his being at peace would defy the foundation of his characterization. Just as one violence ends, another begins--so goes the entirety of human existence.

Robert Kirman and Friends Announce, "Terminal," from Skybound

Robert Kirkman is a notable name at Image and the head of its imprint, Skybound. When he announces a new comic it tends to be a big deal because while some have gotten barely any buzz ("Firepower"), others have been huge hits that spawned multimedia empires ("The Walking Dead," "Invincible," and such). Therefore, it is newsworthy that Kirkman and a number of talents are bringing us, "Terminal," this Summer. It involves, "There is a secret war being waged across the world by two violent forces with superhuman abilities who blur the lines between good and evil. When Marilyn Howe’s search for her missing sister Alessandra puts her in the center of this conflict, she’ll learn that the power to save the world comes from unlocking your genetic code and giving up everything you thought you knew about yourself…if you survive the experience." Sounds fun!

Kirman and Joe Casey will be co-writing this new series with Andy Kubert, David Finch, and Arthur Adams on art, plus colorist Dave McCaig, and letterer Rus Wooten.  That's an impressive lineup, and the first issue is set to hit shops this July with this mash-up of ideas evoking, "Invincible," and, "X-Men," in a new Universe. Oh, and yes, there will be blind bag variant covers because you know that trend has turned into a metaphorical dead horse the industry can't stop beating. Kirkman knows how to write a good comic, blind bag or not, and Joe Casey does too. Plus, with such artistic talent involved, I imagine whether this becomes a hit or is, "Just," a lovely read, it'll be fun.

Hot Comics Revue 22--All About That Orc, No Treble

At the moment, if you have an earlier issue of one of the, "Absolute," books from DC you've got something that is basically guaranteed to sell for above cover price. What about stuff outside of DC, however? There are some indie books that have, "Popped," a bit including, "Assorted Crisis Events," and now the first issue of a comic that just emerged last week, "D'Orc." Outside of a promotional ashcan from the publisher, Image, and getting spotlit as an interesting book on Comics Heating Up during the Final Order Cutoff, "D'Orc," lacked much anticipation from the comic-buying public. However, once it hit shelves, positive word of mouth and (I'd presume) the FOMO people had from being late to the party on some of the assorted Absolute books resulted in a rush to acquire copies of, "D'Orc," #1. It was a four-dollar comic, suddenly selling online for $35-$40, and then it just kept climbing. The standard cover A is now trending for eighty bucks or so!

I imagine the heat will die down and the book will settle to a respectable number above its cover price, but not quite as high. For now, however, "D'Orc," is as hot as molten lava. A second printing with many more copies than the first printing has been announced and some sites/apps like Key Collector threw a hissy fit about not being able to predict and pump the book, putting out a rare, "Buyer beware," about how it had zero hype before it dropped, and that makes Key Collector feel the popularity is suspicious. Look, I like Key Collector and often use it to find old key issues of stuff, but this sounds like sour grapes for not getting to take credit for, "Calling," a book would be hot--CHU gets credit, though (and remains a great site and forum)! Yes, "D'Orc," #1 is a sought-after book. Now, we just need to see if it maintains the heat or has a cooldown.

"Wrestle Heist," #1 is a Love Letter to Both Wrestling and High-Stakes Burglary

Wrestling and heist tales are both forms of entertainment full of stories. In wrestling, you have operatic tales of good and evil, the hero and the villain (sometimes one is revealed to be the other via heel-turn or such too), and lots of over-the-top fights. With a heist yarn, you've got someone down on their luck or done wrong who assembles a team and gets back at a nefarious party by stealing cash or something of value--in the name of justice and getting a little cheddar. "Wrestle Heist," marries these two storytelling concepts expertly. 

Both wrestling and heist stories can have lots of drama and be a bit silly, something writer-artist Kyle Starks knows in showing us the downfall of Sterling Steele--a pro wrestler who plans to leave one agency for another and is intentionally badly hurt by his former boss as retribution. The issue concludes with the announcement of the plan for a heist, and the promotion for the second issue outright says how next we'll have the exciting part of the crew getting together--"Wrestle Heist," isn't avoiding any genre tropes as opposed to having a lot of fun with them! The big Thanksgiving wrestling showcase of, "Fightsgiving," is Steele's target, and enough people clearly have been done wrong by Buddy that he'll be able to get some accomplices.

I've talked about the stealing, but what about the wrestling? Well, Kyle Starks is superb at illustrating the kinetic scenes of, "Fighting," whether it is the orchestrated aspects or when Steele is genuinely betrayed and hurt by real violence in the ring, made to look like an accident. Starks has always excelled at showing readers intense action scenes with his art, and "Wrestle Heist," serves as another great showcase for his abilities--other reviewers agree it is a superb read as well. This is a comic by someone who knows how to be critical of the industry of professional wrestling, but clearly adores the artform as well. I loved this first issue and can't wait to see how Steele and his friends pull off their caper!

5 out of 5 Stars.

Advance Review: "The Thing on the Doorstep," #1

"The Thing on the Doorstep," is an upcoming comic series published by Top Cow (an imprint of Image). I had a chance to read an advance copy of the first issue--technically for a second time. You see, when it was independently published on a previous occasion, I reviewed it and loved it, but why not revisit it and share how much fun it was to read again with some tweaks for this new release from Top Cow? Described as drawing from HP Lovecraft and featuring a, "...haunting mystery of friendship, madness, and the horrifying," this comic is written by the talented Simon Birks and is a great first issue!

Illustrated by Willi Roberts with letters by Rob Jones, the entire creative team does a stellar job opening in a, "Present," of sorts, where a shocking act of sudden violence occurs, and then we move back in time to start puzzling together just how things got to the point they did. There are hints of the supernatural in this first issue, with it clear that something dark and twisted is creeping into the minds of various characters. It doesn't appear anyone will emerge unscathed, with the question moreso being who will go utterly mad and who will maintain at least a semblance of sanity? The creepy vibe is superb thanks to Birks, Roberts, and Jones keeping us on our toes and ill-at-ease as the tension increases with every jump forward in time to near where everything starts/ends quite brutally.

"The Thing on the Doorstep,"  #1 releases in comic shops on February 11th, 2026. I encourage everyone to ask their shops to get them a copy and to then read the upcoming issues--as it is with Top Cow instead of being done on a smaller-scale this time, it'll be much easier for folks to buy and enjoy!

5 out of 5 Stars.

Marvel and Image Reprint, "Marvel Team-Up," #14 Yet Again...More Crossovers on the Way?

Marvel and Image have announced another reprint of when Invincible met the Amazing Spider-Man in, "Marvel Team-Up," #14. It first occurred back in 2004, and as far as I understand, it is in the official canon for Invincible and the 616/main Spider-Man. There was a surprise reprint of the issue when the blind bags for the first issue of, "Battle Beast," #1 dropped a bit ago and kicked off the whole blind bag craze we're currently swimming within (for better or worse). That was another property by Invincible's creator, Robert Kirkman, and a deal of some sort was worked out between him and Marvel. More deals must've been cut as it has now been declared that a new reprint is coming in 2026 with fun new variant covers by names as big as Todd McFarlane, Mark Bagley, Erik Larsen, and so forth. This makes me wonder, could more Marvel/Image crossovers be on the way?

Marvel and Image doing some more crossovers could be feasible. I mean, Marvel and DC started reprinting old stories, and then not too long after, we started getting the fresh crossovers between Batman and Deadpool. With Spidey and Superman on the way in 2026 and even more stories possibly due, that's a fruitful collaboration now. It seemed far-fetched for Marvel and DC to play nice again a few years ago, but here we are with them crossing over, so why not Marvel and Image properties that the creators there want to collaborate with, too? That is a slight wrinkle that Image's creators own their properties (which is a good thing), but I imagine Marvel could work something out. Maybe ask McFarlane if Spawn can hang out with Daredevil and they patrol New York City, or inquire with Larsen if Savage Dragon can get in a fight with the Hulk. There could be nothing else emerging after this reprint, but I'd suspect something is in the works!

Flashback Friday: Alan Moore Wrote Some Fun, "Spawn,"-Related comics Back in the Day

Alan Moore was essentially betrayed by the comic industry multiple times. It is understandable if he'd rather write his (admittedly good and well-reviewed) novels he now does, but the man was a skilled comic-crafter without a doubt. Not everything he wrote was an epic that people talk about with reverence, either. Sometimes he just wrote some zany and fun stuff. I'm especially fond of when Alan Moore did some zany Spawn-related stuff back in the day.

As d. emerson eddy discussed in a recent article on Comicsbeat, Alan Moore wrote a three-issue mini-series for Spawn's foe, "Violator," back in the 1990s. It is absurd, violent, and quite hilarious. Bart Sears contributes art for the first two issues, with a then-less-known Greg Capullo doing the finale. The plot basically involves everyone from the mafia to other demons wanting to kill Violator, and the effort he goes to in order to not end up dead and back in Hell. It's nothing earth-shattering, but it is a hoot and relatively easy to find for dirt cheap as individual issues or in a trade paperback. It wasn't only a baddie Moore wrote either, he was involved in, "Spawn," #8, #32, and the, "Blood Feud," mini-series. My favorite piece of Spawn-by-Moore is a crossover, however.

Back in the late 90's Alan Moore was invited by Jim Lee to write, "WildC.A.T.s." and he did a solid job. For my money, the four-issue crossover he did of, "Spawn/WildC.A.T.s" is the most fun Spawn-by-Moore even if (one should emphasize) none of this is anywhere near his best work--that said, many agree how, "Even Moore's 'not very good' can be interesting when looked at critically." Yes, "Spawn/WildC.A.T.s" is very 90's, very silly, and Moore's writing is underserved by art (sorry, Scott Clark) that seems busier making the female characters look as svelte and sexy as possible than doing anything else, but it is a crazy little read. Spawn is quite evil in the story, which is set in the far-future time of 2015 (I mean, the future for when it came out) and full of epic fighting, monologuing, and general wackiness. I'm not alone in liking it despite its obvious flaws. Lots of folks hate it and say it isn't even, "Canon," to Spawn or WildC.A.T.s, although when it comes to anything, "Spawn," continuity is a loose concept at best. 

The art admittedly leans heavily into the 1990s, "Cheesecake," aesthetic.

For my money, in the same way that almost any random, "Punisher," comic by Garth Ennis is better than 99% of other (newer) Punisher comics, a silly crossover of little consequence by Alan Moore is still a good deal more pleasurable to read than a lot of Image stuff in the 90s (this was before Jim Lee took his Image characters over to DC). We've got the WildC.A.T.s. fighting a demon-possessed Spawn and Alan Moore is having fun and telling an engaging story. Not everything has to be, "Watchmen," or, "From Hell," with Moore, so just chill out, random internet haters.

Whether it was the main, "Spawn," comic, the spin-off series, or crossovers, Alan Moore wrote a lot of Spawn, even though his takes on other heroes get a lot more, "Ink," written about them, be they Batman in, "The Killing Joke," or other popular characters in various books he barely touched. A lot of Moore's stuff with heroes could be more dour/serious like his time with, "Swamp Thing," but the man knew how to have a good time too, as any of his comics involving Spawn make clear. Moore is clearly happier now not doing comics, but at least we have these four-color memories of his work to enjoy for years to come.

"Death Fight Forever," is an Upcoming Image Comic With a Stellar Creative Team

When I saw the announcement of, "Death Fight Forever," a few things caught my eye. First, the pitch of it being themed like a comic-book version of a zany '90s beat 'em up game sounded exciting. Then, the writer is the incredibly skilled Andrew MacLean, and the artist is one I really love the work of, too, Alexis Ziritt. A graphic novel version was apparently Kickstarted, but now a serialized version is coming from Image as a five-issue mini-series starting in February 2026. Just look at this amazing interior artwork by Ziritt:

Yeah, I'm picking this up in February, for sure!

A "Southern Bastards," Pilot is in the Works for Hulu

"Southern Bastards," was a fantastic comic. It debuted in 2014, and then the issues eventually started releasing so sporadically that I fell off the series. I later learned it kind of just stopped in 2018 without much of an ending. Created by Jason Aaron (writing) and Jason Latour (illustrating), it probably won't ever be finished due to Latour facing numerous sexual harassment allegations that resulted in his and Aaron's professional relationship ceasing (it is unclear if they remained on decent personal terms or had a falling-out). Controversy aside, "Southern Bastards," was an unfilching and unabashed view of the South--the good and bad. A mix of, "Friday Night Lights," and, "The Sopranos," in its discussion of football, organized crime, and more, I could see it being a decent show--and that may now happen.

Hulu has ordered a, "Southern Bastards," pilot with Bill Dubuque and Nia DaCosta at the helm. Matt Olmstead will be the showrunner, and I'm quite interested to see if this gets picked up for a full series--one that hopefully does eventually reach a true conclusion. I suppose we will see if Hulu goes all-in on the show, passes and it ends up somewhere else, or, "Southern Bastards," ends up in development Hell as many superb comics sadly do. Still, at least a pilot order shows a modicum of promise!

The History of the, "G.I. Joe," Comic is Fascinating

G.I. Joe existed as toys and cartoons, but when the comic launched with Larry Hama at the helm, it became a huge hit. This wasn't expected, as an excerpt from, "A Brief History of G.I. Joe," discusses on Comicsbeat. Albert Fuzailof explains how a tie-in comic to go with the cartoon helped avoid running afoul of rules about advertising toy products. He also discusses the way Larry Hama ended up on the comic--namely, a lot of other creators passed on it before it was offered to Hama--then it became massively popular.

Hama's work on, "G.I. Joe," has spanned decades and multiple publishers; he is still currently working on a, "G.I. Joe," series now over at Skybound (an imprint of Image)! The franchise has gone on to have live-action movies, plenty of other comics, and toys (so many toys). "G.I. Joe," would still have a degree of popularity without its comic, but the work of Larry Hama and his collaborators made all the difference for, "G.I. Joe," to be what we know it today.

Nearing the End of September with Bits of News

I started September with one of my articles that combines links and pieces of interesting news. I have some more stuff that maybe doesn't warrant a whole article, but deserves a mention. How about we do something for the first time ever in nearly 15 years of blogging and have a second news & links post in the same month--one to start it and one to end it? It's my website and my rules, so let's do it!

EA is a publicly traded company, but thanks to 55 billion dollars, it will now be going private. Various entities, including Saudi Arabia and a Jared Kusher (Trump's son-in-law) private equity group, are going to buy out everyone's shares. It is the largest-ever private equity buyout, and people have mixed feelings about very questionable folks buying EA--Saudi Arabia especially has been eager to try and clean-up its bad image relating to human rights via, "Sportswashing," and now this.

It is National Coffee Day. Coffee is arguably my favorite drink, and a number of stores still have promos to celebrate if you hurry.

Diamond Comics continues to be a zombie of a company as moments here and there of legal filings keep the shambling corpse occasionally jolting. Image Comics seems to have decided that settling is easier than this unending legal debacle and has reached some semblance of an agreement with Diamond.

A new, "Simpsons," movie is coming, like, a second one--due in 2027. The last, "Simpsons," flick was in 2007, believe it or not, so 20 years later, we get a film sequel to a television show that has been going since about 1989 (not counting the 1987 shorts). It is wild the program has been on the air that long and managed to be either amazing or at least decent.

Bleeding Cool sometimes spreads dumb gossip and sometimes has surprisingly juicy news scoops. If you can wade through the unending barrage of ads on the site, one of the latest articles admits it is gossip, but I want it to be true--a new Superman and Spider-Man crossover for 2026. That would be so fun!

Finally, Selena Gomez and Benny Blanco just got married, proving that no matter how weird a guy you are, if you're emotionally open, caring, and kind, you will find love--so shut up, all you internet incels who claim, "Getting," a woman is impossible. Oh, and being funny helps!

Zombie Tale With a Twist, "Everything Dead and Dying," Has a Stellar Debut Issue

"Everything Dead and Dying," is a new comic series published by Image. Written by Tate Brombal (who did a fantastic, "Barbalien," series) and featuring art by Jacob Phillips (I loved his work on the, "Newburn," comic), it is a horrific zombie tale with a clever twist. Jack Chandler is the only person who survived a strange virus that quickly turned everyone in his rural Canadian farming town into a zombie. He found himself bitten, scratched, and everything else, but didn't change. So, he just kept life going and made sure the town, "Survived," thanks to how he was immune.

He gets up, cares for his zombie husband and adopted daughter, drives through town, tends to the crops and (living) animals on his farm, goes home, and keeps the zombies fed with some of the ground-up animals when he isn't cooking food for himself or eating his crops. The zombies seem to almost have some kind of built-in muscle memory, so they go about their days paying Jack little mind. It is an interesting take on the post-post apocalypse, AKA what happens after the World ends and life settles into a new rhythm. Without giving away too much (although even the solicitation for the series itself spoils a lot), Jack may not be the only one who survived the end of the World, and I definitely look forward to the next issue and its exploration of whether Jack is less alone than he initially believed.

Brombal's writing makes us really care for Jack and see the mix of emotions he has being essentially left behind when everyone else got sick and suddenly changed. A town full of people that didn't accept or like him now is solely reliant on the one immune person present to keep stuff running (including a hydroelectric water mill that powers everything). Jack knows his family aren't human anymore, but he still loves them and the town. Phillips' artwork is superb as well, flashing between the happy past and the dreary present with clever touches that give a weird calm to both the, "Before," and the, "After," of everything going wrong. It is surreal how Jack's life didn't change too much, through a lot of effort for sure, even if everything else went to Hell. Phillips really sells the quiet and eerie horror of going through the motions day after day when there is nothing else left to do.

"Everything Dead and Dying," #1 is an excellent start to this series. It establishes everything we need to know, gives us the routine, and then ups the stakes at the issue's end so as to make it clear we're in for wild ride. In this day and age, when you'd think every possible take on zombies has been done, it is exciting to get a new twist on the formula!

5 out of 5 Stars.

Oh, More Blind Bags/Mystery Polybags. Okay?

Readers may recall that when the blind bag/mystery polybags comics for the Image/Skybound comic, “Battle Beast,” were a hit that I made a prediction/bet. I said there would be at least six different blind bag promotions from comic publishers (even multiple ones from the same company), and if that did not happen, I’d gladly buy someone a dollar coffee at Scooters (or they’d owe me one). Well, nobody took my bet, and it’s a good thing for them because the market is getting absolutely flooded with mystery Polybag variants. Some are overpriced and don’t sound exciting (the, “Batman,” relaunch comes to mind), others are the same price as a regular issue and look fun (Mark Spears has one promotion due before Halloween and announced a Christmas-themed batch). Marvel is doing, “True Believers,” blind bags for, “Ultimate Endgame,” and DC just announced they’re doing even more of these for, “D.C. K.O.,” as well.

Publishers big and small are into the trend, and some fans love it while others appear to hate this, passionately. Some people say it is an exciting and fun little idea. Others say it is like comics trying to imitate trading cards with their packs and odds of pulling a, “Common,” one, “Rare,” version and so forth. I see multiple sides and have lived through a number of eras of comic gimmicks that came and went pretty quickly—remember lenticular covers? I don’t think this is going to destroy the comic industry or change it too much either. It’s a method to promote your comic, and right now it’s the hottest thing around. It’ll fade away mostly and be replaced by another gimmick before too long, most likely, and the one thing that will stand out when the hype fades is the quality of the comic itself.

Ah, yes, the actual comic. You see, I get the idea that it is fun to buy a comic and have a chance of a rare variant cover, but I only care as long as the comic is good. When the comic sucks and the only selling point is a cool variant cover stuffed into a blind bag, that is a problem, my friends. That’s the crux of this too: It is a gamble. Pay $6 for your comic, and if you’re lucky, maybe pull a rare $100 cover! Plus, if you get a regular/common cover, you still have a comic to enjoy, so it’s a bit better than buying a lottery ticket, kind of. It just worries me to see folks speculating on these blind bags like a guy buying a bunch of bulk of aforementioned scratchers with the idea to resell them. At the end of the day, at least the (winning) scratchers can be redeemed for money no matter waht, who is to say even the rarest of these mystery polybag comics will hold their value in a year or two from now? 

Comics are already a volatile market where a book worth thousands one day could suddenly lose popularity and be worth a tenth of what it was going for a mere week later. Comic speculation can be fun—I’m an active member of the Comics Heating Up Forum where we talk about popular comics and what could get hot next—but with comic-books you’re best off buying what you love and wanna read, then selling it if the book happens to become sought-after. Chasing trends and dropping a mortgage’s worth of money on blind bags is only going to get you burnt, I’d imagine. My overdrawn point is that these blind bags are a gimmick that marries gambling with comics.

The folks over at CHU and its forum are great!

Should you like to play the slots or a hand of blackjack sometimes and think these blind bags are a fun gamble, then have at it and buy some mystery polybags! Just remember, as with any gamble, you should only play what you can afford to lose, and the House (in this case, the comic publishers) always wins in the long run/overall. That’s why I previously have just bought one Polybag comic if it’s priced reasonably and it is a series I want to read. I get the comic I wanted to enjoy and whatever cover I get, I can happy with. In conclusion: Tread carefully if you’re into these blind bags, plenty of gimmicks before have been a massive success right before suddenly flopping into dollar bins.

Is it a Comic? Is it a Card Game? It is, "Ice Cream Man: The Mortal Coil Shuffle!"

Let's talk about something vaguely related to ice cream, as it is National Ice Cream Day. "Ice Cream Man," is an anthology comic series published by Image, which comes out somewhat sporadically. It has a strong horror focus and was at one time going to be a Quibi show (remember Quibi) before later getting a film option. Issues can be hit-or-miss because it is anthology style, but overall it is a fun and weird comic. Well, there is going to be a special, "Issue," of sorts that intentionally pushes the boundaries of what could be a comic. Called, "Ice Cream Man: The Mortal Coil Shuffle," it features 55, "Playing," cards, including narrative cards that tell a story along with, "Spell," cards. It's a one-shot experiment that will supposedly have no second printings or be collected in comic form/a collection, "When it's gone, it's gone."

I am a fan of anything that pushes the comic-book form, and this sounds fun. You put the cards in a narrative order but with the, "Spells," and other wild things, you can tweak how the story plays out/your understanding of it. It's a comic and a card game all at once, reminding me a bit of those, "Choose Your Own Adventure," stories of old, as well. Assuming it isn't too pricey, I'd love to, "Read," this latest Ice Cream Man-related yarn with its unique format--the comic/deck hits shops on October 1st.

Robert Kirkman and David Finch to Collaborate on new, "Skinbreaker," Comic Series

Robert Kirkman doesn't have to make any more comics. He's achieved immense success (especially at Image) thanks to, "The Walking Dead," and, "Invincible," which are two beloved series he wrote with massively popular adaptations. Kirkman has been accused of milking these properties for all they are worth at times (which is fair considering all those TWD re-releases) but the man is a skilled storyteller who at the end of the day has put out some quality reads (and a number of so-so books, but we can't always hit the metaphorical bullseye). Kirkman could rest on his laurels, but he doesn't. Hence, Kirkman will be teaming with an artist whose work I've always enjoyed--David Finch, and they'll be bringing us the new fantasy action series, "Skinbreaker." I'm intrigued.

Even when Kirman isn't at his best, his stories are good. Plus, David Finch has provided great art to amazing comics (Moon Knight) and comics where his art was the only saving grace (Ultimatium). Even a bad comic with Finch's artwork is worth examining. I say all this to declare that even if, "Skinbreaker," isn't some earth-shattering hit, it will pretty much by default be a good read with the talent involved. The comic follows a mighty chieftain named Enor who wields the Skinbreaker. He is getting old, however, and his heir, Anok, is supposed to take over his reign but has little interest in being a part of any bloody power struggles within the village or beyond its boundaries. Yes, that sounds like a pretty boilerplate tale, but if we've got Kirkman and Finch involved, I'd bet there are some wrinkles to what we think we're going to get from, "Skinbreaker," and it is bound to look fantastic thanks to Finch.

I don't know if, "Skinbreaker," will break the mold (pun intended) of fantasy stories about families fighting for power in magical lands and turn a seemingly worn-out trope into something amazing (like zombies with TWD or simply be a decent little series. Even if it is just Kirkman doing the bare minimum, however, mediocre-Kirkman digging into genre fare is more fun than a lot of writers trying their best in the same field (kind of like how even a generic Garth Ennis war comic is somehow better than countless other war comics). Plus, Finch is bound to make it gorgeous, so we have that to look forward to as well. "Skinbreaker," hits shops in September (with Image publishing it, of course), so we can find out what exactly we're in store for then!