Mankind’s rise and fall in space begins here! Two thousand years from now, the Earth is nearly dead. A bold group of explorers led by philanthropist Thomm Coney pushes forward to take the first tentative steps out of Earth’s solar system. Their quest: new worlds to colonize, so that humanity may yet have a chance at survival. Facing impossible odds, political agendas, and a fanatical terrorist regime bent on their destruction, Coney and his crew brave the dangers of a potentially volatile star drive in order to preserve a civilization intent not only on killing itself, but also on taking down every other living thing around it. Will mankind set aside its greed long enough to see a future amongst the stars? Collects Critical Millennium: The Dark Frontier #1-4 and contains extra material, including data sheets, sketchbook pages, starship information sheets and more.

There aren’t many tales where the undead are the good guys; say what you want about Twilight or True Blood, but those aren’t in the same league as an undead schoolteacher seeking vengeance for the dead family of his pupil.
Thus we have The Grave Doug Freshley, about a tutor – Doug Freshley – in the Wild West who witnesses the death of his friend and his friend’s wife, and manages to save their son – his student – from the family farmhouse as it goes up in flames. The crime has been perpetrated by the Delancey family – a band of thugs, each one worse than the last.

The Delanceys are trying to expand their stake the easy way – by stealing from the locals and killing them so there’s no one to dispute the claim.

“Stricken with grief from the death of his girlfriend, Sith, Guy Salvatore struggles to make sense of his world. He’s plagued with hallucinations of monsters that torment him with outrageous requests. Enter Satan: a strange, old man who implores Guy to call upon his latent power to break through his world’s plane to rescue Sith, who he claims is floating aimlessly in and out of dimensional planes known as the “Dream Worlds.” But is Satan to be trusted?”

The only thing I knew about this book before diving into it was how GORE-Geous is was going to be. I will admit though that what took it a notch above most is that Chandra took the time to create every element on every page.

Do you have what it takes to be a Greek God or Goddess? If so, then Relativity Media – the studio behind the visually spectacular 3D action adventure Immortals – wants you to sign up right away! Exclusively offered via Facebook today, the Relativity-Archaia Immortals promotion sponsored by Fandango, the nation’s leading moviegoer destination, will crown the winners on July 1 with a king’s ransom-worth of prizes, including a grand prize where contest winners will be immortalized as graphic novel characters with the “reveal” taking place at the Archaia panel during Comic-Con in a special photo-op ceremony. Winners will also receive an all-expenses-paid trip to San Diego to attend the 2011 Comic-Con International. The package includes airfare, hotel accommodations, and exclusive access to special Immortals events throughout the convention.

Relativity Media and graphic novel publisher Archaia Entertainment, LLC have formed a publishing partnership to produce and publish a hardcover graphic novel anthology based upon Relativity’s upcoming epic motion picture Immortals, starring Henry Cavill (Superman: Man of Steel), Luke Evans (Robin Hood), Kellan Lutz (Twillight), Isabel Lucas (Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen), Freida Pinto (Slumdog Millionaire), and Mickey Rourke (Iron Man 2).

Archaia will release the Immortals graphic novel in September, serving as a precursor to the 3-D motion picture, which releases worldwide on November 11, 2011. The graphic novel will expand upon the film’s key characters and events through a series of original tales written and illustrated by some of the top names in comics, including David Mack (Kabuki), Ron Marz (Witchblade), Dennis Calero (Dark Tower) and Ben Templesmith (30 Days of Night). The graphic novel will be published through Archaia’s Black Label division, a publishing pipeline dedicated to working alongside creative professionals within the entertainment industry eager to launch and expand their brands in the publishing world.

“This new series is ripped right out of the real-life drama unfolding on the Mexico-Arizona border! FEEDING GROUND reaches a large and diverse audience no matter your personal point of view on the issue. In this factious story, a famine caused by Blackwell Industries drives Diego Busqueda, a noble “coyote,” to lead a band of Mexican border crossers across the unforgiving Devil’s Highway, a desert cursed with blistering days and deadly nights. Back home, Diego’s daughter Flaca discovers that something hungrier prowls the factory fields. Stalked and persecuted, can the Busqueda family maintain their dreams of immigration or will the horrors of the desert tear them apart?”

Mash-ups are all the rage; whether it be Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, Abraham Lincoln, Vampire Hunter, or any number of lesser-known works, putting two seemingly unlikely things together has become a literary obsession recently. Revere: Revolution in Silver carries on this growing tradition, positing that, in his spare time, Paul Revere was actually a werewolf hunter and member of an occult organization dedicated to defending the world against supernatural threats.

With the early days of the American Revolution as the backdrop, Revere: Revolution in Silver takes this premise and runs with it. Doing an interesting bit of world-building, writer Lavallee and artist Bond create a whole new mythology around the famous American revolutionary.

On sale December 15, 2010 in comic shops is MOUSE GUARD: THE BLACK AXE #1, launching a brand-new volume of the popular MOUSE GUARD series by David Petersen.

The Eisner Award-winning MOUSE GUARD returns with THE BLACK AXE, a third volume of the critically acclaimed series. Set in 1115, this prequel to MOUSE GUARD VOL. 1: FALL 1152 fulfills the promise the wise oldfur Celanawe made to Lieam the day his paw first touched the Black Axe: to tell the young warrior about the mouse who first wielded the deadly weapon. The arrival of distant kin takes Celanawe on an adventure that will carry him across the sea to uncharted waters and lands, all while unraveling the legend of Farrer, the blacksmith who forged the mythic Black Axe.

Flames Rising is pleased to present a Preview of MOUSE GUARD: THE BLACK AXE #1:

Zombie Week continues here at Flames Rising with a new essay from Nick Tapalansky, creator of the Awakening series published by Archaia Entertainment. In this essay Nick tells us about his love of the zombie genre, his frustration with the zombie fad and the challenges of writing a comic series in a genre he admits is already packed.

Genesis of the Living Dead

I like zombies. I also like being understated. Those two statements may be related. Take a journey with me.

It’s early in 2004 and the genre is experiencing something of a renaissance. 28 Days Later had landed over the summer of ’03 and set a brand new ball rolling. The Walking Dead was hitting its stride as a comic (don’t forget kids, it was a funny book long before it was a TV series), and the Dawn of the Dead remake shambled, ran, and lunged at our collective throats. Shaun of the Dead was coming, ready to take us to the Winchester until the whole thing blew over.

When a rogue neuropathologist makes a startling breakthrough—literally isolating the root of all evil in the recesses of the human brain—he’ll stop at nothing to advance his theory. With the help of a naïve Hollywood actress, a tormented motion picture production designer and a condemned serial killer, Dr. Wolfe Chitel launches a bold experiment in the Nevada desert, the outcome of which could transform humanity forever. “The Truman Show” meets “Se7en” in SYNDROME, an inventive, original graphic novel hardcover that serves as one of the first titles to be featured under Archaia’s new Black Label line. Published in association with Fantasy Prone.

‘PROJECT RUNWAY’ STAR WRITES INTRO FOR UPCOMING ARCHAIA GRAPHIC NOVEL

The highly anticipated Archaia graphic novel hardcover, RETURN OF THE DAPPER MEN, just got a lot more dapper with the addition of Tim Gunn to the book’s list of contributors. The co-host of television’s “Project Runway” and best-selling author of Gunn’s Golden Rules: Life’s Little Lessons for Making It Work has written the introduction to the original fairy tale, which he compares to Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and The Wizard of Oz, calling it “a transformational experience, a morality tale that is certain to become an instant contemporary classic.”

“I was thrilled and honored to be asked to contribute to RETURN OF THE DAPPER MEN!” said Gunn. “After reading the script and seeing the art, I truly believe that this is a work of literature that will be enjoyed by all generations. I would say it’s especially an important work to put before children, many children—elementary school libraries everywhere should purchase several copies each!”

With fans eagerly anticipating the debut of Archaia Entertainment and Before the Door’s first joint comic project, the two companies proudly unveiled the final cover to the first issue of LUCID, which will debut in August in comic book shops, with advance copies available at Comic-Con International in San Diego, Calif., July 22-25, 2010.

Lucid is a four-issue miniseries written and illustrated by newcomers Michael McMillian and Anna Wieszczyk, who also drew the cover. McMillian is a longtime comics fan and no stranger to the entertainment industry, having recently appeared on the hit HBO series “True Blood” and as a recurring regular on the Amanda Bynes CW television series, “What I Like About You.” McMillian is the creator of Lucid and this is his first written comic work. Wieszczyk is based in Poland and her short story, “Acid Sunset,” was recently published in Popgun Anthology Vol. 4. She is also currently working on Halo8’s Godkiller motion comic.

OKKO: THE CYCLE OF AIR, BOOK ONE is the third cycle in the OKKO series from Guy Delcourt Productions and Archaia Entertainment, LLC. It stands well on its own, though reading the other cycles in the series (Water and Earth) and knowing some of the background of the setting will no doubt lend more fluidity to the events of the story.

The plot focuses on Samurai Okko, his entourage, and their attempts to help a girl that is seemingly haunted by spirits.

Inside the June Alley Inn, located in the western mouse city of Barkstone, mice gather to tell tales, each trying to outdo the other. A competition, of sorts, begins. The game: Tell the best story, get your bar tab cleared! The rules: Every story must contain one truth, one lie and have never been told in that tavern before.

Legends of the Guard is a new Mouse Guard anthology series featuring the work of artists and storytellers handpicked by series creator David Petersen. Featured in this issue are stories by Jeremy Bastian (Cursed Pirate Girl), Alex Sheikman (Robotika) and Ted Naifeh (Courtney Crumrin and the Night Things).

Flames Rising is pleased to present several preview pages from this new comic published by Archaia Entertainment.

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What do Paul Revere and Johnny Saturn have in common with Judge Dredd? They’re all on sale right now at DriveThruComics.com, your first downloadable comic shop.

All you have to do is visit DriveThruComics.com to enjoy an automatic twenty percent savings on select comic book downloads now through midnight on Sunday. There is no minimum purchase and you don’t have to enter any coupon codes to participate in the Weekend Warrior Sale. Prices normally range from ninety-nine cents for a single issue to twenty dollars for a graphic novel or exclusive collections.

Publishers included in the sale range from Archaia Entertainment, Coscom Entertainment, 2000 A.D., AAM-Markosia Press, Heske Horror, Caliber Comics and several more!

Just before I received this comic, I read Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter. In that book, history gets turned every slightly, so that readers can be treated to a vision of the Sixteenth President. It’s a fun game to play, which is evident by the flood of books related to this genre.

Comics, however, get to reveal Paul Revere’s secret story. His story proves equally fun.

Grant Bond’s artwork in Revere: Revolution in Silver is, for lack of a better word, wicked. His splash pages along with the sketchbook at the end of the book show an incredible range of style. He often crafted two-page splashes with incredible effect. The colors are mostly dark (red is used for blood and the British mainly). Lots of grays and blacks fill this book; however, it looks vibrant.

We are back from C2E2, held in Chicago’s gorgeous McCormick Center, and we have quite a bit we’d like to share with you. In this post, we’ll highlight a few dark fantasy, science fiction and horror comics and relay news about publishers.

Several publishers, including Zenoscope Entertainment, were offering a title or two set in their version of Wonderland. Zenoscope, who will also be producing the CHARMED comic, specializes in dark fantasy comics as seen through their GRIMM’S FAIRY TALES line. So if you like Alice, you may want to check out their series of different WONDERLAND comics.

Answering the call of fans and retailers clamoring for more Mouse Guard stories, Archaia Entertainment proudly announced the launch of a new anthology miniseries, Mouse Guard: Legends of the Guard, featuring covers and chapter breaks written and drawn by creator David Petersen and contributions from popular comic writers and artists, including Gene Ha, Terry Moore, Ted Naifeh, Guy Davis, Sean Rubin, Mark Smylie, Craig Rousseau, Karl Kerschl, Katie Cook and Jeremy Bastian. Issue #1 (full color, 24 pages, 8” x 8”, $3.50, Diamond Order Code MAR10 0699) is available for pre-order now and will debut in comic book shops in May.

“It started with the excitement and pleasure I had when Jeremy Bastian and Mark Smylie did their pinups for Volume 1 of Mouse Guard,” explained Petersen about the genesis of Legends of the Guard.

FlamesRising.com is pleased to present you with an interview with David Petersen, the creator of the Mouse Guard graphic novel series. Published by Archaia Entertainment, Mouse Guard tells the story of a few brave mice dedicated to protecting their fellow mice from dangerous predators and other threats.

The graphic novels are widely popular; just Last summer we learned that Mouse Guard: Winter 1152 hit the New York Times Best Seller List. Because of the comic’s popularity, Archaia Entertainment recently announced that Mouse Guard: Fall 1152 hardcover is going into a third printing. The series is also a big hit among hobby gamers, too, who enjoy playing the Mouse Guard RPG.

We had the chance to ask David a few questions about the Mouse Guard series, including his upcoming Mouse Guard-related titles like Black Axe and Legends of the Guard.

As a testament to the continuing strength of the Mouse Guard brand and Archaia Entertainment’s commitment to its creators, the publisher announced today that after selling 80,000 copies of David Petersen’s Mouse Guard Vol. 1: Fall 1152 hardcover since its original release in 2007, the title is going back to press. Archaia’s third printing of 10,000 copies, which are scheduled to arrive in stores in March, was expected to last over a 12-month period, but a deluge of advanced ordering due to the announcement of more Mouse Guard volumes has prompted the possibility of a fourth printing to commence in the coming months.