A Tale of The Darkness!

Go back to the turn of the 20th Century and read a tale of lost love, the depravity of man and powers beyond our understanding in the tradition of H.P. Lovecraft!

Salvador Gomes is a broken man. He has lost his beautiful wife and young daughter in a fire and now spends restless days and sleepless nights looking for solace. In desperation, he makes a bargain with “The Shadow God,” but every bargain has its price…

Flames Rising is pleased to offer our readers a five page preview of The Darkness: Shadows & Flame one-shot, which will arrive in stores this Wednesday, January 20.

Broken Frontier proudly presents the winners of its sixth annual Broken Frontier Awards!

For its 2009 edition, BF opened up its voting process to fans, creators and industry professionals after our staff had compiled four nominees each over a series of ten categories.

As such, the creators and projects that came out on top are the winners as determined by our voting public.

Combining Archaia’s longstanding commitment to producing high-quality hardcover graphic novels and Roddenberry’s goal to produce sophisticated, intelligent and entertaining science fiction in the tradition of Star Trek, the companies announced today they will publish a deluxe Days Missing hardcover that collects all five issues of the critically acclaimed mini-series plus a host of extra features, available in February 2010.

The Days Missing hardcover is available for pre-order now through comic retailers and online outlets like Amazon.com (ISBN 1-932386-84-X).

Larry Hama, the legendary mastermind behind G.I. JOE, makes his debut at Archaia! In this standalone tale presented in a graphic novella format, renowned treasure hunters Alaric Moebius and Basil Fox embark on an adventure that takes them from the deepest jungles of New Guinea to the deserts of Libya in search of a mysterious hidden pyramid that contains the power to end the world!

Featuring breathtaking art by Adam Archer (Spooks) and Lizzy John (Rest, Halloween), this unforgettable one-shot introduces readers to a terrifying, exciting new world created by Ryan Schifrin (Spooks)!

The Hero Initiative and Wizard World Comic Con will partner in 2010 to maximize the reach to fans for this important comic industry charity organization, Gareb Shamus, CEO of New York-based Wizard Entertainment and producer of Wizard World Comic Con tour, announces today.

“It’s important to support The Hero Initiative since they support so many of the folks in our industry. Without this industry support many artists wouldn’t be able to keep producing the wonderful work we love,” said Shamus.

The Hero Initiative will have a booth at Toronto Comic Con and Chicago Comic Con in 2010 to raise awareness among fans of the importance of their continued industry support.

Premium Ticket with Exclusive Access and Offerings!

Officials of the Chicago Comic & Entertainment Expo (C2E2) have announced that VIP tickets will go on sale November 19, 2010 at 12 noon Eastern / 11:00am Central. There will be a total of 500 VIP packages available at $200 per package. “We want to make our VIP program simple and straightforward so the fan knows exactly what they are getting when they buy this awesome ticket,” notes Lance Fensterman, who oversees C2E2 and is Vice President of the Reed Exhibitions Pop Culture Group. “We are offering one package which includes some terrific benefits and provides great value for the customer who is seeking a truly special and unique experience at our show.” C2E2 is a new pop culture convention which is being launched by the organizers of New York Comic Con (NYCC). It will take place April 16 – 18, 2010 at Chicago’s McCormick Place Convention Center.

Fear Nothing tells the story of 28-year-old oddball hero Christopher Snow, who lives in the city of Moonlight Bay, California, along with his hyper-intelligent dog Orson, his best surfing buddy Bobby and his late-night deejay girlfriend Sasha. Snow has XP—xeroderma pigmentosum—a very rare genetic affliction that forces him to avoid light at all costs, and will likely give him cancer later in life. His parents died under mysterious circumstances and he’s now being stalked by the shadowy characters who want Snow to stop trying to find out how they died–or else they’ll bump off his remaining loved ones.

“This is a well-written and beautifully drawn adaptation. I’m delighted with it,” says Dean Koontz.

In a world where those with special powers are looked down upon and hunted, a secret team is brought together to protect it from the machinations of fallen angels and their children. From a noble cyborg warrior to a jumpy raver girl with electrical powers, they are brought in by a mysterious stranger and have to save a world that wouldn’t save them.

The graphic novel is a collection of short stories, introducing a reader to the universe of Alpha Gods. It is a world of magic and mutants, with sinister demons lurking in the shadows and with human beings developing strange powers. Called Extra Humans or Ex-Hus for short, the world knows they exist and has a largely negative view of them. The Alpha Gods try to protect the innocent ones while they struggle against a sinister corporation known as Grigori Enterprises that is performing experiments that will aid their demonic masters, the Nephilim.

Review by John D. Kennedy

Of Evil and Darkness follows a film crew to a mysterious island, where they are trying to find out more about the island and the mysterious murders that took place there long ago. The story starts off with humor, as even by issue two the story helps even a casual reader get adjusted to each character and their individual quirks. Upon arriving at the island, the crew is filled with a sense of nervousness from the stories about the island, and as the story progresses each character starts to become afraid. Soon they find that the stories about the island are very real, as they experience the events that took place many years ago, as a nightmare is resurrected on the island and it begins to hunt the crew down and murder them.

The film crew have unique personalities to them. From Henrick, the medium who travels with the cast and seems to foreshadow the evil events that are about to happen by his strange predictions, to the light-hearted nature of Jimmy as he tries to use humor to deal with the horror and anxiety around him.

In a focused effort to give new readers an opportunity to discover Archaia’s unique library of titles, the publisher announced today a program to offer one new hardcover every quarter for the recession-friendly price of $9.95. Kicking off the venture will be the Vol. 1 hardcover collection of the acclaimed science-fiction thriller mini-series, The Engineer: Konstrukt, which will be available this August.

Keeping with Archaia’s tradition of publishing high-quality, high-concept titles, The Engineer: Konstrukt, co-created by Brian Churilla and Jeremy Shepherd, tells the story of a reluctant hero who frantically races to
defeat an ancient creature eating away at the very fabric of space and time. To do so, he must travel across dimensions and put together the scattered pieces of the Konstrukt, an old-world technology that allows the user to manipulate reality itself.

Wizards of the Coast LLC today announced the October 6 release of its first-ever Magic: The Gathering graphic anthology, Path of the Planeswalker. This 192-page action-packed collection combines the entire Planeswalker web comic series, as well as a never-before-seen bonus comic for MSRP $19.95.

In this popular anthology, readers get adventures from all their favorite planeswalkers including battles between mind-mage Jace Beleren and the impulsive pyromancer Chandra Naalar. The mercurial necromancer Liliana Vess tangles with the savage Garruk Wildspeaker and readers learn more of the artificer Tezzeret’s past with the Seekers of Carmot.

Path of the Planewalker represents the high quality story-telling readers have come to expect from the world’s most popular trading card game, Magic: The Gathering. It features lavish illustrations by some of the industry’s best known artists such as Mark Texeira, Christopher Moeller, Jason Shawn Alexander, and Aleksi Briclot. For more information on Path of the Planeswalker and other Magic novels, visit www.wizards.com/magicnovels.

Comic anthologies are always tricky business, as you are never sure as to what you are going to get. You might pick up a comic because you love one character and want to read more about them, but be disappointed by the rest. Particularly troublesome is when the anthology features stories that are as widely varied as those found in 2000 AD. There are war stories, crime dramas, and even a space opera tale.

2000 AD, which has been in operation since 1977, has provided a look into alternate futures and new universes for more than 30 years. It still publishes classic characters such as Judge Dredd while occasionally publishing new characters as well. Many famous comic writers have worked for 2000 AD, including Alan Moore, Neil Gaiman, and Grant Morrison.

Review by John D. Kennedy

When I said that the “War of the Witchblades” arc might be a good place to start reading Witchblade, I was wrong.

It’s a great place to start reading Witchblade.

Now that we’re in the third issue of the arc, things are really starting to come together. The Angelus Force still hasn’t picked a host, but we see that one of the Angelus is really jonesing to be the one who will become the Angelus incarnate. But while this Angelus is the leader of the Angelus warriors — winged creatures that are similar to humans but with supernatural gifts — she’s not what you’d call a role model for the forces of good. She shows no pity, no mercy, and no patience — instead, she seems so arrogant and certain that she is destined to be the host to the Angelus that it’s certain to pass her by for someone more humble.

With sold out shows and talks of an Oscar, if you haven’t seen The Dark Knight you’re probably wondering if it lives up to all of the hype. Even within the body of countless movie reviews for the film there are a few who, believe it or not, don’t like The Dark Knight. Why? You see, the one thing this comic book movie has at its core (that other movies of a similar type don’t) is an atypical visibility to a broader audience. While it’s impossible to find a true statistic, could it be safe to assume that people unfamiliar with the darker Batman franchise went to see the movie just because it was Heath Ledger’s last role?

In this hardcover edition of Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter: The First Death, fans will get both issues in the series, as well as the Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter: Guilty Pleasures Handbook. Published by Marvel with a retail price of $19.99, the book is a prequel to Laurell K Hamilton’s best-selling novel Guilty Pleasures, which is the first in the Anita Blake series.

Adapting a comic book from a novel series isn’t an easy thing to do, because of the novel’s rich format, rife with details and setting descriptions. Additionally, the Anita Blake series is told from the first person point-of-view, which can be challenging to display visually in a graphic novel. Stray too far from the point-of-view, and you may encounter oddities–things that the main character (Anita Blake) may be describing but hasn’t seen yet. A nod to the writing team of Laurell K Hamilton and Jonathon Green, each scene was pointed and specific to Anita’s character.

What do you get when you mix an ancient Sanskrit epic that is integral to the Hindu religion with a graphic novel? You get Ramayan 3392 A.D. Created by Deepak Chopra and Shekahr Kapur, the graphic novel attempts to transcend the boundaries of normal storytelling into this visual medium. Is it successful?

To put Ramayan 3392 A.D. into perspective, think about what it must have been like when Marvel Illustrated’s staff put together Homer’s The Iliad into graphic novel form. This particular graphic novel is a re-imagining–not a re-telling–which is an important distinction to make.

The animated Doctor Strange movie was a lot of fun and I’m hoping Marvel makes more of the same kind of feature. The live-action films based on Marvel characters have been pretty hit-or-miss over the last several years…
However, according to IGN, Del Toro Eyes Doctor Strange
Hellboy helmer wants Gaiman to script.
The buzz about Guillermo del [...]

Popping up on Newsarama and the DB Forums is a press release about a new novel to comics deal. Here’s a teaser:
The Dabel Brothers are already well-known for their comic book and graphic novel adaptations of great paranormal thriller novels such as 2007’s bestselling Laurell K. Hamilton’s Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter in Guilty Pleasures and [...]

We are still working on a few of the details behind-the scenes on the new site. However, here are a bunch of new Reviews to dig into!
Neil Gaiman’s “Two Plays for Voices” Audiobook
Doctor Strange Animated Movie
Changeling: the Lost RPG
In the Serpent’s Coils Novel
30 Days of Night Movie
Kitty and the Midnight Hour Novel
Dresden Files Season One
Serenity [...]

Review by: Jason Thorson

David Slade has provided us genre geeks something to get excited about. 30 Days of Night is quite simply a very solid horror flick. All the ingredients for success are here: good acting, beautiful photography, and great source material. It’s scary, fun, and dramatic, while also giving us a nice example of the potential this genre has to deliver engaging stories. And if a month in the dark shows us anything about modern horror, it’s that David Slade’s future is looking very bright.