The last twelve months offered comic book readers a wide variety of work ranging from the most crowd-pleasing superhero epics to the most idiosyncratic of indies, and the return of old favorites to the emergence of exciting new talent. It was a busy and productive year for the industry, and one we’re pleased to celebrate with what we’re certain will be an uncontroversial, unenumerated list of awards that will prompt only resounding agreement and unbroken fellowship amongst our readers in the comments below.
Mark your calendars accordingly. A new trilogy of graphic novels by Faith Erin Hicks of The Adventures of Superhero Girl and Friends with Boys is going to kick off in 2016, and according to the far-in-advance press, it's going to be a grand, sweeping story.
The Nameless City will be in the vein of such works as Avatar: The Last Airbender, Bone, and Earthsea, according to publisher First Second Books. That's some big talk, but Hicks has the art to back it up.
Gene Luen Yang is on a heck of a roll lately. Hot off the heels of his two-volume graphic novel Boxers and Saints, Yang has just announced his next project: A graphic novel with artist Sonny Liew about the first-ever Asian-American superhero.
The new book, The Shadow Hero, offers up an origin story for that character, The Green Turtle, who first appeared way back in 1944's Blazing Comics #1.
The ink is barely dry on writer/artist Paul Pope's new all-ages graphic novel Battling Boy, but just like that, a prequel is on the way.
The Rise of Aurora West, which tells the story of one of Battling Boy's allies, the daughter of science hero Haggard West, is set for release in July 2014. Pope will have some help on the book this time. J.T. Petty will co-write it with him and it'll be drawn by artist David Rubin.
Paul Pope has cultivated a lot of street cred for his work outside of comics. He’s worked for Spin, Complex, Wired and GQ, designed clothing for DKNY and posters for the Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, and he even deejays on the side. In Battling Boy, hisfirst original graphic novel since 2007, he reminds everyone that when he’s not working in fashion design, magazine illustration, or dropping dope-ass beats, he’s one of the most gifted comics creators on the planet, whose every pen-stroke deserves our rapt attention. The first of a two-volume story from First Second, Battling Boy combines superhero comics with pulp sci-fi and kaiju manga in a coming-of-age adventure about the son of a god, the daughter of a dead hero, and a city full of monsters.
Arguably the most anticipated comic of 2013, Paul Pope's Battling Boy finally arrived in stores today. The story of a dead hero, a 12-year-old demigod and a city full of monsters, Battling Boy represents Pope's return to creator owned comics, and is his first original graphic novel in six years. Its release is a big moment for First Second, and in a clever and effective bit of promotion, the publisher has spent the week leading up to today hyping the book with images featuring art from the story above quotes from comic creators, writers, and critics alike.
This week, First Second Comics releases Fairy Tale Comics, a hardcover anthology of classic stories adapted by 17 prolific cartoonists. To celebrate, we've snagged an interview with Emily Carroll, whose adaptation of The Brothers Grimm's perhaps lesser-known tale "The 12 Dancing Princesses" graces the book's pages.
Multiple Eisner Award winner Gene Luen Yang (American Born Chinese, Level Up, Avatar: The Last Airbender: The Promise) is about to release his most ambitious comic project yet. Together they're Boxers & Saints, a pair of graphic novels (available both together and separately) that tell the story of China's Boxer Rebellion from two opposing, but connected points of view. For Yang, the son of Chinese immigrants and a practicing Catholic, it's a personal work of historical fiction that delves into a turbulent and deadly time in China's history when young kung fu-practicing peasants organized to combat colonial powers, Christian missionaries from the west and Chinese Christians who had converted. ComicsAlliance got in touch with Yang to see how he navigated this complicated history and what artistic decisions went into telling these two intersecting stories.
One of the most anticipated releases of 2013 is Battling Boy, Paul Pope's first original graphic novel since 2007's Batman: Year 100. Seemingly brimming with adventure, excitement and Pope's singularly fantastic imagery, the book takes place in a world where monsters hunt children and where the greatest hero of all, Haggard West, is dead, leaving 12-year-old Battling Boy to save Acropolis. Check out a video trailer and eight-page preview.
It's going to be a busy San Diego Comic-Con for First Second. On top of a hefty schedule of panels and signings, FS will be rolling out three original graphic novels: Genius by Steven T. Seagle and Teddy Kristiansen, Templar by Jordan Mechner, LeUyen Pham, Alex Puvilland and Hilary Sycamore, and Paul Pope's The Death of Haggard West.
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