Vertigo

Karen Berger came to DC comics at the cusp of the 1980s as editor for titles including Amethyst: Princess of Gemworld and House of Mystery. As executive editor of Vertigo, Berger made stars of writers and artists who have gone on to dominate the industry, and the imprint became synonymous with an experimental, stylistic approach which gave it an added edge over every other publisher. In 2012, Berger resigned from Vertigo. She has been largely absent from comics since, but at Image Expo earlier this year she announced a new series from writer Sara Kenney and artist John Watkiss called Surgeon X, with herself as editor. ComicsAlliance spoke to Berger to look back at her extraordinary career, and her continued dedication to bringing new and experimental ideas to the medium.

Paul Pope, born September 25, 1970, is one of the world’s most exciting cartoonists. With an incredibly distinctive style that is reminiscent both of old Jack Kirby comics and the glam music style of the '70s, Pope tells futuristic stories with characters that rebel against the status quo.

Welcome to Cast Party, the feature that imagines a world with even more live action comic book adaptations than we currently have, and comes up with arguably the best casting suggestions you’re ever going to find for the movies and shows we wish could exist. This week we’re returning to the subject of a previous column, Neil Gaiman‘s Sandman.

In the eighth Preacher collection, All Hell's A-Coming, Garth Ennis and Steve Dillon --- with colors by Pamela Rambo and Patricia Mulvilhill, and letters by Clem Robbins --- start gathering their plot threads together; we finally get some backstory that helps illuminate a divisive major character, and we explore the dark side of the American dream of the second chance.

Courtesy of DC Comics, ComicsAlliance brings you an advance look at new periodical comic books, collected editions, graphic novels and collectibles going on sale in December 2016 (and in some cases beyond) from the publisher’s superhero line and the mature readers Vertigo imprint.

While many may point to Death as the breakout star of Neil Gaiman's Sandman, his interpretation of Lucifer may actually be the most successful spinoff character from the uber-popular Vertigo series. Not only did he have his own ongoing series that lasted just as long as Sandman, but he is currently the star of his own television show on Fox. So it was no surprise that Vertigo resurrected The Morningstar for a new ongoing series that lives up to the legacy of Mike Carey's classic run from the early '00s. With the release of Holly Black, Lee Garbett and Antonio Fabela's Lucifer #10 next week, DC has provided ComicsAlliance with an exclusive first look at the issue, which sees the return of several beloved characters from the original series.

If you somehow don't remember the Sax Man from classic '80s horror movie The Lost Boys, Joëlle Jones and Trish Mulvihill are here to remind you. Their variant cover for Vertigo's Lost Boys #1 spotlights the Sax Man in all his glory. I like to imagine Tim Cappello is going to be the original art and hang it above the fireplace in the mansion I want to believe he lives in now.

In this installment, Preacher faces controversy, and not for the usual reasons – but rather, because everyone argues over whether this arc truly serves the story. Salvation, by Garth Ennis and Steve Dillon, with colors by Pamela Rambo and letters by Clem Robbins, is often considered the runt of the Preacher litter of trade paperbacks. Is it a misstep for the series, a needed divergence, or something else entirely?

The question most often asked of the ComicsAlliance staff is a variation of, “Which comic books should I be reading?” or, “I’m new to comics, what’s a good place to start?” The Wednesday deluge of new comic books, graphic novels and collected editions can be daunting even for the longtime reader, much less for those totally unfamiliar with creators, characters and publishers, and the dark mysteries of comic book shopping like variants, pre-ordering, and formats. It’s with these challenges in mind that we’ve created Best Comic Books Ever (This Week), an ongoing guide curated by the ComicsAlliance staff. This is where new comics readers and seasoned Wednesday shoppers alike can find our picks of the best books the medium has to offer.

It's been something like 15 or 16 years since the last time there were new Preacher action figures available. To be fair, Preacher action figures were a bit of a hard sell back at the turn of the century, and with the comic ending around the same time, any hope of more Preacher figures ended shortly after. That is, until this year when AMC started airing its television adaptation of the Garth Ennis and Steve Dillon comic. Now, thanks to NECA, the cast of Preacher is back in in figure form for the first time in over a decade. And they're kicking things off with the main man and his toucan vamp, Jesse Custer and Cassidy.