Jody Houser

Since it was announced at Emerald City Comic Convention, details have been relatively scarce surrounding Gerard Way's so-called "pop-up imprint" at DC, Young Animal. We know the four comics that will make up the line, the creators involved, and tidbits of individual synopses, but not much else. Last night, Way took to his blog to give fans the first of what will seemingly be a weekly sneak peek behind the curtain of Young Animal, discussing the creative and collaborative processes that went into the genesis of each title. He also unveiled brand new art for each series by the likes of Tommy Lee Edwards, Nick Derington and Michael Avon Oeming.

DC has made some interesting moves since its relocation from New York City to Burbank, California, last year, including the upcoming line-wide relaunch DC Rebirth, and a notably uneven line of Hanna-Barbera-inspired comics. Perhaps the most surprising announcement came at Emerald City Comicon earlier this month, when DC unveiled Young Animal, a new line of superhero comics masterminded by Umbrella Academy writer and musician and My Chemical Romance frontman Gerard Way. Described as a "pop-up imprint," Young Animal includes a new Doom Patrol series by Way and Nick Derington; a Shade relaunch, Shade the Changing Girl, by Cecil Castellucci and Marley Zarcone; Cave Carson Has A Cybernetic Eye, by Way, Jon Rivera and Michael Avon Oeming, and the Gotham-set Mother Panic, concceived by Way and written by Jody Houser, with art by Tommy Lee Edwards. But that's just the start. ComicsAlliance sat down with Way to find out how Young Animal came to be, what his longterm plans are for the imprint, and how involved he is with all the books across the line.

Hajime Isayama’s Attack On Titan has been one of the biggest crossover hits in modern manga, with a successful anime series, movies, video games and more spinning off from the original manga. The series is set in a post-apocalyptic world where society lives behind giant walls to keep the monstrous Titans at bay, and follows members of the military who seek to keep their cities safe from the Titan threat. This October, Kodansha Comics USA will release an Attack On Titan Anthology, featuring some of the best creators from the worlds of manga and western comics, and we’ve got exclusive pages from the likes of Michael Avon Oeming, Evan Dorkin, and the Batgirl team of Brenden Fletcher, Cameron Stewart and Babs Tarr.

This summer, DC Comics aren’t just relaunching their entire line, they’re starting a whole new imprint headed up by The Umbrella Academy’s Gerard Way. The imprint, Young Animal, will be overseen by Way who will also write or co-write several of the titles which will take place in DC Universe continuity, but with a mature readers edge. Described as “comics for dangerous humans”, DC referred to Young Animal in their announcement as a “pop-up imprint” and Way cited the influence of experimental comics from the eighties and nineties as guides for how to take classic characters and concepts to new places.

Since her first appearance in the pages of Harbinger, the superhero Zephyr, AKA Faith Herbert, has been one of the breakout stars of Valiant’s return, injecting the grim ‘n’ gritty world of superhero corporate espionage with her unique charm. Early this year, Faith starred in her very own miniseries by Jody Houser, Francis Portela and Marguerite Sauvage and, as reported today by the New York Times, it was so popular that Faith is relaunching as an ongoing series in July, with artist Pere Pérez stepping in to replace Portela and joining the team of Houser and Sauvage.

Faith #2, the second installment of the critically acclaimed and much-discussed superhero comic by writer Jody Houser and artists Francis Portela and Marguerite Sauvage, arrives February 24th from Valiant Comics. This issue finds Faith blaming herself for an explosion caused by a mysterious adversary who appears to be hunting down psiots (which I think is basically just the Valiant version of mutants?). She then gets call from an ally named @x, who must have been on Twitter really early to snag that handle. The official synopsis promises an appearance by Torque, Faith's ex-boyfriend and former teammate, but we don't get to see him in the preview pages.

There are few superheroes like Faith Herbert, a.k.a. Zephyr. Aside from the obvious --- she's a superheroine whose body type is uncommon among comics superheroines --- Faith also has an attitude and outlook few others share. She's a fan, and as a result, she sees the world in a way unique among superpowered heroes. Until now, both in the previous and current Valiant Universes, Faith has brought the perspective mostly to team books, with only a 2014 solo one-shot to her name --- and that was more or less a Unity tie-in. January 27th sees the release of her first true solo series. ComicsAlliance talked to writer Jody Houser about what we'll see through Faith's eyes with the help of artists Francis Portela and Marguerite Sauvage.

Today, The Mary Sue reported that GenCon would be hosting a panel titled "Writing Comics: Writing Women Friendly Comics" that featured only male comics writers. While GenCon has since stated that they will be including women on the panel, this isn't the first time this has happened at a convention. Men are also usually the majority of convention guests. One group of women hopes to make it the last time it happens.

It was only last month that Marvel revealed a set of anti-bullying variant covers designed to get kids to stop being complete jerks to each other, but apparently, it seems that an image of Gamorra offering to space-murder a group of mean children wasn't enough to solve all the problems. As a result, Marvel has taken the next logical step: A full-length anti-bullying comic featuring the Avengers, Spider-Man and the Guardians of the Galaxy, all teaming up to try to put an end to bullying once and for all.

In the overwhelmingly male comic book industry, it has been a challenge for some editors and readers to see the ever growing number of talented women currently trying to make a name for themselves. With that in mind, ComicsAlliance offers Hire This Woman, a recurring feature designed for comics readers as well as editors and other professionals, where we shine the spotlight on a female comics pro