Gene Luen Yang

Whenever Laika put out a new film, it's worth sitting up and paying and attention, and between films like Paranorman, Coraline and The Boxtrolls, the studio has proved itself one of the best places for nuanced and touching approaches to films aimed at children. Laika's newest release, Kubo and the Two Strings, is based on classic Chinese stories and traditions, and comics is a medium that has provided opportunities for creators from around the world to tell their own cultures' stories and traditions. If you loved Kubo and the Two Strings, we've put together a list of five comics to check out next. Love that? Try this!

San Diego Comic Con is without a doubt the biggest event on the industry’s calendar, and people will be flying from around the world to attend panels, watch trailers, meet creators, and make friends. This year’s event is bigger than ever, with so much going on every single day that it can be difficult to sift through all that information and decide how to spend your time. Yesterday we gave a rundown on what to expect on Thursday and Friday, but things heat up as the weekend kicks in and the major studios make their presence known. Expect big reveals from Marvel Studios, DC's TV offerings and more, plus great panels featuring your favorite creators in comics.

When DC Comics announced the Rebirth initiative, it came with a lot of language about going back to what worked and re-examining familiar characters, but in practice the initiative has actually offered some bold ideas that may help push the publisher forward. One of the most exciting titles to come out of Rebirth was Gene Luen Yang, Victor Bogdanovic, Richard Friend and Hi-Fi’s New Super-Man, which sees a brash teenager from Shanghai gifted with all the powers of The Man of Steel. Ahead of its release in two weeks' time, DC has provided a first look at the new title and an introduction to Kenan Kong.

This week saw us say goodbye to a hero who fought for truth, justice and the American way. Who fought for the downtrodden and the common man. Who fought against injustice while wearing a t-shirt and jeans. This week saw us say goodbye to The New 52 Superman. Spoilers for the current Superman status quo follow.

What a week! I don’t know about you, but I’m ready to sit back and read some comics. The weekend is finally here, and the world can relax and rest once more — but the comics industry has been busy too, you know, and the last seven days have seen a flurry of comics-based news and announcements fly past at high speed. ComicsAlliance has got your back, though: when it comes to comics, we never slow down, so here’s a look back and just what’s been going on. New comics, new stories, new podcasts, new art being made — it’s all part of the ComicsAlliance Weekender!

The upcoming New Super-Man title has been one of the most interesting pieces of DC's Rebirth event ever since it was announced, and as we move closer to its debut this summer, it just keeps getting more intriguing. I mean, we already knew that we'd be following the adventures of Kenan Kong, a young man from Shanghai who gains the powers of Superman, but now, it seems that he's not the only New character we're going to be meeting. As revealed today, the second issue of New Super-Man will find Kong face-to-face with two more hyphenated heroes with familiar names: New Bat-Man and New Wonder-Woman.

Gene Luen Yang is one of the most popular and sought after cartoonists in comics, and his original graphic novels, including American Born Chinese and Boxers and Saints, have gained him both critical and commercial acclaim, but it has been nearly three years since his last solo work. However, revealed today via The Washington Post, Yang is set to release a new original graphic novel titled Dragon Hoops in 2018, which tells the real-life story of a high school basketball team's 2015 season.

Journalist and editor Jennifer de Guzman convened some up-and-coming Asian-American writers for a roundtable discussion about the state of Asian representation in comics. Amy Chu is the current writer on Poison Ivy, a former writer on Sensation Comics, and the co-creator of her own self-publishing imprint Alpha Girl Comics. Sarah Kuhn’s novel trilogy about Asian-American superheroes, Heroine Complex will be released by DAW Books in July. She’s also written for Rosy Press’s Fresh Romance and is currently writing a series of Barbie comics. Jonathan Tsuei is the co-creator with Eric Canete of RunLoveKill, published by Image Comics.

DC's current “The Final Days of Superman” crossover, taking place across the entire line of Superman titles, has produced some really great comics. Written by Peter J. Tomasi with art by Doug Mahnke and Mikel Janín and others, the crossover has Superman putting his affairs in order ahead of his impending death due to a terminal condition he recently developed. The most recent installment of the crossover in Batman/Superman sees Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman on the trail of an imposter Superman who believes himself to be the real deal, and their trail leads them to China. Once there, they’re confronted by The Great Ten, and we get our first glimpse of a new hero we’ll be seeing more of very soon as part of DC Rebirth.

What a week! I don’t know about you, but I’m ready to sit back and read some comics. The weekend is finally here, and the world can relax and rest once more — but the comics industry has been busy too, you know, and the last seven days have seen a flurry of comics-based news and announcements fly past at high speed. ComicsAlliance has got your back, though: when it comes to comics, we never slow down, so here’s a look back and just what’s been going on. New comics, new stories, new podcasts, new art being made — it’s all part of the ComicsAlliance Weekender!