The Death-Defying Dr. Mirage: Second Lives

January 13 sees the release of the second issue of Valiant's The Death Defying Doctor Mirage: Second Lives #2, written by Jen Van Meter with art by Roberto de la Torre. The comic joins Dr. Shan Mirage and her immaterial ghost husband, Hwen, as they and their allies begin a ritual to unlock the secret of a magical scroll. What they find inside is an old-school Hollywood creep, who will no doubt be causing further trouble for the Doctor and her friends. Once again this series sports particularly striking covers, including a great Emi Lenox variant, and one of my favorite Kevin Wada covers ever.

Valiant has released a six-page preview (plus six covers and a recap page) from The Death-Defying Doctor Mirage: Second Lives #1, written by Hopeless Savages creator Jen Van Meter, with art by Daredevil's Roberto de la Torre. The comic tells the story of Dr. Shan Mirage and her immaterial ghost husband, Hwen, as they journey to Barcelona on a quest to find him a body.

Valiant's Dr. Mirage is returning with a new miniseries next month, and in the yearsince the end of the last miniseries focusing on paranormal expert and ghost-talker Shan Fong, a whole lot seems to have changed. For one thing, her deceased husband has returned to the land of the living — or at least, his spirit has. That alone changes a lot of the dynamics of her life, and it shows in the new series, The Death Defying Dr. Mirage: Second Lives. Some things haven't changed, though. Namely, the creative team of writer Jen Van Meter and artist Roberto De La Torre. In advance of the first issue's December 23 release, we spoke with Van Meter about finding Shan in a very different place in her life, the book's relationship themes, ghost research, the new series' tone shift, and much more.