Top Cow at ComicsPRO: Ambitious scope for Artifacts
MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Artifacts, kicking off on Free Comic Book Day, will bring together the 13 mystical artifacts that guide the fate of mankind in the Top Cow Universe.
Magdelena cover by Ryan Sook
And when those are brought together, “something really, really bad happens,” said Top Cow’s publisher Filip Sablik.
The 13-issue series written by Ron Marz “is by far the most ambitious thing I’ve ever attempted on the publishing end,” Sablik said.
It will reveal how various pieces of the Top Cow universe fit together, and should be appealing to Top Cow’s long-term fans, Sablik said. But the company also is making it new-reader friendly, with a Free Comic Book Day book aimed at introducing the characters of the Top Cow universe.
The 13 issue series will be broken into 4-issue arcs, with the first arc drawn by Michael Broussard. There will be a second and third arc of four issues with separate artistic teams, and the final 13th issue will be “something special,” said Sablik.
The book will feature a variety of variant cover incentives, as well as an incentive across the series for a set of exclusive playing cards.
Art from spring's "Velocity" series.
In April, Top Cow will release a Magdelena series, also written by Marz. Sablik said “for Ron, this is the series he came to Top Cow to do.” Ryan Sook is the cover artist; the interior artist is Nelson Blake II (“Pilot Season: Murderer”).
There is a Magdelena film in development, and Sablik said the series would feature a “Da Vinci Code” vibe.
In May, a four-issue miniseries starring the 2007 Pilot Season Winner Velocity will begin. That series is by Marz and Kenneth Rocafort.
In “Velocity,” Cyberforce has been infected with a technovirus, as has the team’s super-speedster, Velocity. With the clock ticking, it’s up to her to save her team — but she only has an hour.
After the first issue, for the remainder of the series, “every page is a minute — it’s a race against time with
Velocity cover by Kenneth Rocafort
every page.”
Sablik also reminded retailers of the “Iron Saint” trade paperback coming out from Top Cow in May, which was drawn by Francis Manapul, now the artist of DC’s “Flash” series.
Sablik, who spearheaded the “Let Us Win You Over” campaign from Top Cow last year, this year is challenging retailers to read a selected assortment of Top Cow books in order to provide personal feedback to Sablik, and to become more aware of the publisher’s current output. ComicsPRO will have additional information about this program for member retailers. Top Cow also plans a revamp of its Web site in April, to more closely coordinate with its e-mail newsletter, and to provide a hub of information for fans and retailers.
- Matt Price
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