Grandville is anthropomorphic steampunk thriller
Today’s graphic novel recommendation: Grandville. It’s like Sherlock Holmes meets James Bond by way of Quentin Tarantino, starring anthropomorphic animals in an alternate Napoleonic Europe.
It’s by Bryan Talbot, who most recently wowed everybody with “Alice in Sunderland” and is the creator of “The Tale of One Bad Rat” and “Tales of Luther Arkwright.”
Grandville stars Detective Inspector LeBrock, a badger with a keen eye for detail who’s handy with both guns and fists. This Scotland Yard inspector lives in a Britain that’s become a footnote, connected to France by railway, where Paris is the center of the steampunk European world.
A murder puts LeBrock and his assistant on the trail of a giant conspiracy that could affect the entire Napoleonic Empire.
This book works on a number of levels, with interesting allusions to children’s literature and current events, and is beautifully drawn besides. Talbot’s storytelling remains top-notch.
Talbot is already at work on a sequel, Grandville Mon Amour, which is set for a 2010 release, according to fan site bryan-talbot.com.
- Matt Price
Gold Key superheroes return developed by Jim Shooter
Old-school Valiant Comics fans rejoice. Jim Shooter is joining forces with Dark Horse Comics to again work on Turok, Doctor Solar, and Magnus Robot Fighter. Also included in the announcement was Mighty Samson, a former Gold Key character.
Dark Horse plans to develop new comic books and graphic novels with these characters, with Shooter as the head writer. Shooter wrote many of the classic Valiant Comics issues of “Solar” and “Magnus.” Further characters and writers are yet to be announced.
“It’s great to be at Dark Horse, working with Mike Richardson, world-class creator, honorable gentleman and industry powerhouse,” said Jim Shooter in a release. “It’s great to be reunited with Magnus, Solar, Turok, Samson and the other wonderful Gold Key properties. The opportunity is tremendous and the time is ripe. Let’s do it.”
Shooter was editor-in-chief of Marvel for a nine-year tenure that was responsible for hits including Frank Miller’s Daredevil and Chris Claremont and John Byrne’s Uncanny X-Men. Shooter launched Valiant Comics in the early 1990s.
“Jim and I share a great affection for these terrific characters. We have some very exciting ideas on how to introduce them to a whole new generation of fans.” said Mike Richardson, president of Dark Horse Comics, in a release.
I don’t know the legalese of whether these characters can be based on their Valiant counterparts, or if this will allow reprints of the Valiant material with these characters. Obviously, some of the Valiant properties have been reprinted recently by the new Valiant Entertainment, which is also involved in bringing the Harbinger property to the big screen. Anthologies of the original Turok, Magnus and Doctor Solar are currently available from Dark Horse.
Following are descriptions of the characters from Dark Horse’s release.
Turok®
An original comic book hero, Turok is best known today for a successful video game franchise boasting more than five million units sold since the first game was introduced in the 1990s. The legend of the brave and ruthless dinosaur-hunter has lived on for more than thirty years in comic book series from Dell Comics, Gold Key Comics and Valiant. Anthologies of the original classic comics are now available from Dark Horse Comics.
Doctor Solar, Man of the Atom
Doctor Solar must find a way to become normal again after surviving an explosion that leaves him with the power to control atomic energy. When danger and disaster threaten the innocent, Solar leaps into action as the “Man of the Atom.” One of Gold Key Comics’ most popular titles in the 1960s, the original nuclear-powered superhero reached legendary status by the 1990s in new comics from Valiant. The original classic comics now appear in hardcover anthologies published by Dark Horse Comics.
Magnus, Robot Fighter
Haling from the year 4,000 A.D. is the stalwart hero of humanity, Magnus, Robot Fighter. These gripping adventure stories, in which a human who battles evil robots in the sprawling futuristic city of North Am, elevated the comic book medium when they debuted in the 1960s from Gold Key Comics, and captured the imagination of millions in new comics published thirty years later by Valiant. The original science-fiction classics now appear in hardcover anthologies published by Dark Horse Comics.
Mighty Samson
A popular Gold Key Comics character from the 1960s and 70s, the post-apocalyptic adventures of Mighty Samson are set in the land of N’Yark, an earth devastated by nuclear war. Amazingly large and strong, Samson uses his mutant strength only for good-and to protect his friends, Sharmain and Mindor, responsible for saving his life.
Turok, Son of Stone; Doctor Solar, Man of the Atom; Magnus, Robot Fighter and Mighty Samson are part of the Classic Media portfolio of properties. For more information, please go to: www.classicmedia.tv.
- Matt Price
Animated band Metalocalypse comes to Dark Horse Comics
From Dark Horse:
SAN DIEGO, CA-Following the release of the highly anticipated Dethklok vs. The Goon, Dark Horse Comics and Adult Swim announce a brand-new comics series based on the immensely popular animated show Metalocalypse. The band’s five members-Nathan Explosion, William “Murderface,” Skwisgaar Skwigelf, Toki Wartooth, and Pickles-will be featured in a full publishing program created by series co-creator Brendon Small and a collaborative team of Metalocalypse and Dark Horse artists and writers.
Co-created by Tommy Blacha and Brendon Small, the Metalocalypse television series follows the on- and off-stage adventures of the world’s most brutal band as they create a wave of mayhem, death, and destruction wherever they go. Since debuting on Adult Swim in 2006, the series has become one of the network’s highest-rated original series, and the second season was watched by more than five million 18 to 34-year-old viewers, according to Nielsen Media Research. This animated band has also had a lot of very real success, as the band’s debut CD, Dethklok: The Dethalbum, is the fastest-selling death-metal album of all time since debuting at #21 on Billboard’s Top 100 list, and a real-live version of the animated band has completed nearly sold-out tours. The follow up album, Dethklok: The Dethalbum II, will be released on September 8th from Williams Street Records.
“This collaboration with Dark Horse Comics is a great opportunity for us to partner with a company that has a shared sensibility and fan base with one of Adult Swim’s most popular brands,” said Christina Miller, vice president of Cartoon Network Enterprises. “Combining the pool of artistic talent of both companies, we have created a great publishing program that will both deliver the quality, entertaining content that our fans look for and will expose the hilarious antics of Dethklok to a new group of potential fans.”
“I am a huge fan of Eric and of The Goon,” says Dark Horse President Mike Richardson. “Eric, it turns out, is a huge fan of Metalocalypse. Once Eric suggested this team up, we began discussing the project and it seemed like a natural fit. We couldn’t be more excited about introducing these characters to the comics world.”
Dark Horse announces host of new products at Comic-Con
A display of some of the coming titles from Dark Horse Comics
Archive editions of classic Archie comic books and a Conan one-shot by Darick Robertson show the variety of projects announced by Dark Horse at Comic-Con International in San Diego. Here’s a list from the eclectic publisher of upcoming products:
365 Samurai and a Few Bowls of Rice – Swiss artist J. P. Kalonji’s graphic novel comes to America. A young swordfighter must kill 365 samurai on a quest to avenge his master-in a fun, humorous, cartoony style.
Age of Reptiles – Film designer Ricardo Delgado returns with the third installment of his epic (silent) dinosaur comics series. Carnivores hunt herbivores on a migration south.
Aliens vs. Predator: Three World War – The 2009 relaunch of the Aliens and Predator series comes together with a creative team of John Arcudi and Rick Leonardi.
Archie Archives – The classic Archie comic books get the deluxe treatment in a series of hardcovers as the newest editions to the Dark Horse Archives series.
Blacksad – Collecting all three of the international award-winning European volumes, the third of which has not been published in English before. This crime noir about a cat detective, PI John Blacksad, is a phenomenal anthropomorphic story with fully painted artwork. By Juan Díaz Canales and Juanjo Guarnido.
Casper Anniversary Special – A 64-page hardcover celebrating Casper’s sixtieth anniversary and featuring his first appearance in comics.
Conan: The Weight of the Crown – Darick Robertson writes and draws our first Conan one-shot since the
Darick Robertson sketches for a fan.
Conan the Cimmerian relaunch. This comic is part of Dark Horse’s all-new One-Shot Wonders program.
Dark Horse GelaSkins – Decorative coverings for phones and laptops featuring some of Dark Horse’s most popular properties, including The Umbrella Academy, Yoshitaka Amano, Tim Burton, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Hellboy, and many more. A select few will be available at the Dark Horse booth during the convention as supplies last. The whole program is set to launch in September 2009.
Devil – Devil is an original Japanese manga being created for Dark Horse by Torajiro Kishi and animation powerhouse Madhouse Studios, featuring genetically designed vampires in a sci-fi police drama set in Tokyo.
Electropolis – Electropolis: The Infernal Machine is the perfect companion to Mister X: Condemned. Visionary artist Dean Motter revisits his unique brand of “antique futurism” in a story full of familiar faces, including a memorable cameo by Mister X himself.
Final Fantasy Boxed Set – A luxurious edition that stays true to the original Japanese collection of the complete Final Fantasy artwork by Yoshitaka Amano.
Furry Water and Mesmo Delivery – Eisner winner Rafael Grampá comes to Dark Horse with two books: Mesmo Delivery, a reprint of his psychedelic small-press debut; and Furry Water, cowritten with Daniel Pellizzari, a six-issue postapocalyptic action comic.
One-Shot Wonders – A new program running from October to December, highlighting some of Dark Horse’s biggest characters and properties in standalone comics retailing at $3.50 each. The program includes “Sugarshock,” Conan, Hellboy, Abe Sapien, Star Wars (two titles), “Dr. Horrible,” and The Goon.
The Art of Blade of the Immortal – Hardcover edition of the original Japanese book with 32 new bonus pages not previously available. This book will be in the style of the Dark Horse The Art of . . . and Library Edition series.
Shipping highlights, 6-24-2009
The first full issue of Milo Ventimiglia’s Berserker from Top Cow hits stores today, and if you’re a fan of Wanted or some of Top Cow’s other more mature, violent books, this one is probably worth a look.
In other probably violent news, Predator comes back to comics in a new first issue from Dark Horse.
Meanwhile, Marvel has all kinds of high-octane releases, including “Utopia” No. 1 and the first “dark” Wolverine, in issue 75.
DC launches Gotham City Sirens, written by Paul Dini. Fans of Tulsa-born writer Sterling Gates can get your weekly Gates quota in “Green Lantern: Tales of the Sinestro Corps” trade paperback, which contains his work from the Sinestro Corps Superman Prime Special and the Green Lantern/Sinestro Corps Secret Files.
“Tales of Sinestro Corps” collects Green Lantern Sinestro Corps Special #1, Tales of the Sinestro Corps: 
Ion #1, Tales of the Sinestro Corps: Parallax #1, Tales of the Sinestro Corps: Cyborg Superman #1, Tales of the Sinestro Corps: Superman-Prime #1, Green Lantern/Sinestro Corps Secret Files #1 and backup stories from Green Lantern #18-20.
Other than “Tales,” not as many trades that I’m as excited about this week, though I imagine the “All-Star Batman and Robin” trade will sell well. The deluxe editions of the Grant Morrison JLA are also quality comics if you don’t already own that material, or if you want it in a higher-end package.
Given my Superman fandom, I’ll at least take a look at the “Tales from the Phantom Zone” collection.
What looks good to you?
- Matt Price
Terminator, Star Trek comics go mobile
Given the advanced technology in the future worlds of “The Terminator” and “Star Trek,” it’s perhaps not surprising that the comic books based on these franchises are among the first big-name comic books making the leap to the iPhone.
Publishers IDW and Dark Horse have made “Star Trek” and “Terminator” comic books available in the iPhone App Store this summer, tying in to the release of the movies “Star Trek” and “Terminator Salvation.”
The first iPhone comic book from veteran publisher Dark Horse is “Terminator: Death Valley.” In Death Valley, Calif., two Terminators have been sent back in time to kill John Connor as a boy. Each of the four issues is available for 99 cents from the App Store. The story also is available in print as part of “Terminator Omnibus” Vol. 2, which contains “Death Valley” and four other “Terminator” miniseries for $24.95.
“Death Valley” is by Alan Grant and Steve Pugh and originally was published in 1998. “Death Valley” is meant to be the first in a line of comics apps from Dark Horse.
“This is an evolution for the comics industry, and we look forward to bringing our tradition of innovation and creativity into this new medium,” Dale LaFountain, chief information officer of Dark Horse, said in a release.
IDW’s “Terminator Salvation” prequel also is available on the iPhone, with each of the five issues going for 99 cents or the entire graphic novel for just $3.99.
Warner Bros. and IDW Publishing present the “Terminator Salvation” graphic novel prequel, which takes readers through a series of events that have transpired since Judgment Day, leading up to “Terminator Salvation”.
IDW made its entry onto the iPhone in late 2008 with “Star Trek Archives” and gained even more momentum with “Star Trek: Countdown,” a prequel to the 2009 “Star Trek” movie.
Selected “Star Trek” comics from IDW are available via iVerse, which also distributes iPhone comics from Red 5, Image, Archie Comics, Antartic Press, Boom! Studios and others.
- by Matthew Price
From Friday’s The Oklahoman
Two Terminator games come to iPhone
"The Terminator" for the iPhone
In addition to seeing “Terminator” at the cinema or reading the comics, gamers can become characters from the “Terminator” franchise in new games for the iPhone.
In “Terminator,” an iPhone game from Dark Horse Comics and Big Head Games, gamers take on the role of Resistance fighter Kyle Reese in a top-down shooter.
The game features an episodic story mode and ongoing quick-play mode.
In quick play, Reese attempts to rescue fallen Resistance soldiers. T-800s and Hunter-Killer tanks attempt to stop Kyle at every turn. Power-ups, health bars and improved weapons, such as bazookas and Gatling guns, help Kyle stay on his feet.
A planned update will take Kyle underground to face the machines on their turf.
“Combining Dark Horse Comics’ extensive catalog of material and our game-development expertise has been a great experience and opportunity that we hope to continue long into the future,” Big Head’s 
business director, Dave Vout, said in a release.
Also available as “Terminator Salvation” is in theaters is an app of the same name, a 3-D third-person shooter in which gamers can play as John Connor and Marcus Wright.
Gamers have six available weapons, including a shotgun and grenade launcher.
The “Terminator Salvation” game download was available for $4.99 at press time at the Apps Store; “The Terminator” was available for $2.99.
by Matthew Price
From Friday’s The Oklahoman
Janet Evanovich to write Dark Horse graphic novel
From the New York Times: Janet Evanovich, top-selling writer, is creating a graphic novel for Dark Horse, based Evanovich’s “Metro Girl” and “Motor Mouth” books.
The books are set in the world of NASCAR. Evanovich previously mentioned being a fan of comic books; glad to see her coming around to writing one.
This is a coup for Dark Horse, who has long been a top producer of indy and licensed comics. This marks the best-known author, I believe, to write a Dark Horse graphic novel. It’s also a great outreach to female comic-book fans, and to Evanovich fans in general.
- Matt Price
Dark Horse joins Diamond’s Final Order Cutoff program
Dark Horse will officially join Marvel and DC in Diamond Comic Distributors’ “Final Order Cutoff” program. This program allows direct-market comic-book retailers to make adjustments to their comic-book orders about three weeks before the on-sale date.
Dark Horse’s FOC program will begin on Monday, April 20.
“We are pleased to announce this move to the FOC,” Dark Horse President, Mike Richardson said in a release. “As every comics retailer knows, times are tough. It is important that Dark Horse not only support them with great product, but with our best efforts to make their ordering decisions as easy as possible. This system will help every retailer who orders Dark Horse product and should lead to better business for all of us.”
The timeline for Final Order Cutoffs for Dark Horse graphic novels will be about three months prior to release.
- Matt Price
Review: Kull #1 (Dark Horse)
KULL #1 (Dark Horse Comics)
Arvid Nelson, the writer of the alternate-history murder mystery “Rex Mundi,” has been tabbed by Dark Horse to helm “Kull,” the third comic-book series based on the Robert E. Howard properties.
Kull, a warrior-king, has named himself ruler of Valusia, a formerly great kingdom now living in dreams of its past. To unite the kingdom under his rule, Kull must lay siege to the Iron Fortress, and its ruler, Count Areyas.
The Iron Fortress will be difficult to subdue – and even moreso if Areyas releases the monster, Etrigor.
The art of Will Conrad (”Serenity,” “Conan”) ably captures the fantasy setting. Conrad’s depiction of action, and his storytelling, are top-notch.
Howard’s original “Conan” story was in fact a reworking of a rejected “Kull” tale, so naturally the characters have similarities. But Nelson’s portrayal of Kull is layered, with a more thoughtful and philosophical approach than Conan. This “Kull” storyline will adapt the Robert E. Howard story “The Shadow Kingdom.”
The covers are by Andy Brase and Joe Kubert, and while both are good, I preferred the Brase cover on this issue.
I haven’t read any of the previous “Kull” comics from other publishers, or the original stories themselves. But as of the first issue, “Kull” is my favorite of the current batch of Robert E. Howard comics.
- Matt Price
