Showing posts with label Titan Comic. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Titan Comic. Show all posts

Friday, May 30, 2014

Ordinary By Rob Williams And D'Israeli From Titan Comics

For me, picking up a comic with art by D'Israeli is a no brainer. I've been a fan of his art since Lazarus Churchyard and  Scarlet Traces. If you have no idea what those comics are, you should do yourself a favor and pick them up.

There are two things to think about with Ordinary: 1) this isn't an ordinary super-hero book and 2) this comic isn't anything ordinary.

Michael is a somewhat ordinary guy in Queens. He's a plumber. He's divorced from his wife, who has custody of their kid. He owes a Samoan criminal some money (that part might not be as ordinary). And then something happens...everyone else in the world suddenly gets weird powers or is transformed in some way into something different. It may have been triggered by terrorists, or an airplane accident.

Ordinary is an ongoing from Titan Comics from artist D'Israeli and writer Rob Williams.

Is this the apocalypse? It is hard to tell, but there is a lot happening in this issue. Michael is our eyes and ears into this story, and I like that approach. The fact that we don't know what is going on, why all of this weirdness is happening, gives the story more power. Too often comic stories over explain themselves and take away the mystery and wonder inherent in a lot of genres that are used in them. Writing a review of a new comic is difficult, because you don't want to spoil the story when you want other people to read it, and you want to spread your enthusiasm.

In a few ways, this issue reminded me of the Wildcards series edited by George R.R. Martin. You have the weirdness of super-heroes grounded in a real world, along with a trigger accident that causes the "birth" of super-powered individuals. Fans of that series will probably find this comic to be interesting as well.

Not since Grant Morrison and Richard Case on Doom Patrol have I seen a comic that embraces the strangeness of the super-hero genre and at the same time presents that strangeness in such a matter of fact manner. This book was a page turner, and while I didn't get the explanations that I hoped would come with each new page that didn't disappoint me. What did disappoint me was when I realized that I finished the book and would have to wait a month for the next issue to come.

If you're looking for sophisticated comic story telling devoid of most of the cliches that you will find in those other super-hero books you really need to check out Ordinary. You won't be disappointed. This comic reminds me of the 90s and Vertigo Comics, when you had comic creators who still wanted to use the old super-heroes but tell stories that would appeal to grown-up sensibilities.

You should run out to your comic store (or Comixology, the digital version is available there) and pick this up. You should put it on your pull list and keep getting it, month after month.

Wednesday, March 05, 2014

Alien Legion Returns Again!

In a galaxy savaged by strife, torn by civil war, boiling with spilt blood, Alien Legion is a cosmic military force doing its damnedest to keep the peace by being always ready for war.

At the tip of the Legion's multi-species spear is Force Nomad – the worst of the worst fashioned on the white-hot forge of battle into the best of the best. Now the squad's grizzled veterans are on what should be a boring milk run; shepherding refugees fleeing a civil war ripping apart their system. Could be a good chance to to toughen the newbies of Nomad into soldiers... until straight-up peacekeeping descends into full-scale war!

This brand-new series brings together the creative giants behind the legendary original Alien Legion stories: Chuck Dixon (Punisher War Journal, Savage Sword of Conan, Batman and the Outsiders) and Carl Potts (The Punisher, The Incredible Hulk) with fantastic art by Larry Stroman! (Wolverine, The Punisher).

A must-have for any fan of the original run, this is also the perfect point for new fans to hit Alien Legion's hot LZ! Get to it, ya damn bospors!

ALIEN LEGION: UNCIVIL WAR #1 hits stores on June 25.





Elric and Void Lead New Wave Of European Graphic Novels From Titan Comics


Following the phenomenal runaway success of Snowpiercer, Titan Comics continues in its bold mission of presenting the highest quality European graphic novels to a brand-new audience!

Titan Comics is thrilled to announce that Elric: The Ruby Throne & Void will be published in deluxe hardcover editions this September!

Elric: The Ruby Throne is the first in a series of graphic adaptations of legendary fantasy author Michael Moorcock’s signature creation Elric. Written by Julien Blondel and beautifully illustrated by Robin Recht, Didier Poli & Jean Bastide, this new comic adaptation of the Elric of Melniboné novels has been produced with the full and enthusiastic endorsement of Moorcock himself, who provides an exclusive introduction to this edition!

“The best graphic adaptation of the story,” writes Moorcock, “has to be the current one by Julien Blondel and his team. This is perhaps the first graphic version of Elric fully to capture the sense of utter decadence I tried to convey in the books.”

Gripping science-fiction thriller Void is illustrated by superstar artist Sean Phillips (Fatale, Criminal, Sleeper) and written by Herik Hanna (Bad Ass). Concerning the sole survivor of an interstellar prison ship, this tense and atmospheric graphic novel is Phillips’ first venture into science fiction!

“We’re very excited to be launching a range of European graphic novels, spear-headed by Mike Moorcock’s Elric and Sean & Herik’s Void,” said Nick Landau, Titan publisher.

From late 2014, Titan Comics will follow Elric: The Ruby Throne and VOID with a host of new projects including best-selling medieval thriller The Third Testament: The Chronicles of Legion, which is the prequel to Fabien Nury & John Cassaday’s I Am Legion, and The Rage; a shocking horror about zombie children.

Void will hit comic and book stores from September 2, 2014.

Elric: The Ruby Throne will hit comic and book stores from September 16, 2014.

Void and Elric: The Ruby Throne will also be available to read on the iPad, iPhone, Web, Android and Kindle Fire, exclusively through the comiXology app and comiXology.com

To keep up-to-date with news from Titan Comics, visit www.titan-comics.com , join us on Facebook or follow @comicstitan on Twitter.


Friday, February 28, 2014

Sneak Peak At The New Doctor Who Comics From Titan Comics



DOCTOR WHO: THE TENTH DOCTOR #1
Regular cover by Alice X. Zhang

THE TENTH DOCTOR IS BACK, IN AN ALL-NEW ONGOING SERIES! NEW COMPANION! NEW HORIZONS! UNFORGETTABLE NEW FOES! ALLONS-Y!

Eisner Award-winning writer Nick Abadzis (Laika) and fan-favorite artist Elena Casagrande (Angel, Suicide Risk, Doctor Who, Star Trek) take control of the TARDIS for their first five-issue arc with the Tenth Doctor! And don't miss the second arc, by fellow series architect Robbie Morrison (Drowntown, Nikolai Dante, The Authority)!

On-sale July 23, 2014


DOCTOR WHO: THE ELEVENTH DOCTOR #1
Regular cover by Alice X. Zhang

THE ELEVENTH DOCTOR RETURNS IN AN ALL-NEW ONGOING SERIES, WITH A TIME-TWISTING LEAP INTO THE UNKNOWN! GERONIMO!

Series architects Al Ewing (Loki: Agent of Asgard, Mighty Avengers, Trifecta) and Rob Williams (Revolutionary War, Ordinary, Miss Fury, The Royals: Masters of War, Trifecta) kick off a whirlwind adventure through eternity for the Eleventh Doctor, with artist Simon Fraser (Nikolai Dante, Grindhouse, Doctor Who)!

On-sale July 23, 2014

Monday, February 10, 2014

Dorkland Interview With British Comics Force Pat Mills

Pat Mills is a force in British comics, and one who may not be as recognized as a name in the States despite the fact that he created or co-created such important and seminal characters as Judge Dredd, Nemesis The Warlock, Slaine and Marshall Law. He is also responsible for starting the British comic magazine 2000AD, which is still publishing today. I had the opportunity to speak with Mr. Mills because of the upcoming reissue of his Accident Man comics from Titan Comics. Here is how it went...

Dorkland: Thank you for taking the time for this interview. Before we get to talking about the reprint of your Accident Man comics, can we set a little of your biography for those who may not know about it? You started out developing magazines and comics for D.C. Thomson and IPC, but for many one of your greatest, and lasting, creations was the 2000AD magazine. How did this come about, and what made you want to create a predominantly science-fiction magazine?

Pat Mills: I'd successfully produced Battle and Action so now IPC wanted another comic for the boys market. Science fiction was about to go big with Star Wars so an SF comic was the logical choice. 2000AD  was very successful when it came out. The film Star Wars followed a few months later and - surprisingly - our sales went down a little. Possibly because some readers went over to Marvel's version of the film.  For me, personally, I could probably adapt to a Western, Crime, or Horror comic. Basic drama and storytelling remains fundamentally the same.

DL: While with 2000AD you’ve created what are probably some of the most enduring characters of modern British comics in Judge Dredd, Nemesis The Warlock, The ABC Warriors and Slaine. Which of these characters are still your favorite, and what makes them still of interest to you as a writer?

PM: That's tough.  Probably Slaine because I'm in the throes of a new Slaine saga with Simon Davis which I'm really enjoying.  It's called A Simple Killing and is set in Britain and is part of a new story arc The Brutania Chronicles.  It holds my interest because there are still things i want to say about Slaine. The relationship with his father, for example, which was never explored in earlier stories. I also enjoy the sense of a character having real longevity and making the later stories every bit as strong as the early ones.

DL: You have created two of my favorite comic characters in Nemesis the Warlock and Marshall Law. Like most of your characters, neither of them are stereotypical comic characters. What qualities does a “Pat Mills” protagonist have to have, and what drives you to create these sorts of characters?

PM: Nemesis was the product of artist Kevin O'Neill and my Catholic  backgrounds. There's so much inspiration there. Torquemada is the embodiment of every racist and religious fanatic I've ever met or heard about.  Marshal Law originated because I have a huge admiration for genuine heroes who are usually ignored in fiction. I have little respect for super heroes who - in mainstream at least - are rarely heroes in the true meaning of the word. Usually they're pillars of the establishment armed with the magical equivalent of America's high tech weaponry which it uses to subdue the Third World. They ain't heroes. So Marshal Law's views and my own are rather close.  Thus  my heroes have to reflect my own experiences or views;  invariably they're under-dogs, often working class. It may be a catharsis for me to write them, but I think I also have a muse who drives me.   Who she/he/it is unknown but it's a powerful motivation and when I write traditional stories they invariably fail because my muse doesn't like them or motivate me.

DL: While Judge Dredd or Marshall Law are characters defined almost by moral absolutes, characters like Mike Fallon in Accident Man or Nemesis or Slaine are much more morally ambiguous. What is it that appeals to you, as a writer, about characters like that?

PM: They're all reflecting  truth. Accident Man kills people and makes it look like accidents. When you look at events over the last twenty years or more it's clear he's out there and kept busy. There was a time when heroes had to be moral in comics, but we've finally caught up with the rest of the media and have ambiguous characters, which reflect moral dilemmas in our own lives. That can be very absorbing to write and read. We need the comic equivalents of Breaking Bad.

DL: Humor is often a part of your stories, from biting satire to broader farces. How important of a tool is humor to you, as a writer?

PM: It's essential in comics. if it's all "straight",  it's probably a little tedious or worthy and readers will turn off. Even in Breaking Bad there's dark humour and so we need the same in comics. Satire tends to be my speciality. I think because the world is not the way it's presented to us and satire is a way of showing this. I grew up on humorous novels and satire - reading everything I could find that was satirical and that's doubtless reflected in my work. Books like Erewhon, Animal Farm, Gulliver's Travels and writers like Stephen Leacock spring to mind.

DL: One of my readers sent this question to me, to ask you: “With Judge Dredd having been made into a movie (twice!) are there any other of your characters that you would like to see adapted to movies or television?”

PM: Slaine, ABC Warriors and Accident Man would seem to be the most likely bets.  And we're looking at optioning Accident Man just now. So if we can wade through the small print in the contract we've been sent, that could happen. It also has the huge advantage of being low budget! It's been optioned before and I'm actually surprised it's never happened.

Charley's War: there is a lot of media interest  at this time because of the Great War anniversary. Hope I can say something more about that very soon.

Marshal Law we made it up to the Warner Brothers boardroom - just a few weeks before Watchmen came out. So that didn't fly - for reasons of timing and possibly the director and screenwriter assigned to the project. It's hard to gauge for certain. But we hope he's due another round.

American Reaper was commissioned by a film company and is a particularly cinematic story But often that's not enough.

Currently, my money is on Accident Man making it into the screen.

DL: If you could go back and give advice to the Pat Mills of the 70s or the 80s, what would that be?

I don't think I would do anything that different because of the pressures at the time.  But I wish I'd developed Misty - rather than just coming up with the concept - because I firmly believe there would be a strong  girls comic and adult female comic market now as a result. Stronger - or rather more popular culture - than it is now.

That's a big regret. But producing three comics was hard work and I really couldn't face another at the time.

DL: Let’s talk about Accident Man. Titan Comics is reprinting these stories in a large collected edition, and the preview of it that I have seen looks great. I was actually lucky enough to have seen some of this story in its original incarnation in your magazine Toxic! A friend brought a near complete run of the magazine back from a trip to the UK. What inspired the creation of this character?

PM: My writing partner Tony Skinner told me these guys really existed and elaborated enough to wet my appetite. Not only that, he had the technical knowledge to figure out how these "accidents" would be committed.  Rather like the way Agatha Christie weaved a whodunnit, Tony loved dreaming up ingenious accidents. We had so much fun writing him.  I wanted someone who was a reflection of the vapid, consumerist times we lived in and continue to live in.   A champion for capitalism, a shallow but very likeable guy.  And a piss-take, of course.

DL: Re-reading the preview of the collected edition, I was struck by just how timeless these stories are. What about Accident Man would appeal to the comic reader of today?

PM: Very little has changed. So we're hoping to put an Accident Man 2014 story on line soon. His hair is shaven now and he's ditched the Armani suits, but otherwise it's business as usual.  At the time we wrote him, I called him GQ Man and i was looking through GQ the other day, at the hairdressers, and the magazine hasn't changed. So Mike Fallon is still GQ Man!

DL: What is next for Pat Mills?

PM: I'm working on a Charley's War style series - Brothers in Arms - with artist David Hitchcock. Because there are so many aspects of World War One that haven't been explored in drama. For instance, government issue of cocaine tablets, a love of ragtime - early jazz - the rock and roll of its day, and widespread trading with the enemy.

DL: Thank you very much, for taking the time to do this interview. As a long time fan, it has been an honor to get the chance to talk with you.

PM: Cheers. Great talking with you, too.  Excellent questions.

Have a look at a preview of the re-issue of Mill's Accident Man comic, coming soon from Titan Comics.


 

Tuesday, January 21, 2014

Doctor Who Regenerates With Titan Comics

DOCTOR WHO REGENERATES WITH TITAN COMICS


BBC Worldwide and Titan Comics team up
for all-new Doctor Who comic book adventures

New York, NY – January 21, 2014 – In the universe of Doctor Who regenerations bring not only a new Doctor but often a fresh look and feel to the series and BBC Worldwide is bringing that same approach to Doctor Who comics as it signs a new deal with Titan Comics. The deal will open up the world of Doctor Who and provide fans with new stand alone adventures featuring the Tenth Doctor, Eleventh Doctor and after the new series launch, the Twelfth Doctor. Creative and production teams will be announced in the coming weeks and the first comic books will be released in 2014.

The Doctor Who Christmas special, The Time of the Doctor, saw Matt Smith’s Eleventh Doctor regenerate into the Twelfth Doctor, played by Peter Capaldi. The next season is now in production and will premiere in 2014. In 2013, Doctor Whoset ratings and social media records for BBC AMERICA.

Doctor Who is sold to over 200 territories across the world and last year was awarded the Guinness World Record for the largest TV drama simulcast ever after the 50th Anniversary special was broadcast to 98 countries at the same time as well in thousands of cinemas across the globe.

Titan Comics is the comics and graphic novel division of global publishing giant Titan, a pioneer that has proven itself over three decades with internationally-recognized brands such as James Bond and Sherlock Holmes, as well as creator-owned successes like Tank Girl, Lenore, and Death Sentence. Titan's magazine division is the largest publisher of licensed entertainment properties in the US.

About BBC Worldwide Americas:
BBC Worldwide is the main commercial arm and a wholly-owned subsidiary of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC). BBC Worldwide Americas brings together all of BBC Worldwide businesses across North and South America. The company exists to maximize the value of the BBC’s assets for the benefit of the UK license payer, and invests in public service programming in return for rights. The company has five core businesses: Channels, Content & Production, Sales & Distribution, Consumer Products and Digital.  Under these businesses fall two key brands in the U.S. – digital cable channel BBC AMERICA and BBC Worldwide Productions, the production arm responsible for the smash hit Dancing with the Stars.

About Titan Comics
Titan Comics offers astounding creator-owned comics and graphic novels from new and world-renowned talent, alongside the world's greatest licensed properties and classic graphic novels remastered for brand-new audiences.

Titan is one of the most successful independent publishing operations in the US, with a recent six-week run at #1 in the New York Times bestseller list. For more information, visit www.titan-comics.com

Thursday, November 14, 2013

Marada The She-Wolf Returns From Titan Comics

You may not remember this collaboration. Originally slated to be a Red Sonja story, Claremont changed the setting from the Hyborian Age to Rome, and Bolton changed physical details of the character. Originally published by Epic Comics, a new restored edition from Titan Comics.


FROM X-MEN WRITER CHRIS CLAREMONT AND AWARD-WINNING ARTIST JOHN BOLTON COMES MARADA THE SHE-WOLF!

The fantasy classic collected together for the first time ever! Featuring beautiful, fully-restored art, in depth features, history and never-before-seen sketches and artwork!

Titan Comics is pleased to announce the launch of Marada The She-Wolf by Chris Claremont (The Uncanny X-Men; Excalibur; Captain Britain; Fantastic Four; Gen 13, Sovereign 7) and John Bolton (Man-Bat; Shame: Pursuit; Books of Magic).

Hitting stores on November 12, 2013, comes the shield-shattering saga of Marada The She-Wolf – white-haired, blood-soaked swordswoman and mercenary, object of unearthly desire and descendant of Julius Caesar!

Chris Claremont is one of the best-known writers currently working in comics. His work includes The Uncanny X-Men, Captain Britain, Fantastic Four and Gen13. During his 17 years as X-Men writer, Claremont co-created characters such as Rogue, Psylocke, Mystique, Emma Frost, Sabretooth, Gambit and many more!

Claremont has written many classic X-Men stories, including those which are providing source material for this summer’s The Wolverine movie, starring Hugh Jackman, and summer 2014’s hotly-anticipated X-Men: Days of Future Past, directed by Bryan Singer and starring James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Jennifer Lawrence and Nicholas Hoult.

John Bolton is an award-winning comic artist and illustrator. He has collaborated with some of the industries most prestigious comic writers, such as Neil Gaiman on The Books of Magic for DC Comics, Mike Carey on God Save The Queen for Vertigo/DC Comics and Clive Barker on Hellraiser. From the world of film Bolton has worked with Robert Zemeckis, Sam Raimi and Jonathan Glazer.

Descended of Caesar, and preceded by her legendary reputation as a warrior, Marada The She-Wolf follows Marada's adventures across the Roman Empire. Together with her magical accomplice, Princess Arianrhod, they battle evil demons, wizards, witches and unearthly terror! Check out the trailer here

Collected together for the first time ever in one deluxe hardcover and featuring beautiful restored artwork by John Bolton and never-before-seen sketches and artwork! This is the ultimate vision of the ultimate fighting fantasy female!

“I look through these pages and I’m reminded, most eloquently, just how gifted John Bolton is as an artist, how breathtakingly skilled he is at evoking character and event, how powerfully and also subtly he can present a scene,” says writer, Chris Claremont.

Marada The She-Wolf hits stores on November 12, 2013.


To keep up-to-date with news from Titan Comics, visit titan-comics.com or join us on Facebook or follow @comicstitan on Twitter. Marada The She-Wolf trailer on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6eF7WNOv0HE.

About Titan Comics
Titan Comics is the new venture from publishing giant, Titan, offering the best original creator-owned comics, alongside new and classic graphic novels.

Launching in July 2013, Titan Comics has already captured the imaginations of readers, reviewers and retailers with its strong focus on quality, creativity and diversity of genre!

Each new release will also be available to read day and date on the iPhone, iPad, Web, Android and Kindle Fire.

To keep up-to-date with news on all these new series and future releases from Titan Comics, visit www.titan-comics.com.