‘Captain Kid: Super-People Problems’ TPB (review) at FORCES OF GEEK

Captain Kid: Super-People Problems
Written by Mark Waid & Tom Peyer
Illustrated by Wilfredo Torres & Brent Peeples
Colored by Kelly Fitzpatrick
Lettered by A Larger World
Published by AfterShock Comics
$14.99
ISBN-13: 978-1935002864
Comixology Digital Release

Today sees the release of the collected edition ofCaptain Kid Vol. 1 (Aftershock Comics) from writers Mark Waid & Tom Peyer. Waid’s collected an impressive creative team, co-writing with The Atom‘s Tom Peyer with art by Wilfredo Torres (Jupiter’s Circle), and Brent Peeples (TMNT). The origin of the story starts with an idea Peyer (Legion of Superheroes, Tek Jansen) had ten years ago, finally bringing the story to light for Aftershock.

What exactly is Captain Kid, you ask? It is Mark Waid doing what he is best at, retelling familiar comic book superhero stories with a new twist. In the vein of Irredemable and Insufferable, Captain Kid takes the idea of your super powerful tight wearing hero but this time, he’s allowed himself to have a bit more fun with the palette.

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Antony Johnston Discusses ‘The Coldest Winter’ on The Cosmic Treadmill at FORCES OF GEEK

New York Times bestselling author of comics and video games Antony Johnston (Wasteland, Dead Space, The Fuse, Daredevil) joins us today to talk about his latest graphic novel The Coldest Winter. This is the prequel graphic novel to the upcoming film, The Coldest City starring Charlize Theron (Lorraine Broughton) and James McAvoy (Percival) about MI6 agents in The Cold War.

The Coldest Winter is for fans of the action spy genre and a good murder mystery. Antony bravely sends agents behind the Iron Curtain with no certainty of returning and the loyalty of his characters and the mission is always at the forefront.

When you are a spy, you must always watch your back!

* * * * *

FOG!: Thanks for joining us to talk The Coldest Winter, Antony! Is it cold where you are right now?

Antony Johnston: I live in north-west England. It’s always cold here.

This is the volume that precedes The Coldest City (soon to be a major motion picture). Were the volumes meant to be released in this order?

That’s a bit of an odd question. If I’d wanted to tell the story of The Coldest Winter first, I would have written it first instead of The Coldest City. So yes, that was always the intention.

[READ MORE AT FORCES OF GEEK]

FOG! Chats With ‘The Revisionist’ Writer Frank J. Barbiere - at FORCES OF GEEK

Frank Barbiere (Five Ghosts, Avengers World) joins us today to talk about his latest time travel crime book  The Revisionist from new publisher Aftershock. The ongoing title stars time traveling assassin tasked with repairing a cracked timeline!

FOG!: Thanks for joining us today, Frank! The Revisionist #1 is out now, from Aftershock. How did you get involved in the launch of a new publisher?

Frank Barbiere: I had met Mike Marts a few times socially, and was always interested in working with him. Mike has edited many of my favorite books, including long runs on X-Men and Batman.

When Aftershock was starting to get the ball rolling, Mike reached out to see if I had any creator owned properties I was interested in pursuing.

I’m a creator who loves to have my own books as well as work for hire, so I quickly responded with a few ideas I had kicking around and we settled on The Revisionist.

Are you happy and excited to work with them? The roster from day one certainly caught my eye!

It’s been a wonderful experience. Aftershock has built a really strong publisher where they let their talent have creative freedom and work with the people they want—I was able to handpick my creative team (co-creator and artist Garry Brown and colorist Lauren Affe), as I knew they’d deliver a book we were all proud of.

Everyone involved is extremely passionate about having beautiful, quality books and I think it shows in their library. It’s an honor to be amongst some of the best creators in comics, as well as some of the best new talent.

[READ MORE AT FORCES OF GEEK]

FOG! Chats With The SATELLITE FALLING Creative Team of Steve Horton & Stephen Thompson at FORCES OF GEEK

When Satellite Falling fell like Sputnik into our hands the other day, we passed it around the office like the hot ore potato that it is. Books can still break out of the mold while nodding to the familiar and continue to impress. Space bounty hunters, space stations, holographic imaging disguises and more fill up this first issue of Satellite Falling from IDW. 

Writer Steve Horton (Amala’s Blade) and artist Stephen Thompson (Future’s End, Batman Beyond) join us on the Cosmic Treadmill this week to tell us about his sci-fi tale of Lilly and her life in the past, present and future.

Pick up the first issue today!

FOG!: Thanks for joining us, guys! First of all, gorgeous book! How long has this been in development? Do you guys work together often?

Steve Horton: It’s been in development about a year! Facebook Memories notified me the other day about the first pitch pages that I showed everyone last summer. We actually put the pitch pages together fairly quickly, but the pitch process was very lengthy. Since the book ended up getting green-lighted, we’ve been working on it ever since. This is our first book together, but hopefully not our last.

Stephen Thompson: This is our first time working together. We produced the first five pages or so as a pitch at some point last year, so it’s been quite a while.

[READ MORE AT FORCES OF GEEK]

FOG! Chats With MAD TIGER: THE PEELANDER-Z Documentary Filmmakers Jonathan Yi & Michael Haertlein at FORCES OF GEEK

I first saw the ‘comic book action punk band’ Peelander-Z (from the Planet Peelander) back in 2006. I’ve seen some colors come and go, different people dress up as bowling pins and cosplayers sliding into themselves at human bowling.

I’ve seen 200 people with varying degrees of musical skill join the band with instruments from a suitcase (and even the bands’ gear) playing a cacophony of noise that can only be described as a beautiful mess. Broken English punk chants ‘Mad Tiger’, ‘Medium Rare’ and my favorite ‘So Many Mike’ are on cue cards for the audience to sing along to, while squid and other Kaiju monsters make their way through the crowd. For the introverted nerd or geek, there was finally a punk band that could being you out of your shell. 

The band feeds on this kind of happiness as well.

Lead by Peelander Yellow and his partner Peelander Red, a Peelander-Z show is like being in a Japanese comic book with action lines and full page spreads. The show is, by Yellow’s definition, “10% music and 90% theatre”. (Though you will be hard pressed not to be singing these songs to yourself days after a Peelander invasion).

Filmmakers Jonathan Yi and Michael Haertlein explore the relationship between the colorful band members in Mad Tiger, debuting in New York on May 6th. What started as a music documentary became the story of a relationship between two friends who are as close as family can ever be, and how Peelander-Z can navigate change.

[READ MORE AT FORCES OF GEEK]

BRIAN AZZARELLO Celebrates Dark Lord Day With 3 Floyd's ALPHA KING at FORCES OF GEEK

Sure, comics and beer have a long storied history.

I’m willing to bet fermentation and cave paintings have a huge connection. What happens when some beer drinking comic creator legends meet in a bar in Poland and discuss working together someday?

Swords, zombies and swear words erupt from the quill and the brush.

Brian Azzarello (100 Bullets, Dark Knight III: The Master Race, Joker, Luthor) joins us today to talk Alpha King #1 and how he became teamed up with Heavy Metal andLobo artist Simon Bisley.

From legendary brewmaster Nick Floyd (3 Floyds) comes the origin of one of his most popular brews, Alpha King by way of this legendary comics team. This weekend the team signs Alpha King #1 at the annual metal fest and beer celebrationDark Lord Day on April 30, featuring face melting bands Skeleton Witch, EYEHATEGOD and more. 

Munster, Indiana may never be the same.

FOG!: Hey, Brian thanks for talking with us about your book with Simon Bisley, Alpha King #1. I’m sure lots of comic book creation has been fueled by beer, but how do you tap into the story of the Alpha King beer?

BRIAN AZZARELLO: Don’t worry, this is fueled by beer, 3 Floyds beer labels have these characters on them, their beers are names after characters, their flagship beer being Alpha King which I first had 20 years ago. I’ve been a fan of the brewery ever since. They distribute in Indiana, Illinois, some in Kentucky, Ohio, Wisconsin, they don’t have a very large footprint, they really do things their way. 

The beer is fantastic, I love it, when the opportunity arose with this book when Barnaby Struve who is a consultant with them and brewmaster Nick Floyd and he wanted to do a comic based on these characters, they had created this whole mythology behind them.

[READ MORE AT FORCES OF GEEK]

ANOTHER CASTLE Creative Team Andrew Wheeler & Paulina Ganucheau Jump on The Cosmic Treadmill! at FORCES OF GEEK

Oni Press snuck this one past us like oh so many Koopa shells gliding along on the bricks of life. Another Castle is a limited series that puts the princess in a power position, gives her agency against her captors and ensures that she doesn’t need someone to fight her battles for her.

While the title references a familiar plumbing video game, what is happening in Another Castle is much more than a retreading or adaptation of a video game story. This fun and positive fantasy adventure is as much about solving problems as it is about empowerment. 

The creative team of Andrew Wheeler (ComicsAlliance.com) and Paulina Ganucheau (Zodiac Starforce) took some table time away from commerce at Emerald City Comic Con to tell us what to expect in the coming issues as well as entice some new readers into Another Castle!


FOG!: Another Castle has been a great adventure story so far. We have some video game influence, D&D and scary monsters and bosses! What’s a quick pitch to get people into the book?

Andrew Wheeler: A fan at Emerald City Comicon this past weekend described it as “Lara Croft as a princess”, which is a pretty cool description! I’d call it a damsel-in-distress story where the damsel can save herself, but she’s determined to save everyone else as well.

Paulina Ganucheau: Whoa I love that description! So cool and accurate.

[READ MORE AT FORCES OF GEEK]

Ash & Hitler Jump on The COSMIC TREADMILL With Ian Edginton and Larry Watts at FORCES OF GEEK

The name ‘Deadite Adolph Hitler’ is thrown around all too often these days. Luckily the folks at Space Goat (a real thing) have decided to clear the air and pit Ash against this very, very bad man.

The creative team behind EVIL DEAD 2: Revenge of Hitler, Ian Edginton and Larry Watts, took time out of their busy schedule to join us to talk this special ONE AND DONE™ (Stories so good…we don’t need 2!) comic!

From the trenches of Berlin to a trench mouth in Texas, here is everything you need to know about our groovy hero taking on a man so evil that he can’t be named, except that he can, and that name is Hitler.


FOG!: So…from reading your comic and watching a couple documentaries, this Hitler was kind of a jerk, right?

Larry Watts: A bit.

Ian Edginton: Actually, the scary thing is, is that he wasn’t. You don’t get to rally a nation behind you by playing the fool. It may seem that way, I mean take Donald Trump—that guy should be wearing clown shoes—but he tells people what they want to hear. He plays on their fears and insecurities. On their need to find easy scapegoats and solutions for larger, more complex issues of politics and policy. 

You look at Donald Trump and you see a toupee wearing braggart and bully. You look at Hitler and you see a shouty little man with a dumb mustache that even Charlie Chaplin had the good sense to take off at the end of the day. But don’t be fooled, they were and are master manipulators.  

Wow, that got serious fast!

[READ MORE AT FORCES OF GEEK]

FOG! Discusses INDOCTRINATION With Matt Battaglia & Michael Moreci at FORCES OF GEEK

Z2 Comics keeps it coming with Indoctrination, an apocalyptic political thriller in the vein of the first season of True Detective mixed with the scary realization that people are coerced into believing what groups are capable of.

Writer Michael Moreci (Roche Limit, Hoax Hunters, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes) and artist Matt Battaglia (Roche Limit) join us for a spin on the Cosmic Treadmill in advance of the June launch.

The book is already getting major attention from some True Detective fan sites, but as the following interview will reveal, there is more to Indoctrination, as our heroes face a far more sinister force.

Between death cults and sleeper cells, Indoctrination tackles fear, at a time when the world is growing tired of threats from inside and outside forces.

FOG!: What can readers expect from Indoctrination?

Matt Battaglia: Readers can expect a thoughtful thriller in the vein of classic 70s cinema, but wrestling with the potent issues of our times.

Michael Moreci: What Matt said. I think the series reminds me a lot of Hannibal, in that it’s slow, methodical, and the underlying developments are so unsettling that it makes everything else all the more frightening. 

We want to make a book that gets readers at their core with intense, thought-provoking, and chilling horror and crime. It’s very unique in a lot of ways, in a lot of GOOD ways, and there’s never been a better time for it to hit—in regard to the current political climate and the comics climate.

[READ MORE AT FORCES OF GEEK]

FOG! Chats With STEVE LIEBER About His New Series About Awful People, THE FIX! at FORCES OF GEEK

Hands down, one of the funniest comics from the House of Ideas to come out in this new age of Marvel NOW! was the often overlooked but still celebrated-among-thieves Superior Foes of Spider-Man. You know what? I’m not even sure his holy Web-Head even showed up for more than a few panels in the book. That’s some next level genius marketing there.

From the twisted minds of Steve Lieber (Hawkeye, Hawkman, Whiteout) and Nick Spencer (Morning Glories, Captain America, Astonishing Ant-Man) with team mates (accomplices?) Ryan Hill (colors) and Nic J Shaw (lettering and design) comes their latest Image Comics creation: The Fix. 

This creator owned book is already turning heads for it’s colorful language and comedy the toes the line between violence and the absurdity of real life. It turns out The Fix is about awful people. Who knows if these guys turned the mirror on themselves to get inspiration?

Heck, at least they were nice enough to return my emails! Artist and co-creator Steve Lieber joins us today to previewThe Fix, conveniently just in the nick of time for you to ‘convince’ your shop to order it from Diamond. 

We must warn you moms out there, Steve and I get a little blue in the interview. Earmuffs!

FOG!: You guys have gone and done it again. The question is…why? How did The Fix come about?

Steve Lieber: A collaboration this great doesn’t come around every day. Nick writes characters that I love to draw! Our tastes in what’s funny on the comics page dovetail beautifully. So after we finished Superior Foes, we were eager to work with each other again. Nick had three ideas for our next project. One of them grew into The Fix.

[READ MORE AT FORCES OF GEEK]

TRIPLE SHOT with a DIGITAL CHASER: Black Magick #5, Army of Darkness Furious Road #1, Street Fighter X G.I. Joe #1 Plus Adventures of Supergirl #3 - Forces Of Geek

EDITOR’S NOTE: This reviewer read an unlettered proof of ARMY OF DARKNESS: FURIOUS ROAD. it is now known that this is not a ‘silent’ issue. The new, Updated TRIPLE SHOT below!

TRIPLE SHOT with a DIGITAL CHASER: Black Magick #5, Army of Darkness Furious Road #1, Street Fighter X G.I. Joe #1 Plus Adventures of Supergirl #3

We’ve got witches, werewolves (not swear wolves), and Ivan meeting G.I. Joe
in this week’s Triple Shot!

Rucka and Scott finish up the first volume of Wiccan detective story Black Magick. 

Over at Dynamite, Ash stars in Army of Darkness and a Clash Sandinista track comes

to life as they team up with Capcom to promote a battle royale game 
Street Fighter V with Street Fighter X G.I. Joe #1. I got next game!

Sterling Gates continues on a very satisfying compliment to Supergirl on CBS
with Adventures of Supergirl Chapter 3 only on ComiXology!

Black Magick #5 
Writer: Greg Rucka
Artist: Nicola Scott
Publisher: Image Comics
Pub. Date: February 24, 2016
UPC: 70985301997800511
Price: $3.99
BUY IT HERE

The latest in this witchy supernatural detective story Black Magick
from the superstar team of Greg Rucka (Lazarus, Stumptown,
Star Wars, Gotham Central) and Nicola Scott (Earth 2, Birds of Prey)
wraps up the first arc before taking a hiatus to get an issue in the can
and to release a trade in April.

When the trade hits, I’m hoping for more attention to this incredible book.

Part police procedural, part Wiccan ceremony, Black Magick tells the story
of Rowan Black, a witch on the Portsmouth police department as a detective. 

Fans of the show iZombie (and the comic, duh) will appreciate the
supernatural mixed with the police work that we know Rucka
is so great at constructing. When I read Rucka’s crime books
I want to marathon The Rockford Files!

Of course Nicola Scott’s art is knockout amazing, full of detail, and with the
exception of expressions of magick it self is black and white (published in
four color process, with greyscale inks). She draws beautiful and
realistic ladies and is one of the best artists on the shelves today.
Color assists on the art by Chiara Arena.

This story wraps up some loose ends but leaves you wanting to know more
about the threats darkening Rowan’s door.

I don’t know much about spells and witchcraft in real life but if
I want to pretend, I can recite the spells from this well-researched book,
cleverly edited by Jeanine Schaefer (formerly of Marvel, now a freelance editor).

Army of Darkness Furious Road #1
Writer: Nancy A. Collins
Art: Kewber Baal
Publisher: Dynamite Entertainment
Pub. Date: March 2, 2016
UPC: 72513024590801011
Price: $3.99
BUY IT HERE

I’ve said it before, and now that I see another Army of Darkness title from Dynamite,
I’m even more confused.

Oh well, we live in a time where Flash and Supergirl will team up across different
networks, Ash vs. Evil Dead is a TV show and someone more scary than a
hologram from The Dark Knight Returns is angling to be president.

What am I on about? I simply do not understand the rights issues
involved with Sam Raimi’s Evil Dead franchise! Can the TV show not really
not use the store name of S-Mart? Is it even possible to break up print distribution
rights for a property? 

Just last month, I praised Space Goat’s Evil Dead 2: Cradle of the Damned
and looked forward to Ash taking on Hitler. …and then this happened!

Dynamite (perhaps the holder of the MGM Army of Darkness license?
Spitballing here…) is about to unleash Furious Road, a Mad Max
 style look into the future 20 years from ‘now’.
This story is set twenty years from whenever ‘now’ is.

Acclaimed horror writer Nancy A. Collins also has a few
comics under her belt (Swamp Thing, Jason vs. Leatherface, Vampirella)
set us up here with a post-apocalyptic road warrior view of Ash’s beloved hometown,
complete with ridiculous outfits, shaved haircuts and heavily armored cars. 

Many reviewers (myself included) were mistakenly slipped an unlettered proof.
Thankfully we received a new copy of the book for us to revise our review. Sorry about that! 

What was criminally missing was the famous Ash quips and references to
previous issues and even a certain Cabin in the Woods.

Not to be one-upped by a Hitler book, Dynamite goes Legion of Monsters 

 with this one has Frank N. Stein (he prefers Michael),
Eva and the Daughter of Dracula enlist Ash to track down the Necronomicon.
I guess this is just another tricky day at the Housewares Department at S-Mart for Ash.

Highly recommended for fans of whatever movie or tv show is your
favorite one starring the guy with the chainsaw hand!

 

[READ MORE AT FORCES OF GEEK]

FOG! Chats With JIMMY PALMIOTTI To Hype, HYPE, His Latest Kickstarter! at FORCES OF GEEK

Jimmy Palmiotti joins FOG! to push Hype, his latest book with Justin Gray, which just surpassed it’s Kickstarter goal with just under two days left of it’s crowdfunding campaign.

For the uninitiated, Jimmy currently writes Harley Quinn for DC Comics with his wife, Amanda Conner, as well as All-Star Western (and formerly Jonah Hex) with Justin, and started the Marvel Knights Imprint with Joe Quesada; as well as many television and movie credits to his name including Painkiller Jane.

When it comes to creator-owned comics, Jimmy gives us good reason for fans to support the books they love from creators they care about, so read on to learn about Hype, a new superhero that only limited time to get his mission accomplished—much like the target goal on his new Kickstarter!

If you are in the area, be sure to catch up with Jimmy at the Long Beach Comic Expo this weekend! LBCE is one of the most creator-friendly conventions in the country that celebrates comic books and pop culture and diversity.

[READ MORE AT FORCES OF GEEK]

Cartoonist CHRISTINE LARSEN Unleashes ORCS! on The Cosmic Treadmill! at FORCES OF GEEK

Christine Larsen has worked on some of your favorite properties over at DC, Boom!, IDW and more. Alongside that, she is a new mom and college professor. Christine is here to join us today on the Cosmic Treadmill to tell us about her self published comic, Orcs! #1, that grew out of an obsession with the monstrous creatures and demanded their story be told.

FOG!: Thanks for joining us to talk about Orcs! #1. How long have you been obsessed with orcs?

Christine Larsen: I’m not sure I would say obsessed… Well, okay, maybe obsessed is fair.

Since I read The Hobbit as a kid, and subsequently The Lord of the Rings. My notion of orcs in terms of temperament and character fall most in line with Tolkien orcs, so I guess they are equal parts goblin in their design and characterization. They are my favorite kind of monster, because they have strong roots in folklore, but also have a strong showing in contemporary fantasy.

We have seen some of your work elsewhere — can you tell us what are the challenges of putting this book out yourself? 

Do you mean instead of bringing it to a publisher I’ve worked with? I actually feel like there are more bonuses. Yes, I have to deal with finding a printer and shipping and press packages and submitting to Comixology for the digital version… but I also can set my own schedule and write whatever I want for it, so it’s really very freeing.

Are issues of Orcs! on a limited print run?

No. I found a very reliable small run printer, so when this issue runs out, I’ll probably order up more. But not right away. I’ll probably wait until the next book is out, since there will be a digital copy on Comixology.

[READ MORE AT FORCES OF GEEK]

FOG! Chats With Will Tracy and Gabe Koplowitz About ALLEN: SON OF HELLCOCK at FORCES OF GEEK

I was at first skeptical to read yet another brightly colored Conan-sword-tale. With space lasers the fashion this week, this seemed like a step backward back in time to a place I didn’t need to revisit.

And the creators are comedians, and we all know how those people are.

This all came to a climax when Z2 Comics forced me at dagger point to read issue one of their Allen: Son of Hellcock to prepare for an interview with their famous funny people Will Tracy (HBO’s Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, The Onion) and Gabe Koplowitz (VH1).

I finally relented. Mead in hand, I had some questions for these guys because I was only two pages in when I realized this might be the funniest book of the year.

Will and Gabe joined us to answer our questions about the new publisher and disappointing the person that brought you into this world. Allen: Son of Hellcock debuts today in stores and digital comic shops.

FOG!: Will and Gabe — thanks for joining us today, what’s going on these days with Allen: Son of Hellcock? How did this come about? Where do you guys know each other from? Do you even know each other?

Will Tracy: I just met Gabe for the first time literally 15 minutes ago, and I can already tell I’m going to hate him. I think it’s his face, voice, and personality that make him hateable. Also his clothes and his smell and his glasses. And his stupid feet and hands. 

However, on a professional level, we wrote Allen: Son of Hellcock together about, oh, seven or eight years back. And we could not be more thrilled or proud to see it finally unleashed upon the world this Wednesday, December 16th!

[READ MORE AT FORCES OF GEEK]

Classic PEANUTS Return To Ride THE COSMIC TREADMILL - at FORCES OF GEEK

Charles Shultz’ comic creation The Peanuts Movie hit the big screen earlier this month and Titan Comics has been releasing volumes all year to commemorate the occasion.

Snoopy and the kids looked a lot different in the early strips, (Charlie Brown himself sometimes missing his signature zig-zag shirt) but the timeless humor of the daily and Sunday Peanuts comics can still resonate with children of all ages today.

Titan Comics offered us a look at these modern day reprints of classic black and white Peanuts strips from the early days before Snoopy took on The Red Baron.

Titan has the rights to reproduce favorites from my childhood, the Rinehart & Company (Holt, Rinehart & Winston) collected black and white paperbacks accumulated from yard sales or perhaps even my parent’s well spent youth.

It had been years since I remembered even reading these books, and as an adult a new appreciation and nostalgia sets in.

[READ MORE AT FORCES OF GEEK]

FOG! Chats With Master of The Millarverse MARK MILLAR! at FORCES OF GEEK

Superstar writer and undisputed Hollywood hitmaker Mark Millar (Kick-Ass, Wanted, Kingsman: Secret Service) took some time to talk with us about the continuation of his multigenerational superhero team Jupiter’s Legacy and the prequelJupiter’s Circle. 

Jupiter’s Circle Volume 2 debuts later this month on November 25th, just as fans are reeling from his his Millarworld 2016 creative team announcements. Frank Quietly rejoins Mark for Jupiter’s Legacy Volume 2 next year.

Chris Sprouse (Tom Strong) will takes over on Circle next year, and details of books with both Greg Capello and Jae Lee have yet to be announced. We’ll also see more volumes of Chrononauts and Hit-Girl. 2016 will be another great year for one of the most genuine fan and creator of super-hero comics we’ve ever spoken too.

That’s a lot to keep up with, so follow #millarworld2016 on Twitter for more info, but join as we orbit Jupiter right now!

FOG!: We’ve just finished the last issue of Book One of Jupiter’s Circle. Did you always know you were going to do the two books together, Jupiter’s Circle when you came up with Jupiter’s Legacy?

Mark Millar: Not really, actually, no. For about two months before I started writing Jupiter’s Legacy, I stood in my office and I had all of these yellow post-it notes working out all the history of all the characters in the series because I was building like the Star Wars universe or the Lord of the Rings universe. It was a working body that needed to have everything connecting properly. 

I just made a point of making sure I knew all of the back histories of everything. So I was like a crazy guy, I actually had all of these stories that no one would ever read as crazy as that sounds. I had yellow post-its in my office and even into the dining room and I worked out all the back stories for the parents and how everybody felt about each other.

Then what I did was I connected it all and my agent said to me when Frank Quitely was taking a while for Volume Two, where we were stockpiling it, “Why don’t you write that story you have up on your wall”? 

I said, “Yeah, I love that story”! And I had always wanted to do a period super-hero thing, something set in my favorite American era which is that Mad Men era, I feel its the beginning of the DC or Marvel Universe, the Silver Age. I just started putting it together.

I think its the most fun I’ve ever had writing anything, it’s been so easy, I think because I’m so passionate about it. It’s everything I wanted to say about super-heroes.

[READ MORE AT FORCES OF GEEK]

FOG! Takes In The HUMAN BODY THEATER With MARIS WICKS! AT FORCES OF GEEK

New York Times best selling graphic novelist (for Primates: The Fearless Science of Jane Goodall, Dian Fossey, and Biruté Galdikas), amazing artist and science nerd Maris Wicks chats with us about the inner workings of our inner workings in her new book, Human Body Theater.

From Abdomen to X-Ray, Maris takes us through the mysterious workings of the human body with a cute skeleton narrator and more than one smiley-faced platelet.

This is all ages science comics with a purpose! 

FOG!: Human Body Theater is absolutely brilliant. Why take us through Innerspace in comic book form?

Maris Wicks: Thank you! Well, I selfishly wanted to make this book because I just think the human body is AWESOME. I chose the form of comics because it’s the most efficient way for me to communicate information.

As far as I know, there hasn’t been a comic book dedicated to the human body (until now). Side note: I would totally take a remake of Innerspace. Just saying.

For Primates, and you were the artist on that book, this time you are the writer and artist for what needs to be a scientifically accurate book. How crazy did you go with your research?

My research for Human Body Theater unknowingly started way back in 2002 when I got certified to be an EMT. Before that, I always had a love for all things anatomical, whether it was purely for artistic inspiration, or if it was the topic of a book I was reading. When Human Body Theater got green-lit, I read every book for kids I could find about the human body (and some geared towards adults too).

[READ MORE AT FORCES OF GEEK]

FOG! Chats With Writer JUSTIN JORDAN About His Sleepless Creation, JOHN FLOOD! at FORCES OF GEEK

Some nights I fall asleep reading comics until the iPad glass hits me in the face.

Man, I really hate going to bed. 

Imagine what might happen if the government removed your ability to sleep? What nightmares await you when the brain can’t rest? Will it unlock a power you didn’t know you had?

The third issue of sleeper hit (pun intended) John Flood hits shelves this week from the waking mind of Justin Jordan (The Strange Talent of Luther Strode, Shadowman, Deep State). Justin took a few minutes away from his busy work and convention schedule to give us the skinny on his sleep deprived detective comic book over at BOOM!, available at your local store and digitally today.

FOG!: Thanks for taking the time today between cons and your busy schedule. Your new book John Flood from BOOM! is keeping me up at night! What’s the skinny on this night owl? Is this your first book at BOOM!? What attracted you to this publisher for John Flood?

Justin Jordan: John Flood is actually my second book at BOOM!, Deep State, with Ariela Kristantina and Ben Wilsonham, was the first. 

As to why BOOM! for John Flood?

Well, it’s a weird book.

So much so that I didn’t like the odds of us being able to successfully do it at Image. Successfully, here, meaning that everyone gets paid.

 But beyond making sure Jorge and Tamra weren’t working for nothing, this is also such a weird and complex book that I really needed editorial support to make the book I wanted to make, which I got at BOOM!.

This would have been a different and, I think, not as good book elsewhere.

[READ MORE AT FORCES OF GEEK]

FOG! Chats With IDW EIC and DIRK GENTLY Scribe CHRIS RYALL at FORCES OF GEEK

IDW’s CCO and Editor-in-Chief Chris Ryall (Zombies vs. Robots, Onyx) takes on Dirk Gently in the latest mini-series from the publisher. Dirk, for the uninitiated, was a character created by Hitchhiker’s Guide author Douglas Adams that made his debut in 1987.

Chris took some time to join us today for a deep dive into this “ghost-horror-detective- time-travel-romantic-comedy-epic”. Issue 4 (of 5) is out today wherever fine comics are sold or iPads are resting. Stay tuned also for a Dirk Gently TV show from Max Landis and BBC America. Chris gives us some insight into the television adaptation as well.

[READ MORE AT FORCES OF GEEK]

FOG! Chats With CHRIS HUNT About CARVER: A PARIS STORY From Z2 Comics

Paul Pope’s protege Chris Hunt has a new comic from Z2, Carver: A Paris Story hitting shelves November 11. 

Chris joins us today to tease the red wine and whiskey soaked black and white noir mystery comic and the short film that serves as a prequel to the story.

FOG!: Chris, thanks so much for joining us today. What brought the Carver story to life for you? 

Chris Hunt: Carver started as something of an experiment for me about 5 years ago, when I was applying for Paul Pope’s residency at The Atlantic Center For The Arts. I did a short story about this old school, mustachioed adventurer having to fight off a man-eating lion. 

It was very straightforward, and the main character didn’t have any back story. I kind of just started playing around with what his background would be, how he may have become this old school bad ass. 

I found that I really enjoyed the idea of building a world around this pseudo-Hemingway archetype and I just started playing around with different concepts. I had actually been in Paris with an ex-girlfriend when I came up with the idea for the original story and concept for the character. 

I thought it would be an interesting place to start the saga, so to speak. The backbone of the story is my personal experience when I was there, but it spiraled out into something much bigger as the story was developed.

[READ MORE AT FORCES OF GEEK]