#Comic Book Industry News

[drunkwooky]

CGC Officially Launches Their New Signature Authentication Option For Graded Comics

CGC has officially rolled out their autograph authentication partnership with JSA. Raw signed comic books will now get a CGC x JSA Authentic Autograph. For a small fee of course.

[aroaessidhe]

2024 reads / storygraph

Outdrawn

f/f contemporary romance

two cartoonist who’ve been rivals since uni, and now have competing webcomics online, have to work together on the relaunch of a cult classic at the comic press they both work at

they both struggle with art-related physical and mental health issues, and complicated families

[marybatson]

dc industry plant success ranging from puzzling yet endearing debut (kyle rayner) to annoyingly persistent and unwanted nepotism (black adam) to I’ll blow up this place if they show up in another one of my comics AGAIN (batpeople in nonbat comics)

[msclaritea]

Clone Creed claims to be Catholic and a dad. Big Elon Musk and Comic Book fan....going after children. Women aren't allowed to have fun anymore and pick their own heroes. Kids aren't allowed to have fun anymore and pick their own heroes. The Comic Book industry is determined to have white men only superheroes. They want everyone else to leave them alone, to their fun. On your way out, take your money with you.

[theomenmedia]

Venom: The Last Dance Tracking For A $70M Domestic Opening Weekend

Venom's final bow aims for a $70M opening! Will "The Last Dance" be a hit or a miss?

Link to the full story: https://www.theomenmedia.com/post/venom-the-last-dance-set-to-sway-at-the-box-office-with-70m-opening

[brutalgamer]

Free Comic Book Day '24 shaping up to be a big one, with Hellboy, Energon Universe, X-Men and more

Diamond has unveiled the “Gold” level books that’ll be hitting participating stores for what should be a pretty big FCBD.

[catchdacraze]

What's Happening to Comics | EP131

[downthetubes]

Canada's Kate Beaton scoops Best Cartoonist in this year's Ringo Award winners

Canadian comic creator Kate Beaton has won the Ringo Award for Best Cartoonist, and Best Non-Fiction Comic Work for her powerful autobiography, "Ducks: Two Years in the Oil Sands"

[orionsangel86]

I watched X-Men 2000 tonight. Yup the Deadpool and Wolverine brain worms got me - at least for a little while - so I figured I'd rewatch the old movies that I havent seen in over a decade and have basically forgotten entirely at this point.

You know what really stunned me? Even more than the slow pace, serious tone, actual dedication to telling a coherent and interesting story with layers of meaning and social commentary attached to it, as well as a sincerity that's been missing from most superhero films since the MCU was born (thanks Josh Whedon).

Nope, what shocked me most was this:

This is a perfect specimen of a man. Look at him. He's gorgeous. But look at his chest? His arms? He's muscular, he's pretty well toned, he's hairy. He's definitely got a six pack - but it's nicely covered by a healthy layer of fat. His skin is plump, he has a bit of squish to him. He'd probably be great to hug (Jean Grey certainly gives him a good squeeze lol).

When he sits down he looks like his stomach will roll just nicely. Like a stomach should.

I know my point here is obvious. It's just that scrolling the Deadpool and Wolvering tag is basically 50% "oh they definitely fucked in the Honda Odyssey" (yes lol) and the other 50% is just horny posting over Wolverine's topless scene like the entire site suddenly adopted Deadpools horny brain.

I gotta give props to Hugh Jackman for his dedication to turn himself into an actual comic book character - because that's what this new movie does. It gives us a comic accurate Wolverine in practically every way (except for his height lol) the suit is amazing, the cowl was a joy to see brought into live action. The body too though was straight out of a comic book artists male power fantasy.

What I wanted to emphasise was that this:

Is extremely tough on the human body. What I wanna know is how long he starved and dehydrated himself for before filming this scene? How long before they shot this did he last drink some water? Because damn that must have been tough. The oil and the lighting probably help further emphasise the muscle, vein, and sinew definition. It's probably similar to how body builders prepare before a show.

Nothing about body building is healthy though. So in the coming weeks as the whole entertainment industry rides on the coat tales of this movies success, and everyone goes crazy over Hugh Jackmans physique, please don't feel pressured into thinking that his 2024 physique in the movie is remotely realistic - or realistically attractive. Like I get the fantasy sure, but come on. I'd personally rather lie on a cushioned bed than a concrete floor.

Deadpool may disagree with me, but he's a masochist lol.

Oh and whilst I stand by the shade I threw at the MCU above, I think Wolverine's different physiques in the movies is a good standard of comparison for how much superhero movies have changed. Because when superhero comics first started getting adapted I think a lot of the choices made were about how to bring them to live action realistically and believably and the attitude was to try not to make them look ridiculous. The first X-Men movies definitely do this.

It was about bringing the comics to life in a way that fit in our world. But over the years, as audiences got more and more used to comic book movies the movies became more and more like comic books and less like a realistic adaptation of a comic book. Does that make sense? So as the movies attempted to bring the comics to life in a way that was less realistic and more comic accurate, the demands on the actors to sculpt their physiques to meet the standards of comic book art became normalised.

I think Deadpool and Wolverine is the MOST comic book accurate of all superhero movies made in the past 2 decades. Half the time the images from the movie look like they could be literally pulled from the pages of the comic books. The story is convoluted and stupid, the plot is barely there and is full of gaping plot holes and elements that don't fit any past stories. The action is ridiculous, extremely fast paced, gratuitous, and violent to a hilarious level. But it's so entertaining, joyful, exciting, and laugh out loud hilarious throughout.

It reminded me a LOT of my attempts at reading through the Deadpool comics (I've read a lot of them but no where near all of them).

To sum up this rambling message with multiple points, I'll say that Deadpool and Wolverine is a really fun movie that I thoroughly enjoyed, but make no mistake there is nothing real in it at all. It is almost literally a comic on screen. Don't expect anything more than that and you'll enjoy the experience.

[spacelazarwolf]

in honor of that anon who said jews have done nothing for the world, here’s a non exhaustive list of things we’ve done for the world:

arts, fashion, and lifestyle:

jeans - levi strauss

modern bras - ida rosenthal

sewing machines - isaac merritt singer

modern film industry - carl laemmle (universal pictures), adolph zukor (paramount pictures), william fox (fox film forporation), louis b. mayer (mgm - metro-goldwyn-mayer), harry, sam, albert, and jack warners (warner bros.), steven spielberg, mel brooks, marx brothers

operetta - jacques offenbach

comic books - stan lee

graphic novels - will eisner

teddy bears - morris and rose michtom

influential musicians - irving berlin, stephen sondheim, benny goodman, george gershwin, paul simon, itzhak perlman, leonard bernstein, bob dylan, leonard cohen

artists - mark rothko

actors - elizabeth taylor, jerry lewis, barbara streisand

comedians - lenny bruce, joan rivers, jerry seinfeld

authors - judy blume, tony kushner, allen ginsberg, walter mosley

culture:

esperanto - ludwik lazar zamenhof

feminism - betty friedan, gloria steinem, ruth bader ginsberg

queer and trans rights - larry kramer, harvey milk, leslie feinberg, abby stein, kate bornstein, frank kameny, judith butler

international women's day - clara zetkin

principles of journalizm, statue of liberty, and pulitzer prize - joseph pulitzer

"the new colossus" - emma lazarus

universal declaration of human rights - rene samuel cassin

holocaust remembrance and human rights activism - elie wiesel

workers rights - louis brandeis, rose schneiderman

public health care, women's rights, and children's rights - lillian wald

racial equity - rabbi abraham joshua heschel, julius rosenwald, andrew goodman, michael schwerner

political theory - hannah arendt

disability rights - judith heumann

black lives matter slogan and movement - alicia garza

#metoo movement - jodi kantor

institute of sexology - magnus hirschfeld

technology:

word processing computers - evelyn berezin

facebook - mark zuckerberg

console video game system - ralph henry baer

cell phones - amos edward joel jr., martin cooper

3d - leonard lipton

telephone - philipp reis

fax machines - arthur korn

microphone - emile berliner

gramophone - emile berliner

television - boris rosing

barcodes - norman joseph woodland and bernard silver

secret communication system, which is the foundation of the technology used for wifi - hedy lamarr

three laws of robotics - isaac asimov

cybernetics - norbert wiener

helicopters - emile berliner

BASIC (programming language) - john george kemeny

google - sergey mikhaylovich brin and larry page

VCR - jerome lemelson

fax machine - jerome lemelson

telegraph - samuel finley breese morse

morse code - samuel finley breese morse

bulletproof glass - edouard benedictus

electric motor and electroplating - boris semyonovich jacobi

nuclear powered submarine - hyman george rickover

the internet - paul baran

icq instant messenger - arik vardi, yair goldfinger,, sefi vigiser, amnon amir

color photography - leopold godowsky and leopold mannes

world's first computer - herman goldstine

modern computer architecture - john von neumann

bittorrent - bram cohen

voip internet telephony - alon cohen

data archiving - phil katz, eugene roshal, abraham lempel, jacob ziv

nemeth code - abraham nemeth

holography - dennis gabor

laser - theodor maiman

instant photo sharing online - philippe kahn

first automobile - siegfried samuel marcus

electrical maglev road - boris petrovich weinberg

drip irrigation - simcha blass

ballpoint pen and automatic gearbox - laszlo biro

photo booth - anatol marco josepho

medicine:

pacemakers and defibrillators - louise robinovitch

defibrillators - bernard lown

anti-plague and anti-cholera vaccines - vladimir aronovich khavkin

polio vaccine - jonas salk

test for diagnosis of syphilis - august paul von wasserman

test for typhoid fever - ferdinand widal

penicillin - ernst boris chain

pregnancy test - barnhard zondek

antiretroviral drug to treat aids and fight rejection in organ transplants - gertrude elion

discovery of hepatitis c virus - harvey alter

chemotherapy - paul ehrlich

discovery of prions - stanley prusiner

psychoanalysis - sigmund freud

rubber condoms - julius fromm

birth control pill - gregory goodwin pincus

asorbic acid (vitamin c) - tadeusz reichstein

blood groups and rh blood factor - karl landsteiner

acyclovir (treatment for infections caused by herpes virus) - gertrude elion

vitamins - caismir funk

technique for measuring blood insulin levils - rosalyn sussman yalow

antigen for hepatitus - baruch samuel blumberg

a bone fusion technique - gavriil abramovich ilizarov

homeopathy - christian friedrich samuel hahnemann

aspirin - arthur ernst eichengrun

science:

theory of relativity - albert einstein

theory of the electromagnetic field - james maxwell

quantum mechanics - max born, gustav ludwig hertz

quantum theory of gravity - matvei bronstein

microbiology - ferdinand julius cohn

neuropsychology - alexander romanovich luria

counters for x-rays and gamma rays - robert hofstadter

genetic engineering - paul berg

discovery of the antiproton - emilio gino segre

discovery of cosmic microwave background radiation - arno allan penzias

discovery of the accelerating expansion of the universe - adam riess and saul merlmutter

discovery that black hole formation is a robust prediction of the general theory of relativity - roger penrose

discovery of a supermassive compact object at the center of the milky way - andrea ghez

modern cosmology and the big bang theory - alexander alexandrovich friedmann

stainless steel - hans goldschmidt

gas powered vehicles

interferometer - albert abraham michelson

discovery of the source of energy production in stars - hans albrecht bethe

proved poincare conjecture - grigori yakovlevich perelman

biochemistry - otto fritz meyerhof

electron-positron collider - bruno touschek

[thebibliosphere]

Joy I have to ask - what temperature do you think it is inside Wayne Manor?

Is it essentially outside temperature except where the fireplaces are? Does Alfred have a one man war against climate change? Is that why Bruce spends so much time in the basement?

Depending on which timeline you follow, Wayne Manor was built in the late 1800s. Having worked in giant historical homes, I'm telling you now it's a fucking pain in the ass to update the heating systems in those buildings. I know we've got comic book logic to contend with, and they've got massive generators in the basement to keep the cave running (sometimes it's turbines powered by the water flowing through the caves), but I also think it's plausible that to avoid damaging the historical facade of the building, you might walk around the house and see box fans shoved into the window frames during the summer because fuuuuck trying to install modern AC through 18th-century brickwork.

As for heat, well, for a frame of reference, the James J Hill house up here in MN—built roughly around the same time during the Gilded Age when the Waynes were pioneering industry in Gotham—was forced to rely on a boiler roughly the size of a steam engine to heat the house and used 250 tons of coal each year to keep it warm. That boiler provided hot water and ambient heat through steam radiators, but they also still had fireplaces in almost every room to try and compensate for the winter. The house was updated for modern heating and air conditioning within the last 40 years, but with a house that size and ceilings so tall, it's not particularly efficient. They still rely on box fans and space heaters to keep the space habitable during summer and winter.

New Jersey is not as far north as Minnesota, but the temperatures can still drop comparably low, especially when you factor in the seafront Gotham is on. So, while I do think they likely upgraded the heating systems at some point (they can't keep guzzling through coal like that), I also can't help but feel it's got to be cold as hell in that house unless they're being meticulous about lighting fires and airing every room out to prevent damp.

Because that's another thing. If you're not keeping your stone house warm, you risk damp and water damage, and I feel like Alfred would rather gnaw off his own arm than let Wayne Manor crumble to dust with black mold festering in the original French plaster.

So he's not so much fighting a one-man war against climate change as he's fighting a one-man war to keep the house dry. He's walking through rooms no one even uses, making sure the steam radiators are working and opening the windows a crack to let the condensation out.

Is he also turning off all the light switches as he goes? Yes. Is he always yelling, "Why is every screen in this house turned on if no one is using them?" also, yes.

Is Bruce also down in the cave huddled under an extra cape, overclocking the batcomputer to stay warm? Also a distinct possibility.

[afreakingdork]

Support Rise of the TMNT: Tips on Buying the TMNT 40th Anniversary Comic

As someone who has been reading comics for over a decade, i understand that the comics world can be a confusing place that isn't kind to new readers. I've seen many people confused about the new TMNT anniversary comic and as such I wanted to make a helpful little guide for those trying to get a copy.

As you may know, besides getting a new 8-page rottmnt story and those sweet future designs, picking up this comic is an actionable way to get more rise content.

Now it may seem easy to pre-order this bad boy. You'll see pre-orders for the book pretty much wherever books are sold online, but these are The Deluxe Editions i.e. Hardcovers i.e. This is the comic equivalent of what is known as a Trade. Now Trades, also known as trade paperbacks, are usually collections of single comic issues that are reprinted into book form. I imagine that in this case it will be the original comic plus bonus content such as spreads of the alternate covers, but I'm getting ahead of myself.

THE PRE-ORDER IS NOT FOR THE COMIC THAT COMES OUT JULY 10, 2024.

The issue that is going to come out on July 10th is the true single issue of the comic i.e. the classic floppy comics you picture from years of olde. Now we can go back and forth on what's more important to the industry (a sale is a sale supposedly), but traditionally, a comic lives or dies by its single issue sales. Comics typically don't get trades if their single issues don't sell well. Now this is already getting a trade so we don't have to worry about that, but Ron seemed to heavily imply here that the sales that are important on this one are the single issue sales. This means:

IF YOU CAN, YOU SHOULD BUY THE JULY 10TH SINGLE ISSUE COMIC IF YOU WANT TO SUPPORT RISE.

Okay, but how do you do that? Comic book stores are intimidating and they don't exist everywhere. It goes without saying that if there's no comic shop in your area or if you are not financially able to then don't feel pressure to get this comic. However, if you can, we know for a fact it will help us get a chance at more content. With that said, here's how you do it:

New comics come out on Wednesdays (July 10th in this case)

Most comic shops have a designated area for that week's new comics

Most comic shops operate on a first-come-first-serve basis unless you have a pull list

Anniversary comics sell fast because they are special and collector's items.

Summarized: Go straight to your local comic book shop the moment they open on Wednesday if you want to secure a copy.

Something else to note: Variant covers of the comic exist. Now, the typical cover is going to be a cover by Laird and Eastman, but there are a bunch of variants as listed here. All letter variants may or may not be sold at your local comic shop. This is up to their discretion to buy. The 1:# variants are based on how many units they buy and will always be more expensive because they are even more limited in quantity.

I hope this helps! Let's support Rise of the TMNT!!

[littlesolo]

This Made Me Tear Up

The article:

Students at the New York City Institute for Special Education in the Bronx welcomed Friday a special visitor who spoke about the importance of representation of people with disabilities in the media. Actor Charlie Cox, best known for his role as the Marvel superhero with a visual impairment Daredevil, spoke with K-12 students about his experience portraying a blind character. Marvel’s Daredevil follows the story of attorney Matt Murdock, a vigilante who fights crime on the streets of New York City when the sun goes down. Cox played the iconic character in the television adaptation of the comic book written by Bronx legend, Stan Lee. Founded in 1831, the New York Institute for Special Education (NYISE) is a private non-profit school that serves children who are blind or visually disabled and preschoolers who are developmentally delayed. It was one of the first schools to serve the unique educational needs of students with visual impairments in the United States. Cox discussed the need for people with disabilities to be represented in the industry, noting their low numbers. For instance, the 10th annual Hollywood Diversity Report from the UCLA Entertainment and Research Initiative found that less than 1% of shows in the 2021-2022 season featured characters with physical or visual disabilities. Cox and the students watched his performance in Daredevil, then created superhero themed craft projects. Cox encouraged the NYISE students to realize their full power and potential. Cox, who is not visually impaired, worked with teacher Joe Strechay at the American Foundation for the Blind (AFB) on the role, observing his movements and learning to walk with a cane while blindfolded. The AFB awarded Cox with a Helen Keller Achievement Award for his work to portray the blind Marvel superhero accurately.

[theomenmedia]

Marvel & DC Lose The Joint Exclusive Copyright To The Term "Super Hero"

Big win for indie creators! Marvel & DC's monopoly on "Superhero" is no more! The term's now free for all. Dive into a new era of heroism!

Link to the full story: https://www.theomenmedia.com/post/comic-book-giants-marvel-and-dc-striped-of-superhero-trademark-a-new-era-for-indie-creatives

[usnatarchives]

Happy #NationalComicBookDay! Did you know the National Archives carries a wide array of comic books such as this No.90 "Batman" comic once used as evidence in an investigation by the Judiciary Committee of the United States on juvenile delinquency?

In April 27, 1953, the Judiciary Committee of the United States Senate created a Special Subcommittee on Juvenile Delinquency to investigate the causes of juvenile delinquency and to propose measures in response. The subcommittee examined several factors influencing young people, but it drew the most attention when it investigated the allegation that comic books contributed to the rise in juvenile crime. The subcommittee looked at comics like this one as evidence.

The early 1950s were a time of great anxiety about the nation’s youth. In 1955, Newsweek magazine reported that the national crime rate had increased by 33.4 percent since 1940, largely due to increased criminal acts by teenagers. Comic books were a new form of media and among the first consumer products specifically marketed to teenage buyers. Civic and religious leaders linked comic book reading to antisocial and criminal behavior, and several major newspapers launched anti–comic book editorial campaigns.

During April and June, 1954, the Subcommittee on Juvenile Delinquency held televised public hearings in New York, the center of the comic book publishing industry. They were especially concerned about comic books’ vivid, detailed illustrations of violent acts. In the end, the subcommittee found that reading comic books did not cause teenagers to commit crimes. They ruled against censoring or banning comics and instead called on the comic book industry to regulate itself by adopting a ratings code and imposing a voluntary ban on depictions of extreme violence. The committee concluded that, ultimately, it was a parent’s role to screen material their children read.

[time-like-tears-in-rain]

So this one^ takes place AFTER the movie Alien 3, it's not favorite writing in the expanded universe, and it's not *exactly* a fix it, but if you're looking for a good synthetic/AI/android story its solid, and also a VERY easy jumping on point to the chaotic expanded universe titles since its technically a stand-alone.

HOWEVER...... I have two more for u.

So Alien 3 went through several scripts before the final one, the more storied being by William Fucking Gibson, successor to Phillip K. Dick's cyberpunk throne. It was never produced, and eventually leaked online. A graphic novel version was released as part of the Alien 40th publications but it....wasn't great. Pat Cadigan, an author in her own right and not just a tie-in author (and one of the Alien 'verse's few women) developed it into a novel more recently.

I have my issues with it, namely Ripley not being around (but at least she's alive and could be in a follow up), but the new characters mesh well with both Alien and Aliens, it feels like a honest follow up to BOTH movies, and also Hicks and Bishop are in one piece well they're alive at least, and both get POV chapters. For the love of Giger get them a trauma therapist after this. Newt is also still alive, which is my biggest point of loathing for the A3 movie we actually got.

Then there's Bug Hunt which came out several years ago: it's a collection of short stories giving origin stories, prequel shorts, and side quests regarding the crew of the Sulaco and some new roles as well. The late, great Rachel Caine (whose lengthy resume includes punk vampires, sentient space ships, high fantasy, and murder mysteries) wrote Bishop's origins which give a Blade-Runner-bleak look at the synthetics industry. This story also got a subtle shout out in Alien: Romulus.

Fandom hates her: Incredibly lucky woman falls in love with niche character from a 40yr old franchise and discovers that an entire canon book about them was published only a year prior.

We used to pray for days like these.