November 27, 2019

136: Justice For Agnes Nitt

Hullo.

As we work from home, we basically act as an ad hoc parcel delivery place for the neighbourhood. There has been two weird quirks in the last week. Firstly, the people delivering parcels are so up and happy that while it’s been a delight to take parcels, I’m starting to suspect they’re drugging employees. Secondly, I had my first encounter with a system where if someone is ahead of their appointed schedule they have to wait until the exact time for the sign-for-delivery to unlock. This led to over a full minute of standing at the doorway, making small talk while our computer boss went on its petty power trip.

This is my opening scene for the next Terminator reboot.

D10Soon
D6-10Soonish
She Came From Here, She Had A Thirst For Knowledge.
Moore
Pratchat
Buyorhaveboughtforyou
Byyyyeeee!!!

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Comps for DIE 10 arrived, which are lovely. It’s the end of the arc, and suitably apocalyptic and awful, and is out next week.

Before finishing this I just tied off writing the detailed synopsis for the next arc and the more broad synopsis of the book to the end of its run, which has left me in a “you know, it’s all here – I may as well just write it?” sort of place. Its strange to see it all lying there, including its final images. The equation isn’t solved, but it’s getting there.

Anyway – out next week, get excited and/or depressed, in the traditional DIE mode.

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Talking DIE, the February Image Solicits are up, which include the collection of the aforementioned DIE: SPLIT THE PARTY. Details? Sure.

DIE, VOL. 2: SPLIT THE PARTY TP

WRITER: Kieron Gillen
ARTIST / COVER A: Stephanie Hans
FEBRUARY 05 / 168 pages / FC/ M / $16.99

No one can escape DIE until everyone agrees to go home. Or rather, no one can escape DIE until everyone who is alive agrees to go home. The commercial and critical hit second arc of the bleakly romantic fantasy fiction series starts to reveal the secrets of the world, and our heroes’ pasts. There’s always the chance they’ll escape DIE. They’ll never escape themselves.

Collects DIE #6-10

Coo. Do feel to pre-order at your comic shop or some manner of more online book retailer. Here’s the biggest, but there’s plenty more.

Leah Moore wrote a twitter stream about her father’s relationship with comics. It’s powerful and humane, and I think everyone should read it.

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THREE has been translated and is being released in Greece, and to celebrate I’m off at Athens Con this weekend.

Details and tickets and similar are here. Come say Hi!

Al “House to Astonish” Kennedy has started his new podcast project, Desert Island Discworld, which is a series where he interviews folks about their favourite Terry Pratchett book, in the style of Desert Island Discs. As in, lots of autobio and how things intersected with our lives, plus a deep dive into the book in question.

I was honoured to be asked to be the first guest, so grabbed SMALL GODS to yabber about, as much as I was tempted to choose Masquerade and go on my Justice For Agnes Nitt rant.

Go listen here. It’s lots of fun.

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I’ve been away from comic shops for a few weeks, and so haven’t had a chance to grab this yet. I want to do it for a couple of reasons – firstly, I’m interested in examining the format in detail. The 20 issues in a single volume can be a beautiful, hefty thing. Secondly, IT’S FUCKING KILL OR BE KILLED AND IS GREAT AND I WANT IT IN A HARDBACK.

As much as I love returning to their core work with Criminal, one of the things I enjoy Brubaker/Philips as a partnership is how they’ve hit these short-to-medium length runs of book, then got out. FATALE, THE FADE OUT and KILL OR BE KILLED are great statements, and perfect for this kind of treatment.

This is basically them doing a version where Peter Parker is also Frank Castle. I feel its aim was to try and get that pulp What Happens Next? Energy, and it succeeded magnificently. Go gets.

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It’s been mainly DIE, Project Private Bukowski and Project Millionaire Sweeper, all of which went well. DIE 11 is over with C, so we’ll see what she makes of it. It’s got a different sort of energy to the last two arcs, which is interesting. I’m aware why, and it’s the sort of thing I need to work out if I can bring forward to whatever I do next. Ludocrats complete lettering for issue 2 arrived, which had a real My God What Have We Done, plus the serious business of discussing what the hell the logo should look like. Good news is that it does appear to be ready for the release window I was hoping for. Oh – and ONCE & FUTURE 5 went off to the printers.

This should mean that, bar a few smaller jobs, my next task is actually to go back to Once & Future to write issue 7. Dan doesn’t need the script for another few weeks, but I’ve got a rare chance to get a little ahead and I may as well grab at. Bar that, the only hard script deadline before Xmas would be Ludocrats 4, which requires the Next Summit Of Jim and I.

(God knows I have enough space to fill it – Private Bukowski alone would manage. Plus waiting to see what the relevant folks think of PROJECT BRIGHTER SHADE OF BLUE while I’ve been given worrying amounts of thumbs up for PROJECT COWBOY. It is a time.)

Also the looming issue of the DIE Arcana is happening. I say in the back of DIE 10 that it’d be out shortly after the issue comes out. That is… broad, right? It’ll all be over by Christmas, certainly.

Hmm.

Kieron Gillen
London
27.11.2019