Just the Facts, Ma'am...
Hey, it’s been a tumultuous few months. But as a wise poet once said,
You take the good
You take the bad
You take them both and there you have
The facts of life
The facts of life
I haven’t had too many big announcements since I last popped into the ol’ Buttondown, but I’ve had a few debut or wrap up. And in the spirit of expediency, I’m going to try to be unusually brief and bullet-point-y today.
—SUPERIOR AVENGERS #1 is out now!
Luca Maresca and Mattia Iacono killed it on art for this, with special guest Kyle Hotz popping in for our far-future segments. Kyle will have a lot more to show off in the rest of the series after this tantalizing single-page tease. Six real bad dudes (a gender-neutral term) have been brought to the present day to prove that Doom’s rule will make for a glorious everlasting future. Doom’s son, Kristoff Vernard, has staked his reputation on this claim. Doom’s son has a rude awakening in store. We’re swinging for big, wide-scale action in the spirit of The Authority here. Strap in.
—BEASTLY BUDDIES wrapped up!
Armand Bodnar illustrated the absolute heck out of this Marvel Unlimited strip, with colors by K.J. Diaz. This is one of my favorite projects I’ve done at the House of Ideas—a madcap little monster party starring Ted and Jack (and Elsa). Read the entire thing now on your vertical-scrolling device of choice.
—NEW CHAMPIONS continues apace!
Issue #4 just dropped, which reveals more of Gold Tiger’s background, and welcomes guest artist Julian Shaw to do so. As I hope is becoming clear, we didn’t want every New Champion to mimic the Spider-Boy route of, Hey, I, a prominent Marvel HeroTM, did not know I had a sidekick! So while the New Champs are all connected, one way or another, to the heroes who inspired them, those connections come from all different angles. Ivan Fiorelli and Arthur Hesli continue to be DREAM collaborators, and on issue #6, we welcome the extremely talented and enthusiastic Ruairí Coleman for a two-issue guest stint as Ivan skips ahead to the next arc. Ruairí’s been a blast to work with, too—we’re really lucky on this book, and everything about putting it together has just been fun.
—ALIEN: PARADISO is done too!
Look at that—beginnings, endings, and everything in between. Edgar Salazar, Peter Nguyen, and special assist Jason Muhr brought the acid-dripping bang to this vacation retreat from hell. As a lifelong fan of the Xenomorphs, it was a really special treat to get to tell a full story set in this world. Thanks to everyone who helped make it happen!
—We gave birth to LET THIS ONE BE A DEVIL!
Issue #2 is out now, with #3 just a couple weeks out. James Tynion IV and I co-wrote this horrific take on the real-world legends, with my buddies Piotr Kowalski and Brad Simpson on art and Blue Book’s Tom Napolitano on letters. We’re exploring every nook and cranny of Jersey Devil lore possible, while couching it firmly in the world of horror. We’ve gotten some fun responses from folks who seem to enjoy the approach, which is great, because this is the first mini-series in a whole line of similar projects Tiny Onion is producing from other creators giving other cryptids/monsters their own unique spins. I know what’s next and it’s going to be FUN.
—EXQUISITE CORPSES #1 is nearly upon us!
Exquisite Corpses is the first major project Tiny Onion created since coming together as a full company—a maxi-series about a small town besieged by 12 killers participating in a tournament on behalf of the richest families in America. The winning killer’s patron family wins control of the country for the next five years. But the residents of Oak Valley, Maine, are just trying to survive the night. It’s been a multi-year labor of love assembling this bad boy, from our initial planning meeting with co-creator, artist, and character designer Michael Walsh; to our three-day writers room with Corpse Crew members Che Grayson, Pornsak Pichetshote, Tyler Boss, and Jordie Bellaire; to bringing together the additional art team of Adam Gorham, Marianna Ignazzi, Gavin Fullerton, Valentine De Landro, and Claire Roe; to soliciting the craziest roster of variant artists I’ve ever had the privilege of helping to wrangle. This book is an experiment, but it’s also a very cohesive tale of terror and perseverance, and editing it alongside Greg Lockard and Eric Harburn has been one of the best professional experiences of my life. We’ve been thrilled at the pre-release reception so far and can’t wait for it to go wide next month. Ask your retailer to follow along with the carnage now.
—Two Books I Helped Edit Came Out!
We’re Taking Everyone Down With Us from “madman” Matt Rosenberg, Stefano Landini, Jason Wordie, and Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou is one of the first monthly comics I’ve edited for someone not named “James,” and it’s been a delight watching its unique blend of spy craft, high-octane action, droll humor, and surprisingly touching family drama come together. The first issue is out now (and went to a second printing!) with the second in stores next week.
You’ll Do Bad Things, by multi-hyphenate Tyler Boss, exciting newcomer Adriano Turtulici, and Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou (that guy stays busy, huh?) launched the same day, and is a mind-melting giallo-inspired slasher comic that will keep you guessing until the last issue’s twist. It also has a really cute cat. Tiny Onion production maestro is the editor on this bloody affair, but I’ve enjoyed sticking my horror-loving nose in the mix where helpful. Tell your local shop to add both of these long-ass titles to your pull lists ASAP.
—Tiny Onion launched its first Kickstarter!
ACHERON, Ian Bertram’s sketchbook, is a gorgeous piece of work. Ian’s been one of my favorite artists for years, and getting to meet him and see his work in person has been a huge treat. We were lucky and grateful to fund in just a few hours, which means we can now focus on stretch goals. Get in on having one of these bad boys for yourself!
—It’s B&N Preorder Season!
Finally, we’re back in one of my VERY favorite times of year: the Barnes & Noble preorder sale. Until the end of day tomorrow, code “PREORDER25” gets you 25% off any upcoming preorder. I went hard on the sale in February, so didn’t have too much to add this time, but I did snap up Philip Fracassi’s novella D7, Marianna Enriquez’ memoir/essay collection Somebody Is Walking on Your Grave: My Cemetery Journeys, Stephen Graham Jones’s dual publication Killer on the Road / The Babysitter Lives, and the absolutely mammoth The End of the World As We Know It: New Tales of Stephen King's The Stand, which I had been waffling on until I heard Nat Cassidy talking about how he basically forced his way into it. Respect the hustle. If you want suggestions for what to pick up, may I humbly direct you to:
Archives of the Unexplained: Unwanted Guests
Archives of the Unexplained: Area 51
Friendship Upgrade! (Pet Simulator)
Fall of the House of X/ Rise of the Powers of X Omnibus HC
X-Men by Gerry Duggan Omnibus (I comically have one single issue in here, alongside 39 issues of Gerry’s work. Hey, Gerry!!!)
Spider-Man: Gang War Omnibus HC
Any of those would be appreciated, but I particularly encourage you to nab the first three, as preorders for original graphic novels MASSIVELY help publishers set expectations for how books will go on to perform. If you want to know how best to support creators—preorder our stuff!
This was kind of brief, right?
When the world never seems
To be living up to your dreams
Then suddenly you're finding out
The facts of life are all about you
xoxo