Tag Archives: black

Gerard McMurray will write and direct Black for Studio 8

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Black

Gerard McMurray will write and direct the film Black, based on the comic series published by Black Mask Studios and created by Kwanza Osajyefo and Tim Smith 3, with artists Jamal Igle and Khary Randolph.

Black debuted in 2016 and since has spun out multiple series set in the world. The comic is set in a world where only Black people have superpowers and it’s kept a secret. Kareem Jenkins discovers his powers after being shot by the police.

The film will take a similar direction following a young man who discovers his powers after surviving a violent crime. He then finds himself in the middle of a war over who will control the empowered and their abilities and the future of humanity.

Robinov and John Graham will produce for Studio 8. Osajyefo and Smith will co-produce with Black Mask Studio’s Matteo Pizzolo and Brett Gurewitz serving as producer and executive producer.

White #1 Goes Back to Print After Orders of Over 40,000

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White #1

The first issue of the empowered Black superheroes comic book series White (sequel to 2016’s BLACK) by Kwanza Osajyefo, Tim Smith 3, Jamal Igle, and Khary Randolph has garnered over 40,000 orders, selling out ahead of its June 30th release date. Black Mask Studios is going back to press for a second printing.   White is the sequel to the 2016’s hit Black. Black is currently in development as a feature film with Warner Bros.

Planned as a limited edition series with a 2,500 copy print run for the main cover, White received orders nearly twenty-times higher than its initial printing. In response to the massive demand, the team has decided to open the print run up with no limits placed on the reprint run.

White was successfully Kickstarted in March 2019 receiving $47,115 from 1,420 backers. The comic was originally estimated to be delivered in March 2020 and delayed due to COVID. Unfortunately, as of the announcement of the massive first printing, backers are speaking out about not receiving the items they pledged for. In full disclosure, I am one of those individuals.

In a world that already hates and fears them – what if only Black people had superpowers. That’s the setting of the Black universe of comic books. After miraculously surviving being gunned down by police, a young man learns that he is part of the biggest lie in history. He must decide whether it’s safer to keep it a secret or if the truth will set him free. 

Now, the team that asked “What if only Black people had superpowers?” is back with the sequel to the critically acclaimed series, BLACK. It’s been three years since the world learned only Black people have superhuman abilities, and the United States has responded by electing Theodore Mann to the presidency. The only person standing in the way of his policies to control empowered Blacks are Kareem Jenkins and his allies. 

White #1 second printing will be released on July 21.

Comic Book Creator Kwanza Osajyefo Brings His Talent to AfroComicCon

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Kwanza Osajyefo

AfroComicCon has announced that comic book creator Kwanza Osajyefo will be among its Special Guests for their 2020 vitual convention!

Author and creator of BLACK, a comic that asks: what if only black people had superpowers. Kwanza has been a part of comics for nearly 20 years. Beginning his career as an online producer at Marvel before moving into other media roles. He later returned to comics and launched DC Comics’ digital publishing initiatives.

In addition to creating his own properties, Kwanza is also a creative architect of H1 Comics line from the premiere French publisher, Humanoids – co-writing their flagship title, Ignited, with comics legend, Mark Waid.

AfroComicCon​‘s 1st virtual convention will be held on October 24, 2020. Due to COVID-19 concerns, the annual event started in 2017 by the ​Oakland Technology & Education Center (OTEC), ​will be held virtually and free through a portal on the organization’s website. Sponsored by the NNPA, the ​Oakland A’s, and Pixar Entertainment, AfroComicCon promises to be a day full of exciting panels, screenings, entertainment, gaming, cosplay and special guests. The 12-hour event is currently slated to be live-streamed across multiple platforms including YouTube, Twitch, and Facebook. You can register now.

Warner Bros. Acquires Black to Adapt for Film

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Black

Studio 8 has announced that Warner Bros. has acquired Black, the comic series co-created by Kwanza Osajyefo and Tim Smith 3. Original artists and writers of the comic and its spinoffs include Jamal Igle, Khary Randolph, Jennifer Johnson, Vita Ayala, and Liana Kangas.

Bryan Edward Hill, who is a comic creator as well is a producer on DC’s Titans, wrote the script for the film.

In 2017 Studio 8 announced they had obtained the rights to the film with Seith Mann having originally been hired to write the script for the film in 2018.

The original Black comic series focused on Kareem Jenkins who survives being gunned down by police and joins an underground group of black superheroes learning about the world conspiracy that hides the revelations that black individuals have superpowers.

The series debuted with a teaser campaign at New York Comic Con in 2015 and went on to a Kickstarter campaign in 2016 that raised almost $92,000 from 2,775 backers. Since then, it’s resulted in numerous spin-off series featuring numerous writers and artists creating its own comic universe. The series was eventually released through comic publisher Black Mask Studios. A follow-up series, White, was Kickstarted in 2019 and went on to raise a little over $47,000 from 1,420 individuals. That series has seen release delays due to COVID.

Jeff Robinov, Guy Danella, and John Graham will produce from Studio 8 with Black Mask Studio’s Matteo Pizzolo and Brett Gurewitz to serve as producer and executive producer. Osajyefo and Smith are co-producers as well. The team is currently searching for a director.

Seith Mann Will Adapt the Comic Series Black

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Seith Mann has been hired to adapt the comic series Black by Studio 8. The comic series exploresa world where only black people have superpowers.

The goal is to franchise the IP and develop the first spin-off comic Black [AF]: America’s Sweetheart which focuses on one female lead as opposed to the original series’ ensemble cast.

The comic series is by co-creator/writer Kwanza Osajyefo, co-creator/designer Tim Smith 3, artist Jamal Igle and cover artist Khary Randolph. The series is published by Black Mask Studios. Osajyefo and Tim Smith 3 are attached as co-producers, Matteo Pizzolo of Black Mask Studios is producing.

The original Black comic series focused on Kareem Jenkins who survives being gunned down by police and joins an underground group of black super heroes learning about the world conspiracy that hides the revelations that black individuals have super powers.

(via Deadline)

Black Gets Two Spin-Offs, Black [AF]: America’s Sweetheart and Black [AF]: Widows & Orphans

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Having taken the publishing industry by storm with a widely popular Kickstarter campaign for their acclaimed comic book, co-creators Kwanza Osajyefo and Tim Smith 3 are publishing two new titles set in the world of Black, their controversial comic that asks “in a world that already fears and hates them, what if only Black people had superpowers?” The progressive, Los Angeles-based indie publisher Black Mask Studios will publish both of these new projects in early 2018, the first of several planned Black spinoff titles.

On sale timed to Black History Month, the original graphic novel Black [AF]: America’s Sweetheart introduces America’s first superhero, a black teenage girl. Though Eli Franklin’s friends and neighbors in rural Montana think of her as a typical 15-year-old, she just might be the most powerful person on the planet. The adopted daughter of a government official, Eli sets out to give America hope as its first superhero, Good Girl, but soon discovers it may take more than donning a patriotic costume to lessen societal divides. On sale in comic book stores on January 31 and in bookstores on February 13, Black [AF]: America’s Sweetheart is a stand-alone YA story that updates classic superhero tropes (an adopted child manifests incredible powers of super strength, invulnerability, and flight) to tell a bold, thrilling, and timely origin story for a new generation. Artist Jennifer Johnson makes her graphic novel debut.

Following the publication of Black [AF]: America’s Sweetheart, Black Mask Studios will publish the miniseries Black [AF]: Widows & Orphans starting in April. The four-issue series will reunite Black co-creators Kwanza Osajyefo and Tim Smith 3, with Osajyefo  writing the series and Smith illustrating it. The series highlights Anansi, one of the characters introduced in Black, and marks the first Black series to be illustrated by Smith, who designed the characters that Jamal Igle illustrated in the first Black comics.

More Black titles are in development from the co-creators and Black Mask Studios.

BLACK AF: AMERICA’S SWEETHEART
written by Kwanza Osajyefo; illustrated by Jennifer Johnson
$9.99; 80 pages; Full Color
On sale: in comic book stores on January 31 and in bookstores on February 14, 2018

BLACK [AF]: WIDOWS & ORPHANS #1
written by Kwanza Osajyefo; illustrated by TIM SMITH 3
$3.99; 32 pages; Full Color;  Mature
On Sale: April 2018

Black is Optioned for the Big Screen by Studio 8

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Deadline is reporting that Studio 8 has snatched up the Kickstarter smashing indie comic series Black created by Kwanza Osajyefo and Tim Smith 3, written by Osajyefo, with art by Jamal Igle, covers by Khary Randolph, and published by Black Mask Studios. The plan currently is to bring the series to the big screen.

The six issue series has recently wrapped up and is about a world where only Black individuals have superpowers and a widespread global conspiracy about that knowledge pervails. The story primarily follows a young man who survives being gunned down by police and is brought into the conspiracy forcing him to decide if he’ll keep it a secret or the truth will set him free.

Osajyefo and Smith are attached as co-producers to the film, with Black Mask Studios’ Matteo Pizzolo producing.

This isn’t the first comic property for Studio 8, they aquired film options for Scout by Timothy Truman.

Around the Tubes

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The weekend is almost here. What geeky things will folks be doing? Sound off in the comments. While you decide on all of that, here’s some comic news and reviews from around the web in our morning roundup.

Around the Tubes

Kotaku – Marvel vs. Capcom Infinite Wants Even Newbies To Have A Blast – Who’s excited for this?

The Verge – How Wonder Woman’s iconic features turned her into a progressive icon – Some interesting history here.

ICv2 – ‘The Tick’ Comics Return – This could be really cool.

 

Around the Tubes Reviews

Batman News – Batgirl #10

Comic Attack – Black #5

Talking Comics – The Flash #21

Review: Black #5

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In the aftermath of his defection from The Project, Kareem comes face-to-face with the harsh consequences of his decision. Juncture and his team enlist Detective Waters’s help in a drastic effort to find the boy before he’s too far gone into the system – but a great threat may have nefarious designs for Kareem’s unique abilities.

In Black #5, it feels everything is finally laid out for us readers to fully understand what’s going on. Up until this point I wasn’t completely sold as to who could be trust and who couldn’t and at the end of this issue, I’m still not 100%, but there’s some interesting twists and turns throughout.

The issue focuses on Kareem and The Project also trying to figure out what happened to him. While the story at its heart isn’t completely unique (a person with great power who uncontrolled could destroy the world) what Kwanza Osajyefo and Tim Smith 3 bring in the story is how that type of story has a layered meaning when the skin color changes from white to black.

The strongest thing about Black isn’t so much what it’s trying to say or the overall story, but getting the reader to see how the meaning and themes of stories change when the skin color of the main character is changed. To me, that’s the thing I’m most enjoying about it and its getting me to think about the other comics I’m consuming and how a simple change of a character’s skin color can completely change the “meaning” of a scene or series. What Black also does well as shown in this issue is take the real world events and bring them into the comic. The divide in how White America and Back America are treated is brought up as well as coded wording used to dehumanize Black individuals. It’s not overtly in your face, but natural dialogue that adds to the overarching story and its themes.

The art by Jamal Igle is solid delivering black and white action (no pun intended) and the varying characters. There’s little cut and paste here (the only example is generic soldiers in armor) instead every character has a unique look and style of their own that stands out and brings them life. As always, Khary Randolph’s covers draw you in. These are some of the best, most striking covers on the shelves.

The series has had its ups and downs, but the story as a whole is amazing in its themes and what it says. Each issue feels like it adds depth when it comes to that getting the readers to think not just about the current issue, but the past ones as well. Black is an entertaining read and one that challenges the reader to think and explore beyond the page.

Story: Kwanza Osajyefo, Tim Smith 3 Art: Jamal Igle Cover Art: Khary Randolph
Story: 7.85 Art: 7.85 Overall: 7.85 Recommendation: Read

Preview: Black #5

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BLACK #5

Created by: Kwanza Osajyefo & Tim Smith 3
Written by: Kwanza Osajyefo
Illustrated by: Jamal Igle
Cover by: Khary Randolph
In Stores: April 19

In the aftermath of his defection from The Project, Kareem comes face-to-face with the harsh consequences of his decision. Juncture and his team enlist Detective Waters’ help in a drastic effort to find the boy before he’s too far gone into the system – but a great threat may have nefarious designs for Kareem’s unique abilities.

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