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Preview: Zero Instance #3

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Zero Instance #3

Co-Written by Frank Barbiere and Stephen Rhodes
Art by Eoin Marron
Colors by Lauren Affe
Letters by Taylor Esposito
Covers by Vic Malhotra
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Braxir—the escaped game boss—learns to manipulate humans like NPCs, exploiting phones, drones, and intelligent systems to bend reality to his will. Rhys and Ellie begin to suspect the truth: their friend may be trapped inside the game. The clock is ticking, and the lines between simulation and reality are starting to blur.

Cover of 'Zero Instance' Issue 3 featuring a muscular character in a dynamic pose with a dark background and bold title.
Cover page for 'Zero Instance', featuring the title prominently, with credits for the writers, artists, and letters in a modern design.
A muscular man with short hair and a beard stands in a messy kitchen, holding a phone to his ear with a serious expression. Papers and a laptop are scattered on the counter, displaying a profile with the name 'Ben'. The kitchen has an unkempt appearance, with various items, including an open cupboard and cluttered surfaces.
A comic panel depicting a young man on the phone looking concerned, a young woman with glasses responding to him, and an older man standing nearby, all discussing a friend's alarming situation.
A comic panel showing a woman knocking on a door, expressing concern about a mutual friend named Chris, while a man inside responds that he thinks Chris is in trouble.
A comic book panel depicting a conversation between two characters in a car, with a city skyline and sunset in the background. The characters discuss a past event involving a missing person and express concern over the situation.
A comic panel featuring a tense conversation between two characters in a car, discussing a tracking app.

Preview: Zero Instance #2

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Zero Instance #2

Written by Frank Barbiere and Stephen Rhodes
Art by Vic Malhotra issues #1-2 and Eoin Marron issues #3-5
Colors by Lauren Affe
Letters by Taylor Esposito
Covers by Vic Malhotra
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Chris is missing. Rhys tries to keep it together, but something is off. Spencer, the game’s reclusive designer, is tracking a code anomaly he believes escaped the server. Meanwhile, something wearing Chris’s skin is exploring the rules of reality and discovering just how fragile our world is.

Zero Instance #2

Preview: Zero Instance #1

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Zero Instance #1

Written by Frank Barbiere and Stephen Rhodes
Art by Vic Malhotra issues #1-2 and Eoin Marron issues #3-5
Colors by Lauren Affe,
Letters by Taylor Esposito
Covers by Vic Malhotra
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A routine raid in a popular MMO video game takes a deadly turn in Zero Instance, an exciting new five-issue sci-fi horror thriller comic book series from acclaimed storyteller and video game writer Frank Barbiere (Astonishing Times) and award-winning game writer and comics newcomer Stephen Rhodes, making his creator-owned debut with the series. Featuring art by Vic Malhotra issues #1-2 and Eoin Marron issues #3-5, colors by Lauren Affe, letters by Taylor Esposito and covers by Vic Malhotra, Zero Instance starts with a bang as the final boss escapes the screen and bleeds into the real world.

For Rhys, Everon Online is the one place where everything makes sense. So when his raid group achieves the impossible — a world’s-first kill on the game’s legendary final boss — it should be a triumph. Instead, something goes wrong in the final moments, and the fallout follows them offline. A sci-fi thriller about what we bring back with us from the worlds we escape into.

Zero Instance #1

Frank J. Barbiere and Morgan Beem invite readers into the storyworld of The Author Immortal

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Frank Barbiere, Morgan Beem, Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou, and Sasha Head are teaming up for The Author Immortal, launching in October from Image Comics. The series will premiere with an extra-length, 40-page debut issue and feature variant covers by Yuko Shimizu and Jorge Corona. The Author Immortal is Barbiere’s return to monthly comics is intended to be an an ongoing series that’ll run for a considerable period. It explores the power of stories, the decline of modern authors, and what it means to take control of your own story and identity.

The Author Immortal follows Hector Ramirez, a failed writer who gets the opportunity of a lifetime: to help reboot the fantasy book series that defined his childhood. But when he discovers the original author has mysteriously vanished into his fictional world, Hector is pulled into a realm where stories are alive, and some are willing to kill to stay in control.

In the announcement, Barbierie said:

The Author Immortal is my return to monthly comics, and I’m thrilled to be collaborating with Morgan Beem. Morgan’s art has been a constant inspiration, and she’s brought these characters and world to life in ways I never could have imagined. Together, we’re telling a story about identity, legacy, and what happens when we lose trust in the stories that define us. In recent years, many of us have felt that trust breaking down: authors falling from grace, stories treated as disposable content, and the threat of AI hollowing out what makes storytelling human. The Author Immortal is our attempt to explore what happens when we try to reclaim control and what it costs to believe in stories again. I hope this book inspires and intrigues our readers, and that you’ll join us on our journey.

Beem added:

Growing up with movies like Labyrinth and Return to Oz, I have always been fascinated by the fantastic journey to another world type of stories. Frank manages to breathe new life to the genre by bringing in characters that feel SO real in their struggles and their flaws. On my end, I get to experiment and put my own spin on the visual elements that we have come to expect from these narratives. Hopefully we get to surprise you and pull you in like those old stories did for me!

The Author Immortal #1 will be available at comic book shops on Wednesday, October 1:

  • Cover A by Morgan Beem – Lunar Code 0825IM0274
  • Cover B by Yuko Shimizu – Lunar Code 0825IM0275
  • Cover C 1:25 by Jorge Corona – Lunar Code 0825IM0276
  • Cover D 1:50 by Shimizu (foil) – Lunar Code 0825IM0277
The Author Immortal #1

Get a taste of the flavors in the all-star Ice Cream Man #43 with one-page horror stories

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This January, the iconic Ice Cream Man creators W. Maxwell Prince, Martín Morazzo, and Chris O’Halloran will be joined by an all-star lineup of creators contributing their own flavors to the cheeky critically-acclaimed anthology horror series for the all-star Ice Cream Man #43, composed of one-page tales of terror. Some of the biggest names in comics, including Grant Morrison, Patton Oswalt, Matt Fraction, Kelly Sue DeConnick, Jeff Lemire, Geoff Johns, Deniz Camp, and Frank Barbiere have crafted their own original stories for the jam-packed edition full of goodies. Ice Cream Man #43 will also feature Zoe Thorogood’s short story “For James,” and the issue is dedicated to her brother, with partial proceeds from sales of the issue going to charity on his behalf. And now fans can get an early taste of the comic with a look at the table of contents—with the terrifying titles revealed—as well as the full “Baby Grand Piano” story written by Prince, and panels from Grant Morrison’s “Hell Freezes” and Matt Fraction’s “Life by Misadventure” stories, all featuring at by Morazzo and O’Halloran.

The Ice Cream Man anthology series, led by mysterious horror host Rick, is a genre-defying comic book series featuring short tales of sorrow, wonder, and redemption, with each installment featuring its own cast of strange characters, dealing with their own special sundae of suffering. And on the periphery of all of them, like the twinkly music of his colorful truck, is the Ice Cream Man—a weaver of stories, a purveyor of sweet treats. Friend. Foe. God. Demon. The man who, with a snap of his fingers—lickety split!—can change the course of your life forever. Ice Cream Man has rippled through the comic book scene since its debut in 2018 and recently was scooped up for the big screen by veteran writers Alfred Gough and Miles Millar. 

Ice Cream Man #43 will be available at comic book shops on Wednesday, January 29 (FOC January 6):

  • Cover A by Martín Morazzo and Chris O’Halloran (Lunar code 1124IM255)
  • Cover B by Maria Llovet (Lunar code 1124IM256)

Preview: Astonishing Times: The Rise of the Kokin #5

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Astonishing Times: The Rise of the Kokin #5

Written by Frank Barbiere and Arris Quinones
Art by Ruairi Coleman
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Spinning out of the pages of the smash hit series Astonishing Times from Frank J. Barbiere, Arris Quinones, and Ruairi Coleman, Rise of the Kokin tells the story of Kokin, the mysterious cybernetic samurai.

A tragic tale of revenge comes to its close as Kokin fights back against those who have betrayed him — but at what cost? Witness the final chapter of Kokin’s origin!

Astonishing Times: Rise of the Kokin #5

Preview: Astonishing Times: The Rise of Kokin #3

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Astonishing Times: The Rise of Kokin #3

Written by Frank Barbiere and Arris Quinones
Art by Ruairi Coleman
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Spinning out of the pages of the smash hit series Astonishing Times from Frank J. Barbiere, Arris Quinones, and Ruairi Coleman, Rise of the Kokin tells the story of Kokin, the mysterious cybernetic samurai.

Reeling from the shocking events of the previous issue, Kokin is on the hunt for an assassin. But what he discovers will change everything!

Astonishing Times: The Rise of Kokin #3

Preview: Lazarus Planet: Assault on Krypton #1

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Lazarus Planet: Assault on Krypton #1

(W) Nicole Maines, C.S. Pacat, Frank Barbiere, and Leah Williams (A) Skylar Patridge, Scott Godlewski, Sami Basri, and Marguerite Sauvage
In Shops: Jan 17, 2023
SRP: $4.99

With the world in chaos and Lazarus raining from the skies, the Earth’s protectors from Krypton are hit hard. In this collection of epic vignettes from in and around Lazarus Planet, we’ll see heroes transformed, secrets revealed, and power unleashed. Can Power Girl free herself from the out-of-control Omen? Will Dreamer’s visions guide our heroes to the path of victory? Can Mercy Graves survive the transformation she’s undergone? And will Jonathan Kent ever be the same again?

Lazarus Planet: Assault on Krypton #1

Preview: Lazarus Planet: Assault on Krypton #1

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Lazarus Planet: Assault on Krypton #1

(W) Nicole Maines, C.S. Pacat, Frank Barbiere, and Leah Williams (A) Skylar Patridge, Scott Godlewski, Sami Basri, and Marguerite Sauvage
In Shops: Jan 17, 2023
SRP: $4.99

With the world in chaos and Lazarus raining from the skies, the Earth’s protectors from Krypton are hit hard. In this collection of epic vignettes from in and around Lazarus Planet, we’ll see heroes transformed, secrets revealed, and power unleashed. Can Power Girl free herself from the out-of-control Omen? Will Dreamer’s visions guide our heroes to the path of victory? Can Mercy Graves survive the transformation she’s undergone? And will Jonathan Kent ever be the same again?

Lazarus Planet: Assault on Krypton #1

Preview: Astonishing Times

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Astonishing Times

Co-Written by Frank Barbiere and Arris Quinones
Art by Ruairi Coleman
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A modern superhero story that celebrates the genre and redefines heroes for a new generation, by Award-winning writer Frank J. Barbiere returns to creator-owned comics alongside Arris Quinones, host of YouTube’s Variant Comics.

In a world where superheroes are common place, Noah Sans, a young reporter trying to live up to the legacy of his father, investigates a mystery involving missing superheroes that quickly turns into a thrilling conspiracy.

Noah Sans, a young reporter living in the shadow of his father, lives in a world full of superheroes—but no one seems to care. After a world changing event called The Cataclysm, people moved on, and now heroes are old news. But when Noah begins investigating a mysterious murder, he comes face to face with his most revered heroes and is forced to confront a secret past that could change the world forever.

Astonishing Times is a love letter to the medium of comics and a celebration of superheroes old and new. Award-winning writer Frank J. Barbiere returns to creator-owned comics alongside Arris Quinones, host of YouTube’s Variant, to craft a modern classic that redefines superheroes for a new era with stunning art by Ruairí Coleman and color artist Lauren Affe. Together, the team hopes to inspire a new generation of fans young and old, and remind us all that heroes are everywhere.

Astonishing Times
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