On August 31, Marvel celebrates 84 years of stories and characters that have shaped pop culture as we know it. To mark the occasion, Marvel will be releasing Marvel Age #1000, a massive commemorative issue that includes contributions from some of the most storied creators in Marvel history, as well as a few surprises!
Marvel’s big day honors the release of Marvel Comics #1, the one that started it all! The groundbreaking issue opened the doors to the Marvel Universe for the first time ever, creating a tapestry of Super Heroes and stories that have gone on inspire generations of fans around the world. The stories featured in Marvel Age #1000 will be a grand tour of the Marvel mythos with stories that explore the classic days of Marvel in exciting new depth!
J. Michael Straczynski and Kaare Andrews create the Marvel Universe in a backyard!
Dan Slott and Michael Allred depict a crucial turning point for Captain Marvel!
Rainbow Rowell and Marguerite Sauvage explore the blossoming relationship between Cyclops and Jean Grey!
The original Human Torch finds his purpose thanks to Mark Waid and Alessandro Cappuccio!
The Silver Surfer confronts Mephisto under the guidance of Steve McNiven!
Jason Aaron and Pepe Larraz detail Thor’s impact on a mortal life!
Ryan Stegman explores the support network of Spider-Man’s friends and family!
Armando Iannucci and Adam Kubert pit Daredevil up against a very human problem!
And more!
In addition, Marvel Age #1000 will bring back a classic and beloved Marvel Comics tradition: The Marvel Comics Value Stamp! Who or what will the ultimate Marvel Value Stamp, #1000, feature?
Check out Gary Frank’s awe-inspiring cover below and stay tuned for more details about Marvel Age #1000 in the months ahead!
This last year saw the long-awaited return of Peter Milligan, Michael Allred, and Laura Allred’s X-Statix saga in X-Cellent, and Marvel has announced that there’s more to come this March! The trio of comic superstars will reunite for even more mutant celebrity exploits in the pages of a five-issue sequel series, TheX-Cellent. The series will continue the offbeat, thrilling adventures of X-Statix and further explore their newly-introduced supervillain counterparts known as the X-Cellent.
A breakout hit of the 2000s, X-Statix stunned fans with its dark wit and unique take on Marvel super heroics. More timely and relevant than ever, fans can once again visit this fascinating and strange corner of the Marvel Universe and all its fan-favorite characters including U-Go Girl, Zeitgeist, Doop, and more!
Your favorite celebrity super villains are back! Zeitgeist is still on a mission to achieve social media godhood, no matter who he has to kill! But the spotlight won’t be big enough when the next generation of the X-Statix drop in!
Be there for the next chapter of Peter Milligan, Michael Allred, and Laura Allred’s mutant celebrity saga this March!
There’s so many different takes on Superman throughout the years. The character is an icon and the basic take on the character tends to focus on a few pillars that are part of his DNA. The idea of a god-like person raised as a normal human and what he does with that power is key. The optimistic outlook is pretty important as well. Superman: Space Age #1 takes us to that time as Clark Kent is figuring those things out. Set in the 1960s, the issue has Clark on his farm trying to figure out the future and his place in it.
Written by Mark Russell, Superman: Space Age #1 starts with a disaster. It’s the end of existence as Clark/Superman huddles with Lois and their son as existence looks to end. Russell shifts things back a bit taking us through the early years as Clark transitions from farmer to journalist. There, he meets a man named Pariah who says existence has 20 years. For those steeped in DC history, you know where this is going but it’s done in a way that feels fresh and interesting. It also ties into some of Russell’s bigger themes he explores. What is Clark’s destiny. Is it written in stone like Pariah’s view of the future? Can Clark change things at all?
The issue dances around these concepts as we’re taken through major events and some alt-history in the DC Universe. The death of President Kennedy is key to events as it triggers the rising threat of nuclear war. Clark taking his first steps to prevent that almost causes what he attempts to prevent. It’s all small moments that can really take things one way or another. Single individuals who impact world changing events. Russell nails all that down in a very cohesive and focused story.
The art by Michael Allred is great as always. Joined by Laura Allred on color and lettering with Dave Sharpe, the comic plays off of the time period it’s set. Things have a retro look as we get to see a take on Batman of the time, Lex Luthor’s world feels a bit more out of Mad Men, small details like clothes and transportation keep reminding readers when the story is set. The story’s time period is key and the art really nails it but at the same time keeps things with a slight future twist about it. There’s a pop sensibility about it, the type the Allred’s excel at.
Superman: Space Age #1 is an interesting debut. It’s a comic that has a clear focus and theme running throughout. It does a great job of not overdoing its concepts but in each key moment, those concepts are important. It has an underlying philosophy about it and integrates that into the story in a smooth way that’ll get readers to think and ponder what it has to say.
Story: Mark Russell Art: Michael Allred Color: Laura Allred Letterer: Dave Sharpe Story: 8.25 Art: 8.25 Overall:8.25 Recommendation: Buy
DC Comics provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review
This week on Kickstarter, superstar artists Michael Allred, Stephen R. Bissette, Jae Lee, Nick Pitarra, Paul Pope, Bill Sienkiewicz, and legendary letterer Clem Robins teamed up with rising star artist Vanessa Cardinali and debut comic book writer Chanan Beizer for the all-new graphic novel, The Golem of Venice Beach.
The 152-page epic story about the adventures of a 400-year-old Golem spans from 16th century Europe, to the horrors of World War II, to modern day Venice Beach, where the Golem has become entangled in a war between a gang and the police. Both a riveting narrative and a celebration of Southern California, The Golem of Venice Beach has already hit its funding mark on Kickstarter and shows no sign of stopping!
We’ve got an exclusive behind-the-scenes process art for the book from artists Paul Pope, Mike Allred, and Jae Lee!
Mike Allred
Jae Lee
Paul Pope
A rejected logo by Bill Sienkiewicz
The Golem of Venice Beach features:
A wrap-around cover and a seven-page prologue by artist Bill Sienkiewicz (Moon Knight) that showcases the Golem’s creation in the year 1580.
A 10-page flashback sequence by Jae Lee (The Inhumans) and colorist June Chung that depicts how the Golem was resurrected during World War Two.
A 2-page spread and map of Venice Beach that captures everything weird and wonderful about the bohemian spirit that permeates the neighborhood by Michael Allred and colorist Laura Allred (Madman).
An eerie phantasmagoria by Stephen R. Bissette (Saga of the Swamp Thing).
A 2 page-splash page by Nick Pitarra (the creator of the highly anticipated Ax-Wielder Jon) that features every single person who is on panel in the book in one huge, cinematic crowd shot.
A stunning 2-page portrait, featuring the iconic Santa Monica Pier by Paul Pope (Battling Boy) and colorist Lovern Kindzierski.
Over 100 pages of gorgeous art by the book’s main artist, Vanessa Cardinali.
It’s finally here! This February, writer Peter Milligan, artist Michael Allred, and color artist Laura Allred make their long-awaited return to their iconic X-Statix saga in X-Cellent #1!
Back in the 2000s, X-Statix stunned readers with its unique spin on Marvel super heroics and off-beat characters. Now, this hit series is back along with the original creative team for more comic book brilliance overflowing with wit, charm, and high-octane thrills! Get ready for more adventures of X-Statix starring your favorite heroes from the classic series along with a brand-new team of rivals that will take this one-of-a-kind series to a fresh and exciting new future!
They were loved by their adoring fans. They were reviled by the harsh press. They lived, they loved, they fought and they died…a lot — all for the sake of fame. They were the X-Statix, a team of mutant celebrities fighting for a brighter world and an even brighter spotlight! But they’re old news now, because there’s a new mutant team that will live harder, love harder, fight harder and die a whole lot harder than those has-beens! Meet…THE X-CELLENT!
Don’t miss the triumphant comeback of X-Statix when X-Cellent #1 arrives in February!
Hey Amateur! Go From Novice to Nailing it in Nine Panels
(W) Gail Simone, Delilah Dawson, Leah Moore, Gene Ha, VARIOUS (A) Martin Simmonds, Jen Hickman, Rafael Albuquerque, Gilbert Hernandez, Various (CA) Michael Allred In Shops: Dec 09, 2020 SRP: $19.99
What do you want to learn about? Take your pick in this anthology combining the unprecedented approach of a “how to” book with the diverse subject matter from over 100 contributors sharing their hidden talents via one-page, nine-panel comics!
Includes entries from a variety of comics creatives including John Allison, Kelly Sue DeConnick, Becky Cloonan, Sanford Greene, Paul Pope, Gail Simone, Mark Buckingham, Box Brown, Gilbert Hernandez, Jill Thompson, Chynna Clugston Flores, and more.
Each story is part personal “how to,” part “how-so.” Some of these one-pagers will illuminate aspects of the comic book storytelling process like drawing likenesses, lettering, and cropping art panels. Others go beyond the comics world from the practical (catching a loose dog, changing a tire, speaking in public), to the fun (creating cheap horror makeup, skanking at a ska show, faking a guitar solo), to the peculiar (destroying the Internet, training your doppelgänger, surviving a bear attack–probably).
All-star creators from South Africa, South America, North America, England, India, and other parts of the world share their favorite recipes, traditions, and talents in this fun, educational anthology. Learn new skills or hone the ones you’ve got.
Bonus features include a brand-new story, “How to Wash Your Hands,” an introduction by Kelly Sue DeConnick and an essay about the traditional 9-panel grid by Jim Rugg.
Michael Allred, Steve Horton, and Laura Allred’s graphic biography Bowie: Stardust, Rayguns, & Moonage Daydreamsis a love letter to musical legend and bisexual chameleon, David Bowie. The book mainly focuses on his Ziggy Stardust period with the Allreds beautifully illustrating a montage of live shows as Bowie’s creation and the Spiders from Mars come to vivid life in Europe, North America, and Asia. Horton and Allred use the Spiders’ final gig at London’s Hammersmith Odeon as a framing narrative. Because Bowie had a six-decade recording career, this narrative strategy is effective and also turns the comic into a history of a certain period of pop music when peace beads and flower headdresses were replaced with elaborate makeup, big guitars, and all things glam.
Although the ever-shifting image of David Bowie himself is always at the center of Bowie, Horton and Allred tell their story in what is basically a series of montages. There will be a beautiful dream sequence with a trippy color palette from Laura Allred that visually shows the inspiration of hit songs like “Space Oddity”, “Life on Mars”, or “Rock n Roll Suicide” to name a few, and then we’ll get a list of various celebrities at a Ziggy Stardust show or a check-in on what’s happening with his contemporaries like T. Rex’s Marc Bolan or Lou Reed.
For the most part, Horton uses minimal captions and lets Mike Allred’s art and Laura Allred’s tell the story. But when the comic calls for it, he can inject moments of humor like Bowie’s reaction to his son Zowie (Now director Duncan Jones) destroying his record collection or poignancy when Bowie reflects on his family’s history of mental illness or begins to articulate the idea of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars to his band. Horton and Allred draw parallels between both Ziggy and Bowie’s hubris as he turns a blind eye when his corrupt lawyer is paying long term band members three times less than relatively new keyboard player, Mike Garson. Although they’re iconic images, there is an air of ego to Bowie’s famous Aladdin Sane photo shoot with Allred’s use of negative space crowding the Spiders from Mars out of the frame even though guitarist Mick Ronson was a vital part of his music and helped keep him focus when he was too busy flirting with his lover-turned-wife, Angie.
However, what will stay with me most from Bowie are the Allreds’ ability to capture the energy of live music while still doing spot-on likenesses of historical figures performing. When Mick Ronson and Bowie harmonize on “Starman” or (controversially) embrace on a Top of the Pops performance, there is a camaraderie and almost sexual chemistry between the two men that makes the later “breakup” scene emotionally resonant. Although Allred mainly puts Bowie at the center of the frame, he makes sure to cut to the audience and their hands as they are inspired and reaffirmed that it’s okay to be a little strange or non-heterosexual by this benevolent, iconic alien before them. The Allreds add some flourishes like Kirby Krackle every time Bowie does something that is especially extraterrestrial like floating in space in an early film that was a companion to “Space Oddity”.
Underneath the heavily researched and striking fashions and celebrity cameos, Bowie is about creating an identity out of the things one is passionate about. For example, Bowie and his band mates saw A Clockwork Orange when it was first release, and it immediately impacted the costuming, visual design, and even the intro of the Ziggy Stardust live show. Basically, he was a huge nerd for pop and folk music, high fashion, literature, and film, and it shown out in both his art and the way he approached the world. Bowie is filled with moments where Horton and Allred (And by extension, David Bowie) respects their fellow artists like a full page splash homage to Bob Dylan and Elvis, bringing up Lou Reed on stage, running around Detroit with Iggy Pop, and inspiring the young Morrissey and Bruce Springsteen during his concerts. It shows that art can lead to friendship, lifelong influences, and sometimes tragedy like the aforementioned tension between Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars.
Bowie: Stardust, Rayguns, and Moonage Daydreams is a highly stylized, yet infinitely human look at an important period in David Bowie’s career from Mike Allred, Steve Horton, and Laura Allred. The graphic biography captures the feeling of the music of Ziggy Stardust and Aladdin Sane through dreamlike visuals as well as adding historical context to these songs and albums and personal anecdotes that add both vulnerable and mystique to Bowie’s story. Its epilogue also kind of made me want a sequel featuring the Thin White Duke and some of Bowie’s later personas. This book truly feels like a passion project and transported me to a bittersweet day six years when a closeted, sad teenager listened to the CD of The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stars and the Spiders from Mars and felt “not alone”. It’s a must read for any Bowie fan, especially those who love his early-1970s work the best.
Story: SteveHorton and Michael Allred Art: Michael AllredColors: Laura Allred Story: 7.5 Art: 9.5 Overall: 8.5 Recommendation: Buy
Insight Comics provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review
Riverdale’s favorite girl-next-door is upgrading her already impressive power set this June as she takes the lead in a super-fun, super-exciting, super-powered one-shot comic book, Betty Cooper: Superteen!
Based on the classic superpowered versions of the Riverdale gang dating back to 1965, known as “Archie’s Super Teens,” this modern update of Betty’s super alter ego is written by YA fantasy phenom Danielle Paige, and features an updated stylistic look by artist Brittney Williams. Betty’s modernized costume was redesigned by Robbi Rodriguez of Spider-Gwen fame.
In this fresh starting point for new Superteen fans, Betty is gifted with superpowers and takes the opportunity to level up her constant efforts to help people. But a new villain is on the scene, as well, and it looks like it might be her BFF, Veronica!
Betty Cooper is always trying her best. To be the best student. The best friend. The best person she can be. She’s not perfect – but she’s always willing to help. But when she finds herself gifted with out-of-this-world powers can Betty still do good without it affecting the low-key life she’s come to love? Also, what’s up with that villain looking a lot like . . . Veronica? BETTY COOPER: SUPERTEEN is a fun, action-adventure exploration of what it means to be a hero, set firmly in the familiar and modern world of Archie Comics.
Written by Daniel Paige, the comic features art by Brittney Williams, Matt Herms, and Jack Morelli. It features a main cover by Williams with variants by Michael Allred, Emanuela Luppacchino, Marguerite Sauvage, and Michael Walsh. Betty Cooper: Superteen arrives in comic shops on June 10, 2020.
Script: Alex Segura and Matt Rosenberg Art: Dan Parent, J. Bone, Glenn Whitmore, Jack Morelli Cover: Dan Parent, Michael Allred, Tyler Boss, Joe Eisma, Francesco Francavilla On Sale Date: 2/19 32-page, full color comic $3.99 U.S.
It’s a rock and roll adventure for the ages as Archie and his friends cross paths with a real rock lobster—the B-52s! Co-written by Alex Segura and Matthew Rosenberg (Archie Meets Ramones, The Archies), with art from the legendary Dan Parent (Archie Meets KISS), this epic crossover one-shot brings the B-52 gang into Riverdale in all their new wave glory—but can Archie get his band back together in time to jam with these legends, or will in-fighting and musical drama leave them in the dust? There’s only one way to find out!
Michael Allred, Steve Horton, and Laura Allred’s graphic biography Bowie: Stardust, Rayguns, & Moonage Daydreamsis a love letter to musical legend and bisexual chameleon, David Bowie. The book mainly focuses on his Ziggy Stardust period with the Allreds beautifully illustrating a montage of live shows as Bowie’s creation and the Spiders from Mars come to vivid life in Europe, North America, and Asia. Horton and Allred use the Spiders’ final gig at London’s Hammersmith Odeon as a framing narrative. Because Bowie had a six-decade recording career, this narrative strategy is effective and also turns the comic into a history of a certain period of pop music when peace beads and flower headdresses were replaced with elaborate makeup, big guitars, and all things glam.
Although the ever-shifting image of David Bowie himself is always at the center of Bowie, Horton and Allred tell their story in what is basically a series of montages. There will be a beautiful dream sequence with a trippy color palette from Laura Allred that visually shows the inspiration of hit songs like “Space Oddity”, “Life on Mars”, or “Rock n Roll Suicide” to name a few, and then we’ll get a list of various celebrities at a Ziggy Stardust show or a check-in on what’s happening with his contemporaries like T. Rex’s Marc Bolan or Lou Reed.
For the most part, Horton uses minimal captions and lets Mike Allred’s art and Laura Allred’s tell the story. But when the comic calls for it, he can inject moments of humor like Bowie’s reaction to his son Zowie (Now director Duncan Jones) destroying his record collection or poignancy when Bowie reflects on his family’s history of mental illness or begins to articulate the idea of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars to his band. Horton and Allred draw parallels between both Ziggy and Bowie’s hubris as he turns a blind eye when his corrupt lawyer is paying long term band members three times less than relatively new keyboard player, Mike Garson. Although they’re iconic images, there is an air of ego to Bowie’s famous Aladdin Sane photo shoot with Allred’s use of negative space crowding the Spiders from Mars out of the frame even though guitarist Mick Ronson was a vital part of his music and helped keep him focus when he was too busy flirting with his lover-turned-wife, Angie.
However, what will stay with me most from Bowie are the Allreds’ ability to capture the energy of live music while still doing spot-on likenesses of historical figures performing. When Mick Ronson and Bowie harmonize on “Starman” or (controversially) embrace on a Top of the Pops performance, there is a camaraderie and almost sexual chemistry between the two men that makes the later “breakup” scene emotionally resonant. Although Allred mainly puts Bowie at the center of the frame, he makes sure to cut to the audience and their hands as they are inspired and reaffirmed that it’s okay to be a little strange or non-heterosexual by this benevolent, iconic alien before them. The Allreds add some flourishes like Kirby Krackle every time Bowie does something that is especially extraterrestrial like floating in space in an early film that was a companion to “Space Oddity”.
Underneath the heavily researched and striking fashions and celebrity cameos, Bowie is about creating an identity out of the things one is passionate about. For example, Bowie and his band mates saw A Clockwork Orange when it was first release, and it immediately impacted the costuming, visual design, and even the intro of the Ziggy Stardust live show. Basically, he was a huge nerd for pop and folk music, high fashion, literature, and film, and it shown out in both his art and the way he approached the world. Bowie is filled with moments where Horton and Allred (And by extension, David Bowie) respects their fellow artists like a full page splash homage to Bob Dylan and Elvis, bringing up Lou Reed on stage, running around Detroit with Iggy Pop, and inspiring the young Morrissey and Bruce Springsteen during his concerts. It shows that art can lead to friendship, lifelong influences, and sometimes tragedy like the aforementioned tension between Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars.
Bowie: Stardust, Rayguns, and Moonage Daydreams is a highly stylized, yet infinitely human look at an important period in David Bowie’s career from Mike Allred, Steve Horton, and Laura Allred. The graphic biography captures the feeling of the music of Ziggy Stardust and Aladdin Sane through dreamlike visuals as well as adding historical context to these songs and albums and personal anecdotes that add both vulnerable and mystique to Bowie’s story. Its epilogue also kind of made me want a sequel featuring the Thin White Duke and some of Bowie’s later personas. This book truly feels like a passion project and transported me to a bittersweet day six years when a closeted, sad teenager listened to the CD of The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stars and the Spiders from Mars and felt “not alone”. It’s a must read for any Bowie fan, especially those who love his early-1970s work the best.
Story: SteveHorton and Michael Allred Art: Michael AllredColors: Laura Allred Story: 7.5 Art: 9.5 Overall: 8.5 Recommendation: Buy
Insight Comics provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review
