The upcoming miniseries Deep Cuts—co-written by Massive-Verse architect Kyle Higgins and award winning composer Joe Clark—will feature connecting covers across all six issues of the series. Image Comics has revealed the connecting cover image (artwork by Chris Brunner and colors by Rico Renzi) which highlights a span of 60 iconic years of music history explored throughout the story.
The superstar talent on deck to provide interior art for each issue include: Danilo Beyruth, Helena Masellis, Diego Greco, Ramón K Pérez, Juni Ba, and Toby Cypress with all issues colored by Igor Monti.
Bonus backmatter material for each Deep Cuts issue will also include lead sheets of original songs by Chicago jazz composers, inspired by and connected to each issue’s story.
Inspired by real events, Deep Cuts tells stories of the interconnected struggle, joy and hope in jazz as well as the (sometimes) stray connections that ultimately inspire each new generation.
Deep Cuts #1 is set in New Orleans, 1917. In the city’s bustling red-light district, a young clarinet player lands a job with his hero—but he’ll soon discover there’s more to the music business than playing the right notes.
Deep Cuts #1 (Diamond Code FEB230009) will be available at comic book shops on Wednesday, April 26. Deep Cuts #2 (Diamond Code MAR230125) will be available at comic book shops on Wednesday, May 31. Deep Cuts #3 (Diamond Code APR230235) will be available at comic book shops on Wednesday, June 28.
Radiant Black writers Kyle Higgins and Joe Clark team up with an all-star cast of best selling artists for the forthcoming, Deep Cuts. This miniseries will feature six double-length issues and will launch in April from Image Comics.
The artists on deck for each issue include Danilo Beyruth, Helena Masellis, Diego Greco, Ramón K Pérez, Juni Ba, and Toby Cypress with all issues colored by Igor Monti. The covers will all be connecting artwork by Chris Brunner and Rico Renzi and will span 60 iconic years of music history.
Bonus backmatter material for each Deep Cuts issue will also include lead sheets of original songs by Chicago jazz composers, inspired by and connected to each issue’s story.
Inspired by real events, Deep Cuts tells stories of the interconnected struggle, joy and hope in jazz as well as the (sometimes) stray connections that ultimately inspire each new generation.
Deep Cuts #1 is set in New Orleans, 1917. In the city’s bustling red-light district, a young clarinet player lands a job with his hero—but he’ll soon discover there’s more to the music business than playing the right notes.
Deep Cuts #1 (Diamond Code FEB230009) will be available at comic book shops on Wednesday, April 26.
There is wisdom in the land of the dead, for it is the place that all stories lay to rest. And what is a story, if not a simulation of survival? Brian McDonald lays out a history of storytelling and shows the reader how the best tales tug at our truest biological instinct: the need to survive.
Story: Brian McDonald Art: Toby Cypress
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Twelve Reasons to Die acts as the source material for the 2013 concept album of the same title by Wu-Tang Clan member Ghostface Killah, and the record’s producer/composer Adrian Younge and executive producer RZA even get story and writer credits respectively on this comic, which is finally being released as a collected edition.A pre-4 Kids Walk Into A Bank/Marvel Matthew Rosenberg and Patrick Kindlon handle the brunt of the scripting though. The comic is a multi-generational crime saga in the mold of such classics like The Godfather Part II, Goodfellas, and Once Upon A Time in America with a horror spin. With the exception of the final one, each issue tells two parallel stories. The first is about the rise of African-American gangster Tony Starks (One of Ghostface Killah’s aliases.) from muscle for the DeLuca family to a kingpin in his own right, and it is drawn predominantly by artist Breno Tamura. Gus Storms handles the other story which features “crate digger” Michael Migdal looking for 9 rare records for Lucraze, the don of the DeLuca crime family, because he feels like they’re cursed and wants to destroy them.
The parallel structure of Twelve Reasons to Die allows Rosenberg, Kindlon, RZA, Tamura, Storm, colorist Jean-Paul Csuka, and the various guest artists to play with different genres, art styles, and palettes like Younge and Ghostface Killah play with different beats, instrumentation, samples, and deliveries on the album. Starks’ story is a crime saga while Migdal’s story is more horror, and both use elements from the blaxploitation genre. This really shows up in the artwork with Tamura’s work being looser with scratchy inks and Bronze Age era Ben-Day Dots while Storms’ art is softer and more grotesque with the mysterious “Ghostface Killer” lurking around the edges like something out of a bad dream waiting for the needle to drop and to bring vengeance.
The different guest artists, like Nate Powell, Joelle Jones, Edwin Huang, and Riley Rossmo, meld well with Storms and Tamura while bringing extra flair to key scenes like Starks torturing a racist DeLuca made man and framing him for having an affair with the boss’ wife, Logan (Who Starks is actually sleeping with.) or several night club and murder sequences. Csuka’s colors really tie everything together and control the mood of each sequence whether that’s the sleazy red and blue of the strip club where Starks gets his first assignment from the DeLuca (and later runs) to the pop art pink of a “masqua-rave” that Migdal goes to get one of the records from a DJ, who decides to play the record and gets devoured by ravers turned into insects. It’s a Kafka-esque acid trip that shows the decadence of the DeLuca “social club” (They’ve filed off the serial numbers of their criminal enterprises.), and of course, there’s a panel where Migdal vomits.
Twelve Reasons to Die doesn’t shy away from showing the racism that Tony Starks faces from his employers, the Delucas, who bar him from becoming a made man because of the color of his skin and hurl slurs and stereotypes at him throughout the entire comic. Starks gets passed over for the mob equivalent of a promotion even though he has killed, tortured, and general gone above and beyond the call of duty because of the color of his skin. Eventually, this causes him to band together with his colleagues from the Black community to take over the DeLucas’ turf and even have some DeLuca foot soldiers work for him. There’s a dark, cathartic glee to watching him topple an empire in twelve months that had been established 30+ years ago. (See the prologue featuring Mussolini, mainland Italy vs. Sicily, and double page map spreads.) Starks’ ruthlessness is magnetic, yet frightening as he goes from possibly negotiating with one of the DeLuca’s made men to pistol whipping him in an alley and then tying his neck to the back of a car and having him dragged. This comic definitely uses torture creatively a la “Method Man” from Wu-Tang Clan’s classic album, 36 Chambers.
However, Rosenberg, Kindlon, and RZA also take time to develop Tony Starks’ softer and more vulnerable side through his relationship with Logan, who he genuinely cares about and basically uses as a spy for the DeLucas (Although she betrays him because femme fatale trope.) and especially for his love of records. There’s a touching scene where Starks says that his only dream is to get his hands on the most “hype” records, and he uses his organized crime money to build a factory where he can press his own wax. This is why his demise in that same factory is so tragic, and his vengeance via the drop of a needle is so satisfying as the Ghostface Killer slays the men who betrayed him in new and fucked up ways, or just a single page beheading. (I guess that’s pretty messed up though.) The exception is the noble fencer Batiato, who gets an epic sword fight complete with Ghostface in samurai armor and some fun, blocky cartooning from Edwin Huang.
I haven’t really touched much about Migdal in this review, and initially he seems quite distant from sex, violence, and racism-tinged world of Tony Starks and the DeLucas. He’s just a guy with a sarcastic sense of humor, who you’d see digging through the crates at your local record store, probably every day. However, as he continues to be treated like shit by the aging DeLuca crime bosses and see more horrific things, Migdal seems more attuned to this grindhouse movie of a world even though he doesn’t lose his innocence making the high energy Chris Hunt-drawn finale have a tinge of sadness. He really just wants to get paid so he can buy more records.
Even though it has an entire restaurant of chefs in its proverbial kitchen, Twelve Reasons to Die is a damn good fusion of the crime and horror genre with a charismatic protagonist and a social conscience in the midst of all the schlock. However, it never gets preachy. For three decades, Ghostface Killah has been one of hip hop’s best storytellers, and his vision translates really well to the comic book page thanks to Matthew Rosenberg, Patrick Kindlon, RZA, Breno Tamura, Gus Storms, Chris Hunt, Jean-Paul Csuka, and the guest artists that are the visual equivalent of that perfect drum sound or soul sample that raises a track from skippable to total earworm. Finally, and it goes without saying, but this comic pairs really well with the 12 Reasons to Die album.
Story: Ghostface Killah, Adrian Younge, C.E. Garcia Story/Script: Matthew Rosenberg, Patrick Kindlon with RZA Art: Breno Tamura, Gus Storms, Chris Hunt Guest Art: Kyle Strahm, Joe Infurnari, Tim Seeley, Nate Powell, Tyler Crook, Toby Cypress, Joelle Jones, Edwin Huang, Russell Roehling, Ryan Kelly, Riley Rossmo Colors: Jean-Paul Csuka Letters: Jim Campbell and Nic J. Shaw Story: 8.0 Art: 8.7 Overall: 8.4 Recommendation: Buy
Black Mask Studios provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review
Created by: Ghostface Killah / Executive Produced by: RZA Written by: Matthew Rosenberg & Patrick Kindlon Illustrated by: Ronald Wimberly, Breno Tamura, Gus Storms, Kyle Strahm, Joe Infurnari, Christopher Mitten, Jim Mahfood, Tim Seeley, Nate Powell, Ben Templesmith, Tyler Crook, Toby Cypress, Juan Doe, Joelle Jones, Edwin Huang, Johnnie Christmas, Russel Roehling, Ryan Kelly, Michael Walsh, Chris Hunt, Riley Rossmo, David Murdoch, Garry Brown, Johnny Ryan, Shaky Kane, Benjamin Marra, and Brian Level Colored by: Jean-Paul Csuka Lettered by: Jim Campbell, Nic J. Shaw Mature / $24.99 / 180 pages
Guns. Sex. Vinyl. Revenge. Wu-Tang Clan’s Ghostface Killah and RZA teamed with then young-gun writers Matthew Rosenberg (Uncanny X-Men, 4 Kids Walk Into A Bank) & Patrick Kindlon (Survival Fetish, Nobody Is In Control) for this brutal tale of a dangerous crime lord’s rise and fall.
When it comes to how the future will look, most creators these days only show us how worse the world can get. This direction may be attributed to the decline of the environment and the primal predilection of man. Things don’t exactly look all that great for us. The stories usually involves zombies like The Walking Dead or the widening of the gap between the poor and rich like The Hunger Games. Rarely do they involve utopias as dystopias create the more interesting conflicts that drives our entertainment.
The thing is there was a time and place where we looked to the stars and though of the possibilities. This is why Back to The Future II was one of the most indelible movies of 1980s and probably most talked about out of that franchise. It gave us hope of what the world could be. Utopias for some reason seem out of reach to the modern imagination. In the latest anthology form A Wave Blue World, All We Ever Wanted, we get several different visions of life in the future where life can be better.
In “The Pilot,” a pilot controls a ship her VR glasses only to encounter an alien queen and her earthbound ally. In “The Weight of Time,” one scientist uses time travel to try and wipe out anti LGBTQ backlash but instead realizes the problem is actually ahead. In “Una,” an alien wins the hearts and minds of the citizens she protects, eventually becoming a citizen because of it. In “Seventeen Souls,” one hero risks it all to save one girl from certain death. In “It Looked like Our Dreams,” two siblings wonder about a future where humanity does save itself. In “Gaea,” mother nature and technology defeat an alien invader in which one protagonist uses to her advantage. In “Bombs Away,” a world is imagined where violence no longer leads to advantages or problem solving but unity as it was always intended. In “And The Rest Was Magic,” one woman finds out how it is when one doesn’t buy into the propaganda of a dire future. In “Everything I Own,” one self-admitted pariah slowly builds a community around herself while at the same time, evolving. In “The Inventor’s Daughter,” one woman reunites with her mother after death and returns her to the essence. In “Blackstar,” one man helps people see their future for a cost. In “Life’s A Devil’s Bargain,” one woman shows how hate is more of a choice than one realizes. In “Chat Room,” one awkward girl finds solace with a friend that met online. In “Can you See it Now,” one couple finds out an evil corporation is behind a friend’s death. In “Just Like Heaven,” one young man’s defiance leads to him finding out the secret to the utopia he is living in. In “Alternica,” a man wakes up from being frozen to a world where money doesn’t exist. In “Owning Up To The Past,” one man admits to his daughter, the unjust violence he committed. In “Good Time,” one man’s wish is to see his daughter years after he is released from jail. In “Day At The Park,” a young girl teaches a robot how to fly a kite. In “Choice,” one man designed a robot to have the power of free will, to only regret his decision immediately. In “Seeds,” the grim reaper reminds a retired superhero that there is more to life than regrets. In “Two Left Feet,” two thieves steal for the love of dance.
Overall, the anthology is an excellent collection of stories that shows that the future can be bright and we all should wear shades. The stories are as diverse and extraordinary as each contributor showing off a wide range of voices and visions. The art by each creator is magnetic, alluring, and vivid. Altogether, the world needs more visions of utopias and this book more than proves it.
Story: Matt Miner, Eric Palicki, Tyler Chin- Tanner, Lucia Fasano, Tess Fowler, Eliot Rahal, Jason Copland, Jennie Wood, Vasilis Pozios, Chris Visions, Lela Gwenn, Alex Paknadel, Chris Peterson, Alisa Kwitney, Mauricet, Josh Gorfain, Matt Lejuene, Howard Mackie, Dean Trippe, Justin Zimmerman, Wendy Chin-Tanner, Toby Cypress, Paul Allor, Jarrett Melendez, Taylor Hoffman, Jonathan Brandon Sawyer, Rich Douek, James Maddox, Gavin Smith, Nadia Shammas, Erik Burnham, Kay Honda, Maria Frohlich Art: Dean Trippe, Danica Brine, Chris Peterson, Robbi Rodriguez, Michael Wiggam, Maria Frohlich, David Stoll, Ryan Lee, Juan Romera, Tony Gregori, Tess Fowler, Chris Visions, Ethan Claunch, Jude Vigants, K.R.Whalen, Matt Horak, Jeff McComsey, Gavin Smith, Ryan Cody, Liana Kangas, Anthony Marques, Jason Copland, Eryk Donovan, Micah Meyers, Josh Jensen, Nick Wentland, Taylor Esposito, Matt Krotzer, Zakk Saam Story: 10 Art: 9.5 Overall: 9.6 Recommendation: Buy
A Wave Blue World provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review
After their run with Collapser came to a close in late 2019, Mikey Way and Shaun Simon went immediately back to work, recruiting artist Toby Cypress. The result is Electric Century; a mind-bending journey through a world that complements the music for Way’s second LP with the band Electric Century.
Johnny Ashford, former sitcom-star, drives drunk through a storefront and gets arrested. His aspiring actress girlfriend bails him out and he begins seeing a hypnotherapist. Dr. Evers sends Johnny to his “happy place”: 1980’s Atlantic City, where he relives his childhood on the boardwalk, hardly noticing shadowy specters all around. Johnny’s addiction shifts from alcohol to his hypnotic trips to the boardwalk and the Electric Century casino, which satisfies his desire for fame. He discovers a way to stay there. In the real world, his girlfriend’s search for him leads her to Dr. Evers, who offers her a free session, and Johnny meets her on a beach by the boardwalk—her own “happy place.” Johnny brings her to his boardwalk, only to discover its true nature. Johnny must find a way to save himself and his girlfriend, and escape the Electric Century.
Electric Century’s new album and the corresponding graphic will be released in finer comic shops, book and record stores everywhere in September, with a special deluxe limited edition available for preorder exclusively through both Z2’s website.
writer: Pierce Brown, Rik Hoskin artist: Eli Powell cover: Toby Cypress FC | 132 pages | Science-Fiction | Standard Edition: $24.99 | Signed: $39.99 | Teen +
The world of Pierce Brown’s Red Rising expands further in the next installment of the Sons of Ares storyline.
Fitchner’s quest for revenge continues as he and the other Sons of Ares seek out the Golds who have wronged his family. But actions come with repercussions and an elaborate game of cat and mouse is on. A battle of Gold versus Gold erupts further into more than acts of vengeance and becomes the seeds of a revolution.
Dynamite has announced the second entry in Pierce Brown‘s Red Rising: Sons of Ares graphic novel trilogy – Volume 2: Wrath!
Creator Pierce Brown returns for this entry, alongside co-writer Rik Hoskin and artist Eli Powell. Toby Cypress contributes another beautiful cover. Rounding out the team are colorist Dee Cunniffe and letterer Tom Napolitano. Brown’s cosmic tapestry expands further in this chapter continuing the prequel to the New York Times bestselling novel series. Fitchner’s quest for revenge continues as he and the Sons of Ares seek out the Golds who have wronged his family. Though their actions will come with repercussions and a back and forth will evolve into battles and the seeds of revolution.
The Red Rising saga depicts a future wherein mankind has explored and expanded across the cosmos. The ruling class has established a rigid caste system based on colors to stratify society, with “Golds” at the top. The eponymous first novel follows the tribulations of a Red joining a resistance movement and infiltrating Gold society to dismantle the entire system. The Sons of Ares graphic novels build the foundation for those threads by depicting the beginnings of their titular rebel organization.
Pierce Brown’s Red Rising Son of Ares Volume 2: Wrath is slated for release in November 2019.
When it comes to how the future will look, most creators these days only show us how worse the world can get. This direction may be attributed to the decline of the environment and the primal predilection of man. Things don’t exactly look all that great for us. The stories usually involves zombies like The Walking Dead or the widening of the gap between the poor and rich like The Hunger Games. Rarely do they involve utopias as dystopias create the more interesting conflicts that drives our entertainment.
The thing is there was a time and place where we looked to the stars and though of the possibilities. This is why Back to The Future II was one of the most indelible movies of 1980s and probably most talked about out of that franchise. It gave us hope of what the world could be. Utopias for some reason seem out of reach to the modern imagination. In the latest anthology form A Wave Blue World, All We Ever Wanted, we get several different visions of life in the future where life can be better.
In “The Pilot,” a pilot controls a ship her VR glasses only to encounter an alien queen and her earthbound ally. In “The Weight of Time,” one scientist uses time travel to try and wipe out anti LGBTQ backlash but instead realizes the problem is actually ahead. In “Una,” an alien wins the hearts and minds of the citizens she protects, eventually becoming a citizen because of it. In “Seventeen Souls,” one hero risks it all to save one girl from certain death. In “It Looked like Our Dreams,” two siblings wonder about a future where humanity does save itself. In “Gaea,” mother nature and technology defeat an alien invader in which one protagonist uses to her advantage. In “Bombs Away,” a world is imagined where violence no longer leads to advantages or problem solving but unity as it was always intended. In “And The Rest Was Magic,” one woman finds out how it is when one doesn’t buy into the propaganda of a dire future. In “Everything I Own,” one self-admitted pariah slowly builds a community around herself while at the same time, evolving. In “The Inventor’s Daughter,” one woman reunites with her mother after death and returns her to the essence. In “Blackstar,” one man helps people see their future for a cost. In “Life’s A Devil’s Bargain,” one woman shows how hate is more of a choice than one realizes. In “Chat Room,” one awkward girl finds solace with a friend that met online. In “Can you See it Now,” one couple finds out an evil corporation is behind a friend’s death. In “Just Like Heaven,” one young man’s defiance leads to him finding out the secret to the utopia he is living in. In “Alternica,” a man wakes up from being frozen to a world where money doesn’t exist. In “Owning Up To The Past,” one man admits to his daughter, the unjust violence he committed. In “Good Time,” one man’s wish is to see his daughter years after he is released from jail. In “Day At The Park,” a young girl teaches a robot how to fly a kite. In “Choice,” one man designed a robot to have the power of free will, to only regret his decision immediately. In “Seeds,” the grim reaper reminds a retired superhero that there is more to life than regrets. In “Two Left Feet,” two thieves steal for the love of dance.
Overall, the anthology is an excellent collection of stories that shows that the future can be bright and we all should wear shades. The stories are as diverse and extraordinary as each contributor showing off a wide range of voices and visions. The art by each creator is magnetic, alluring, and vivid. Altogether, the world needs more visions of utopias and this book more than proves it.
Story: Matt Miner, Eric Palicki, Tyler Chin- Tanner, Lucia Fasano, Tess Fowler, Eliot Rahal, Jason Copland, Jennie Wood, Vasilis Pozios, Chris Visions, Lela Gwenn, Alex Paknadel, Chris Peterson, Alisa Kwitney, Mauricet, Josh Gorfain, Matt Lejuene, Howard Mackie, Dean Trippe, Justin Zimmerman, Wendy Chin-Tanner, Toby Cypress, Paul Allor, Jarrett Melendez, Taylor Hoffman, Jonathan Brandon Sawyer, Rich Douek, James Maddox, Gavin Smith, Nadia Shammas, Erik Burnham, Kay Honda, Maria Frohlich Art: Dean Trippe, Danica Brine, Chris Peterson, Robbi Rodriguez, Michael Wiggam, Maria Frohlich, David Stoll, Ryan Lee, Juan Romera, Tony Gregori, Tess Fowler, Chris Visions, Ethan Claunch, Jude Vigants, K.R.Whalen, Matt Horak, Jeff McComsey, Gavin Smith, Ryan Cody, Liana Kangas, Anthony Marques, Jason Copland, Eryk Donovan, Micah Meyers, Josh Jensen, Nick Wentland, Taylor Esposito, Matt Krotzer, Zakk Saam Story: 10 Art: 9.5 Overall: 9.6 Recommendation: Buy
A Wave Blue World provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review
When it comes to how the future will look, most creators these days only show us how worse the world can get. This direction may be attributed to the decline of the environment and the primal predilection of man. Things don’t exactly look all that great for us. The stories usually involves zombies like The Walking Dead or the widening of the gap between the poor and rich like The Hunger Games. Rarely do they involve utopias as dystopias create the more interesting conflicts that drives our entertainment.