READ THE MASSIVE & SAVE THE PLANET THIS EARTH DAY!

What does it mean to be an environmentalist after the world has already ended?

Go green! Go digital this Earth Day. 

On Earth Day 2012 (Sunday, April 22), find out what the world would be like if environmentalists didn't save the planet. 

For 24 hours, from 12:01 AM to 11:59 PM, pick up the digital one-shot The Massive for FREE in our digital store. The new comic series by DMZ, Conan the Barbarian, andNorthlanders writer Brian Wood will launch in June, but you can snag this lead-in to the series for FREE and see why you DO NOT want to miss this incredible new story. 

So head on over to the Dark Horse Digital store and download The Massive digital one-shot for FREE on EARTH DAY this Sunday! 

Once you've read the one-shot and decided you need more, download the order form below, fill it out, and send it to your local comic shop retailer. Tell them loud and clear that you want to have The Massive placed in your pull box. Tell your local retailer that you're ready to read the next big series. 

1. Download the image below or the fillable PDF form.

2. Fill it out with your info.

3. E-mail, fax, or walk the form to your comic retailer and have them order The Massive for your pull box. 

Want to know more about what Comics Media is saying about The Massive?

Dr. Apocalypse Examines: Massive Comics Legend Brian Wood - The Nerdist

"If you like comics, and don’t know the work of Brian Wood, you deserve to be gunned down in the war-torn Manhattan of his DMZ, battle-axed in his Viking epic Northlanders, and be forced to hear the lamentations of your women in his new reboot of Conan the Barbarian." 

Interview with Brian Wood: The Massive - Suvudu

"Wood has never shied away from asking tough questions about the price of civilization and the inevitability of change."

Brian Wood's "The Massive" Features Print Issue-Only Bonus Content - Comic Book Resources

"Readers of the printed, monthly version of Brian Wood and Kristian Donaldson's "The Massive" will be treated to content unseen in the digital releases or trade paperback collections."

Read the First Chapter of The Massive - Io9

"We've been psyched for DMZ Author Brian Wood's next big end-of-the-world project The Massive for a spell now.

TOP COW RIDES INTO THE SUNSET

Top Cow and Minotaur Press present new original graphic novel

As announced at Emerald City Comic Comicon, Image Comics and Top Cow Productions will release the first original graphic novel from the Minotaur Press imprint, SUNSET, in July 2012. 

SUNSET, written by CHRISTOS GAGE (Avengers Academy, GI Joe: Cobra) and artist JORGE LUCAS (THE DARKNESS) is a self-contained, black-and-white hardcover graphic novel published in the signature Minotaur Press digest format. The publisher will also offer fans an opportunity to sample the story in a low cost, full-color First Look earlier that month. SUNSET: FIRST LOOK (MAY120527) will be available for comic book stores to order or for fans to pick up at San Diego Comic-Con.

In the noir tradition of Chandler and Spillane, comes a two-fisted tale of revenge and redemption. On the surface, Nick Bellamy looks like any other veteran retiree left behind by a modern world. In reality, Nick is a former enforcer, who stole a fortune and years of freedom from his former mob boss. Now, in the twilight of his life, Nick will lose everything except two things: revenge… and the chance to die with his guns blazing.

“I couldn't be more excited or honored to be part of the very first original graphic novel from Top Cow and Minotaur Press. And their release of the $1.00 preview book containing the first chapter ensures everyone can sample it for a bargain price,” explained writer Christos Gage. “Once people see Jorge Lucas' hard-hitting art and witness Nick Bellamy snarl hipsters into submission - not to mention kill three armed mobsters with a lightbulb, a paint can and some drain cleaner - I hope they won't be able to resist reading the rest of the story!”

“I was proud to work on Sunset, and thrilled that the epic story of Nick Bellamy will be seen at last! I hope all readers will enjoy this story as much as I enjoyed drawing it,” added artist Jorge Lucas. “Christos Gage is an amazing writer, who has built a real thriller in the spirit of film noir and the great road movies.”

Fans who want to get an advanced look at the original graphic novel will have a chance to do so with SUNSET: FIRST LOOK, coming out July 4th, 2012. Collecting the first 22 pages of the hard-hitting noir tale and priced at only $1.00, SUNSET: FIRST LOOK is a perfect low risk way to sample Minotaur Press’s first original graphic novel.

SUNSET HC (MAY120526), a 160-page black-and-white hardcover graphic novel, will be in stores July, 18th, 2012.

ABOUT TOP COW PRODUCTIONS INC. 
Top Cow Productions, Inc. (www.topcow.com), a Los Angeles-based entertainment company, was founded in December of 1992 by artist Marc Silvestri, who also co-founded Image Comics earlier that same year. Top Cow currently publishes its line of comic books in 21 languages in over 55 different countries. The company has launched 20 franchises (18 original and two licensed) in the industry’s Top 10, seven at #1, a feat accomplished by no other publisher in the last two decades. Its flagship franchise,WITCHBLADE, was TNT’s #1 original film of 2000 and the subsequent TV series was released on DVD on July 29, 2008.WITCHBLADE is also the first American property to be fully adapted in Japan as an original anime and manga by Studio GONZO in 2006. Top Cow’s other flagship property, THE DARKNESS, was developed into a major next-generation video game release by Starbreeze and 2K Games and achieved platinum sales status. A second game is slated for release from 2K Games in the Fall of 2011. WANTED, an Eisner-nominated miniseries published by Top Cow from 2003-2005, is now a major motion picture from Universal Pictures starring Angelina Jolie, James McAvoy and Morgan Freeman. Virtually all of Top Cow’s other properties are in development as feature films, live-action television, animation or video games. Top Cow has also successfully licensed and merchandised its franchises into toys, statues, clothing, lithographs, puppets, posters, magnets, shot glasses, lighters, lunch pails, wall scrolls, mouse pads, die-cast cars, calendars, Christmas ornaments, Halloween masks, trading cards, standees, video games and roleplaying games. 

ABOUT IMAGE COMICS

Image Comics is a comic book and graphic novel publisher founded in 1992 by a collective of best-selling artists. Image has since gone on to become one of the largest comics publishers in the United States. Image currently has five partners: Robert Kirkman, Erik Larsen, Todd McFarlane, Marc Silvestri and Jim Valentino. It consists of five major houses: Todd McFarlane Productions, Top Cow Productions, Shadowline, Skybound and Image Central. Image publishes comics and graphic novels in nearly every genre, sub-genre, and style imaginable. It offers science fiction, romance, horror, crime fiction, historical fiction, humor and more by the finest artists and writers working in the medium today. For more information, visit www.imagecomics.com.

TOPPS Unveils John McCrea's MARS ATTACKS Trading Cards Eisner Award-Winner to Illustrate Exclusive Subset & Hand-Drawn Sketch Cards April 20 - The Topps Company today has released a first look at a special subset of all-new trading cards by acclaimed comic book artist John McCrea, to be included in this summer's Mars Attacks Heritage card set. McCrea, the Eisner Award-winning illustrator and co-creator of DC Comics' Hitman (with Garth Ennis), is the artist on IDW's Mars Attacks comic book series.  Pulling double duty, McCrea has also created 15 brand new images for Topps, exclusive to Mars Attacks Heritage- four of which are unveiled today. The 15 images, officially titled 'The New Universe Subset,' offer a glimpse into the new Mars Attacks, which build from IDW's upcoming comic book.  In addition, the subset will include insight into the new series, through a narrative that unfolds on the back of each card. "We wanted John to treat these cards like miniature comic book covers," said Adam Levine, Topps' Licensing Manager. "To weave the cards and comics together even further, we crafted a story that introduces fans to our reimagining of Mars Attacks, beginning years before the Martians invade and continuing into the future, perhaps even beyond what you'll see in IDW's series in 2012.  If fans look closely, they may even spot a few hints at what lies ahead." Along with providing art for 'The New Universe Subset,' John McCrea recently paid a visit to Topps in New York, and found time to contribute a limited number of original, hand-drawn sketch cards to be randomly inserted into packs of Mars Attacks Heritage. "I'm very excited to be able to play in this world of aliens and robots and giant insects," said McCrea.  "Mars Attacks is right up my alley; it's everything I love to draw.  I'm thrilled to be a part of the creation of this new world and to be able to my own stamp on it." Mars Attacks Heritage releases this July, while IDW's new comic book debuts in June.  Both are currently available for order. For more on Mars Attacks, including an ever growing gallery of sketch cards, follow on facebook: www.facebook.com/MarsAttacks For all the latest updates, follow on twitter @realmarsattacks Attached:     •    4 of the 15 all-new images.     •    Sketch card by John McCrea.     •    Photo of John McCrea, at Topps in NYC, as he hand draws sketch cards for Mars Attacks Heritage

About IDW Publishing IDW is an award-winning publisher of comic books, graphic novels and trade paperbacks, based in San Diego, California. Renowned for its diverse catalog of licensed and independent titles, IDW publishes some of the most successful and popular titles in the industry, including: Hasbro’s The TRANSFORMERS and G.I. JOE, Paramount’s Star Trek; HBO’s True Blood; the BBC’s DOCTOR WHO; Nickelodeon’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles; Toho’s Godzilla; Wizards of the Coasts Magic: The Gathering and Dungeons & Dragons; and the Eisner-Award winning Locke & Key series, created by best-selling author Joe Hill and artist Gabriel Rodriguez. IDW is also home to the Library of American Comics imprint, which publishes classic comic reprints, and Yoe! Books, a partnership with Yoe! Studio. IDW’s critically- and fan-acclaimed series are continually moving into new mediums. Currently, Jerry Bruckheimer Films and Disney are creating a feature film based on World War Robot, while Michael Bay‘sPlatinum Dunes and Sony are bringing Zombies vs. Robots to film.

Changing Classrooms One Comic at a Time

Reading With Pictures begins fundraising push for The Graphic Textbook

(Chicago, IL- April 19, 2012) Reading with Pictures, a 501(c)3 nonprofit charity, announced today the official launch of their fundraising campaign to create The Graphic Textbook. This groundbreaking project will enable educators to take comics beyond supplementary reading and into the core curricula.

The Graphic Textbook brings together some of the finest creative talents in the comics industry – including Fred Van Lente, Ryan Dunlavey, Janet Lee, Amy Reeder, Katie Cook and Roger Langridge – with the leading experts in visual literacy and comics-based curriculum – including Dr. Katie Monnin and Dr. James Bucky Carter – to create a gamechanging educational tool for the classroom and beyond that’s tied to a revolutionary impact study overseen by Dr. David Rapp of the Learning Sciences Department of Northwestern University.
Aimed at grades 3-6, The Graphic Textbook features a dozen short stories (both fiction and non-fiction) that address topics drawn from the list of Common Core Standards. The accompanying Teacher’s Guide will include Standards-correlated lesson plans customized to each story, research-based justifications for using comics in the classroom, a guide to establishing best classroom practices and a comprehensive listing of additional educational resources, both in print and online.
Josh Elder, President and Founder of Reading with Pictures, explains “This project has been years in the making, and it's been developed with input from hundreds of educators, academics and students nationwide. With their help, we're going to create a comic that teachers will actually want to use and a textbook that students will actually want to read. And we've done it while respecting our contributor's rights and keeping our product price below the gong market rate. We know that there's a need for this product, now we just need your help to prove it."
The Graphic Textbook will be financed entirely through a Kickstarter campaign set to launch on April 13 and run through May 17. The finished product is set for a spring 2013 release in both print and digital formats.
Back us on Kickstarter at http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/readingwithpictures/the-graphic-textbook
Visit our website at www.readingwithpictures.org
Like us on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/ReadingWithPictures
Follow us on Twitter at http://twitter.com/#!/ReadingWithPix

VIZ MEDIA ANNOUNCES NORTH AMERICAN PUBLISHING LICENSES FOR NEW SHOJO MANGA SERIES STROBE EDGE AND DEMON LOVE SPELL

VIZ Media announces its latest manga (graphic novel) licenses with the acquisition of the domestic publishing rights to two new shojo series – STROBE EDGE, by Io Sakisaka, and DEMON LOVE SPELL, by Mayu Shinjo. Both titles are scheduled to begin publication later this year under the company’s Shojo Beat imprint.

Creator Io Sakisaka’s STROBE EDGE (rated ‘T’ for Teens) asks the timeless question, “What is love?” Ninako Kinoshita’s friends tell her it’s one thing, but Ninako wants to discover this mysterious emotion herself. When she meets Ren Ichinose, a handsome, enigmatic guy worshipped by all the girls at her school, she finds her heartbeat quickening with excitement! Is Ninako about to experience the many facets of love?

Celebrated manga creator Mayu Shinjo (AI ORE!, SENSUAL PHRASE) also returns with her new supernatural romance, DEMON LOVE SPELL (rated ‘T+’ for Older Teens). In the series, Miko is a shrine maiden who has never had much success at seeing or banishing spirits. Then she meets Kagura, a sexy demon who feeds off of women’s feelings of passion and love. Kagura’s insatiable appetite has left many girls brokenhearted at school, so Miko casts a spell to seal his powers. Surprisingly the spell works – sort of – but now Kagura is after her!

“STROBE EDGE has been one of the most requested titles that our readers have asked to be licensed, and the romantic coming-of-age story will be a perfect series for young teen readers in particular,” says Leyla Aker, Vice President, Publishing. “Mayu Shinjo’s new series, DEMON LOVE SPELL, will intrigue older teen readers and young adults with its fun mix of comedic supernatural romance and gorgeous artwork. We look forward to launching both series later this year and will be announcing more information on the forthcoming debuts soon!”

For more information on Shojo Beat manga titles, please visit: www.ShojoBeat.com

Dark Horse Comics Unveils Exclusive Comic Book Experience™ Application for ePlate™ Mobile Payment Devices
Dark Horse Gives Dynamics’ ePlate Users Exclusive Comic Book Content with Each Purchase

APRIL 19, SAN FRANCISCO, CA–Dark Horse Comics makes history again today with the announcement of a revolutionary new partnership with Dynamics Inc. Dynamics is an innovator in next-generation payment devices, and will now launch a new comic book experience application for ePlate™ mobile payment devices. The innovative offering brings a new kind of experience to comic book fans by enabling them to earn access to exclusive Dark Horse digital comics with every purchase made with the ePlate™ device. This groundbreaking technology will link payment devices with exclusive Dark Horse comic content, and empower consumers to engage with Dark Horse and other brands that excite them with every swipe or online purchase.

At any time, users can decide to use the Dark Horse Experience™ application for the ePlate™ payment device. The Dark Horse application allows users to earn pages of exclusive Dark Horse comic books with each purchase. After all pages of a particular comic are obtained, the user is provided with a complete digital comic. After a certain number of digital comic books are collected, Dark Horse provides, at no cost to the user, a collectible print copy of each exclusive comic book earned. Users will be able to earn comic books faster with purchases made at Dark Horse affiliates, sponsors, and retail outlets. At any time, a user can also decide to earn Dark Horse credits instead of exclusive content so that the user can earn any product from DarkHorse.com.

“Dark Horse is always looking for new ways to expand the comics-reading audience,” said Mike Richardson, president and founder of Dark Horse Comics. “Our new partners at Dynamics have created a platform which gives not only existing comics fans, but a wide variety of consumers, the ability to obtain exclusive Dark Horse content just by making day-to-day purchases.”

“Dark Horse hit the nail on the head with its Experience™ application,” said Jeff Mullen, CEO of Dynamics. “Dark Horse Experience leverages unique content—available nowhere else—and provides participating merchants with an exciting promotional tool to attract customers.”

For additional information, see DEMO’s article on Forbes.com. 

About Dynamics ePlate™ Mobile Payment Device

Dynamics’ ePlate™ mobile payment device is a paper-thin, flexible computing platform in a payment card form factor. The device includes the Electronic Stripe®—the world’s first fully card-programmable magnetic stripe. The Electronic Stripe® can be read at any existing point-of-sale (POS) magnetic stripe reader. The device includes two buttons—one for a first experience and one for a second experience. Based on what button was selected, the device changes the information on the Electronic Stripe™ to reflect the selected experience so the user can swipe the card in any store and enjoy the selected experience.

A user can change the experiences associated with the buttons on the ePlate™ device at any time. All a user has to do is use Dynamics’ Experience Manager™ software through their favorite phone, or accessible through their bank’s website. Dynamics’ Experience Manager™ will provide a list of experiences that a user can select and associate with the different buttons on the ePlate™ device.

The ePlate™ device is as durable as a traditional payment card and will last over four years on a single battery charge. The technology does not require any change to the 60 million 1970s-era magnetic stripe readers or reeducation of its merchant base.

About Dynamics Inc.

Dynamics Inc. was founded in 2007 by Jeff Mullen. Dynamics produces and manufactures intelligent powered payment cards and advanced payment platforms. The company has won many of the world’s most prestigious international business plan competitions, including the Rice Business Plan Competition, Carnegie Mellon McGinnis Venture Competition and the University of San Francisco Business Plan Competition. The company won DEMOgod and the $1M People’s Choice Award at DEMO Fall 2010, Best of Show at FinovateFall 2010, FinovateFall 2011, and FinovateEurope 2012, and Best of Show at BAI Retail Delivery 2011. Dynamics won Best in Show for Personal Electronics and Technology Honors at the 2012 International CES show. Dynamics investors include Adams Capital Management and Bain Capital Ventures. Dynamics is headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pa. For more information, visit: www.poweredcards.com.

About Dark Horse

Since 1986, Dark Horse Comics has proven to be a solid example of how integrity and innovation can help broaden a unique storytelling medium and establish a small, homegrown company as an industry giant. The company is known for the progressive and creator-friendly atmosphere it provides for writers and artists. In addition to publishing comics from top talent like Frank Miller, Mike Mignola, Neil Gaiman, Gerard Way, and comics legend Will Eisner, Dark Horse has developed such successful properties as The Mask, Timecop, and SpyBoy. Additionally, its highly successful line of comics and products based on popular properties includes Star Wars, Indiana Jones, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Aliens, Conan, Emily the Strange, Tim Burton, Trigun, Serenity, and Domo. Today Dark Horse Comics is the largest independent comic book publisher in the US and is recognized as one of the world’s leading publishers of licensed comics material.

SHADOWLINE TAKES A LEAP

GRIM LEAPER, new series from PETER PANZERFAUST creator in May

At the beginning of the new Image Comics series GRIM LEAPER, Lou Collins has died thirteen times, and he can be sure that grisly death #14 is just around the corner. This may seem like a weird way to find romance, but that's just what Kurtis J. Wiebe (PETER PANZERFAUST, GREEN WAKE) has in store for Lou in his new series debuting in May, drawn by Aluisio Santos.

Every time he dies, Lou jumps into a stranger's body, and just as he's learning something about his new host, another gruesome accident sends him leaping to the next one. Lou wants to escape the violent cycle and find eternal rest — that is, until he meets another "leaper" named Ella.

"This is the gory love story you've been waiting for, a buckets of blood romantic comedy for the ages," said writer Wiebe.

"Grim Leaper is a story about that person you've always wanted to date but never had the chance to," added Santos. "Except now your bad luck is a killer."

GRIM LEAPER #1 (MAR120418), published under Image Comics Shadowline imprint, will be in stores on May 30. It's a full-color comic book for $3.50. It is available for pre-order now in the March issue of Previews.

ABOUT IMAGE COMICS

Image Comics is a comic book and graphic novel publisher founded in 1992 by a collective of best-selling artists. Image has since gone on to become one of the largest comics publishers in the United States. Image currently has five partners: Robert Kirkman, Erik Larsen, Todd McFarlane, Marc Silvestri and Jim Valentino. It consists of five major houses: Todd McFarlane Productions, Top Cow Productions, Shadowline, Skybound and Image Central. Image publishes comics and graphic novels in nearly every genre, sub-genre, and style imaginable. It offers science fiction, romance, horror, crime fiction, historical fiction, humor and more by the finest artists and writers working in the medium today. For more information, visit www.imagecomics.com.

COSMIC HORROR MEETS TECHNO-THRILLER ESPIONAGE IN ‘DELTA GREEN: STRANGE AUTHORITIES’

Arc Dream Publishing Presents a Collection of the Award-Winning Cthulhu Mythos Horror Fiction of John Scott Tynes

April 18,  2012 — John Scott Tynes merges Lovecraftian cosmic horror with techno-thriller espionage in “Delta Green: Strange Authorities,” now available from Arc Dream Publishing.  

“Delta Green: Strange Authorities” is a 388-page collection of award-winning Cthulhu Mythos horror fiction. It includes the short stories “The Corn King,” “Final Report,” “My Father’s Son,” and “The Dark Above,” and the Origins Award-winning novel “The Rules of Engagement.”

“Delta Green: Strange Authorities” is available in trade paperback from Amazon.com, Ingram Book Company, and Arc Dream Publishing, and in ebook for Kindle, Nook, iBooks and other devices.

Shane Ivey, editor and president of Arc Dream Publishing, says: “John Scott Tynes’ stories of ‘Delta Green’ are obsidian splinters of fear and beauty. John brings a sense of humanity, of its love and confusion and despair, to the mind-bending terror of the Cthulhu Mythos. These stories have been too hard to find for far too long and I am thrilled to make them available to new readers.”

The sequel to “Strange Authorities,” Dennis Detwiller’s “Delta Green: Through a Glass, Darkly,” is also available in trade paperback and ebook from Arc Dream Publishing.

ABOUT JOHN SCOTT TYNES: John Scott Tynes is a game designer and writer in Seattle. He currently designs Xbox 360 videogames for Microsoft Studios. He was the founder and editor-in-chief of Pagan Publishing and Armitage House and his best-known projects include “Unknown Armies,” “Puppetland,” “Delta Green,” “The Unspeakable Oath,” and “Call of Cthulhu D20.” His film “The Yellow Sign” is available on DVD from Lurker Films.

ABOUT ARC DREAM PUBLISHING: Arc Dream Publishing produces novels and tabletop roleplaying games that have won awards and wide acclaim. Its product lines include “Delta Green,” “The Unspeakable Oath,” “Monsters and Other Childish Things,” “Wild Talents,” and “Godlike.” In 2011 Arc Dream Publishing released the novel “Delta Green: Through a Glass, Darkly,” which continues the tale that began with the stories in “Delta Green: Strange Authorities.”

ABOUT DELTA GREEN: “Delta Green” is a modern setting for H.P. Lovecraft’s Cthulhu Mythos. Delta Green itself is a conspiracy of federal agents, soldiers, intelligence officers, and “friendlies” who secretly and without sanction use the resources of the U.S. government to thwart supernatural horrors that no legitimate agency could face. Delta Green agents slip through the system, manipulating the federal bureaucracy while pushing the darkness back for another day — but often at a shattering personal cost.

ARTIFACTS ONLINE AND ONGOING

Top Cow invites readers to discover Artifacts of the digital age

Image Comics and Top Cow Productions, Inc. are excited to reveal that ARTIFACTS will be serialized as a new feature on the front page of topcow.com absolutely free for fans as announced at Emerald City Comicon 2012.

Beginning Tuesday, April 17th, 2012, fans will be able to go to Top Cow’s homepage and read one page per week for free. During the debut week, there will be three new pages of ARTIFACTS for fans to read. A new page will be posted every subsequent Tuesday. 

From Top Cow Universe architect RON MARZ (WITCHBLADE, SHINKU) and Top Cow superstar artist MICHAEL BROUSSARD (THE DARKNESS) comes the event series that shook the Top Cow Universe to its foundation. 

"Given my very vocal feelings about online piracy of comics, maybe people will be surprised to hear that I absolutely love the idea of giving away content,” commented writer Marz. “Artifacts #1 was written to be a ground-floor read, asking only curiosity from the audience, not requiring any knowledge of the Top Cow Universe or characters. You learn everything you need to know in the story. I absolutely believe a big part of comics' future is digital, so this is another step toward that future. All I've ever asked is that the people who own and/or create content be the ones who decide whether or not to give away their content. It's great that a publisher is choosing to do just that."

Thirteen mystical Artifacts, including the Witchblade, the Darkness and others, guide the fate of the Top Cow Universe. For centuries, it's been whispered that bringing together all 13 Artifacts would herald mankind's destruction. But a mysterious figure has been manipulating events, laying plans to put Armageddon into motion. The final phase begins here, with the abduction of Hope, the daughter of Sara Pezzini and Jackie Estacado. What ensues will remake the entirety of the Top Cow Universe, from the Witchblade and the Darkness, to the Angelus, Magdalena, and even Cyberforce. 

ARTIFACTS will debut on the front page of topcow.com on Tuesday, April 17th, 2012.

ABOUT IMAGE COMICS

Image Comics is a comic book and graphic novel publisher founded in 1992 by a collective of best-selling artists. Image has since gone on to become one of the largest comics publishers in the United States. Image currently has five partners: Robert Kirkman, Erik Larsen, Todd McFarlane, Marc Silvestri and Jim Valentino. It consists of five major houses: Todd McFarlane Productions, Top Cow Productions, Shadowline, Skybound and Image Central. Image publishes comics and graphic novels in nearly every genre, sub-genre, and style imaginable. It offers science fiction, romance, horror, crime fiction, historical fiction, humor and more by the finest artists and writers working in the medium today. For more information, visit www.imagecomics.com.

The Library of American Comics Goes Daily New Library of American Comics ESSENTIALS series starting in September  San Diego, CA (April 18, 2012) – IDW Publishing is proud to announce The Library of American Comics ESSENTIALS, a new series from its multiple Eisner Award-winning imprint that is "the gold standard for archival comic strip reprints.” Each volume of LOAC ESSENTIALS will reprint early daily newspaper strips that are essential to the history of comics presented in a novel format, 11" wide by 4.25" high, each page containing a single daily strip. “It's different from our other books which generally contain two or three years of strips printed three to a page,” says LOAC Creative Director Dean Mullaney. “By reproducing the strips one per page in an oblong format, it allows us to have an experience similar to what newspaper buyers had fifty to a hundred years ago—reading the comics one day at a time.” Every volume in the series contains a year's worth of dailies bound in hardcover, retailing for $19.99. Each page will showcase the title given to that daily by the cartoonist, plus the weekday and date. In addition to recreating the feeling of reading sequential comics one at a time, the idea sprang in part from Harold Gray's set of bound Little Orphan Annie proofbooks. Syndicate proofs come in differing varieties, but dailies are often bound annually, in a thick one-strip-per-page book. “When reading a great run of dailies,” adds Associate Editor Bruce Canwell, “the proofbook format creates an irresistible urge to flip the page and see what happens in the next day's strip.” Another inspiration in creating these volumes was the Hyperion line of classic strips edited by Bill Blackbeard in the 1970s, which now command high prices on the collector market. “Those books were an education to many of us thirty-five years ago,” Mullaney continues. “With LOAC ESSENTIALS we take the baton from Bill so we can preserve many more classic daily strips that are essential to the history of comics.” The series premieres in September. The first three titles are indicative of the stellar line-up to come: Volume 1 Baron Bean by George Herriman. The first of a three-book sub-set by the creator of Krazy Kat that will reprint for the first time the complete series from 1916-1919 starring the character Gilbert Seldes called "half Micawber, half Charlie Chapin." Edited by Dean Mullaney with an introduction by Jared Gardner. September 2012. Volume 2 Polly and Her Pals by Cliff Sterrett. A complete year (1933) of surrealistic hilarity featuring Polly, Maw and Paw Perkins, cousin Ashur, Neewah, and the rest of the outrageous Perkins household. Edited by Dean Mullaney with an introduction by Bruce Canwell. January 2013. Volume 3 The Gumps: The Saga of Mary Gold by Sidney Smith. In the early 1920s Sidney Smith augmented his gag-a-day style in The Gumps with suspense and soap opera continuity, creating what was arguably the most popular strip of its time. With The Saga of Mary Gold in 1928 and 1929 he cemented his reputation by creating a storyline that changed the comics forever, a saga that was called "one of the ten biggest events in comics history" by Hogan's Alley magazine. Edited and with an introduction by Jared Gardner. March 2013. The Library of American Comics is the world's #1 publisher of classic newspaper comic strips, with 14 Eisner Award nominations and three wins for best book. LOAC has become "the gold standard for archival comic strip reprints…. The research and articles provide insight and context, and most importantly the glorious reproduction of the material has preserved these strips for those who knew them and offers a new gateway to adventure for those discovering them for the first time." - Scoop Visit IDWPublishing.com to sign up for updates and learn more about the company and its top-selling books.

About IDW Publishing IDW is an award-winning publisher of comic books, graphic novels and trade paperbacks, based in San Diego, California. Renowned for its diverse catalog of licensed and independent titles, IDW publishes some of the most successful and popular titles in the industry, including: Hasbro’s The TRANSFORMERS and G.I. JOE, Paramount’s Star Trek; HBO’s True Blood; the BBC’s DOCTOR WHO; Nickelodeon’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles; Toho’s Godzilla; Wizards of the Coasts Magic: The Gathering and Dungeons & Dragons; and the Eisner-Award winning Locke & Key series, created by best-selling author Joe Hill and artist Gabriel Rodriguez. IDW is also home to the Library of American Comics imprint, which publishes classic comic reprints, and Yoe! Books, a partnership with Yoe! Studio. IDW’s critically- and fan-acclaimed series are continually moving into new mediums. Currently, Jerry Bruckheimer Films and Disney are creating a feature film based on World War Robot, while Michael Bay‘s Platinum Dunes and Sony are bringing Zombies vs. Robots to film.

For Immediate Release: Webcomic pioneer and graphic novelist Dirk Tiede celebrates this weekend his return to Anime St. Louis, the Midwest’s leading anime convention. This appearance is just the first stop in a parade of celebrations for the Chicagoan turned New Englander.

On the heels of the conclusion to Chapter 4 of Tiede’s online graphic novel, Paradigm Shift, the popular convention guest will appear all 3 days at Anime St. Louis, greeting fans and sharing his books and artwork. Tiede is also scheduled to present two workshops to Anime St. Louis attendees. On Friday from 9 to 10pm, the experienced artist will discuss Digital Comics Techniques for Photoshop. On Saturday, Tiede is scheduled from 5 to 7pm to teach How to Draw People & Figure Drawing. Both programs are ones Tiede has presented at other conventions across the country.
Anime St. Louis is scheduled for April 20 to 22 at Gateway Center in Collinsville, IL.
Following his appearance at Anime St. Louis, Tiede will make a limited appearance at neighboring Anime Central in Rosemont, IL the following weekend, April 27 to 29.
In June, Tiede will make his next guest appearance for the very first time in Dallas, TX at A-Kon. Slated for June 1 to 3 at the Sheraton Dallas Hotel, A-Kon is the oldest running anime convention in the country. Tiede will be on hand all weekend and will be presenting an assortment of panels and workshops to be announced closer to the show.
All of these appearances lead up to a long-awaited conclusion to Tiede’s current chapter of his paranormal graphic novel, Paradigm Shift. The long-running online graphic novel focuses on Kate McAllister, one of the best detectives in Chicago who faces some pretty big changes. Paradigm Shift is a modern police thriller that collides with classic werewolf tale when Kate and her partner are kicked off a juicy gun-running case to investigate a series of bizarre animal maulings. But as she begins to develop strange symptoms and powerful, frightening abilities, Kate realizes she may know this beast better than she could possibly dream.
Plans are being made to bring this most recent chapter a roaring conclusion in the Fall of 2012, as Tiede’s convention season comes to a close. Until then, fans of Tiede’s artwork can satisfy their craving on Sanotarium, a card game from Asmadi Games scheduled for a May/June release.
Paradigm Shift is available in print and webcomic versions at http://paradigmshiftmanga.com and on iPad and Android mobile devices via the Cloud 9 Comix app.

DARK HORSE ANNOUNCES WILLOW SERIES!

JOSS WHEDON’S FAN FAVORITE RETURNS! 

APRIL 18, MILWAUKIE, OR – Dark Horse Comics announces another exciting addition to the Buffyverse:

Willow gets her own miniseries!

Written by Jeff Parker (Thunderbolts, Agents of Atlas) and drawn by Brian Ching (Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, Witchblade), Willow tells the story of the witch’s obsessive journey to recover her magic.

Willow is on a quest to bring magic back to the world, and she’ll do anything to make it happen, including forming some unhealthy alliances after cracking the code to travel to other dimensions—something thought impossible since the destruction of the Seed. 

Willow #1 is on sale November 21, 2012.

About Twentieth Century Fox Consumer Products

A recognized industry leader, Twentieth Century Fox Consumer Products licenses and markets properties worldwide on behalf of Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation, Twentieth Television and Fox Broadcasting Company, as well as third-party lines. The division is aligned with Twentieth Century Fox Television, one of the top suppliers of primetime entertainment programming to the broadcast networks.

About Dark Horse Comics

Since 1986, Dark Horse Comics has proven to be a solid example of how integrity and innovation can help broaden a unique storytelling medium and establish a small, homegrown company as an industry giant. The company is known for the progressive and creator-friendly atmosphere it provides for writers and artists.  In addition to publishing comics from top talent like Frank Miller, Mike Mignola, Neil Gaiman, Gerard Way, Will Eisner, and best-selling prose author Janet Evanovich, Dark Horse has developed such successful characters as the Mask, Timecop, and the Occultist. Additionally, its highly successful line of comics and products based on popular properties includes Star Wars, Avatar: The Last Airbender, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Aliens, Conan the Barbarian, Mass Effect, Serenity, and Domo. Today, Dark Horse Comics is the largest independent comic-book publisher in the United States and is recognized as both an innovator in the cause of creator rights and the comics industry’s leading publisher of licensed material.