Wrestlecon 2019-Alicia Atout Interview
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Takara Transformers: Siege SG-32 Springer
Yoe Books Launches Marvel Hardcover Program Spanning Decades of Glorious Art and Comics History
Yoe Books Launches Marvel Hardcover Program Spanning Decades
of Glorious Art and Comics History
of Glorious Art and Comics History
Marvel Masterwork Pin-Ups Dazzles as Debut Title
in Brand-New Marvel Line from IDW Imprint
in Brand-New Marvel Line from IDW Imprint
SAN DIEGO, CA (April 2, 2019) – IDW Publishing and Yoe Books are proud to announce a new line of Marvel Comics collections, a sensational series of large-format hardcovers curating the finest artwork from the Golden Age’s four-color foundations all the way up to the Marvel Age’s dizzying heights!
Coinciding with the year-long celebration of Marvel’s 80 years of publishing, Yoe Books will debut their retrospective look at the House of Ideas with Marvel Masterwork Pin-Ups, which will be followed by additional entries in 2019.
In Marvel Masterwork Pin-Ups, the pulsating pin-up artwork of legendary Silver Age creators – including Jack Kirby, Steve Ditko, Jim Steranko, Don Heck, John Byrne, Barry Windsor-Smith, John Severin, Wally Wood, Dan Decarlo, John Romita, and many more – is collected for the first time ever into a single volume, accompanied throughout with witty wordage, pulse-pounding patter, and zany zingers by Stan “The Man” Lee!
Fans will treasure large, deftly drawn pin-ups by these marvelous artists of Spider-Man, Thor, Doctor Strange, Captain Marvel, The Hulk, The X-Men, the Fantastic Four, and many more, plus nefarious villains led by Doctor Doom– and even Millie the Model by Dan DeCarlo!
“I’m the person that I am (such as that is) because of Stan, Jack, Steve, and the other early Marvel creators inspiring me in my Peter Parker teenage-years,” says multiple Eisner Award-winning editor Craig Yoe. “To take this ‘journey into history’ with this – the first in a line of Marvel books – is an amazing, fantastic, incredible thrill for this proud charter member of the Merry Marvel Marching Society!”
Marvel Masterwork Pin-Ups is now available for pre-order via online booksellers and comic book specialty retailers. Visit www.comicshoplocator.com to find a store near you.
Marvel Masterwork Pin-Ups
by Jack Kirby, Steve Ditko, Jim Steranko, Don Heck, John Byrne, et al.
ISBN 978-1-68405-520-3
$34.99 (US)
120-page, color squarebound hardcover, 9″ x 12″
GO GO POWER RANGERS series joins the epic Necessary Evil event in July 2019.
BOOM! Studios, under license by Hasbro, Inc. (NASDAQ: HAS), announced today that one of the biggest mysteries in Power Rangers history will be revealed as the GO GO POWER RANGERS series joins the epic Necessary Evil event in July 2019.
GO GO POWER RANGERS #21, from the writing duo of Ryan Parrott (Mighty Morphin Power Rangers) & Sina Grace (Iceman) and artist Francesco Mortarino (Mighty Morphin Power Rangers), begins the reveal of the secret history behind the Mighty Morphin Power Rangerswith the introduction of all new characters, new alliances and jaw-dropping answers to some of the biggest questions that fans have always asked.
The Mighty Morphin Power Rangers have survived the shocking events of their war with Lord Drakkon—a twisted alternate-reality version of Tommy Oliver (AKA the Mighty Morphin Green Ranger)—and reality has now been reset…but has the danger truly passed? Why don’t the Rangers recall the incredible events of the landmarkShattered Grid? The answer to this question will set one of the Rangers on a path that will reveal an explosive, previously untold story in the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers mythos that will change everything you thought you knew.
GO GO POWER RANGERS #21 features a main cover by Amelia Vidal (Buffy The Vampire Slayer), with variant covers by Miguel Mercado (Mighty Morphin Power Rangers) and Gleb Melnikov, and more to be announced.
New York Times Bestselling author Ryan Parrott is a writer in multiple mediums. A graduate of Chapman University, Parrott has written on television series NBC’s Revolution and Hulu’s Chance. In comics, Ryan was a co-writer on DC’s Batman: Gates of Gotham, several of IDW’sStar Trek titles, including Starfleet Academy, Boldly Go and Manifest Destiny, as well as the NBC series finale Revolution: Endgame. Parrott was one of the key architects of the landmark Power Rangers: Shattered Grid comic book event and currently writes Saban’s Go Go Power Rangers at BOOM! Studios, along with creator-owned projectsVolition and Oberon for Aftershock Comics, and lives in Los Angeles with his wife. He will become the series writer of Mighty Morphin Power Rangers beginning with issue #40 in June 2019.
“Two years ago, I started on GO GO POWER RANGERS with the goal of crafting a series that placed an emphasis on character and focused as much on teenage relationships as it did on giant monsters. Naturally, when I was offered the chance to write Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, I assumed my time exploring the personal lives of the ‘Teenagers with Attitude’ was over. Thankfully… I was wrong,” said writer Ryan Parrott. “Now, while the current iteration of GO GO POWER RANGERS is about to draw to a close, an exciting new chapter awaits. I’m thrilled to have the incredible talents of Sina Grace and Francesco Mortarino coming onboard and I promise that Go Go’s style and sensibilities will remain constant, even as we introduce new and familiar characters, recontextualize iconic series moments and explore bold new areas of the Power Ranger mythology. I really hope you all come along for the journey.”
Sina Grace is a writer and artist living in Los Angeles, CA who has earned prestigious nominations for both the GLAAD Media Awards and the PRISM Awards. He is best known for his slice-of-life memoirs at Image Comics, including Self-Obsessed and Nothing Lasts Forever; the highly anticipated reimagining of Jughead’s Time Police at Archie Comics; and the critically-acclaimed, landmark Iceman series at Marvel Entertainment. Grace has been a part of the Power Rangers comic book series at BOOM! Studios from day one, illustrating variant covers for the chart-topping Mighty Morphin Power Rangers #1, along with both writing & illustrating one of the comic book stories celebrating the 25th anniversary of the pop culture phenomenon in 2018. Ghosted in LA, Grace’s new original series at BOOM! Studios, will launch in July 2019.
“As a lifelong Mighty Morphin Power Rangers fan, and I’m thrilled to work beside Ryan on one of the most exciting chapters in the Rangers’ history,” said writer Sina Grace. “Mom, if you’re reading this: thanks for waiting in line before work to get me that Megazord.”
Francesco Mortarino is an Italian cartoonist who graduated from the Comics School of Milano. He started working at Sergio Bonelli Editore on the comic series Nathan Never and made his US comics debut onJupiter’s Circle, soon working on other projects like Dungeon & Dragons: Evil at Baldur’s Gate. Mortarino has worked on high profile BOOM! Studios series including Mighty Morphin Power Rangers andFirefly: Bad Company.
“Till I started on my first page, working on GO GO POWER RANGERSsounded incredible. Now that I’m on board it’s even better than I ever imagined, so it’s time to wake up from this dream and give 100% to draw these issues,” said artist Francesco Mortarino.
Currently, Power Rangers is celebrating over 25 continuous years on the air, making it one of the longest running kids live-action series in television history with nearly 900 episodes aired to date. Created by Haim Saban and launched in 1993 with Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, the franchise celebrates its milestone anniversary year with the 26th season, Power Rangers: Beast Morphers currently airing on Nickelodeon in the U.S.
“Necessary Evil is the biggest Power Rangers story we’ve ever told and we knew that GO GO POWER RANGERS would play a key role– with epic introductions and revelations, along with the big emotions you’ve come to love, from the series” said Dafna Pleban, Senior Editor, BOOM! Studios. “Fans can read GO GO POWER RANGERSindependent of Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, but those who pick up both series will see just how we’re crafting our most ambitious and most shocking Power Rangers comic book epic yet. The events in GO GO POWER RANGERS directly inform the debut of the White Ranger inMighty Morphin Power Rangers, but Ryan, Sina and Francesco have also made sure this story stands on its own as well.”
Print copies of GO GO POWER RANGERS #21 will be available on July 10th, at local comic book shops(use comicshoplocator.com to find the nearest one), or at the BOOM! Studios webstore. Digital copies can be purchased from content providers like comiXology, iBooks, Google Play, and the BOOM! Studios app.
Softcover collections of GO GO POWER RANGERS, Mighty Morphin Power Rangers and other Power Rangers releases from BOOM! Studios are available now, everywhere books are sold.
For continuing news on the GO GO POWER RANGERS series and more from BOOM! Studios, stay tuned to boom-studios.com and follow @boomstudios on Twitter.
For more on Saban’s Power Rangers, please visitwww.powerrangers.com and follow Power Rangers onhttp://rangernation.com/, YouTube, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
Sequart Releases Book on Hellboy and Mike Mignola’s Art!
In 1993, Mike Mignola debuted Hellboy, beginning a universe that would expand to include hundreds of comics and characters. Today, the Mignolaverse is the largest creator-owned comics universe, inspiring multiple live-action movies, animated films, and video games.
The Mignolaverse: Hellboy and the Comics Art of Mike Mignola, edited by S.G. Hammond, examines Mignola’s comics and the sprawling Mignolaverse mythos. The book explores Mignola’s artistic growth, collaborators, panel compositions, influences, and major themes, among other topics. It’s a must for any Mignola fan!
The book runs 196 pages and sports a cover by Mike Mignola himself! (Hellboy is a trademark of Mike Mignola and the cover art is used with permission.)
The Mignolaverse: Hellboy and the Comics Art of Mike Mignola is available in print and on Kindle. (Just a reminder: you don’t need a Kindle device to read Kindle-formatted books; you can download a free Kindle reader for most computers, phones, and tablets.) Find out more on the book’s official page.
The Walking Dead Season 9, Episode 16 “The Storm” Review
Season 9 of The Walking dead is coming to a close and we will not see another episode until the fall as Season 10 begins filming next month. There were a lot of great moments this season and there were some that got our emotions out such as Rick Grimes’ final episode, the death of Jesus by a Whisperer, the introduction of new characters such as Magna, Yumiko, fan favorite Connie, Alpha, Beta, Ozzy, and Lydia, and the Game of Thrones style reveal of the pike victims. Those moments alone will be talked about for the years to come and with this season finale that deals with the aftermath of the huge pike death reveal last week, we see the survivors deal with another huge road block and that is a snowstorm. Here is my review for the season finale of the ninth season of The Walking Dead.
First, I would like to say that I have wanted to see snow on the television show for years and I am happy to see it finally happen. The last time it snowed in the comics however, was way back in issue 90 so this was great to see happen in the show and to see how the communities will battle a snowstorm. Now on to my review.
The Kingdom has fallen since the pike border has been revealed. There was no way to sustain that place at all since the storm has arrived. Ezekiel says on the radio that they kept trying to hold on on to what was left and that they needed help and shelter since the pipes were leaking and it would not be fixed during the winter. The camera also cuts to Daryl and Lydia and he tells her that she needs strength to move to The Hilltop. Everyone else gets ready to move there as well as Ezekiel closes the doors to The Kingdom for good. We will not know if we will ever see The Kingdom again after this, but we will have to wait until season 10. Carol also talks with Lydia and you can tell here that Carol is still hurt for Henry’s loss and even Lydia herself asked Carol to kills her but Carol refused to do it as she does not want to see another kid die. Daryl and Carol also had a conversation as he tries to tell her that Lydia is a good person despite how her mom is.
Rosita’s baby bump is showing and at this point, I can tell that a few months has passed by. Lucky that she was not giving birth in the blizzard. But the group travels during the crazy blizzard and they were all talking about the path to The Hilltop and what was going on during the few month time skip. Daryl and Ezekiel were also having a conversation as well and it shows here that Daryl is in the position that Rick was with leading the group through extreme weather conditions. They also cleared walkers during the trip and I must say, Greg Nicotero did an amazing job with blending the walkers in with the snow and there were some that rises up from piles of snow that looked very creepy. The group also had to cross Alpha’s border to make a quick shortcut to The Hilltop and they did not encounter any Whisperers at all. During this, we see how Alexandria is dealing with the blizzard, many of the residents have to group with other people that has fireplaces to warm up and survive the cold. They even let Negan out of his cell so he will not die down there. Negan is handcuffed though as he makes a snarky remark to Gabriel. The fireplace was not functioning anymore and Eugene told them that they have to leave. Michonne and the rest also rest at The Sanctuary and during that time, they plan their next move and Daryl and Carol have a heart to heart conversation. When the snowstorm got stronger, Judith runs off the line to look for Daryl’s dog and Negan went to look for her. I still do not know who is watching Judith correctly because she is always running off somewhere. Negan finds her as she is getting sick and freezing and he takes her back to Alexandria.
The snowstorm finally stopped when the group arrived. Once Ezekiel and co. went to The Hilltop, Carol decides to break up with Ezekiel because she feels that he will not blame her for Henry’s death so he would blame it on Daryl instead. Carol also decided to return to Alexandria after the trip. Elsewhere, Alpha and Beta have a conversation and the interesting key point is that she wants to become stronger than she was before. So Alpha tells Beta to whip her with a broken branch the same way she used to do to her daughter. Weird scene, but I do not mind. Ezekiel was talking to Judith through the radio, But when they finish the radio conversation, they leave the room and then a voice is heard through the radio but it is hard to listen to since there is static in the way. Nobody hears this since they closed the door as the episode ends.
One thing I love about Game of Thrones is that their season finales are building to the next season and this episode did just that. I know that a number of people will find this episode too slow, but I do not mind since we had the pike deaths last week. Things needed to slow down after that. Jeffery Dean Morgan, Khary Payton, and Melissa McBribe were the stars of this episode with their brilliant performances during this episode. I love that the snow was a major obstacle during this episode and it reminds me of Fear The Walking Dead when the hurricane was a major obstacle. My only take back is that I wish that Ezekiel was searching for communities with the radio just like Eugene was in the comic series and it took almost a year and a half of issues to finally get a response. That could have been built up more in the show unless it is being saved for the next season and Who knows who could it be. Rick, Morgan, or The Commonwealth.This season has been amazing and I am happy to see what the new show runner Angela Kang did with this season. What can I expect to see in the new season later this year? Well, I think most of the material will be from volumes 25-29 of the comic series (No Turning Back, Call To Arms, The Whisperer War, A Certain Doom, and Lines We Cross)
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New Logo for DETECTIVE COMICS and a first look at BATMAN: LAST KNIGHT ON EARTH
DETECTIVE COMICS
Batman in Detective Comics has had a long history—80 years to be exact—and has hadmore than a dozen different logos over the decades. The current logo, which has been the trade dress for Detective Comics since 2003, made its final appearance this past Wednesday when DETECTIVE COMICS #1000 hit shelves.
Beginning on April 10th Detective Comics will have a new logo to usher in a new era for the World’s Greatest Detective! The new logo will debut in print on the cover of DETECTIVE COMICS #1001. This exciting moment in publishing history coincides with the launch of a new Arkham Knight-focused story by Tomasi, Brad Walker, Andrew Hennessey, Nathan Fairbairn and Rob Leigh.
C2E2 2019 Recap
Chicago is always a great place to visit every year no matter if it is windy or not. The weather will go right out the way once you make your way to the Mccormick Convention Center for C2E2. C2E2 is the biggest comic and entertainment convention in Chicago and it will keep on getting bigger for the years to come. In fact, this year is their 10th year anniversary and it was clearly celebrated during the three day show whether if it was a panel, or fan meetup, screening, cosplay, and gaming, you name it. I have seen it all over my three days over there and here is my recap of this year’s edition of C2E2.
First, I would like to thank ReedPop for approving myself and Fidelina Roman with a media badge as we alway love to cover your shows. This year, the show felt more bigger than last year’s there were much more space dedicated to gaming as well this year and I believe that happened due to the fan feedback from last year’s show. There were gaming tournaments that took place over there as well. At the booths where comic books were being sold, there were many people looking for vintage comics (especially the Marvel line based on the people that I have spoken to since Avengers: End Game is coming next month). Also to add, I heard that someone was stealing comics from different vendors over there and I did not know it was true until it was reported on the news that it actually did happen (https://patch.com/illinois/chicago/indiana-man-accused-stealing-rare-comic-books-c2e2). Friday and Sunday the crowd was decent in many areas. Saturday however, was the most crowded. I am used to this type of crowd now since I have covered different shows for the last seven years so it did not bother me. There was also a blood drive that took place during the convention too that took place right by the entrance. The big panels took place at the main panel hall at room S406 and it filled up each time with the big name panels but I will get to that in a few paragraphs. Overall, between navigating each area from the panel rooms to the show floor, it was easier this year than any other year.
There were many panels that took place during C2E2 and there was also my panel. For the first time ever, I host a panel and it was Wrestling Soup featuring Anthony Missionary Thomas, Jon Draper, and myself as we took the stage on Friday to give our predictions of WrestleMania. We also talked about Captain Marvel, Avengers End Game, and The Punisher. We even gave away prizes to members of the crowd and it was a very fun experience to see about 100 people showing up to see us. It felt very satisfying that it happened and I would do it again.
All Elite Wrestling members The Young Bucks and Kenny Omega also took the stage that morning to talk about AEW and many questions directed towards them that many fans wanted to know were addressed. They addressed the fact that there will be no contract tampering with current WWE Superstars, but they did say that they have a wishlist of who they wanted to be signed with AEW. They also said that All In 2 will take place this year in Chicago in the same arena it took place last year. They also talked about how Brandi Rhodes came up with the idea to tackle sensory issues that is often never taken care of on WWE programming and Kenny Omega answered a fan question about an AEW comic book and video game. There were more questions that were answered and they made it clear that CM Punk will not wrestle at AEW. Great panel from the three of them and you can check it out right here.
Another great panel featured the writers and artists of DC Comics that featured Cecil Castellucci, Marv Wolfman, Robert Venditti, and Tim Seely as this panel was titled “Super Heroes of DC”. This panel featured a discussion with the four about the DC Comic stories that impacted the industry from their time, to the current. The panel was interesting to get an insight of what they were thinking at the time and how those stories shaped for the present day in the comic book world.
One of the biggest panels at the show was the Clueless reunion panel that featured Alicia Silverstone, Paul Rudd, Breckin Meyer, and Donald Faison as they took the stage to tell funny stories of their time on the movie and what did they do on their break time away from filming the movie. Breckin Meyer was also very funny during this panel and I loved it. Paul Rudd was also flooded with Avengers: End Game questions since he will appear in the movie as Ant Man once again and I knew from the start that many Marvel related questions would go his way and he even told a heart warming story about Stan Lee. This panel is a must watch.
My press coverage over there was great and it begins with Into The Badlands. I was also supposed to attend the screening of the newest episode, but I had time constraints. So a key takeaway here is that the creators already had an arc for the 16 episode season that would end with a conclusion that would, by their words, “reboot” the series and “take it in a different direction”. They go on to say, however, that they saw the writing on the wall about cancellation as they were writing the back half of the season and realized that they’re most likely working towards a conclusion instead of a continuation. They assured people that all major questions and plot/character arcs will be resolved, but left some doors open, which I assume is for the possibility to continue the story should they get picked up by another platform. If you want to watch the response yourself it is at the 10:48 time-stamp. Daniel Wu is very passionate of the series so I could not blame him of his frustration since I am also a fan of the show.
The cast and the executive producer of NBC’s The Blacklist were also in attendance at C2E2 as they spoken to the press at the roundtable interviews.I can also say that I stumped Jon during the interviews three times but he was great to speak to. I see how popular the show has gotten over the years and they appreciate the fan feedback from across the world. The talkers of the press roundtables are Jon Bokenkamp, Harry Lennix, Amir Arison, Hisham Tawfiq, and Clark Middleton.
I also interviewed legendary wrestling manager Jim Cornette as we talked about Mid South, World Class Championship Wrestling, his trouble getting to the arena at Keystone Comic Con compared to C2E2, and much more in this quick, fun, and entertaining quick interview.
The cosplay at C2E2 was great and this year’s big influence is Captain Marvel since the movie was released a few weeks before the show. I have seen really good ones raging from different genres and fandoms of Mortal Kombat, Overwatch, Star Wars, DC, Marvel, Super Mario, and much more. I even made a best of cosplay video for you to see along with some the photos below.
C2E2 was great this year as usual and I would cover it again next year! I do know that it will be in February next year so it will be a challenge. I would recommend the show for anyone in the Chicago area. Now here are my final pictures as I fanboy with CM Punk, Kenny Omega, Eric Bischoff, and Amir Arison.
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