If anyone interacts with me for just about any length of time, they will discover that I love comic books. More than that, I support comic creators and their efforts to continue to make new comic books. Innovation and fresh voices along with original stories are the fertilizer that keeps the crops of comic books growing and expanding.

In the aftermath of the biggest comic convention of the year, the comic industry has been presented with some new avenues for artists to tell their stories. There were three new comic companies that were announced at Comic-Con International, colloquially known as San Diego Comic Con (SDCC), that deserve some attention.

In 2023, we saw companies like DSTLRY Media, and Magma Comix, along with imprints like Giant Generator and Ghost Machine, start to enter the chaotic fray of publishing comics. And while each entity has their own economic model, the fact that they seem to be committed to telling interesting and good stories makes the industry better as whole.

This year’s SDCC saw new ventures launched by industry veterans who are stepping out on their own after years with other companies.

ACT 4 Publishing

Long time comic editor Scott Dunbier recently parted ways with IDW Publishing, where he spent about sixteen years bringing the award winning Artist Edition collections and numerous other original comics to fans. Dunbier has subsequently launch the aplty named Act 4 Publishing where he will continue to work on those amazing archival “Artist” and “Connoisseur” large format publications, as well as new original comic stories.

“The goal of Act 4 will be to create books—comics, graphic novels, collections, Artist’s Editions—that are bound together by the quality of their content. Making this move is exciting, and a bit scary, but I love the books that I do, and it’s time to bet on myself,” said Dunbier.

It is exciting to see a seasoned creative visionary, who shepherded projects like Tom Strong, Planetary, Ragnarok, and Darwyn Cook’s Parker Graphic Novels to the public, taking a chance on himself in his next Act. There are seven interesting collections already in the works and the website is up and running. Interested parties can join the Act 4 mailing list there and stay up to date on the release schedule and new announcements.

Panick Entertainment

Horror comics are in a what is an unprecedented phase of popularity. While they have always been around and comic books as we know them have deep roots in the genre and the Penny Dreadfuls of the Nineteenth century, the current crop of high level talent writing, drawing, and producing horror comic books has never been better when factoring the quantity and quality of what is hitting the markets.

A new venture into making horror comics just launched at SDCC, and it is headed up by some excellent comic veterans. Panick Entertainment is led by CEO Kris Longo, formerly of DC Comics and Heavy Metal, and he brought along some other comics and film folks, including former IDW Publisher Chris Ryall, to establish this company that will initially focus on genre storytelling in comic and graphic novel formats.

The first announced project is with writer and actor David Dastmalchian, who has been writing the Count Crowley stories at Dark Horse Comics. This new, as yet untitled, project will be co-written by Leah Kilpatrick and will be a five-issue “revenge tale”.

Panick Entertainment is just getting started and their website is still in production, but they are getting close to launching their first commercial product through Zoop.gg. Folks can sign up now to get notified when The PANICK Primer Pack goes live.

Amazing Comics

Comic book legend Joe Quesada is back to making comics. After a couple decades of steering the Marvel Comics line as Editor-in-Chief and Chief Creative Officer, Quesada took a short break and is back with a new line of comics called Amazing Comics.

In a publishing partnership with Mad Cave Studios and Dupuis, Quesada will be creating new comics for worldwide distribution. Disciple, the first of the new comics coming from Amazing Comics, will be written and pencilled by Quesada. Charles Dorfman will serve as co-writer, and the book will also contain the talents of Wade von Grawbadger, inker, Richard Isanove, colorist, and Joe Caramagna, letterer.

Quesada had this to say about the new book:

“The true origin of Disciple came about when I met Charles Dorfman, a talented writer with a passion for graphic storytelling. Charles pitched an adaptation of Hamlet, which sparked a creative journey that led to the unique version of Disciple we have today. This project blends Shakespearean elements with contemporary genres, creating a rich, mythological world for our readers to explore that begins as a prequel to the original, set in a whole new world.”

Joe Quesada became a part of comics history because he was really good at making comics. After spending so much time behind a corporate desk, it is exciting to see him back behind a drawing board and making comics that, in his words, “feels like [they] were established in your very own imagination.”

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In the weeks since SDCC, the comics community has dealt with, and perhaps been distracted by, news of celebrities invading the medium with talk of AI and eliminating artists by calling them roadblocks. As a creative industry, comics is resilient. The quality of comic book storytelling is constantly getting better and opening more avenues for creative talent expression can only be positive for the consumers of comics.

Seeing people betting on themselves and keeping the focus on creating high quality comics is a fantastic development. I will certainly be keeping an eye on these new endeavors and keeping you Squad members up to date as the release new details.

Source information for this article include:

https://www.comicsbeat.com/sdcc-2024-scott-dunbier-announces-act-4-publishing-company/
https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/david-dastmalchian-horror-comic-book-panick-entertainment-1235957927/
https://madcavestudios.com/mad-cave-studios-joe-quesada-and-dupuis-reveal-amazing-comics/