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New Number Ones: One-Shots and Special Editions for July 2023

New Number Ones: One-Shots and Special Editions for July 2023

Posted on by Bob Harrison

Welcome to our New Number Ones: One-Shots & Specials for July 2023.

In this regular column, we collect the one-shot books, special anthologies, and original graphic novels that are being released this month. You can check out our regular New Number Ones column for the month and see what new series are starting this month.

There is an alphabetical list of these special books below by release date, and don’t forget to check for our PCS NOTES to find out what we just have to tell you about these comics.

There are books on the list from: DC Comics, Dark Horse Comics, Marvel Comics, Image Comics, Fair Square Comics, Drawn and Quarterly, First Second Books, Boom! Studios, Source Point Press, IDW Publishing, and Clover Press.

Clark & Lex GN TP
DC Comics
Written by Brendan Reichs
Art by Jerry Gaylord
Cover Art by Gaylord

Original Graphic Novel

Struggling with understanding why his parents demand he hide his amazing superpowers, Clark has no problem using a bit of super-speed or super-strength to give himself that extra edge as quarterback of the football team or while doing his chores around the farm.

And when LuthorCorp holds a competition to find the best and brightest for a summer internship in Metropolis, Clark decides to use his X-ray vision in order to cheat his way in, especially since it might provide the means of getting out of Smallville. Amazingly, Clark is not the only competitor with special abilities…just ask his newfound friend, Lex Luthor.

But as the kids go missing one by one, the boys realize the competition may not be all it seems. Can Clark put aside his pride for the sake of the team and become the friend and leader they will need to overcome LuthorCorp’s ambitions?

From New York Times bestselling author Brendan Reichs and artist Jerry Gaylord comes a fresh twist to a familiar face that is sure to keep you on the edge of your seat!

Release Date: July 4, 2023

PCS NOTES: We continue to be excited by DC’s YA and Kids reimagination of classic characters.

A Boy Named Rose TP
Fair Square Comics
Written by Gaelle Geniller
Art by Geniller
Cover Art by Geniller

Original Graphic Novel

Paris. The 1920s. Rose is a boy and, like all the girls he’s spent time with since he was born, he wants to dance at “Le Jardin”, the cabaret managed by his mother. As Rose blossoms into a 19 year old young man, he discovers love and tries to find his place in a society that’s not ready to welcome true love between two men with open arms.

PRIDE Month is there and we decided to celebrate Love like there’s no tomorrow! Created and beautifully drawn by Gaelle Geniller, A BOY NAMED ROSE is going to make you fall in love with this story, set in Art Deco Paris and where a young man discovers who he really is in a place filled with entertainment and drama. What is Rose’s place in the world? Is he just a boy? Is he a girl inside? Rose just wants to be accepted for who he really is and live, love and dance as free as he can be. A beautiful LGBTQIA+ tale from a time where loving differently was a challenge, A BOY NAMED ROSE will move you, in all its subtleness and tenderness.

Release Date: July 5, 2023

PCS NOTES: I am looking forward to reading this.

The Rock Gods of Jackson, Tennessee TP
Dark Horse Comics
Written by Rafer Roberts
Art by Mike Norton
Cover Art by Norton

Original Graphic Novel

It’s 1989 and Marty Ward-Jackson, Tennessee’s number one juvenile delinquent-never wanted to join the Rock Gods. After all, who wants to play with nerds like Jonny, Lenny, and Doug? But after the high schoolers stumble into the gig of a lifetime-opening for local rock legend Tommi Tungstun-the four outcasts must put aside their differences and play together if they want to achieve their dreams of fame, freedom, and popularity. Standing in these future superstars’ way are: their parents, their teachers, a school full of jerks and bullies, a townful of bad bosses, sanctimonious preachers, and corrupt politicians, each other, and a rampaging horde of mutated monsters tearing through Jackson and eating everything in their path. Wait. Monsters?!?!

Release Date: July 5, 2023

PCS NOTES: We have been anticipating this book for a while and can’t wait for everyone to get their hands on it. Continue reading “New Number Ones: One-Shots and Special Editions for July 2023” →

Kickstarters You Should Be Backing – October 2022 Edition – Part 1

Kickstarters You Should Be Backing – October 2022 Edition – Part 1

Posted on by Bob Harrison

This month we have a special supersized list of campaigns available to support on Kickstarter. So many in fact that we couldn’t fit them all in one post. Part 2 will be posted tomorrow.

There are a bunch of projects on this list that have a horror or spooky theme that fits the time of year, and we fit most of them in this first post.

Kickstarter is a platform available at Kickstarter.com where creative individuals have the ability to design and run a crowdfunding campaign. The concept is that individuals pledge to support the project, and if the project reaches the planned goal of pledge money in the time that campaign is running, then the project will get made. There are usually many various tiers of backer pledges, and different pledge levels come with different backer reward items. It is a fantastic way for creators to fund the projects that they love and want to create while getting new interesting things into the world.

The campaigns we highlighted for this month are in various states of funding. Some are fully funded and into the state of trying to hit stretch goals that come with even more cool stuff for backers and some are still in need of backers to hit their goal and get their project made.

Some of these projects are being run by well established entities and others are entries by much smaller and newer creators. All the campaigns have been chosen because we want them to succeed, and because we see something special in the product.

The projects are listed below in chronological order of the end of the campaign. So, the ones that end soonest come first. Make sure you click on the Campaign Links for each campaign to get all the detailed info about the rewards and creators. We feel there is something for everyone on this list. Enjoy!

Frankenstein the Unconquered #1 & 2: An Action-Horror Comic
Frankenstein’s monster thaws from the ice 500 years in the future to find a bombed out apocalypse as hideous and broken as he is.

Campaign Link: http://kck.st/3Sk8pwD

Ending: Wed, October 19 2022 9:30 PM EDT.

PCS Thoughts: This campaign is ending soon. It looks like a great story and has very reasonably structured backer reward tiers. Looking forward to getting a hold of this.

From the Campaign:

What is Frankenstein the Unconquered?
Frankenstein the Unconquered is a 20 page full color comic about violence as a mode of survival, the destructive inertia of revenge, and how toxic masculinity damages individuals and the environment around them. It’s a love letter to pulpy adventure comics and films like Conan the Barbarian and Mad Max as well as Universal Horror Monsters and the literature that inspired them.

This is our 5th Kickstarter campaign and we’re going all out to make sure we make the best comic we can with the best experience possible for our backers! You can expect clear, frequent communication, quick delivery, and a badass comic from this team!

What’s it About?
500 years in the future, the arctic thaws and the Beast awakens to a bombed out post-apocalypse as hideous and hostile as he is. Seeing an opportunity to reinvent himself and live the peaceful life he always wanted, the Beast attempts to settle down and live simply with villagers who are unafraid of his ghastly appearance. But when soldiers come to collect their due, violence is the only answer the Beast can come up with, and his dream of living simply is ripped away.

Having followed his war path to its bloody conclusion, the Beast was exiled to the stars, his legacy tarnished, his family flayed before his eyes. For thirty years, the world has known an uneasy peace, but the Beast never stopped fighting for control and now, on the dawn of the 200th year, the sky explodes and the Beast, bathed in the cosmic blood of stars and comets, has returned. God help anyone who stands in his way.

Chapter One shows Frankenstein monster’s return to the Earth after his exile in the stars and explains how he ended up in this post apocalyptic future.

Chapter Two introduces two pivotal characters, The Wolfman and The Bride. In the present, Frank discovers a massacre and a lone survivor welcomes him into his home, offering the beast food, comfort and hospitality…until the sun goes down and the full moon rises. Meanwhile, in the past, Frank is attacked by a warlord and must work with his Bride to fight his way out. They’re outnumbered, but far from outmatched. Carnage, anger, and loss permeate comic with consequences that will walk with the Beast for the rest of his unnatural life.

POPEYE VARIATIONS Art Book by 75+ Cartoonists
Featuring Jeffrey Brown, Roz Chast, Kelley Jones, Shing Yin Khor, Jorge Guitierrez, Roger Langridge, R. Sikoryak & more!

Continue reading “Kickstarters You Should Be Backing – October 2022 Edition – Part 1” →

With Further Ado #117: Oh Demokratia! Voting is Your Super Power!

With Further Ado #117: Oh Demokratia! Voting is Your Super Power!

Posted on by Ed Catto

It’s a rainy day here and one of my first thoughts was, “Am I ready to stand out in the rain if it’s like this on Election Day?” And just yesterday the absentee ballots for my Mom and Dad arrived at their house. They’ll get them into the mail ASAP. It’s that kind of season. I think we’re all planning ahead on how to ensure that our vote counts.

Everywhere there seems to be a focus on it.  Even in this past Sunday’s Prince Valiant. The classic newspaper strip was created by Hal Foster and now capably continued by Mark Schultz and Thomas Yeates.  In this week’s adventure, Aleta, Queen of the Misty Isles, remarks upon a unique form of government she had heard about. It’s an idea where self-rule by the common folks.

“Oh, Demokratia!”, she exclaims. And they she remembers that the Greeks “tried it that centuries ago! It worked well for a time…but then the people grew lazy and timid, and decided to just let a tyrant do their thinking for them.” Continue reading “With Further Ado #117: Oh Demokratia! Voting is Your Super Power!” →

With Further Ado #83: Shiver My Timbers, Matey

With Further Ado #83: Shiver My Timbers, Matey

Posted on by Ed Catto

There’s a truism in comics that “everybody knows”. Pirate comics don’t sell.  However. every piece of common wisdom needs to be shattered at one time or another, and we were just the scurvy knaves to do it. Sit back, sip your rum, and let me tell you the true tale of how we made a pirate comic!

Last year, I had a brilliant student in one of my classes. Naomi Hanson had many different interests and passions, and one of them was the history of real-life pirates. She was quite the expert and delivered lectures at academic conferences nationwide on the subject.

Naomi was also in the ITHACON class, where we teach students about creating and managing trade shows, and then have them run an actual convention: ITHACON.

After hearing about her lectures – shiver my timbers – I thought about how to take it to the next level. I explained to Naomi that I had vision of a Pirate Panel at San Diego Comic-Con. I knew it would be a long shot making that happen, but she was game to try.

The ideas were accepted by the panel committee at San Diego Comic-Con. I knew she’d be great onstage. I recruited another panelist, renowned library science expert Krista Rozanski.  I would be moderator.  The mizzen masts were about to be hoisted, and we were ready.  Continue reading “With Further Ado #83: Shiver My Timbers, Matey” →