Category: Comics

Ape Entertainment to Publish Poison Elves Series Under New Mature Reader Imprint

 

Ape Entertainment, in partnership with Sirius Entertainment, is proud to announce a new POISON ELVES on-going series as the flagship title of Ape Entertainment’s soon to be launched mature readers label. The new POISON ELVES series is not a spin-off, side story or ‘What-If’. This is a continuation of the DREW HAYES POISON ELVES SERIES which ended, essentially, with issue #79 published before Mr. Hayes passed away on March 21st, 2007.

Ape Entertainment is well aware of the thousands of fans of POISON ELVES who loved its’ creator, Drew Hayes, just as much as they loved his creation. Ape Entertainment understands the gravity of what we are attempting and we have done everything in our power to make sure we are staying true to the heart of the original series.

The creative team behind this series is comprised of people with an intimate understanding of not only the material Mr. Hayes produced but of the man himself. Through exhaustive research of the existing material and with the extensive notes Mr. Hayes left behind for continuation and completion of his epic series, we are creating new works that are absolutely going to thrill readers, new and old.

“Drew Hayes’ Poison Elves comic series was one of the biggest influences in my decision to become a comic book professional,” said David Hedgecock, CEO of Ape Entertainment. “This book is one small way for me to say ‘thank you’ to Mr. Hayes and to the legacy he left behind.”

DREW HAYES’ POISON ELVES hits the comic shop shelves on March 20th, 2013. The first issue is 32 pages of glorious black & white comic book art and story, featuring covers by Darick Robertson, Terry Moore, and interior artist, Osvaldo Montpeller. The cover price will be $2.99.

For more information, please visit www.ape-entertainment.com

About Ape Entertainment
Founded in 2003, Ape Entertainment is the brainchild of lifelong comic book devotees David Hedgecock and Brent E. Erwin. Ape Entertainment is the comic book home to innovative new titles such as LITTLE GREEN MEN, SCOUTS, and HERO WITHIN.  Ape is also the North American publisher for licensed properties THE PENGUINS OF MADAGASCAR, KUNG FU PANDA, RICHIE RICH, CASPER, STRAWBERRY SHORTCAKE, POCKET GOD, and CUT THE ROPE. Visit Ape Entertainment online at http://www.ApeComics.com.

VIZ Media Debuts New Shojo Manga Series DEMON LOVE SPELL

Catch The New Supernatural Romance Series From The Celebrated Creator of AI
ORE! And SENSUAL PHRASE

VIZ Media, LLC (VIZ Media), the largest publisher, distributor and licensor of manga and anime in North America, brings new shojo manga (graphic novel) fun to fans everywhere with the debut of Mayu Shinjo’s DEMON LOVE SPELL Vol. 1. The new series (now available) is published under the Shojo Beat imprint, rated ‘T+’ for Older

Teens, and carries an MSRP of $9.99 U.S. / $12.99 CAN. The series will also be available on December 18th for digital download from the VIZ Manga digital platform (MSRP $4.99 USD/CAN).

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 women’s feelings of passion and love. Kagura’s insatiable appetite has left many girls at school brokenhearted, so Miko casts a spell to seal his powers. Surprisingly the spell works – sort of – but now Kagura is after her!

“Acclaimed manga creator Mayu Shinjo enters the supernatural realm in DEMON LOVE SPELL, her new romantic comedy,” says Nancy Thistlethwaite, Editor. ” Our down-to-earth heroine Miko finds herself falling in love with the incubus Kagura. Miko is able to bind most of his powers, but that doesn’t stop him from entering her dreams. This series features Shinjo’s captivating artwork and irreverent humor, as well as her trademark passionate scenes.”

Mayu Shinjo is the prolific creator of numerous acclaimed shojo manga, including the hit series, SENSUAL PHRASE (published in North America by VIZ Media). Her current series include AI ORE! (also published by VIZ Media) and Ayakashi Koi Emaki. Earlier this year, AI ORE! was featured on the New York Times Manga Bestseller list and has also been a BookScan Top 50 Graphic Novel bestseller.

VIZ Media’s innovative digital platform allows for complete interoperability to read manga from your iPhoneR, iPodR touch, iPadR, and supported Android smart phones and tablets (including the Kindle Fire), with VIZManga.com for desktop/laptop computers. With one account, registered users are able to view their purchases across even more devices than ever, and the rapidly growing platform features over 1,000 volumes across 100 different series.

For more information on DEMON LOVE SPELL, or other shojo manga titles from VIZ Media, please visit www.shojobeat.com .

To learn more about VIZ Manga and to download the VIZ Manga App, please visit VIZManga.com and www.viz.com/apps.

About VIZ Media, LLC

Headquartered in San Francisco, California, VIZ Media distributes, markets and licenses the best anime and manga titles direct from Japan. Owned by three of Japan’s largest manga and animation companies, Shueisha Inc., Shogakukan Inc., and Shogakukan-Shueisha Productions, Co., Ltd., VIZ Media has the most extensive library of anime and manga for English speaking audiences in North America, the United Kingdom, Ireland and South Africa. With its popular digital manga anthology WEEKLY SHONEN JUMP ALPHA and blockbuster properties like NARUTO, BLEACH and INUYASHA, VIZ Media offers cutting-edge action, romance and family friendly properties for anime, manga, science fiction and fantasy fans of all ages. VIZ Media properties are available as graphic novels, DVDs, animated television series, feature films, downloadable and streaming video and a variety of consumer products.

Learn more about VIZ Media, anime and manga at www.VIZ.com.

VIZ Media Offers a New Holiday Promotion That Gives Fans 20% Off on ALL Digital Manga on VIZMANGA.COM and The VIZ Manga App Thru January 8th

Explore New Titles Or Catch Up On Ongoing Series With A Special Discount That Applies To The Entire VIZ Manga Library Of Over 1,000 Digital Volumes 

VIZ Media has just announced a special new promotion to wrap up 2012 that offers 20% off on all digital manga (graphic novel) titles featured on VIZManga.com and available through the VIZ Manga App, including top-selling titles BAKUMAN?, BLEACH, BLUE EXORCIST, NANA, NARUTO, ONE PIECE, VAMPIRE KNIGHT, and more. Enjoy the fun of manga throughout the holiday season with this special offer that runs for a limited-time only from now until Tuesday, January 8th.

Through the innovative VIZ Manga digital platform, registered users are able to use one account to view their purchased manga across more devices than ever, allowing for complete interoperability to read manga. The free VIZ Manga App is the top application for reading manga on the Apple iPhoneÆ, iPodÆ touch, iPadÆ and supported Android-powered smart phones and tablets (including the Kindle Fire), and may be downloaded through the iTunes Store, Google Play Store, and Amazon Appstore. The platform is also accessible from VIZManga.com for desktop and laptop computers.

The VIZ Manga platform features a massive library of the most popular manga series in the world, featuring over 1,000 volumes across over 100 different series, with new series and volumes added every Tuesday. All manga volumes are generally available for purchase and download in the U.S. and Canada within the application starting from $4.99 (U.S. / CAN) each.

Download the free VIZ Manga App for your Android and iOS devices at www.VIZ.com/apps.

To learn more about VIZ Manga, and to explore free Chapter 1 previews of every manga title, please visit VIZManga.com.

 

The Black Coat slashes his way onto Kickstarter

The creative team responsible for The Black Coat comic book launched their first Kickstarter campaign today and plan to produce a 66 page graphic novel that tells the further adventures of America’s first superspy if funded. “We’ve always wanted to pick things up where we left off,” said Black Coat co-creator Ben Lichius, “but producing a book like The Black Coat can be cost prohibitive in many ways and so it just hasn’t been a possibility for us to this point.”

The creators are looking toward Kickstarter as a way to raise both funds and awareness for the character and help ease the minds of some eager fans at the same time. “I still get emails on a regular basis asking when we’re going to do more books,” Lichius added. “I think that Kickstarter is a special way for old and new fans to get involved with a project that they love, and in a way they never could before. Obviously the funding is a big part of it, but one of the great things about crowdfunding is the level of interaction that fans get to have – it’s a literal forum for them, as actual investors, to talk about the project, share their thoughts and concerns with the creators, help spread the word about the project… It actually makes fans into fellow creators and I think that’s really cool.”

The new book would be written by Ben Lichius, illustrated by Dean Kotz, and colored by Diego Rodriguez. Ape Entertainment has already agreed to publish the book upon completion. If successful, the team expects the book to be on shelves by early October of 2013.

For more information about the campaign, visit the Kickstarter Page:
http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/61459799/the-black-coat-the-blackest-dye
You can follow the campaign’s progress on the Black Coat’s website or on Facebook at:
http://www.the-black-coat.com
http://www.facebook.com/TheBlackCoat
And to learn more about Ape Entertainment, visit their website www.apecomics.com.

The Black Coat was created by Ben Lichius and Francesco Francavilla.

VIZ Media Offers Android Users New Free Way to Read WEEKLY SHONEN JUMP ALPHA!

Readers New To Manga Or The Nation’s Leading Weekly Digital Manga Magazine Are Invited To Sample Hot New Series With An Easy-To-Use Ad-Supported Option

VIZ Media gives Android users new to WEEKLY SHONEN JUMP ALPHA or the manga genre itself an easy reason to explore the nation’s leading digital manga (graphic novel) magazine with a new ad-supported option that allows readers to read a complete issue for free.

Readers simply click on the “Free” button in the VIZ Manga app & choose from a variety of promotional offers from our advertising partners in order to get access to each week’s issue of WEEKLY SHONEN JUMP ALPHA with no further commitment required. The ad-supported option is available only to Android users at this time.

Each digital edition of WEEKLY SHONEN JUMP ALPHA treats manga fans across North America to the latest chapters of some of the world’s most popular manga series only two weeks after they debut in Japan’s massively popular WEEKLY SHONEN JUMP magazine. Starting on January 21st, all weekly WEEKLY SHONEN JUMP ALPHA series will be publishing simultaneously with their release in Japan! Don’t miss the latest installments of hot series such as BAKUMAN?, BARRAGE, BLEACH, BLUE EXORCIST, NARUTO, ONE PIECE and TORIKO as well as access to special editorial features and an extensive online fan-supported community. Also explore the range of special content and premium offers that are available exclusively to WEEKLY SHONEN JUMP ALPHA members from VIZ Media.

WEEKLY SHONEN JUMP ALPHA is available through an annual membership that provides 52 weeks of digital access to 48 weekly issues for just $25.99. Each issue may be read on VIZManga.com/sj-weekly, and also on the VIZ Manga App for iPadÆ, iPhoneÆ, iPodÆ touch, and Android tablets and smartphones. For more information on WEEKLY SHONEN JUMP ALPHA and current exclusive subscriber offers, please visit SJAlpha.com.

Aces Weekly Online Magazine Launches

From Aces Weekly:

David Lloyd (V for Vendetta, Kickback) empowered the world with his iconoclastic Guy Fawkes mask  in V for Vendetta. Today, comic conspirator Lloyd is changing the world with his publishing launch of an ambitious new online magazine called Aces Weekly.  Acesweekly.co.uk is a sequential art magazine, available exclusively through on-line subscription which will be released as seven weekly issues which form a volume. Each issue will have at least 3 landscape pages from 6 contributors (18 pages per issue), plus many pages of extras such as artists sketches etc.  Readers subscribe to volumes which cost £6.99/$9.99 per seven issue volume. Aces Weekly will be available exclusively on-line and feature all new material. Stored online, readers now have access to their magazine wherever they have web access.  The website goes live September 30, 2012.   What makes Aces Weekly special? The creators have more control then ever before.

Lloyd explained the origin of the magazine, “Well, the aim was to create something very much like a traditional weekly English comic but without limiting the subject matter.  We asked a range of creators who we knew to be excellent – the reason for the ‘ aces ‘ of our name – to do whatever they liked within certain bounds of taste, and they just came up with a great mix of stories.  Creators in this business rarely get asked to do whatever they like, so that’s part of the pull of the project for them.  And they’re enthused by the newness of the project and its potential for growth.”

Bambos Georgiou is the managing editor; “Most comic companies use creators to make money for the company, this company has been set up to make money for the creators. This time readers will know their money is going direct to the creators.”  All strips are creator owned.

Lloyd, who along with writer Dave Jackson has created Valley Of Shadows for Acesweekly.co.uk, has gathered together some of the top names in the comic industry to appear in Aces Weekly, such as Kyle Baker, Steve Bissette, Colleen Doran, Bill Sienkiewicz, Billy Tucci and Herb Trimpe, including, alongside him in the first volume ; Phil Hester & John McCrea (Progenitor), JC Vaughn & Mark Wheatley (Return Of The Human) Alain Mauricet & Alexandre Tefenkgi (Shoot For The Moon) and David Hitchcock (Paradise Mechanism) who all contribute twenty-one page stories serialized over the first seven issue run.  Also included in the first volume are stand alone three page strips by Lew Stringer (Combat Colin), Carl Critchlow (Thrud The Barbarian), David Leach (Psycho Gran), Esteban Hernández(Harmony), Phil Elliott (Gimbley)Rory Walker (Chloroform) and Mychailo Kazybrid & Bambos (Dr Queer).

The Adventures of Retrobot Debuts on the App Store

Endeavor Bros and Monkube today announced the launch of The Adventures of Retrobot,  an intense tank shooter with epic boss battles featuring animated graphic novel style storytelling. Available now on the App Store for $0.99, The Adventures of Retrobot follows the story of a DIY robot built as a gaming buddy who’s out to save his maker from the evil robots who’ve taken over the world.  Go to  http://bit.ly/retrobot to check it out!
Throughout his adventure, Retrobot acquires new weapons and power-ups to fight off the never ending onslaught of robot overlords. Tactical use of shield and powerful EMP blasts are needed to complete the mission. The Adventures of Retrobot takes the player through numerous worlds, tackles challenging level bosses and tells a full comic book worth of story though animated story sequences. Having lived in a bubble of constant video-game playing and with no prior experience of the world outside, Retrobot and sidekick Toto’s journey is filled with slapstick humor that makes gaming logic and real world rules collide. More often than not, with a wink towards gaming’s biggest classics.

A game for everyone

In order to cater to both the occasional and experienced iOS gamers, The Adventures of Retrobot is geared with several gameplay modes. The Story Mode offers a balanced learning curve, varied enough to keep hardened players interested, without preventing occasional gamers from seeing the story through. Seeing the credits roll is just the beginning for experienced gamers. As a Challenge Mode, with one life, no retries and faster enemy spawning and a Boss Challenge await. In those game modes, the majority of the Game Center points are awarded. Completing one of these game modes – which is far from an easy feat – earns players a spot in the separate high score charts.
“The Adventures of Retrobot takes two of the greatest entertainment categories – comics and games – and fuses them together for a hugely addictive and fun experience,” said Adam Heat, Co-
screenshot Founder of Endeavor Bros. “We’ve spent countless hours bringing together what we believe could be a game changer in the mobile gaming space.”

Sven Van de Perre, Creative Director at Monkube remarks, “For us, game development has always been about finding a game genre that is under-used in today’s tidal wave of mobile games. And then trying to create a game that raises the bar. Ever since being hooked on Popcap’s tank shooter Heavy Weapon, I wanted to have a go at this. With The Adventures of Retrobot, we bring amazing frantic shooter action, while also adding like-able characters, great story telling and – which is up to the consumer to judge – some funny video game related humor.”

To go beyond the call of duty, Endeavor Bros and Monkube brought together an all-star support cast, including:

* Comic book publisher Ape Entertainment, developers of the massively popular Pocket God Comics featuring work from artist Carlos Valenti and Cut the Rope Comics apps.
* Maurits ‘Mo’ Goossens, part of Monkube’s in-house music team, composed the massive classical score that drives both game and story. As 1st violin and former conductor of the Brussels Philharmonic orchestra, he worked on several motion pictures scores, including Golden Globe-winning picture “The Aviator” (Martin Scorcese) and 2012 Oscar winner “The Artist” (Michel Hazanavicius).

About Endeavor Bros

Endeavor Bros is an Entertainment Media company based in Canada that develops and publishes games for mobile devices. Our central platform is the iPhone and all iOS related devices. We also support other mobile platforms such as Android, the 3DS and the PSP as well as online platforms such as the Xbox and PSN networks. For more information, please visitwww.EndeavorBros.com.

About Monkube

Monkube is a mobile game developer with offices in Belgium, Romania and Hong Kong. Founded by ex gaming journalists, Monkube intentionally steers clear of over-used game concepts, instead fusing its games with complete comic book stories and über polished gameplay. For more information, visit www.monkube.com.

The VIZ Manga digital platform expands on Android!

In addition to smart phones running Android 2.2 and higher, the VIZ Manga app is now available for 7″ Android tablets and smaller, including the recently released Google Nexus 7!

The VIZ Manga App is available for free from the Google Play store, and offers fans access to over 80 series and 700+ volumes not just on their Android 7″ or smaller tablet and smart phone, but on their iPad, iPod touch, iPhone, and on the VIZManga.com website – one account synchronizes across the entire VIZ Manga platform!

New volumes are available weekly, with periodic promotions, including the *End of Summer* sale going on now through August 20th – *ALL* volumes are 20% off their regular price (generally $4.99 per volume)! New titles available today include:

– KEKKAISHI Vol. 33 – a day & date release with print edition!
– a wealth of shojo, including JIU JIU Vol. 1, KIMI NI TODOKE Vol. 11, ORESAMA TEACHER Vols. 5-6, and more!
– getting ready for the November release of the latest volume, NEON GENESIS EVANGELION Vol. 4
– and more!

Shuteye: Six Tales of Dreams and Dreamers

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Shuteye: Six Tales of Dreams and Dreamers is a collection of six eerie little tales about dreams, and how easy it can be to get lost in them.

The first tale, Vea, is about a soldier in the days of exploration who deserts his company and finds himself adopted by a native tribe in the Banda Oriental. His new friends, however, harbor a mysterious secret. Why does the landscape appear different each morning? How does the village reorder itself every night? And why can’t he seem to find anyone he recognizes from one day to the next?

The second story, The Liar, concerns a drifter who stops in a provincial neighborhood bar and starts spinning lies for the bartender – lies which end up having surprising consequences.

Night and Day is something of a love story. It’s about a young couple on an extended hiking trip through the northern Midwest who happen upon a strange, abandoned house in the middle of the forest, and find themselves inextricably drawn to it.

In Carrefour, an isolated man who ?nds himself drifting uncontrollably in and out of a chilling recurring nightmare, haunted by a menacing figure who traverses both his dreams and his waking life.

Castling is about a college student and her estranged, unreliable father, and their tenuous reconnection after they swap dreams one night.

In The Fetch, an overworked and overextended young man is being pulled in all directions. Then one day, his doppelganger mysteriously arrives, offering a much-needed helping hand.

Each tale in Shuteye ends with a character falling asleep, only to wake up as the protagonist of the following story, remembering the previous one as nothing more than a dream.

About Sarah Becan: 

Becan is the author and artist behind the longrunning Ignatz-nominated webcomic “I Think You’re Sauceome.” (link to www.sauceome.com) Shuteye is Becan’s second graphic novel, and was published in 2012 with the help of a Kickstarter campaign. Her first graphic novel, The Complete Ouija Interviews, won a Xeric Award and a Stumptown Trophy for Outstanding Debut.

Book is available NOW. You can order via www.shortpantspress.com for a print copy. They also offer epub and pdf format digital copies at http://www.shortpantspress.com/?page_id=40

Praise for Shuteye:

“Each eerie story seems to wake up from the last, giving readers a glimpse of the fuzziness experienced right after a deep sleep filled with vivid dreams.” -Noelene Clark, LA Times

“Sarah Becan’s ‘Shuteye’ is straight up fantastic. Individually, the six stories are beautiful and eerie, but read together in the new softcover collection the full impact of what she’s created hits you.” -Chicago Comics

The Barbary-an Invasions: Nerdist at Outside Lands

from Nerdist:

Saturday the 11th is Nerdist Day at San Francsisco’s festival of music, food, art and comedy.

For four years, the Outside Lands festival has brought Golden Gate Park the best in bands, food, art and more, but this year, Aug. 10-12, they top themselves with an entire day of Nerdist. In the Barbary, a tent with mirrored walls and a stained-glass ceiling, three days of comedy and variety include a Saturday presented by us.

Nerdist Day, August 11th (which we’d call “Sat-Nerd-Day” if BBC America hadn’t beaten us to it.) kicks off at noon with a session of soft rock and sweet ‘staches from Mustache Harbor.  Then things really get into gear at 1 p.m. with a Nerdist stand-up cluster hosted by Jonah Ray, featuring Pete Holmes, David Koechner, Michelle Buteau, Jesse Elias and Caitlin Gill. If your weekend isn’t sufficiently magical after that, stick around at 2:10 p.m. for Justin Willman and his masterful Magic Meltdown.The Dork Forest‘s Jackie Kashian hosts a second stand-up cluster at 5 p.m. with Reggie Watts, Ron Funches, Michelle Buteau, Cory Loykasek and Mike Drucker, and then between 5 and 8 p.m. there’ll be back-to-back Nerdist variety shows featuring Chris Hardwick, Neil Patrick Harris, David Koechner, Justin Willman, Marcus Monroe, Jonah Ray, Pete Holmes, Ron Funches and Jackie Kashian. Holmes will also be hosting a live edition of You Made It Weird Sunday at noon with stars from Adult Swim.

So come and step “Outside” next weekend. In addition to our all-star line-up, some of the finest in food, beer and wine will be available, plus there’s an art show and of course some heavy-hitting bands like Metallica. But to quote one of their more famous tunes, when you’re hanging with the Nerdist gang at the Barbary, “Nothing Else Matters.”

The Guild: Five Years and Counting

From WatchTheGuild:

 

Five years ago today – on July 27, 2007 – the very first episode of The Guild was uploaded to YouTube.  It’s hard to believe how far the show has come, and as always, on behalf of the show we want to thank the fans for the incredible support which has made the show the success it is today.  Today the show is widely available on many platforms for free (YouTube, Xbox, MSN/Bing, Hulu, Blip, Zune) and for purchase/with subscription (Netflix, iTunes, Amazon DVD or VOD).

All next week we’ll be celebrating the past five years – and looking ahead to more with the recently announced sixth season, which will come to Geek and Sundry (subscribe now) this fall .  Connect with us via social media as we have some some cool stuff planned including giveaways (LOOT!).  Check out the post on Geek and Sundry for details on the giveaways, which start at 1pm today!

Here’s THE GUILD’S Twitter, Facebook, Google+, and Tumblr, and here’s GEEK AND SUNDRY’S Twitter, Facebook, Google+, and Tumblr.  And please join us for more discussion on Geek and Sundry’s new discussion forums.

We asked the producers and cast to give us their thoughts on those early episodes, and the growth of the show over the last five years.

What do you remember about the first episode?

FELICIA DAY: I remember emailing 12 hours a day to blogs I read about gaming and geek stuff, introducing myself as an “actress from Buffy” and please spread word about my show.  Most of them ignored me, but a few picked it up. Some of the first fans we had were Veronica Belmont and Alice Taylor withWonderland blog. Without their spreading word of the show we wouldn’t have gotten nearly as much traction as fast with the online community.   But I remember refreshing the video and seeing people actually comment about our work, and realizing that THAT was what I wanted to do with me life, make things for people to react to immediately.  It was a whole new life when we uploaded that episode.

VINCENT CASO: When that first episode went up, I didn’t think a whole lot of it. I mean, it was cool, and a lot of fun to see myself in this production, but who had any idea it would turn into this?

AMY OKUDA: The Guild was my first acting job, and my first day of shooting was me and the webcam so I was talking and acting to a blank computer screen and I remember thinking, “wow this is a lot harder and less fun than I thought” but the day we all shot together for the first time at Cheesybeards changed everything for me. It was the “aahhh, this is what acting is, it IS fun” moment for me.

ROBIN THORSEN:  I have to be honest and say that when I auditioned for The Guild, I really had never heard of World of Warcraft…during my audition I actually said something like “AKFing,” like it was a real word instead of A-F-K-ing.  I remember  Felicia said  after I finished, “That was good!  Let’s try it again and it’s A-F-King” I was like oooooooh! Now, I think that after five seasons I have become a little more seasoned with all the game lingo.

 

There’s lots more where that came from so go check out The Guild’s website to read the rest of the interview and check out some great photos.