DC Comic Book Heroes Never Looked so Good!

As you know by our post last week about Rogan Josh, the crew at Gfest loves comic art.  We are especially drawn (no pun intended) to original comic art that takes on an vibe of its own.

Happily we stumbled upon the vintage comic art of Michael Myers.  His artwork captures the  characters we love to see and read each month in a different perspective.  Simply put - These prints are down right cool!

Head on over to Rogan Josh or Michael Myers if you need some beautiful art to make your home, office, etc. fashionable, classy with just enough geek thrown in to give you some street credit.

Jack Kirby Named One of Comic Industry's Toughest Men

Was Jack Kirby the original One Man Army Corps? 

Shortly lafter landing on Omaha Beach in Normandy, Jack Kirby's commanding officer in the US Army discovered that King Kirby could draw, so he started sending Jack out alone at night to scout the terrain and draw maps of enemy territory.  Kirby readily volunteered to sneak behind enemy lines armed with his most dangerous weapon - a pencil and paper that he used to draw maps and pictures. 

And that's only one of the reasons that Gfest's friends over at Ty Templeton's Art Land named Jack Kirby one of the Top Comic Creators Who Can Kick Your Ass.  Check on Ty's site for the rest of toughest comic book creators in the business. 

It's a well done list and a funny read.

Dan Didio's Run as Writer of the Outsiders is Officially a Failure

In January of this year, newly demoted co-publisher of DC Comics Dan Didio took over as writer of The Outsiders series, a team of superheroes who do not fit the norms of the mainstream superhero community, namely the Justice League of America.  But with three issues out so far, it's hard to categorize his efforts as anything but a failure.  Just look at the numbers:

• In March 2009, The Outsiders had monthly sales of roughly 28,000 copies, which was a typical sales figure for the title.
• In the wake of Batman's apparent death in Final Crisis, a new team of Outsiders was created, and the title was "relaunched" to great success.  Sales for the November release jumped to roughly 51,000.
• One year later, in March 2010, Dan Didio's version saw sales of a mere 19,600 copies. 

So Didio not only lost every single one of the new readers who jumped on board for the post Final Crisis reboot, he lost more than 40% of the traditional fan base who could be counted on to pick up the title month in and month out. 

When Didio was doing his press tour in November regarding his taking over of The Outsiders title he said "If I felt that the book was not achieving, I would not be on that book. As simple as that. I'd cancel myself."

Since it seems that once again, Dan Didio has lied to the loyal fans of the DC Universe.  The only question left is will it be Jim Lee or Geoff Johns who gets to tell him he's fired. 

New Gods Series 2 Metron Action Figure Deal of the Day

So we have a thing for Jack Kirby here at gfest.  We love him.  We awarded him with the Lifetime Acheivement Award.  And while we basically ignore all that nonsense he produced at Marvel, we still respect it.  But what we really love is Jack Kirby's New Gods.  Perhaps the best tale ever told in comics. 

Now for some insane reason, Amazon.com seems to be having a clearance sale on New Gods Action Figures today.  If you can only get one, we would reccomend Metron as it is very hard to find a good Metron Action Figure. 

Click on the Pictures Below to order:

Superman to Join AMC's Walking Dead Pilot

Bloody-Disgusting.com is reporting that Brandon Routh from Superman Returns has been cast in AMC’s Walking Dead series.


His role is not known yet, but I'm more than a little nervous about this casting. I was really enjoying the fact that there were no highly recognizable names so far.  Plus the guy has no charisma and limited acting skills.

Should he be cast, he’ll join Andrew Lincoln as Rick, who was announced earlier last week.

New Covers for Brightest Day Revealed

Courtesy of DC's The Source, here's an early look at variant covers to June's JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA #44 and GREEN LANTERN CORPS #47...

Green Lantern Corps is one sweet cover, while Justice League of America just continues to dissapoint on all levels.  So sad.

Marvel Takes Graphic Novel Business Away from Diamond

In a major move for the comics marketplace, Marvel Comics has signed a deal to have their graphic novels and trade paperbacks distributed to the book store market by the Hachette Book Group, effective September 1, 2010. The deal was announced this morning on Hachette's own news website (press release reprinted below).



The announcement finalizes what many industry observers long expected: that Marvel would leave its longtime place with Diamond Book Distributors – the book store arm of Direct Market titan Diamond Comic Distributors – in order to up their sales numbers in one of the increasingly important markets for comics sales across North America. This follows DC Comics exit from Diamond in 2007 for Random House, although both publishers continue to see their monthly comics and trade paperbacks released to comic shops exclusively through Diamond.


One notable element to the new Marvel/Hachette partnership is that the deal seems to come independently of the influence of Marvel's new owners at Disney. While Disney's own book publishing arm as well as their Hyperion publishing label were once carried by Hachette, both switched to HarperCollins in 2006.

Red Robin gets "Must Read" rating from Weekly Crisis

 RED ROBIN #11

Written by Chris Yost


Art by Marcus To, Ray McCarthy, Mark McKenna, and Guy Major



• The Batgirl/Red Robin crossover continues this week as the duo make a stand against the League of Assassins, meanwhile things get a bit too intense for Tam Fox.

• This issue is a perfect mix of action and character work with fantastic pacing. Chris Yost really hits all the right notes with this, making it an incredibly enjoyable read.

• I love how perfectly Yost handles the characters. He has a fantastic understanding of the personalities in the Bat-family and how they interact. It’s a shame that he is leaving this book after next issue—its an even bigger shame that DC hasn’t snagged him to be a driving force in this franchise.

• Excellent pacing and tight plotting are paramount to this issues success. I especially loved the way the montage of potential victims closes out the issue. That is perfect denouement.

• How awesome is Marcus To? Just as Yost perfectly captures the voices of this issue’s large cast, To perfectly captures their appearances. There isn’t a character in this issue I wouldn’t mind seeing him draw full time.

• I loved the sense of movement and impact here. That really helps sell the action.

• I would easily consider purchasing any one of a number of pages in this comic. That, to me, is a perfect sign of how good it is! I want this comic on my wall!



Verdict: Must Read. Red Robin continues its run as, by far, the strongest comic in the Batman franchise at the moment. Chris Yost and Marcus To not only put together a great issue here but also prove that they have the chops to take on any character in the franchise. They’ve only got one issue left, which is a huge bummer—let’s hope there are more team-ups with this creative team to tackle these characters somewhere down the road!

Ready to buy Red Robin #11 for yourself?  Click HERE now!

Megan Fox to play Red Sonja?

Megan Fox is rumoured to play Red Sonja in the upcoming movie adaptation. 

She would look good in this outfit:

Bill Willingham, Geoff Johns Both Nominated for Eisner Awards

The Eisner Award nominees were announced today.  Listed below are Gfest's predictions for who SHOULD win this year's top Eisner Awards.  The predicted winners are in bold.


Best Continuing Series

• Fables, by Bill Willingham, Mark Buckingham, Steve Leialoha, Andrew Pepoy et al. (Vertigo/DC)

• Irredeemable, by Mark Waid and Peter Krause (BOOM!)

• Naoki Urasawa’s 20th Century Boys, by Naoki Urasawa (VIZ Media)

• The Unwritten, by Mike Carey and Peter Gross (Vertigo/DC)

• The Walking Dead, by Robert Kirkman and Charles Adlard (Image)



Best Limited Series or Story Arc

• Blackest Night, by Geoff Johns, Ivan Reis, and Oclair Albert (DC)

• Incognito, by Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips (Marvel Icon)

• Pluto: Urasawa X Tezuka, by Naoki Urasawa and Takashi Nagasaki (VIZ Media)

• Wolverine #66–72 and Wolverine Giant-Size Special: “Old Man Logan,” by Mark Millar, Steve McNiven, and Dexter Vines (Marvel)

• The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, by Eric Shanower and Skottie Young (Marvel)



Best New Series

• Chew by John Layman and Rob Guillory (Image)

• Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by Phillip K. Dick, art by Tony Parker (BOOM!)

• Ireedeemable, by Mark Waid and Peter Krause (BOOM!)

• Sweet Tooth, by Jeff Lemire (Vertigo/DC)

• The Unwritten, by Mike Carey and Peter Gross (Vertigo/DC)



Best Humor Publication

• Drinky Crow’s Maakies Treasury, by Tony Millionaire (Fantagraphics)

• Everybody Is Stupid Except for Me, And Other Astute Observations, by Peter Bagge (Fantagraphics)

• Little Lulu, vols. 19–21, by John Stanley and Irving Tripp (Dark Horse Books)

• The Muppet Show Comic Book: Meet the Muppets, by Roger Langridge (BOOM Kids!)

• Scott Pilgrim vol. 5: Scott Pilgrm vs. the Universe, by Brian Lee O’Malley (Oni)



Best Graphic Album—Reprint

• Absolute Justice, by Alex Ross, Jim Krueger, and Doug Braithewaite (DC)

• A.D.: New Orleans After the Deluge, by Josh Neufeld (Pantheon)

• Alec: The Years Have Pants, by Eddie Campbell (Top Shelf)

• Essex County Collected, by Jeff Lemire (Top Shelf)

• Map of My Heart: The Best of King-Cat Comics & Stories, 1996–2002, by John Porcellino (Drawn & Quarterly)



Best Writer

• Ed Brubaker, Captain America, Daredevil, Marvels Project (Marvel) Criminal, Incognito (Marvel Icon)

• Geoff Johns, Adventure Comics, Blackest Night, Flash: Rebirth, Superman: Secret Origin (DC)

• James Robinson, Justice League: Cry for Justice (DC)

• Mark Waid, Irredeemable, The Incredibles (BOOM!)

• Bill Willingham, Fables (Vertigo/DC)



Best Cover Artist

• John Cassaday, Irredeemable (BOOM!); Lone Ranger (Dynamite)

• Salvador Larocca, Invincible Iron Man (Marvel)

• Sean Phillips, Criminal, Incognito (Marvel Icon); 28 Days Later (BOOM!)

• Alex Ross, Astro City: The Dark Age (WildStorm/DC); Project Superpowers (Dynamite)

• J. H. Williams III, Detective Comics (DC)



Best Coloring

• Steve Hamaker, Bone: Crown of Thorns (Scholastic); Little Mouse Gets Ready (Toon)

• Laura Martin, The Rocketeer: The Complete Adventures (IDW); Thor, The Stand: American Nightmares (Marvel)

• David Mazzuccheilli, Asterios Polyp (Pantheon)

• Alex Sinclair, Blackest Night, Batman and Robin (DC)

• Dave Stewart, Abe Sapien, BPRD, The Goon, Hellboy, Solomon Kane, Umbrella Academy, Zero Killer (Dark Horse); Detective Comics (DC); Northlanders, Luna Park (Vertigo)



Best Comics-Related Periodical/Journalism

• Alter Ego, edited by Roy Thomas (TwoMorrows)

• ComicsAlliance, www.comicsalliance.com

• Comics Comics, edited by Timothy Hodler and Dan Nadel (www.comicscomicsmag.com) (PictureBox)

• The Comics Journal, edited by Gary Groth, Michael Dean, and Kristy Valenti (Fantagraphics)

• The Comics Reporter, produced by Tom Spurgeon (http://www.comicsreporter.com/)



Best Publication Design

• Absolute Justice, designed by Curtis King and Josh Beatman (DC)

• The Brinkley Girls, designed by Adam Grano (Fantagraphics)

• Gahan Wilson: 50 Years of Playboy Cartoons, designed by Jacob Covey (Fantagraphics)

• Life and Times of Martha Washington, designed by David Nestelle (Dark Horse Books)

• Queer Visitors from the Marvelous Land of Oz, designed by Philippe Ghielmetti (Sunday Press)

• Whatever Happened to the World of Tomorrow? designed by Neil Egan and Brian Fies (Abrams ComicArts)

Jim Lee's newest iPad sketch - Wonder Woman

DC Co-Publisher Jim Lee put on a clinic today, showing how to make Wonder Woman on the iPad using Sketchbook Pro, an app made specifically for Apple's new device, and nothing but his fingers as an input device.

Total time it took Jim Lee to create the lastest in his series of iPad masterpieces:  80 minutes while sitting in the chair getting his haircut.

The Art of Jim Lee (Marvel Masters)