Press Release Round Up 03-24-2011

We here at The Weekly Crisis get press releases shoved into our hands daily. You’ll notice we usually don’t put them up because this site is more about personal journalism articles than just cannon fodder information. But those press releases do hold information so I wanted to put up a round up of the press releases that are fit to print. I’ll add a little comment with each one, as well; part-summary, part-personal thought, and if you have something to say you can go wild in the comments. Hit the jump to read about Butcher Baker, Ken Niimura, Planet of the Apes, and Turf.

Here’s the formula. Press release headline, my thoughts, then the actual release text. Enjoy.

BUTCHER BAKER DESTROYS EXPECTATIONS

“Butcher Baker drops next week and already we know it’s sold out. That’s either impressive, company subterfuge, or an indicator they didn’t print enough. I’m going to go out on a limb, just for this series, and say it’s impressive. I can see BB getting plenty of pre-order traction and selling out before we get our hands on the copies waiting for us in the drawers which our shops keep pulled items for us.

Butcher Baker is a very weird comic but it’s weird enough to get people’s attention and Joe Casey is good enough to make people pick this up.

I wonder if Image will think this then makes that month worth of teasers = sell out? I really hope not.

Also, we got quoted in the release. Go us. I wonder how many other sites will link to us in the text?”

First Issue of the Relentless Butcher Baker, The Righteous Maker Sells Out


Berkeley, CA – March, 22, 2011 – After all the buzz surrounding the enigmatic introduction of Joe Casey and Mike Huddleston’s BUTCHER BAKER, THE RIGHTEOUS MAKER, it should come as no surprise that Image Comics has announced the first issue of this uncompromising NSFW title has sold out. A second printing is being rushed into stores for April 13.


BUTCHER BAKER, THE RIGHTEOUS MAKER is a jaded former superhero, lured away from a wanton retirement of rabid excess to once more don his patriotic costume and tie up a significant loose end left hanging from his glory days. Casey’s eruptive characters are expertly crafted while Huddleston provides tongue-in-cheek visual cues pregnant with pop culture reference. As a reviewer at WeeklyCrisis.com stated, BUTCHER BAKER is "full of all the things you didn't know you wanted and never felt safe to ask for.”


Among some of the other rave reviews that BUTCHER BAKER, THE RIGHTEOUS MAKER has inspired, BrokenFrontier.com contrasted it favorably against previous satires of the superhero genre. “What’s different about BUTCHER BAKER is that it’s infused with a good-natured, if sometimes disgusting, sense of humor bordering on the absurd. Everything and everyone is fair game in Casey’s eyes, from late night talk show hosts to flag-wearing super-patriots.”


"It's nice to know there's a healthy amount of readers that are as sick and twisted as I am," said Casey. "Then again, maybe it's just all about Huddleston's art. The best part is, we know this first issue is just the tip of the f***in' iceberg. Wait until you see what's coming next!"


"BUTCHER BAKER is Joe Casey at the top of his already impressive game," added Image Publisher Eric Stephenson. "On top of that, Mike Huddleston is turning in page after page of incredible work that towers over even the best of what he's done before. It's career-defining stuff, really."


BUTCHER BAKER ,THE RIGHTEOUS MAKER #1 Second Printing (FEB118096), a raunchy 32 page full-color political/sexploitation superhero comic book, will be on sale April 13, 2011, alongside BUTCHER BAKER, THE RIGHTEOUS MAKER #2 (FEB110452).


ABOUT JOE CASEY


Joe Casey is a founding partner of Man of Action Studios, a creative development company formed in 2000 by graphic novelists Joe Casey, Joe Kelly, Duncan Rouleau and Steven T. Seagle. Based in Los Angeles and New York, Man Of Action Studios created the popular BEN 10 TV franchise as well as the new series Generator Rex. Currently they are supervising producers/story editors on the upcoming Ultimate Spider-Man animated series premiering in 2012 on Disney/XD. Man of Action wrote the X-Men and Superman comic book series and currently publish their original creations through Image Comics. They wrote the best-selling video games X-Men: Legends for Activision, and Darksiders: Wrath of War for THQ. For more information, visit www.manofaction.tv.

Zero Makes Trek Across The Atlantic

“Ken Niimura is the artist on I Kill Giants (at least, that’s where he will mostly be known) and Image is now releasing a small book of his sketches. This is more for the artheads than those wanting a comic but I love that Image can go out on a limb and do stuff like this. It’s good to expose all of us to things a little different.

Sadly, I still haven’t read I Kill Giants. I must work on that.”

ZERO: JM KEN NIIMURA ILLUSTRATIONS '07-'09 Set to Make Stateside Debut with Image Comics on April 27th


Berkeley, CA – March 16, 2011 – Image Comics is proud to present a collection of whimsical, colorful illustrations by JM Ken Niimura. The esteemed artist's gestural, emotionally affective work with writer Joe Kelly on the critically acclaimed miniseries I KILL GIANTS helped ensure that book was nominated for an Eisner award in 2009, won IGN's Best Indy Book of 2008, and was listed as one of the Top 10 YA Library Association picks of 2010. Niimura's work did not start nor stop with I KILL GIANTS, though.


Prior to his collaboration with Kelly, Niimura worked on a variety of international titles, including UNDERGROUND LOVE, CLOCKWORLD, VACIO ABSOLUTO, and OSTRAS JUALAS. The Spanish-born Niimura has won more than 30 awards in recognition for his art in his home country, showcased his work in exhibitions all across Madrid, and worked on advertising campaigns for clients like Cartoon Network.


"I'm really happy to share these illustrations I did during the period I worked on I KILL GIANTS with American readers," said Niimura. "They show the other aspect of my career -- that of an illustrator, dealing more solely with composition and color, and I'm really looking forward to hearing people's reaction to the book's design!"


"Few things have made me as proud as the ongoing success of I KILL GIANTS, and the understated brilliance of Ken's artwork is undoubtably as important a component and Joe's powerful script, so it's real pleasure to further highlight Ken's skills in ZERO," added Image Publisher Eric Stephenson. "And as great as his work in I KILL GIANTS was, I guarantee there's still plenty here that will both surprise and impress Ken's growing legion of fans."

This gorgeous paperback art book with die-out cover showcases many of Niimura’s works of richly colored illustrations, which were previously published in magazines, books and advertisements between 2007 and 2009, none of which have been published in the US until now. ZERO: JM KEN NIIMURA ILLUSTRATIONS '07-'09 displays a varied retrospect of the artist's recent career that both art lovers and comic book readers can easily appreciate.


ZERO: JM KEN NIMURA ILLUSTRATIONS '07-'09 (FEB110425), a 96 page full-color art book, will be on sale in stores April 27, 2011 for $12.99.

Planet of the Apes Comes To BOOM! This April

“Hell yeah. Man, BOOM! release some disparate, and awesome, comic books. Some of their stuff doesn’t land with me but this one I am all over. It matches the movie continuity, taking place before the first classic flick from 1968, and sounds like it also wants to give us a little something different. This isn’t a rehash, this is new fun.

They also make a point to say the 'classic movies' and distance themselves from Tim Burton’s dire remake. A shrewd company move.”

GET YOUR HANDS ON THESE DAMN DIRTY APES! BOOM! STUDIOS BRINGS YOU AN EXPLOSIVE NEW ONGOING PLANET OF THE APES COMIC SERIES!


NEW ONGOING SERIES CLASSIC MOVIE CONTINUITY COMING THIS APRIL!


March 22, 2011 – Los Angeles, CA – A bold new vision of the acclaimed sci-fi classic debuts this April as BOOM! Studios brings you an all-new, all-original ongoing PLANET OF THE APES comic series! Based firmly in Twentieth Century Fox’s PLANET OF THE APES franchise, this series written by award-winning sci-fi novelist Daryl Gregory (Dracula: The Company of Monsters, Pandemonium) and drawn by sensational artist Carlos Magno (Green Lantern Corps) transports you to a tumultuous time where man and ape stand at the uneasy brink of war! This April, don't be the last to get your hands on these damn dirty apes! The PLANET OF THE APES comic series is produced under license by Twentieth Century Fox Consumer Products.


“In the new series, we're taking our cues from the classic Apes movies but we're shaking it up with some major surprises of our own,” said BOOM! Studios Editor-in-Chief Matt Gagnon. “This book is sure to make fans new and old cheer, rave and, dare I say, go Ape when they see what we have in store for them!”


Taking place before the original 1968 PLANET OF THE APES movie, but true to the continuity of the first five films, this new ongoing comic series begins in a time when Ape society reaches a new golden age. But there are ripples of dissent in both the ape and human ranks. Tensions will rise and soon all will be caught in chaos! And amidst all this uncertainty, what is the fate of...The Lawgiver? Find out as a new chapter of the acclaimed sci-fi classic, PLANET OF THE APES, begins this April!


PLANET OF THE APES #1 is written by Daryl Gregory with art by Carlos Magno and ships with an A & B cover by Karl Richardson and Carlos Magno respectively and a special 1-in-10 incentive cover. This title ships in April and carries a Diamond Code of FEB110852.

LAST NIGHT IN TOWN

"Variant covers are so rarely big news. It's not that exciting, it's just one of many covers that will be featured on the shleves amongst dozens of others for that week. But sometimes you see a variant cover by a great artist and you understand why people want to know about this in advance.

Turf is finally coming to a close, what feels like a long time after it started, and it must be a sad time to say goodbye because as this release states, it was the "best vampire/alien/crime noir epic ever created". That's a pretty big wrap, and even if it's the only one created I still haven't seen/heard many reviews that would agree with this sentiment. Your mileage may vary."

Turf Concludes with Variant Covers by Dave Gibbons and Michael Kaluta

Berkeley, CA – March 23, 2011 – The best vampire/alien/crime noir epic ever created comes to an end this April with the final issue of TURF, and comic book legends Dave Gibbson and Michael Kaluta are joining creators Jonathan Ross and Tommy Lee Edwards to send the miniseries off in style.

"We've been super lucky so far to have some of our all time favourite artists provide us with incredible variant covers,” proclaimed writer Jonathan Ross, “It's a blast to end the series on such a high, with Dave Gibbons showing us he's still on top of his game and the legendary Michael Kaluta delivering a classic iconic image... for Image!"

"TURF has been such a labor of love for me," added artist Tommy Lee Edwards. "It's really done for people who love comics, and created by people who love comics. I'm so lucky to have grown up a comics fan, and having Michael and Dave and Steranko, Stout, Chang, Lafuente, and all these artists I admire so much grace our covers has been a dream come true."

As one of the artists that will now join that impressive list, Michael Kaluta exclaimed, "I've run out of superlatives! Doing a cover for this book is like going to the Musée d'Orsay to draw from the Toulouse-Lautrec art: I can honor it in my heart and try my best to come up to its standard, but, in the end, I walk away in awe!"

In TURF #5, the final battle has begun. The recently swollen ranks of the Vampire Family commence their endgame in a quest for control over the streets of Manhattan. The city’s cops are firmly in the family pockets and the roots of The First Vampire - The Bloodfather – are ready to be fed with a steady supply of unwilling sacrifices. The former gang boss Eddie Falco has decided to lead a group of reluctant heroes against this growing tide of supernatural horror. But when teamed with Samual Kane and his Uptown Racketeers, the half-human/half-vampire Dragonmir brothers and Squeed the alien, Eddie must face the sobering reality that, when the odds look this grave, such an awkward alliance can only last for so long.

TURF #5 (JUN100473, Kaluta Var Cvr JUN100474 and Gibbons Var Cvr JUN100475), a 40-page full color horror/noir/sci-fi comic book will be in stores April 27, 2011 for $2.99. For more information, visit http://www.turfcomic.com/.

ABOUT JONATHAN ROSS

Writer, comedian, talk show host, game show host, film critic, radio DJ and awards show compere, Jonathan Ross is the most successful British broadcaster of his generation. Although well known for many different programs and pop culture projects, Ross is perhaps most famously attached to the popular BBC chat show, "Friday Night with Jonathan Ross."

ABOUT TOMMY LEE EDWARDS

Tommy Lee Edwards is an American illustrator whose works can be found in the fields of comics, video-games, books, advertising, film, and animation. He has provided the style guides for such films as Superman Returns, Batman Begins, and Men In Black II. In comics, he has worked with such acclaimed writers as J. Michael Straczynski, Rick Veitch and Mark Millar, as well as such titles as Daredevil, Hellboy, The Question, Batman and the hit miniseries 1985.

Conclusion

Do any of these press releases excite you? Let us know in the comments what you think of any of these items of news.

Related Posts