IDW has announced that it will be publishing two new comics with Electronic Arts, to capitalize on some recent video game franchises: Army of Two and Dragon Age.

According to a press statement, EA will be in charge of the creative aspects of the books, while IDW will print and distribute them. Yet the talent is perhaps even more surprising: Peter Milligan will be writing Army of Two with newcomer artist Dexter Soy, while Orson Scott Card will be writing Dragon Age.

“This is a great opportunity for IDW to work with a worldwide leader in video games,” said IDW’s COO Greg Goldstein in the statement. “We look forward to bringing a tremendous amount of great content into the comics market.”

I saw this awesome-looking cover over at IDW’s web site, and wanted to share:

Snake Eyes, on the cover of G.I. Joe Origins #8, by Tom Feister. The book’s out October 14th, but man is that a nice looking cover. What say you?

Anthony E. Zuiker has made an impressive career as the creator of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation. In 2007, nearly 84 million people watched CSI, making it the most watched show in the world. Zuiker’s talent at telling a good crime story has led him to launch his next major project, Level 26, the world’s first digi-novel. Written with Duane Swierczynski (Severance Package), Level 26 is about a seriously demented serial killer and the tortured FBI investigator who is forced to hunt him down. Level 26 releases on September 8.

The interactive quality of this digi-novel is handled by EQAL, with roots going back to its creation of the internet sensation, lonelygirl15. And, while Level 26 is not directly related to comics, there’s a lot going on with its interactive components that someday may become common to the comics medium. Also, there is already a line of CSI comics put out by IDW and who knows what may lie ahead.

Zuiker has an energetic and commanding presence. He stays on point with ease. When asked if he thought his “digi-novel” was the future of reading, he gracefully said no claims on the future have been made. The one sure claim is that he is excited about what he’s doing. It was a pleasure to chat with him at Comic-Con International: San Diego.

Blog@Newsarama:Tell us what it was like for you growing up as your writing talents emerged.

Anthony E. Zuiker: As an only child in Las Vegas, I would often, just for fun, write letters for people as a favor.  Just formal letters.  I was sort of 16 of 16 in letter writing meaning that whenever someone asked me to write something, like get their girlfriend back or a letter to a judge to get out of jail, I would bat a thousand. I was in the hall of fame of letter writing. Then all through high school and in college I would charge people to write their term papers for $300.00 overnight and they were guaranteed at least a B plus. I made a lot of money doing that. When I was recently inducted into the Hall of Fame at UNLV, I said that before they awarded me that maybe I should confess that I put about hundred people through college. My father always said that I had some talent as a writer and I guess I believed him. I’ve always had a way of putting what I’ve envisioned on the page. When I wrote my first movie, The Runner, it went right to video but it was an interesting piece of work with an authentic voice and it landed me an agent and a manager. My first TV script was CSI. It got green lit and, obviously, it took off. We went on to do CSI: Miami and CSI: New York.  I guess my visual way of thinking really worked simpatico with the philosophy of writing scripts in Hollywood.

BLOG@: Do you believe it had something to do with being at the right place at the right time?

ZUIKER: For CSI?  I think so. I think every great show is a sign of the times. It began in the aftermath of the OJ trial. People were just becoming fascinated with forensics. I was able to come in with a show set in Las Vegas, set in the graveyard shift. The idea of people actually going into a crime scene, scrutinizing evidence and the story being put together in flashback, that style of storytelling, felt like a modern day mystery. It felt like a mystery genre of our generation. People liked that. They were learning and watching at the same time which was highly efffective. And with a great cast, CSI had that mystery magic, this different way to tell a cop show which is what I call, “from the crime scene tape down.” And it worked.

BLOG@: It seems like CSI could go on forever. Do you see interest in the franchise shifting?

ZUIKER: Well, what goes up must come down.  You know, we are doing our best right now with all three shows to stay in the top 15, to keep challenging our audience.  We’ve killed people in many different ways. We continue to look for different ways to excite us and excite an audience. We feel because its is a procedural drama, and everybody loves a good mystery,  it has some good long legs to it, we believe.

BLOG@: Let’s say, somebody is totally in the dark on Level 26. How would you describe it?

ZUIKER: We are coining it as “the world’s first digi-novel.”  What a digi-novel is, is it takes all the elements of publishing, movies and internet and combines experience. Level 26 is a horror prime drama. Every twenty pages that you read, you log onto the Web site, Level26.com, enter a code at the end of that chapter, and it unlocks a piece of motion picture footage which bridges you from one chapter to another, so its a continuation of the story, visually, its about three minutes long.  There’s twenty of those experiences per book.  So you figure twenty pages times twenty bridges is about a four hundred page book. That is what the book is, also.  Sometimes its a horror scene, sometimes is a love scene, sometimes its a music video, sometimes when you call the killer, the killer calls your phone back.  So its very interactive.  We feel like in this attention economy, with how fast things are moving with technology, to ask someone to read twenty pages and then see a visual continuance, is a good rhythmic experience, rather than read four hundred pages and do nothing else.  If you read the book cover to cover, no problem.  But the best experience is to read, log in and watch, read, log in and watch.  And then become part of a social community, built by the lonelygirl15 creators, Miles and Greg,  to have this social site that is basically like a Facebook page Level 26, with all the bells and whistles of an interactive Web site.

BLOG@: Do you see this as just another form of entertainment or, in the future, as the way people read?

ZUIKER: Well you know, I think the audience and the reader will determine that.   We are not taking the position that we are going to replace publishing in its current state. My philosophy is that, in this generation, you need to go to your audience and recognize your audience’s behaviors. People now, when they watch television, they’re also on their computer, they’re tweeting, they’re chatting, they’re checking email, they’re TiVoing,  they’re doing multiple things at one time. So to ask someone to sit down and read a 400 page book in this generation, I think, is a tough ask, especially for  younger people. If you can provide them with these visceral/visual speed bumps it might get more young people to read. I think that’s a victory. And, if you’re an existing reader, who already loves to read, quite possibly you’ll try a different way to consume which is to read and watch the bridges. So, we feel that we’re trying to bridge the gap between an older generation and a younger generation in the spirit of where technology is going.

BLOG@: Basically, it can appeal to any age group.

ZUIKER: Here’s the litmus test.  Read the first twenty pages of Level 26, then you watch the first film, something you’ll probably find edgy and cool. If you’re not engaged by it, I may lose you as a customer. But, if you are, I think you’ll probably finish reading it that night. It’s pretty exciting.

BLOG@: The buzz concept in the entertainment industry is transmedia, the book sells the movie, the movie sells the game and so on. It seems like you’re sort of there with Level 26 or could you tell us where you might fit in?

ZUIKER: Sure, transmedia versus what we are doing is a little different. Transmedia is having one brand and launching it in various avenues. We’d certainly like to do that but our core concern is transmedia inside the narrative meaning you go from book to motion picture to Web site and it’s all inclusive in one experience so it’s nice and tight. It’s not about just creating a character and seeing if we can launch it on the Web, on the radio, on a phone and so on. That may eventually happen to Level 26 but, for now, we’re keeping it at the core of our philosophy which is: read, watch and log in and have a compelling story and let people consume that way. We’re not going to jump off any cliffs but keep to the core philosophy of what the digi-novel represents which is reading, watching and logging in.

BLOG@: How would describe in a nugget the story, Level 26?

ZUIKER: Level 26 is about Steve Dark, an ex-Quantico who works in Special Services which involves the worst and most horrific crimes that I can’t possibly tell you here. He’s been chasing an elusive killer named, Sqweegel for  twenty years who has killed over 30 people and has killed Steve Dark’s family. Steve Dark is retired.  He has met the love of his life, she’s pregnant and suddenly they get a message that Sqweegel has returned and he’s been inside Steve’s home. Steve is sucked back into pursuing Sqweegel. And that’s where it all begins.

BLOG@: I know you’re a busy man. Thank you for your time.

ZUIKER: I really appreciate it. Awesome.

Want to catch up on your favorite books on your iPhone? Well, you’re in luck — IDW announced yesterday that it would be expanding its digital publishing operations.

The company, which released its first Transformers comics to iTunes in May, said it would be releasing the Transformers: Rise of the Fallen prequel and adaptation graphic novels starting yesterday. In addition, the G.I. JOE: Rise of Cobra prequel comic is also up, as did G.I. JOE: Origins and CSI.

Furthermore, IDW has promised that J. Scott Campbell’s Danger Girl will be the next comic to be hitting the web, as well as — wait for it — the 1980s classic Transformers comics! By supplementing and bypassing the traditional distribution routes by going to a device as ubiquitous as an iPod (the newer versions being able to download anything via WiFi anyway), this is a really smart move for IDW, and will really help get their catalog out to not just people far away from a comic shop, but to iTunes shoppers who might not ordinarily consider looking to buy a comic in the first place.

“The digital medium represents a huge opportunity for the comics industry, and we’re proud to be leading the way,” IDW’s CEO Ted Adams said in a statement. “Through epublishing, we can introduce an entire new audience to comics and the joys of comic books.”

Want more Craig Yoe? Then IDW has a nice surprise for you!

The author of Secret Identity: The Fetish Art of Superman’s Co-Creator Joe Schuster will have his own imprint for IDW, called Yoe! Books. The first two books set to be released are The Art of Ditko and The Complete Milt Gross Life Story and Comic Books, both for this fall.

“IDW is committed to expanding our book collections, and continuing to offer readers a wide variety of unique and historical material,” said IDW COO Greg Goldstein in a written statement. “We’re excited to be the home of Craig’s imprint, Yoe! Books, highlighting unknown geniuses and revelatory books on well-known names.”

UPDATE: Variety reports that the Gotham Group has secured the movie rights to Secret Identity. They will produce the film, and are currently scouting for writers.

IDW has posted on their blog that Linkin Park has released a video for “New Divide,” the theme for the upcoming film Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen.

Linkin Park – “New Divide”

The soundtrack will be available in stores on June 23rd.

For all of you who dug it when Darwyn Cooke filled in for Jimmy Palmiotti a week or so back, here’s some news regarding all things Cooke:

IDW has released a preview of Cooke’s new series, a comics adaptation of Richard Stark’s The Hunter. If you click here, you’ll get to see 21 pages of goodness from the Eisner Award-winning writer/artist behind Batman: Ego and DC: The New Frontier.

The full 144-page book is scheduled to be released by IDW this July.

by Chris Ryall

In my first blog here, I talked about our reasons for relaunching G.I. JOE after being awarded the franchise. Spent nearly 900 words explaining our sound rationale, our respectful feelings toward the fans and toward the comics that had come before, our well-reasoned plan for how to best ensure the comics’ survival in the 21st century…

…and after all that, some of the responses smacked me upside my rational, well-reasoned head.

“Personally I felt the decision to reboot was a lazy, easy way out for IDW.”

“The Reboot is a very cheap cop-out.”

“Is IDW too lazy to create new characters and actually develop old ones that they need to go back to the status quo from the 80s? If you’re that desperate, go on a fanfiction site, but seriously character need to change and develop. Did Tolkien reboot Frodo? Was James Bond rebooted so the 20 movies were non canon?”

Things went onward, or maybe downward, from there, although I’m now intrigued by the idea of seeing Millar and Hitch’s Ultimate Frodo.

I mulled over responding to these complaints, where I could offer up more sound rationale and explanations and win over the accusatory and disgruntled one response at a time. And then I got my wits about me and decided that was a terrible plan. This is the Internet, and I’m no novice to this, having survived the Great (well, Pretty Solid, anyway, according to most) Transformers Relaunch of 2005. And defending too vehemently just makes one come off, well, defensive. So instead, I’ll admit I respectfully (but vehemently) disagree with the sentiments, as there is nothing cheap at all about our approach to the new titles, and I’ll let the relaunch – starting with this week’s G.I. JOE #1 – stand on its own and let the curious decide for themselves after they see where were headed with the books.

So all of that aside, we’re back live this week with JOE #1, which is really only scratching the surface-to-air of what we have planned. I left off last time with a promise to look at new Senior Editor Andy Schmidt’s overall plan for launching the comics, so let’s do it.

Andy hired on last summer, having spent his prior year since leaving Marvel evidently missing deadline crunches and getting tired of having ample time to write and run his Comics Experience classes and be with his family. He came in and was immediately thrown into a brand-new property that needed a big plan if we were going to make a relaunch work at least as well as the idea of Tolkien rebooting Frodo.
Andy scrambled, and I’ll admit we were all helped by a couple of factors: one was Larry Hama’s willingness to jump back into Joe since we offered him a chance to not just hit the ground without restraint but to start over in whatever way he wanted. I met up with Larry and Andy in New York and we talked about JOE, and Larry’s feelings for the property and what he would do if given a blank slate.

Larry admitted that he sort of “Stan Lee’d” the book at the start, making things up as he went along. And as he worked on the series for years and became a better writer and had time to think about the characters more and more, there were naturally things he would’ve changed about his earlier issues. And now he had that chance, to sort of go back and change/tweak/revise as he’d always wanted to. Which is a nice feeling to be able to offer someone, and a rare feeling, too – how many guys get a chance at a do-over at something that was pretty damned solid in the first place?

So Larry was in. As was artist Robert Atkins. But to really launch things right, Andy felt we needed more, and we lucked into some of that “more” in the form of Chuck Dixon. Now, anyone who’s read Chuck’s comics knows that he can write anything well – superhero comics, action-oriented books, fantasy, whatever. But war comics are what really suits his style, and when Chuck suddenly “became available” last year, we dropped him a line the next day. Possibly that same day. Chuck was in. Atkins was moving to Chuck’s book, Larry’s title would pick up Tom Feister and Mike Hawthorne, and… one more book was needed/wanted.

I’d had in mind the idea to do a COBRA book from the start, something that looks at the Joe world through very different eyes. And I kicked around ideas with a couple talented guys, but this was all before the direction was really set, and once Andy joined up, I wanted the books to be well and truly his, so when he presented a different take on a COBRA title, and brought in Chris Gage and Mike Costa to write, along with Italian artist Antonio Fuso to write, I knew it had potential. Potential to fracture the audience, since the things that are being done in that series are not like anything seen in JOE comics before. Issue 3 alone is possibly the most gripping JOE tale I’ve ever read. And I’ve now read juuuust about all of them. It also has the potential to be the wild-card favorite of everything we’re doing. And it will make people think about the character of Chuckles differently than they ever have before. In short, it really justifies the idea of a reboot since it does things that couldn’t have been done before. That HAVEN’T been done before. I’m a bit excited about this one, despite my overall bias and pleasure at the entire line of JOE books coming.

So the plan was set: G.I. JOE (launching Jan. 14) by Dixon and Atkins – along with variant cover artist Dave “100 Bullets” Johnson – would be the “main” title, in that it would be action-oriented and exciting; G.I. JOE: ORIGINS (February) by Hama and Hawthorne and cover artist Andrea Di Vito will be more subtle than full of wide-screen action, more character-driven, and more personal. And COBRA (March) by Gage/Costa, Fuso and cover artist Howard Chaykin would be something else entirely, offering the reinvention of a character, the new exploration of the COBRA organization, and the most gripping tale you’ve ever seen from a guy who wears a Hawaiian shirt as his uniform.

We kicked all of this off in October ’08 with our #0 issue, which featured new 5-page standalone tales from each creative team, just as a way to not only whet peoples’ appetites but to also show that this new Joe would be just that, a new JOE and not just a backwards step to the past.

And now? Now we’re on the cusp of finding out if our Ultimate Frodo-ish plan works. And Andy Schmidt’s restful days are, like the old G.I. JOE continuity, well and truly a thing of the past…

Chris Ryall is the Publisher/Editor-in-Chief of IDW Publishing. And he’s at Blogspot, on Twitter, on Facebook, now on year 7 of writing a weekly TV column at Comics101.com, probably still on MySpace, at LinkedIn, figuring out what Plaxo’s Pulse is, trying to bury an old Friendster page, scrawls graffiti in public restrooms, writes his feelings down on Post-It notes to plaster them on cars, and broadcasts his thoughts through the fillings of mental patients. His GROOM LAKE comic will look great thanks to Ben Templesmith, and the book he co-wrote for Impact Books, COMIC BOOKS 101, will read nicely thanks to Scott Tipton. His wife is eyeing him warily as he types this.

JIMMY PALMIOTTI: Let me get this out of the way…I need a name for my blog. Palmiotti’s Playhouse sounds too pasta/twisted and Jimmy’s Box, well, Amanda took offense to that. Post your ideas and if I use one, I will load up a box of comics and anything I can find in my house and send it to you. I guarantee it will have some cool crap…and some total head scratches as well…but nothing is more fun than getting a mystery box in the mail…unless you are a politician.

Just got back from a week in Los Angeles that was interesting and funny and as usual, loaded with a lot of quick visits, meetings during meals and strange going on.  I usually take a trip to L.A. around five times a year for one reason or another and this trip was no different.  I always have fun, get to see some old friends and attend at least one movie event and some otherworld party. Amanda tells me I am lucky to have more than five people I like living in that town…she knows more about that place because she was born there. Anyway…

THE PUNISHER WAR ZONE: Saw it with Noah Danby, a great friend of mine I met on the Painkiller show that played Conner King. Noah and I share a very deep love of comics and he is also married to the lovely Kristanna Loken. Anyway, we met up and caught an early show of the Punisher move. Simply put, it was exciting to see the Marvel Knights logo Joe and I were so proud of displayed on the big screen and it went downhill from there. Rather than pick on the movie, which has many flaws, I just want to say that it wasn’t what I was hoping for. Of all the Marvel properties, this one is so deeply grounded in reality, but every time they shoot a new one it gets more and move over the top. Anyone that saw this knows what I am talking about. Long story short, its opening weekend was a disaster, but the character lives on in comics each and every month. At the very least, Noah and I had a good laugh and went for a few beers after to discuss what we would have done.

THE BOY IN THE STRIPED PAJAMAS: Well, my friend Brandon said it looks too depressing and Amanda didn’t really want to see something so sad and at the end of the day, I NEEDED to see it for a couple of reasons, one being Justin and I are writing something that deals with the exact subject matter, German concentration camps. Anyway, it was worlds above the crap I have seen this week, beautifully done and in the end, heartbreaking as hell. I went by myself and was kind of glad I did. This was a story told about a soldier’s family and how the war and the horrors of it were taking the family apart. Anyway, without giving up too much, it was wonderful and I recommend it if you need to have a good cry.

THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL: We saw this in IMAX, which means it saddened me twice as much. OK, going in to see this, I thought the screenwriters were going to make a respectable argument to why an alien race shouldn’t wipe us all out and start again. Disappointed again. Didn’t work for me…and no amount of special effects could save it. Sure, there are a few decent scenes here and there, but as a movie, it was a one-time watch. I do recommend that Will Smith’s kid should only take parts where he isn’t annoying as hell. If you saw this, you will understand that comment.

HENSON STUDIOS: While in town I had lunch with two business friends of mine outside on the picnic tables located in the Henson studios. It’s a cool place where each building is a treasure trove of Hollywood history and at the same time working studios where they are filming and doing sound work. Both meetings were not really about work, but catch up lunches where we discussed movies, comics and what I was in town for. Its part of the Hollywood magic, being in places like this.

PHIL NOTO: The man is magic and one of my favorite people on Earth and we got to hang out for a bit in Hollywood and even grabbed some hot dogs at Pink’s after our signing at Golden Apple with Ryan Lebowitz, and my close friends Kim and Phil. Good hot dogs, but Nathan’s in Coney Island is better. Sorry. At least the line was small.

BLAIR BUTLER: Justin and I are big fans of this funny cool gal. If you watch G4, you know who she is already and for those not in the know; she covers comics for the news show and is a staple at any of the bigger cons. Anyway, I stopped in Golden Apple to pick up some books and there she was, shopping away. We got to talking, exchange war stories and really — it’s so nice to talk to someone who really understands the art form we are all so invested in. Yes, she is as cool as she seems on TV.

IN-N-OUT BURGER: While we are talking crap food… best fast food burger in L.A. is the In-N-Out Burger franchise.  I make it my business to go there when I get off the plane and once more before leaving. I wish to God they would sell me a franchise for the East Coast. I just know it would make millions.

CRYPTIC MESSAGE OF THE WEEK: My contract was one page long, you miserable no talent, and thinking you could hide up north, well, not a good idea. It’s bad karma to mess with people, especially flag wavers that supported you during their run, and all the failures you are having lately are a part of that. I look forward to seeing you humbled very soon. And no, this has nothing to do with comics folks. Back to business…

I READ A TRADE: I get a giant DC comp box every month. It’s an amazing gift for us freelancers. So, out of the DC box comes the trade book Northlanders: Book One: Sven the Returned. Great art first off, beautiful colors and clear storytelling…it’s partly why I grabbed this to read. Understand I have no time, so when I do read something to completion, I pick it for a reason. Now, the story: well, I love Brian Wood’s work and there are some really cool things about this book…but I just didn’t like the main character that much. A problem for me, especially since a part of me liked the HAKKAR character much more and well… maybe that what this was about and what Brian was putting forth.  Maybe we weren’t suppose to love the main character so much but understand what he had to get done. That all said, I still recommend this because on many levels because it really captured a time and place very well and again, better than most books out there.

BLU-RAY:  It all looks better in this format. Topless Jamie Lee in Trading Places looks 30% better in Blu-Ray. Deadspace: Downfall looked bloodier and eyes wide shut looked sexier. I picked up the Godfather collection for 44 bucks at Best Buy on sale and man, what a difference from my old copies. I think this format is around to stay. We play laser disc frisbee around here now because of it. The future is amazingly clear.

KATHIE OLIVAS AND BRANDT PETERS:
Once in a while I get an unexpected surprise. I was introduced to this wonderfully talented couple over a gallery /dinner invite from my Jonah Hex colorist Rob Schwager. Those not in the know, Rob is a multi-talented artist and he is one of the “in” crowd people here in Florida who was part of a multi-artist gallery show which featured T-shirt designs. Anyway, he introduced me to his friends Kathie and Brandt at the gallery and we all left for dinner in the town where the show was, St. Pete.  This was no ordinary couple…they’re elegant, charming and I soon learned, super-mega-talented painters and designers. They were kind enough to give me a signed copy of their book MARTYRS AND GHOSTS. Both of these spectacular hipsters are major parts of the “lowbrow” art movement; something I always enjoyed but didn’t realize it had a name. Check out their work here. Brandt’s work is there as well…and they have a show going on in Los Angeles as we speak. Moody, cool and creepy at the same time, their work is the work that has a hundred imitators out there trying to cash in on their creativity. I am the proud owner of a few of Kathie’s limited edition vinyl figures as well.   I was glad I got out of my house that day.

WHY I AM NOT INKING ANYTHING RIGHT NOW:
The simple reasons are two. First, all the ink jobs I have been offered in the past six months are inking over artists I can either illustrate better than or I simply have no desire to have to go in and fix every single panel presented to me. I would love to ink something, but honestly, I got this far in my career…I don’t want to be Mr. Fix It anymore. That said I got a chance to ink a Darwyn Cooke cover and I jumped at it. See…someone whose work I enjoy.

The other reason as you may have guessed is the writing has seemed to take off pretty well and I am trying to make ach and every single thing I touch as good as humanly possible… which is not an easy chore when you have people hiring you that think they know better than you. Left to my own devices I can usually put together something fun and different and working on something with Justin, it’s always a bit better I think.

That said, if the editor fairies were to ask me who I would like to work with, I would love to ink me some JRJR, Jordi Bernet, Joe Kubert, Ryan Sook, Art Adams, more Darwyn Cooke and a bunch more. That’s my easy wish list right there.

FIRE!
I’m sitting here writing this when I hear a ton of sirens. Went out to check it out and the condos at the end of my street were on fire… looked like two of them. What a horrible thing to happen this time of year, or any time for that matter. They think a guy smoking caused it, but not sure. There is no better way to meet your neighbors than to watch someone’s home burn, I just learned… met an insurance agent, a hotel manager and a home repair dude and two gals that were just there to “ watch” the fire.  It was eerie to see the fire burning and all the X-mas lights still on at the same time. Everyone got out OK, thank God, but all this reminded me I have to dig my New Year’s fire pit a little deeper this year. Anyway, the smoke was making it hard to breathe so I came back in and continued the brain spill.

JONAH HEX: THE MOVIE: I know so much about what is going on with this movie and yet I really can’t say a single thing, except that…I know for a fact that some of the top directors out there are looking at the property and it’s in good hands with a producer that happens to be an old friend of mine and Joe’s from the Event Comics days, Andy Lazar. What I can say is Andy is a fan of our comic and gets it every month and understands how important a project like this is.  For Justin and I this is really exciting because we have a chance of maybe picking up a few new readers when the movie comes out. I am being realistic here and saying that even if a thousand new readers came along, it would make a major impact on the title. Anyway, more to come on Hex, but for now, know it’s in good hands.

And last, a tease page from the book Justin and I are working on called THE LAST RESORT for our good friends at I.D.W.  The artist is named Giancarlo Caracuzzo and we think he is a brilliant storyteller. It should ship this summer and at its most basic, it’s about a bunch of people from all walks of life dealing with a biological accident on a tropical island. Please excuse that it’s a low res scan, the originals are bright and tighter, but for now, just a tease. These are set up pages where we get to know the characters. Every book needs them.

Jimmy Palmiotti 12/16

iPhones — the Final Frontier.

It’s been an interesting few years for comics, with the digitial revolution being mined by Marvel (with its exclusive online content, as well as the DVD archives of many of its comics) and DC (with its Zuda web comic contest). Even web sites with previews like Newsarama have done their part in changing the field of comics through the World Wide Web with four to eight-page previews (which, when you consider most issues are 22 pages, that’s a lot).

But what about the iPhone?

Smartphones are becoming far more than just cellular devices — they’re making the move to becoming mobile computers. So how will comics adapt?

Slowly but surely, comics are hitting the iPhone. It was announced today by Appstore that publisher IDW is issuing reprints for the iPhone of Peter David’s Star Trek series. The first of the five issues will be a rerelease of issue #13, the story known as “Return of the Worthy.” Trekmovie reports that after this run is completed, IDW will move on with other properties such as “Best of the Borg” and “Best of Deep Space 9.”

But the real kicker?

They only cost 99 cents each.

IDW is far from the only comic taking this route. Jeff Smith, long known as a guy ahead of the curve, has already released the first issue of Bone on the iPhone in October — also for 99 cents. And perhaps its no surprise that that app made Apple’s Pick of the Week.

With prices rising from many of the big companies, one question seems to be obvious: will this be a new method of distribution for comics retailers? If they can successfully work out the iPhone’s bugs — and those of you who have worked on just about any high-memory application can relate to the freezing and weird shutdowns that occassionally occur — maybe. With Apple’s stringent policies for the App Store, it’s the first technology that both promotes commerce and deters piracy… at least for now.

While I know I am particularly attached to the paper-and-staple format, if the economy keeps declining and the culture continues to move on-the-go, maybe your ubiquitous iPhone will start to become your ubiquitous comic book reader.

In these uncertain economic times, will your favorite mid-market book continue to exist? Both Marvel and DC have announced a slew of cancellations in the last month or so that will substantially pare down the superhero lines at both companies. Manhunter’s cancellation seemed to start the avalanche, with Nightwing, Birds of Prey, Robin, Legion of Super-Heroes and Blue Beetle coming shortly thereafter from DC and Marvel announcing the ends of The Amazing Spider-Girl, She-Hulk and The New Exiles.

Peter David, who wrote She-Hulk (and who is no stranger to either success or cancellation, having written all manner of books for all sizes of publishers in the last twenty-ish years), took the news pretty well but did say, “Frankly, I wish Marvel had given the book another six months to see if we got any bounce from Secret Invasion.  I can’t tell you the number of fans who said they hadn’t been reading the book but loved what they saw in Secret Invasion and were going to continue with the series.  Unfortunately the retailers simply whacked their numbers back to pre-Secret Invasion levels without allowing for the possibility.  If the fans who liked the book had pre-ordered the next issues, we’d still be going.  Instead they simply assumed that the book would be there the following month.  Well…they assumed wrong.  Besides, She-Hulk’s been cancelled three times already.  She’s a female lead in a market that’s toxic to female leads.  I knew going in that the odds were slim and just decided I’d write the best damned stories I could because that’s really all I could do.”

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RYALL’S FILES
To Boot or Not to Boot, Part 1
by Chris Ryall

That was the question when we first signed on to take over the G.I. JOE comic license, alright. It was a question we’d faced before, back in ’05 when we re-started THE TRANSFORMERS, but this time was different—the time, we were taking on a property that featured a continuity that was largely the result of one man, Larry Hama, who’d written more issues of JOE than Sergio and Mark had done on GROO (or thereabouts); a title where the subsequent publishers had taken pains (some great, some not-so-great) to continue that same continuity; a fanbase that had grown up with the title and were still as passionate about it in 2008 as they were in 1984. So what were we to do?

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On his blog, Ben Templesmith teases Groom Lake, his upcoming project with IDW Publisher and Editor-in-Chief Chris Ryall. It’s light on details, but I like the image.

This may belong under the heading “rumor mill,” but horror site Bloody Disgusting reports it has confirmed that Mandate Pictures is working on a sequel to last year’s adaptation of 30 Days of Night.

The website previously had published rumors of “very early talks” about a follow-up back in May.

According to the new report, Steve Niles and Ben Ketai are listed as co-writers; however, that could change. Niles, of course, is the co-creator of the 30 Days of Night comic-book franchise. Ketai wrote the two webseries movie tie-ins, Blood Trails and Dust to Dust.

Judging from the brief article at Bloody Disgusting, the movie will follow the plot of Dark Days, the 2003 miniseries by Niles and Ben Templesmith in which Stella Olemaun rededicates her life to wiping out vampires.

As if victories in the Electoral College and popular vote weren’t enough, Sen. President-Elect Barack Obama also has won the battle of the biographical comic books.

ICv2.com reports that sales of IDW Publishing’s Presidential Material: Barack Obama handily defeated those of John McCain by 59 percent to 41 percent. That’s a wider margin than the popular vote, which now stands at 52 percent to 46 percent. (Final results from Missouri and North Carolina haven’t been included in that tally.)

According to the website, the sales figures are based on copies sold to direct-market retailers, not actual sales to customers.

The biographical comics still can be ordered through IDW’s Presidential Material website.

The Alternative Press Expo, or APE, moves from its typical springtime home to the fall this year … or, more specifically, to this coming weekend. The small press comics show will be held Saturday and Sunday at the San Francisco Concourse.

Special guests include Jessica Abel, Paige Braddock, Megan Kelso, Matt Madden, Ethan Nicolle and Chris Ware. The programming schedule includes panels with each of them.

In addition, the exhibitor floor will be filled to the brim with all sorts of comic retailers, creators and publishers, from mini-comics to bigger publishers like Image, Fantagraphics, SLG, IDW and Oni. I personally plan to help stimulate our faltering economy by spending a bunch of money on cool comics this weekend.

Here’s a sample of what some of them have planned … if you’re exhibiting at the show and would like a mention, let me know; I’ll post again later this week.

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• Westfield Comics in Madison, Wis., is using IDW’s Presidential Material to divine the outcome of the election. Well, sort of. The retailer is keeping a tally of which candidate biography sells more: John McCain’s or Barack Obama’s. Heck, it’s probably as accurate as some of the polls. [The Isthmus]

• The spotlight is on Dark Horse CEO Mike Richardson today as he’s interviewed about donating copies of all of his company’s books to Portland State University, and about the state of the industry. [The Oregonian, ICv2.com]

• In her “All the Comics in the World” column, Shaenon K. Garrity ropes in a panel to decide which American cartoonists draw attractive men. Finder creator Carla Speed McNeil gets the most mentions. [ComiXology]

• Rapper Percy Carey, writer of the Vertigo graphic novel Sentences: The Life of MF Grimm, chats with comics blogger and analyst John Mayo. [Complex.com]

• A new graphic novel focuses on little-known Confederate general Patrick Cleburne. “He is the perfect vehicle to tell a story from the Confederate point of view,” says creator Justin Murphy. [Trumann, Ark., Democrat]

• Penny Arcade co-creator Mike Krahulik talks about the Penny Arcade Adventures video games. [GamePro Arcade]

– 20 things Every Superhero Comic Collection Needs.

– Laura Hudson talks to Brian Azzarello about his upcoming Joker graphic novel.

– Seth is curating a series of films from the National Film Board of Canada. Drawn! has the details.

– The Mindless Ones look at the work of ero-guru artist Suehiro Maruo (note: some images are probably NSFW).

– Peter Sanderson looks at the new edition of Patrick Rosenkranz’s seminal history of underground comix, Rebel Visions.

– Fantasy.fr has an interview with Devilman creator and manga-ka Go Nagai.

– Judith Rosen checks out the Comics and Classics store in Jacksonville Beach, Fla.

– Craig Fischer has a short interview with alt-cartoonist Ben Towle.

– Evie Nagy looks at all the political comics coming out this month.

– Ooooo, I’m a Johnny Storm!

– Noah Berlatsky did not like David Heatley’s new book. Like, at all.

Pirat Tales #1
Written by Dan Taylor; Illustrated by Orlando Baez
IDW; $3.99

Orlando Baez draws one, hideous rat. Well, lots of them, actually. The rodents in Pirat Tales aren’t the cute-and-cuddly variety. They’re the kinds of animals my wife has nightmares about. Long, evil snouts; tiny, beady eyes; thin, naked tails; vicious, little teeth.

It’s really rather perfect for the story Dan Taylor’s written. There’s not a lot of high-seas adventure and swashbuckling in the first issue of Pirat Tales. That may or may not be coming in future installments, but the story begins not with a daring, Reepicheep-like pirate-king swinging from the rigging, but in squalid backrooms and seedy, dockside taverns.

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• J. Scott Campbell, cover artist for IDW’s Presidential Material comics, talks about his approach to drawing the candidates. What’s the deal with John McCain’s toothy grin and Barack Obama’s closed mouth? “It’s funny, because people have tried to read into that. I’ve had some say that McCain, because he has teeth, that makes him look sinister. That’s not it all. It just happened that when I collected photos of them online, from that angle almost all of (McCain) had him smiling, and Obama most often was not.” [The Orange County Register]

• David Barnett wonders whether the timing of Presidential Material is IDW’s effort to get out the vote. [Guardian Books Blog]

• Okay, just one more politics link: Using Kill Bill as a guide, Antony Altbeker asserts that Sarah Palin is Clark Kent to John McCain’s Superman. [The Times of South Africa]

• Rapper and graphic-novel writer Percy Carey interviews comics and TV writer Dwayne McDuffie. [Complex Blog]

• Heeb magazine has named Dan Nadel one of its “Heeb 100″ — its annual list of “young, smart and innovative” Jewish Americans. [Heeb Magazine]

• Art Spiegelman talks about Breakdowns, Meta Maus and … Tina Fey. [Vulture]

• If you have an extra $3.7 million burning a hole in your pocket, Joss Whedon’s Brentwood home is for sale. [The Los Angeles Times]

• The student magazine at Cal State Long Beach profiles alumnus Chris Bachalo. [Dig Magazine]