Table of contents for 26 in Comic Heroes

Happy new year! And a big thank you to everyone who picked up our relaunch issue, we’re thrilled with the response to it. This time around we’re looking at the twin titans of DC: Superman and Batman. We have a huge 22 page section dedicated to these heavyweight hitters that kicks off on p36. If Marvel is more your style, then you’ll be pleased to see we have a hefty interview with Deadpool co-creator Rob Liefeld starting on p72. But we’re not just about the capes and cowls. I got to fulfil a personal ambition and talk to one of my all time favourite writers, Chuck Palahniuk, about his explosive Fight Club 2; we detail the history of Asterix; and there’s the debut of a new regular feature, Lost Treasures,…

VADER V JAXXON Chip Zdarksy has donated his copy of the ultra-rare Vader Down #1 Spotlight variant featuring Jaxxon to Raja Syria, a charity that raises money to help Syrian families. Just 12 copies were printed and Chip’s copy sold for a whopping $4,000. SUPERGIRL SOARS Kara’s TV adventures have done very nicely for DC, so it’s no surprise that a digital first tie-in comic. Adventures Of Supergirl is written by Sterling Gates with a rotating cast of artists. ROM’S RETURN Not to be confused with Rok (left), Rom the Spaceknight is a cult comics favourite that began life as a toy. Now he’s returning in a new IDW series by Chris Ryall and Christos Gage, with a special #0 issue coming out for Free Comic Book Day in May.…

“Books are emblazoned across my heart in burning purple flames like a secret crush” When I read a comic I am looking for something. I am looking for a surprise, a twist, a hook that grabs me and makes me suddenly care. I am looking for The Feels. If I don’t find any feels, I bounce off the book, I kind of forget it, I don’t register it especially, and that bit of my brain gets filled with to-do lists and queries about where somebody’s PE kit is. If I do find the feels, then the book is emblazoned across my heart in burning purple flames that are fanned by my fandom. I mention them so often it’s like I have a secret crush. I find my mind replaying parts…

“When I started drawing female-centric comics, my fanbase literally doubled” BORN GUADALAJARA HIGH JLA, THE DARKNESS NOW LADY MECHANIKA MORE WWW.JOEBENITEZ.COM Comic Heroes: Tell us about Lady Mechanika and her world. Joe Benitez: Lady Mechanika is a paranormal investigator in an alternative, steampunk vision of Victorian England. At a young age she was found locked up in a facility filled with biological and mechanical parts; her arms and legs were replaced with mechanical limbs but to date she doesn’t know why this was done to her or who did it. She has no memory of who she was prior to her augmentations. Over the years she has come across various supernatural elements in her world and become well versed on the subject, so much so that the authorities turn…

JOIN US AS WE CELEBRATE DC'S FINEST HEROES It’s hard to believe now, in this age of constant comic crossovers, but there was a time when characters more-or-less existed in their own worlds – except, perhaps, in the pages of All Star Comics. It’s probably no surprise that two of the first characters to blaze the team-up trail were the twin gods of DC: Superman and Batman. As many have pointed out over the years, the two characters share many qualities: a love of justice, a deep-seated compassion and a refusal to kill. But they have many differences too – both are orphans, but just look at how differently they experienced tragedy. One grew up rich but alone, the other poor but surrounded by a loving family. One is a…

THE ART OF BATMAN: JOHN ROMITA, JR John Romita Jr has spent most of his career as one of Marvel’s top artists, drawing everything from the X-Men and Daredevil to Thor and Spider-Man. Then in 2014, surprising fans and industry watchers, he took on Superman for DC. He left that book earlier this year, but he isn’t done with the Distinguished Competition yet: he was recently awarded the honour of drawing a prequel to The Dark Knight Returns, penned by Frank Miller and Brian Azzarello. Entitled The Last Crusade, the 48-page special celebrates the 30th anniversary of Miller’s classic by looking to the past and the events that led to Batman’s retirement. We spoke to JR Jr to find out more about the project... COMIC HEROES: When you took over…

How are things looking on the film side of things? Lullaby is optioned and being developed, and Rant was optioned last year by James Franco. Invisible Monsters has picked up steam again. And Survivor sold to a television production company and they’ve attached some big talent to it, but they won’t tell me who! Snuff is due to go into production any day, but they’ve been saying that for months... Oh, and Haunted. Haunted has paid off, but we haven’t seen a start day. Would that be a portmanteau movie? I have no idea, I haven’t seen a screenplay. I haven’t seen anything except a big fat cheque. Has there been any interest in adapting Fight Club 2 as a film? Actually a television network contacted us. It seems like…

Born in Berkshire, David McKean first discovered comics when he was ill and off school. This early exposure to the likes of Mighty World Of Marvel, Ditko’s Spider-Man and Curt Swan’s Superman informed a career that has only grown over 30 years. Best known for his work with Neil Gaiman and Grant Morrison, McKean created the cover for every issue of The Sandman, and his haunting art on 1989’s Arkham Asylum: A Serious House On Serious Earth helped make it one of the best selling graphic novels of all time. His career also includes book covers, illustration, filmmaking and over 150 album covers... COMIC HEROES: Were you a fan of comics as a child? DAVE McKEAN: I was given some comics when I was off school. I must have been…

It’s been two years since Alan Moore’s production company, Orphans Of The Storm, announced Electricomics – a digital comics project in partnership with app developers Ocasta, researchers Alison Gazzard and Daniel Merlin Goodbrey, and funded by The Digital R&D Fund for the Arts. In September 2015 we launched the Electricomics digital comic reader app in the iOS App Store, and on the app, four new comics by Garth Ennis and Frank Victoria; Peter Hogan and Paul Davidson; Alan Moore and Colleen Doran, and myself, John Reppion and Nicola Scott. In addition, the Generator is a piece of desktop freeware which lets anybody make their own digital comic, and all the code went up on github.com/Electricomics, open sourced under a GPL licence. With Electricomics live, I interviewed some of the people…

2015 saw the Judge Dredd Megazine celebrate its 25th anniversary, and also marked Smith’s tenth year as editor. “David Bishop was editing the Megazine when I took over 2000 AD ,” Smith recalls, “and was succeeded by Alan Barnes in 2002. When Alan resigned in 2005, I was ready for a new challenge and offered to edit them both.” In recent years, the Megazine has seen creator-owned content such as Simon Spurrier and PJ Holden’s Numbercruncher rubbing shoulders with further tales of Mega-City One. “It started when Rufus Dayglo approached me in 2007. He was producing new Tank Girl material with Alan Martin and wondered if I…

Reviewed: Issue 1 Writers: Frank Miller, Brian Azzarello Artists: Andy Kubert, Klaus Janson Publisher: DC Format: 3-part series The Dark Knight Returns is a serious contendor for the greatest graphic novel ever, and it’s certainly an influence on every person to work on Batman since. Follow-up The Dark Knight Strikes Again disappointed, but it does have its fans – including Grant Morrison. Now Miller’s back, with Brian Azzarello, for one of the most hyped comics of the year. Can The Master Race live up to expectation? On the evidence here in #1: potentially. Kubert and Janson’s art is quite perfect, stylistically homaging the original through fresh eyes. As for the plot… When the title was announced, some readers shuddered like they were hugging Mr Freeze. Anyone who’s read…

Reviewed: Issue 1 Writer: Paul Tobin Artist: Alberto J Alburquerque Publisher: Dark Horse Format: Ongoing Trine can solve any puzzle that is put to her. Ask her where your dog’s toy has gone and she’ll point out the kid who stole it. Grill her about an unsolved crime and she’ll instantly know where the gun was tossed. She never leaves her pavement “office”, but when a mystery involving some mammoths comes along, she can’t resist getting more directly involved. Alberto J Alburquerque’s exaggerated pencils are OK, but tonally the collision of gentle magic realism and sordid gangland violence jars. Still, this is an intriguing enough debut with some zippy dialogue, though it never quite pulls off its London setting – there are too many incidents of “butt” and “sidewalk”!…

Reviewed: Issue 1 Writer: Mark Millar Artist: Wilfredo Torres Publisher: Image Format: 6-part series Whilst we applaud Mark Millar’s ability to stretch the spandex to the limits with his high-concept, comics-as-movies, postmodern, post-Moore creations, there’s the risk of diminishing returns. The beautifully rendered Jupiter’s Legacy was great fun, fusing Spandex’s sexy heroes with Mad Men’s boozing suits and ’50s romance comics, via a Millarworld filter. Circle volume 1, though enjoyable enough, was bound to fall in its shadow. Volume 2 starts with romance in space and keeps the sedate Mills & Boon approach going throughout. There are some nice touches – Sheldon becoming the world’s most house-proud husband; Professor Prism turning New York monochrome – but overall this first issue spreads the story thinly. Torres’s widescreen, minimal panel approach works…

“FAST FORWARD 15 YEARS, AND LUKE AND JESSICA ARE MARRIED WITH A CHILD” Combining super-strong former convict Luke Cage with mystical martial arts expert Danny Rand, Power Man and Iron Fist has always been one of Marvel’s more endearingly oddball team-ups. Now, three decades after their last joint venture ended in 1985 – and with both due to feature in (separate) new series from Netflix – the long-time friends are set to renew their union in a new monthly from Shaft and Cyborg author David F. Walker and artist Sanford Greene, in which Luke will also reclaim the name Power Man from its current user Victor Alvarez. “One of the running gags is how Luke doesn’t really go by ‘Power Man’ anymore, and yet that’s how…

2000AD ON FOR FCBD Despite an initial press release stating otherwise, there will be a 2000 AD special released for this year’s Free Comic Book Day, featuring work by John Wagner, Barry Island, Joëlle Jones and, apparently, a free downloadable song! You can pick up the 48-page special on 7 May from your local comic store. LOOK NORTH One-time Johnny Storm star Michael B. Jordan will be co-writing spy thriller North for Dark Horse alongside Nathan Edmonson, with art by Denys Cowan and Bill Sienkiewicz. Issue one is out later this year, though a precise date is TBC. ATWOOD ARRIVES Booker award-winner Margaret Atwood has turned her attentions to comics. Dark Horse are set to publish her Angel Catbird in the second half of the year, while she is also…

“FEMALE ARTISTS WORKING IN THE PAST HAVE CERTAINLY BEEN UNFAIRLY FORGOTTEN AND DESERVE TO BE RECOGNISED” Comix Creatrix: 100 Women Making Comics is the biggest exhibition so far in the UK of comics created by women. Running at the House of Illustration, near King’s Cross in London, it features a hugely varied selection of work from 100 different and talented artists. Why do female artists need their own exhibition? Female artists working in the past have certainly been unfairly forgotten and deserve to be recognised. This is changing thanks to historians like underground pioneer Trina Robbins and exhibitions like Sarah Lightman’s Graphic Details. The Marie Duval archive (www.marieduval.org) has rightly re-stated Duval as a 19th century groundbreaker. I don’t think women working today need to be given an exhibition, exactly…

BORN BARCELONA, SPAIN HIGH DOCTOR STRANGE: THE OATH, DAREDEVIL NOW THE PRIVATE EYE MORE PANELSYNDICATE.COM Comic Heroes: Congratulations on winning the 2015 Eisner Award for Best Digital Comic for The Private Eye . How important has that been for you? Marcos Martín: It’s important in the sense that anything that gets the word out that we exist is good. For us any kind of promotion is good and that is what awards really mean – it really promotes the book to people who don’t already know about it or haven’t had the chance to see it. CH: The Private Eye is released via your “Pay What You Want” digital platform The Panel Syndicate ( www.panelsyndicate.com ), so which came first, and how…

“YOU TAKE THE HURDLES AND USE THEM TO MAKE THE STORY BETTER” THE ART OF SUPERMAN: AARON KUDER Aaron Kuder has had a relatively short comics career to date, going pro only in 2010, but he’s made a real impact. He’s drawn numerous covers for DC, including high-profile titles like Batman and Lobo. But it’s his ongoing work on Action Comics that has really raised his profile. Two years into an ongoing collaboration with Greg Pak, his work has brought an elegance and authenticity to the Man of Steel that echoes Frank Quitely and Neal Adams but with his own unique style. With Action approaching its landmark 50th issue, which Aaron describes as “the pinnacle moment of a lot of the stuff we’ve been working towards”, he took the time…

Chuck Palahniuk has something of a reputation. The author of 1996’s Fight Club writes blisteringly bleak comedies that satirise contemporary life while pushing the boundaries of taste. That novel mixed anti-capitalism, underground fighting and soap made from human fat into a molotov cocktail of a novel that exploded across the culture at the turn of the millennium – aided by David Fincher’s brilliant film adaptation, of which Palahniuk is a self-confessed fan. It’s no secret that Fight Club was based, in part, on real events that happened to Chuck and his friends. It kickstarted a career that has seen him publish works about serial killers; a man who may just be the Second Coming of Christ; a porno actress trying to break a world record (that we can’t really go…

“I’ve been a massive geek about stories for as long as I’ve been a writer,” Simon Spurrier admits. From his early 2000 AD work like “Lobster Random” and “The Simping Detective” to his 2014 Avatar web comic Disenchanted, he has always been obsessed with the art of storytelling. Co-created with artist Ryan Kelly, his new Image series Cry Havoc is perhaps his most compelling shaggy dog story to date. Described tongue-in-cheek as not being about “a lesbian werewolf who goes to war… except it kind of is,” Cry Havoc resembles China Mieville’s Un Lun Dun crossed with a supernaturally charged Full Metal Jacket. “I like the idea that one way of looking at folklore is that it’s a story that at one time was almost considered to be fact, an…

“IT’S A COOL WAY FOR ME TO COME BACK INTO A MAINSTREAM BOOK” Comic Heroes: Deadpool was a little-known character when you were first on the book. Is there more pressure now? Joe Kelly: I’ve always written the same way, especially with mainstream books, and I just want to do the best job that I can. I just try to tell a fun story that I would want to read as a reader. The book comes with a lot of expectations because it’s Spidey and Deadpool, who are two of the biggest characters in the Marvel Universe. It’s a cool way for me to come back into a mainstream book after sporadically doing indie books in between doing film and animation for so long. CH: Deadpool…

If you’d like to make an Electricomic yourself, you can take part in the third official challenge, “Keyhole Comics”. Make an Electricomic using tiny little panels or pages. Comics small enough to view on a smart watch. Comics where there is one page and lots of tiny little drawings. Send the direct link to @Electricomics. The challenge finishes on 29 February 2016. To download the iOS app go to tinyurl.com/electricomicsiPadapp To get the Generator go to github.com/electricomics/generator To get more comics for the app, read the Final Report or watch complete footage of the symposium, and for the full version of all of these interviews as I post them, go to electricomics.net Like us on facebook.com/electricomics and follow us @electricomics for news of our impending Web Reader, which lets anybody…

Igort is the pseudonym of Igor Tuveri, born in Cagliari, Sardinia, in 1958. “From my first name, Igor, I have always felt a link with Russian culture. My father was a composer and I grew up surrounded by Russian music as well as the great Russian novels.” At the age of 20, he left home for the cultural epicentre of Bologna, where he made his debut as an illustrator, musician, essayist, radio presenter and author of comics. His first stories appeared in 1978 in Italy’s pioneering fumetti magazine for adults, Linus. The following year, Igort joined his friends Daniele Brolli, Roberto Baldazzini and one other to buy a printing press to self-publish their own magazine, Il Pinguino Guadalupa. Igort drew the first cover as a homage to Charles Biro’s lurid…

Reviewed Issue 1–3 Writer: Brian Michael Bendis Artist: David Marquez Publisher: Marvel Format: Ongoing Secret Wars may not be finished, but that hasn’t stopped Marvel from releasing a bunch of new books post-Doomverse. Invincible Iron Man sees Brian Michael Bendis and David Marquez give Tony Stark a brand new outlook following the slightly disappointing Superior series. Out goes “evil” Stark and scuffles with Daredevil, and in comes in a lot of the bright optimism that made the Bendis-Marquez run on Miles Morales Spider-Man fun. We have a new suit, a new team-up and a revived villain in the opening arc. Bendis does a great job to make Invincible a good jumping-on point for new fans to the book, so while Tony may be reeling from the news…

“WE DON’T ACTUALLY SEE THE TITLE CHARACTER UNTIL THE FINAL PANEL OF #1” Reviewed: Issues 1-2 Writer: Garth Ennis Artist: Keith Burns Publisher: Titan Format: 8-part series Johnny Red was born in battle – or, rather, Battle . The WWII fighter ace made his debut in the pages of the quintessential British war comic in 1977. In this loving reimagining, a dotcom billionaire and aircraft enthusiast has spent $4.5 million on the knackered remains of a Hawker Hurricane Mk1. He wants to find out more about his purchase and the pilot who flew it in WWII, so travels to Russia to meet a man who claims to have been the chief mechanic in the squadron it flew in. We then flash back to the living hell of…

Reviewed: Issues 1-3 Writer: Nick Spencer Art: Dan Acuna Publisher: Marvel Format: Ongoing It’s a new day for Sam Wilson’s Captain America following Secret Wars , no longer an agent of SHIELD or the US government. Nick Spencer’s take on the Sentinel of Liberty offers a fresh perspective on the importance of Captain America, having him battle xenophobes and bad press along with Hydra and super-powered foes. Spencer packs the new volume with plenty of real-world tension as Cap decides to wade into political debate and speak out about how America could do more. It’s a big risk, and it got a lot of tongues wagging as well as sparking a few online petitions to have Spencer and Acuna removed from the book. Luckily, Marvel has stuck…

Reviewed: Issues 1-3 Writer: Dan Slott Artist: Giuseppe Camuncoli Publisher: Marvel Now he’s head of his own tech company, it’s mo’ money, mo’ problems for Spidey. As in the “Big Time” arc, Peter Parker tries to make use of his Spidey skills on a grander scale. A double stuffed #1 sets the stall out for the new status quo: with Miles Morales keeping New York safe, Parker can go full on tech entrepreneur. Spider-Man is now his “bodyguard”, while his new inventions mean that Parker can keep the world safe both in the suit and out of it. It’s more than a cheap ripoff of Iron Man. Writer Dan Slott returns to Spider-Man with plenty of the witty webhead banter we’ve enjoyed from his previous arcs. It’s the same old…

“CHIP ZDARSKY IS A MASTER OF LAUGH-OUT-LOUD GAGS” Reviewed: Issues 1-2 Writer: Chip Zdarsky Artist: Erica Henderson Publisher: Archie Comics Format: Ongoing As anyone who’s read Sex Criminals can tell you, artist Chip Zdarsky is a master of laugh-out-loud visual gags. As writer, he brings his quirky humour to this first spinoff from Waid and Staples’ retooled Archie. Jughead is Archie’s best pal, though they seem to have little in common: Arch is obsessed with chasing girls and playing guitar; Jug is only interested in eating and avoiding schoolwork. The latter hasn’t escaped the notice of sinister new principal Mr Stanger, who sets out to bring Jughead down – or at least put him in detention. Jug’s dreaminess gives Zdarsky and Henderson the pretext for some…

Reviewed: Issue 1 Writer: Frank Tieri Artist: Felix Ruiz Publisher: Archie Format: Ongoing There’s more than a little Batman (not to mention a dash of Spawn) in the Dark Circle line’s latest addition. The Hangman goes after criminals with all of Bruce Wayne’s zeal and none of his morality. That’s made more-or-less acceptable here because the initial villain – hitman Mike – is so one-dimensionally loathsome that you’re eagerly waiting for him to be offed. It’ll be interesting to see, however, whether future issues poke at the hero’s ambiguities more. Felix Ruiz’ gritty, bloody art is suitably shadowy and hugely atmospheric. His rendition of The Hangman’s first attack is especially dynamic. There’s a slight ’90s Vertigo vibe here, which is no bad thing. It’s light on plot, but an intriguing…

PART TWO: UNDERSTANDING FORMATS Mike Garley is a writer of comics, games, screenplays and other such cool stuff. Mike wrote be Active Media’s Emmy nominated comic series Collider , as well as Wallace and Gromit , Adventure Time , Eponymous , The Kill Screen and The Samurai Slasher . In this issue we’re going to take a look at some of the various comic formats available to self-publishing creators, and their pros and cons. Understanding which format would best suit your project is an important yet often overlooked step in producing comics. One of the most common mistakes creators make when starting out is to get so carried away with the idea of creating something that they aim too high and attempt to produce a comic that they just can’t…

THE FIRST COMIC I READ I was more of a manga fan growing up and remember spending all my lunch money on the new Akira chapters. How I still managed to be a fat kid, I don’t know... THE FIRST INFLUENCE ON MY WORK This is a tough question to answer, because I’m interested in so many different things, from music, movies, theatre to fine arts, video games, the news, etc. I’m a storyteller first and foremost and like to glean inspiration from as many sources as possible. As far as Ricky Rouse Has a Gun is concerned, my biggest influence in spirit must have been Paul Verhoeven’s films, especially Starship Troopers, a film that brilliantly combines action, satire and political commentary, not to mention a bit of the old…

“THOR IS QUICK TO ANGER AND THIS WILL BE SHOWING UP IN THE NEXT ISSUE” The first six issue run of Ragnarok finished last summer, but veteran comics creator Walt Simonson has no intention of letting the grass grow under his feet. December 2015’s Ragnarok #7 was the first in another six issue run of the epic fantasy series. “I have wrapped two major ongoing plot threads into the series,” Simonson told Comic Heroes. “One of these is that the interest of Surtur has been aroused, as he has figured out that Thor is likely alive and so he is sending a number of fire demons to Asgard. The second story involves Black Elf Assassin Regn and his daughter Drifta, who are hiding in Asgard, watching…

“LET’S SAY KYLE IS TALENTED BUT TROUBLED, AND ROK HAS A SWIFT WAY OF DEALING WITH THE TALENTED BUT TROUBLED” The last time Roy Of The Rovers’ weekly adventures hit the newsstand, in 1993, the Premier League was in its infancy. Now, three decades later, the beautiful game is making a comic book comeback. Rok Of The Reds is a new six-part mini-series by Judge Dredd co-creator John Wagner, Alan Grant and Dan Cornwell, which will be published by Glasgow’s Black Hearted Press in March. “It’s not like anything else that Alan and I have done,” Wagner tells Comic Heroes. “There’s a strong retro feel to it, a homage to the comics of our youth – but with the added twist of a rampaging alien!” Originally…

JANUARY FOUR EYES: HEARTS OF FIRE (IMAGE) The second arc of Joe Kelly and Max Fiumara’s alt-universe 1930s fantasy begins with the return of Enrico and his dragon. “I can’t wait to see readers’ hearts broken again,”says Fiumara, the evil sadist. 6 January DEVOLUTION (DYNAMITE) This five-issue series is set in a future where all life on Earth has mutated and devolved in all sort of ways (the clue’s in the title, innit). Rick Remeder scripts and Jonathan Wayshak draws what looks like a fun new series. 20 January CRY HAVOC (IMAGE) Si Spurrier and Ryan Kellys’s new werewolf saga is getting a lot of advance hype (see our extensive preview feature on page 66), but it looks set to meet those high expectations. We’ll find out for sure when…

“I genuinely have a soft spot for the Fifth and Eighth Doctors.” BORN ESSEX HIGH VAMPIRE ACADEMY NOW ALEX RIDER, BREAKS, DOCTOR WHO MORE EMMAVIECELI.COM Comic Heroes: First off, how did you come to work on the Eighth Doctor book? Emma Vieceli: I think I have Steve White of Titan to thank. A good while back he asked me if I were able to draw any Doctor, which would I choose? I said the Eighth, assuming we were talking hypotheticals, but he looked thoughtful about it. It was over a year later that I was offered the job, but I can’t help but think that the conversation with Steve may have helped. I couldn’t have dreamed of a job more exciting than a complete standalone…

“BOLLAND REMAINS BEST KNOWN FOR HIS GLORIOUS COVERS FOR DC” He drew one of the most enduring comic covers ever in “The Killing Joke”, but there’s much more to Brian Bolland’s work than just superheroes. A skilled writer and artist, he cut his teeth on British strips like Powerman, House Of Hammer and 2000 AD, where he became a defining Judge Dredd artist. In 1979 America came calling and, starting with the cover for Green Lantern #127, he began to produce numerous interiors and covers for DC, including Camelot 3000 – the first “maxi-series”. The Killing Joke was a hit and resulted in many offers of work, but Bolland didn’t want to commit to a long run, so he took on various cover assignments, including Animal Man, Wonder Woman, The…

“EVER SINCE I WAS EIGHT YEARS OLD I KNEW I WANTED TO DRAW SUPERHERO COMICS” THE ART OF BATMAN: GREG CAPULLO Greg Capullo has been part of the main Batman title creative team, as artist alongside writer Scott Snyder, since 2011’s New 52 reboot. The pair have presided over arguably some of the most iconic storylines in the character’s recent history, introducing the Court of Owls, a secret society that in the background has controlled Gotham City for centuries and, in the “Endgame” arc, depicting the apparent deaths of the two central characters in the whole Batman mythos – Bruce Wayne and the Joker. Currently, Snyder and Capullo’s Batman has Commissioner James Gordon beneath the famous cowl. Now the New York based artist is set to leave the book, although…

What is your relationship with comics? Did you grow up reading them? I grew up reading both the really low-brow EC horror comics, which I loved, and also Classics Illustrated. So I was reading the very low-brow stuff and then reading Hamlet. Classics Illustrated was probably my introduction to “high” literature, when I was really little. I loved their Frankenstein. But I didn’t really read other comics until recently when a friend introduced me to Matt Fraction and Brian Michael Bendis and they offered to mentor me and teach me how to write for comics. Have you spent a lot of time working with those guys on Fight Club 2 ? A little bit, kind of on the first draft. They coached me through it. There was…

How did you come to co-write The 11th Doctor? When Titan launched its first series of Doctor Who comics in 2014, I was supposed to co-write with Rob Williams and Al Ewing because we’d all just done the “Trifecta” series for 2000 AD. It never worked out for me, but when the second season rolled around, Al was too busy with his Marvel commitments and I had a gap in my schedule, so Rob and I decided to co-write it. So why bring back Abslom Daak? We just wanted to! We wanted to do things differently, because we didn’t have the benefit of it being the first season, so we decided to make it one long story rather than a series of short, episodic done-in-ones. The whole 15-issue run is…

In 2002, at the World Space Congress in Houston, Texas, one of the founding myths of the Space Race was finally exposed. Dr Dimitri Malashenkov, who had been part of the team working on Sputnik 2 in November 1957, revealed that, contrary to the official statements issued by the Soviet Union, the dog on board the satellite had not survived in orbit for a week. In truth, she had died about five hours after take-off, in a highly panicked state, falling victim to a combination of stress and a cabin temperature exceeding 100 degrees Fahrenheit. Having achieved a remarkable propaganda coup with the launch of Sputnik 1, the first artificial satellite, Soviet premier Khrushchev had ordered the follow-up mission to take place within weeks, to capitalise on this success and…

Unless you’ve been living on Luna 1 for the last 38 years, you know that 2000 AD is edited by a sometimes cranky, but always thrill-powered, extraterrestrial from the planet Quaxxann. But the shocking truth is that – whisper it – Tharg the Mighty isn’t real. Yes, we know, we’ll probably receive a Rigelian Hotshot for even suggesting such a thing. But in reality nine very-human editors have occupied Tharg’s Betelgeusian boots, the current and longest-serving of them all being Matt Smith. “I started getting 2000 AD back in 1985 when I was around 12 years old,” Smith recalls. It was a natural progression for this young comic fan’s reading habits. After reading British children’s comics like The Beano, Smith graduated to the ’80s revival of…

“IT’S A SWEET, SIMPLE PREMISE: FORREST GUMP MEETS CAPTAIN AMERICA” Reviewed: Issues 1-2 Writer: Mark Millar Artist: Rafael Albuquerque Publisher: Image Format: 6-issue series Mark Millar is the king of comic-controversy. The titles he’s best known for – Kick-Ass, Wanted, The Secret Service, et al – are violent, sweary affairs. That’s not to say these aren’t good books. On his best days Millar is a hell of a writer and he gets great artists, but his work isn’t for everyone. Huck, however, very much is... Inspired by the notoriously doomy ending to Man Of Steel (which – spoilers ahead for the three of you who haven’t seen it – culminates with Superman snapping Zod’s neck), Millar decided to create something upbeat and positive to counteract the sour taste left in…

Writer: Jean-Yves Ferri Art: Didier Conrad Cover: Didier Conrad Publisher: Orion Format: Graphic novel The modern phenomenon of WikiLeaks gets the Iron Age treatment. Yes, by Toutatis! The indomitable Gauls return in their 36th canonical volume, a clumsy but endearing satire about truth, data and the historical record. This is the second outing in the series to be created by French duo Ferri and Conrad, who first partnered – to mixed reviews – on 2013’s Asterix And The Picts. Although crammed with slapstick banter and colourful battles, Asterix stories have always been at their best when spoofing big public issues. The Mansions Of The Gods, the 1971 comedy about property development, and Obelix And Co, 1976’s dig at capitalism and commercial rivalry, are brilliant social commentaries masquerading as children’s books.…

Reviewed: Issues 1-2 Writer: Greg Rucka Artist: Nicola Scott Publisher: Image Format: Ongoing When Image announced Black Magick , it was met with excitement from comic book fans – after all, any new Greg Rucka book is worth getting excited about. And not only was this Greg Rucka, it was Greg Rucka back on a police procedural with a twist – something he made into an art form on Gotham Central. This time the twist is that cop Rowan Black is also a practising witch. So it’s something of a surprise to read the first two issues and discover that the real star of the show is artist Nicola Scott. She’s mostly known for her collaborations with Gail Simone on comics including Wonder Woman, Birds of Prey…

Reviewed: Issue 1-3 Writer: Corina Bechko Artist: Randy Green Publisher: Dark Horse Format: 5-part series Lara Croft is back, thanks to writer Corinna Bechko and artist Randy Green, and she’s brought a familiar face from The Temple of Osiris with her: fellow tomb raider Carter Bell. This time, Lara and Carter are on the trail of mysterious artefacts with the power to control humans, all of which are being brought together by the monstrous Mr Green. The job takes Lara globetrotting through Istanbul, Croatia, Arizona and London, fighting mind-controlled people along with some crocodiles and rock monsters because, well, that’s just what Lara Croft does. This series is aiming for nothing more than mindless fun. Lara is as smart and resourceful as she should be, but…

Miles Hamer picks out some of the best self-published comics right now. If you have created a comic, in print or online, we’d love to hear from you! Get in touch at stateofindependents@gmail.com THE GRINNING MASK Story & Art by Ryan Taylorwww.comicsy.co.uk/ryantaylor/ The Grinning Mask, a curious tale of a village filled with mystery and malevolence, is a spellbinding read. Centring on horror-comic-loving schoolboy Jack and his search for local adventure, The Grinning Mask starts as teenage intrigue but leads to the discovery of the sinister Archibald Sommers, the dark-hearted villain who sports the freakish headwear of the title. Presenting a uniquely English world of pubs, local bobbies, and vicars with secrets, it taps into a rich tradition of folklore and campfire mythology, creating a wonderfully…