New Kids Focused Comic Books Roaring into Retail Stores in June

As a fan of comic books I want to share my interest in them with my kids, but as a parent I also have to be wary of exposing them to a lot of the mature themes and graphic content that are in a majority of today's publications.  There really are  a limited number of titles on the market that are suitable for children. I know because as a dad, I've been keeping an eye out for them.  Understanding that there is an under-served children's market and wanting to cultivate the next generation of comic book aficionados, Lions Forge, a digital first comics publisher, is launching a young readers imprint in June called ROAR.

Of course young readers don't have much money of their own, so Roar is being creative in luring parents to the titles by publishing comic books tied to television shows that us adults enjoyed when we were kids.  Roar is starting off with two titles based off popular sitcoms that any parent who grew up in the 80s and/or 90s would be familiar with, SAVED BY THE BELL and PUNKY BREWSTER.  The goal is that these comic books will feature stories that parents will relate to and feel comfortable with their children reading.

SAVED BY THE BELL is a modern reboot of the NBC teen sitcom written by Joelle Sellner (Teen Titans, Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes) combined with expressive artwork by multiple Eisner Award-nominated Chynna Clugston (Blue Monday, Queen Bee) and Tim Fish (The Graphic Canon, Uncanny X-Men: Nation X).

PUNKY BREWSTER is based on the NBC primetime series about a homeless girl and her foster father making a brand new family that ran from 1984 through 1986.  It is also being scripted by Sellner and will feature artwork by upcoming talent Lesley Vamos.

Both series are currently available to read via purchasing digital issues online and through a partnership with IDW Publishing print editions of the comic books will begin to be available starting this summer.  The first printed issue of SAVED BY THE BELL will be available to pick up in June with the first issue of PUNKY BREWSTER hitting store shelves in July.  Both titles content is being developed through a licensing agreement with Universal Partnerships & Licensing.

"The comics industry has been increasingly supportive of all-ages comics in recent years, but we felt it was time to actually make comics for all young readers age groups," Lion Forge CEO David Steward stated in a press release sent to A Geek Daddy blog.  "We established Roar to reach preschool, middle grade, and young adult readers across sales channels, especially the school and library market, with a dedicated, high-quality effort.  There's just nothing like it right now, and I can't wait to see what everyone thinks of the books."

Transferring nostalgic television shows to comic book series isn't a new concept for Lions Forge, they have already adapted one of my favorite shows as a tween, AIRWOLF, as a comic book series as well as 80's hits KNIGHT RIDER and MIAMI VICE.  The Roar imprint though, headed by Senior Editor Adam Staffaroni, will have more of a kids focus then the rest of Lion Forge's lineup of publications.  In describing Roar, Staffaroni communicated "Every one of our comics is unique, with one thing in common: a highly kinetic style that's just as entertaining as all the TV shows and digital devices competing for kids' attention today."  He added, "They're even more fun, actually, because comics can activate a child's imagination in a way all those other media can't."

Roar plans to expand its comic book series throughout 2015 with digital and print releases of the series CRYSTAL CADETS along with new licensed titles featuring American Greetings Properties CARE BEARS, MADBALLS, and PACKAGES FROM THE PLANET X.

You can find the digital editions of Roar's SAVED BY THE BELL and PUNKY BREWSTER comic books online at Amazon (for Kindle) ComicsPlus, GoogleBooks, Apple iBooks and on the Lion Forge website.  Look for the print versions of Roar comic books to hit brick and mortar stores beginning this summer.