SPOOKTACULER HALLOWEEN COMIC BOOKS

The Halloween season is here and with it comes some terror-ific comic books. I'm always geeked to get into the Halloween spirit with some holiday themed good reads. Here are some spooktaculer stories that will be on comic book shop shelves this October:

STAR TREK: HOLO-WEEN

After enduring an anxiety-ridden passage through a solar storm, Captain Picard and the crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise take to celebrating Halloween to reset the mood. But while the Earth holiday involves sweet treats and other festivities, they soon learn that fear is in season when crew members begin to go missing one by one. Each week in October leading up to Halloween, a new issue of this limited series by acclaimed writer Chris Sequeira and Eisner-nominated artist Joe Eisma will be rocketing into comic shops. 

DC'S GHOULS JUST WANT TO HAVE FUN

An assembly of spine-tingling stories for Halloween. Superman imprisoned by an unfriendly ghost! Man-Bat versus a werewolf! Mary Marvel and Dr. Psycho crashing a Halloween frat party! Plus: the Question faces horrific crimes of fashion; Robotman wrestles a ghostly glitch; Crush helps Lobo find the perfect costume; and Nightwing and Red Hood spend a frightful night in Blüdhaven, co-written by Christopher Sean, the voice of Nightwing from the Gotham Knights video game! The chills will last longer than your candy corn!

ARCHIE HALLOWEEN SPECTACULAR 

Trick and Treat return on Halloween night to harass Archie and Jughead with assorted monsters until Sabrina takes charge. All that plus more scary-fun stories!

CAPWOLF & THE HOWLING COMMANDOS

When Captain America is transformed into a werewolf on the front lines of World War II, he’ll need the help of the Howling Commandos to take down a band of Nazi cultists who intend to use supernatural forces to turn the tide of battle. But can Cap control the skeptical, jaded Commandos when he can barely control himself?

TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES HALLOWEEN SPECIAL

As Halloween approaches, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles must face their fears when a powerful and mysterious being challenges them to prove their mettle in a nightmarish test of bravery. Meanwhile, Shredder has an otherworldly encounter of his own when he summons an ancient spirit to gain a greater understanding of the powerful weapon he seeks to reforge... only to discover that some forces are beyond even his control. Don't miss this double-sized, spooky special of Saturday Morning Adventures!

OPERATION SUNSHINE

From the New York Times-bestselling hosts of the hit The Last Podcast on the Left and Black Hammer's David Rubin comes this all-new humorous, horror, and action-packed comic book series that's Near Dark meets Ocean's Eleven. A group of young, alienated vampires known as "bugs" plot to steal a magical object from ancient monstrous vampires to turn themselves back to human. Along the way they uncover a sprawling monster underground, a top-secret plot run by the elder creatures, elite militant vampire slayers, and madness beyond imagining blocking their path to humanity.

BORIS KARLOFF'S GOLD KEY MYSTERIES 

Witness the dawn of new era in horror! When a gothic mansion infested with arcane power appears from the mist, Boris Karloff is the world's last hope against dark forces led by a malevolent government agent bent on harnessing the house's power. Boris Karloff is back with a new ongoing horror anthology.

CRYPT OF SHADOWS

Once more, as All Hallows’ Eve draws nigh, the dust-covered slab that seals shut the crypt, blocking out the sun and casting it forever in shadow, has creaked open to let the darkness loose to prey on the Marvel Universe! Be they mercenary or mage, guided by law or by rage, our heroes will face their terror, and they’d best pray their spines are sturdy enough for the job…or the crypt they find may well be their own!

SPINE-TINGLING SPIDER-MAN

After a fight with Spider-Cide, Spider-Man gets taken on the most frightening ride of his life as he finds himself in the most terrifying haunted house possible. Who took Peter’s powers? Who took Peter’s friends and family? Who stands the best chance at taking Spider-Man down permanently?!

HEADLESS HORSEMAN HALLOWEEN ANNUAL

Boils, ghouls, vampires, monsters, and creatures of all kinds, welcome. Take a seat, go on, fill the aisles, relax your fangs, and sit with us for a while. Join us in a macabre and magical journey through all the haunts and spooks that keep you up at night for here we revel in the darkness and present to you a chilling, nay petrifying experience as the Headless Horseman presents a collection of five terrifying tales to warm up your cold soul.

GARGOYLES HALLOWEEN SPECIAL

It's young Gnash's first Halloween in Manhattan, and you're invited to come along as he heads out to find friends on the one night of the year when Gargoyles can roam the city unbothered! Unfortunately, he's about to run afoul of the masked Quarrymen, who are out to hunt down any Gargoyle foolish enough to brave the streets on All Hallow's Eve. That means Brooklyn, Katana, Lexington, Broadway, Angela, and even Goliath are in real danger! Will they survive this cruel trick, or become a treat for the marauding Quarrymen? Find out in this all-new 40-page special featuring a 28-page main story written by Gargoyles creator GREG WEISMAN!

FEAR THE FUNHOUSE PRESENTS ... TOYBOX OF TERROR

In Riverdale, even the toys are terrifying in this anthology one-shot set in the universe of last year's successful Fear the Funhouse comic. Three tales of dolls, robots, and puppets gone awry all thanks to the work of a shadowy toymaker and a young girl intent on revenge, in the vein of the widely successful M3GAN movie and Child's Play franchise.

JUSTICE LEAGUE V GODZILLA V KONG

The cataclysmic crossover event of the year is here as the DC Universe clashes with Legendary’s Monsterverse in Justice League vs. Godzilla vs. Kong. Clark Kent is enjoying a night off with a very important dinner planned with his girlfriend, Lois Lane, when the entire city shudders under the weight of the monstrous Godzilla, who emerges from the bay! What started as a routine clash between the Justice League and the Legion of Doom takes a dangerous turn when the wall between worlds is breached…with Godzilla, Kong, and the Monsterverse emerging on DC’s Earth!

MARVEL ZOMBIES: BLACK, WHITE & BLOOD

The undead plague starts here…and you know it won’t stop until everyone’s in its clutches! This first of four action-packed, utterly original, gloriously gory anthology issues features Daredevil, Spider-Man, Moon Knight and many, many more Marvel heroes and villains beset by ever-growing zombie hordes! In a brutal, bloodstained world, can hope survive? Or will creeping, gnawing, shambling horror win out at last…?

UNIVERSAL MONSTERS DRACULA

THE DEPARTMENT OF TRUTH creators JAMES TYNION IV and MARTIN SIMMONDS reteam for an extra-length miniseries about the monster who started it all! When Dr. John Seward admits a strange new patient into his asylum, the madman tells stories of a demon who has taken residence next door. But as Dr. Seward attempts to apply logic to the impossible…his surrogate daughter Lucy begins to fall under the spell of the twisted Count Dracula!

FREE COMIC BOOK DAY 2022

After a pandemic interruption, a sign of things returning to normal is here with the resumption of FREE COMIC BOOK DAY; which is returning to its traditional date of taking place on the first Saturday in May. On Saturday, May 7, 2022, comic book shops across the United States will be handing out specially printed Free Comic Book Day issues to promote interest in the genre and generate foot traffic to brick and  mortar retail locations. Celebrate favorite brands including Marvel and Disney with stories about Donald Duck and Spider-Man or discover new characters such as Jonna, Max Meow and Tex featured in free comic books you can pick up on May 7th.

There are forty-nine special issues being published this year for Free Comic Book Day which range in content from appropriate for any age to aimed for audiences over eighteen. There will be a color coded logo on the cover of each title which designates a comic book's age rating. Green is suitable reading material for all ages (children, teens & adults). Blue is appropriate for readers 13+ years old. Red designates mature content meant for adults. Here are three favorite picks from each category this will be available for this year's Free Comic Book Day:

FUZZY BASEBALL

Batter up with the greatest hits of the Fernwood Valley Fuzzies! Join beloved children's book illustrator John Steven Gurney and rookie to the Fernwood Valley Fuzzies, Blossom Honey Possum, as they recount their greatest baseball adventures against their strangest rivals. It's got animals, it's got ninja, it's got robots, all competing in America's favorite pastime! Plus, exclusive extra-inning content behind-the-scenes of the beloved series! You'll hit a home run with this great collection of hilarious baseball stories from the ever-relatable underdogs the Fernwood Valley Fuzzies.

SONIC THE HEDGEHOG

Sonic's racing into a brand-new adventure with his best buds (and co-stars of the hit new movie) Tails and Knuckles by his side! But Sonic's not the only super-speedster in town . . . Get caught up with everything you need to know about Sonic's evil counterpart Surge before she and Sonic go head-to-head in the epic issue #50, a story years in the making!

THE REMA CHRONICLES

Tabby Simon is determined to learn what happened to her father, who was found dead after researching a tree that leaks a mysterious mist in her neighborhood. She is unexpectedly led to Rema, a distant world of magic and beauty that is periodically invaded by a nearby planet desperate for resources. While Tabby searches for the truth surrounding her father's death, she meets a handsome blue-haired boy named Philip. He has his own dangerous secrets, but has promised to help Tabby get home. As she learns more about this strange world, Tabby discovers that she is destined for something far greater than she ever could have imagined.

ARCHIE

A new dawn of Archie is upon us! Archie Andrews has forever been known as an everyman. He's your average teenager, and that's what makes him so well-liked. But it doesn't take a super-scientist, super-hero, or super-spy to see that Archie is anything BUT average! Welcome to the weird, wonderful world of Archie, where anything and everything can happen to a red-headed, freckle-faced teen in a sleepy little town. This title serves as a special sneak peek at what's to come from Archie Comics' new series of anthology titles as well as some best-of moments from recently released titles. Get in on the ground floor of a new era of Archie with this special issue zero title.

THE INCAL UNIVERSE

Jodorowsky and Moebius's The Incal was a shot across the bow of graphic storytelling, an epic explosion of staggering art, mind-blowing worldbuilding, and ambitious plotting that combined to make one of the most influential comics of all time. Now, 42 years after its initial publication--and with a major movie adaptation in the works from filmmaker Taika Waititi--the Incal-verse expands with three extraordinary new series: Kill Wolfhead, by Brandon Peterson and Pete Woods; Dying Star, by Dan Waters and Jon Davis-Hunt; and Psychoverse, by Mark Russell and Yanick Paquette.

STRANGER THINGS

Celebrating the weird and wonderful, we present stories both strange and alien! In Stranger Things, Eleven, Will and Jonathan go to a drive-in theater for a double creature feature, but the local festivities and scary costumes bring back haunting memories. In Resident Alien, Dr. Harry and nurse Asta help an elderly patient in the sleepy, small town of Patience investigate a ghostly presence in her house!

the Bone Orchard MYTHOS

A troubled writer books a secluded cabin on a serene lake in an attempt to get away from his struggling marriage and his impending deadlines. But what he can't know when he arrives is that he is already in the cabin. In fact he may have always been there. Face-to-face with his own demons, the writer discovers the first terrifying pieces of The Bone Orchard Mythos a sprawling new horror interconnected universe from the Eisner Award winning team behind Gideon Falls and Primordial, Andrea Sorrentino and Jeff Lemire!

NOTTINGHAM

A very Merry Christmas. All eyes are on Everard Blackthorne, the Sheriff of Nottingham, when his predecessor is murdered in cold blood. It's business as usual for Ev, with Hood and the Merry Men pulling the strings and a terrible choice to make as the lives of Alan Dale's wife and son hang in the balance. This special issue of Nottingham takes place in between volumes 1 and 2 of the smash hit series.

TRESE

The award-winning Filipino comic, now hit Netflix anime series! Foul play. Magic spells. Supernatural criminals. When the case takes a turn for the weird, the police call Alexandra Trese. The Trese 2022 FCBD comic features a preview of the forthcoming Trese Volume 4: Last Seen After Midnight, along with bonus material on the comic, including some of Alexandra's journal entries chronicling her creature encounters and more. It also includes a sneak peek at The Art of Trese Anime, featuring art, sketches, photos, interviews and more on the making of the hit Netflix anime series.

Industry giants DC and Marvel are both making their presence known on Free Comic Book Day. Each is publishing three free issues to be distributed at comic book shops. DC Comics Dark Crisis and Marvel's Judgment Day will each kick off the next big story event arc for each of the publishers. Look out for these special Free Comic Book Day issues to pick up.

DARK CRISIS SPECIAL 

The Justice League is comics’ greatest super-team—made up of DC Comics’ legendary Super Heroes, they have saved the world countless times. No crisis was too much for them to handle...until now! The Justice League has been defeated by the Great Darkness and its army of DC’s most dangerous enemies—now a new generation of Super Heroes must rise to protect not only the Multiverse…but also the legacy of the DCU! Includes a preview and art from Dark Crisis #1 coming in June!

GALAXY: THE PRETTIEST STAR

Every day in Taylor Barzelay’s life might seem perfect—but every day is torture. Taylor is actually the Galaxy Crowned, an alien princess from the planet Cyandii, and one of the few survivors of an intergalactic war. For six long, painful years, Taylor has accepted her duty to remain in hiding as a boy on Earth. But that all changes when Taylor meets Metropolis girl Katherine “call me Kat” Silverberg, whose confidence is electrifying. Suddenly, Taylor no longer wants to hide, even if exposing her true identity could attract her greatest enemies.

LEAGUE OF SUPER-PETS

There is nothing the Super-Pets love more than spending time with their heroes, but are finding it difficult to be taken seriously as members of the team when their humans just don’t understand them. But when Mr. Mxyzptlk (a magical imp from the fifth dimension) arrives in Metropolis with a plan to wreak a little chaos and destruction, the Justice League are caught in his trap! The Super-Pets will need to come up with a plan to prevent Mxy’s mischief from destroying the city—while somehow trying to rescue their human counterparts. The only problem is, they may need to recruit their greatest enemy in order to defeat him.

JUDGMENT DAY

Featuring stories by an all-star lineup of creators including writers Kieron Gillen and Gerry Duggan and artist Dustin Weaver, FREE COMIC BOOK DAY: AVENGERS/X-MEN #1 will lay the groundwork for an event that will erupt across the Marvel Universe in 2022 and drastically alter the relationship between Earth's Mightiest Heroes and mutantkind.

SPIDER-MAN/VENOM

Spider-Man is gearing up for a brand-new era just in time for the character's 60th anniversary! Fans who pick up FREE COMIC BOOK DAY: SPIDER-MAN/VENOM #1 will see the very beginning of the major storylines writer Zeb Wells and legendary artist John Romita Jr. have planned for their run on AMAZING SPIDER-MAN, including Tombstone's first steps towards becoming Spidey's most terrifying villain.

MARVEL VOICES

A unique introduction to the groundbreaking and critically acclaimed Marvel's Voices series, which spotlights creators and characters across Marvel's diverse and ever-evolving universe. The book will include seven Marvel's Voices stories, spotlighting creators and characters from different cultures, communities, and identities. 

In addition to a brand-new story starring Moon Girl by writer Nadia Shammas and artist Luciano Vecchio, FREE COMIC BOOK DAY: MARVEL'S VOICES #1 will reprint the following stories from past Marvel's Voices one-shots: Writer Evan Narcisse and artist Jahnoy Lindsay's tale showcasing the heroic journey of Brother Voodoo from MARVEL'S VOICES (2020) #1 Acclaimed artist Jeffrey Veregge's showcase of Marvel's greatest indigenous heroes from MARVEL'S INDIGENOUS VOICES (2020) #1 Oscar winning writer John Ridley and artist Olivier Coipel's action packed Miles Morales adventure from MARVEL'S VOICES: LEGACY (2021) #1 Writer Alyssa Wong and superstar artist Whilce Portacio's Wave and Bishop teamup story from MARVEL'S VOICES: IDENTITY (2021) #1 Artist Luciano Vecchio's rousing exploration of the history of LGBTQ+ representation in Marvel Comics from MARVEL'S VOICES: PRIDE (2021) #1 Writer/artist Leo Romero's celebration of Brazilian culture with the X-Men's Shark-Girl from MARVEL'S VOICES: COMUNIDADES (2021) #1 by Leo Romero

For more information about this event, visit freecomicbookday.com

Adapting Lost Screen Plays to Comic Books is the Newest Trend

 DC Comics recent release of Batman '66: The Lost Episode is the most recent addition to a new trend of adapting unused screen plays into a comic book format. Renowned Sci-Fi author Harlan Ellison developed a script for the 1960's Batman television show that aired for three seasons on the ABC network which was never produced.  Ellison's story would have introduced the villain Two-Face but the show never made it to air and the character never became a part of the television show's Rogues Gallery.  This lost script titled "The Two-Way Crimes of Two-Face" has now been created into this comic book written by Len Wein and illustrated by Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez.  In addition to the comic portrayal of the script Batman '66: The Lost Episode also includes the original prose story outline by Ellison and the complete original pencils for the story by Garcia-Lopez.

Batman '66: The Lost Episode follows the recent comic book adaption of another Harlan Ellison script from the 1960s era of television by IDW Publishing.  IDW published a five issue mini series based on Ellison's original teleplay for the Star Trek TV episode The City on the Edge of Forever.  Ellison's script was used to create one of the most popular of the original Star Trek series episodes but was significantly rewritten by producers before the show was filmed and aired.  Now 50 years later, Ellison has worked with IDW to illustrate this famous show in the manner he originally intended.  Check out this nice review of the IDW series by Ian Dawe which points out the differences between Ellison's original teleplay illustrated in this IDW comic book series and the television episode which TV GUIDE ranked #68 in their 100 Most Memorable Moments in TV History ranking and won a HUGO Award in 1968 for "Best Dramatic Presentation."  Have a Star Trek fan you are holiday shopping for? The graphic novel compilation of this five issue mini-series may be the perfect gift for the Trekkie in your life.

What appears to have started this trend is THE STAR WARS eight issue mini-series published by Dark Horse Comics that portrayed the story of George Lucas' first draft for his famous 1977 movie.  This comic is a vastly different story then the one most of us are familiar with.  Dark Horse did an incredible job of bringing George Lucas vision to life.  Unfortunately, while Ellison's script was an enhancement beyond an already great Star Trek episode Lucas work shows us how close the world was to never having Star Wars.  Lucas original story is really bad and is much closer to the prequel movies which may be a clue to why those movies were worse than the original trilogy.  That is not to say THE STAR WARS is bad because Dark Horse creative team has done an exceptional job in giving readers an inner look into the mind of George Lucas through exceptional drawings and illustrations.  Die hard fans will most like want to peruse this comic series to see what might have been and be thankful that producers stepped in to assist with drafting the script that became the Star Wars movie that is so beloved by people around the planet.  If you missed THE STAR WARS mini-series when it was on store shelves you can purchase a graphic novel compilation to add to your book shelf.

These three examples of "lost scripts" were all published in 2014 and it will be interesting to see if this trend continues into the future.  What other unknown scripts might be lurking out there to be brought to life by comic books.  Keep an eye out in 2015!

WE CAN BE HEROES – COMICS HELPING CHARITY

A few weeks ago DC COMICS launched a campaign to raise money for charitable relief to address the hunger problems in Africa.  Their campaign, WE CAN BE HEROES, is raising money for several reputable charities including  Save the Children, International Rescue Committee, and Mercy Corps be offering special Batman themed items and promotions to people who make donations.  WE CAN BE HEROES has been very successful exceeding its initial goal of raising $50,000 in donations to have already received more than $139,000 in contributions.  Every dollar counts and can make an impact in the services these charities can provide to those in need so check out their website www.indiegogo.com/projects/dc-entertainment-we-can-be-heroes because there are just a few days left to participate.

The campaign is wrapping up at the end of this week– donations need to be made by 11:59pm EST on Friday, May 10, 2013 – so if you’d like to find out more information or make a donation hurry over to the WE CAN BE HEROES website.  Here are few of their donation perks:

 $10 dollar donation will get you a $9 tax deduction and 5 digital copies of BATMAN comics (Batman #20, Detective Comics #20, The Dark Knight #20, Batman & Red Hood #20 & Batman/Superman #1);

$25 dollar donation will get you a print copy of Batman/Superman #1 with an exclusive WE CAN BE HEROES variant cover by the legendary artist Jim Lee along with a $14 tax deduction.

$30 dollar donation gets you a $10 tax deduction and a year’s digital subscription to your choice of either Batman/Superman, Batman, or Detective Comics.

$40 dollar donation will get you an exclusive WE CAN BE HEROES Batman/Superman t-shirt designed by Jim Lee and only available through this campaign and a $14 tax deduction.

What can the money from this fundraiser do to help people in the Horn of Africa?  If the campaign reaches these goals it can:

There are only a few days left so make sure you check out WE CAN BE HEROES before the end of the day on Friday, May 10^th.