Wednesday, March 14, 2001

MORE SABRETOOTH IN X-MEN: EVOLUTION

This Saturday's episode of X-Men: Evolution on Kids' WB!, a rerun of "SpkyeCam," won't mark the last appearance this season of Sabretooth.

"He's got a couple more appearances, leading up to the big two-part finale," story editor Greg Johnson told The Continuum.

GIVE'EM A CLICK

Johnson said that Sabretooth - despite the ending of "SpkyeCam" -- will be appearing in the 11th episode, "Grim Reminder," which focuses on Wolverine's past, as well as the season-ending two-parter, "The Cauldron."

The creators of X-Men: Evolution have played up the Wolverine-Sabretooth rivalry. Both characters are adults in the teen-oriented show.

"Right in the first episode, you get this idea that there's this ongoing thing between Wolverine and Sabretooth and it kind of plays out through the first season," said producer Boyd Kirkland.

"We never really resolve what's going on with Wolverine and what his past is," said Gary Graham, one of the series' directors. "Obviously, some part of that has to do with Sabretooth."

GIVE'EM A CLICK

Steve Gordon, another of the series' directors, said the Sabretooth vs. Wolverine dynamic also provides a visual spark.

"He's a very interesting character," Gordon said of Sabretooth. "He seems to play very well off Wolverine, design-wise."

The "SpykeCam" episode, which first aired on Feb. 10, was written by Christy Marx and Randy Littlejohn from a story by Rick Ungar, Marx and Littlejohn. It was directed by Frank Paur.

CAPTAIN AMERICA UPDATE

Marvel Knights editor Stuart Moore told The Continuum he does not have a creative team yet for when Captain America comes under his direction.

"I'm currently interviewing a series of scrawny, 98-pound writers and artists for possible service in the super-soldier program," Moore said. "I'll announce more soon."

Current Captain America writer/artist Dan Jurgens told The Continuum his final issue will be Captain America #48.

"For me, the goal is to do so with a story that represents not just what we wanted to do, but the history of Captain America," Jurgens said. "They say old soldiers never die, but one has to wonder..."

Jurgens said he won't be able to complete all of his plans for Captain America.

"We had lots of plans to move Cap in a different direction," Jurgens said. "Cap has been too much a part of New York, and not nearly involved enough with the rest of America. We were going to move beyond the typical Marvel Heroes universe and explore the great big world with Cap, examining numerous issues while doing so."

Jurgens said he has enjoyed his run on Captain America.

"Very much so," he said. "Anytime you get to work on a powerful icon like Cap, it's a treat."

Jurgens will continue to write Thor for Marvel and Tomb Raider for Top Cow.

"We'll be making some changes on Thor as we move the series into its fourth year," Jurgens said. "There are also some surprises coming up in Tomb Raider to give the book a bit of a sharper edge. I also can't say enough about the phenomenal artwork Joe Jusko is doing on the Tomb Raider painted special we're doing for Top Cow. It's a book everyone will want on their shelves!"

TOM DERENICK TALKS CABLE

Artist Tom Derenick, filling in for Michael Ryan on Cable #93, told The Continuum he will be using a more illustrative style in a sequence in the issue.

"For the readers that don't know, I have two different styles," Derenick said. "The one that I've been using on the X-books is my comic-book style. which is more suited to the tight deadlines of a monthly comic book.

"The other is a tonal pencil style. Most of the people who know me from the Internet are more familiar with this style. The closest thing I can compare it to is Jay Anacleto's work on Aria. It's a bit more exaggerated than that, not much, but I love drawing big musclebound guys and sleek looking woman in practically painted-on outfits, and I think they look more godlike when you're not being as subtle. If I were to do something more based in reality I'd probably tone it down a little.

"Anyway, I've only really used this style a few times in comic books up to this point in pinups and covers, the 'By the Maker' pinup in X-Men: Millennial Visions being one of them. There was supposed to be an alternate red cover to in this style for X-Men: Search for Cyclops #4 but due to a snafu in the solicitations it won't be seen. These things happen sometimes. I'm very excited to be getting the opportunity to do it again on another book."

The story continues writer Robert Weinberg's Dark Sisterhood story line.

"Mark (Powers, Cable editor) and I chose a part of the script where using a different style would hopefully enhance Bob's story even more," Derenick said. "We wouldn't just throw in an alternate style unless it fit in the story."

Derenick said that he hopes to do more work for Marvel in this style.

"They're considering a proposal at the moment that would be done completely in this look and if it's given the green light I think it will go over very well with the fans," Derenick said. "I can't say anything more about it at the moment but when I can I will."

Cable #93 is scheduled to ship in May.

J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI'S SPIDER-MAN

Marvel Comics has released the first details about J. Michael Straczynski's take on Amazing Spider-Man.

Straczynski takes over the book with the release of Amazing Spider-Man #30 in April. John Romita Jr. remains the artist, and J. Scott Campbell is the new cover artist.

According to Marvel, Peter Parker will return to his old high school as a science teacher, where he is faced with contemporary problems of the day such as homelessness, teen pregnancy and urban blight

"I feel that Spider-Man has lost his relevance. I want to bring him back to his roots, throw him into the streets of New York and put him in powerful social situations that he hasn't encountered for a while," Straczynski said.

According to Marvel, Straczynski will also raise intriguing questions about the origin of Spider-Man and whether or not he is the sole possessor of his powers.

THE RED STAR TRADE PAPERBACK UPDATE

The Red Star Trade Paperback Vol. I: The Battle of Kar Dathra's Gate will have a series of links to the Internet.

Asterisks in dialogue-balloons that usually refer to back issues will instead send readers to exclusive web addresses, offering a unique perspective on the lands of The Red Star.

Animated content will provide a greater understanding of characters and events, including a sneak peek at the mysterious girl pictured at the end of #4 (and back cover poster). Also available is a tour through the series with a "Web-Companion" for more information on the story and production.

The trade paperback - due in April -- collects The Red Star #1-4 by Christian Gossett, Bradley Kayl and A.D. Coulter. The book will be oversized (9x12) and will include an introduction by Brian Michael Bendis, a comprehensive sketchbook and analysis of how Team Red Star brought state-of-the-art computer imagery to the comics page.

The trade paperback will be 144 pages and will cost $24.95.

CROSSGEN SELLS OUT AGAIN

CrossGen has announced that it has sold out of five more issues: Mystic #1, Mystic #3, Sigil #1, Sigil #3, and Meridian #3.

None of these issues is available for reorders with only a small amount being saved by CrossGen for mainstream marketing promotions.

All of these issues were overprinted upwards of 200 percent and have been continuous and consistent sellers for Diamond Comic Distributors, Inc. for the past 10 months.

"Week in and week out, CrossGen continues to be one of our most consistent reorder vendors," said Steve Leaf, Brand Manager for Diamond Comics Distributor. "This has been going on since CrossGen's launch. We knew that CrossGen's quality and timeliness would result in greater sales for retailers and this has been proven by the continuous early issue sellouts."

"We expected that it would take a while for us to sell through these initial issues, especially when we overprinted in some cases by as much as 200 percent," said CrossGen director of marketing and distribution James Breitbeil. "But we knew that our product was strong and that over time retailers and fans would catch on."

BRIEFLY