Thursday, January 3, 2002

DARK KNIGHT STRIKES AGAIN #2 ON JAN. 30

The Dark Knight Strikes Again #2, which was scheduled to reach stores on Jan. 16, instead will reach stores on Jan. 30.

"What can I say? Good things take time, and this book is way beyond just good," said DC Comics group editor Bob Schreck. "Trust me, it will be worth the wait."

Copies of DK2 #2 ordered to arrive on the staggered ship dates also will be delayed to follow the weekly delivery pattern.

In addition, DC said revised release dates for DK2 #3 will be announced in the near future.

In other DC shipping news, new dates include Jan. 23 for Green Arrow #11 and Gen13 #73; Jan. 30 for Tom Strong's Terrific Tales #2, Tomorrow Stories #12 and Wonder Woman #177; Feb. 6 for The Authority #28; Feb. 13 for Cybernary 2.0 #6; Feb. 27 for Green Arrow #12 and Wonder Woman #178; and March 6 for The Authority #29.

DAN JOLLEY TALKS SABRETOOTH MINI-SERIES

Dan Jolley told The Continuum that his Sabretooth mini-series is set to start in May.

"The story is called 'Mary Shelley Overdrive,' referring to the group of guys Creed finds himself in conflict with, because they've modified themselves in such a way that it's a little reminiscent of Frankenstein," Jolley told The Continuum. "When I first started thinking about what would make a good Sabretooth story, I realized that I needed to pit Creed -- who is an unalloyed bastard through and through -- against an enemy who's even tougher and meaner than he is. So I designed this group of antagonists to give him a genuine run for his money.

"In this story we get a serious look at Victor Creed's character, his real personality; we find out what kind of music he listens to, what kind of car he prefers to drive, what he likes to eat for dinner, even what career he considered other than what he's doing now. We also get a glimpse of the kind of relationships he's had in the past, as well as in the present, since in part it's kind of a beauty-and-the-beast tale. At the same time, though, this has turned out to be one of the most gut-wrenchingly violent stories I've ever read, and by far the harshest one I've ever written. The entire thing takes place in about nine hours on a Tuesday night, and it never lets up.

"There are no costumes in this book, no code-names used -- he's simply referred to as Creed throughout -- and Wolverine is never even mentioned."

The mini-series is Jolley's first X-project and his first completely solo gig for Marvel.

Pencils and inks on "Mary Shelley Overdrive" are by newcomer Greg Scott. The colors and the painted covers are handled by Jolley's colleagues in Jolly Roger Studio, JD Mettler and Tony Harris, respectively.

"They're all doing gorgeous work, and I can't begin to tell you how pleased I am at how this is coming together," Jolley said.

RALF MOELLER IN MUTANT X

Ralf Moeller, who starred in the Conan the Adventurer television series, will be a guest-star in the next new episode of Mutant X airing the week of Jan. 14.

In "Dark Star Rising," Moeller plays Beau, one of the last members of Dark Star, an international anti-terrorist unit. The members of Mutant X struggle to help them against a plot by the GSA.

Shalimar, played by Victoria Pratt, also plays a key role in the episode.

Moeller, who has also spelled his first name Ralph, played a guard - along with Minnesota Gov. Jesse Ventura - in Batman and Robin. He also appeared in Gladiator will also be seen in this year's The Scorpion King.

The episode also guest-stars Annie Openshaw, Lee Rumohr and Andrew Gillies. "Dark Star Rising" was written by Phil Lazebnik and directed by John Cassar.

Look for more on "Dark Star Rising" and Mutant X soon here in The Continuum.

TRANSFORMERS #1 COVERS

Dreamwave Productions has provided The Continuum with the four covers to Transformers: G1 #1, which launches in April.

The covers include, clockwise from upper left, Autobots, Decepticons and a Special Incentive by Pat Lee and Holofoil by James Raiz, who is the artist of the ongoing series set for later this year.

Dreamwave will be breaking away from Image Comics in March and all of its Transformer books will be self-published.

GIVE'EM A CLICK

BATMAN 10 CENT ADVENTURE TOP JANUARY COMIC

The Batman 10 Cent Adventure was the top-ordered comic book for January for the Direct Market, according to numbers released on Wednesday by Diamond Distributors.

Origin #6 placed second, followed by The Dark Knight Strikes Again #2, The Ultimates #1, New X-Men #122, Moment of Silence, Uncanny X-Men #402, Ultimate X-Men #14, Amazing Spider-Man #39 and Ultimate Spider-Man #17.

Marvel Comics led in all products - dollar share and comics, magazines and graphic novels - dollar share. DC led in comics, magazines and graphic novels - unit share.

For the top 100 books, CLICK HERE.

BRIEFLY