Wednesday, March 6, 2002

BLADE 2 UPDATE

Blade 2 - which forms Blade to team with the vampires - will take viewers deeper into the Vampire sub-culture, writer David Goyer told The Continuum.

"It also pushes the boundaries in terms of what the Vampires are capable of," Goyer said. "This film has more action, more humor -- but it also has a whole level of suspense and tragedy that was missing from the first film."

Blade 2, due in theaters on March 22, is going to be rated R, just like the first film.

"In a way, it's easier working on the second-tier Marvel characters as a movie like Blade or Ghost Rider than it is Spider-Man or Fantastic Four or something like that," Goyer said. "You can certainly go darker."

In other Blade 2 news:

* Snipes will appear on NBC's Late Night with Conan O'Brien on Thursday, March 14.

* Kris Kristofferson, who returns as Whistler, said there is at least one part of his character with which he can identify. "Abraham Whistler is compelled to kill vampires because they massacred his wife and children," Kristofferson said. "I have a large family of my own, and it's the most important part of my life. So, it was easy for me to identify with Whistler's anguish and his urge for vengeance."

JEREMIAH EPISODES

Showtime has released synopses of upcoming episodes of its new series Jeremiah.

The March 15 episode will be "Man of Iron, Woman Under Glass."

Here's how Showtime describes the episode:

"As Jeremiah and Kurdy deal with a youngster who's assumed the identity of a superhero, Markus keeps a surprising secret: he's in love with a woman who survived exposure to the Big Death virus by remaining sealed in a isolation chamber."

The March 22 episode will be "And the Ground â¤| Sown with Salt."

Here's how Showtime describes the episode:

"Jeremiah and Kurdy come up against Michael, a man who has proclaimed himself a god and plans to take over the entire nation, beginning with the End of the World."

DC TO COLLECT SKREEMER

Skreemer, a six-issue mini-series published by DC Comics in 1989, will see new life later this year in a collected edition from Vertigo.

The mini-series, written by Peter Milligan, with art by Brett Ewins and Steve Dillon, originally was published as a mature readers, DC Comics title. Its post-apocalyptic, crime-riddled plot prefigured some of the central themes explored in the Vertigo line.

"Skreemer was ahead of its time," saod Karen Berger, VP - Executive Editor, Vertigo. "It was one of the first creator-owned projects DC published, and it's one we've always wanted to collect. With Peter's popularity increasing, thanks to his work on X-Force and the excitement around the new Human Target graphic novel, this seemed like the best possible time to publish it. We're thrilled to be collecting this Eagle-award winning series."

Berger described the project as "The Sopranos meets Finnegan's Wake." The series tells the story of Veto Skreemer, a ruthless but haunted gangster who rules a distopian America in the time that is known only as the "Era of the Gangs."

SHI - THE ILLUSTRATED WARRIOR

Although Avatar Press is publishing Shi comics, Shi product will also be coming from Billy Tucci's Crusade Fine Arts.

Shi - The Illustrated Warrior #1, is the vanguard edition of seven monthly issues by Shi creator Tucci and author Craig Shaw Gardner.

Warrior is based on the legendary Way of the Warrior story arc but with an added twist that forever alters the Shi universe.

Focusing on Ana's tortured past, first battles and her quest for vengeance Warrior goes to great lengths to "bring about the most thorough and thought-provoking Shi series ever", Tucci said.

The seven issues will ultimately be collected in hardcover format in December.

Crusade is also printing an Illustrated Warrior 22-inch by 36-inch poster by Tucci and colorist Jay Fitzpatrick. Printed on heavy 10 cardstock, this poster depicts Shie interwoven with a full array of classic Way of the Warrior history.

The premiere 32-page Shi - The Illustrated Warrior black and white comic and color poster ship June from Crusade Fine Arts and are priced $2.99 and $9.99 respectively.

"It's going to be a wonderfully busy year now that Crusade's got more books and products coming out in 2002 than we've had in the past three years," Tucci said. "Shi's back with a vengeance, and with The Illustrated Warrior, better than ever!"

DUNGEONS & DRAGONS: BLACK & WHITE

Dungeons & Dragons: Black & White, a six-issue mini-series written by Jeff Limke and drawn by Gregg Paulsen is set for a July launch from Kenzer & Company.

Dungeons & Dragons: Black & White is set in the D&D world of Greyhawk, but done in black and white art rather than in color as they have previously done with the other Dungeons and Dragons titles.

"The story is meant to be a little less cut and dried," Limke said. "The good guys and the bad guys are more difficult to separate in this one, so for a shades of gray story, black and white art."

The story deals with a theft gone wrong that attracts the attention of some politically powerful people. The result is a tale in which it's difficult to be sure whom the heroine should trust.

"I'm hoping that it will have the reader's second-guessing from the get-go," Limke said. "When you're on the run, it's important you know where you're going and whom you're running from. Tinélith, the protagonist, has managed to rob the person and take something she shouldn't have. The antagonists don't want it back, though. Instead, they've got a better plan involving Tinélith that implicates her and keeps them in the clear. It's one of those circles within circles plots that make thrillers so much fun. I've tried to play with the themes of friendship and trust throughout the series in such a way that no one is sure what's going on until the end, when all the pieces come together."

Limke, who has previously written mainly Arthurian comics, said he enjoys the opportunity to move outside that sub-genre.

"It's still fantasy, but I'm not as constrained. It may not seem like much of move to some folks, but it is to me," Limke said. "It's been a lot fun to basically go wild within this universe."

CLAYPOOL COMICS FOR JUNE

Following are Claypool Comics' solicitations for June, with information coming from the company.

ELVIRA #110

By Frank Strom, Dan Day, Louis Lachance, Janet Hetherington, John Heebink and Mike Manley.

When Elvira clashes with the Anti-Elvira Revenge League (led by the Duke of A.E.R.L.), it's no-holds-barred -- except for excessive violence and salty language, of course, since the battle's being overseen by the Citizens' Committee for Comic Book Decency. It's all in "Fright and Malice." Also, Elvira's mutiny on the booty takes a piratical turn, in "Elvira's Treasure Chest," part four of the "Tele-Castaways" serial.

32 pages, black and white, photo cover, $2.50

DEADBEATS #54

By Richard Howell and Ricardo Villagran, cover by Howell and Steve Leialoha.

Now that Southie's vampire paramour Brittany has returned to her human state, she now regards him as her captor and tormentor. Is it madness for her to torture him in return -- by flaunting her contempt and her new, other lovers -- or is it "True Britt?"

32 pages, black and white, $2.50.

BRIEFLY