Saturday, March 9, 2002

MARVEL/MAX UPDATE

Marvel Comics on Friday announced plans and released images from the rest of the year from its MAX imprint.

"Not only are the books coming together great -- but they really cover a lot of different genres," said editor Stuart Moore. "We've got crime, horror, western, martial arts action, science fiction, satire, and more. There's something for everybody here."

Following is a rundown of some of Marvel's plans:

* Blade: The ongoing monthly, by written Christopher Hinz and artists Steve Pugh, premieres on March 13. Marvel has released the cover to Blade #4 by series cover artist Tim Bradstreet.

* Black Widow: A mini-series set in present-day Russia, Black Widow: Pale Little Spider is by Greg Rucka and Igor Kordey, with cover by Greg Horn. "This one's going to surprise a lot of people," Moore said. "It's very disturbing."

* The Hood: The six-issue mini-series launches in May. It is written by Brian K. Vaughan, with art by Kyle Hotz. "This is the underbelly of the Marvel Universe, seen through a haze of smoke and covered in a patina of blood," editor Tom Brevoort said. "It's at once dark, morbidly funny, unashamedly violent, and unquestionably real. Our lead character, Parker Robbins, is an amoral sociopath -- and we're going to make you love him."

* Apache Skies: By John Ostrander and Leonardo Manco, it premiere in July.

"Leo's fully painting this series, which really conveys the flavor of the Old West in a palpable manner. He's really taken his artwork to a whole new level," Brevoort said.

"Plus, John and I get to use all of the twisted, violent material we were forced to soft-pedal in Blaze of Glory -- which itself is conveniently available as a trade paperback the same month."

* Deathlok: Editor Axel Alonso describes the summer limited series as "a sci-fi black comedy." It is written by Daniel Way, with art by Darick Robertson.

"If you hated Fury, you're really gonna hate Deathlok," Alonso said. "Think Waterworld -- only there is no the water and there is a plot."

* Master of Kung Fu" Also this Summer the long-awaited Master of Kung Fu reaches stores, by the creative team of Doug Moench and Paul Gulacy.

"MOKF fans -- myself included -- are a near-fanatical lot," Alonso said. "So who better to revamp Shang-Chi than the creative team who made it great in the first place?"

* Alias: A new storyline starts in Alias #11 and #12, which both ship in July.

* Howard the Duck: Marvel has released the cover to #3 of the mini-series. "I had to release this cover to Howard #3 as soon as it came in," Moore said. "It's just soooo wrong. And the book itself is twice as disturbing."

DWAYNE MCDUFFIE TALKS JUSTICE LEAGUE

Dwayne McDuffie, who has written several episodes of Static Shock, has his first Justice League episode on Cartoon Network on Sunday.

McDuffie wrote both parts of "The Brave and the Bold," which spotlights Flash and Green Lantern.

The Continuum caught up with McDuffie to talk about his Justice League work.

The Continuum: How did you get the gig?

McDuffie: A cold call from Justice League producer Rich Fogel. I'm told that Static Shock producer Alan Burnett had put in the good word for me. Rich told me about a story Paul Dini and he had worked up and asked if I would be willing to give it a try. I assumed this was a rhetorical question and immediately began writing. Originally, Paul Dini was supposed to script the two-parter but an injury prevented him from doing so. I have a perfect alibi for my whereabouts when Paul was injured. My lawyer says that I cannot stress this enough.

The Continuum: What can you say about the story?

McDuffie: Not much, I'd rather viewers were surprised, so I'll just tell you what's already out there. Flash and Green Lantern team up to stop Gorilla Grodd's incredible plot to...

Right. I can't tell you. How about this? Look out for the cool tribute to classic Flash comic book covers somewhere in this episode.

The Continuum: What do you like about Justice League's Flash? Green Lantern?

McDuffie: Flash is pure Id. As such, he's a pleasure to write. He reacts without thought or tact filter so he gets almost all of the good lines. On the other hand, Green Lantern is much more the traditional, no-nonsense hero. As much fun as they both are to write as individuals, when you put them together, magical things happen. Flash constantly rubs GL the wrong way but despite himself, GL likes him. And wonder of wonders, they make an effective team.

The Continuum: Any more episodes from you?

McDuffie: I did part one of "Fury." Flash and Green Lantern work together in this episode too, although that's not the point of the show. I also did part two of "Metamorphoses," which features a team-up with an obscure DC hero (Metamorpho) who is a personal favorite of mine.

SMALLVILLE UPDATE

The Tuesday, March 26 episode of Smallville on The WB will be a repeat of "Metamorphosis."

Here's how the network describes the episode:

"Clark (Tom Welling) discovers that a fellow high school student (guest star Chad E. Donella) has taken on the 'eat, molt, mate, die' life cycle of an insect with Lana (Kristin Kreuk) as his prey, and Clark must rush to save her without revealing his superpowers. Meanwhile, Lex (Michael Rosenbaum) holds Lana's kryptonite necklace in his possession and ponders what to make of the strange stone."

"Metamorphosis" was the second episode of the season.

In other Smallville news, Kids' WB! has released an image of Smallville stars Allison Mack and Sam Jones III from their guest stint on today's episode of The Nightmare Room.

FIRST LOOK: HUNTER: THE AGE OF MAGIC #9

Hunter: The Age of Magic #9 will arrive in stores on Wednesday from DC Comics. The issue is written by Dylan Horrocks, with art by Richard Case and Steve Bird and a painted cover by Jon Foster.

Here's how DC describes the issue, which is part two of the four-part "The Evil Gene" story:

"Everyone wants something from Tim Hunter. Dr. Tolstoy, collector of antiquities, wants Tim to go back in time and find out what Dr. John Dee was doing with an angel. Dr. Fabien, genetic experimenter, wants to find out if Tim's genes are good or evil. And Eden, the pretty shopgirl? She just wants Tim, and can't figure out why.

32 pages, $2.50, in stores on March 13.

GIVE'EM A CLICK

FIRST LOOK: TRANSMETROPOLITAN #54

Transmetropolitan #54 will arrive in stores on Wednesday from DC Comics. The issue is written by Warren Ellis; art by Darick Robertson and Rodney Ramos; cover by Glenn Fabry.

Here's how DC describes the issue, which is part three of the three-part "The Cure" story arc:

"Spider and the Filthy Assistants are sheltering the most dangerous person in The City: the last surviving eyewitness and participant in the President's use of prostitutes - therefore the last link between him and a wave of assassinations. If they can get her story out, she might live and the President might be politically dead. But he still holds emergency powers over the City."

Transmetropolitan #54 will be 32 pages and will cost $2.50.

GIVE'EM A CLICK

BRIEFLY