Cover art by Richard Ortiz
Jughead Jones and the South Side Serpents biker gang are roaring into their own solo comic book this January from Archie Comics. The special one-shot issue -- inspired by the hit CW series Riverdale -- comes from writer David Barnett with art by Richard Ortiz, Matt Herms, and Jack Morelli and follows Jughead on a dangerous solo mission to revive the Serpents for his father.

"Focusing on the South Side Serpents gave me a chance to bring in the darkness and edginess of Riverdale but blend that with a little fun, as well," David Barnett said. "I hope fans of the show and fans of the comics will both be able to get a lot out of the story, which features some familiar faces including Jughead, FP Jones, and Toni Topaz. . . . I got to throw all my Kerouackian road trip fantasies in with Hunter S. Thompson’s Hell’s Angels, and add a very healthy dollop of one of my favorite movies, The Warriors."

Richard Ortiz set the tone for what we can expect from the book, visually: "My personal Archie-style coordinates are Jaime Hernandez and Fiona Staples. I'm a big fan of Twin Peaks, which is in the DNA of the Riverdale series, and classic Archie with its suburban Americana aesthetic that is in the core of the David Lynch series. So I had this full circle of inspirations and links to work with, and have lots of fun."

"I've known David and Richard a long time and have wanted to work with both of them," said Archie Comics Co-President Alex Segura. "David's a pro -- a journalist who's written some great comics. Richard has a clean, memorable line and is an editor's dream. So, when we knew we wanted to spotlight the South Side Serpents corner of the Riverdale universe, it made sense to pair them together. The end result is a dark, compelling, and unique take on some of fans' favorite characters -- plus plenty of surprises."

JOIN OUR COMMUNITY
UDON has also rolled out select fan favorites to udonpins.com and will continue to add brand new products on a regular basis! The best way to stay up to date is to join the UDON Pins Official Facebook Group!  Exclusive news and previews will be announced first in the group so join today to get the latest details on your favorite pin properties!  

JOIN NOW! 

ABOUT UDON ENTERTAINMENT
UDON Entertainment is a publisher of original and translated art books, graphic novels, and manga. The publisher’s best-known projects are those based on popular video game franchises, including Street Fighter, Mega Man, Monster Hunter, Dark Souls, Persona, Bayonetta, Bloodborne, and many more. UDON also publishes books based on top anime properties including Neon Genesis Evangelion, Kill la Kill, FLCL, Yu-Gi-Oh! and Robotech.

Kidrobot x NYCC 2020 ExclusivesDrops at Kidrobot.comWe won't be seeing all your cosplay in NYC this year... but that doesn't mean the Kidrobot x NYCC fun is canceled! Kidrobot is bringing the New York Comic Con Exclusives to you with the Kidrobot x NYCC 2020 Virtual Con only on Kidrobot.com.
Kidrobot is giving you the chance to secure the exclusives from the comfort of your home! Thursday, October 8th at 10am MST, Kidrobot will release the Kidrobot x NYCC 2020 Comic Con Exclusives on Kidrobot.com. First to complete check out get them and once they sell out, they're gone for good.

Kidrobot x NYCC Virtual Con
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Looming Autumn Blues?
Not in the Mad Cave!
Pantomime #1 (Nov. 4)
(W) Christopher Sebela (A) David Stoll (C) Dearbhla Kelly 

Oct. 8th, 2020 (EUGENE, OR) — Mad Cave Studios has two very exciting two new titles coming your way! From Chris Sebela (Crowded) and David Stoll (Metaphorical HER), comes Pantomime #1, as well as the highly-anticipated Terminal Punks #1 from Matthew Erman (Power Rangers, Dark Crystal) and The Nib artist ​Shelby Criswell!


In Pantomime, Haley and her brother Max are all alone after their mother’s death and a fresh start at Wayfair Academy, a special needs boarding school, isn’t what she expected. Normally, Haley would withdraw back into herself, but when she finds a family with other deaf kids, she embraces her new life and begins to come out of her shell. Until one night where the group dips their toes into crime, and the thrill is too much to leave behind. Though they soon find out by stealing from the wrong person, that this world isn’t for kids. With no one to turn to but each other, they will have to make a choice, one where no one will come out the same on the other side.

Dark creatures from a world beyond our own have us locked in a crisis of infinite sequels. 

This is the story of how we escape.

After the stunning success of Fearscape, comes A Dark Interlude, the story of-- "No! The only offence to literature greater than the loathsome synopsis is the sequel. I will not stand idle while some internet marketer mangles and confuses my story, which is intact, perfect, and concluded, with this derivative drivel. Mark my words, this nonsense has nothing to do with my tale. I am not in it. I do not condone it. And you, dear reader, should not buy it!"

Forgive the interruption. That was our narrator, Henry Henry. A Dark Interlude is a stand-alone sequel to 2018's sellout metafictional dark fantasy comic series Fearscape. The only problem is...the narrator is in denial about it being a sequel, and the entire plot of the book is that endless sequels are keeping humanity stagnant and unable to grow.

In A Dark Interlude, we follow Henry Henry, The Muse, The Hero With a Thousand Faces, and a bevy of supernatural beings as they try to help humanity escape this "sequel crisis" before it destroys not only our world, but the supernatural world beyond it, too.

A Dark Interlude is perfect for fans of old school supernatural Vertigo writers such as Alan Moore, Neil Gaiman, or Grant Morrison. The elevator pitch I am contractually obligated to include is: "It's Sandman meets Breaking Bad". (But I will deny ever having typed this.)

CREDITS
Writing: Ryan O'Sullivan
Cover: Ariela Kristantina
Pencils/Inks: Andrea Mutti
Colours: Vladimir Popov
Lettering: Deron Bennet
Publisher: Vault Comics
Price: $3.99
Pages: 32
Issues: Collects #1 (of 5)

Similar Titles: Sandman, Swamp Thing, The Unwritten, Pale Fire, Ulysses

DIAMOND CODE
Cover A (Ariela Kristantina) - SEP201542
Cover B (Nathan Gooden) - SEP201543
Cover C (Rebekah Isaacs) - SEP201544

PRAISE* FOR THE FEARSCAPE SERIES

"I liked it so much I called James Tynion Right after I finished it. I genuinely love it. It’s hard to find something this fresh and visionary."
-Scott Snyder

"I’m in awe of the way O’Sullivan has transformed his fear into a masterpiece of comic literature. From Moore to Gaiman, O’Sullivan channels some of the greatest comic writers of all time."
-Comicbooked.com

""Fearscape was one of the best minis of last year. The team back together is a huge deal. Get ready."
-Kieron Gillen

"A nigh-perfect debut, a unique comic that pushes the boundaries of sequential graphic storytelling. One part killer creator-owned comic, one part famous literary short story, and 100 percent not to be missed. 10/10"
-Batman's Book Case

"Ryan manages to simultaneously make me adore and seethe at this book. Impressively inventive with its formalist leanings and meta-fictional narrative. The real joy of this book is its intensely detestable and yet addictive protagonist. Read it!"
-Ram V

"A comic you need to pick up. Henry Henry is a character that you will love yet despise. But it’s characters like these that give us more humanized experiences. Ryan O’Sullivan is a masterful storyteller,"
-Comicsverse

"Fearscape was one of the best comics of the last few years, and the team behind that are about to do it again."
-Dan Watters

"A blend of Sandman, highbrow literary satire, and an unreliable narrator. It’s hilarious, clever, and intriguing. If you’re a fan of reading, no matter the genre, or the medium, this is a story you can appreciate. 10/10"
-Black Nerd Problems

"I was sold from Page One; a gut punch from the outset but also tapping into things that have been on my mind for a long time. Bold, true comics right here!"
-Steve Orlando 

"A particularly cruel and unimaginative[ly] derivative work."
-The AV Club

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I hope you’re ready for some post-apocalyptic comedy for the middle grade set, because that’s exactly what you’re about to find in SOFTIES, the intergalactic new Iron Circus graphic novel from cartoonist Kyle Smeallie!  

After Earth blows up, its sole survivor is Kay, a precocious kid who's floating in space before her rescue by trash haulers: the sweet-natured, hard-working alien Arizona and his well-read space pet Euclid. (Well, “alien,” as Arizona points out, is quite a subjective term.) This new power trio is about to embark on some hilarious unpredictable adventures through the furthest reaches of inhabited space.

Somewhat of a Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy for kids, SOFTIES is a series of action-packed vignettes that never skimp on the core that drives it — rootless wanderers searching for a concept called “home.” While ripping through page after page of expertly done visual comedy, you start to get a sense of the story Smeallie is telling, with Kay slowly coming to the realisation everyone around her seems to have arrived at first: she’s all alone in the universe now, and whatever life comes next is up to her to create. 

Packed with fun new words to look up (Euclid piles it on thick sometimes!) and interesting new concepts to puzzle over, SOFTIES is the next read for any adventure-seeking, sci-fi-loving kid. 

Hey, it's us...Bad Idea!

Yes, we survived The Button. Then, we deployed THE HERO TRADE into unsuspecting comic shops around the world. And of course, we and our fans came together to form a Voltron of greatness, clicked a billion clicks, and much rejoicing followed. 

But all of these feats are mere prelude to what happens next – because, in 2021, Bad Idea finally does what we've been threatening to do all along: Actually publish comics!

At long last, our runaway train of comics anticipation hits a hairpin turn this March as New York Times best-selling writer Matt Kindt (Mind MGMT) and incendiary artist Doug Braithwaite (Justice) take point at the helm of Bad Idea's long-awaited, much-anticipated, dizzy spell-inducing debut series in ENIAC #1!

Impressive, eh? Now that you're all buttered up, Bad Idea is pleased to reveal an extended, 10-page look inside our must-read milestone-in-the making. Seriously though: Please make sure you are sitting down – we wouldn't want anyone to pass out and fall on a family member or beloved pet in the process.
 
At the height of World War II, the world's most ingenious minds began a race to create a super-weapon capable of ending the war with the push of a button. One of those projects gave us the atom bomb...and another produced the world's first supercomputer: ENIAC (Electronic Numerical Integrator and Computer) – an immeasurably complex mathematical model that targeted the Axis war machine by calculating missile trajectories and troop deployments.

Everybody knows that. It's real-life American history.

Or so we were told.

On August 6th, 1945, the United States dropped the nuclear bomb on Hiroshima.

Three days later, a second bomb was dropped on Nagasaki... Only President Truman wasn't the one who gave order.

It was ENIAC.

In the Allies' determination to end the war, they had accidentally created the world's first autonomous machine intelligence...which had quickly deduced that one bomb wouldn't be enough.

But ENIAC's real plan was only just beginning...

Now, 75 years later, an encrypted countdown has just been detected in Earth's satellite network and mankind only has three days left before ENIAC launches every weapon in the planet's nuclear arsenal simultaneously. With few options and even less time, the Secretary of Defense has just given two covert operatives the most important mission in human history: kill ENIAC.
 
Featuring an all-new cover by artistic juggernaut Lewis LaRosa (Punisher MAX) and practically bursting out of its comic book-sized muscle tee with more than 40 pages of content (including a top-secret, standalone bonus story that we can't even talk about yet), prepare to hear an awful lot about ENIAC's high-caliber sci-fi thrillride as March 2021 draws closer. And that's not all – in the wake of ENIAC's steamrolling debut, Bad Idea will be following it up with even more right hooks throughout the spring and summer:
​

 
March 2021
ENIAC #1 (of 4)
Matt Kindt (writer) ** Doug Braithwaite (art) ** Diego Rodriguez (colors) ** Lewis LaRosa with Laura Martin (cover)

April 2021
TANKERS #1 (of 3)
Robert Venditti (writer) ** Juan Jose Ryp (art/cover) ** Jordie Bellaire (colors)

May 2021
WHALESVILLE #1
Matt Kindt (writer) ** Adam Pollina (art/cover) ** Matt Hollingsworth (colors)

July 2021:
THE LOT #1 (of 4)
Marguerite Bennett (writer) ** Renato Guedes (art/cover)

July 2021
SLAY BELLS #1
Zeb Wells (writer) ** David Lafuente (art/cover) ** Ulises Arreola (colors)
So you've made it to the bottom of the press release and you're probably asking yourself: "What the hell is Bad Idea, anyway?" Close the door and sit down, because this is where it gets interesting.

Bad Idea is a dangerously unruly, equally experimental, and audaciously entertaining new comics publisher built to service just one wild idea: Monthly comics, sold exclusively in comic books stores. No digital releases. No trade paperbacks or hardcovers. And no variant covers, either. Just super-high quality comics storytelling published in a deluxe, prestige format package that will always leave you wanting more – because we'll never publish more than two in a given month.

No, no, you didn't accidentally eat paint chips and start hallucinating. Or maybe you did? It's not for us to judge. Either way, if you want to pick one of Bad Idea's egregiously awesome new series, you simply have to visit a Bad Idea "destination store" – one of the 100 and counting comic shops around the world that have signed on to join our independent network of direct-distribution retail partners – to pick them up on a Wednesday. (Or pre-order in advance to make sure you secure your copy.)

The 88-page harrowing tale in vegan leather with embossed design and gold trim. It's an exact match of The Kill Journal St. George keeps in the story!The bone-crushing tale in leather-bound splendor and a movie-quality replica of the mask worn by the most frightening Revenant of all. Perfect for Halloween!
​

Failed Superheroes Club 
​is a graphic novel, board game, and toy publishing and development company. They launched early 2020 with their first graphic novel, The Eighth, and followed it up with co-creating The Escape the Night Board Game, which had tremendous success on Kickstarter. The co-founders, Adam Lawson and Ari Weiner, come from the world of Television & Film. Their series credits include Escape the Night, Wil Wheaton's TableTop, Spellslingers, Sagas of Sundry, and many more. ​