Fans know Comixology as the digital storefront for all their favorite comics, but they don’t typically associate the brand with original content. ComiXology is changing all that with their newest initiative ComiXology Originals, which will launch with three distinctive and exclusive digital only titles.
“Our mission is to make everyone on the face of the planet a comic fan, and with comiXology Originals we’re excited to offer a range of content by diverse creators,” said comiXology co-founder and CEO David Steinberger. “It’s fantastic to be working with publishers across the spectrum to deliver great comics to comiXology and Kindle, offering fans stories that they can’t get anywhere else.”
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The first title launching with the new program is Adventure Time Marshall Lee Spectacular from BOOM! Studios, which will be a set of three stories featuring the fan favorite from Adventure Time, and each issue will feature a unique creative team. The first book will have writer Mariko Tamaki and artist Audrey Mok at the helm, while the following issues will feature writer Melanie Gillman and Trungles on art and writer S.M. Viduarri and artist Asia Kendrick-Horton.
The second title is Valiant High, courtesy of Valiant Entertainment, and features writer Daniel Kibblesmith and artist Derek Charm taking the most iconic of Valiant’s heroes and depicting their time before they were famous at their superpowered high school. The cast includes X-O Manowar, Ninjak, Bloodshot, and Faith, and the book will be a 4 issue miniseries.
The last title is not an ongoing or a miniseries, but an attempt to complete a would be classic. Harvey Kurtzman’s Marley’s Ghost will feature The New Yorker cartoonist Shannon Wheeler, artist Gideon Kendall, and editor Josh O’Neill, as they attempt to complete Kurtzman’s vision from the 1950’s. Kurtzman was working to adapt the Marley’s ghost portion of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol into its own story and he already had over 70 pages of breakdowns. Now the team of Wheeler, Kendall, and O’Neill will try and bring this project to completion in a 100+ page digital novel, which is aiming for a winter 2017 release.
“It’s humbling to kick off the comiXology Originals program with such a fantastic roster of creators like Mariko Tamaki, Derek Charm, Audrey Mok, Fabio Moon, Shannon Wheeler, Harvey Kurztman and so many others,” said Chip Mosher, comiXology’s Head of Content and Senior Director of Communications. “From a fun superhero romp with Valiant to BOOM!’s Adventure Time, to posthumously finishing Mad Magazine founder Harvey Kurtzman’s Marley’s Ghost – this is truly an embarrassment of riches.”
Adventure Time Marshall Lee Spectacular can be pre-ordered now, and will be $3.99. Valiant High is also up for pre-order and will also run $3.99. Harvey Kurtzman’s Marley’s Ghost can be pre-ordered as well, and will run fans $9.99. You can view the first art from the projects in the gallery.
