Image Expo 2014 Liveblog

We’ll be liveblogging all the breaking news here throughout the presentation and then rounding up with some interviews and in-depth coverage after the fact.

As long as you see the little Updating…below, we’re still updating.

Image Comics Publisher Eric Stephenson opened up the presentation with an indictment of the state of the comics industry, mocking the recent changes to Thor and Captain America as well as the death of Archie Andrews and more, before promising that he wants to talk about the future.

He said that looking at a group of students studying at the CCA MFA program, he was filled with hope — which is important to comics. He said that Lee, Ditko and Kirby managed to change comics by making comics their own way.

“Thanks to the ingenuity of only a handful of men, this dying art form was given a new lease on life,” Stephenson said.

He said that one question he was asked at the CCA was how to generate more diversity in comics. He said that diversity is coming, particularly becuase the industry is creating a more diverse product line that appeals to more than just the same old readers.

“If we want to build a more diverse industry, then it is of utmost importance that we create comics that appeal to as wide an audience as possible,” he said. “The men and women working in comics today are only doing so because they grew up loving this medium and desperately wanted to be a part of it.”

Change, he said, is also key to the future of comics, and down is the direction you go if you stand still for too long. He said that Image’s policy is “move forward,” and shared diagrams that indicate Image Comics is wildly outperforming industrywide trends.

He then screened a video of a number of Image Comics creators describing the virtues of the company, including Brian K. Vaughan, Erik Larsen, Kelly Sue DeConnick and Robert Kirkman, followed by a history lesson on the company.

Stephenson returned to the podium to talk about his infamous ComicsPro speech, saying that he says the things he says becuase he thinks the future of comics is worth fighting for.

“I will not back down from my position that comic books will always be more than mere marketing material for movies, toys and video games,” Stephenson said, adding that no matter how good licensed comics are, they aren’t the future of comics.

He took aim at “creator-driven” comics by Marvel and DC, too, saying that he believes in the need for creator ownership. He said that creator-owned is not a term coined for consumers; that it matters to those writing and drawing comics.

“Comic book creators actually do know the difference between getting a good deal and getting the s–t end of the stick,” Stephenson said.

Stephenson then introduced Rick Remender, creator or Black Science, Deadly Class and Low. Remender, who had been featured in the PR video, will launch a fourth Image title.

“I sit in my man cave and I type endlessly,” Remender said. “I’ve been in comics twenty years and the opportunities afforded me now are too good to pass up.”

His next project will be titled Tokyo Ghost with art by Sean Murphy and Matt Hollandworth

“Sean is one of the most talented artists in comic books if not the entire world,” said Remender. He said that they’re playing with ideas like Judge Dredd and Lobo, but that they were withholding a lot of details at first.

“It’s a lot of incredible violence and gore and things that I haven’t been able to dig into entirely,” Remender deadpanned, saying that it’s tongue in cheek and done in the context of social commentary.

The title will launch in 2015.

Next, Stephenson introduced Marian Churchland, Claire Gibson and Sloane Long, who will draw a new series set in the world Brandon Graham’s 8House horror universe.

Titled From Under Mountains, the title will be connected to the other 8House stories — but the creative team aren’t ready to reveal how just yet. 

The title is a fantasy story that takes place in an isolated, mountainous country. It will feature a number of characters struggling for political and mystical power.

From Under Mountains will also debut in Spring 2015.

Next, Stephenson introduced Man of Action’s Joe Casey, who has worked on Godland and Butcher Baker at the publisher in the past. His next Image title will be with artist Paul Maybury, titled Valhalla Mad.

Norse gods come to earth to drink and have fun, but find a world that’s very different than they remember it and things go awry.

“I love Thor,” Casey said. “This is our chance to do Thor–“

“–Without turning him into a woman?” Stephenson said.

“These guys keep their penises through the entire series,” Casey promised.

The festivities begin in early 2015, and turned to Kirby for inspiration, copying “the language” of Kirby’s old Thor work.

Asking “Do you guys like Hellboy? Do you like BPRD?” Stephenson announced a new title coming in December from John Arcudi and James Harren. Titled Rumble, Arcudi described it as “a scarecrow Conan fighting in a world that’s like the Louie TV show if it was directed by David Fincher.”

Ray Fawkes joined Stephenson next to announce Intersect, his new book coming in the fall from Image.

“It’s a very complicated nightmare murder mystery horror story,” he said, “It’s as if all of Twin Peaks happened in the Black Lodge.” 

Fawkes will write and paint the book, which will be a story of horror and transformation.

Intersect is the first of a couple of books Fawkes will do for Image, launching in November.

Next, he brought out Tom Neely and Keenan Marshall Keller, the creators of The Humans, which will launch from Image after being conceived as a self-published title.

“We had planned on self-publishing it, then luckily [CBLDF head Charles] Brownstein mentioned it to [Image,]” Neely said.

THe book has a 24-page, black-and-white zero issue available at Comic Con.

Next, he brought Gabriel Hardman and Corinna Bechko to the stage. The pair, who had done Heathentown, will bring Hardman’s Monkeybrain title Kinski to Image. The quirky crime drama follows a man who steals a puppy and brings terrible consequences down on it.

He’ll also do a political sci-fi title called Invisible Republic, which you can learn more about in our exclusive interview with the creative team in just a few minutes.

“It’s a big story, it’s an epic story but it’s a huge passion project for us,” Hardman said. “It’s something we’ve been dying to do together.”

The series will launch in Spring 2015.

Next, Stephenson introduced Becky Cloonan and her collaborator Andy Belanger, who will develop a new title for the publisher together. They’ve got a sci-fi book in the works called Southern Cross, a horror/sci-fi mystery.

THe lead character heads to Saturn’s moon Titan to recover her sister’s body.

“I’ve got my writing to a point where I”m really comfortable with it,” Cloonan said. “This is an extension of what I”ve been doing with my mini-comics but of course with Andy drawing it, it has a totally different feel.”

They’re shooting for a December release.

Next, Stephenson introduced Jeff Lemire, who apparently had pitched Essex County to Image before it headed to Top Shelf. Lemire, now, will be doing an Image book finally and drawn by Dustin Nguyen.

Called Descender, the title follows “the most wanted robot in the universe,” and is a story of survival. It’s expected along in 2015.

Drawn by Nguyen, Lemire anticipates occasionally pitching in on art as well.

Next, Stephenson brought out Ivan Brandon, who will bring a new series with Nic Klein (his collaborator from Viking and the new Captain America) titled Drifter. It revolves around the idea that eventually we’ll expend the Earth and eventually we’ll have to move to other worlds — “Drifter is sort of about the dirty hands that it takes to build the future,” Brandon said.

“We’re telling the story about what happens when you de-couple humanity from this very very rigid and prepared world where we have access to everything and infinite information and limited edition sneakers and move those people instead to a strange red desert on a planet with twin suns.”

Next up, Stephenson introduced superstar writer Kurt Busiek, who will launch a book he’s been discussing with Image for a couple of years.

“Despite the fact that this is a series idea I came up with probably ten or more years ago, he was born to draw this,” said Busiek of series artist Ben Dewey.

The book, which will launch in November, will be titled Tooth & Clawl and is a sprawling, high-fantasy adventure epic about animal people. A preview book will be available at the booth during Comic Con.

Regarding comparisons to Kamandi, Busiek said that there are two ways to do that character: “The way Jack Kirby did it — or, not good enough becuase you’re not Jack Kirby…or you can do it differenly than Jack Kirby, which is to say wrong.”

He compared the title to Jack Vance, Conan, Terry and the Pirates and more. Here, the animal people in their title have to challenge the gods themselves and find out what made the world the way it is.

“There’s a thematic underpinning to the series about what is animalistic and what is civilized and how do you tell teh difference between the two,” said Busiek.

The final announcement of the presentation was Declan Shalvey’s new title with writer Warren Ellis, who joined the panel by Skype. They’ll bring Injection to the publisher with colorist Jordie Bellaire. 

“I think of it as an adventure into the possibilities of the present moment,” Ellis said. “We all talk about how loud and strange the world is getting, but for some people it’s never enough….So imagine five people for whom the world was not getting loud enough and strange enough for them.”

Ellis said that they were always only going to do six issues of Moon Knight but it was only about halfway into the first issue that the pair decided they would work together on a new title for Image.

Stephenson brought Tula Lotay, Ellis’s Supreme: Blue Rose artist, to the stage (the first issue is out today) to talk about the pair’s drinking habits and the San Diego variant for the issue.