Image Comics

BEDLAM, the new Image Comics series by Nick Spencer (MORNING GLORIES, THIEF OF THIEVES) and Riley Rossmo (GREEN WAKE, DEBRIS), is set in a city that has been terrorized by a maniacal killer and crime boss called Madder Red.

The killer has been rehabilitated and has reclaimed his given name, Filmore Press, but the city of Bedlam is still soaked with the blood and madness he left in his wake.

"It's a scary world these characters live in. A desperate one. It's brutal what we put them through," says writer Spencer. "The shocks aren't confined to the last page, they're peppered throughout. There are a lot of 'shift in your seat uncomfortably' moments. You don't get Riley Rossmo to draw your book and not heap on the horror and violence."

Rossmo's art is in a moody wash of muted tones, with shocks of stark red.

"Bedlam's art is pulling a bit stylistically from my last three books," said Rossmo. "I'm trying for a cleaner line, lots of spotted blacks, and strong well-designed color palettes. The Film 'M' and David Mazzucchelli are big visual influences. I'm super-happy with the pages I've finished so far."

BEDLAM's first issue is to be released on Halloween, and the creative team anticipate that it will be the first of many.

"There's a long-form, big commitment story here, that we will hopefully tell for years to come," said Spencer. "It's like Morning Glories in that sense. The book's not going to be around a little while then vanish. The goal here is to build a mythology around a modern American metropolis, with Madder Red as our guide. It's exhilarating, starting down the path of something like this."

At 48 pages, BEDLAM #1 (AUG120461) is a double-sized introduction to a cityscape of murder, mayhem and mystery with a cover by Frazer Irving (Xombi). It is available for pre-order now.

One of Image Comics' founders, Whilce Portacio, returns to creator-owned world with the new series NON-HUMANS, penned by Glen Brunswick (GRAY AREA, JERSEY GODS), to be published by Image Comics in October.

An otherworldly disease brought back to Earth by a NASA space probe has given inanimate objects like toys, dolls, and mannequins the ability to come to life, able to walk, talk, and speak — and to think for themselves. A new minority class called "Non-Humans," the former objects take on part of the personalities of the people who used or even loved them.

"The toys are not only a new minority in our world, but because they come from us they are quite human--with all of the frailties, insecurities and desires we humans possess," said writer Brunswick. "And some of these creatures can be very dark--it's a world filled with toys that envy us, want to be more like us, and are willing to kill us if they can't get what they want. What could be better than that?"

The varied personalities of the Non-Humans was part of the appeal for comics veteran Portacio (ARTIFACTS, Incredible Hulk). NON-HUMANS is Portacio's first creator-owned comics since his original Wetworks series, published from first 1994 to 1996 and then relaunched in 2006.

"It's very exciting for me to get back on a creator-owned book," said Portacio. "It took a long time waiting for the right one to come along that would really fire my imagination. I have the same boundless enthusiasm for NON HUMANS that I had when Image Comics was first formed. I feel like there are no limits to what we can do with this story."

NON-HUMANS is a full-color ongoing series starting in October. Issue #1 (AUG120465) is available for pre-order from the August issue of Previews. A five-page preview of NON-HUMANS #1 appears in ELEPHANTMEN #42, which will be in stores on August 15.

Of the many mysteries in HAPPY!, the new series by Grant Morrison and Darick Robertson being launched by Image Comics in September, the little blue horse for whom the comic is named is one of the most closely-guarded. The wait will be over on September 26, when HAPPY! #1 lands in stores, and many readers will get their first glimpse of Happy courtesy of a special, secret variant cover by MADMAN creator Michael Allred, colored by Eisner Award winner Laura Allred.

But not before then.

"I have been a fan of Mike's for many years and, unbelievably, this is the first time we have had the opportunity to work together," said Morrison. "In his own inimitable style, he has mashed Happy the Horse with Hitchcock to amazing effect and I can't wait for everyone to see the spectacular result."

"I am honored and excited to have Mike and Laura Allred's art on the variant cover of Happy! #1!" said series artist and co-creator Robertson. "Mike's always been one of my favorite artists, and he really did us a solid by coming through with a classic Allred image. Laura's colors are great too! It's a real treat to see my designs interpreted through their artistic genius."

A Christmas story featuring a fallen cop, soulless sex, casual murder, agonizing skin conditions... and a tiny feathered horse, HAPPY! is Morrison and Robertson's first Image Comics series. The Allred variant cover of HAPPY! #1 (JUL128081) is available for pre-order now.

In September, Image Comics will bring the first volume of VALENTINE, Alex de Campi's acclaimed digital comic, to print as a 352-page trade paperback.

The year is 1812, and Valentine is one of the few soldiers left of Napoleon's once-mighty army felled by the Russian winter. Given a mysterious package by a dying general with orders to see it safely back to France, Valentine finds himself pursued through the snow by blood-eyed monsters who are intent on stopping him.

In an epic tale of war, love, and unexpected journeys, an unlikely hero discovers that fairy tales are true. Humans share the earth with other beings, trapped here while the world is drained of the magic that sustains them. They want only one thing: to return home. And their only way back is through Valentine.

"It's been an unbelievable amount of fun to write a cliffhangerrific supernatural thriller, with twist upon twist to keep readers on the edge of their seat," said the Eisner-nominated de Campi (Smoke). "I grew up reading fantasy and sci-fi novels, and suddenly finding myself elbow-deep in the fantasy toybox has been a delight. I've really enjoyed grabbing the beloved tropes and expectations of the genre and both respecting them and twisting/subverting them at the same time. If you think this is a historical thriller, for example, you are so, so wrong. The book is a wild ride."

VALENTINE was originally distributed digitally through comiXology, RobotComics, and Amazon's Kindle. With more than 350,000 downloads worldwide, the series is a pioneering work in the ever-growing digital comics market.

Of the book's success in the digital realm, de Campi commented, "In download form, this is a series which — despite being a very shonen-style male fight/action book — has had a huge appeal to women readers and to teens around the world."

Collecting the first ten chapters of the work, with full-color art by Christine Larsen and Tim Durning, a 42-page exclusive bonus story with art by Cassandra James, and a painted cover by Steven Belledin, VALENTINE, VOL. 1: THE ICE DEATH (JUL120391) will be in stores on September 5 and is available for order now.

Brandon Graham has been called "one of the great talents to emerge in the last ten years" by Warren Ellis. His stark, imaginative reboot of Rob Liefeld's PROPHET has garnered praise from all corners of the comic book world. PROPHET is drawn by a rotating cast of artists, but Graham got his start in comics drawing his own comic, the massive, pun-heavy KING CITY. Graham has returned to both the writing desk and the drawing table with MULTIPLE WARHEADS, a miniseries to be published by Image Comics in October.

Just as rife with wordplay and wild with futuristic details (Vat-grown radiation-sniffing squids! Self-heating root vegetables! Musical caffeine cigarettes! Organic, mobile palaces!) as the reader-beloved KING CITY, MULTIPLE WARHEADS is a project where Graham has let his mind wander the open road. At the same time, he keeps the lives of his characters, grounded with familiar sentiments and actions.

"I'm really interested in exploring a big fantasy Russia and letting myself wander off of the main path in a similar way to what I did in King City," said Graham, "But I want show the bizarre lives of a woman who smuggles magic organs and her werewolf mechanic boyfriend in a kind of matter-of-fact way."

Graham talked about MULTIPLE WARHEADS with Comic Book Resources in an August 1 interview.

The first issue of MULTIPLE WARHEADS, a four-issue, full-color mini-series, is 48 pages long. It will be available for in the August issue of Previews.

"After the conclusion of The Sword, I took a two-year sabbatical, but I was always creating," said Luna of his break from comics. "I played with photography and film, and I learned how to paint with oil, acrylic, and watercolor. I finally decided I wanted to do a fairy-tale picture book."

The end result was STAR BRIGHT AND THE LOOKING GLASS, which tells the story of a wild young woman who discovers her own beauty when she finds a mirror in her forest home. The awakening of Star Bright's consciousness of her own loveliness also opens her heart to vanity. But when a wicked sorceress steals Star Bright's beauty Star Bright will learn from her woodland animal friends what the true virtues in life are.

"Everything I’m doing with Star Bright and the Looking Glass is so different from what I’m used to. It’s my first time writing alone, and prose for that matter," said Luna.  "I can’t really pinpoint what led me to do a fairy-tale picture book. There’s definitely been a certain kind of imagery in my head that I’ve been dying to put on paper. I’ve been into pop surrealism for many years, so I wanted to incorporate that kind of art into my new work. I wanted it to be ethereal and a little dark."

Image Comics Publisher Eric Stephenson lauded Luna's dedication to growing as an artist.

"Jonathan Luna, along with his brother Joshua, have been doing amazing work at Image Comics for almost a decade now, but I'm still always amazed by their commitment to moving forward as artists and trying new things as storytellers," said Stephenson. "Jonathan's first solo project is wonderfully unique, and one of the most interesting projects he's brought to us yet."

Luna talked to Comic Book Resources about his new storybook on July 30.

STAR BRIGHT is a 72-page 9 x 12" hardcover storybook with full-color artwork for all ages. It will be in stores in November and available for pre-order in the September issue of Previews.

In POINT OF IMPACT, a new Image Comics miniseries by NEAR DEATH creator Jay Faerber and Koray Kuranel, a woman's murder brings those who thought they knew her best to the realization that they didn't know her at all. As the investigation of Nicole Rafferty's death reveals the secrets of her life, three people — her husband, friend, and secret lover — are put on a collision course with the truth.

"Point of Impact was born out of the idea that a person can be different things to different people," said writer Faerber. "We behave differently, and play different roles, depending on who we're with. That's a theme I wanted to explore in the context of a murder mystery."

In an interview at iFanboy, Faerber promised "plenty of action and suspense, and definitely twists and turns — it’s a murder mystery / thriller, after all." iFanboy also featured a six-page preview of POINT OF IMPACT #1.

The four-issue miniseries, which will debut in October, is drawn by Koray Kuranel, a Turkish storyboard artist, in stark black and white.

"Koray is a fantastic artist recommended to me by my old friend and collaborator, Yildiray Cinar," said Faerber of his collaborator. "His layouts and sense of storytelling are incredible."

POINT OF IMPACT #1 will available for pre-order in the August issue of Previews.

Nick Sax isn't what you'd call a "winner." The anti-hero of the new Grant Morrison and Darick Robertson comic mini-series HAPPY! has been fired from the police force, turned on by his own employees in his murder-for-hire business (well, what would you expect?), is constantly drunk, and is waging a hopeless battle against the agonies of eczema. Sax seems beyond redemption, but saviors often take strange forms, and, in his case, it's the form of a tiny blue, feathered pony named Happy.

Oh, did we forget to mention that? Yes, besides being heavy with violence, profanity, and sex, HAPPY! is also a tribute to the Most Wonderful Time of the Year.

"HAPPY! is a story I’ve wanted to write since hit-man Nick Sax and his ‘partner’ Happy the Horse appeared fully-formed in my head two years ago," said Morrison. In an interview at Newsarama, he described the impetus of its development: "I wanted to do a classic Christmas story – like A Christmas Carol or It’s A Wonderful Life – but with all the junkies, killers and pedophiles which make our modern world so colorful!"

In the same interview, artist Robertson talked a bit about the mysterious, eponymous Happy the Horse, about whom the two creators are being enticingly elusive.

"Happy had a complete transformation from the initial drawing to what he became and what he became is one of the most enjoyable things I've ever designed to draw," said Robertson. "I hope readers will have as much fun with this as I've been having.

HAPPY! is Morrison and Robertson's first Image Comics series. It was announced at this year's Image Expo in February, which celebrated the independent publisher's 20th anniversary. Recently, Morrison commented on the experience of working on a creator-owned project.

"As much as I enjoy making monthly superhero books, there’s something very exciting and inspiring about creating a complete, original story from whole cloth and I’m grateful to Image Comics for seeing the potential of this project and giving it a home," said Morrison. "After a banner year for creativity at the company, Darick and I hope we can round 2012 out on a high note with the most twisted Christmas crime story you’ll ever read."

HAPPY! #1 will be in stores on September 26 and is available now for pre-order. The four-issue miniseries will culminate with an issue released Christmas week.