Get your geek on with Penny Arcade Volume 1: Attack of the Bacon Robots!
Special 25-cent preview issue available in December
Penny Arcade, the comic strip for gamers by gamers, is arriving in a new print collection and special 25-cent preview issue only from Dark Horse Comics. Penny Arcade is not only the most popular comic strip on the web, it’s the funniest and most twisted!
Penny Arcade is a web comic written by Jerry Holkins and illustrated by Mike Krahulik. Making its debut on November 18, 1998, Penny Arcade is one of the most popular and oldest web comics in existence. New installments of the comic strips are posted several times a week and the site attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors every day. Penny Arcade lampoons gamer culture while taking shots at everything from Star Wars to Steve Jobs.
The strip regularly features the two creators’ cartoon alter egos, Tycho Brahe and Jonathan Gabriel (“Gabe”), who represent Holkins and Krahulik respectively. The two characters spend much of their time playing and commenting on computer and video games, forming the basis of the humor in the strip.
Experience the joy of being a hardcore gamer as expressed in vignettes of random vulgarity and mindless violence! This first collection, Attack of the Bacon Robots!, is your chance to read Penny Arcade from the very beginning. The collection includes strips, sketches, and creator commentary not available anywhere else! A special preview issue featuring highlights from the Attack of the Bacon Robots! collection will be made available in December for the low price of 25-cents.
Penny Arcade Volume 1: Attack of the Bacon Robots! features the writing of Jerry Holkins with art by Mike Krahulik. It arrives on sale January 25 with a retail price of $12.95. The Penny Arcade special twenty-four-page 25-cent preview issue arrives in comics stores December 7.
ISBN: 1-59307-444-1
Bigfoot, ghosts, aliens, fairies, and chupacabras are on our side in The Perhapanauts #1
There are places in this world where the fabric of reality has worn thin and creatures from other realms and bizarre beings from other dimensions slip through. Fortunately, there exists a secret organization that has taken upon itself the responsibility to confront these creatures. Made up of agents that are adept at turning them back from whence they came, this organization is as bizarre as the creatures it battles. Consisting of ghosts, aliens, faeries, and Bigfoot, the organization is called BEDLAM. The agents are called…The Perhapanauts!
“With The Perhapanauts, Craig and I have created a team of agents charged with investigating bizarre occurrences and the appearance of strange creatures. Bigfoot, aliens, chupacabras, ghosts,” commented writer Todd Dezago. “Coincidentally, the team is also made up of some of these same strange creatures and their adventures into the unexplained, the supernatural, and the just plain creepy, are only half the story. Back at headquarters they are a very interesting mix; the chupacabra drinks blood out of juice boxes, Bigfoot is a genius, and the ghost is in denial about ever having died. Craig and I have built a long story for these guys that is full of twists and turns that will have readers guessing right up to the last panel!”
Written by Todd Dezago (Sensational Spider-Man, Impulse) with art by Craig Rousseau (Impulse, Batman Beyond), The Perhapanauts is a hilarious paranormal adventure you won’t want to miss. Issue #1 (of 4) arrives on sale November 23 with a retail price of $2.99.
P. Craig Russell’s Conan and the Jewels of Gwahlur hardcover collection arrives in December
P. Craig Russell, the artist best known for adapting literary works to comics, applies his legendary talents to Conan in this adaptation of Robert E. Howard’s “The Jewels of Gwahlur,” one of Conan’s last adventures before becoming king.
A young woman, having made a string of bad choices, finds herself the pawn of mercenaries-one of whom is Conan of Cimmeria. As the former dancing girl poses as the dead oracle of a primitive cult, Conan puts his experience as a thief and a soldier together in pursuit of some of the most prized jewels in the world-the Teeth of Gwahlur!
Featuring a sixteen-page sketchbook and an interview with Russell covering his career and creative process on this book, this handsome hardcover not only highlights one of fantasy art’s greatest living talents, it shows once again that Howard’s original Conan tales remain unsurpassed.
Conan and the Jewels of Gwahlur features the talents of P. Craig Russell and Lovern Kindzierski. It arrives on sale December 28 with a retail price of $13.95.
ISBN: 1-59307-491-3
Dark Horse gets romantic with Harlequin Ginger Blossom manga!
Two new romance manga lines begin with young reader and mature reader titles.
Dark Horse Manga and Harlequin Books are delighted to present a shining new line of books that marry two of the most successful phenomena to hit bookstores-bestselling Harlequin romance fiction and female-friendly Japanese manga! These sparkling manga adaptations of Harlequin’s best-selling titles are a romantic step above much of the cookie-cutter manga hitting the shelves today and feature stories by Harlequin’s top authors!
Dark Horse will be presenting two new Harlequin manga lines both color-coded, one for younger readers and one for more mature readers. Harlequin Violet: Response is part of the “violet” line for mature readers. Response takes a sexy look at love in the workplace. Sure, you shouldn’t date your boss, but what if he’s really, really hot? Sienna is a temp hired at a busy London firm. In a stroke of luck, she’s assigned to work with Alexis who’s smart, sexy, and interested in her! But there may be a whole lot more to his attentions than he’s letting on.
Harlequin Violet: Response is written by the woman behind some of Harlequin’s smartest, sexiest titles, Penny Jordan. Jordan writes contemporary stories that appeal to women with attitude, and the old-fashioned romantics in us all!
Harlequin Pink: A Girl in a Million is part of the”pink” line and is color-coded to denote its purely romantic material. Intended for anyone who delights in the sweet side of romance! The story begins with a vacation encounter that was completely out of the ordinary for Carol. Is it a stumble in the road that has her head over heels or her attraction to intriguing older Marius? The next thing she knows, though, he’s working at her hospital! Does she have what it takes to attract-much less keep the attentions of-this intimidating, sophisticated, and utterly compelling man?
Harlequin Pink: A Girl in a Million is written by Betty Neels whose stellar career includes the publication of 134 novels, published in more than 100 international markets.
There are currently three volumes planned for each line with a new volume arriving about every three months.
Harlequin Pink: A Girl in a Million is written by Betty Neels and features art by Kako Itoh. It arrives on sale December 7 with a retail price of $9.95.
ISBN: 1-59307-412-3
Harlequin Violet: Response features writing by Penny Jordan and art by Takako Hashimoto. It arrives on sale December 7 with a retail price of $9.95.
ISBN: 1-59307-411-5
Shojo horror-comedy arrives with Reiko the Zombie Shop Volume 1
Terror has struck the sleepy little town of Shiraike. A serial killer stalks the streets murdering innocent girls. Twenty-nine grisly murders have been committed, with no clues to catch the killer. That is, until the town receives a strange visitor: a beautiful young woman who can raise the dead. She is Reiko the Zombie Shop, necromancer for hire. For a price, she’ll wake your dead, if only to find a clue to their demise, but she’s not responsible for what the dead will say or do once they awaken!
Part Sixth Sense and part Evil Dead-the ultra-violent, comical, and disturbing manga Reiko the Zombie Shop has been resurrected Stateside and translated into English in its original format for the first time. Don’t miss the first volume of the series that took Japanese readers by the throat and made them scream for more!
Reiko the Zombie Shop Volume 1 featuring story and art by Rei Mikamoto, arrives on sale December 14 with a retail price of $12.95.
ISBN: 1-59307-413-1
The best and the brightest female comic-book talents are showcased in Sexy Chix
Don’t let the title fool you-this isn’t your average collection of comics featuring impossibly proportioned vixens in spandex. This time around the sexy chix in question are the writers and artists behind the comics, representing some of the best and brightest talent contributing to the medium of comics and graphic novels today. With stories ranging from mainstream adventures to hilarious comic shorts to heart-wrenching autobiography, Sexy Chix is devoted to the under-recognized contingent of female cartoonists in an overwhelmingly male-oriented industry. It’s about time these divinely talented creators get to tell the stories they want to, and the result is an exquisite variety of artistic visions and styles.
Among the sexy chicks are New York Times best-selling author Joyce Carol Oates, Eisner Award-winning illustrator Jill Thompson (Scary Godmother), A Distant Soil writer/artist Colleen Doran, Bitchy Bitch creator Roberta Gregory, DC Comics writer Gail Simone, novelist Sarah Grace McCandless (Grosse Pointe Girl), and many, many more!
Sexy Chix arrives on sale December 21 with a retail price of $12.95.
ISBN: 1-59307-238-4
The definitive guide to Star Wars comics is here in Star Wars: The Comics Companion
Dark Horse presents the definitive guide to Star Wars comics, complete with in-depth coverage all the way through Episode III! Written by Star Wars experts Ryder Windham and Daniel Wallace, and densely illustrated with both brand-new art and classic images from the comics, this chronological compendium contains everything you need to be the ultimate Star Wars reader in the know. Follow Anakin Skywalker’s descent into darkness, from his early days as a padawan, to his harrowing Clone Wars battles, up through his transformation and eventual death as Darth Vader. Get complete details on the exploits of Luke and Leia, Han and Chewie, and all the rest of the gang, with thorough rundowns of classic Star Wars tales originally printed decades ago! Spanning over 25,000 years of Star Wars history, from the very beginnings of the Jedi order, no character goes unmentioned and no quadrant goes unmapped.
“Long before I worked on Star Wars comics as an editor and writer, I was a card-carrying member of the Star Wars Fan Club, with the backissues of Bantha Tracks to prove it,” commented co-writer Ryder Windham. “It was a total kick to work on The Star Wars Comics Companion with my good pal Dan Wallace, who knows the chronology and characters inside out. Trust me, even if you’ve already read all the comics, this guidebook has information you won’t find anywhere else.”
Co-writer Daniel Wallace continued, “It’s incredibly fitting to release a volume dedicated to the universe of Star Wars comics, George Lucas was a comic-book fan since childhood and infused his Star Wars movies with four-color splashes of classic comic-book spirit-heroes, villains, action, and bold visuals. The process has now come full circle.”
The Star Wars: The Comics Companion is written by Ryder Windham and Daniel Wallace with art by Tsuneo Sanda. It arrives on sale December 28 with a retail price of $19.95.
ISBN: 1-59307-312-7
Star Wars© Lucasfilm Ltd. & ?. All rights reserved.
Star Wars supervillain gets the spotlight in Star Wars: General Grievous collection
This tale of treachery and genocide leads up to the events that took place in the record-breaking blockbuster Star Wars: Episode III-Revenge of the Sith. Before his all-out battle with Obi-Wan Kenobi, the latest Star Wars supervillain took on an entire alien species!
On a rescue mission to Vandos, Padawan Flynn Kybo and his master T’chooka D’oon come face-to-face with General Grievous, one of the leaders of the Separatist army. After Grievous kills Master D’oon, Kybo goes to the Jedi Council with a plan to take the depraved general out immediately. But when the council rebukes his plans for vengeance, Kybo decides to take matters in his own hands. Seeking out others who feel the same as himself, he sets out to stop the Separatist killing machine before more Jedi lives are lost. Meanwhile, Grievous hijacks a transport ship, and its precious cargo may give him a horrible advantage over the Jedi that they would never expect. For now, his sights are on the planet Gentes-and on taking its Ugnaught population and mining facilities as trophies of war!
The Star Wars: General Grievous collection features the talents of Chuck Dixon, Rick Leonardi, Mark Pennington, Lucas Marangon, and Michelle Madsen. It arrives on sale December 28, with a retail price of $12.95.
ISBN: 1-59307-442-5
Star Wars© Lucasfilm Ltd All rights reserved.
Emily the Strange products come to Dark Horse!
For more than ten years, pop culture enthusiasts have revered and adored a mysterious, brooding thirteen-year-old girl named Emily the Strange. Nobody knows much about the young girl with a porcelain face and huge eyes framed by black bangs. Her ever-present brood of black cats only adds to the intrigue. None of that has stopped a generation of rabid fans from letting Emily put her strange spell upon them!
Dark Horse and the creative minds behind Cosmic Debris have recently released the first-ever Emily comic books, but of course Emily the Strange wouldn’t be happy with just comic books. (But then again, is Emily ever happy?)
To appease Emily and her rabid fans Dark Horse has decided to release a whole new batch of exciting and cool products this fall and into the New Year.
Emily the Strange products coming soon include:
-Emily the Strange Candy Bar Assortment: 4 incredibly strange candy bars; caramel, milk chocolate, dark chocolate and chocolate with almonds. Order the 12 bar assortment and receive a full-color “cigar-style” display box. Gooey, strange, dark and crunchy, appropriate snacks for sweet girls with ill tempers. (Available November 16, $35.99)
-Emily the Strange Zippo lighter, featuring Emily as a fire starter. She can light your way through those creaky-doored haunted house. (On sale November 16, $29.99)
-Heat-sensitive Coffee Mug: graphics react to hot or cold beverages. (On sale November 16)
-Emily pillar candles: tall candles in glass votives. Four different designs. Light them and let the mysteries begin. (On sale November 16)
-Emily’s Strange Stamps: Rubber stamp set. Create your own strange stationary. (Available First Quarter 2006)
-Playing Cards: Bet on this Emily deck of red, black, and white. (On sale: First Quarter 2006).
-Odd-I-See Fortune Telling Board: Consult Emily about your strange future with this creepy board. (Available First Quarter 2006)
