The Image title UMBRA by Steven Murphy and Mike Hawthorne will soon be available on cell phones:

uclick, a leader in mobile entertainment, has announced an agreement that will bring the critically-acclaimed comic book series Umbra, by Stephen Murphy and Mike Hawthorne, to mobile phones throughout North America, UK, Australia and South Africa.

The first weekly installment of Umbra will launch in June through uclick’s GoComics Mobile Comic Reader, available on all major carriers, including Sprint, Verizon and Cingular.

[Murphy Quote] “I’m very excited to be able to offer Umbra to an expanded global audience through uclick,” said series creator/writer Murphy. “This story, with its imperfect heroine, exotic locales and blurred division between dream and reality – not to mention Mike’s brilliant artwork – really resonated with fans in print, and it’s been fascinating to see it make a smooth transition to mobile.

“Mobile fans will read it in weekly installments, which I feel actually adds a level of tension to the already-intense storyline. I think they are definitely going to enjoy the ride.”

Originally published as a three-issue mini-series by Image Comics, Umbra is a mystery set in Iceland during the year 1999. The story’s protagonist is a young, self-medicating police forensic scientist named Askja Thorasdottir whose first big case involves the discovery of a strange skeleton hidden in a glacial cave. Umbra joins a GoComics mobile line that boasts several popular titles from a wide range of genres, including the sci-fi fantasy hit Godland, the webcomic- turned-comic-book PvP, the Manga and anime horror epic Guilstein, martial arts adventures starring the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and many more.

“One of our goals with the GoComics Mobile Comic Reader is to offer comic book fans a mobile experience that reflects the diversity of the comics medium,” said uclick Manager of Product Development Harold Sipe, “and Umbra certainly does that. It’s a finely-crafted detective story with dramatic artwork that plays out beautifully on the mobile screen.”

For more information on uclick’s GoComics mobile line, visit www.gocomics.com/ comicbooks or text “COMIC” to 26642 on your mobile phone.