Welcome back to The Beat‘s crowdfunding comics round-up, where we’ll spotlight comics projects we think would be a great investment — whether it’s a one-shot story or a sprawling anthology. Today’s round-up includes the final volume of the Valor LGBTQ+ fairy tale anthology, time-traveling sci-fi tale Future, and more.

Let’s get going!

1. MAKE 100: Homecoming – a short comic

MAKE 100: Homecoming - a short comic

Goal: Approx $390 USD
Ends: Sat, February 22 2020 12:00 PM CST
Creators: bbz
Low/High Tier Approx $7 USD for a digital copy / $14 USD plus shipping for a print, zine, and commission
Homecoming is about two childhood best friends and now long distance exes whose families get together for dinner… and they have to pretend they’re back together for the sake of their parents. It’s all about that fake dating!

Set in the world of bbz’s ongoing webcomic The Bay, Homecoming is a one-shot anyone can dive into no matter how familiar they are with the original series. bbz has a delightfully soft and romantic cartooning style — and what’s not to love about the fake dating fic trope?

You can back the campaign here.

2. Valor Anthology: Volume 3

Valor Anthology: Volume 3

Goal: $45,000 USD
Ends: Sun, February 16 2020 11:37 AM CST
Creators: Anthology
Low/High Tier:: $5 for a PDF / $110 plus shipping for PDF/physical copies of all three volumes and physical rewards
What is Valor? Valor is a comic anthology project composed of adapted, re-imagined, or invented fairy tales. The anthology is aimed at all-age readers, and is LGBTQA+ friendly.

Valor is so good! I picked up the first volume at a convention out of curiosity a few years ago and was instantly hooked. This third and final volume, edited by Isabelle Melançon and Megan Lavey-Heaton, includes stories by two dozen incredible creators like Val Wise and Ashanti Fortson. If you’re new to the series, $10 will get you digital copies of all three volumes — an absolute steal for the amount of comics you’ll get.

You can back the campaign here.

3. Ex.Mag anthology series from PEOW

Ex.Mag anthology series from PEOW

Goal: Approx $31,169 USD
Ends: Tue, February 4 2020 7:07 PM CST
Creators: Anthology
Low/High Tier: Approx $25 USD for a digital copy / Approx $99 USD plus shipping for physical/PDF copies and physical rewards
3 VOLUMES, and each one, if you can imagine, is like eight zines and a collection of illustrations, packed in a THICK (125+ pages!) book with a spine, plus super nice PEOW production — that’s Ex.mag. In these first three issues, we’ll explore Cyberpunk, Paranormal Romance, and Dark Fantasy, with some of our absolute favorite artists!

If you’re itching for more genre comics of the non-cape variety in your life, give the Ex.Mag anthology series a try. Featuring stories by creators like Natasha Allegri and Freddy Carrasco, this unique campaign will deliver three volumes of comics in distinct genres, starting with Volume 1: Cyberpunk. Even just the preview art is captivating — $25 for three different 125+ page volumes is a great deal and this is a fantastic way to expand your genre horizons or just discover a favorite new creator working in a genre you love.

You can back the campaign here.

4. A Boxer

A Boxer

Ends: Wed, February 26 2020 1:00 PM CST
Creators: Dominic Archer (Writer), Gary Walsh (Pencils), Marc Casilli (Inks), Amanda Miranda (Colors), Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou (Letters)
Low/High Tier: Approx $7 USD for a digital copy / Approx $261 USD plus shipping for physical/PDF copies and physical rewards, including original pencil art from the comic
A Boxer is a 100-page graphic novel that tells the story of Mike Shepherd, a British fighter trying to succeed in the hyper-masculine world of boxing, whilst struggling to manage his sexual identity.

There’s been something of an uptick in sports comics in recent years (thanks to manga like Haikyu!! and even before then King of Tennis for pioneering the genre) but not an abundance set in the much more hypermasculine world of combat sports, so it’s exciting to see something like A Boxer in the world. I’m captivated by Gary Walsh’s art here; there’s something pulpy about both his layouts and the character designs that gives A Boxer a dramatic, timeless feel.

You can back the campaign here.

5. Future

Future

Creators: Tom Woodman and Rupert Smissen
Low/High Tier: $30 USD for a hardcover copy and PDF
Murray Mielniczuk, the last astronaut, is dying. So is the Earth.
In a last-ditch attempt to save them both, Murray and her wife Kay are shot forward through time to find a cure and rewrite the future. But crash-landing in a barren future, they find themselves with no help, no ship, and no way home.

Rupert Smissen is an exceptional illustrator and delivers absolutely incredible work with expressive characters and a powerful sense of visual timing that, when paired with Tom Woodman’s strong writing, delivers quite an emotional punch in a short amount of time. Unbound campaigns are a bit more nebulous — they run til they’re funded — but you can and should check out a short sampler from the book in the meantime. Interstellar fans, this could be right up your alley.

You can back the campaign here.

And to close out, check out all of the previously featured campaigns that are still running: