Welcome to another installment of The Beat’s Comics Crowdfunding Roundup! This week we’ve got an eclectic mix of projects, from anthologies supporting refugees from war-torn Ukraine to neon fantasy to Jack Kirby‘s early work. Let’s get started!

Comics for Ukraine: Sunflower Seeds

Comics for Ukraine

Creators: Scott Dunbier, Brent Anderson, Sergio Aragones, June Brigman, Kurt Busiek, Howard Chaykin, Joshua Dysart, Mark Evanier, Emil Ferris, Dave Gibbons, Rob Guillory, John Layman, Gabriel Rodriguez, Stan Sakai, Louise Simonson, Walter Simonson, Chris Sprouse, Jill Thompson, Matt Wagner, Mark Waid, Alex Ross, Arthur Adams, Dave Johnson, and Bill Sienkiewicz
Goal: $35,000
End Date: May 18, 2022
Goodies: Four covers (1 hardcover and three softcovers), signed editions, art prints, and t-shirts.

This campaign is fully funded. However, because Zoop’s Comics for Ukraine: Sunflower Seeds anthology raises money to support relief efforts in the war-torn country of Ukraine, any extra funding goes to a good cause. All proceeds from the Comics for Ukraine campaign will be donated to refugees.

In the Zoop press release, Mary Dolan, Director of Communications at OpUSA said, “Operation USA is entirely privately funded, so projects such as Comics for Ukraine play a vital role in building our capacity to provide critical relief where needed most. Proceeds from this project will have a direct impact on the lives of those deeply affected by the ongoing war—improving conditions for Ukrainian refugees in Poland and other nearby countries via the provision of emergency grants and in-kind material aid. We thank all those involved in this meaningful project.”

Become a backer here. 

Heretics #1-2: A Masterwork Comic of Neon Fantasy

Heretics

Creators: Dorian Alexander (writer), NJ Barna (colorist), Rus Wooton (letterer), Andrea Strackbein (variant cover), Jeremy Raab (artist), Arashi Matoi (variant cover), Gustavo Jabrazi (variant cover)
Goal: $7,000
End Date: May 19, 2022
Goodies: Issue #1 and #2, stickers, prints, custom art, IMMORTALITY! (your likeness or the likeness of a loved one of your choosing), TURN INTO A CAT! (see yourself or a loved one drawn as a cat) 

Pursuing a lost realm, two roguish wizards journey across multiple worlds towards the fabled City of Roses.

Here’s an opportunity to support trans and queer creators! The campaign begins with “ the rules of magic are meant to be broken…” by a diverse cast of charmingly queer characters and a band of revolutionary housecats as they explore a beautifully rendered fantastical world. SOLD. Comic books always need more queers and more cats. The creators have created something they describe as neon fantasy, which is a “highly detailed visual feast” for readers to “return to again and again (perhaps in altered states of mind)” inspired by “experimental fantasy comics of the 70s and 80s” and “glowing bounciness of new century psychedelic rave scenes.”

Become a backer here. 

Solace County

Solace County

Creators: J. Marshall Smith
Goal: $3,000
End Date: May 19, 2022
Goodies: The edition includes three completed projects, a bunch of diary comics, sketchbook drawings, and art from 2021. Plus, launch party blind contour commission discounts.

A year of comics and other drawings from J. Marshall Smith.

I love zines. Smith comes from the world of zines and is trying to turn his zines into a more permanent collectible edition. Unlike some projects on Kickstarter, that means that the artwork on this project is already completed – he just needs funding to print. I am intrigued by the first story, described as “A long-absent young man returns to his hometown following the death of a childhood friend-turned-abuser.” As a society, we don’t offer many resources or support for friends and family grieving the loss of someone who is a bad person or societal outcast. Still, you have to deal with two deaths in those instances: the death of the person you thought you knew and their actual death.

Become a backer here. 

Finding Jack Kirby in a Pile of Zinc

Finding Jack Kirby

Creators: Joseph Getsinger (creator) featuring work by Will Eisner, Bob Kane, and Jack Kirby
Goal: $18,000
End Date: May 22, 2022
Goodies: Hardcover edition, one-of-a-kind cartoon plates, THE LOST WORKS of WILL EISNER, and magnet.

A book of Jack Kirby’s earliest cartoon artwork.

The author painstakingly researched the book, endorsed by The Kirby Estate, The Jack Kirby Museum, and other noted comic book historians. It offers an essential look at Kirby’s beginnings as a cartoonist on Sally Snickers, Some Fun, Chuckle Corner, and more and the many pseudonyms he used to sign his work.

Become a backer here. 

White Ravens

White Ravens

Creators: Jamieson Alcorn (writer), Jérôme Gagnon (Letterer/Designer), Arthur Helsi (Colorist),Roman Klepinin (Artist),Ricardo Alves (Artist), and Rafael Dantas (Artist)
Goal: $6,000
End Date: May 12, 2022
Goodies: Comic, variant covers, a special Dungeons and Dragons session, coasters,

White Ravens is an action-packed fantasy adventure set in Theria, the world of the popular podcast “Dungeons & Randomness,” according to the Zoop description. The story is canon to the events of the D&R podcast. However, the story stands on its own, and readers unfamiliar with the podcast will be able to jump into this story comfortably.

Become a backer here. 

Here are some already-funded projects worth checking out:

And don’t forget to check out last week’s campaigns:

And finally, here are some projects that haven’t launched yet, but that look to be worth keeping an eye on:

Miss any of our previous Comics Crowdfunding Round-Ups? Check out the archive here!

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