Welcome to The Beat’s crowdfunding round-up: a collection of some of our favorite campaigns from the week including one-shots, on-goings, anthologies and everything in-between! This week we’re checking out Marco Rudy’s dark fantasy series RDW, the science fiction anthology of hope in A Cold, Dark Universe, and more.

Let’s get started!

A Cold, Dark Universe – A Science Fiction Comic Anthology

cold dark universe

Creators: Black Hole Comics, Toren Chenault (editor), Sara Harding (editor)
Goal: $14,300
End date: November 12, 2020
Goodies: A PDF is $10, a physical version is $20, and higher tiers include variants, prints, t-shirts, and more.

A comic anthology about space, love, and our connection to those around us.

As you might guess from the title, A Cold, Dark Universe is a collection of radically hopeful sci-fi stories in spite of unbeatable odds. Ironically, it was planned far in advance of COVID, but its optimism is right on time. The debut anthology is 112-pages in full color, comprising 16 creators of diverse backgrounds telling 8 stories. Black Hole Comics and Entertainment is a recently launched publisher of short stories, sequential art, interviews and more, and you can check out their work here – or pledge for The Birth of Black Hole anthology which features every short they’ve ever published.

Become a backer here.

RDW – VOL 1 – A story about recovery, in a fantasy dressing

rdw

Creators: Marco Rudy (author)
Goal: $25,322
End date: November 13, 2020
Goodies: A digital version of RDW is $16, the hardcover is $27, and higher tiers include an extra short story, BTS commentary, and more.

A journey through addiction withdrawal, guilt, pain and more, In a Dark Fantasy setting. All featured in stunning Acrylics visuals.

RDW is the first in a planned series of books about coping with loss, responsibility, command, and addiction in a dark fantasy setting that combines Western influences with the creators’ own Mozambican, Brazilian roots. Rudy is a well-established comics pro within the big two, having worked on titles including Swamp Thing, Action Comics, Marvel Knights: Spider-Man, and more. With RDW, he plans to overlap the fantastical and the real with his trademark watercolors, acrylics, and unique layouts.

Become a backer here.

FUTURE

future

Creators: Cast Iron Books, Tom Woodman (writer), Rupert Smissen (artist), Aditya Bidikar (letterer)
Goal: $4,561
End date: October 31, 2020
Goodies: Grab a digital version for $14, a hardback for $27, or pledge higher for bookplates, prints, and more.

A sci-fi graphic novel about hope, love and time travel.

FUTURE is the premiere graphic novel from Cast Iron Books, a new independent publisher from Lizzie Kaye. This story follows the last astronaut Murray, and her wife Kay, as they’re sent forward in time to find cure for their dying home planet – but when their landing goes awry, their left shipless and fighting to survive. It’s a 128-page full color graphic novel, and the campaign is primarily meant to fund production and distribution costs, which means it could be in your hands as early as this December.

Become a backer here.

Heaven’s Not Enough: A Fantasy Graphic Novel

heaven's not enough

Creators: Kip (author)
Goal: $391
End date: November 11, 2020
Goodies: A PDF is $14, a physical version is $20, and higher tiers include stickers, prints, and more.

A 130-page bittersweet tale of the afterlife.

Death has come and taken a young couple and now, sent to the afterlife, it’s time to figure what to do with the rest of eternity. Heaven’s Not Enough follows Mars and Bailey in the realization that maybe perfection isn’t what it’s cracked up to be, even when anything you could ever want is available at the snap of your fingers. Coming in at 130-pages, the graphic novel is written and illustrated by UK comic artist, Kip. Once this campaign is finished, they hope to fund a full print run to make Heaven’s Not Enough available for even more readers in the future.

Become a backer here.

The Mad Tsar: A Graphic Novel About a Crazy World Leader

mad tsar

Creators: Black Panel Press, Tarek (author), Lionel Chouin (artist)
Goal: $1,141
End date: November 12, 2020
Goodies: A PDF is $12, the physical version is $29, and higher tiers include postcards, posters, and more.

It all starts here. To be closer to his subjects, the Tsar, dressed in peasant clothes, strolls through the streets of St. Petersburg.

The Adventures of the Mad Tsar is making the jump from French to English with a new translation, courtesy of this Kickstarter campaign. It follows the story of a Tsar who wants to get to know the people subjected to him, and has the great idea of throwing away his silks and jewels in favor of peasant clothes in history’s first Undercover Boss (just kidding about that last part). Naturally, things don’t go according to plan and the Tsar winds up captured by a group of unhappy conspirators hoping to leverage their newly acquired hostage. Check it out in 146-pages of full color as early as this December.

Become a backer here.

Plus, don’t forget to check out these campaigns:

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

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