Welcome back to The Beat Digest, a twice-weekly round-up of the biggest comics-related news stories we’ve missed every Tuesday and Friday. (Except when it had to be canceled like last Friday.) Is there a story out there you think we should cover? Be sure to let us know in the comments.
§ Dynamite revealed a Red Sonja Solstice Special by Torunn Grønbekk and Edson Novaes (credited mononymously) for December. It will see Sonja find herself in “a cursed village, with demons, slaughter, and carnage in its wake” in the middle of winter. Grønbekk previously wrote the 2023-25 Red Sonja series, while Edson was the artist on this summer’s special Red Sonja Noir: The Plunder & The Princess.
The publisher also shared a Vampirella Helliday Special by writer Erik Burnham and artist Wagner Reis for December. The book will see Vampi head to Barcelona for a vacation, only to find herself preoccupied with new villains. Reis previously penciled Dynamite’s first Vampirella series from 2010, while Burnham wrote 2018’s Vampirella/Dejah Thoris, and this year’s Pathfinder/Vampirella: Blade of Darkness (starting October 15).
§ Rebellion announced a non-exclusive distribution deal with Universal. The deal will begin with their December releases, which will be available to order from the distributor in October. The publisher also unveiled 2000 AD: A Visual History 1977-2027, an oversized hardcover book by Scott Montgomery celebrating the magazine’s 50th anniversary, featuring rescanned original art, a slipcase edition designed by Pris Bampoh, and more. It will be released on January 27.
§ Variety reports Annie will return to Broadway to celebrate its 50th anniversary next year. The musical, based on Harold Gray‘s comic strip Little Orphan Annie, is being revived by Tony Award-winning director Sam Pinkleton (Oh, Mary!). Annie, created by Charles Strouse, Martin Charnin, and Thomas Meehan, premiered in Connecticut in 1976, before transferring to Broadway the following year. It ran there until 1983, before being revived in 1997, and from 2012 to 2014.
§ Via podcast The Bulwark Goes To Hollywood, Spider-Man: Brand New Day co-writer Chris McKenna revealed the psychic X-Men villain Shadow King/Amahl Farouk, and Spider-Man mainstay the Chameleon, were considered for the role of the film’s main antagonist, before they were given permission to use Jean Grey. For more, including a very early pitch for the movie involving Daredevil, head to the podcast, or a written description of its contents courtesy of The Playlist.
§ Speaking of Jean Grey, Game Developer shares that Insomniac’s Wolverine game has been censored in the Middle East over its references to LGBTQ+ relationships. Users on social media from Lebanon and other countries in the region reported that their copies of the PlayStation 5 exclusive blurs out or mutes anything acknowledging the female characters Mystique (Nicole Pacent) and Tyger Tiger (Kelly Hu)’s marriage.
It’s not surprising, given the homophobic laws in many Middle Eastern countries, but contrasts with how other Marvel projects like Eternals and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness were simply banned for LGBTQ+ representation. Sony itself, which has had first-party titles like The Last of Us Part II banned for similar reasons, also released copies of Insomniac’s Spider-Man 2 with censored LGBTQ+ content in the Middle East. Wolverine, which boasts a solid if unspectacular 77/100 on Metacritic, was released last week, and has already sold 1.9 million copies worldwide.
