The Beat

Fried Pie Comics, a line dedicated to producing special variant covers for comic books, has been making a splash since it debuted in October...

Geoff Johns wants to bring hope back to the DC Universe. Does he succeed?

This week, two Marvel #1's shipped and they both have one thing in common: amazing cliffhangers that are the product of a long period of careful foreshadowing and preparation. I love it when good plans come together, and boy do they ever in Captain America #1 and Nighthawk #1.

Here we go again! Marvel has a new direction and it's charging right at you this faall with an ambitious new slate called MARVEL NOW! Which they did already four years ago. And it was followed by All-New Marvel Now. And then All New All Different Marvel (ANAD). So, Marvel please check in with Stan and find some new words! Bravura. Gorilla. Defy. There are plenty! So when you google for a headline this is going to be hard. ON the other hand "Now" is eternal and Marvel is always changing, so maybe it's a meta suggestion for the eternal flux and evolution of life in the universe.

Speaking of crowds and branding, we have a FEW openings for staff reporters for The Beat's coverage of the 2016 New York Comic Con on October 6-9. NYCC has cracked down on the number of press passes this year, so I know a lot of good people have been left out. We have been given a handful of slots to fill up, so here's your chance. What we need:

Mell Lazarus, the cartoonist behind such comcis page staples as Miss Peach and Momma has passed away at age 89. Lazasua was a past...