The Next Level Initiative that DC Comics began this year, helmed by Scott Snyder and Joshua Williamson, has been a beacon of creativity and revitalization, breathing new life into overlooked characters while expanding the stories being told across the DC Universe.
The Supergirl pilot that debuted last night on CBS a lot of weight on its shoulders. The show tells the story of Kara Zor-El, played by Melissa Benoist, as she escapes Superman's shadow and comes into her own as National City's first superhero. It is the network's first major superhero endeavor, the first superhero show led be a solo female in more than 40 years and the pilot had a lot of ground to cover, attempting to endear characters to new viewers while also trying to re-envision elements of the mythos without alienating established comics fans. Does it succeed? The Beat is here to tell you with a hard hitting roundtable. We've always wanted to have one of those.
The wrestling/comics connection has always been strong, from their shared roots in carnival strongmen singlets to former grappler CM Punk's writing comics career. And here's a new one: Muscle Temple, an indie comics anthology spotlighting the squared circle that is currently being crowdfunded. Frank Gibson of Tiny Kitten Teeth is leading the rumble. which will include work by Maddy Flores, Sam Alden, Box Brown, Amanda Meadows, Zac Gorman. According to Gibson:
Even as the dead leaves rattle through the dooryard, turkeys gargle their last calls and pumpkin spice invades our dreams, there are still a few more comic events to come, including, just this weekend, the Locust Moon Festival in Philadelphia (disclosure: an advertiser on this site.) A lively event for a burgeoning local comics scene, the Locust Moon Fest, run by the comic shop of the same name, will have a stellar guest line up this year, including Chris Claremont, Bill Sienkiewicz, Alexa Kitchen, Ronald Wimberly, Craig Thompson and Dean Haspiel, among many others...and now...Mark Beyer!
In the quiet early hours of Saturday in New York Comic-Con's press lounge, Marjorie Liu chatted with The Beat about her new Image title "Monstress" with artist Sana Takeda, systemic racism, the expectations places on creators of color, and the intergenerational trauma of war.
Comics Beat conducts interviews at the premiere of The Sixty Year Mission: How Star Trek Changed Television and the World, including William Shatner, Nana Visitor and MORE!
Avatar: The Last Airbender is getting a prequel series on Paramount+, following the Water Tribe Avatar Kuruk during his rebellious teenage years, while Seven Havens gets renewed for seasons three and four.
