MattBrady
08-01-2007, 09:42 AM
<a href="http://www.newsarama.com/Aspen/SDCC07/DELLECK_ad.jpg" target="_parent"><img src="http://www.newsarama.com/Aspen/SDCC07/DELLECK_ad_t.jpg" border="0" align="right"></a> by Benjamin Ong Pang Kean
At the San Diego Comic-Con International: San Diego this past weekend, Aspen Comics announced Aspen Showcase (http://forum.newsarama.com/showthread.php?t=123027), a series of one-shots spotlighting characters from the Aspen universe by such creators as Vince Hernandez and Sana Takeda, C.B. Cebulski and Ale Garza.
Also announced at the panel:
- Fathom Volume 3 will be drawn by Ale Garza.
- Soulfire: New World Order will be postponed until all the issues are finished and then resolicited with guaranteed shipping.
- Aspen will begin to guarantee ship all new series from now on.
- Michael Turner is currently still working on issue eight of Soulfire.
- Aspen will produce at least two new series for next summer following the successful debut of Jason Rubin’s Iron and the Maiden.
Newsarama.com caught up with Aspen Editor-in-Chief Vince Hernandez for a post-SDCC update.
Newsarama: Is JT Krul still writing the third volume of Fathom? What can fans expect?
Vince Hernandez: I asked JT for the answer to this [and here’s what he said:] “In Volume Two, Aspen Matthews found herself caught in the middle of a war between two worlds, the humans and the Blue. The stakes will be even higher in Volume Three because the Black are on the rise and they have plans for destruction on a global scale. At the same time, Aspen will have to deal with Killian's return and the realization that her brother, the real Finn, remains a prisoner. Building on the scope and intensity of Volume Two and the Kiani miniseries, this is going to be a []huge[/i] story that will affect virtually every member of the Fathom universe!"
NRAMA: There're reports that Ekos will finally see the light of day soon. Comments/updates?
<a href="http://www.newsarama.com/Aspen/SDCC07/00a_IRON-01c-CMYKcrop.jpg" target="_parent"><img src="http://www.newsarama.com/Aspen/SDCC07/00a_IRON-01c-CMYKcrop_t.jpg" border="0" align="left"></a> VH: Yes, Ekos is still very much in Aspen’s future. Michael Turner and Geoff Johns have fleshed out the entire series from start to finish. Michael Turner is currently completing his run on the last three issues of Soulfire, which from there he’ll start his run on his Marvel project, to be followed by Ekos.
NRAMA: The first three Showcase one-shots were mentioned in our last interview and it was officially announced at the Aspen Spotlight panel this past Sunday. You are spotlighting Grace of Soulfire while Cebulski's writing a tale featuring Fathom's Aspen Matthews. What's David Schwartz (Image’s Meltdown) story about?
VH: David Schwartz’s story is as of yet undetermined. As we speak, he’s busy preparing his notes and ideas for his tale. Readers of Image Comics’ Meltdown series know that David is definitely a writer worth following and we couldn’t be more excited to able to add his take on our stable of Aspen characters—whomever it may be.
NRAMA: When is Soulfire #8 scheduled for? Will the last few issues be shipping monthly, bi-monthly?
VH: With Michael’s health taking a welcome upturn, our plan is to finish up the last three issues, #8, #9 and the oversized finale issue #10, and then solicit them again with guaranteed release dates. That way retailers and fans will know exactly when they can expect the latest issue of Soulfire to arrive. The goal right now is to have them guaranteed on a monthly schedule beginning early next year.
NRAMA: From the interviews with Loeb and also one other report on the Aspen Panel, it looks like Turner's no longer doing <b>Ultimate Wolverine</b>, right? What does he and Marvel have in mind? Care to tease?
VH: The original storyline planned for Michael Turner and Jeph Loeb’s <b>Ultimate Wolverine</b> has changed a bit due to some upcoming plans in the Ultimate X-Men universe. However, Michael and Jeph will still be working on something epic in scope, but I can’t provide anything more than that. Well, I can say that Wolverine might not be out of Michael’s future just yet. Stay tuned.
NRAMA: It was also announced that DC has gotten the Heroes comic book rights. Will Aspen be involved with providing new materials? Also, how about an update on the webisodes on NBC.com?
VH: Aspen is already currently working on new Heroes materials for upcoming webisodes pertaining to next seasons return of Heroes. We provided a majority of the online Heroes graphic novel content that’s been produced so far, and Aspen is signed on for several more seasons worth to come. Heroes is definitely going to be a big part of our future.
NRAMA: After two conventions (WW Philly and SDCC), how have people been responding to/receiving Iron and the Maiden (http://www.ironandthemaiden.com/) so far? After all this is a departure for you, as it’s not a studio-owned title…
VH: The response to Iron couldn’t be better! The series has generated enormous interest, and the best part of the launch has been the addition of new comic readers who are fans of Iron and the Maiden creator Jason Rubin, and his past video game franchises [Crash Bandicoot and Jak and Daxter]. It’s Aspen’s first ever creator owned series that we’ve released from the company, and we’ve heard nothing but good things from fans and retailers in regards to it. As well, the addition of that team of brilliant talent to our Aspen roster has been an amazing experience for us from a creative standpoint.
NRAMA: Finally, you mentioned two new series from Aspen for next summer. Any teases?
VH: Yes, and no. I can tell you one of Aspen’s newest properties will reunite Michael Turner with a fellow creator who he’s worked with before in the past. As well, we’ve already released a teaser image of the other property we’ll be doing in several of our titles. Both new properties will expand Aspen’s boundaries with a somewhat more mature label on them, and both will be on a guaranteed release schedule ensuring they reach fans and retailers on a monthly basis.
At the San Diego Comic-Con International: San Diego this past weekend, Aspen Comics announced Aspen Showcase (http://forum.newsarama.com/showthread.php?t=123027), a series of one-shots spotlighting characters from the Aspen universe by such creators as Vince Hernandez and Sana Takeda, C.B. Cebulski and Ale Garza.
Also announced at the panel:
- Fathom Volume 3 will be drawn by Ale Garza.
- Soulfire: New World Order will be postponed until all the issues are finished and then resolicited with guaranteed shipping.
- Aspen will begin to guarantee ship all new series from now on.
- Michael Turner is currently still working on issue eight of Soulfire.
- Aspen will produce at least two new series for next summer following the successful debut of Jason Rubin’s Iron and the Maiden.
Newsarama.com caught up with Aspen Editor-in-Chief Vince Hernandez for a post-SDCC update.
Newsarama: Is JT Krul still writing the third volume of Fathom? What can fans expect?
Vince Hernandez: I asked JT for the answer to this [and here’s what he said:] “In Volume Two, Aspen Matthews found herself caught in the middle of a war between two worlds, the humans and the Blue. The stakes will be even higher in Volume Three because the Black are on the rise and they have plans for destruction on a global scale. At the same time, Aspen will have to deal with Killian's return and the realization that her brother, the real Finn, remains a prisoner. Building on the scope and intensity of Volume Two and the Kiani miniseries, this is going to be a []huge[/i] story that will affect virtually every member of the Fathom universe!"
NRAMA: There're reports that Ekos will finally see the light of day soon. Comments/updates?
<a href="http://www.newsarama.com/Aspen/SDCC07/00a_IRON-01c-CMYKcrop.jpg" target="_parent"><img src="http://www.newsarama.com/Aspen/SDCC07/00a_IRON-01c-CMYKcrop_t.jpg" border="0" align="left"></a> VH: Yes, Ekos is still very much in Aspen’s future. Michael Turner and Geoff Johns have fleshed out the entire series from start to finish. Michael Turner is currently completing his run on the last three issues of Soulfire, which from there he’ll start his run on his Marvel project, to be followed by Ekos.
NRAMA: The first three Showcase one-shots were mentioned in our last interview and it was officially announced at the Aspen Spotlight panel this past Sunday. You are spotlighting Grace of Soulfire while Cebulski's writing a tale featuring Fathom's Aspen Matthews. What's David Schwartz (Image’s Meltdown) story about?
VH: David Schwartz’s story is as of yet undetermined. As we speak, he’s busy preparing his notes and ideas for his tale. Readers of Image Comics’ Meltdown series know that David is definitely a writer worth following and we couldn’t be more excited to able to add his take on our stable of Aspen characters—whomever it may be.
NRAMA: When is Soulfire #8 scheduled for? Will the last few issues be shipping monthly, bi-monthly?
VH: With Michael’s health taking a welcome upturn, our plan is to finish up the last three issues, #8, #9 and the oversized finale issue #10, and then solicit them again with guaranteed release dates. That way retailers and fans will know exactly when they can expect the latest issue of Soulfire to arrive. The goal right now is to have them guaranteed on a monthly schedule beginning early next year.
NRAMA: From the interviews with Loeb and also one other report on the Aspen Panel, it looks like Turner's no longer doing <b>Ultimate Wolverine</b>, right? What does he and Marvel have in mind? Care to tease?
VH: The original storyline planned for Michael Turner and Jeph Loeb’s <b>Ultimate Wolverine</b> has changed a bit due to some upcoming plans in the Ultimate X-Men universe. However, Michael and Jeph will still be working on something epic in scope, but I can’t provide anything more than that. Well, I can say that Wolverine might not be out of Michael’s future just yet. Stay tuned.
NRAMA: It was also announced that DC has gotten the Heroes comic book rights. Will Aspen be involved with providing new materials? Also, how about an update on the webisodes on NBC.com?
VH: Aspen is already currently working on new Heroes materials for upcoming webisodes pertaining to next seasons return of Heroes. We provided a majority of the online Heroes graphic novel content that’s been produced so far, and Aspen is signed on for several more seasons worth to come. Heroes is definitely going to be a big part of our future.
NRAMA: After two conventions (WW Philly and SDCC), how have people been responding to/receiving Iron and the Maiden (http://www.ironandthemaiden.com/) so far? After all this is a departure for you, as it’s not a studio-owned title…
VH: The response to Iron couldn’t be better! The series has generated enormous interest, and the best part of the launch has been the addition of new comic readers who are fans of Iron and the Maiden creator Jason Rubin, and his past video game franchises [Crash Bandicoot and Jak and Daxter]. It’s Aspen’s first ever creator owned series that we’ve released from the company, and we’ve heard nothing but good things from fans and retailers in regards to it. As well, the addition of that team of brilliant talent to our Aspen roster has been an amazing experience for us from a creative standpoint.
NRAMA: Finally, you mentioned two new series from Aspen for next summer. Any teases?
VH: Yes, and no. I can tell you one of Aspen’s newest properties will reunite Michael Turner with a fellow creator who he’s worked with before in the past. As well, we’ve already released a teaser image of the other property we’ll be doing in several of our titles. Both new properties will expand Aspen’s boundaries with a somewhat more mature label on them, and both will be on a guaranteed release schedule ensuring they reach fans and retailers on a monthly basis.