JACK STAFF #1, CLOCKMAKER #1 SELL OUT

[MattBrady]

Press Release

Image Comics has announced that Diamond has completely sold out of both JACK STAFF #1 by Paul Grist and Phil Elliot and THE CLOCKMAKER #1 by Jim Krueger, Mat Smith and Brett Weldele. JACK STAFF #1 arrived in stores on February 19; THE CLOCKMAKER #1 hit the stands on February 5. Both books were over-shipped to retailers participating in Diamond's over-ship program.

Originally published by Grist's own Dancing Elephant Press, JACK STAFF utilizes a loose anthology format to tell the tales of a unique group of characters comprised of Tom Tom the Robot Man, an enigmatic group of secret agents called Q, and Becky Burdock, Vampire Reporter. Linking all these stories together is the ongoing mystery created by the return of Jack Staff - Britain's greatest hero. The end result is a series not too far removed from Kurt Busiek's ASTRO CITY, wherein Grist allows his imagination to run wild as he offers his own unique takes on a variety of comic book archetypes, along with specific nods to Britain's rich comics history.

THE CLOCKMAKER, meanwhile, is the tale of a giant clockworks hidden within the Swiss Alps and the hundreds of men who maintain its operation. The clock is the cause and sustainer of the Earth's revolutions and more: It's the gateway to Heaven itself. Something is threatening to breach those gates, though, and what and why make up the central mystery behind this unique series presented in an even more unique format. Like INVINCIBLE, FIREBREATHER, and TECH JACKET -- all of which have seen issues sell out within the last several weeks -- THE CLOCKMAKER is part of Image Comics' new line of superhero titles.

"We couldn't be more pleased with the reception these two titles have received," said Image's Director of Marketing, Eric Stephenson. "With JACK STAFF, our goal was to raise the perception of what we truly felt was one of the most overlooked titles on the market, and so far, it seems as though we're succeeding. Not only are we out of JACK STAFF #1, but Paul has sold out of the JACK STAFF: YESTERDAY'S HEROES TPB that collected the first four issues of the original Dancing Elephant series.

"As for THE CLOCKMAKER, I think Jim Krueger really needs to be commended, not only for coming up with a fantastic story, but also for telling it in a truly inventive way. Jim's always cooking up new ways to present his comics material: He pioneered the format we publish LIBERTY MEADOWS and PvP in with his self-published FLY BOYS several years back, and his concept for packaging THE CLOCKMAKER was truly inspired."

Stephenson also noted that both issues will be made available online at www.imagecomics.com in coming weeks, so that readers and retailers unfamiliar with the titles can try them out for free. The black-and-white JACK STAFF #1, originally published by Dancing Elephant Press, is available online now, along with five-page previews of JACK STAFF #1-2 and THE CLOCKMAKER #1.

JACK STAFF #2 will be in stores April 9, followed shortly by THE CLOCKMAKER #3 on April 30.

[Hdefined]

I'm a little disappointed with the pacing in the Clockmaker, but I do like the format, despite the enormous print font, and I'm still quite interested in it.

[AvengerPhil]

Clockmaker over-shipped ? How many copies ? According to icv2, 11,000 copies were ordered. So, selling out doesn't seem that impressive.

[Sammycomic]

I'd kill for those numbers.

[xerossilence]

of all the superhero line from image clockmaker was the only one i was interested in. and although the format really does let you get a great loko a the art, 16 pages for 2.99 is just a bit much for me. at that pace that story really doest get a chance to drag me in at 16 pages. maybe if they collect it so i can actually get anywhere with it, because, it was interesting

Xero

[Jonathan]

Good news for Paul Grist, he's one of my alltime favourites and deserves more recognition for his work.

I hope this will also raise awareness on his previous work with Kane and on his forthcoming Burglar Bill series for Dancing Elephant Press.

[AvengerPhil]

quote:

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Originally posted by xerossilence:
if they collect it so i can actually get anywhere with it, because, it was interesting

Xero

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Wow... I wonder what the TPB will look like.