MONKEY PHARMACY SPLITS WITH ALIAS

[MattBrady]

Following last week’s announcement that Runemaster Studios was leaving Alias, Ken Lillie-Paetz has confirmed for Newsarama that his studio, Monkey Pharmacy Productions, will be leaving Alias as well.

Lillie-Paetz provided Newsarama with a statement about the split, which reads:

Monkey Pharmacy Productions, creator/producer of the comic books Elsinore and Monkey in a Wagon vs. Lemur on a Big Wheel (with co-creator Chris Moreno), are pleased to announce that they have regained the rights to both of these properties. Both comic book series will be continued with new publishers and further announcements will be made in the near future.

There has been an increasing amount of speculation about what was happening with these two books, especially since the announcement that Runemaster was leaving Alias. In mid-September, Mike Bullock and I gave legal notice that both our studios were leaving Alias. We are now able to announce that we have decided to take our properties elsewhere.

Leaving Alias is by no means a setback for Monkey Pharmacy. We feel we now have the opportunity to produce the best work possible and be free from the series of unfortunate events that has plagued Alias and our titles right from the beginning.

This is an exciting time for Monkey Pharmacy! We have plans to publish the remaining issues of Elsinore (including a trade paperback of Issues 1-3). The continuing battle for primate supremacy that can only be fought by a monkey and a lemur will also soon see new issues.

We are thrilled about some new stories we have planned for the upcoming issue of Monkey vs. Lemur. One story addresses the sadly common lemur/raccoon identity confusion in Mistaken Identity Crisis on Infinite Earths and another will feature creators Chris and Ken appearing as themselves – sort-of – in Moreno In A Wagon vs. Lillie-Paetz On A Big Wheel.

The dream issue of Elsinore (#4) showcases a variety of artists as they lend their own mad visions to the dreams of the inmates and staff at the Elsinore Mental Hospital. Whether it is Josh Medor's plague doctor in the fire of London, or Michael P. Sincavage's haunting piece of Lucifer crawling with sinners that have become maggots, or new series artist Mark Sparacio's unleashing the elements as channeled through Miss Candra and Ophelia, this issue will have lots to catch the eye and mind. Issue #5 continues on with Doctor Murchison taking matters into his own hands and a group therapy session that seems to suggest the doctor's grasp on reality may be more tenuous than previously thought.

We apologize for the period of time that it will take for our relaunch but ask our fans to please be patient and that Elsinore and Monkey in a Wagon vs. Lemur on a Big Wheel (and a few new projects) will soon return bigger and better.

Thank you for all the support you have shown these titles!
Ken Lillie-Paetz
Monkey Pharmacy Productions

Newsarama Note: When asked for further clarification on the split, Lillie-Paetz declined to comment, adding that his legal counsel had advised him not to speak further of the matter publicly.

In speaking to Newsarama on Wednesday, Alias Executive Director Mike S. Miller said that the company had cancelled Elsinore "for scheduling/non-delivery issues."

The solicitation for the first issue of Elisnore read:

Did the Apocalypse already happen without anyone noticing? Angels scour the sky and demons stalk the streets. Meanwhile, the patients of Elsinore Mental Hospital are under the control of a secret society. Locked up without treatment, the inmates are developing supernatural powers. Humankind's only hope for survival is descending further into madness... The end begins here.

A preview of issue #1 is available here

Pages are from Elsinore #4.

[Electric Glove]

Figured something like this would be coming afte reading Elsinore was cancelled, hope they find a good publisher.

[Johnny Smith]

This sounds like a good move for Monkey Pharmacy.

I wish them good luck in finding a new publisher.

[jza1218]

The art for Elsinore was breathtaking. I hope that it gets started up again soon

[marioboon]

Silent Devil here they come

[BlueThunderArmy]

I'd never even heard of Elsinore, but the art looks fantastic and the story sounds very interesting, as well. I'll have to pick up the trade when it lands at a new publisher.

[OZZ13]

Good to hear! Best of luck to you MPP.


I'll pick up Elsinore wherever it lands. It really is a great book.

[Hohlraum]

anyone know what the last issue is going to be? I'd been preordering this one.

[adamcasey]

Monkey in a Wagon vs. Lemur on a Big Wheel was in (I think) Even More Fund Comcis and I love it.

More of that, please!

[c_andrew_s]

Good luck guys... the art work is really stunning

[grphxkindaguy]

Re: the slow trickle of studios leaving ALIAS

um, isn't this how the demise of Crossgen first started?

Hate to see another new comic book company go under...

[Not From Around]

That lemur/raccoon confusion may be unfortunate (and no doubt a source of indignation for them both), but it's certainly understandable. There are some ringtailed lemurs at our local zoo. They look EXACTLY like what you'd expect to get if you crossed a monkey with a raccoon.

[Michael P]

Of course, what you'd actually get is best described as a Lovecraftian horror that would unhinge whomever beheld it from the fragile strands of reality and drive them shrieking into the maddening abyss.

[EmeraldGuy32]

read both titles and love them both. Keep them comming guys!

[fistofkhonshu]

So is the white spy going to pop out of the flames with a mallet and steal the secret spy cage he's holding?

Wish I'd picked this up, the art is stunning

[glecharles]

Glad to hear my two favorite Alias titles will be landing on their feet elsewhere. Speakeasy, perhaps?

Good luck Ken!

[MattBrady]

Originally posted by fistofkhonshu
So is the white spy going to pop out of the flames with a mallet and steal the secret spy cage he's holding?

not too familar with plague doctors?

MattB

[fistofkhonshu]

Its not that, I just had to make a spy vs spy crack. I've been almost ordering this every month for awhile now. My first thought when I saw the guy was the Marquis. Then spy vs Spy.

[Ray Dillon]

Best of luck!!

Gotta say, that first 2-pager looks fantastic. The accents around the panels is great.

[Jeremy Williams]

Man I hate Studios.

[Jay Odjick]

Best of luck with Elsinore - I hope to see the new issues as soon as possible, and to anyone who has yet to read it - I recommend it highly.

[Bakema NL]

It's great to hear that Elsinore will be published after all, I'll definitely follow the title elsewhere, but still too bad things didn't work out with Alias.
Good luck Pharmacy with your titles, I'll be keeping an eye out for them.

[Ray Dillon]

Originally posted by Jeremy Williams
Man I hate Studios.

Okay, I'll bite. Why?

[Jacentury]

Best of luck to Ken and Monkey Pharmacy. I am one of Elsinore's biggest fans, and I have been promoting the book in a number of message boards, as well as reviewing it for Silver Bullet Comics (where I have always given it top marks!).

Elsinore is my favourite book on the spinner racks right now. I'll support it wherever it lands.

Jason Berek-Lewis

[Bullwinkle]

Originally posted by Ray Dillon
Okay, I'll bite. Why?

I'll bite too. I'm not the guy who made the comment originally, but I read it and felt that I agreed somewhat .... Please don't take my comments personally though, Ray, as I can see from your sig that you're part of a studio youself. But do feel free to offer your views - there's nothing wrong with civil discussion of differing perspectives.

It seems to me that studios are fast becoming the modern evil of the comic book industry. They are contributing to the fracturing and fragmenting of this great industry by offering myriads of alternatives, but often without any real focus or answer. Ultimately they hurt everyone .... That's probably a bold statement, but I'll try to explain.

In the past, we didn't have studios or, at least, not studios who drew masses of attention to themselves. We knew which companies put out what books, when we could buy them, and how we could buy them. These days, studios flit about (like the comic book equivalent of 'tarts') and you never know who's going to publish them, how you can get their books or how long for. They remain an unnecessary enigma.

It hurts the comic companies (especially since studios are so quick to publicly berate their past 'suitors' and 'lost loves') and it hurts the studios themselves because people either lose track of them or give up on them deliberately. It's almost self-destructive in nature. Does that make any sense?! Essentially they put nails into company coffins, drive wedges between themselves and the fans, and ultimately hurt their own profitability.

I never used to have a problem with studios, but they have slowly risen as a menace in the industry. Not all of them, but as a whole I think they are developing a bad name .... It's like "look, here's issue 1 from Image - now Image sucks, so issue 2 is from CrossGen - but no, they suck, so issue 3 comes from Alias (who ain't so hot either) - so, back to Image for issue 4 cause they ain't so bad after all". It might be dragged out over a longer period (which usually means that the fans have to wait months between issues), but that's what happens .... literally. And, in the end, I think we all suffer ....

- Chris