It’s been quite a while since I read any Zenescope titles. Not really sure why. Anyway, their take on fairy tales should appeal to anyone who enjoys Grimm, Once Upon A Time and other such TV series, not to mention similar novels and other comics. Anyway. In a press release I received today, I saw the image below. That is one scary-ass Tooth Fairy…
The cover is by Giuseppe Cafaro (this is the B Variant).
This is Giuseppe Cafaro’s surprisingly, pleasantly sinister cover-variant from Zenescope for Wonderland #8. It’s a really dark twist on Zenescope’s usual aesthetic.
I posted some teaser images for this upcoming comics event a little while back, but Zenescope recently unveiled some new artwork. This time, it’s the complete, interlinked cover art for the first five comics in the event: Werewolves – The Hunger #1, Vampires – The Eternal #1, Hunters – The Shadowlands #1, Demons – The Unseen #1, and Zombies – The Cursed #1:
It should en-biggen when clicked on…
Writer: Pat Shand | Story: Joe Brusha, Raven Gregory, Ralph Tedesco & Pat Shand | Artist: Dan Glasl (#1), Larry Watts (#2, 4, 5), Rob Dumo (#3) | Colors: Tom Mullin & Jason Embury (#1), Andrew Elder (#2), Nick Filardi, Adam Metcalfe (#3-5), Slamet Mujiono (#5), Omi Remalante Jr. (#5), Wesley Wong (#5)
In the lands of Myst a tryant rules the city of Bree with an iron fist leaving its citizens living in fear and terror. But all hope is not lost when one man takes the first steps to finding the one person who might save them all.
Meanwhile, on Earth, Robyn has had a troubled life for many years since her mother’s death. In and out of foster homes Robyn now finds herself transferred to a special high school filled with the rich and over-privileged. But when Robyn crosses one of the popular kids she will learn first-hand the extent of torture they are willing to go to against those who transgressed against them…
In Zenescope’s Robyn Hood, the creative team has reinvented the classic fairy tale of the robbing-the-rich-to-feed-the-poor vagabond. It’s been receiving a lot of buzz of late, and with the first mini-series complete, now seemed like the perfect time to review it. I’m going to review these issues as if they were a collected edition, so be warned that there will be spoilers for early issues. Overall, I thought it was a pretty interesting series, one that offers all the Zenescope tropes (good and bad). Most importantly, though, is that they have used the classic premise to create something fresh and interesting. [The review has ended up a lot more in-depth than I anticipated…]
Zenescope Entertainment, the publisher of Grimm Fairy Tales and Wonderland hit comic series (among many others) has announced its plans for an upcoming, major cross-title event, “UNLEASHED”. This is, I believe, their first since The Dream Eater Saga (which I actually have, but keep forgetting to read…)
The event will be spread across six separate mini-series, clocking in at a total of 24 issues (including some “oversized” issues), and the story will tie directly into Zenescope’s popular Grimm Fairy Tales Universe (or “GU” for short). In true Zenescope style, the story focuses on reinterpretations of classic horror monsters and myths, and will be told from the perspective of their hunters.
I should state at the outset that I haven’t read a single Vampirella comic. I am trying to expand the range of comics I read (I prefer DC/Vertigo title over most others), and Dynamite have a lot of titles that I think could be really good – I enjoyed the first couple of issues of The Shadow and Spider, for example, and would like to try Masks, Damsels, Pathfinder, more of The Boys, and also Green Hornet (especially since Mark Waid’s going to be handling the series re-launch in March 2013). I also really like dark and gritty vampire stories. So, I started to look in to Vampirella. And, aside from the multiple spin-off series, I noticed something that really irks me about certain comics, given their content and actual stories.
As part of my new approach to individual issues, here’s my round-up of recent Zenescope titles of note. It’s a pretty busy season for the publisher and the Grimm Universe, with a lot of connected stories unfolding (the various Wonderland-related titles, the Grimm Fairy Tale titles) and also some stand-alone series continuing, nearing conclusion, or coming to their ends.
Overall, this is a decent selection of issues, with only a couple of them suffering from Zenescope’s usual pitfalls (cliché or canned dialogue, telegraphing issues, and of course artwork that makes even Catwoman look demure and realistic… – and yes, I have a lot of comments like this throughout this post). That being said, three of them are certainly among the best I’ve read from Zenescope. As a whole, though, I find myself becoming more frustrated with the increased rate of cross-over that doesn’t align chronologically and actually offers up spoilers. I think the publisher will need to take a look at this in the future, in order to not annoy their readers.
Reviewed: Bad Girls #2, Godstorm #0, Grimm Fairy Tales #76 & 77, Irresistible #2 & 3, Jungle Book #5, Myths & Legends #19 & 20, Waking: Dreams End #4, Wonderland #2, Call of Wonderland #3 & 4
Undeveloped & Sadly Cliché
Writer: Ralph Tedesco | Artist: Gabriel Rearte | Colours: Jason Embury, Milen Parvanov
Grace is lost and restless in a big city where her nightmares seem all too real. Suffering from a form of amnesia, she only feels empty and confused.
Her therapist overmedicates, her boss sexually harasses her and her boyfriend beats her. The world is quickly closing in around Grace but when she learns the truth of her past she might just find the power within to redeem her life and battle her demons, no matter how real they might be.
I’ve been meaning to read this for a little while, now, and I finally decided to give it a go. I’m of two minds about what I thought – it has an interesting premise, one that is by-now typical of Zenescope’s output, but it suffers from weak characters and very weak dialogue and writing, not to mention ticking off almost every cliché of single-white-female-lost-in-the-big-city stories in the first chapter (thankfully they go away, and the story starts ticking off all the sarcastic-ass-kickin’-heroine clichés). To keep things interesting, Tedesco has thrown in some pretty weird stuff, and I did think the portrayal of Hell was rather well done.
A smaller selection this week, and a pleasantly varied one yet again – some horror, off-beat thriller (with an alien), some ninja-military action, and a pair of Star Wars adventures. I’m not entirely impressed with all the issues (in fact, I only really liked two of them, while each of the others fell slightly short of meeting my expectations).
Reviewed: Bad Girls #1, B.P.R.D. Hell on Earth – Exorcism #2, Resident Alien #3, Snake Eyes #15, Star Wars: Blood Ties – Boba Fett Is Dead #4, Star Wars: Darth Maul – Death Sentence #1
Things are finally getting back to normal after the terrible (comparatively short) era in which a Virus Ate My Computer. This means the weekly comics round-ups should start appearing as before (except for the occasional week when nothing available catches my eye). And this week, it’s a rather nice mix.
Reviewed: Cobra #15, Danger Girl & G.I.Joe #1, Extermination #2, Grimm Fairy Tales #75, GFT – Myths & Legends #18, Irresistible #1, Jungle Book #4, Star Wars: Darth Vader & the Ghost Prison #3, Wonderland Annual, Wonderland #1
Another post in which I catch up with a selection of releases from a specific publisher. Zenescope produce some of the more interesting comic adaptations and twists on fairy tales and folklore. They don’t always work perfectly, but some of these series have really grown into their own, offering up some intriguing interpretations. I’m also particularly intrigued by the start of the “new” Grimm Universe, as laid out in the Annual and Angel #1. Things look like they are about to get really interesting for Zenescope’s titles…
Reviewed: Call of Wonderland #2, Grimm Fairy Tales #74, GFT: Angel, GFT: Annual 2012, GFT: Myths & Legends #17, Jungle Books #3, Waking Dead: Dream’s End #2
A few catch-ups and one really early review of a new series by one of my favourite comics’ writers. This was another pretty busy week, so while I tried to get as many of the comics reviewed as I could, some nevertheless had to be culled from the list. Some of these I was sent for review, so they will be read and reviewed at a later date. I just wanted to get the reviews of these issues up ASAP.
This is also one of the last weeks I’ll be reviewing individual DC issues for a while (I may do a couple more next week), as I’m heading back to the UK mid-June. I’m still working on coming back to the US if possible – Alyssa’s here for another four years, so my desperate quest for employment in or around New York continues! I’m almost at the point of begging, but that would be rather unseemly and undignified.
[*cough* … Please help … *cough*]
Anyway, on with the reviews!
Reviewed: Avengers vs. X-Men #4, AvX VS #2, Batman: The Dark Knight #9, Batwoman #9, BPRD: Hell on Earth – Transformation of J.H. O’Donnell, Call of Wonderland #1, The Defenders #6, Massive #1, Snake Eyes & Storm Shadow #13, Star Wars: Blood Ties – Boba Fett is Dead #1-2, Superman #9, Wolverine & the X-Men #10
Another busy week – with some new series and also the end to one of my favourites. There were also some surprisingly good issues, too – not because I was expecting bad issues necessarily, but they just exceeded my expectations.
Reviewed: Catwoman #9, Cobra #13, Grimm Fairy Tales #72 & #73, Guild Fawkes (One-Shot), Irredeemable #37, Justice League #9, Magic: The Gathering #4, Mind MGMT #1, Neverland: Hook #5, Nightwing #9, Resident Alien #1, Smoke & Mirrors #3, Star Wars: Darth Vader & the Ghost Prison #1, Wolverine & the X-Men #9
’tis the week of new debuts!
Some of these have been highly anticipated for a while, ever since DC announced the second wave of New 52 titles, and ever since Dynamite announced the return of The Spider. Some issues I thought were meant to be out this week actually weren’t, so I think I’ll probably get them next week – Mind the Gap and Fury Max are the two titles in mind. I decided against buying G.I.Combat, the other second-wave New 52 title released this week. I just didn’t think it looked very good. Perhaps I’ll try it at a later date (same goes for Action Comics #9). But probably not.
Reviewed: Batman: Dark Knight #8, Batman: Detective Comics #9, Dial H #1, Earth Two #1, Epic Kill #1, Grimm Fairy Tales: Myths & Legends #16, New Avengers #24, The Spider #1, Superman #8, World’s Finest #1
[Titles in Bold are my Picks of the Week.]
This turned out to be a longer post than anticipated, just because I was so slow about reviewing things on time – for a pleasant change, other commitments got in the way of my comics-reading this week. Better late than never, though, so read on for a bumper comics round-up! There were some great issues this week, too.
Reviewed: Alice #5, All-Star Western #8, AvX: VS #1, Catwoman #8, I Vampire #8, Grimm Fairy Tales: Myths & Legends #15, Justice League #8, Justice League Dark #8, New Deadwardians #2, The Portent #4, Road Rage #3, Snake Eyes #12, Star Wars: Dawn of the Jedi #3
A pretty solid collection of varied comics: twisted fairy tales, fantasy, super-heroes, and horror. I wasn’t organised enough to get them all reviewed for a Tuesday post, so I was able to add a few more titles. There were actually going to be more from last week, but both of my go-to comic stores in New York had completely sold out of Saga #2 and Resurrection Man #8. I decided to cut back on a few of the others, too. For example, I decided that I’ll wait for Suicide Squad, Grifter and Demon Knights to be available as collections.
Reviewed: Alice #4, Batgirl #8, Batman & Robin #8, Batwoman #8, Dungeons & Dragons 2012 Annual, Irredeemable #36, Jungle Book #2, Secret Service #1, Star Wars: Agent of the Empire #5, The Theater #5
Zenescope Entertainment announced today that actress Lena Headey, star of HBO’s superb Game Of Thrones series, will be joining the Grimm Fairy Tales Animated Series, lending her voice talents for the series’ lead character, Sela Mathers.
A very good, diverse week of comics: spies, twisted fairy tales, undead kings, real American heroes, superheroes, and also zombies. Covers most of the bases.
Reviewed Herein: Danger Girl: Revolver #3, Fanboys vs. Zombies #1, G.I.Joe #12, Grimm Fairy Tales #71, Grimm Fairy Tales: April Fool’s Special 2012, Grimm Fairy Tales: The Library #5, Incorruptible #28, Infestation 2: 30 Days of Night, Supurbia #2, Valen the Outcast #5, The Waking: Dreams End #1, Wolverine & the X-Men #7
[Supurbia #2 review delayed until later in the week]
“We felt 52 was a unique number to place on this exciting event since it was so unique and rarely used.”
- Somebody who doesn’t work for Zenescope but works in the same business complex.
“Grimm Nobody asked me if they could use my name! I’m about to reduce the average lifespan of comic book professionals!”
- The Grim Reaper.
Zenescope Entertainment has announced the launch of the Grimm Fairy Tales Animated Series Kickstarter campaign. The proposed animated series of their flagship comics title will be directed by Jon Schnepp and produced by/with the Titmouse Inc. animation studio. The Kickstarter campaign has now been fully launched after its official announcement during the WonderCon Hollywood and Comics panel.
The campaign, which hope to raise the $175,000 needed to produce the pilot episode and the foundation materials necessary to continue the series, will run until May 1st, 2012.
Zenescope Entertainment President Joe Brusha had this to say:
“We believe that our Grimm Fairy Tales comic book series would make an excellent animated series, and we’ve been pitching the idea to the Hollywood big-wigs for years. They’ve said ‘There is too much Fairy Tales stuff out there’, or ‘No one wants to see a gritty, dark, modern take on the fairy tales.’ That’s where they’re wrong. We have tons of devoted fans that would love to see more of our series, and that is our chance and yours to make it happen.”
I do believe there is a market for this animated series, although one of the issues the ‘Hollywood big-wigs’ stated – “too much Fairy Tales stuff” at the moment – it actually true. I think Zenescope run the risk of being drowned out by TV series like Grim and Once Upon A Time, and the couple of Hollywood movies on the horizon that draw on Fairy Tales. If you’ve been reading any of my comics round-ups over the last few months, you’ll know that I’m a fan of the Grimm Fairy Tales series, so I will definitely be checking this out if it materialises. I do, however, think Zenescope will have to pull off something very special to be heard and noticed. At the same time, the “tons of devoted fans” Brusha mentions are definitely there, so it’s conceivable that this could end up being quite popular. As long as it doesn’t go the way of the Witchblade TV adaptation (based on a comic series with its own devoted fan-base), which sort-of sank with a bit of a sad squeak…
[At the time of writing, the project had $6,316 pledged from 49 backers.]
