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A couple of snap polls on Twitter suggest that people pick up comics for many reasons, but here's our own comprehensive poll -- vote often and early!

Dark Horse Comics will publish a new edition of The Secret Loves of Geek Girls. This project features stories from more than 50 contributors including Margaret Atwood, Mariko Tamaki, and Trina Robbins.

According to the press release, Hope Nicholson served as the editor of this comics anthology. Earlier this year, she ran a fundraising campaign on Kickstarter to produce the original version of this book.

Kelly Sue DeConnick wrote the foreword. Noelle Stevenson created a new cover. The release date has been scheduled for October 2016.

Local Comics Shop Day is the latest holiday on the comics calendar, to be held November 28th, the Saturday after Thanksgiving. The date has been promoted as “Small Business Saturday” for a while, but this new date and focus will allow comics shops to tie in to the desire to shop locally and support small […]

In a special push to celebrate Local Comic Shop Day on November 28th, writer Kelly Sue DeConnick, artist Valentine De Landro, and Image Comics have partnered with ComicsPRO, a retail association comprised of comic book shops, to release a special limited hardcover edition of Bitch Planet‘s first volume. The dystopian series, which focuses on a group of women imprisoned off-world […]

Matt Fraction, Kelly Sue Deconnick, Christian Ward, Bill Sienkiewicz, and Chip Zdarsky discuss upcoming comics

by Harper W. Harris

One of the most fun and unique experiences at HeroesCon today was the Milkfed Criminal Masterminds panel, which featured Matt Fraction, Kelly Sue Deconnick, and co. discussing all their various projects while keeping the audience consistently laughing. After speaking briefly on the Charleston shooting and holding a moment of silence, they began by explaining what exactly Milkfed Criminal Masterminds is, essentially a company to house all the comic projects that the dynamic couple work on.

Then came the updates on all the books:

Deconnick will be leaving Captain Marvel after Secret Wars, drawing sighs of disappointment from the many Carol Corps members in the audience. She realized after the movie was announced that she would have to “dig in for three more years or drop the mic,” but that Carol has taught her to “brave the next step.”

The next arc of Pretty Deadly will begin in October, in time for NYCC. It moves forward in time a bit and brings in the energy of WWI and the Harlem Hellfighters. Alice and Jenny will return in this arc.

Issue #15 of Satellite Sam will be out in a few weeks and will conclude the New York arc. New trade omnibus of all 15 issues will debut at Rose City Comic Con. In a year or two, Fraction and Chaykin will return for a second volume which will take place in LA and will focus on a cowboy show.

Robert Wilson IV came by as Deconnick discussed Bitch Planet. The book has fallen behind due to how difficult it was to write issue #4, but they discussed that they would rather have books “done right than right now.”

Casanova is getting back on schedule, and issue #3 will be 32 pages. This story will be far longer than 7 issues.

Christian Ward joined the group to talk about ODY-C, which is moving into a story that mirrors Moby Dick in many ways. Ward mentioned that when he gets the scripts, he “spends an hour on Wikipedia and some really weird Google searches.”

Bill Sienkiewicz took to the stage and after much expression of mutual admiration, Deconnick announced that the the two of them will be working on a book in the near future together. The working title of the book is Parisian White.

Sex Criminals #11 will be out soon. There will be lots of of extra pornographic variant covers in pink polybags by Bryan Lee O’Malley, Katie Cook, the Hernandez Bros. and more! Additionally, there will be 1000 blank covers with sketches by Fraction and Zdarsky, after hundreds had to be destroyed because they used licensed property stickers on them (“What were you thinking?!” –Kelly Sue Deconnick).

In addition to all the updates and behind-the-scenes info, the group gave out lots of swag to audience members that could answer trivia questions. Among the most interesting were the game show style “Who Said It: Ultron, Kanye, or Tallulah” and “Whose Penis am I Describing: Matt or Chip’s”. They are all also excited about working on upcoming TV shows, most of which they could not talk about at this point.

Kelly Sue and Matt (and let’s not forget Chip) know how to work a crowd, and their growing band of creators continues to be something to watch out for. All in all, it was a great way to close out Saturday at HeroesCon, one of the few cons to offer the open weirdness of this kind of panel but with some serious star power!

Here’s the part where you support your favorite comic book creators almost as much you endorse the films they help make possible.

Kelly Sue DeConnick’s husband, Matt Fraction, will be making his first appearance on Late Night with Seth Meyers this Thursday, May 21.

The other guests on the show include America’s Got Talent’s Heidi Klum, and funny man Richard Lewis. If that’s not the strangest and perfect line-up to offset the slowly dying Late Show With David Letterman, then I don’t know what is.

We are confident that Fraction will be the next Harvey Pekar of late night talk show. Hopefully, he shows Meyers first hand how to be a sex criminal, the origin of Pizza Dog, and discusses the glorious and  frustrating process of creating Casanova with Brazilian twins.

Don’t miss Fraction on Thursday at 12:35 a.m. on NBC.

Huge news for fans of the Fraction-DeConnick household; Deadline reports that Matt Fraction and Kelly Sue DeConnick, whose creator-owned works include Sex Criminals, Bitch Planet, Pretty Deadly, Ody-C, Casanova and more, have signed a two-year pact with Universal Television to develop their properties into television series.

Additionally, the deal includes the potential for original content as well as series based on other comic creators’ IP, all of which will fall under their Milkfed Criminal Masterminds production banner.

First up on their development docket is a television adaptation of Fraction and Chip Zdarsky‘s Eisner Award winning Sex Criminals. The duo has hired former Marvel editor Lauren Sankovitch as MCM’s Managing Editor as they make the move into the world of the small screen. They’re represented by Rothman Brecher Agency and attorney Shep Rosenman.

I was just thinking about how diverse their creator-owned set of titles are, covering a wide range of genres like exploitation, 50’s era who-dunnits?, sex comedies, westerns, euro-style sci-fi, etc. It’s a tremendous base to work from in terms of a well-rounded television line-up. Excuse me while I go silent jump around for joy in our condo.

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Photo courtesy of Laurenn McKubbin

By Kyle Pinion

For those unaware, I’m a part of the Dragon Con Comics & Pop Arts Programming Staff. Our job to pull together panels of interest to the attendees on a variety of topics be it fan-based, academic, guest-spotlighting, or a blend of the three.

One of the most exciting moments, personally, of Dragon Con 2014 was getting an opportunity to introduce Captain Marvel/Pretty Deadly writer, and one of the leading voices of feminism in Comics, Kelly Sue DeConnick to Civil Rights Pioneer, Congressman John Lewis.

While The Beat covered his amazing and emotional panel that was held this past Sunday in Atlanta, this occurrence that took place afterwards held its own bit of noteworthiness.

DeConnick had the following to say about Lewis, after attending his panel, on her Tumblr blog:

 He’s a gentle man, soft spoken, extraordinarily gracious and inspiring. He represents, I think, the best of us. What I want it to mean when i say, “I am an American” is everything that man stands for. John Lewis is a true American hero.

We ALL need to know his story — because it is OUR story.  ALL OF US, regardless of skin tone.  Go buy (March: Book One) for your family, then one for your school’s library too.  Read it, teach it, look at what is going on around us today.

And of course, there was no way the Congressman was getting out of the room without the above “duck-face” selfie.

Add this event on top of the utterly packed attendance for her Carol Corps meetup that was also held that weekend, and a number of dynamic panels ranging from Creator Owned Comics to a number of Gender, Race, and Sexuality in Comics Round-tables, it was a great weekend for fans of the Marvel and Image creator. Needless to say, Dragon Con was elevated significantly by her presence. I’m so very grateful I got to be a part of it.

by Alexander Añe

I’ve been going to conventions for years, and the only thing that’s been the same is that one person who says, “But you really have to go to Heroes Con.” There’s always someone praising Heroes Con, and now, I am one of them.

Photo taken by Kelly Sue DeConnick

As my plane was landing, I was a bit nervous about Heroes Con. I was worried I wouldn’t know anybody, anywhere, or anything about the con and that would sink my battleship. My mistake was that I’d forgotten the principle reason everyone loves the show: Heroes is the most welcoming, friendly convention on the block and is always ready to meet new people.

Even before the con, with Kelly Sue DeConnick’s walk-along, Heroes was breaking the ice and making me feel at ease. Starting at 8 in the morning, this was a brisk 3-mile walk with Kelly Sue and about a dozen other fans. It was an excellent chance to take in some of Charlotte and get to know the neighborhood and also a classic example of one of HeroesCon’s big selling points, “[mingling] directly with professionals and exhibitors.” From there I started meeting people, getting to know places, and getting into the spirit of the weekend.

Walking into the convention hall Day 1 left me ecstatic in every way I could’ve wanted. The line for getting my pass was a breeze, the line to get into the convention was barely noticeable, and the Starbucks was cheapest I’d seen anywhere. Convention staff even let us in 30 minutes early and the rest fell into place like sheet music.

Photo taken by Alex Añé

Day 1 for me was the making sure I knew where I needed to go throughout the convention; finding artists, restrooms, and nice places to sit. I settled up a few commission lists, greeted a few friendly artists, and then made my way to House De Fraction & Co. to head off the huge lines they’d entertain during the weekend. For any con it’s always wise to take care of the biggest lines first, and it was strange to note that no line seemed, “too big,” or unreasonable. Even later in the day foot traffic in and around the convention seemed very pleasant.

Rolling down the escalator for day 2, I saw a group of Star Wars cosplayers were celebrating the engagement of a Han and Leia from their group. You know it’s not really a con till you see one of these, and it says something about Heroes in that people choose it as the spot to remember for the rest of their lives. For artist Hoyt Silva, Heroes Con is certainly memorable, as it was his first time having a booth there after the success of his first Kickstarter. His art and others made by attending artists sold that evening at the famed Heroes Con Annual Art Auction that Heroes puts toward donations toward charity foundations.

Photo taken by Alex Añé

Day 3 is where the real magic happens. The remaining artists spit out commissions by the droves through some mystic force that publishers can only dream of attaining. Phil Noto was working on his commission list till the last hour of the convention and Laura Martin colored away the last hours for the Heroes Initiative as well as on commission. Artists weren’t the only ones making magic, the Sex Criminals panel featured yet another proposal with the help of Matt Fraction and Chip Zdarsky. Exhausted and potentially injured from too much fun, I limped away from Heroes Con smiling, looking forward to attending next year. Thank you Heroes Con!

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The relaunch of Captain Marvel, with Carol Danvers in the title role, started off very shakily. The first six-issues told a time-travel story which eventually teased together parts of the character’s origin in a way which wasn’t particularly as entertaining or dynamic as was hoped. Writer Kelly Sue DeConnick had previously proven herself to have a great voice and sense of humour in her work – but the first arc of this book didn’t give her much chance to do that. It felt like a side-story, blocking us from getting to the real adventures.

Which is why I’m delighted that ever since issue #6, the book has picked up massively. Taking the character back to present-day gives her a chance to be far more contemporary, and build up a far stronger individual voice. She can be funnier, because there’s more for her to react to, and she can build up a lasting supporting cast. Issue #11, out this week, shows just what the book should’ve been from the start. It’s immediately likeable, with instinctive art and a freeform story which segues between multiple interesting sub-plots.

The best of these storylines is one which sees Captain Marvel grounded. If she uses her power of flight, then she’ll start to build up permanant brain damage – which gives a twist which the character has needed for a long time. There’s nothing inherently interesting about a character who can fly, who also works as a pilot. If they crash the plane, it doesn’t matter, because they can always step out the cockpit and FLOAT AWAY. But giving her this twist means the character suddenly lives a much more high-stakes lifestyle. There’s a more immediate tension now we know she’s not safe at all times.

There’s a line in the issue – which is scripted by Christopher Sebala – in which somebody asks Cap “what’s it like to not be good at something for once?” That line captures the issue, and gives readers further motivation to root for the hero. Her frustration at not being able to get in the air also leads to many of the funniest moments of the issue. It feels like the book has now got a real grip on the voice of the lead character, giving her a lightness of tone that makes her more relatable and entertaining than before (she has previously had a tendency to be a little boring).

Filipe Andrade’s artwork – boosted, as everything is, by Jordie Bellaire’s colour, is a brilliant fit for the book. He’s quirky and left of centre without sacrificing storytelling ability. There’s a much more sudden sense of motion in the pages, but I also really like his refusal to cop out for easy spectacle. The sequencing in the pages works fantastically because he doesn’t use gigantic splashes and overwrought hero poses in each panel. In fact, he keeps the action sequences very tight, with smaller panels which keep an eye on the lead.

There’s a sequence where Captain Marvel blasts a group of guards with her energy, but Andrade doesn’t decide to have this take up half the page. Instead, he sets it in a small page-width panel at the top of, and sets the action at a distance from the reader. Whilst we still get to see Captain Marvel wipe out a group of goons, Andrade’s decision to keep the move locked within a single panel emphasises how normal and unexpected a day this is for the lead character. Even during sequences where Cap is on a flying motorbike and racing round like a lunatic, Andrade refuses to make this into a spectacle – you could replace the bike with a transit van and the pages would still work. It’s a small touch, and perhaps not something Andrade is consciously doing, but it adds to the relatability of the main character.

The narrative as a whole is very well constructed, too. Some of the supporting characters could come across as bringing a little too whimsy to proceedings – Cap makes friends with a young girl who is slightly too bluntly inspired by living next door to a superhero – but this is alrgely averted. The subplots are handled directly, by having Danvers walk between them – again, there’s an emphasis on how she’s having to live a very normalised life, and when put in a normalised setting her power and personality come through far more strongly. It’s all handled very nicely indeed.

Captain Marvel is rapidly rising in quality, emphasising the normalcy of the character’s life whilst also pushing the idea of her as inspirational and good fun. DeConnick’s voice comes through more strongly, and the whole thing feels a lot more natural and warm. Assisted by an excellent creative team, including Sebala, whose dialogue is witty and light, she’s set up a new dynamic which will hopefully stick with the character for a long time to come.

Steve Morris writes, tweets, and comics. Follow his epic journey!

By Steve Morris

Announced yesterday via roundhouse phone call, the replacement team for Brian Michael Bendis’ Avengers Assemble title has been revealed as Kelly Sue DeConnick and Stefano Caselli. Their first issue together will be issue #9.

Originally a title designed to capitalise on the popularity of the Avengers movie, the book had the same cast as the movie – namely, Captain America, Iron Man, Thor, Hawkeye, Black Widow and Hulk. Despite the tie to the movie, however, sales figures didn’t exactly set the chart alight, and Bendis was rumoured to be leaving the book since the moment he started on it.

DeConnick’s arrival brings with it a number of immediate changes to the title, all of them suggesting this will become simply a different Avengers book, with many ties to the movie cut. Hawkeye is out of the title, for a start, with Black Widow also leaving for a few issues (although she’ll be back). Replacing them are Captain Marvel, which is a canny move from DeConnick; as well as Spider-woman. That’s an interesting change for a start, because Spiderwoman wouldn’t be able to appear in an Avengers 2 without some severe negotiating going on between Marvel Studios and Sony.

Stefano Caselli leaves his duties as one of the rotating artists for Amazing Spider-Man in order to join the series, which doesn’t have an ongoing premise yet. Much like Astonishing X-Men, this is perhaps a title which exists because it simply does, and the purpose will get locked in at a later date. DeConnick’s interests lay in clashing the personalities of the Avengers against each other – something we haven’t seen in several years, with a ‘lived-in’ feel having slowly descended on the characters over the years. This was one of the key points in Whedon’s movie, and it’s promising to see DeConnick promising to give us some more clashes in this title. Especially fun is the idea that Bruce Banner and Tony Stark will mimic their dynamic from the movie, which was my favourite part.

Wolverine and Spider-Man will also show up at some point. But at least there’s no sign of Havok.

You can read the full transcript over on Marvel.com, if you’re so inclined.