NYCC 2014: THE ONI PRESS COMICSTRAVAGANZA PANEL RECAP

 

Although the panel description promised "a stacked roster of Oni Press Talent," the only person in attendance was Oni Press Director of Publicity John Schork. Fortunately, he was able to quickly turn an awkward situation into a fun one as he charmed the crowd. He began with a quick rundown of some of the publisher's current and upcoming titles. I honestly didn't realize the amount of books within the Oni Press library and how many of them fall under the horror umbrella.

Stumptown by Greg Rucka is now an ongoing series. The current book is illustrated by Justin Greenwood. Schork described it as the Rockford Files set in a cooler city with a cooler lady.

Meteor Man from writer Jeff Parker and artist Sandy Jarrell has just begun. It's a coming-of-age story in which something falls out of the sky and a young boy discovers it. Schork described it as Saved by Me meets Close Encounters. Plus there are aliens! People love aliens! I don't think the comic has anything to do with the 1993 movie The Meteor Man starring Robert Townsend.

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Oni Press has partnered with Double Fine to release comics based on the popular Costume Quest games. The first book will center on a Grubbin named Klem that doesn't want to kidnap kids and instead just wants to eat candy and hang out with his friends. This isn't shaped like a traditional comic, instead it's a 9x13 inch book. Zac Gorman will write and illustrate.

Zander Cannon's Kaiju Max is an upcoming comic centering on a maximum security prison for giant monsters like Godzilla. Some preview art was shown with these creatures lifting giant buildings to work out and hanging out in the yard (which is really a giant beach). Cannon is handling everything, including writing, penciling, inking, coloring, and lettering. Schork pointed out that Cannon has worked with some guy named Alan Moore on a book called Top 10. Kaiju Max is due out in April 2015.

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Terrible Lizard was up next. The first issue is out this week, but fans that picked up the recent Oni Press Humble Bundle were able to get their hands on the book before it was released. It's written by Cullen Bunn with interior art by Drew Moss. It follows a young girl that befriends a giant T-Rex from another dimension or possible time travel. Schork pointed out that it's a book about dinosaurs vs. monsters, which is an equation he could get behind. There would be skateboards and high fiving and eating pizza.

Brides of Helheim promises to be more gruesome, more violent, and more metal than the first series. Someone fights a bear with their bare hands (HAR HAR). The cover of an upcoming issue was shown featuring a giant sea beast. "Look at all dem teeth!" exclaimed Schork. The first issue is currently available.

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March 2015 brings a new Sixth Gun mini-series entitled Dust to Dust, focusing on Billjohn's origin story. The book will be written by Cullen Bunn and Brian Hurtt, and illustrated by Tyler Crook. Schork said that in true Sixth Gun fashion, a kid dies within the first eight pages. It's here that I wrote down a quote of "You guys like Heat? It's my favorite movie." I can't remember the context though, but it happened. Schork also added that Tyler Crook is "absolutely killing it, and by it I mean kids."

The rest of the panel consisted of Q&A and a great sample program. Schork asked the crowd to name a book that they liked and he would suggest an Oni Press comic that the fan would like. He then gave the fan a coupon to get a copy of the comic at the Oni Press booth. This led to Schork asking the audience if "talking penises would be rated R-Rated or NC-17?" I'm not sure what the consensus was. What do you think?

 

 

 

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James Ferguson
Lord of the Funny Books
James has a 2nd grade reading level and, as a result, only reads books with pictures. Horror is his 5th favorite genre right after romantic comedy and just before silent films. No one knows why he's here, but he won't leave.
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