Issue #3 is FINALLY here -- it got a little Shakespearean there for a second.
Hey everyone,Today is a bittersweet day for the Kill Shakespeare team. On one hand we're thrilled that issue #3 of Juliet is out. We think it's the best issue of the series - a giant sized 28 pages of story that we hope feels as Shakespearean as anything we've ever done. Corin Howell's art has hit another level for this one, and I think it's one of the best issues I've ever written.
You may have noticed, however, that there's been a delay in getting this issue out -- originally #3 was supposed to be out LAST month and #4 was supposed to hit stores now.That's the bittersweet part. You see, it's been fairly Shakespearean behind the scenes here in the ol' KS world. Corin's Dad got sick early this year. He had to go into the hospital for surgery a couple of times. Thankfully he's going to be o.k., and we're so happy about that, but as you can imagine helping to take care of her family was Corin's top priority, and so that meant the book had to come second. Which is the right choice.For those of you who have the book you MAY have noticed that the colours seem a bit different. Well, that's part of the drama too...The OTHER bittersweet moment came because we had to say adieu to long-time colourist Shari Chankahamma. Shari whose been with us since Book 3 was offered an amazing opportunity to pencil and ink a project and there was no way we were going to stand in her way. That DID result in a delay though as we found a new colourist who could fit into Shari's style.Enter Alex Lille, our saviour (and big thanks to Keith Morris for helping us find her!)
This is Alex's first crack at a regular series, and she's still finishing up her degree in SoCal, so we decided that rather than rush her, it was best to take our time and make this book look as good as possible. All that add's up to a longer production cycle than we were hoping for, and it means that issue #4 is also going to be delayed -- with it looking to come out in August (it's almost finished on our end.)So, our apologies for the delay, but I hope you'll all understand the reasons behind it.Thanks to all of you.C
CAPTION CONTEST
It's contest time!With Kill Shakespeare - Past is Prologue: Juliet #1 just a week away (WEDNESDAY, APRIL 5th), it's time to do some fun things to get us all ready for the latest chapter in our tale. Below is a panel from issue #1 of Juliet.Send us your best caption for it and the winner will receive a Kill Shakespeare prize-pack including books, t-shirts and more! 
For those of you not familiar with Juliet it takes place roughly five months after the end of Romeo & Juliet, where our heroine, still mourning the death of her beloved Romeo again comes face to face with death. This time the victim is her mother, and this time Juliet has reason to suspect it was not suicide, but a murder most foul. Now the headstrong and passionate young woman will be plunged into a world of rebels, mercenaries, and wise fools as she tries to bring her Mother's killer -- before Juliet herself is the next victim.It's the perfect place for a new reader to jump into the Kill Shakespeare Universe, and for you, our dedicated fans, it answers some of the questions we get the most: how did a girl, best known for being a star-cross'd lover come to lead a rebellion?As the Bard himself wrote "...be not afraid of greatness."All the best,Conor
Sneak Peek at NEW PAGES!
As some of you have seen, Kill Shakespeare is coming back to the page.We're working on our fifth book, "Juliet" which is going to take a step back from the main story to show you how Juliet started on the path towards becoming Prodigal leader. Set just a a few months after the end of Romeo and Juliet, we pick up our heroine as an angry young woman, who still feels guilt over Romeo's death, and isn't sure that she deserved to have survived. A horrific murder will give Juliet a cause, bloody vengeance, and pit her against one of Shakespeare's nastiest villains, Cornwall from King Lear. Can Juliet get revenge? And will she lose herself in the process?Unfortunately for us, the uber-talented Andy Belanger can't join us this time out, so instead we have tapped the ALSO uber-talented Corin Howell! She's best known for her work with BOOM! (Power Rangers), Viz Media (Bravest Warriors), Oni (The Mighty Zodiac) and IDW (Transformers), and now we've got her doing pencils and inks for our baby!Vaneda Vireak, whose work featured in the back-up story for The Mask Of Night is on-board to colour the book and we could not be happier with their work.Ah heck, why don't we stop gushing and SHOW you?Below are some pencils from the first chapter of the series - we'd love to hear your thoughts on this new comic-adventure!
Assassin's Creed #6 Released This Week!
Sorry I've been so silent on this end. Things are really busy with a LOT of projects on the go, and some really cool developments and announcements coming in the near future.But let's not get ahead of myself... I'm here to talk about Assassin's Creed, as our title suggest.ASSASSIN'S CREED #6 is released in comic shops (and online) this week - Wednesday, March 16th. It's the beginning of our second arc, which means we keep some characters (our modern-day tale with Charlotte de la Cruz and her teammates) and introduce new ones. For the latter, it means that we talk Charlotte to the Last Days of the Inca Empire, circa 1536. It's an amazing time in history - and an incredible society - and we focus on a new historical character called Quila, who is a "Chasqui" (a messenger) who is responsible for bringing messages back and forth between locales. The Inca society was quite developed and had created their own form of composed communication, and it's one of these messages that Quila must deliver when she discovers it features dangerous information.You can access a preview of the pages here.The great artist Paul Pope does our A cover for this issue: it's a great one:
So pick up your copy this week!
Assassin's Creed #3 in Stores (and online) Tomorrow!
Yes, it's been a while since I've posted anything. I apologize to the regular readers of this blog but I've been pretty, pretty busy with a wide range of personal and professional things. Look for a few big announcements in January regarding new projects - it's an exciting time here in New York!As for my return to the site? Well, it's because I wanted to share that our next issue of ASSASSIN'S CREED (the third issue) will be in comics shops and online tomorrow (Wed, Dec 9th). We're excited about this issue - there's some really great visuals, a riveting story with our leads Charlotte de la Cruz and Tom Stoddard, and some new insights into the Salem Witch Trials period.The official write-up is:Desperate to escape from the horrors of Salem, Tom must place his trust in the hands of a stranger, and go against every instinct he has as an assassin, and man, to save the terrified travelers relying on him. For Charlotte, time's running out as the Templar threat moves closer...And here are the covers for the issue:
So pick up at issue at your local comic shop (or online at Comixology) and let us know what you think!
We're writing the new Assassin's Creed comics!
We're excited to announce that we are the writing team picked to write the new Assassin's Creed comics book series, debuting this fall from Titan Comics!Announced late yesterday by our amazing editors Andrew James and Lizzie Kaye at a panel at San Diego Comic-Con we were upset to have missed, we will be overseeing a new story arc for the game franchise that has sold millions of copies worldwide. When we were first approached months ago by Lizzie, she labelled it as a "mysterious video game franchise" and the first thing I thought was: "Please let it be Assassin's Creed... Please let it be Assassin's Creed..." I've been a fan of the world and mythology that Ubisoft has created and I'm quite excited to be playing in their sandbox.Our first adventure will be taking place in a very interesting time period: The Salem Witch Trials in the late-17th century, which will parallel a modern-day espionage tale. It's a very fascinating historical time period where the US was really starting as a country and people suddenly stopped trusting one another - and sometimes themselves. A great world to delve into and tell the story of some of the accused and the people trying to save/hurt them. We've created great new characters and have been doing quite a bit of research into the time period to bring it to life.Here is some of the preview artwork by British artist Neil Edwards, who we are quite excited to work with:
And you can find coverage of the announcement here.The first issue will be released in early October and followed up monthly. You can pre-order copies (there will be 5-6 variant covers for the first issue) in comic shops later this month and all of August. We'll get you the order code as soon as we receive it. And stay tuned here for more information as we move towards this great new series.
SHERLOCK HOLMES VS HARRY HOUDINI #5 - In comic shops today!
Today (Wed, Apr 22) is the release of the final issue in our fun Dynamite Comics' series SHERLOCK HOLMES VS HARRY HOUDINI. It's a cool final issue to this story and I think you'll really enjoy it - it features some cool London architecture and monuments, deals with the possible death of Sherlock Holmes, the impatience of Harry Houdini, and what happens with the other historical character introduced in our tale, the Russian mad monk Rasputin!
You can check out a preview of the first five pages of the issue here.And you can get the issue at any comic book shop in the world!
Sherlock Holmes vs Harry Houdini - Page Preview!
With the release of Sherlock Holmes vs. Harry Houdini #5 next week (Wed, Apr 22nd), I thought I'd celebrate by posting a couple pages.Here is the first page, an establishing scene in 1900 London (art by Carlos Furuzono):
And here, exclusively, is Page 9, a great fight between the mad monk Rasputin and Harry Houdini:
- Holmes vs Houdini #5 - Page 9 Preview (art by Carlos Furuzono)
Holmes and Houdini Celebrate the New Year with a New Issue!
Last year was an amazing year for us with the release of a new Kill Shakespeare graphic novel (The Mask of Night), the Kill Shakespeare Board Game (great reviews) and our new Dynamite Comics series, Sherlock Holmes vs. Harry Houdini.And the New Year starts with a bang with the release of our latest issue of the clash of the world’s greatest detective and escape artist, SHERLOCK HOLMES vs HARRY HOUDINI #3. The issue is released next Wednesday (the 14th) at comic shop around the world.It’s time for us to introduce the villain of our piece, someone who has become legendary over the years, in song, literature and media, and who we think is just as clever (if not more mysterious) than the famous Dr. Moriarty.What grand, bearded villain will appear in our tale?
Detective Sherlock Holmes’ and magician Harry Houdini’s refusal to investigate the attacks on Houdini’s shows together leads to a horrific attack on a loved one and puts Holmes and Houdini face to face with a deadly force that defies death…
The Mask of Night collected edition is out next week!
I'm excited to announce that the collected trade paperback of THE MASK OF NIGHT is being released next week in comic shops around the world (and bookstores will be the following week). So if you're looking for a great holiday gift idea for that comic and/or Shakespeare fan in your circle, our fourth volume could be it!
This collected book includes the original four issues, a new backup story detailing the backstory of our protagonist's brother Sebastian (tying it into our Kill Shakespeare universe), and a page-by-page dissection of script-to-artwork.We're excited to see the final product when it arrives (after LA port delays) and we know you will too!
Holmes vs Houdini #2 Coming Out Next Week!
“The easiest way to attract a crowd is to let it be known that at a given time and a given place someone is going to attempt something that in the event of failure will mean sudden death.” – Harry HoudiniWell, no one died last month but our new mash-up series featuring Sherlock Holmes, Harry Houdini, magic, suspense, drugs, spiritualism and death did debut with great acclaim and sold out at every convention we attended. The question by all was whether the follow-up issue would contain just as much fun and mystery?The answer: elementary, of course.Readers will be able to continue experiencing the forced partnership of these two great literary figures next Wednesday (November 12th) when SHERLOCK HOLMES vs HARRY HOUDINI #2 will be released at comic book shops around the world.
In HOLMES v HOUDINI #2, we pick up after a grotesque murder (suicide by axe?) at Harry Houdini’s show. The legendary magician clashes with Sherlock Holmes over the great detective’s refusal to allow Houdini to help bring the perpetrator to justice. But the proud Houdini won’t take no for an answer, leading to an epic game of cat-and-mouse in London’s dangerous streets.
Previews for Holmes vs Houdini #1 AND The Mask of Night #1
For those excited about the release tomorrow of SHERLOCK HOLMES VS. HARRY HOUDINI #1 and THE MASK OF NIGHT #4 then here's a bit of a sampler for you...ComicBookResources.com posted a preview of the first issue of HOLMES v HOUDINI at this link.They also posted a preview of the final issue of The Mask of Night at this link.
So head over to get excited about our double-release!
First two pages of The Mask of Night #4
In anticipation of the release of The Mask of Night #4 (in comic shops everywhere next Wed, Oct 1st), here are the first two pages (with incredible artwork by Andy Belanger and colours by Shari Chankhamma)...
Two books released next Wednesday (October 1st)!
Well, when it rains, it pours...Next week is going to be a busy one for us as we are releasing on Wed, Oct 1st not one but TWO comic book issues on the same day!First off, we are releasing the fourth and final issue of our latest Kill Shakespeare mini-series, THE MASK OF NIGHT. Betrayed by the vicious cannibal Captain Lucius, Viola and Hamlet must undertake an odds-defying mission to punish a murder most foul. It’s an ending that features adventure, romance, revenge, amazing art (by Andy Belanger) and death – all the good parts of a Shakespearean tale.And we're quite proud to release the debut issue of our new series with Dynamite Comics, SHERLOCK HOLMES vs HARRY HOUDINI. In this first issue, famed detective Sherlock Holmes and brash showman Harry Houdini must combine forces to defeat a mysterious mystic dedicated to destroying Houdini’s career and anyone who gets in his way.We quite enjoyed the ability to bring these two larger-than-life figures together and see what happens when they first meet. Do they become BFFs? Do they get under each other’s skin? And who is worthy of doing battle with both (if there is anyone at all)? We are working with talented Carlos Furuzuno and the talented team at Dynamite Comics to bring our story to life.To read a preview of the first couple pages of Holmes vs. Houdini, click here. So go to your local comic shop next Wednesday and check out both issues!
Exclusive first look at Sherlock Holmes vs Harry Houdini (via Bleeding Cool)
Just saw that BleedingCool.com has posted a few of the pages from our upcoming new comic series with Dynamite Comics, SHERLOCK HOLMES vs HARRY HOUDINI! You can check out the artwork at this link. We're quite excited about how this series is shaping out - we're in the midst of writing the latter issues and the artwork is coming in for the first couple issues. Should be great.
It's not too late to pre-order your copies at your local comic shop - go in this week and use the pre-order code of AUG141286. It'll be out in mid-October so only a month away!
Page #1 of The Mask of Night #3
We're quite chuffed about the next issue of THE MASK OF NIGHT, released next Wednesday (the 27th). And in anticipation of it, here's a side-by-side image of the final inked Page #1 by Andy Belanger and the final colored lettered page (coloured by Shari Chankhamma, lettered by Chris Mowry). What do you think?
Mask of Night #3 is out next week (Aug 27th)!
Yes, the headline is correct... After a slate of very positive reviews for Issue #2, our third (and penultimate) issue of THE MASK OF NIGHT is out next Wednesday (the 27th)!(And yes, it's also an exciting day as it's my birthday... But I digress...)Here are the two covers for the issue... Which one do you like best?
Hard Cover BACKSTAGE EDITION to come in October!
We're quite excited to announce that the long-awaited BACKSTAGE EDITION, which collects the original twelve issues of our tale, will be released in October of this year to comic book shops (and book stores)! With a leather hard cover, annotations by some of the top Shakespeare scholars in North America, an original Kill Shakespeare story, and original artwork designed by Andy Belanger, it's perfect for the biggest fans of our series!This is just a mock-up of what the cover will look like (we'll have it finalized in the next month):
You can pre-order copies at comic book shops this month (go now - order code is AUG140500!) or pre-order it online or with a book store. We're excited to see it first-hand in the very near future!
First Pages of The Mask of Night #2
With only a couple days before the release of The Mask of Night #2, here are the first three pages for your reading pleasure...
