New comics publisher TKO Presents is looking to change the way we buy and read comics, and they’ve lined up a murderers’ row of creators – such as Garth Ennis, Steve Epting, Jeff Lemire, and Gabriel Walta – to help.
TKO started announcing their first wave of titles last week on social media, but the big bombshells came yesterday, when the publisher announced their plans to be the “first modern comic book company.” You can read the whole thread on Twitter, but here are some highlights:
First, TKO Presents will binge-release all of their books, meaning you won’t have to wait a month to read the next issue. You’ll be able to purchase all issues of a miniseries at one time.
Next, TKO will release all of their books in three formats: digital, trade paperback, and single issues with a collector’s box. All books are released in deluxe, oversized format, “so you can take in every detail of [their] incredible art.”
And, finally, the publisher will offer the first issue of each series for FREE on their website, tkopresents.com.
The first wave of titles is available now, with the second wave coming next year. Check out TKO Presents on Twitter for a special early access code and start reading! The first set of comics includes:
Sara
A team of female Russian snipers beat back the Nazi invaders on the WW2 Eastern Front.
Writer: Garth Ennis (Punisher, Preacher, The Boys)
Artist: Steve Epting (Captain America, Velvet)
Color Artist: Elizabeth Breitweiser (Batman, Outcast, Kill or Be Killed)
Letterer: Rob Steen (Punisher, Nick Fury)
Editor: Sebastian Girner
Goodnight Paradise
After finding the body of a murdered teenage runaway, a homeless man vows to bring her killer to justice.
By Joshua Dysart (Unknown Soldier, B.P.R.D.)
Artist: Alberto Ponticelli (The Dark Knight, Unknown Soldier)
Color Artist: Giulia Brusco (Django Unchained, Scalped)
Letterer: Steve Wands (Batman, Descender)
Editor: Sebastian Girner
The Fearsome Doctor Fang
In this globe-trotting adventure, a San Francisco cop and a treasure hunter pursue a Chinese criminal mastermind who is not what he appears to be.
Writers: Tze Chun (Gotham, Once Upon a Time) and Mike Weiss (The Mentalist)
Artist: Dan McDaid (Judge Dredd, Firefly)
Color Artist: Daniela Miwa (Shaft)
Letterer: Steve Wands (Batman, Descender)
Editor: Sebastian Girner
The 7 Deadly Sins
1857. Texas. A group of death row criminals is recruited by a Mexican priest for a suicide mission into Comancheria.
Writer: Tze Chun (Gotham, Once Upon A Time)
Artist: Artyom Trakhanov (Undertow, Turncoat)
Color Artist: Giulia Brusco (Scalped, Django Unchained)
Letterer: Jared K Fletcher (Spider-Gwen, Paper Girls)
Editor: Sebastian Girner
It’s awesome to see a publisher give each creator a cover credit, including the editor. TKO Presents is clearly putting the creators first.
The latter two series, Doctor Fang and 7 Deadly Sins, are both written by company Publisher and co-founder Tze Chun. They’re Chun’s first comics, but he comes from the world of film/TV, currently working as a writer/producer on Gotham.
Wave Two comes in 2019, with books like Sentient by Jeff Lemire and Gabriel Walta, where the children aboard a spacecraft are left to be raised by the on-board AI.
Head over to TKO Presents’ website to see their full slate of books and start reading!
Are you excited about the new publisher and how they’re changing the industry? Which title sounds like your new favorite comic? Let us know in the comments!
