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Free To Be As Racy As She Wants To Be: Cult Character ‘Vampirella’ Bought By Dynamite Publishing

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14 years ago

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Talk about cult icons in comics, ‘VAMPIRELLA’ has been steaming up the covers of comic book covers since her first appearance all the way back in 1969 in Warren Publishing’s “VAMPIRELLA #1”, and has stood alongside such comic great as ‘UNCLE CREEPY’ and ‘COUSIN EERIE’. It has been a long, winding, tumultuous, and kinky journey for the scantily clad lady of the night, and today it was announced that the rights to the character would again be changing hands, this time to “THE BOYS” publisher Dynamite. Read on for the details.

Here’s An Excerpt From Bleeding Cool News Who Broke The Story,

“New York publisher Dynamite Entertainment has bought the character Vampirella, lock stock and two smoking canines, from Harris Publications. Oh, and bought Harris as well.

Created by Forrest J Ackerman in the late sixties as a new horror magazine lead, a kind of superheroine vampire for Warren Publications, developed with Archie Goodwin and Frank Frazetta , Vampirella revived the horror comic. Over time her skimpy red costume got skimpier and skimpier, though with the bankruptcy of Warren in the eighties the character was lost.

The character was revived by Harris in 1991, attracting creators from Warren Ellis to Mark Millar to Alanm Moore to Grant Morrison to Amanda Conner to Joe Quesada to Kurt Busiek to Jeph Loeb to Adam Hughes. In 2007, Fangoria claimed that they had purchased the character from Harris, something Harris denied and they continued to publish Vampirella books.”

Additionally Here Is A Press Release From Dynamite Themselves,

” March 17, 2010 – Before Twilight. Before True Blood. Before Buffy. Before Blade. There was…Vampirella! Leading comic book publisher, Dynamite Entertainment, is proud to announce it has acquired the Vampirella property from Harris Publications. Vampirella will become part of Dynamite’s thriving comic book line-up, which includes Project Superpowers, The Boys, Green Hornet, The Lone Ranger, Zorro, Army of Darkness, Red Sonja and more.

Vampirella debuted in 1969 in a black & white magazine titled simply VAMPIRELLA. With a stunning cover by legendary artist, Frank Frazetta, Vampirella #1 quickly made publishing history with its depiction of a vampire heroine, and its success prompted comics giants DC and Marvel to launch horror titles of their own. Vampirella appeared in this magazine format throughout the 1970’s. Many of these classic stories were illustrated by the legendary artist Jose Gonzalez and have remained quite popular with comics fans to the present day. After a brief publishing hiatus, Vampirella returned in 1992 and quickly regained her reigning status as the queen of all female comics characters! In continuous publication since her early 90s comeback, Vampirella has been written by top talents including Alan Moore, Mark Millar, Grant Morrision, James Robinson, Jeph Loeb, Warren Ellis, and illustrated by fan favorite artists such as Joe Quesada, J. Scott Campbell, Michael Turner, Jae Lee, Adam Hughes, Mark Texeira, Joe Jusko, Arthur Suydam, and many more! A Vampirella feature film premiered on Showtime Networks in 1996, and the character continues to appear on numerous items of licensed merchandise.

Nick Barrucci, president of Dynamite Entertainment said, “Vampirella is one of the most well-known and longest-running comic characters in the history of the business. Outside of Marvel and DC characters, very few comics characters that debuted in the 60’s still resonate with fans today. Our acquisition of this iconic brand is another step in Dynamite’s exciting growth and builds on the ongoing success of our line.”

“I am incredibly pleased to be passing the stewardship of Vampirella on to Dynamite,” said Stanley Harris, president of Harris Publications. “Dynamite has proven to be one of the premiere publishers in the comic book industry, and Vampirella couldn’t be in better and more caring hands!”

You can read the full report over at Bleeding Cool News. All I can say on this one is that it is a great deal for both parties. Dynamite continues to snag some top-notch names to add to their already impressive library, and ‘VAMPIRELLA’ gets the freedom to show even more of herself to mouth-breathing creepers everywhere. Gotta say this is a win-win. What say you?

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Comics

‘Witchblade’ is Getting Resurrected This Summer in New Comic Series from Top Cow and Image Comics

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10 hours ago

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April 17, 2024

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Witchblade cover

Witchblade, the popular comic series that initially ran from 1995 to 2015 and launched a TV series, is getting resurrected in a new comic series from Top Cow and Image Comics. It’s set to unleash heavy metal, black magic and blood this summer.

Look for the new Witchblade series to launch on July 17, 2024.

In Witchblade #1, “New York City Police Detective Sara Pezzini’s life was forever fractured by her father’s murder. Cold, cunning, and hellbent on revenge, Sara now stalks a vicious criminal cabal beneath the city, where an ancient power collides and transforms her into something wild, magnificent, and beyond her darkest imaginings. How will Sara use this ancient power, or will she be consumed by it?”

The series is penned by NYT Best-Selling writer Marguerite Bennett (Animosity, Batwoman, DC Bombshells) and visualized by artist Giuseppe Cafaro (Suicide Squad, Power Rangers, Red Sonja). The creative duo is working with original co-creator Marc Silvestri, who is the CEO of Top Cow Productions Inc. and one of the founders of Image Comics. They are set to reintroduce the series to Witchblade’s enduring fans with “a reimagined origin with contemporary takes on familiar characters and new story arcs that will hook new readers and rekindle the energy and excitement that fueled the 90’s Image Revolution that shaped generations of top creators.”

Bennett said in a statement, “The ability to tell a ferocious story full of monsters, sexuality, vision, and history was irresistible.” She adds, “Our saga is sleek, vicious, ferocious, and has a lot to say about power in the 21st century and will be the first time that we are stopping the roller coaster to let more people on. I’ve loved Witchblade since I was a child, and there is truly no other heroine like Sara with such an iconic legacy and such a rich, brutal relationship to her own body.”

“The Witchblade universe is being modernized to reflect how Marguerite beautifully explores the extreme sides of Sara through memories, her personal thoughts, like desire and hunger, in her solitude and when she is possessed by the Witchblade. So, I had to visually intersect a noir True Detective-like world with a supernatural, horror world that is a fantastic mix between Berserk and Zodiac,” Cafaro stated.

Marc Silvestri notes, “This is brand new mythology around Sara, and I can’t wait for you to fall in love with her and all the twists and turns. Discover Witchblade reimagined this summer, and join us as we bring all the fun of the 90s to the modern age and see how exciting comics can be. I can’t wait for you to read this new series.”

Witchblade#1 will be available at comic book shops on Wednesday, July 17th, for $4.99 for 48 pages. And it’ll come with multiple cover variants.

  • Cover A: Marc Silvestri and Arif Prianto (Full Color)

  • Cover B: Giuseppe Cafaro and Arif Prianto (Full Color)

  • Cover C: Blank Sketch Cover

  • Cover D (1/10): Dani and Brad Simpson (Full Color)

  • Cover E (1/25): Marc Silvestri and Arif Prianto, Virgin Cover (Full Color)

  • Cover F (1/50): J.Scott Campbell (Full Color)

  • Cover G (1/100): Bill Sienkiewicz. (Full Color)

  • Cover H (1/250): Line art by Marc. Virgin Cover, Inks (B/W)

Witchblade #1 will also be available across many digital platforms, including Amazon Kindle, Apple Books, and Google Play.

Witchblade comic panel Witchblade #1 cover image

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