It's a comic book, about comic books! That's right, The Comic Book History of Comics tells the story of how comic books became what they are and features some of the medium's most influential figures.
It was created by Fred Van Lente and Ryan Dunlavey and originally released in 6 issues by IDW. Now, a volume collecting the entire series is being released and Comics Alliance has a preview featuring the chapter on the the life of Osamu Tezuka and the rise of manga in Japanese culture. Check it out!
If you own a Playstation Portable, you may find this interesting. By using a special code, you can get a free issue of the Astro Boy movie adaptation comic by IDW for the PSP Digital comics reader. The code is:
FF3N-H7B6-M2JF
The code should be valid for awhile and there is no apparent limit on how many people can take advantage of this cool offer. Try it out and post a comment to let everyone know how it works! Did I mention it was free?
Astro is hitting the iPhone and iPod Touch in a big way!
Following up on the recent announcement of Weekly Astro Boy Magazine in English, now IDW's Astro Boy comic books are also available for download on iTunes. Every issue of both the movie adaptation and the prequel are available right now individually or as complete graphic novels.
The first issue of the comic book adaptation of the upcoming animated Astro Boy movie will be released this week on August 19th, by IDW. You can see the retailer incentive cover version on the right.
The artwork by E.J. Su looks absolutely awesome and totally full of personality. Ban Shunsaku aka Mustachio makes an appearance! Sharp eyed readers will spot several cameos from other Tezuka characters as well. I'm not sure if these will be in the movie too or if they're just fun Easter eggs for the comic, but either way it's totally cool.
I only read the first 5 pages because I don't want to spoil too much of the movie. But I really like what I'm seeing thus far.
IDW is rolling out brand new comics based on the upcoming CG animated Astro Boy movie, and now we've got a look at the covers of the collected versions, now available for pre-order on Amazon.com. They are set for release on September 29. Let's take a look at the artwork that will be gracing the covers!
And here is the cover to The Movie Adaptation. It is also written by Scott Tipton and drawn by E.J. Su, though this cover artwork looks like it's by Diego Jourdan.
I wonder if the cover art is going to stay this way. It seems odd to have Diego's art as the cover to E.J.'s book but not his own book. Perhaps it is just temporary, or perhaps this is the way the company wants it. Diego, E.J., can either of you two gents shed some light on this?
Major thanks go out to the ever-adorable AstroBoyGF from the Astroboy Online forums, who brought these Amazon listings to my attention.
If you're interested in ordering these books, please consider using the Amazon links below, as doing so will help to support the further development of AstroBoy World!
Check out these 3 preview pages from the upcoming Astro Boy movie "prequel" comic set to be released by IDW with artwork by Diego Jourdan (although Diego tells me it's not actually a prequel, but whatever).
Looks like this is shaping up to be real fun book! I am loving the look of this!
These images originally come from Diego's Webpage, so be sure to check it out. Thanks to Al for the tip!
Set for release in May is the first issue of a comic series published by IDW serving as a lead-in to the Astro Boy Movie story. This is a separate comic from the movie adaptation. Here's the official solicitation.
ASTRO BOY MOVIE PREQUEL: UNDERGROUND #1
Written by Scott Tipton, art by Diego Jourdan, covers by Jourdan and Ashley Wood.
He's back! Astro Boy makes his return to comics, paving the way for his exciting feature film debut later this year! It's an all-new Astro Boy adventure, with Astro exploring a strange subterranean kingdom in search of his lost father, encountering weird creatures large and small. But are they friend or foe?
32 pages, $3.99.
Diego Jourdan is a great artist who's work I know from Teenage Mutatnt Ninja Turtles and Transformers. He's an absolutely great choice for Astro Boy. You can check out his web page here.
If you want these comics, be sure that you visit your local comic book retailer and place an order ahead of time!
Last Week, IDW Editor-in-Chief Chris Ryall posted a preview of the upcoming Astro Boy comic based on the CG Animated movie set for release this fall from Imagi. Take an early look at the incredible, Tezuka-inspired artwork of E.J. Su in these two black and white pages!
Reputed artist Ashley Wood gives us a work-in-progress preview of a new cover he's painting for the upcoming Astro Boy comic book series published by IDW.
While the big news for NYCC is going to be from this Sunday's big presentation by Summit Entertainment featuring footage from the upcoming CG animated Astro Boy movie by Imagi, the comic book gurus at IDW Publishing were also there to announce some new information about their adaptations of the film.
The picture to the right has nothing to do with Astro. I just think it's funny.
Scott Tipton will be writing the Astro Boy Movie Prequel. Tipton’s also writing the adaptation of movie this September. Ashley Wood illustrates the cover of prequel, and E.J. Su, who was inspired to become a cartoonist by Astro Boy, will draw the adaptation.
Scott Tipton has written other IDW comic projects such as Star Trek and Angel, and also has a website called Comics 101.
Looks like I was right about Ashley Wood's involvement in the comics, but it was a pretty safe estimate given how much he's already done with IDW.
E.J. Su is an artist I've been a fan of since I first saw his pieces in the Transformers: Genesis art book. He's been penciling Transformers comics for IDW and is an excellent choice for drawing Astro Boy. In fact, when I first heard that IDW was doing Astro Boy comics for the movie, his name immediately sprang to my mind.
Here is a piece of Astro Boy artwork that E.J. did, though I'm fairly certain this was just done for himself and not for anything official.
So, with this in mind it can safely be said that E.J. pretty much rocks the house.
More from the IDW panel:
Tipton said that the footage he’s seen of the Astro Boy movie “looks fantastic, it looks really fun.” He said that writing Astro Boy has been a work in progress, because he “can’t really make with the quips.” He’s had to learn “how to make a ten-year-old boy with machine guns in his butt funny.” Ryall said that the movie is very “true to [Osamu] Tezuka’s spirit.”
So there you have it. Actual news on the upcoming comics! I wonder how the story of the prequel comics will work out before the movie? How much of Astro do we see in the prequel comics if the movie is about how he was created in the first place? They must have something in mind, so I guess we'll find out!
Continue reading "IDW @ NYCC"...
Sci Fi Wire has a new article detailing comic books that are set to be released alongside some of this year's big movie releases. Along with the Astro Boy comics planned by IDW are fellow robot franchises Terminator and Transformers, along with Underworld, Star Trek, and more.
About Astro Boy, they say:
Comic Info: IDW has plans for two direct tie-ins for the fall animated family film, but Astro Boy will appear in a few other comic series before his big-screen debut.
Rumors continue to circulate about whether Imagi Animation Studios will remain a production company through the rough financial waters of the credit crunch, but everyone is certain that their CGI adaptation of Osamu Tezuka's classic manga and anime Astro Boy will be completed for its fall release. And as with so many other movies on our list, IDW nabbed the rights for both a prequel series and an adaptation whose format and release dates remain undetermined just yet. Although more than likely they'll resemble the company's efforts in the Terminator franchise.
However, since Astro Boy has been appearing in manga and other comics for more than 40 years, several other publishers have releases on tap for 2009 that capitalize on the movie's impending release and should prove entertaining for curious viewers. Dark Horse Comics already publishes 23 volumes of Tezuka's manga series and will combine the first two collections into one trade paperback book in September for an easily digestible introduction to the character and his creator. Perhaps more interestingly, American manga giant Viz plans on releasing Pluto—an acclaimed sci-fi manga set in Astro Boy's world by Monster artist Naoki Urasawa—in February, which should appeal to adult readers interested in taking their kids to the new film.
Worth a pick up?: You'd be better off getting the originals for your kids.
There is some info here about what IDW might have up their sleeve. While I don't necessarily disagree with this article's final assessment, since people really should be getting the original Astro Boy manga for their kids, but it's a little early to be passing judgment on comics that we haven't even seen yet, isn't it?
Continue reading "Upcoming Sci Fi Movie Comics"...
Wow, there has been so much news about the animated Astro Boy movie over the past few days, it has been difficult to keep up with it all. I'll try to consolidate the most important recent news-bites in this post.
At the American Film Market last week, Imagi had a screening of the trailer for the upcoming film for potential buyers and distributors in the industry. Imagi's own Felix Ip writes that the teaser trailer is attached to DreamWorks' "Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa" and Disney's "Bolt", so it will be seen this month! The picture above is a huge promotional standee.
Next, we know that Summit Entertainment is releasing the Astro Boy film around the world except for in China, Hong Kong, and Japan. It has just been announced that the movie has been licensed to Golden Harvest in Hong Kong, Enlight Pictures in China, and Kadokawa in Japan. It is here that we learn that the budget for this movie has moved up from its previously announced $40 million range and is now pegged at $65 million! This news comes from Variety articles "Imagi sells 'Astro Boy' rights" and "Kadokawa nabs rights to 'Astro Boy'".
As far as bringing all this stuff to us, Imagi has announced marketing partnerships with Striker Ent. and Rogers & Cowan. Looks like everyone worldwide can look forward to a wide array of Astro Boy products, with a focus on marketing to the 6 to 14 year old age group. Check out Imagi's press release (pdf) as well as this article from Animaton Magazine.
Long story short: There is a big-time marketing machine behind this movie,it's rolling right at us full steam ahead, and we're going to be getting a whole lot of cool stuff as a result!
This site is dedicated to everything Astro Boy, the works of Osamu Tezuka, and other related anime & manga. Whether you're an old-school fan, a newcomer, or anything in between, AstroBoy World is bound to offer something interesting for you.
