In Case You Missed It, IDW Shines a Spotlight on the Best NYCC Moments:
Harvey Award Nominees, New Projects, Never-Before-Seen Art, and Events Galore
SAN DIEGO, CA (October 17, 2022) – IDW had a wildly fun and successful New York Comic Con 2022, drawing tens of thousands of fans to our booth with our eye-catching “IDW City” aesthetic, creator signings, live-art activations, photo ops, and more! Amid all that hooplah, even the most devoted IDW fan may have missed a newsbite or two. For your enjoyment, IDW is happy to share a look back at the award winners, new project announcements, and special panel insights from the event!
New York Times Best-Selling Author Stephen Graham Jones Promotes Earthdivers… Now Racing Toward a Second Printing by Popular Demand!
Cerebral horror visionary and New York Times best-selling author Stephen Graham Jones, writer of acclaimed genre favorites The Only Good Indians and My Heart Is a Chainsaw, spent the convention promoting his latest original comic book series, Earthdivers!
Set in a postapocalyptic near future, Earthdivers—illustrated by Davide Gianfelice and colored by Joana Lafuente—follows a small group of Indigenous survivors who time-travel to prevent the creation of America and retroactively save the world from destruction. In each arc, they will target a pivotal point in history, beginning with a mission to kill Christopher Columbus in 1492.
With New York Comic Con taking place immediately before National Indigenous Peoples’ Day and the controversial holiday Columbus Day, Earthdivers made for a very timely topic of conversation as Jones fielded interviews from Publishers Weekly, InVerse, and CNBC. Jones also made an appearance at iconic NYC retailer Forbidden Planet and participated in the Sunday panel “The Evolution of IDW Publishing,” where he debuted three never-before-seen pieces of Earthdivers artwork:
A huge announcement for Earthdivers at NYCC is that its critically acclaimed debut will be reissued with a second printing. Earthdivers #1’s four variant covers completely sold out from IDW’s distributor just two days after release! To meet consumer and retailer demand, IDW has gone back to print, and the new second printing—featuring American Vampire artist Rafael Albuquerque’s hypnotic cover artwork with brand-new color enhancements—will be available in stores on November 23rd.
The Scrappy Underdogs of Star Trek: Lower Decks Take Over the IDW Booth, and Worf Captains His Own Crew in Ongoing Star Trek: Defiant
Earlier this year, IDW revealed to the world their commitment to building an expansive, accessible Star Trek universe of comic book continuity, debuting with a brand-new ongoing series simply titled Star Trek by Collin Kelly, Jackson Lanzing, and Ramon Rosanas, due to release later this month.
At the “Star Trek: Where No Comic Book Has Gone Before” panel at NYCC, IDW proudly announced the first expansion of that initiative with the March 2023 launch of Star Trek: Defiant, an ongoing series that sees the fan favorite Worf assembling a handpicked crew—including Spock, B’Elanna, Lore, and more—to face a galaxy-spanning threat. Described as “The Dirty Dozen meets Star Trek,” the dark and edgy Defiant series is helmed by writer Christopher Cantwell (Iron Man, Star Wars: Obi-Wan) and artist Ángel Unzueta (Iron Man, Star Wars: Poe Dameron). Two covers debuted at the show, by Ángel Unzueta and Malachi Ward respectively:
In addition to the revelation of the new Defiant series, IDW revealed lots of new artwork at the panel, including Star Trek #1 interior pages (by artist Ramon Rosanas and colorist Lee Loughridge) and Star Trek: Resurgence #1 interior pages (by artist Josh Hood and colorist Charlie Kirchoff):
- Star Trek #1 Page 1
- Star Trek #1 Page 2
- Star Trek #1 Page 4
- Star Trek #1 Page 5
- Star Trek #1 Page 6
- Star Trek #1 Page 7
- Star Trek #1 Pages 15–16
As another spectacular IDW Star Trek event at NYCC, Chris Fenoglio, artist of the Star Trek: Lower Decks comic book miniseries based on the wildly popular Paramount+ animated series, graced the IDW booth with his talent for three days as he painted a mural of the U.S.S. Cerritos crew—Mariner, Boimler, Tendi, and Rutherford—in battle with a beast reminiscent of the classic cover to Fantastic Four #1.
Kevin Eastman and the Many Talents of IDW’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Comics Hint at a New Last Ronin Tale Spotlighting April O’Neil
Kevin Eastman, joined by the exceptional Last Ronin team of Tom Waltz, Esau and Isaac Escorza, Ben Bishop, and Luis Antonio Delgado, held a massively successful signing at the IDW booth over the weekend, entertaining a massive line of 200 rabid fans—many of whom walked away from NYCC with a convention exclusive edition of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin hardcover!
Also during the weekend, IDW hosted a panel called “TMNT: Secrets of The Last Ronin & Armageddon Game” that celebrated the wide offering of TMNT projects, current and upcoming, including the regular ongoing series, the massive Armageddon Game crossover, the Last Ronin spin-off The Lost Years, and the wild, wacky Saturday Morning Adventures. The panelists hinted at a new Last Ronin: The Lost Years Special, scheduled for early Spring 2023, that would highlight resistance leader April O’Neil in the aftermath of Michelangelo’s mission of vengeance. Stay tuned to IDW social media for more details of The Lost Years Special in the months to come!
IDW’s TMNT panel revealed lots of never-before-seen artwork, including two Lost Years covers by series artist SL Gallant, Armageddon Game interiors by artist Vincenzo Federici and colorist Matt Herms, and Saturday Morning Adventures interiors by artist Tim Lattie and colorist Sarah Myer.
- Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin—The Lost Years #1 Cover A
- Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin—The Lost Years #2 Cover A
- Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Armageddon Game #2 Page 4
- Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Armageddon Game #2 Page 8
- Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Armageddon Game #2 Page 11
- Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Armageddon Game #2 Page 12
- Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Armageddon Game #2 Page 18–19
- Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Saturday Morning Adventures #2 Page 2
- Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Saturday Morning Adventures #2 Page 3
- Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Saturday Morning Adventures #2 Page 4
And as a special treat, Kevin Eastman pulled back the curtain on his creative process for his collaboration with TMNT ongoing series writer/artist Sophie Campbell, revealing to the world the initial sketch, pencils, inks, and colors (by Fahriza Kamaputra) for an upcoming cover!
- Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #134 Cover B Sketch
- Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #134 Cover B Pencils
- Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #134 Cover B Inks
- Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #134 Cover B Colors
IDW Showcases Kevin Nowlan and Michael Golden, Two Titans of Superhero Comics, in Upcoming Artist’s Editions
Scott Dunbier—IDW’s Director of Special Projects and award-winning creator of the Artist’s Edition format—spent much of the convention working behind-the-scenes to scan hundreds of pages of original artwork from a host of comic art collectors, and yet he still made time to participate in several NYCC panels, reflecting on the wonders of the art form and the legendary creators who pioneered it.
At NYCC’s “The Evolution of IDW Publishing” panel, Dunbier revealed two new projects: Kevin Nowlan’s Marvel Heroes Artist’s Edition and Michael Golden’s Marvel Stories Artist’s Edition.
Kevin Nowlan’s Marvel Heroes Artist’s Edition, anticipated in stores in April 2023, will contain a selection of Nowlan’s best works for Marvel comics: covers, pages, and four complete stories, most notably his fully painted, 62-page Infernal Man-Thing graphic novel, written by Howard the Duck creator Steve Gerber. A true labor of love, the graphic novel took Nowlan 25 years to complete.
Michael Golden’s Marvel Stories Artist’s Edition, anticipated in stores in July 2023, will include four stories, including one of his most fondly remembered: the Spider-Man/Hulk tale from Marvel Fanfare #47, considered to be one of his very best! Additionally, this collection will include pages from Doctor Strange #55, Avengers Annual #10, and covers galore!
The Bram Stoker Award–Nominated Creative Team of Rich Douek and Alex Cormack Launch IDW Original Project, Breath of Shadows
Following two heavily lauded previous collaborations, Road of Bones and Sea of Sorrows, the Bram Stoker Award–nominated creative team Rich Douek and Alex Cormack will reunite for a third dark entry in their shared oeuvre with Breath of Shadows, as announced exclusively by Newsarama timed with NYCC. Debuting in February 2023, the five-issue comic book miniseries follows an internationally famous rock singer whose desperate attempt to cure his heroin addiction leads him deep into the jungles of South America, where he discovers primal horrors that put his own inner demons to shame.
Three Breath of Shadows variant covers were revealed as part of the announcement, by Cormack, Björn Barends, and Francesco Francavilla respectively:
Both Douek and Cormack were on hand at New York Comic Con to promote their new project, signing for fans and interviewing with numerous comics media outlets, including CBR.
IDW Applauds the Exceptionally Talented Creators of Ballad for Sophie and Yellow Cab as 2022 Harvey Awards Contenders
The Harvey Awards are one of the comic industry’s oldest and most prestigious awards. Recognizing outstanding achievement in multiple categories, the Harveys have been a fixture of the comic industry since 1988 and are awarded each year at New York Comic Con.
This year, the IDW titles Ballad for Sophie and Yellow Cab were nominated for three awards across two categories:
Book of the Year
- Ballad for Sophie by Filipe Melo and Juan Cavia, translated by Gabriela Soares (Top Shelf Productions)
Best International Book
- Ballad for Sophie by Filipe Melo and Juan Cavia, translated by Gabriela Soares (Top Shelf Productions)
- Yellow Cab by Benoît Cohen and Christophe Chabouté, translated by Edward Gauvin (IDW Publishing)
While the awards ultimately went to other projects, IDW would like to express our sincere congratulations to each of the talented contributors—Filipe, Juan, Gabriela, Benoît, Christophe, and Edward—for the well-deserved honor of Harvey Award nomination, a testament to their tremendous skill and creativity.
Cavan Scott, New York Times Best-Selling Author, Debuts Brand-New Artwork from Dead Seas with Collaborator Nick Brokenshire
Immediately recognizable to IDW fans for his fun, frenetic storytelling in Star Wars Adventures, writer Cavan Scott was on-hand at New York Comic Con to beat the drum for Dead Seas, the terrifying new miniseries slated to debut in December!
In Dead Seas, ghosts are real, dangerous, and valuable, their ectoplasm capable of curing countless diseases. But harvesting the wonder drug can be deadly, as it must be scraped off the walls of the Perdition, a floating prison containing the most vicious ghosts on Earth. To see his daughter again, convict Gus Ortiz is willing to take the risk in return for a reduced sentence…but surrounded by dark waters, Gus soon realizes that angry spirits are the least of his worries!
Part Poseidon Adventure, part The Haunting of Hill House, this supernatural thriller reunites Scott with his Star Wars Adventures collaborator, artist Nick Brokenshire, for a tale of specters, prisoners, pirates, and disaster on the open ocean!
At NYCC’s “The Evolution of IDW Publishing” panel, Scott introduced three pages of never-before-seen artwork from Dead Seas:
Final Observations on the IDW New York Comic Con Experience
We wanted to share just a few of the things that people are saying about IDW after the spectacle of New York Comic Con.
The Beat, one of the most well-respected comics media sites, ran two complimentary articles about IDW at NYCC. In their summary of “The Evolution of IDW Publishing” panel, they tipped their hat to the company with the assessment that “the future of IDW looks bright.” Meanwhile, The Beat identified IDW as a “winner” in their annual review of NYCC’s winners and losers, applauding IDW for “doubl[ing] down on bringing in big names to produce new works, like Scott Snyder and Stephen Graham Jones.”
In his weekly newsletter, acclaimed and best-selling comics writer Scott Snyder, author of Dark Spaces: Wildfire and curator of the entire Dark Spaces line, reflected on his NYCC experience, stating, “I got to sit on a panel at IDW with some amazing creators and talk about Wildfire and all those big professional moments.”
The media site PopVerse live blogged the entire “Star Trek: Where No Comic Book Has Gone Before” panel, detailing all the story revelations, quoting the panelists, and pointing out moments of “big cheers from the crowd.” The dedicated fan site Daily Star Trek News also summarized the goings-on from the panel.
Publishers Weekly posted an article summarizing their takeaways from NYCC, remarking how IDW benefited by being the most prominent comics publisher present. “TMNT co-creator Kevin Eastman’s appearances were just as successful as predicted, with the entire team of the smash hit The Last Ronin, starring the venerable Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, on hand for ticketed signings.”
Fifty interviews were conducted at the IDW booth over the course of the weekend, and Comic Watch was one of the first—and most prolific—sites to post videos of their Q&As with such creators as Matthew Klein (Crashing), Jackson Lanzing and Collin Kelly (Star Trek), Cavan Scott (Dead Seas), and Rich Douek and Alex Cormack (Breath of Shadows).
In conclusion, IDW would like to extend huge thanks to the fans, our creative partners, and our friends at ReedPop for an exceptional New York Comic Con. See you next year!
