Wednesday, April 28, 2021

TO INFINITY AND BEYOND!


Although I'd dabbled in animation in the 1980s and 1990s, it wasn't until I started writing for the Justice League Unlimited TV series that I fell in love with the form.  JLU was the gig that really launched my animation career—I wrote seven episodes, including the adaptation of Alan Moore's "For The Man Who Has Everything"—and what a great launching pad it was.  The vision of the League that sprang from the creative minds of Bruce Timm, James Tucker, Stan Berkowtiz, Dwayne McDuffie and company was both a perfect distillation of the best elements from the comics and a fresh new take on these legendary characters.  

As time has passed, the show has become a classic—every day I see fans on Twitter clamoring for its return—which is why I'm happy to say that JLU is back.

But not as a TV show.

James Tucker (producer of JLU, Batman: The Brave and the Bold, Legion of Superheroes and many more) and I will be co-writing a new series for DC Comics called Justice League Infinity, which picks up where the TV series left off.  Why Infinity?  Because our story is big—and takes our characters across the multiverse in search of...

Well, I don't want to give anything away.  But I will say that the art—by penciler/inker Ethen Beavers and colorist Nick Filardi—is extraordinary (see the pages below) and we're all thrilled to be working with this iconic cast, reviving and renewing the JLU universe.

The first digital issue of Justice League Infinity will be released in May, while the print version will hit comics shops in July.  Come join us on what we hope will be a memorable voyage across the DC multiverse, in the company of some old and dear friends.




Friday, April 23, 2021

SHAMBALLING

While going through old files, I came across this layout I did for artist Dan Green when we were working on our 1980's graphic novel, Dr. Strange:  Into Shamballa.

Dan and I created the story together, then I wrote up a detailed plot and, using my outline as a guide, Dan laid out the story, adding his own twists and turns, and creating thumbnail art for me to script from.  But sometimes, as I wrote from the thumbnails, the story would change (as stories tend to do) and I'd draw these goofy doodles to let Dan know what I was thinking, how I envisioned the new sequence.

Dan then turned my goofiness into breathtaking art.  (Most folks only know Dan as an inker, but his talents are vast.)

Doc never did say "Oy, vey" in the story, though!



Saturday, April 17, 2021

IMAGINATION UPDATE

The Imagination 101 writing workshop originally scheduled for this month has been rescheduled for June.  Two weekends, ten hours, courtesy of the fine folks at Comixplex.com.  My first two online workshops—101 last November and 201 this past March—were a blast:  I had a fantastic group of students, filled with energy and ideas.  Looking forward to jumping back into the infinite pool of imagination in June.

Come join us!