Jim Zub's Blog, page 125

Wayward and Weird Japan Video Now Online

At Emerald City Comicon Zack Davisson (professional translator and mythology expert) and I talked about Japanese myths, spirits, and the strange, along with how I evolved some of those for my creator-owned series Wayward.

Jenna, one of our fans, recorded most of the panel and has posted it online. Thanks, Jenna!

Convention Horror Stories Panel Audio Now Online

Jamie Coville recorded audio from this year’s infamous Convention Horror Stories panel from Emerald City Comicon that Katie Cook (My Little Pony) and I were on. If you’ve always wondered about what it’s like to meet people at more than a dozen conventions a year and what kind of trouble we can get ourselves into, this one’s for you. Please keep in mind that this audio is most definitely not safe for work and includes quite a bit of swearing.

For a rundown of other panels Jamie recorded at the show, click HERE.

Wayward #6 and Skullkickers #31 Reviews!

Wayward #6 and Skullkickers #31, both the first part of their respective story arcs, arrived in stores last week and the response has been wonderful! Let’s see what reviewers thought…

• All-Comic: 4/5 “…with the masterful art team of Steve Cummings and Tamra Bonvillain at the helm, the story couldn’t be in better hands.”

• The Beat: “While there is a hefty amount of Japanese culture depicted in the story, there is also clean lines and bright coloring that move this story closer towards American comic book art standards.”

• Big Glasgow: 9/10 “The detail in which Japanese culture is depicted in Wayward is fantastic.”

• Black Ship Books: “Wayward #6 is the perfect jumping-on point for new readers, so if you have any interest in Japanese folklore or teens fighting the supernatural, this is the book for you.”

• Brittlejules: “If you enjoy Japanese supernatural stories and monsters, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, ghosts, cats, and troubled teens with strange powers, then you should definitely check out Wayward.”

• Comic Book Bin: “This comic book is like one big enchantment that draws me into the story. I guess I am not the only reader who wants to live in the world of this series.”

• Comics the Gathering: 10/10 “This art team lays waste to so many other books. I can’t wrap my head around how they’re able to produce pages of this quality so quickly.”

• Comix I Read: 4.5/5 “The new arc started very strong and I am very excited to conitnue reading WAYWARD for its Wayworld.”

• Fandom Post: B+ “The book is definitely a welcome return to my reading schedule as Jim Zub handles the narration very well, making it engaging and interesting”

• The Latest Pull: 8.5/10 “I went in to this book with a bit of cautious scepticism, but was pleasantly surprised by this new beginning and I expect good things in the future.”

• Major Spoilers: 9/10 “Wayward #6, in particular, is a treat for readers of the series. We get to see the world, characters and magical elements we are familiar with, but through a fresh pair of eyes.”

• Moar Powah: 4/5 “Wayward #6 brings in teases of what’s to come. We wonder what’s to become of our new and old protagonists.”

• Outright Geekery: 10/10 ” So long as Jim Zub and Steve Cummings continue to deliver a great series, I will continue to recommend this series.”

• Reading With a Flight Ring: “the characters and characterization is simply superb and demonstrates why I’ll follow Jim to whatever he writes”

• Telltale Mind: 8/10 “With an ending to the story that can only be called mysterious, Zub and Cummings draw you back into this world and all that can be said is that it is good to be back.”

• Third Eye Spotlight: “It’s great storytelling, great writing, and we can’t get enough.”

• TM Stash: 9/10 “I have trouble deciding what impresses me more with this book – the exceptional script or the beautiful artwork”

• Under the Comic Covers: “Another wonderfully paced issue. A great mix of mystery and action.”

• We The Nerdy: 8.5/10 “The art too, is still fantastic. The battle at the end looks great, and some of the strange paranormal events that Ohara experiences are all great looking.”

• Comic Bastards: 10/10 “You have no excuse why this book isn’t in your life.”

• Comics Alliance: “Skullkickers has been one of the great dark horse stories of the last few years, and it’s fantastic to see that it’s been able to go so long and maintain the fun”

• Comix I Read: 4.5/5 “Skullkickers #31 channels the energy of a drunken game of D&D with your friends. It takes everything you love about the fantasy genre but throws in a laugh every half a second.”

• Newsarama: 8/10 “This issue of Skullkickers, like those before it, makes a great example of how comics can be just fun and still be completely successful.”

• Panel Culture: “Edwin Huang is just fantastic on these fight scenes. They’re dynamic, they’re fun, and Misty Coats’ colors are vibrant.”

• Unleash the Fanboy: 9/10 “Equal parts lore, story and fun, Skullkickers #31 is a well-rounded stable issue that eagerly kicks back into the swing of things.”

Great Big Beautiful Podcast Interview

I was interviewed by the gang at GeekDad on their Great Big Beautiful podcast and I’m really happy with how this one turned out. we talk about working with the Disney Imagineering team on Figment, finding the voice for a series, and juggling multiple projects. Give it a listen!

Mega-Zub Comic Release Day!

Thanks to the shipping strike that happened in California and a couple printing delays a bunch of my comic titles have synced up, leading to the craziest new comic book day of my career so far:
6 new books from 4 different publishers all arriving in comic shops TODAY!

Yeah, it’s ridiculous.

Click on any of the covers below to read preview pages from each of the books:

As always, thank you for your support!

Zub at Emerald City Comicon This Weekend!

This weekend convention season 2015 kicks into overdrive with the wondrous Emerald City Comicon in Seattle, Washington! It’s one of my favorite shows every year and this time it’s going to be extra-special as I’ll be there celebrating the release of WAYWARD Vol. 1 and the arrival of WAYWARD #6 and SKULLKICKERS #31!

Here is where you can find some of my artistic collaborators and I at the show:



JIM ZUB – Table HH-11

ANDY SURIANO (Samurai Jack artist) – Table HH-12

EDWIN HUANG (Skullkickers artist) – Booth 1702

MAX DUNBAR (D&D: Legends of Baldur’s Gate artist) – Table HH-10

ZACK DAVISSON (Wayward essays) – Table F-14

Image and Emerald City Comicon teamed up to create a limited hardcover edition of Wayward Vol. 1: String Theory for the show. It’s limited to only 250 copies and I’ll be selling them at the table for $30 each as long as they last.

I’ll also have a selection of issues, sketch covers, trade paperbacks, and variants from my other series there as well: Skullkickers, Samurai Jack, D&D: Legends of Baldur’s Gate, Conan-Red Sonja, Munchkin, Wayward, and more!

Here’s a list of signings and panels I’ll be on over the weekend:

FRIDAY MARCH 27th

Writers Unite: Pitching and Writing Comic Stories

11:30AM – 12:20PM in Hall F (TCC 304)

Comics are everywhere and publishers are looking for fresh ideas from a new generation of talent. Listen closely as creators Charles Soule (Death of Wolverine, Letter 44), Kieron Gillen (Young Avengers, Wicked + the Divine), and moderator Jim Zub (Samurai Jack, Wayward) discuss pitching story concepts and offer advice on climbing to the top of the treacherous submission mountain, along with writing techniques and amusing anecdotes.

Wayward and Weird Japan

2:50PM – 3:40PM in Hall E (TCC 303)

Dive into the weird world of the hit series Wayward from Image Comics. Series writer Jim Zub and back matter writer and Japanese folklore expert Zack Davisson take you on a tour of the mystical menagerie of Japan’s Yōkai.

4:00PM – 4:50PM Gail Simone and Jim Zub sign at the Dark Horse booth (BOOTH 802)

SATURDAY MARCH 28th

Convention Horror Stories

1:50PM – 2:40PM in Hall E (TCC 303)

Join Katie Cook (My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic) and Jim Zub (Samurai Jack) for their fan-favorite con horror stories panel! What’s it like working as a pro in the business on the convention ‘circuit’? Ridiculous, embarrassing, always entertaining. Some stories will make you laugh out loud, some will make you cringe! This panel is recommended for those 18+

D&D: Legends of Baldur’s Gate #5 Reviews

After a shipping delay, Legends of Baldur’s Gate #5, wrapping up our story, has finally arrived. Let’s see what reviewers thought of it…

• Bleeding Cool: “I can only hope that this isn’t the last time we see this fun team together.”

• Fanboy Comics: “The story sings, and it’s a fight that we’ve been waiting for from the first moment we heard the word Dragon, and it doesn’t disappoint.”

• Fanboy Nation: “Legends of Baldur’s Gate has been a blast. Here’s hoping that issue #5 is not the end!”

• Geeks With Wives: 8.5/10 “Once again, Zub nails the script and dialogue. The conversations and narration were wonderfully done, and captured the spirit of the source material.”

• Reading With a Flight Ring: “the interiors are simply stunning to behold. If you need proof pick this up and flip through it the visage of the Dragon on any page is a thing of beauty.”

This Weekend: Toronto Comicon!

This weekend, March 20-22, I’ll be a guest of the Toronto Comicon, set up for the show at ARTIST ALLEY TABLE P-22. It’s my first comic convention of the year and I’m excited to be kicking the 2015 season off with a hometown show.

I have a limited number of advance copies of WAYWARD Vol. 1: String Theory, WAYWARD #6, and SKULLKICKERS #31, so make sure you swing by to grab a copy before the regular release date. I’ll also have trades, comics, and sketch covers for a bunch of my other series, including Samurai Jack, Dungeons & Dragons: Legends of Baldur’s Gate, Conan-Red Sonja, and more!

If you’re in the Greater Toronto Area and can make it out to the show I hope to see you there!

(PS: I might be late on Friday as I have to head right from my teaching day job down to the convention centre, so between crazy Toronto traffic and set-up I might be delayed.)

Wayward #9 Solicitation

Arriving in June… Preorder now!

WAYWARD #9

story: JIM ZUB

art / cover A: STEVE CUMMINGS & TAMRA BONVILLAIN

cover B: GURIHIRU

JUNE 24 / 32 PAGES / FC / M / $3.50

IMAGE’S SUPERNATURAL SENSATION CONTINUES!

Tokyo is a battleground and blood will be spilled.

COVER A is part four of a five-part panorama by STEVE CUMMINGS & TAMRA BONVILLAIN. Buy all five issues of this story arc to fit them together into a massive WAYWARD illustration.

COVER B is a variant by acclaimed Japanese illustrators GURIHIRU.

Arriving in June: Skullkickers #100?!

In June, Skullkickers comes to an end with the wrap-up of our sixth and final story arc “Infinite icons of the Endless Epic”. We didn’t want this momentous occasion to go unnoticed, so we decided to do what the other comic publishers do when they want to celebrate a big story event – we bull$#@&ted a big number on the cover because we could.

Here’s the June ordering solicitation:

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SKULLKICKERS #100

story: JIM ZUB

art: EDWIN HUANG & MISTY COATS

cover: CHRIS STEVENS & ESPEN GRUNDETJERN

JUNE 24 / 40 PAGES / FC / T / $3.99

“INFINITE ICONS OF THE ENDLESS EPIC” Finale

ISSUE 100?! Hey, if other publishers can just slap any old number on a cover and call it an anniversary, then we want in on that action for our final issue.

Yup, this is the big finish. All skulls must be kicked.

Join us in sending off the series in style with a big 3-digit number and tweet with the hashtag #SK100 to let us know what happened in the 66 issues in between. The best entries get a place in Skullkickers history.

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That’s right, we’re jumping straight to #100 to finish the series and are letting our fans fill in the 66 issue gap with the Twitter hashtag #SK100. Tell us in 140 characters a summary of what happened in an unpublished issue of Skullkickers (from #34-99) and the best ones will be listed in the back of our final issue. Anyone could be one tweet from their first Twitter comic writing credit.

So few creator-owned comics ever have an issue 100. We’re feeling quite honored to share this rarified air with Spawn, Savage Dragon, Walking Dead, and Invincible. It’s a milestone for creator-owned comics and we couldn’t do it without Image Comics and our dedicated fanbase.

Thank you for 34 100 issues of love and support.