Jim Zub's Blog, page 25

Talking Thunderbolts and Conan With Near Mint Condition

When I was at Lexington Comic Con I spoke to Near Mint Condition about working on titles like Thunderbolts, Wayward, and Conan the Barbarian.

D&D Comics On Humble Bundle

IDW Publishing has a new Humble Bundle dedicated to Dungeons & Dragons digital comics, old and new. Seven of my D&D comic collections are part of the bundle with funds going to help the Hasbro Foundation. Support a great cause for an incredible price – CHECK IT OUT!

Zubby Newsletter #4: Connectivity and Continuity

(Zubscribe to the Zubby Newsletter by clicking here)An interview I did in November for a podcast called  The Marvelists  finally popped up online last week and a big part of the discussion I had with Peter and Eddie in that episode centered around “continuity” – acknowledgement of past events and character consistency based on their history.

The moment you start working with established characters and worlds (instead of your own original creations) you’ll encounter the opportunities and challenges presented by existing material. Contributing to a property may gain you some legitimacy, but that comes with other limitations. Even if you try to break away from past stories and do something ‘new’, the choices you make are in response to what’s come before.

I grew up collecting Marvel Comics and obsessed over the interconnected nature of the stories – the way things that happened in one series could ripple out and effect others.

Early on, a two page sequence in Kitty Pryde and Wolverine #5 really stuck with me – Wolverine is in Japan and receives a call from Professor X to let him know that James MacDonald has died. James and Logan’s friendship and rivalry appeared in multiple issues of Uncanny X-Men over the years, so seeing the events of Alpha Flight #12 referenced here and Logan’s reaction made that character death feel even more intense.

On the very next page, Logan and Kitty are training and an impossible winter storm blows in because, over in The Mighty Thor #349, a villain named Malekith unleashed the power of an artifact called the ‘Casket of Ancient Winters’ and its magic was disrupting weather across Midgard (aka. Earth).

Two little moments played out over two pages, neither of them important to the plot of the issue, but what they represented to me as a reader and collector was cause and effect – A subtle promise that the people working on the Marvel Universe gave a damn about what was happening across all their stories and how it could weave together in unexpected and exciting ways.

When I write stories using established characters I do as much research as possible so I feel confident about what I’m building on. I also do everything I can to acknowledge the hard work of my peers so past contributors know that what they built matters even as we keep adding more over the years.

And building really is what’s required, not trapping characters in amber, untouched and unmoved. The best stories push characters into new spaces, challenging them (and us) to imagine what might come next.

Endless reboots or repeats of classic plotlines don’t do it anymore, if it ever did. The best chance you’ve got as a creator taking the wheel is to understand and acknowledge what’s come before, think carefully about the intrinsic qualities that matter most to the character and their world, and then steer into uncharted waters to see what new material you can discover.

Since I started writing stories at Marvel in 2014, I’ve gained a reputation for acknowledging continuity in the Marvel Universe, but I also put a lot of research into projects for other companies as well. The Baldur’s Gate video games inform key characters and elements of my Dungeons & Dragons comics. Obscure bits of Disney Imagineering lore found their way into the Disney Kingdoms: Figment comics. The Samurai Jack animated series provided endless inspiration while developing the comic series.

In some cases I’ve used continuity as a springboard for making major changes to characters (like returning Betsy Braddock to her British body in Mystery In Madripoor) or been asked to rejig and tighten up timelines on characters (like the Life Of Wolverine digital comic series). It can be a lot of work keeping it all organized, but a lot of fun too.

If we do our job right we should be able to keep the promise of these amazing ongoing creative sandboxes without losing current readers who may not have read the specific stories we reference. That sense of history and consequence should keep readers coming back and encourage them to read past stories, not scare them away.

Speaking of Character Continuity…

The THUNDERBOLTS: BACK ON TARGET collected trade paperback arrives in stores this week.

This was my second chance to write the Bolts (lightning strikes twice!) but my first with Hawkeye at the helm, delving into his mid-life crisis around personal failure and burdens of leadership. Lots of deep cuts to past stories, but always presented clearly so new readers understand exactly what’s at stake.

I took a very Ted Lasso approach to this mini-series, mixing comedy and character drama together with classic Marvel super heroics and artists Sean Izaakse and Netho Diaz and colorist Java Tartaglia brought their best to every issue.

Thunderbolts has gone through quite a few iterations over the past 25 years and the through line that spoke most to me no matter which version I read was “redemption” – Can you change the arc of your future even when you’ve screwed up in the past? Whether individual characters succeed or fail, the journey should keep readers guessing right up until the end.

Speaking of Character Continuity…

UNBREAKABLE RED SONJA #5, our final issue, arrives this week. The mystery of two Sonjas pays off in spectacular fashion thanks to the hard work of line artist Adrián Manuel García Montoya, colorist Francesco Segala, and letterer Taylor Esposito.

For Red Sonja’s 50th anniversary I wanted to create a story that walked the continuity tightrope – acknowledging what’s come before while also pushing forward into unexpected places with a new villain who threatens the Hyborian Age.

Sonja’s origin has been retold at least three different ways over the years, changing to generate different continuities. At the same time, a lot of people who haven’t read Red Sonja assume she’s just a female knock-off of Conan the Barbarian, which she’s definitely not. In our final issue I take those three origin stories along with the assumptions/misinterpretations and forge them together so they can coexist and then move forward.

Here’s a sneak peek at a page of Adrián’s amazing ink work referencing a classic part of Sonja’s origin story-

Although I wrote some Red Sonja previously (the Red Sonja and Cub one-shot story in 2014 and a Conan-Red Sonja mini-series with Gail Simone in 2015) this was my chance to bust out a big solo story for fantasy’s ‘She-Devil With a Sword’. Getting to do that as part of such an important anniversary made it even more special.

At the end of Unbreakable Red Sonja #5 there’s an epilogue that teases an even deeper continuity cut, acknowledging the character’s literary origin as “Red Sonya of Rogatino” from Robert E. Howard’s ‘The Shadow of the Vulture’ in 1934 (making this a bit of an 89th anniversary celebration as well), but I’m not sure if I’ll get the chance to follow that teaser up with anything else or not. In any case, it’s been a fun ride. Big thanks to editor Matt Idelson at Dynamite for helping make it all happen.

Links and Other ThingsThe  #VisibleWomen  hashtag on Twitter started by Kelly Sue DeConnick is always a fantastic way to discover new talent for fun or possible future work. March 27th was the latest showcase and, as always, the quality and quantity of creative skill on display is stellar. Dead Romans , my friend Fred Kennedy‘s new creator-owned comic about war, love, and bloody battlefields, launched last week. It’s off to a great start and the first issue has already sold out at the distributor level, so snag the first printing if you see it on the stands or make sure you pre-order the second printing. Wayne Reynolds , one of the best designers and illustrators in TTRPGs, is putting together a  Sketchbook of RPG Saints  and it looks so good. Make sure you check it out before the Kickstarter campaign ends.Sinix Design’s digital painting tutorials are wonderful, summarizing a lot of complex theory around design, rendering, readability, and appeal in easy to understand ways.When I have more time I want to practice a bunch of the techniques he covers, but in the meantime if you have any interest in making your own digital art I think you’ll really enjoy these: Beginner and Intermediate.

Thanks for reading!

If you have any questions or comments, please let me know! I’ll incorporate some Q&A into future instalments if possible.

Jim

Zubstack #4: Connectivity and Continuity

An interview I did in November for a podcast called The Marvelists finally popped up online last week and a big part of the discussion I had with Peter and Eddie in that episode centered around “continuity” – acknowledgement of past events and character consistency based on their history.

The moment you start working with established characters and worlds (instead of your own original creations) you’ll encounter the opportunities and challenges presented by existing material. Contributing to a property may gain you some legitimacy, but that comes with other limitations. Even if you try to break away from past stories and do something ‘new’, the choices you make are in response to what’s come before.

I grew up collecting Marvel Comics and obsessed over the interconnected nature of the stories – the way things that happened in one series could ripple out and effect others.

Early on, a two page sequence in Kitty Pryde and Wolverine #5 really stuck with me – Wolverine is in Japan and receives a call from Professor X to let him know that James MacDonald has died. James and Logan’s friendship and rivalry appeared in multiple issues of Uncanny X-Men over the years, so seeing the events of Alpha Flight #12 referenced here and Logan’s reaction made that character death feel even more intense.

On the very next page, Logan and Kitty are training and an impossible winter storm blows in because, over in The Mighty Thor #349, a villain named Malekith unleashed the power of an artifact called the ‘Casket of Ancient Winters’ and its magic was disrupting weather across Midgard (aka. Earth).

Two little moments played out over two pages, neither of them important to the plot of the issue, but what they represented to me as a reader and collector was cause and effect – A subtle promise that the people working on the Marvel Universe gave a damn about what was happening across all their stories and how it could weave together in unexpected and exciting ways.

When I write stories using established characters I do as much research as possible so I feel confident about what I’m building on. I also do everything I can to acknowledge the hard work of my peers so past contributors know that what they built matters even as we keep adding more over the years.

And building really is what’s required, not trapping characters in amber, untouched and unmoved. The best stories push characters into new spaces, challenging them (and us) to imagine what might come next.

Endless reboots or repeats of classic plotlines don’t do it anymore, if it ever did. The best chance you’ve got as a creator taking the wheel is to understand and acknowledge what’s come before, think carefully about the intrinsic qualities that matter most to the character and their world, and then steer into uncharted waters to see what new material you can discover.

Since I started writing stories at Marvel in 2014, I’ve gained a reputation for acknowledging continuity in the Marvel Universe, but I also put a lot of research into projects for other companies as well. The Baldur’s Gate video games inform key characters and elements of my Dungeons & Dragons comics. Obscure bits of Disney Imagineering lore found their way into the Disney Kingdoms: Figment comics. The Samurai Jack animated series provided endless inspiration while developing the comic series.

In some cases I’ve used continuity as a springboard for making major changes to characters (like returning Betsy Braddock to her British body in Mystery In Madripoor) or been asked to rejig and tighten up timelines on characters (like the Life Of Wolverine digital comic series). It can be a lot of work keeping it all organized, but a lot of fun too.

If we do our job right we should be able to keep the promise of these amazing ongoing creative sandboxes without losing current readers who may not have read the specific stories we reference. That sense of history and consequence should keep readers coming back and encourage them to read past stories, not scare them away.

Speaking of Character Continuity…

The THUNDERBOLTS: BACK ON TARGET collected trade paperback arrives in stores this week.

This was my second chance to write the Bolts (lightning strikes twice!) but my first with Hawkeye at the helm, delving into his mid-life crisis around personal failure and burdens of leadership. Lots of deep cuts to past stories, but always presented clearly so new readers understand exactly what’s at stake.

I took a very Ted Lasso approach to this mini-series, mixing comedy and character drama together with classic Marvel super heroics and artists Sean Izaakse and Netho Diaz and colorist Java Tartaglia brought their best to every issue.

Thunderbolts has gone through quite a few iterations over the past 25 years and the through line that spoke most to me no matter which version I read was “redemption” – Can you change the arc of your future even when you’ve screwed up in the past? Whether individual characters succeed or fail, the journey should keep readers guessing right up until the end.

Speaking of Character Continuity…

UNBREAKABLE RED SONJA #5, our final issue, arrives this week. The mystery of two Sonjas pays off in spectacular fashion thanks to the hard work of line artist Adrián Manuel García Montoya, colorist Francesco Segala, and letterer Taylor Esposito.

For Red Sonja’s 50th anniversary I wanted to create a story that walked the continuity tightrope – acknowledging what’s come before while also pushing forward into unexpected places with a new villain who threatens the Hyborian Age.

Sonja’s origin has been retold at least three different ways over the years, changing to generate different continuities. At the same time, a lot of people who haven’t read Red Sonja assume she’s just a female knock-off of Conan the Barbarian, which she’s definitely not. In our final issue I take those three origin stories along with the assumptions/misinterpretations and forge them together so they can coexist and then move forward.

Here’s a sneak peek at a page of Adrián’s amazing ink work referencing a classic part of Sonja’s origin story-

Although I wrote some Red Sonja previously (the Red Sonja and Cub one-shot story in 2014 and a Conan-Red Sonja mini-series with Gail Simone in 2015) this was my chance to bust out a big solo story for fantasy’s ‘She-Devil With a Sword’. Getting to do that as part of such an important anniversary made it even more special.

At the end of Unbreakable Red Sonja #5 there’s an epilogue that teases an even deeper continuity cut, acknowledging the character’s literary origin as “Red Sonya of Rogatino” from Robert E. Howard’s ‘The Shadow of the Vulture’ in 1934 (making this a bit of an 89th anniversary celebration as well), but I’m not sure if I’ll get the chance to follow that teaser up with anything else or not. In any case, it’s been a fun ride. Big thanks to editor Matt Idelson at Dynamite for helping make it all happen.

Links and Other ThingsThe  #VisibleWomen  hashtag on Twitter started by Kelly Sue DeConnick is always a fantastic way to discover new talent for fun or possible future work. March 27th was the latest showcase and, as always, the quality and quantity of creative skill on display is stellar. Dead Romans , my friend Fred Kennedy‘s new creator-owned comic about war, love, and bloody battlefields, launched last week. It’s off to a great start and the first issue has already sold out at the distributor level, so snag the first printing if you see it on the stands or make sure you pre-order the second printing. Wayne Reynolds , one of the best designers and illustrators in TTRPGs, is putting together a  Sketchbook of RPG Saints  and it looks so good. Make sure you check it out before the Kickstarter campaign ends.Sinix Design’s digital painting tutorials are wonderful, summarizing a lot of complex theory around design, rendering, readability, and appeal in easy to understand ways.

When I have more time I want to practice a bunch of the techniques he covers, but in the meantime if you have any interest in making your own digital art I think you’ll really enjoy these: Beginner and Intermediate.

Thanks for reading!

If you have any questions or comments, please let me know! I’ll incorporate some Q&A into future instalments if possible.

Jim

The Marvelists: Thunderbolts, Red Sonja, and More!

I spoke to Peter and Eddie at The Marvelists all about my work in comics, deep-diving on continuity and working with long-running properties like Red Sonja, Thunderbolts, Cthulhu, tabletop gaming, and a whole lost more! Give it a listen.

The Marvelists · The Return of Jim Zub (Red Sonja, Thunderbolts, Conan The Barbarian, Rick & Morty and more)

CONAN THE BARBARIAN on the Cover of Previews!

CONAN THE BARBARIAN #1, our big relaunch, graces the cover of Diamond Previews catalogue this month, with Dan Panosian‘s stellar cover art leading the charge into a new Hyborian Age, with my writing, Rob De La Torre line art, Jose Villarrubia on colors, and Richard Starkings on letters!

Make sure you snag our upcoming Free Comic Book Day issue #0 in May and pre-order #1 for July.
It’s going to be epic!

Zub at Lexington Comic & Toy Con 2023

I’m looking forward to being at the Lexington Comic & Toy Con in Lexington, Kentucky on March 23-26, 2023!

I’ll be set up with the Comic Sketch Art team at Table 218. I’m looking forward to meeting readers and seeing what the city has to offer.

Zubby Newsletter #3: Humble Beginnings and Eldritch Ending

(Zubscribe to the Zubby Newsletter by clicking here)Thank you again to everyone who has signed on to receive these emails and shared Zubstack with others. Greatly appreciated.Now We’re Playing With Portals

Revealed on Friday, the next Dungeons & Dragons Young Adventurer’s Guide is called PLACES & PORTALS and it arrives in bookstores on September 19th.

It’s a bit mind blowing that this is the seventh book in the series I originally proposed as just two books to Wizards of the Coast and Ten Speed Press. The response from gamers, old and new, has been incredible and we have even more in development.

Since the start, Stacy King and Andrew Wheeler have been an important part of development on the guides and Stacy, in particular, has taken on more of the workload as I juggle other writing projects and teaching. I’m incredibly proud of what we’ve put built and it wouldn’t be possible without their hard work.

If you haven’t seen the D&D Young Adventurer’s Guides before, they’re the perfect entry point to the hobby. They’re built for readers age 8-12 but we’ve also heard from a bunch of Dungeon Masters that they also work incredibly well for introducing adult players to the game as well. More info on the series here in the FAQ I put together a while back.

A Blast from the Past: My First Comic Script

While digging through a bunch of old digital files I stumbled across CARGO, the first original comic script I ever wrote.

Back in 2002 I put this 12-page story together for a friend of mine working at the animation studio we were both at when he mentioned that he wanted to practice drawing comic pages in his spare time but didn’t have any story ideas. I asked what kind of thing he wanted to draw and he said “something Sci-Fi”, so this is what I came up with for him.

Obviously I’ve learned a lot since writing that first script, but I think the story still works well.

I thought it would be fun to post the full script up on my Patreon (with no paywall) so all of you can check it out and also so that if any artists or art students want to draw it as practice or a portfolio piece it’s easy to access. If you do illustrate it, just make sure you credit me for the story.

Another Blast From the Past: Skullkickers Stew

Thanks for the nice response to Grandma’s pierogi recipe I posted last time.

If you never saw the recipe for Skullkickers Stew and Dungeon Dumplings originally included as back matter in SKULLKICKERS #3 (way back in 2010), click on through HERE and snag the recipe.

A Blast From the Here and Now: R+M VS Cthulhu

And now, something new – This week sees the arrival of RICK AND MORTY VS CTHULHU #4 (of 4), the meta-mad chaotic conclusion of the mini-series Troy Little and I put together to tear a strip off ol’ H.P. Lovecraft, the Cthulhu Mythos, and the popularity of Rick and Morty all at the same time. Troy’s artwork (with Leonardo Ito and Nick Filardi on colors and Crank handling the lettering) elevated every scene, turning neat ideas I had for this tale into mind bending storytelling on a level I never could have imagined.

Even if you haven’t read any Lovecraft lore, there’s a lot to love here and I wrote a series of essays for each issue called Eldritch Endpapers that explains which stories and tropes we riff on and how it all links together.

The rocky ride Oni Press has had over the past year coupled with the PR bomb Adult Swim had to diffuse on Rick and Morty made the launch and release of this mini-series more difficult than any of us could have foreseen but, in the end, I am so damn thrilled with how well it all finally came together. We wove a lot of complex ideas and surreal visuals together while still delivering a story filled with humor and heart.

Big thanks to editors Sarah Gaydos, Chris Cerasi, Robert Meyers, and Bess Pallares for their support through thick and thin.

Check out preview pages for the final issue HERE.

Links and Other ThingsThe Etherington Brothers tutorial series  How To Think When You Draw  is a constant source of information and inspiration for my students and I. Their ability to summarize key concepts around perspective, structure, composition, design, and appeal in bite-size ways is really impressive and the subjects they cover run the gamut from the foundational to the fantastic. Their Twitter account also links to a bunch of other drawing and painting resources, so it’s well worth a follow.My buddy Charles Soule has a new novel coming out called  The Endless Vessel , but even cooler than that is the fact that he’s already written a second book expanding on the lore in it and is offering that expansion and a slew of other goodies (including an incredible map by cartographer  Marco Bernardini ) via Kickstarter right HERE.

That should cover it for this one.

If you have any questions or comments, please let me know!

Jim

Zubstack #3: Humble Beginnings and Eldritch Ending

Thank you again to everyone who has signed on to receive these emails and shared Zubstack with others. Greatly appreciated.

Now We’re Playing With Portals

Revealed on Friday, the next Dungeons & Dragons Young Adventurer’s Guide is called PLACES & PORTALS and it arrives in bookstores on September 19th.

It’s a bit mind blowing that this is the seventh book in the series I originally proposed as just two books to Wizards of the Coast and Ten Speed Press. The response from gamers, old and new, has been incredible and we have even more in development.

Since the start, Stacy King and Andrew Wheeler have been an important part of development on the guides and Stacy, in particular, has taken on more of the workload as I juggle other writing projects and teaching. I’m incredibly proud of what we’ve put built and it wouldn’t be possible without their hard work.

If you haven’t seen the D&D Young Adventurer’s Guides before, they’re the perfect entry point to the hobby. They’re built for readers age 8-12 but we’ve also heard from a bunch of Dungeon Masters that they also work incredibly well for introducing adult players to the game as well. More info on the series here in the FAQ I put together a while back.

A Blast from the Past: My First Comic Script

While digging through a bunch of old digital files I stumbled across CARGO, the first original comic script I ever wrote.

Back in 2002 I put this 12-page story together for a friend of mine working at the animation studio we were both at when he mentioned that he wanted to practice drawing comic pages in his spare time but didn’t have any story ideas. I asked what kind of thing he wanted to draw and he said “something Sci-Fi”, so this is what I came up with for him.

Obviously I’ve learned a lot since writing that first script, but I think the story still works well.

I thought it would be fun to post the full script up on my Patreon (with no paywall) so all of you can check it out and also so that if any artists or art students want to draw it as practice or a portfolio piece it’s easy to access. If you do illustrate it, just make sure you credit me for the story.

Another Blast From the Past: Skullkickers Stew

Thanks for the nice response to Grandma’s pierogi recipe I posted last time.

If you never saw the recipe for Skullkickers Stew and Dungeon Dumplings originally included as back matter in SKULLKICKERS #3 (way back in 2010), click on through HERE and snag the recipe.

A Blast From the Here and Now: R+M VS Cthulhu

And now, something new – This week sees the arrival of RICK AND MORTY VS CTHULHU #4 (of 4), the meta-mad chaotic conclusion of the mini-series Troy Little and I put together to tear a strip off ol’ H.P. Lovecraft, the Cthulhu Mythos, and the popularity of Rick and Morty all at the same time. Troy’s artwork (with Leonardo Ito and Nick Filardi on colors and Crank handling the lettering) elevated every scene, turning neat ideas I had for this tale into mind bending storytelling on a level I never could have imagined.

Even if you haven’t read any Lovecraft lore, there’s a lot to love here and I wrote a series of essays for each issue called Eldritch Endpapers that explains which stories and tropes we riff on and how it all links together.

The rocky ride Oni Press has had over the past year coupled with the PR bomb Adult Swim had to diffuse on Rick and Morty made the launch and release of this mini-series more difficult than any of us could have foreseen but, in the end, I am so damn thrilled with how well it all finally came together. We wove a lot of complex ideas and surreal visuals together while still delivering a story filled with humor and heart.

Big thanks to editors Sarah Gaydos, Chris Cerasi, Robert Meyers, and Bess Pallares for their support through thick and thin.

Check out preview pages for the final issue HERE.

Links and Other ThingsThe Etherington Brothers tutorial series  How To Think When You Draw  is a constant source of information and inspiration for my students and I. Their ability to summarize key concepts around perspective, structure, composition, design, and appeal in bite-size ways is really impressive and the subjects they cover run the gamut from the foundational to the fantastic. Their Twitter account also links to a bunch of other drawing and painting resources, so it’s well worth a follow.My buddy Charles Soule has a new novel coming out called  The Endless Vessel , but even cooler than that is the fact that he’s already written a second book expanding on the lore in it and is offering that expansion and a slew of other goodies (including an incredible map by cartographer  Marco Bernardini ) via Kickstarter right HERE.

That should cover it for this one.

If you have any questions or comments, please let me know!

Jim

Arriving in September: Places & Portals

Arriving September 2023, PLACES & PORTALS, the seventh Dungeons & Dragons Young Adventure’s Guide!

Explore the geography, inhabitants, and legends of Dungeons & Dragons landscapes, from the challenges of the Forgotten Realms to spaces and places beyond, with this illustrated guide to adventurous travel.

In this illustrated guide for new players, you’ll be transported to the wondrous and magical realms of Dungeons & Dragons and given a one-of-a-kind course on all the places and portals adventurers can explore. Featuring fascinating lore and easy-to-follow explanations, young fans’ imaginations will ignite as they discover the unique quests, challenges, and magic that await in each destination.

With original, action-packed illustrations and advice on wilderness survival, creating overland maps, and the basics needed for any journey, this book provides the perfect introduction to young fans looking to traverse the worlds of D&D—and encourages them to create their own!

Adventure exists in incredible locations, and Places & Portals will help you explore it all!

D&D Young Adventurer’s Guide 7
Places & Portals
Explore the geography, inhabitants, and legends of Dungeons & Dragons landscapes, from the challenges of the Forgotten Realms to spaces and places beyond, with this illustrated guide to adventurous travel.

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