Hunger Pangs; Bad Guys #5, #6 Solicitations

First, I just have to let everyone know that I'm going through Gargoyles withdrawal. My two copies of Bad Guys #3 have still not shipped from Midtown Comics, and no comic shops near me order Gargoyles comics. I'm itching to get my hands on some fresh material, so this news was a nice pick-me-up:

Thanks to a post by Greg Bishansky over at the Comment Room, we now have the solicitations for the final two issues of Gargoyles: Bad Guys!

Here they are, with a tiny bit in the way of spoilers (which most of us are already aware of), so if you don't want anything revealed, this may not be for you:

Gargoyles: Bad Guys #5 & #6

by Greg Weisman & Various Questions abound in Redemption Chapter V! What's on the mysterious island that the Squad has so desperately been trying to reach? Who sent the flying Robots? And how much does Dingo know about their attacker - a figure from his past? Then, in the final battle against the forces of the Illuminati, each member of the squad will have to decide just whose side they are on. Is redemption even possible for the bad guys? And if so, at what cost? Find out in Redemption Chapters V and VI!

According to GargWiki, the titles are BG#5 - Strangled and BG#6 - Losers.

Being that they were solicited as a pair, I'm assuming that the plan is for them to have relatively close release dates, and given the information the solicitation provides, I think it's a safe assumption that these final two issues will focus much more on the present as opposed to the three issues that have already been released, which have progressed predominantly through flashbacks.

P.S. - A little bit of news that I neglected to post: Karine has stated that she has finished BG#4, and is currently working on #5. I had updated the "Upcoming Releases" list on the right-hand side of the blog, but I didn't have the time to post her actual comments. So sorry, but here it is now, for anyone who may have missed it:

About Bad Guys #3: Toldja you'd like Chris's art! :) I was very happy to learn that he was going to be picking up my slack, and then was even happier to see his work when it came in. I learned some stuff from him, too.

Issue #4 was finished last week; I'm currently halfway into #5's roughs, and I've got just about a quarter inked. Just so you know.

So, hopefully if Gargoyles #9 is not ready to be released in June, Disney will have at least finished approving BG#4, so we won't have to go a whole month without something Gargoyles-related to feed our hunger. We're getting close to the end of Bad Guys, and it looks like it keeps getting better and better. I can't wait!

Another Tidbit from Karine

Apparently other fans have been hoping for the same thing I've been hoping for (it's probably what most of us are hoping for), that if and when the next spin-off (Gargoyles: Pendragon) is made, that Karine might stay on as the regular penciller. Here's what she had to say about it:

No. No no no. I am taking a break, guys. After Bad Guys is done, I'm going to concentrate on the day job and enjoy the fact that I'll have free time.

Later on, if/when we get to Timedancer or another Bad Guys story, I'll put my name in, but I've been working multiple jobs for several years and I honestly, truly, need a break. My kids are little and require my attention, and I also have personal projects that are itching to be made into reality, so I'm going to concentrate on that for a little while.

As for the artist on Pendragon... When it was discussed a year and a half ago, someone I know put their hand up to work on the title. It was a while ago, and their schedule might or might not permit it now... but if they can do it, I'm going to be VERY HAPPY. And so will you.
Karine

I guess the good news is that if we make it to Timedancer, chances are she'll be back, and apparently there's another great artist who may be interested in working on Pendragon. I wonder who it could be...

If there's any word on who this mystery artist is or could be, I'll be sure to keep you informed.

Post from Kanthara

Karine Charlebois, the incredible Kanthara, who guest pencilled Gargoyles #5, and is currently pencilling Bad Guys, posted at the Comment Room over at Station Eight, giving us some nice information about cameos in the comics, and progress on BG#4. If you haven't read Bad Guys #2 yet, there are SPOILERS:

Hey guys,

I popped in to sneak a peak at your comments on BG#2. I am TICKLED PINK. I am incredibly flattered by your compliments on the comic and the art.

I also wanted to apologize for the delay. Okay, it spent a long time at Disney waiting for approval, but I also had trouble delivering on time due to sick kids and taking on more work than I could actually accomplish in the time I had. This is why Christopher Jones acted as fill-in artist for issue #3.

The reason why issue 3 is coming out so quickly after #2 is that the license has a limited time duration, and the LS has to be done within that time. So we're trying to catch up on the schedule.

In any case, I think you will enjoy Chris's art. I know I learned a lot from it, and my work on issue 4 is better for it. Just so you know, the art of issue 4 is finished, and the lettering is happening right now.

A few comments and responses about the cameos. Some months ago, I made a call for cameos in my LJ. There were a few people I knew I wanted to include -- Greg B, for example, because he's been a big help with finding references and screencaps -- but I needed more people to fill up panels. So, next to Greg and Mara, you'll see Adriana (Ginnonami) and Lanny Fields (Invisible Wolf) waiting for the bus. On the following page, where "Fred" greets the other inhabitants of the Labyrinth, there's a group of guys chatting in the back: these are my gaming buddies. You've noticed human!Kanthara in Tokyo, and Vinnie was in the script. Rene (damoclesangel) is in that page as well as he is really currently there.

Benny's "I believe" t-shirt is a complete invention on my part. I thought it was amusing. I'm glad you think so too.

The coffee Dingo is drinking is actually a nod to the place where I did most of issue #2: I spent my working days at Second Cup, a coffee shop chain. The logo on Dingo's cup is a flipped version of theirs.

Issue 4 will have more cameos, because I enjoy them far too much. For those going to the Gathering, the page will be shown in the art show.

About "how much is script and how much is artist interpretation": I'll ask Greg if I can post a page of script to show. My experience as a comic book artist is limited, but as a storyboard artist, spans over several years. Greg's scripts, in my opinion, are clear, to the point, and don't lose themselves in details the actual reader will never see. He writes in such a way that I have room to manoeuvre, but at the same time I seem to have an easy time getting what he wants and drawing it right.

About the review: Well, seeing as I'm two issues in front of you (three if you count the fact that I've read the script for issue 5), I know that his concerns about continuity and obscure character references will get resolved in the following issues. Plus, you should count on issues 3 and 5 of Gargoyles, the main book, as your refresher as to who Sevarius is, mostly in Al's telling to Shari. It's recent enough (and while yes, it should have come out months ago, the time frame is still recent) and I doubt people who are picking up Bad Guys aren't picking up Gargoyles as well.

I'm sure I'm forgetting something. I was planning on going to bed early to celebrate my being finished with issue 4, but the lure of s8 was too great...

OH YEAH! Come to the Gathering to learn more about Bad Guys and see original art and perhaps even bid on original pages! I'll be selling some of my pages.
Karine

It seems that Bad Guys #4 has plenty of time to get finished and approved by the time it is expected for release in July, and hopefully this will keep the series on schedule til the end.