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Mandy Sneak Preview in Dublin

Be one of the first people to see Panos Cosmatos’ newest film at a Mandy sneak preview screening on September 13 in Dublin, California.

Mandy Sneak Preview

Join the members of Legion M, the worlds first fan-owned entertainment company, for a sneak preview screening of Mandy at Regal Hacienda in Dublin, California! Mandy is an action horror film directed by Panos Cosmatos (Beyond the Black Rainbow) starring Nicolas Cage and Andrea Riseborough (Birdman, Oblivion). It is one of the last films scored by Icelandic composer Jóhann Jóhannsson (Arrival). Be one of the first to see what’s sure to become one of the most talked about films of the year.

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Star Wars: The Definitive Top 10 List

Fans of lists and Star Wars, we are currently in a rare moment of list making history when we have exactly 10 theatrically released, live-action Star Wars films*. Thanks to the May 25, 2018 release of Solo: A Star Wars Story we can create a perfect top 10 list. We truly live in wondrous times. Of course, this moment of perfection will come to an end on December 20, 2019 when Episode IX adds an eleventh theatrically released, live-action Star Wars film forcing fans to finally choose which prequel film to drop from the list.

I haven’t taken the time to rank the Star Wars films since 2006. At that time my top six would have probably looked like this:

  1. Empire Strikes Back
  2. Star Wars
  3. Return of the Jedi
  4. Revenge of the Sith
  5. The Phantom Menace
  6. Attack of the Clones

It wasn’t until Scott Aukerman posted the ultimate list of Star Wars films that I realized, “oh hey, we can make a perfect top 10.”

 

The comments on that thread are delicious.

After watching Solo I thought it was finally time to stare at a wall and consider my Star Wars top 10. However, before we get to that I need to tell you about the specific individual Star Wars fan that is me.

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Signing: Scott Snyder “Dark Knights: Metal” at Comix Experience, July 29

Comix Experience, 305 Divisadero in San Francisco, will welcome superstar DC writer Scott Snyder on July 29 to sign copies of the compiled Dark Knights: Metal miniseries. The Metal storyline saw the DC Universe invaded by twisted versions of Batman from Earths within the Dark Multiverse. The absolutely bonkers event literally turned the DC Universe upside down and will have lasting implications for years to come.

Dark Knights Metal

This signing is sure to be popular, so Comix Experience is limiting it to the first 125 people to purchase a copy of Dark Knights: Metal hardcover edition. There will be a secondary line for Snyder fans who don’t wish to purchase the hardcover edition but there’s no guarantee of getting in before the strict 7 p.m. cut-off. You can find the complete rules on how to attend the signing on the Comix Experience website.

The signing is part of the brilliant Comix Experience Graphic Novel of the Month club. Members of that club will join and exclusive Q&A with Snyder at 8 p.m.

CCA MFA in Comics Announces Summer Speaker Series

California College of the Arts MFA in Comics program has announced the summer speaker series. This is the sixth year for the exciting program which welcomes back graduates of the innovative program.

MFA in Comics Summer Series

Each Friday during the month of July, the Comics in the City speaker series will highlight various aspects of the comics medium from independent publishing to the craft of writing and the future of digital comics. Featuring award-winning storyteller J.H. Williams III (Promethea, Sandman: Overture), critically-acclaimed cartoonist Julia Wertz (Tenements, Towers, & Trash), rising star Ashley A. Woods (Niobe, Ladycastle), and our very own graduate cartoonists, this public lecture series will take place on CCA’s San Francisco campus in Timken Lecture Hall.

Below are the 2018 CCA MFA in Comics speakers and dates. All of the events run from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m.

July 13: An Evening with JH Williams III

July 20: An Evening with Julia Wertz

July 27: An evening with Ashley A. Woods

August 3: 2018 Graduate Comics Reading

Timken Lecture Hall is located at 1111 8th Street in San Francisco.

 

Eisner Retailer Award: Oakland’s Cape and Cowl makes the longlist

Oakland’s Cape and Cowl Comics has landed on the 2018 Will Eisner Spirit of Comics Retailer Award longlist.

Cape and Cowl Comics Eisner

The nomination puts Cape and Cowl in the company of 20 outstanding comic shops from around the world who “have done an outstanding job of supporting the comics medium both in the industry at large and in their local community.” Five of those shops will be announced as finalists during the week of San Diego Comic-Con. The recipient of the Spirit Award will be announced during the Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards on Friday, July 20.

Cape and Cowl had an impressive impact on the local community since opening in 2015, so it isn’t a surprise they’d be heavily nominated by the local community. The Shared Universe’s Maddie Greene was among those who added the shop’s name to the Eisner Sorting Hat. This is what she told the organization about Cape and Cowl giving back:

I don’t know of a Bay Area comic shop that does more community outreach or involvement. Once again I have to mention the local signings, which highlight local creators and stories for Oakland youth in particular. This is important work in our community. Cape and Cowl‘s book club also brings community members together to learn and discuss. But most of all, the shop turns events like their birthday and Free Comic Book Day into ways to give back. Last FCBD so much food was donated that giant barrels overspilled and huge pallets were dwarfed by the donations. An event to fight food waste in conjunction with Imperfect Produce raised 1,000 pounds of produce for the Alameda County Community Food Bank. One weekend they donated 20% of all sales to the Southern Poverty Law Center. They helped bring free Black Panther screenings to children in Oakland and Atlanta. They shared ways to help when the North Bay fires burned.

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Signing: Zack Kaplan (Port of Earth, Eclipse) at Fantastic Comics, June 23

Fantastic Comics, 2026 Shattuck in Berkeley, will host hard sci-fi comic writer Zack Kaplan for a signing on June 23. Kaplan, the writer behind the critically acclaimed titles Port of Earth (aliens open a port on Earth) and Eclipse (detective story in a future where stepping into daylight burns people to death), will visit the Berkeley comic store as a part of a kick-off for his newest series The Lost City Explorers.

Lost City Explorers

According to publisher Aftershock Comics:

Lost cities aren’t just the stuff of myths. They exist hidden right under our noses. But when a mysterious expedition is disrupted by supernatural activity, and an antiquities professor goes missing, his teenage daughter and her friends must become underground urban explorers, follow his tracks on a coming-of-age journey through subterranean tunnels, and ultimately find the holy grail of lost city: Atlantis buried right under New York City!

Art on the new title is from Alvaro Sarraseca with colors by Chris Blythe.

Kaplan will be at Fantastic Comics from 12 p.m. to 3 p.m.

Fantastic Comics
2026 Shattuck Ave.
Berkeley, CA
(510) 848-2988
Website: www.fantasticcomics.net
Twitter: @FantasticComics
Facebook: FantasticComics
Sun-Tue: 11 a.m.-7 p.m., Wed-Sat: 10 a.m.-10 p.m.

Signing: The Last Siege’s Landry Walker and Justin Greenwood at Escapist, June 9

The Escapist has a busy weekend of signings coming up. On June 9, the Berkeley comic shop will welcome The Last Siege‘s writer Landry Q. Walker and artist Justin Greenwood. The duo will sign the first issue of the series between 2 p.m. and 5 p.m.

The signing comes the day after No. 1 With a Bullet‘s writer Jacob Semahn appears at the store. Read about that signing here.

Here’s a description of The Last Siege from Image Comics:

A tale of blood, desperation, and loss. New York Times bestselling author LANDRY Q. WALKER joins artist JUSTIN GREENWOOD for an all-new ONGOING SERIES—THE LAST SIEGE! Spaghetti Western storytelling meets Game of Thrones atmosphere in this gritty medieval war story, as a mysterious stranger arrives at a castle overrun with brutal soldiers bent on usurping the throne of the rightful heir—an 11-year-old girl. An action-packed, genre-twisting epic, THE LAST SIEGE begins!

Escapist is located at 3090 Claremont Avenue in Berkeley.

 

Signing: No. 1 With A Bullet’s Jacob Semahn at Escapist, June 8

The Escapist has a busy weekend of signings coming up. On June 8, the Berkeley comic shop will welcome No. 1 With a Bullet‘s writer Jacob Semahn between 3 p.m. and 6 p.m.

On June 9, Escapist will host Landry Walker and Justin Greenwood signing the first issue of The Last Siege. Read more about this signing here.

No. 1 With a Bullet is June’s selection for the Escapist’s book club. Semahn is the writer on the book with Jorge Corona handling art duties. here’s a write up about the book from Image:

Her social media, strong. Her variety show segments, a hit. Nash Huang is at the top of her game. But when the iRis Shutter contact lens hits the market, Nash’s life is personally invaded. The latest leap forward in “technological progress,” these contacts not only play video or augment reality…but also record footage. Fighting to keep her life together after a leaked sex tape goes viral, a clingy super-fan is the last thing on Nash’s mind…but that’s exactly when the bodies pile up and the terror begins. From the bestselling team that brought you GONERS, comes NO. 1 WITH A BULLET!

 

San Francisco Comic Con Heads to Oakland with Matt Smith, Jonathan Frakes, Wallace Shawn, and more

The San Francisco Comic Con returns to the Bay Area this June but not to its namesake city. The convention, which has been diligently filling a void left by WonderCon’s departure in 2012, will bring geeky comic goodness to the Oakland Convention Center June 8-10.

San Francisco Comic Con

Like most comic conventions these days, there’s more to San Francisco Comic Con than comics. The convention will include panels on everything from cosplay to gaming. In addition to panels, SFCC will host a number of celebrity guests (for an additional cost): Matt Smith (Doctor Who), Bonnie Wright (Harry Potter), Jonathan Frakes (Star Trek: TNG), Camren Bicondova (Gotham), Wallace Shawn (The Princess Bride), Michael Biehn (Aliens), Rodger Bumpass (Sponge Bob), Kevin Conroy (Batman: TAS), Nolan North (Uncharted), and Veronica Taylor (Pokemon).

The comic creator guest list is substantial and includes a number of rising stars in the industry as well as some big-name veterans. Possibly the biggest name is a weekend appearance of Jim Starlin who will be the focus of two panels discussing his life and work. Other guests include Gerry Conway. Amy Mebberson, Paola Rivera, and Renee Witterstaetter.

A complete list of panels and guests can be found on the San Francisco Comic Con website.

Signing: The Allreds (all of them!) at Comix Experience, May 23

The Allreds (yep, Mike, Lee, and Laura) will visit Comix Experience, 305 Divisadero Street in San Francisco, on May 23 for a very special signing.

Bug the Adventures of Forager

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