TEEN TITANS: COLD CASE out WED DEC 22nd

This Wednesday, my last published work of 2010 hits stores - TEEN TITANS: COLD CASE, drawn by superstar artist Sean Murphy. It's a double-sized special with 44(!) pages of story.

Comic Book Resources has a 4 page preview of it here.

As I've hinted at before, this Teen Titans tale means quite a bit to me. To explain why, let me give you a little bit of its history.

TEEN TITANS: COLD CASE started out as a two-issue Teen Titans arc called "FATHER'S DAY", about 3-4 years ago when Geoff Johns was finishing his great run on the book. I had just written GROUNDED, and this was my first work for hire assignment. Former DC and now Marvel editor Jeanine Schaefer came up to me at New York Comic-Con, and having seen how I'd handled teens in GROUNDED, and told me I'd be perfect to pitch for a Teen Titans story.

Jeanine is someone I owe a lot to in my career. Not only did she give me my first break at DC, she also gave me a chance to write darker material with TWO-FACE: YEAR ONE, at a time when I was worried I'd get typecast as the teen superhero guy.

Along with Eddie Berganza, she helped guide me as I wrote characters that for the first time weren't my own. They also paired me with one of the best artist's I've ever worked with, Sean Murphy. At the time he was best known for his Oni book "Off Road" and Scarecrow: Year One (the latter is, coincidentally, packaged in trade paperback with my Two-Face story). Sean knocked the Titans issues out of the park...yet despite all the pages being fully inked, they never saw print.

To this day I'm not entirely sure why. We were told various things, either involving continuity or office politics. At the time, I was not happy. Now, I realize things like that happen all the time. Until this summer, I contented myself with the fact I was paid for my work, and that I had a great piece of Sean Murphy's original art on the wall - a double paged spread of The Teen Titans fighting the Flash's Rogues Gallery of villains. Not to mention that the unpublished Titans story led to me writing CYBORG, SUPERGIRL and more for DC.

Flash forward to this past summer. I'm at San Diego Comic-Con, where I don't want to be, because my father had just passed away. I forced myself to go because I didn't want to let down any of my creative or business partners, and I knew my father would want me to - no one believed in my career more than him. I run into Eddie Berganza, who congratulates me on my Teen Titans story getting published.

I'm not someone that necessarily believes in something bigger than myself, but the fact that a long lost story called "Father's Day" was going to finally see print after I'd lost my own father...I have to admit that in some way it felt like a sign.

The only problem was...I'd written the story years ago. Continuity had changed quite a bit. Some of the Titans were no longer on the team, and some of them were dead. It was written as a two issue arc, not a giant-sized one shot. And upon reading the story, I realized that the flip side of being a much better writer than I was back then is that the story needed a lot of work.

Because the story was already drawn, my options for improving it were limited. Sean had moved on to bigger and better things (Hellblazer and Grant Morrison's Joe the Barbarian, to name a few). His newfound success might be why the book was seeing print, but he couldn't have redrawn the pages if he wanted to.

I always do a dialogue pass on comics when I see the lettering. But this time, with the help of Eddie and Editor Adam Schlagman, I did the most extensive series of rewrites I've ever done on a comic. I added narration to make the continuity clear to readers (like me) who haven't picked up Titans in a while (or ever), to tie the two issues together, and to add a level of emotional depth that I thought was lacking.

In doing so, I realized that was I fortunate this story hadn't come out earlier, exposing my less polished work to the world. But more importantly, I probably wasn't able to tell the story I wanted to until the terrible events of this past summer.

TEEN TITANS: FATHERS DAY was re-named TEEN TITANS: COLD CASE. It was changed to avoid confusion with another title, to reflect the presence in the book of Captain Cold, the lead villain in the Flash's Rogues Gallery, and to play off the idea of an untold story, an unsolved mystery from the past.

But there was a reason it was originally entitled "Father's Day". When I wrote the book, Tim Drake, at that time Robin to Bruce Wayne's Batman, had just lost his father, Jack Drake, in a mini-series by Brad Meltzer called Identity Crisis. He was killed by Captain Boomerang, who he took with him to his grave. That left two sons without fathers. While the hook of the story is to two teams of super-heroes and super-villains fighting it out for the first time, it's really about two families facing grievous losses.

Until this summer, I don't think I truly understood loss. A while back in this blog, I wrote about how my father inspired me to write TWO-FACE: YEAR ONE. He was not just my dad, but my best friend, and my hero. Like Harvey Dent, he was a prosecutor in a sometimes less than ethical justice system. Unlike Harvey Dent, he was able to overcome his demons and be a real force of good. He put away spies and mafioso, and later, as a judge, helped bring fairness to the trials of both the accused and their alleged victims. The term hero gets thrown around loosely, particularly in comics, but my dad was also a guy who once physically took down a madman with a machete. I couldn't make this stuff up.

Re-writing TEEN TITANS: COLD CASE, I realized it was in some ways like a last letter to my dad. Robin, like Bruce Wayne, is struggling not only with the loss of his dad, but also with the fact that his father died with something in his hands Bruce never would have approved of - a gun. Robin was also afraid of a possible future he had glimpsed where he used a gun to kill a villain.

Metaphorically, I think those things stand in for all our fears, of losing loved ones, and of inheriting qualities of our parents that we hope to avoid.

My father carried - but never used - a gun, something I had very mixed feelings about growing up. I'm not a gun lover. But as the son of an Assistant U.S. Attorney I grew up under very real death threats aimed at my family. It's a story for another time, but I've had a gun pointed at me since I was literally in the womb. Suffice to say I understand the necessity of firearms for personal defense.

Without spoiling the story I hope you'll read, I came to many of the same conclusions Robin did. My father was faced with incredibly difficult decisions, and while I may have made different ones, that doesn't make him any less of a hero. And while, like Robin, I'm jealous of people who still have fathers (even questionable ones), I wouldn't trade my father, or the time I had with him, for anything in the world.

Big Fun with the Big Two: What If? Spider-Man and Teen Titans: Cold Case

Wow...December is shaping up to be a big month for me. Two books from the big two.

The first is one I haven't announced yet: WHAT IF? SPIDER-MAN

Picking up from Joe Kelly and Michael Lark's Amazing Spider-Man arc "Grim Hunt", it asks the question "What if Spider-Man had Killed Kraven the Hunter?".

I'm excited about it for so many reasons I don't know where to start first. How about the artist - Paul Azaceta. Paul has been kicking ass with Mark Waid on Amazing Spider-Man for the past year, so he's a natural fit. If you're not familiar with my creator owned work, Paul drew and co-created my first book, GROUNDED, and did the covers to UNTHINKABLE. This is the first book that we've done together since. (Although it won't be the last, we're working on a creator-owned project that I hope to announce soon, and I think will be BOTH of our best work to date).

If the cover doesn't look like classic Azaceta to you, it's because it's drawn by industry superstar Phil Jimenez. Very excited about that as well.

This will also be my first published work for Marvel (I did do a Web of Spider-Man story that hasn't seen print yet, but I'm still hoping will see a digital release). Saying that I'm a Marvel fanboy would be an understatement. The THEME OF MY BAR MITZVAH was Marvel Comics. I'm debating whether, next time I'm in NY, I should dig out my message board with a mock-up of me as Wolverine, or the t-shirt with my caricature posed in Iron Man's silver and crimson armor.

SPIDER-MAN? What if will be in stores December 15, 2010.

Exactly one week later, will see the release of TEEN TITANS: COLD CASE




This is a project I've mentioned before. A few years ago, my first work-for-hire assignment was to write an arc of Teen Titans for DC. The art was finished, but for reasons I'm still not clear on, it was shelved. Until now.

The artist on the book, Sean Gordon Murphy, is red hot now, due in large part to his great work on Vertigo's JOE THE BARBARIAN with Grant Morrison. Trust me when I say that his Titans art is worth the wait.

(You'll notice that the cover is NOT by Sean - it's by someone named Jay Fabok. I don't know Jay, but if the pencils are anything to go buy he's got it down).

Why is the book called "COLD CASE". Well, in part, it's because it's an untold story of the Teen Titans, like an old murder case being re-investigating.

And, as the cover suggests, it features Captain Cold. It's actually the first meeting between the Titans and The Flash's Rogues gallery, so Cold is just one of the MANY villains the Titans face. I don't want to give to much away, but the story also ties into Brad Meltzer's Identity Crisis, providing an answer to an unresolved mystery there.

If you're worried that you won't understand the book because it takes place in the Titan's past (or because you didn't read Identity Crisis, or follow the Titans or Flash etc.) - don't. DC didn't just dust this story off and publish it. I went back and did a major rewrite, with the primary aim being to make this book as accessible as any other I've written.

The original title was actually Father's Day, as one of the threads deals with (then Robin) Tim Drake, and how he deals with the loss of his father. It's an odd bit of coincidence, as I lost my father this year. The rewrite was incredibly emotional because of this. My father was a huge supporter of my work, and a real-life hero (a Federal prosecutor who went after the mob, tried espionage cases etc...he even once chased after a guy with a machete). So I like to think that this story finally seeing print is a sign of some sort.

On a more cheerful note, with the price of comics so high these days, the book is a bargain at $4.99. I know - $4.99, bargain and comic should not be in the same sentence. But it's two issues - 48 pages worth of story! - for less than five bucks. Considering most of the Big Two's comics are $3.99 each, I think it's better than buying two books for eight bucks. When you factor in that it actually tells a complete story, with a beginning, middle and an end (I know shocking in mainstream comics), that's a great deal.

That's out December 22nd 2010.

There are more projects in the works, particularly on the creator-owned side of things. And more announcements. But for now, I hope you pre-order these books from OCTOBER PREVIEWS - I'm quite proud of them book.

(I'll post in more detail later, but I'll be appearing at New York Comic-Con next week, sharing a table with FEARLESS artist PJ Holden, and signing at the Graphic.ly booth as well. And I hope to have copies of RIFT RAIDERS, although I can't guarantee that).

UNTHINKABLE finally out TODAY, Wednesday May 13th...signing at Jim Hanley's Universe in NY to launch

This is going to be a very short post - I'm exhausted from jet lag, my appearance on Comic Book Club Live, and oh yeah...being detained by the Transportation and Safety Administration and interrogated about the script for Unthinkable #3.

But, Unthinkable - what I think is my best work yet (so far...some very generousadvance reviews agree)- is finally out today.

UNTHINKABLE, my new comic from BOOM! Studios, is a fictional spy thriller rooted in the real world.

After 9/11, many reacted by saying the events of that day were like something “out of a Tom Clancy novel.” Our government took that reaction seriously, and commissioned a think tank made up of thriller writers to come up with worst case terror scenarios, In doing so, we could devise ways to stop these "unthinkable" attacks before the terrorists even had a chance to plot them.

The comic tells the story of Alan Ripley, a fictional young writer who joins this real-life think when his brother is killed on 9/11. Almost a decade later, the nightmare scenarios he imagined start coming true.

I'll be at signing Unthinkable at Jim Hanley's Universe in NYC today from 6 to 8PM along with cover artist Paul Azaceta and some surprise guests. (Two-Face: Year One is also being released in trade along with Bruce Jones and Sean Murphy's Scarecrow: Year One...I'll be signing that as well). I'm sure I'll do an LA signing for issue 2.

More soon...links to articles and reviews, more about my experience with the TSA, a creator commentary of the ARG etc. In the meantime...I hope you'll check UNTHINKABLE out regardless of whether you can make it to a signing. And I'd love to know what you think.

Top Ten Reasons to Buy Teen Titans Spotlight: Cyborg - TODAY

The Top 10 reasons to buy my Teen Titans Spotlight: Cyborg trade TODAY:

10.He’s black. You’re not. Racist? Do the math.

9. Find out what’s underneath those steel underpants.

8. This Cyborg not in a wheelchair.

7. tCyborg trade: Man vs. Machine theme not explored enough Battlestar Galactica

6. You don’t need to read Final Crisis to understand it.

5. Surprise crossover with Marvel – he rapes Machine Man Iron Sheik style.

4. @Shaq promises to follow up his Steel performance when movie made.

3. Real reason for Vic's cybernetics – hit with bottle at Comicon

2. Cyborg trade: Sonic disruptor replaced by Sybian.

1. Cyborg trade: Vic finally cured…of being black!

All meant in jest...hope you'll pick it up if you weren't able to pick up any or all of the single issues.

In about 6 hours or so I'll be headed to NY for, among other things, The New York Comic Con. I'm going to be sharing a table with artist Paul Azaceta (GROUNDED, FOOLKILLER, BPRD: 1946) in Artist's Alley, Table L7. Hopefully, FEARLESS artist PJ Holden and co-writer Dave Roth will be hanging around the table as well.

As always, I'm happy to talk to anyone, sign anything, and I'll be selling my Image Books. If you want my DC works signed, you're probably going to have to bring your own copies of TWO-FACE: YEAR ONE, CYBORG and SUPERGIRL #16. And if you happen to have San Diego's limited edition HEROES comic from last year, you can be the first to have me sign a copy.\\ If I'm not at my table, I'm likely just taking a walking around break, or doing a signing for Comic Book Tattoo (the hugely successful Tori Amos anthology I contributed a short story for).

But the real treat will be getting a sketch from Paul Azaceta, who does kickass - well, everything, but particularly Daredevil. And you'll never see him more excited if you ask him to draw Darkhawk.

Looking forward to seeing old friends and making new ones.

My favorite interview so far

Although I'm not promoting anything (yet), my good friend Mike Le (pictured above) conducted what I think is the best interview I've ever done. Not just because he asked really insightful questions about the comics medium and my writing process. But also because he somehow got me to talk about my embarassing Bar Mitzvah memories, the best strip clubs in LA, and why going to to Tijuana during the San Diego Comic Con would be a bad, bad idea for me.

In addition to being a friend, and the best wingman in LA, he is VP of HQ Entertainment (Tyrese's production company), an accomplished screenwriter, and the creator of the must-read web comic "Don't Forget to Validate Your Parking". It's about the trial and travails of being an assistant in Hollywood, but you don't need to be an industry insider to appreciate it's absurd humor.

Doing interviews with my many talented friends and collaborators has been something I've been thinking of doing here when it's a slow news day/week/month for me. What do you guys think?

Two-Face Year One #2 out now, Cyborg #6 out this Wednesday

As of this week, the final issues of both my mini-series for DC Comics will be out. Two-Face: Year One #2 (of 2) is in stores now. As far as I'm concerned, I think it's the best thing I've ever written.

Issue One chronicled the rise and fall of district Harvey Dent, culminating in the acid splash to the face that made him, well, Two-Face. It also Dealt with the formation of Commissioner Gordon's squad of "untouchables", the only honest cops on Gotham's force, the ones that wind up becoming the core cast of one of my favorite series of all time, Gotham Central. Finally, it introduced Harvey's nemesis, corrutp mob lawyer Mort Weinstein.

In Issue Two, there is no Harvey, only Two-Face. Mort Weinstein, still working for the mob, is running for D.A. But there's a catch - Harvey's name is on the ballot. He decides to run as Two-Face. His campaign platform - you're better off getting justice from a flip of the coin then from a city as rotten as Gotham is. Batman, Gordon and his untouchables are caught in the middle of this no win situation.

The second issue has the same noir tone of the first, but adds a ton more villiains from Batman's rogue's gallery, some well known, and some obscure. And if you ever wondered where the coin came from in the Batcave, I'll finally give you the answer.

Issue 6 of DC Special: Cyborg, is out this Wednesday, October 15th. In the previous five issues, we've learned that the mercenary Mister Orr (from Brian Azarello and Jim Lee's Superman run) has stolen the technology of Vic Stone, the man known has cyborg. Orr has given the technology to a group of maimed veterans. The catch - if they want to keep their limbs, they've got to keep killing for Orr - no matter who the target is.

In the final issue, Vic has met the recipients of his cybernetics - The Phantom Limsb. Vic is faced with the moral dilemma of whether or not he should take those cybernetics back. At the same time, he's confronted with a team of supervillains called the Cyborg Revenge squad. Not only does Issue 6 resolve these dilemmas, it makes some major changes in Vic's social life as well.

I hope you'll check both issues out. I should be back here soon to start talking about next years upcomins projects.

CYBORG #5 out this Wednesday; Two-Face: Year One and Heroes updates, and an early year in review

This Wednesday, September 17th, the fifth and penultimate issue of DC Special: Cyborg is in stores. Illustrated by Carlos Magno and inked by Jonathan Glapion, I'm really excited about this issue because it's not just me taking familiar DC characters and putting them in new situations. I've created a group of new characters - The Phantom Limbs - maimed veterans who were given Vic Stone's cybernetics by the mercenary known as Mr. Orr (from Brian Azzarello and Jim Lee's Superman Run). Their catch - they only get to keep their new limbs if they continue to kill for Mr. Orr - no matter who the target is.

Are these Phantom Limbs (the title doesn't just refer to their literal cybernetic limbs; "phantom limbs" refers to the sensation that amputees have of still feeling their limbs even after they lost them) - friend or foe? Well, the glib answer is read and find out. But what I'm really hoping is that, just like I'm using other creator's characters, The Phantom Limbs will be part of my legacy on Cyborg. That someone else, somewhere down the line have fun with the toys I've added to the wonderful toybox that is the DC Universe.

Speaking of DC, many of you might be wondering where the second issue of Two-Face: Year One is (some of you may even be saying, wait, there's a Part Two?). It was scheduled to come out already, and I'm not sure why it hasn't - I've seen the finished art and lettering - but it's been rescheduled to come out on Wednesday, October 8th. I've said this before, but I think it's one of the best things I've ever written.

It keeps the same noirish tone of the first issue, and spotlights the cops that Ed Brubaker and Greg Rucka created in - Gotham Central - they're Jim Gordon's "untouchables", the only honest cops in the Gotham City Polic department. But the story moves away from Two-Face's origin and deals with Two-Face running for D.A. against a corrupt former mob lawyer. And if an election-themed story sounds boring, don't worry - it's fulled with bullets, Batman, and more Bat-villains than I thought could an artist could fit on a page (sorry, Jesus...and by Jesus, I mean artist Jesus Saiz). Did I mention it's got Batman.

It looks like I'll be doing an appearance in NY the day before Two-Face hits, on October 7th...more on that as it gets sooner.

The following Wednesday, October 15th, the sixth and final issue of Cyborg should be in stores. That's where I pit both Cyborg and The Phantom limbs against The Cyborg Revenge Squad, a team of supervillains designed specifically to take out, well, cyborgs. I also wrap up everything, and there's a major change in Vic's personal life.

Finally, on November 19th, Wildstorm will be printing the first two-part webcomic I did for NBC's Heroes as part of a hardcover collection. In additon to featuring stories by my good friends Pierluigi Cothran, Christine Boylan and Heroes writer/editor Chuck Kim, Heroes Vol. 2 will showcase the print version of my Suresh story, "Blackout", illustrated by fan-favorite Jason Badower. (Interestingly enough, that story was published in a special issue at Comic Con this year, of which I only have one copy. If anyone wants to give - or sell me a copy - please e-mail me).

And that wraps up my publishing schedule for 2008. It's been a pretty remarkable year. I've had at least one book come out every month with the exception of December. Fearless and Hazed from Image, Cyborg and Two-Face: Year One from DC, as well as stories in BOOM!'s Cthulhu Tales and Tori Amos' Comic Book Tattoo. And that's not even including my Heroes webcomics...

I'm not sure what next year will bring. I'm working on at least one creator owned series, for one of the publishers I mentioned above. Hopefully, the work-for-hire offers will continue, and there will be good news about the pilot for Cartoon Network I've been working on.

I mention this not to pat myself on the back, but to thank all the talented collaborators I've worked with, and more importantly, all the readers who've continued to follow my work. I promise you that whatever comes next will be full of surprises and better written than what's come before.

Cyborg #4 in stores now.

Issue 4 of D.C. Special: Cyborg, has been available since Wednesday. As you can see from the cover, supervillains kick the Teen Titan's ass while Cyborg does nothing but weep for them. Actually, while the supervillains (Wildebeest and Equus) take on the Titans and Teen Titans, Vic learns he's not the only cyborg in town, and goes in search of wounded soldiers forced to use his stolen technology.

After this, there's two more issues of Cyborg coming out in September and October. Also in September, the second issue of Two-Face: Year One arrives in stores. It's been a pretty busy year so far - I don't think there's been a single month yet where I haven't had a graphic novel, comic or webcomic published.

I'm now working on my next round of creator owned projects, as well as pitching to the big two, and hope to have some announcements here soon.

Cyborg #3 out Wednesday

Just back from San Diego, and still too exhausted to post about it. But I wanted to let you all know that the third issue of my mini-series DC Special: Cyborg is out this Wednesday. For those of you who have been reading, a certain someone long thought dead is back as Vic Stone's cyborg enemy. This issue will reveal how he was saved from certain death, became a cyborg, and why he's been attacking S.T.A.R. Labs facilities. There will also be lots of cyborg on cyborg fighting, plus more action from the Titans, teen and otherwise.

This issue is also the debut of Carlos Magno on the book, who is replacing the great Ken Lashley as penciller for the duration of the series (issues 3-6). I think Carlo's work is great, and since the inker is still Jonathan Glapion, there shouldn't be too much of a transition.

One thing I will say about San Diego is that I got to meet Bill Walko. He runs a website, http://www.titanstower.com, that's the place to go for all things Cyborg and Teen Titans on the web. His site served as a tremendous resource for me (as it does for a number of DC creators and editors), and if I could have given him a thank you in the book, I would have. It's good to know he's a great guy in person as well as a dedicated Titans fan.

In Two-Face: Year One news, the response has been great so far. Please check it out, it's still on the stands (which you may have missed if you were at or headed to San Diego last Wednesday).

Two-Face: Year One out this Wednesday, my dad, and where I'll be in San Diego

Above is Mark Chiarello's awesome cover to the first issue of Two-Face: Year One, which is finally out in stores this Wednesday. It's 48 pages, prestige format, with art by Jesus Saiz and Jeremey Haun, inks by Jimmie Palmiotti and lettering by my friend, and great comic creator in his own right, Sal Cipriano. It's a deeper exploration of Harvey Dent (for those of you who don't read comics, Aaron Eckhart's character in the wonderful Dark Knight), as much a hard boiled crime story as a Batman superhero tale. And I'm more proud of the writing on this as just about anything I've ever done.

It occurs to me as I write this, that despite the many interviews I've done for this book, I don't think I've talked about how much my dad was an influence on this project. Like Harvey Dent, my father is a former prosecutor (Federal, not state), and a lifelong civil servant who remained honest despite the sea of corruption that often categorized the REAL Gotham, New York City. Unlike Harvey, my father never crossed over to the dark side, but he did provide me with a plethora of stories about cops, lawyers and mobsters that found their way into this project. When you read the joke about a cop being assigned a two-thousand year old murder case, that's my dad and his humor right there. Although I may not have followed in his footsteps (I have ga law degree but have never practiced law), he's still my hero.

***

As for San Diego, I'll be at Comic-Con this whole weekend. I'll be at the Image table, primarily, either signing my own books - Grounded, Fearless and Hazed, or signing Comic Book Tattoo with my fellow contributors to that Tori Amos anthology. Of course, I'm happy to sign Two-Face, Cyborg and Supergirl, my DC projects to date, or the award-nominated Image anthologies Popgun and 24/7 Volume 2.

(note - if you're reading this, and are looking for a particular issue of Grounded or Fearless, let me know and I can make sure to bring it).

EDIT: Signing (and sketching) with me will be Grounded's Paul Azaceta, Hazed's Robbi Rodriguez, and Fearless co-writer Dave Roth (Dave probably won't sketch).

Also, evidently there is a special edition Heroes comic for the con that features my two-part Suresh story from last year. Not only will I be happy to sign that, but if anyone can snag me a copy I'll happy to pay you for one and throw in some free stuff as well.

CYBORG #2 out Wednesday, #5 available for pre-order

The second issue of my six issue Cyborg series, is out this Wednesday, June 18th. For long time Titans fans, it's got a hell of a twist at the end. Between this, Two-Face: Year One, my Tori Amos/ Comic Book Tattoo anthology story and a Cthulhu Tales anthology for BOOM! Studios, I should have at least one comic out every month from now until October. Hopefully there will be some more announcements soon.

The fifth issue of Cyborg is now available for pre-order (That's the cover to #5 above, not #2). Here's the solicit info:

DC SPECIAL: CYBORG #5

Written by Mark Sable, Art by Carlos Magno & Jonathan Glapion, Cover by Mike McKone

Meet The Phantom Limbs, an elite team of wounded soldiers saved by Cyborg's technology. The catch? The only way they can keep their new limbs is by killing for the mercenary Mr. Orr. Will Vic be able to save them from this Faustian bargain – or will they kill him first? On sale September 17 • 5 of 6, 32 pg, FC, $2.99 US.

CYBORG #1 out today, pre-order issue #4 and Two-Face: Year One #2

Well, the first issue of my new six issue mini, DC SPECIAL: CYBORG, hits stands today, Wednesday May 21st 2008. It's the first solo series for one of the most popular Teen Titans in his 28 years of existence, and I'm really excited to see your reaction to it.


The above cover is for Issue 4, which hits stands August 20th. You can pre-order it while your in the store picking up Issue 1. Here's the solicit:

The mysterious Mr. Orr has transformed one of Cyborg's friends into a killing machine! But is Vic's friend the only victim?Orr has cloned two of the world's deadliest super-villains to prevent Cyborg and The Titans from finding out.On sale August 20

And while you're pre-ordering, why not get Part Two of Two-Face: Year One. Check out this amazing cover by Mark Chiarello:





Here's the solicit.

TWO-FACE YEAR ONE #2
Written by Mark Sable
Art by Jesus Saiz & Jimmy Palmiotti
Cover by Mark Chiarello
The election coverage continues as Two-Face throws his hat in the ring! It’s the shocking conclusion to the tightest race in Gotham City history, and it’s only the beginning of Batman’s struggle with a man who used to be his best friend — and the monster within.On sale August 13 • 2 of 2, 48 pg, FC, $5.99 US

No slight to Cyborg or any of my creator owned works, but I think Two-Face: Year One is the best thing I've ever written. Hopefully it will get a boost from the Dark Knight sequel, which opens the month before. You can read about how I put a "Dent" (as in Harvey Dent) in Two-Face on CBR.


Between Cyborg and Heroes this may be the most readers I've ever had. Huge week, and more to come...

Chat with me about Cyborg this weekend!

Next Wednesday, May 21st, the first issue of my six issue CYBORG series debuts. This Saturday, May 17th, at 8:30 PM EST, I'll be participating in my first ever live chat.

I'm happy to talk about Cyborg, my past work on Supergirl my unpublished Titans issues (featuring the first ever meeting between the Titans and the Flash's Rogues Gallery), my upcoming Two-Face: Year One mini-series, and anything else you want to ask me about.

(As a disclaimer, this is not an official DC chat, and anything I write is my own opinion, not DC's etc.)

I'm truly honored to get to contribute to the legacy of one of comics greatest characters, and I think old-school fans will be happy with what Ken, Carlo, Jonathan and myself have done with Vic.

As for how it's going to work... you need to have aol or aim to get in on this chat , just make up a screenname. Then either instant message teentitan2002 (who is gracious enough to host this chat) on aim or aol, or reply to this thread on DC's Teen Titans messageboard maybe one lucky fan might get a surprise after the chat.

New York Comic Con Recap

You know a con has taken a lot out of you when it takes a week to start posting your post-con thoughts.

For years it was mind boggling that New York, headquarters to Marvel and DC and largest media market in the world, never had a comic convention to hold its own with the likes of San Diego and Chicago (although the Big Apple Con, which I attend as frequently as possible, is probably the most creator- and fan-friendly con around). This changed two years ago, with demand exceeding capacity. In this, the NYCC's third consecutive year, the only two knocks against he con - overcrowding and frigid February weather - were eliminated in heavily attended, well spaced con spread out across a beautiful weekend.

Of course, the change from February to April coincided with the Passover holiday, so I had to divide my time between fans and family seders. It meant that I had to miss out on some networking and partying, but compard against the ten plagues that might have been visited upon me if I hadn't gone home, missing a party or two seemed miniscule. I am the first born in my family, and really didn't feel like being slayed this year.

My weekend started the Thursday night before the con, with a great party thrown by DC Comics. Too nervous to really talk with Darwyn Cooke and Grant Morrison, I nevertheless got to say hi to Cyborg editor and assistant editor Eddie Berganza and Adam Schlagman (sporting a Sodam Yat soccer jersey, Green Lantern fans). I got to thank Two-Face: Year One editor Jeanine Schaeffer for not only giving me the dream job of writing the hard-boiled story of Harvey Dent's fall, but for discovering me two years ago at the very first NYCC when all I had was a few issues of Grounded to my name.

I finally met Bat editor Mike Marts, story editor, Ian Sattler and the amazing Jann Jones, who deserves a big thank you for throwing a party where you could actually talk together together before the madness of the con. I didn't get to thank Jimmy Palmiotti or Mark Chiarello. I just learned last week Jimmy will be inking over Jesus Saiz's pencils for Two-Face (can you ask for a better inker - answer: no), and that Mark will be doing the covers (which are NOT what you've seen solicited).

The highlight of the party though was meeting Geoff Johns. Geoff's work, particularly on Flash, brought me back to reading mainstream DCU titles after a long hiatus. He's a writer I try to emulate because he balances boundary pushing creativity (52, Sinestro Corps Wars) with a real respect for what's come before. It's very rare when someone you admire is as nice you imagine, but Geoff fit that bill or was at least nice enough to pretend to. Having written a seminal run on Teen Titans, he's got a lot invested in Cyborg. Between that and Dan DiDio telling me Two-Face is his favorite Bat villain, I'm either going to be the most popular writer at DC by the end of this summer...or blacklisted.

Friday, I began the job of running back and forth between my artist's alley table with Grounded artist Paul Azaceta and signings at the Image booth. My first signing was with Killing Girl's Glen Brunswick. Great crime book (with art by Frank Espinoza and Toby Cypress), great guy.

I took a break to attend the "Women in Comics" panel, arranged by Occasional Superheroine blogger/Friend of Lulu President Valerie D'Orazio and featuring writer Gail Simone, artist Becky Cloonan and Marvel Editor (and official "hottest girl in comics") Jen Grunwald. I had hoped they would all gush about how the best comic about women was in fact written by a man (that comic being Hazed and that man being, well, me). Instead, it was a refreshingly positive discussion of the contributions being made on every level by female talent despite the barriers to entry this industry makes for women, be they writers, artists, editors or fans.

Still, could no one have worn a Hazed t-shirt? See me for a standing offer of a free trade/t-shirt if you promote/wear one on a comics panel. Yes, I am that shameless.

Saturday was a first - I was a guest on a comics panel. Image: Brave New Worlds, was a panel featuring members of different generations of Image Comics, from founders Erik Larsen and Jim Valentino to longtime Noble Causes/Dynamo Five writer Jay Faerber, to rock star/indie comics writer Claudio Sanchez of Coheed and Cambria/and The Amory Wars, to, well, me.

Jim and Erik were the trailblazers, taking a huge career risk in the 90's to establish a home for creator-owned material. Jay represented the next generation of established big company talent to bring smart, original superhero work over. Claudio is doing something completely different, adapting rich fantasy world he's created in music and translating to the page.

Me...I guess I fit somewhere in between - I love doing original superhero work like Fearless and Grounded for Image. There really was no second choice for me when I pitched those books. And it's hard to imagine any other publisher taking a flier on a dark comedy about sorority hazing rituals.

Using a film analogy, the Image founders seem to me like Coppola, Scorsese and Lucas, doing these epic but personal movies that redefined comics. I kind of feel like I'm closer to the early Kevin Smith/Tarantino generation. Inspired by what came before, we maxed out our credit cards making comics instead of films.

Not that I had a chance to say any of this. Most questions were from Coheed and Cambria's rabid fan base. The only line I got that received any coverage was when Jim Valentino said that Image was for those who wanted more than "guys in panties punching each other." I said that Hazed fit that bill exactly, since it was girls in panties punching each other. Thus, erasing the strides made in the previous day's Women in Comics panel with one fell swoop.

Closed out the weekend nother signing with Nixon's Pal's artist Chris Burnham. I hope to have a sketch of his on here soon. I also got great sketches by Nikki Cook, with whom I hope to work, Aqualeung's Paul Maybury, and best of all, Salgood Sam. Salgood is illustrating an adaptation of a song I wrote for Tori Amos' Comic Book Tattoo anthology. More on Comic Book Tattoo later, but it may be the best project I've been a part of.

With all the signing, sketching, paneling and networking, I didn't have as much time to hang out with my artists as I'd like. Joining Paul and me at our table were both Hazed's Robbi Rodriguez and, all the way from Northern Ireland, Fearless' very own PJ Holden. My writing skills are far too meager to convey how entertaining PJ is in person. He did some great Hulk sketches which Marvel seemed to take some notice of. Here's hoping he gets the attention he deserves.

I'm leaving way too much out. It's always most gratifying to meet readers, so thanks to all of you who came out, whether it was to say hi again or try my work for the first time. I continue to be really moved by people who are so affected by Hazed, particularly. The highlight of the weekend, though, was the kid who told me he almost got kicked out of church for laughing so hard the copy he'd snuck in. It's nice to know that I'm putting youth at risk of not only of moral corruption but spiritual damnation. I've really got to keep my out for those ten plagues...

More Cyborg!

My CYBORG special is not one, but SIX issues, and the second issue (on sale in JUNE), is available for pre-order now. Below is the solicit, which neglects to mention there’s a hell of a reveal on the last page of his issue for long time Cyborg fans.

DC SPECIAL: CYBORG #2
Written by Mark Sable
Art and cover by Ken Lashley & Jonathan Glapion
Vic Stone has sworn that he'll never let anyone undergo the horrific process that transformed him into Cyborg. Now it appears he's on a nationwide rampage taking out S.T.A.R. Labs. Are not one, but TWO teams of Titans enough to stop this madness?
On sale June 18 • 2 of 5 • 32 pg, FC, $2.99 US

Get Ready For Cyborg!

Who is Cyborg?

He’s the most popular superhero never to have his own series. Until now.

Why should you care?

Because starting May 21st, D.C. Comics is publishing the first ever solo series starring The Greatest Teen Titan of Them All, and I’m writing it.

But seriously, dude, who is Cyborg. I’ve never read a comic book before.

Where do I start? Before the horrific accident (or was it?) that transformed Victor Stone into Cyborg, he was an Olympic class athlete and a genius with an IQ above 160, torn. An African-American torn between his gang-member friends and the (then) emerging black middle class that his family represented. He was rife with conflict even before he had Molybdenum steel grafted to what was left of his maimed, scarred body.

Once he became Cyborg, both power and pathos were added to the mix. With an indestructible body and limbs capable of transforming into an assortment of weapons, he’s physically more than a match for most of the Justice League, let alone their villains. And because he’s half-machine, he still carries around the whole Ben Grimm/Thing angst about whether he’s a man or monster.

The analogy I like to use is that if the Teen Titans are DC’s X-Men (their group of young, edgy characters), he’s their Wolverine.

Follow my logic here. The New Teen Titans were created at about the same time as The All New, All Different X-Men. While others might have been content to keep the Titans a book of sidekicks like Robin and Kid Flash, creators Marv Wolfman and George Perez decided to create new characters. African Americans like Cyborg, women like Raven and…well, orange aliens with big breasts like Starfire.

Okay, I get it, he was a revolutionary character. But the revolution was never televised. What makes you think he’s interesting NOW?

When you read a superhero comic, we’re always being asked to suspend out disbelief. But for me, I’ve always had a nagging question. In a world with not just super-heroes but super science…why can’t everyone have a goddamn flying car?

A lot of creators have sought to answer that question. In Grant Morrison’s Fantastic Four run, he said posited that each of Reed Richard’s devices was a work of art that couldn’t be mimicked. In Warren Ellis’ Planetary, he answered that question by creating an evil FF analogue who purposefully kept their secrets to themselves so they alone could have the power. In GROUNDED, I just made the argument that superhero parents were selfish and self-absorbed.

The idea for my Cyborg run came by asking a more pointed question. In a world where Vic stone can lose his limbs and have them replaced by cybernetic weaponry, why don’t ordinary humans, particularly soldiers in this time of war, have access to Vic’s technology?

If I asked these questions, then certainly they must have occurred to greatest fictional minds in the DC universe…and possibly the more devious ones. Without giving too much away, Cyborg series is about what happens when someone uses Vic’s technology in a way that anathema to who he is and what he stands for.

Wow, that sounds deep. No, really. But I want to see him punch things.

Don’t worry, he punches lots of things. Fan favorite supervillains. “The Phantom Limbs”…an all new characters I’ve created who share Cyborg’s technology and may or may not be on Vic’s side. And not one, but TWO groups of teen Titans.

Oh yeah, and he also punches himself. Chew on that one for a while.

Okay, okay, you had me at African-American Cyborg. Where and how do I get this book?

You can pre-order it now at your local comics shop (comic shop locator link?) from March PREVIEWS. It’s called DC Special: Cyborg, and the order code (I think) is MAR08 135.