BOOM! Studios (the studio behind the Blade Runner Comic) is releasing a prequel to the Die Hard trilogy in comic book form called Die Hard: Year One.

Every great action hero got started somewhere: Batman Began. Bond had his Casino Royale. And for John McClane, more than a decade before the first DIE HARD movie, he’s just another rookie cop, an East Coast guy working on earning his badge in New York City during 1976’s Bicentennial celebration. Too bad for John McClane, nothing’s ever that easy.

I’m not sure what I think about this.  In comic book form, prequels and spinoffs are easier to digest.  Hopefully no movie is put in the works.  The last thing we need is another Die Hard movie.  The originals will do just fine.

Here are some of the potential covers, I’d like to see the actual artwork before I form any opinion:

Die Hard: Year One is written by Howard Chaykin, with art by Stephen Thompson, and covers by Dave Johnson, Jock and John Paul Leon.  The Comic will be available in August of 2009.

[Source: Slashfilm]

Japanese author Kôji Suzuki (Dark Water, Ringu) is involved with the gimmic to end all gimmics.  His new nine-chapter novella Drop has been printed multiple times on toilet paper, with it’s intention to be read on the toilet.

The company promotes the toilet paper, which will sell for 210 yen ($2.20) a roll, as “a horror experience in the toilet.” Toilets in Japan were traditionally tucked away in a dark corner of the house due to religious beliefs. Parents would tease children that a hairy hand might pull them down into the dark pool below. [Yahoo! News]

The story itself takes up about three feet of paper, so it can be read in one sitting and is printed numerous times on the roll. 

Drop‘s plot involves an evil spirit inhabiting the toilet bowl of a public restroom.  Weird.

[Source: Cinematical via DreadCentral via Yahoo! News]

Boom! Studios‘ new 25 issue series is a word-for-word comic version of Philip K. Dick’s novel Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep. Which, of course, was brought to the screen as Blade Runner in 1982 by Ridley Scott, and remains one of the most praised Science Fiction films of all time.

Usually, as with most adaptations, a novel is abridged when it is brought to another version.  Here, the script is an exact copy of the novel.

From Boom! Studios:

Studios is honored to present the complete novel transplanted into the comic book medium, mixing all new panel-to-panel continuity with the actual text from the novel in an innovative, ground-breaking 24-issue maxi-series experiment !

Here are 5 panels from the first release, coming out in June.  I’m really looking forward to checking this out! The book is far different from the film, so it will be great seeing an actual visual representation of Philip K. Dick’s original story.

[Source: io9]

Priest, Vol. 1: A Prelude to the Deceased

Publisher: TokyoPop
Author: Min-Woo Hyung

Rating: ★★★½☆ 

Synopsis:

In the frontier of the American west, a veil of evil threatens to engulf humanity. Servants of the fallen archangel Temozarela are paving the way for their dark lord’s resurrection.

One man stands in the way of the apocalypse—Ivan Isaacs—a fallen priest who sold his soul to the devil Belial for the power to fight evil. Armed with a wicked blade and silver bullets, Ivan will give the heretics a baptism of blood in his pilgrimage for humanity’s redemption.

Review:

I’ll admit it, this is my first venture into Manga.  I’ve read the complete Akira manga series but never got into any more Manga.  The most experience I have with this medium is through the Anime versions of some of these stories.  I’m a huge fan of Anime, but for some reason never picked up a Manga to check out.  Well, it’s official, Min-Woo Hyung‘s Priest has me hooked.

What turned me on to Min-Woo Hyung‘s Priest was the cross between Western Religion, the Western, Horror and Zombies.  That combination had me sold.  So far, the story is very simple.  This is volume one of a much larger story, so we only are given bits and pieces if character development.

Priest is very cinematic.  I can see why a movie is slated for 2010 or 2011.  There is very little exposition and a lot going on in each panel.  This is a very interesting and violent story that just scratches the surface of a bigger plot and world.  I’m interested in seeing where this goes.

The artwork is awesome.  Black and white, and roughly drawn.  This gives a more gritty feel to the subject matter and really helps develop the mood of the story.  For my first dive into Manga, Priest seems very promising.

Recommended for Older Teens, Age 16+

Read 25 pages at TokyoPop.com

Pride and Prejudice and Zombies

I can’t wait for this book to come out in May.  Just added it to my Amazon Wish List

Product Description:

Pride and Prejudice and Zombies: The Classic Regency Romance – Now with Ultraviolent Zombie Mayhem! (Paperback)

by Jane Austen (Author), Seth Grahame-Smith (Author)

“Pride and Prejudice and Zombies” features the original text of Jane Austen’s beloved novel with all-new scenes of bone crunching zombie action.