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For Todd McFarlane, his greatest accomplishments of all time were the launch of Image Comics and the launch of his creator-owned title Spawn – both took place in 1992. Now, 29 years later, he has a plan. for something he thinks is just as tall – or maybe taller.
The universe of Spawn.
“As I phrased it for months and months, I didn’t want to bring her in until we were ready to pull the trigger, but here we are and I let it go,” he told Newsarama.
Longtime McFarlane’s Spawn title will now be the flagship in a line of several titles going on in this Image Comics character’s corner – with its own interconnected continuity, storylines, teams and more. This will all work under the banner name of “ Spawn’s Universe, ” which will also be the name of the one-shot event book to launch later this year.
Spawn’s Universe’s first wave of titles includes three books: King Spawn, The Gunslinger, and The Scorched. It all starts in June with Spawn’s Universe # 1, followed by King Spawn in August, The Gunslinger in October, and The Scorched in December.
For this ambitious venture, McFarlane recruited a roster of star talent for the series. Confirmed to date are Donny Cates, Frank Quitely, Greg Capullo, Marc Silvestri, Jim Cheung, Sean Gordon Murphy, Arthur Adams, J. Scott Campbell, Mike Del Mundo, Aleš Kot, Jason Shawn Alexander, Carlo Barberi, Brett Booth, Javier Fernandez, David Finch, Jonathan Glapion, Kevin Keane, puppeteer Lee, Sean Lewis, Ben Oliver, Paulo Siqueira, Stephen Segovia and Marcio Takara.
“There should be five or six names on it that should grab the attention of retailers,” he said. McFarlane is also open to working with new designers and helping to create new talent.
“I know a lot of the best guys and veterans I want will be busy at some point. I sometimes look for new talent on Instagram. I have a keen eye and I want to coach them and increase their notoriety. . “He joked about not creating a single new Todd McFarlane but a dozen in the near future.
McFarlane will serve as a creative consultant and more on the editorial side than actively participating in these new titles. He said he had to be realistic in what he could and couldn’t do as a singular person and wanted to bring in some of the biggest names in comics to help take the first step.
He also says he’s more of a guide than telling people what to write or draw, but also encouraging them to take what’s been established and go wild with it. The big rule is not to paint over your brushstrokes, but to add them. McFarlane added that he would come in and only say no to things that he said broke the rules of the Spawn universe, but there’s no real way to make a story.
“Come see me with your biggest idea and I’ll let you know if it breaks something I’ve planned or in store,” McFarlane says. “If so, I’ll give you options on how to make your story work. If not, that’s great too. Let’s say you want character X to marry that other character, but they’re already married. Okay, okay, I guess we have to divorce them to get there, but we’ll get there. “
Getting here has been a 37-year journey, since he debuted in 1984. Along the way, he co-created Venom, launched a Spider-Man solo title that remains the best-selling ever for the character, launched Image Comics with six other artists, created Spawn, and started a toy company that has grown into one of the industry giants. With all of these accomplishments, however, McFarlane sees the Spawn universe on the same level – even above most of those mentioned (sorry, Venom).
“From my perspective and from my professional career, this is the third biggest thing I have announced. Behind the founding of Image with my partners and Spawn # 1, so if I’m doing my job right, it’s number three, ”says McFarlane. “By the end of this year, I will have gone from a monthly comic book to four monthly comics. I am assuming myself here for a big task.”
McFarlane isn’t the type to name his favorite child, but calls out the Gunslinger to be his own Punisher or Lobo.
“He’s going to make Spawn look like a Boy Scout. He’s the guy who looks at Spawn and says ‘shit, man, you’re playing that way too conservative,'” said McFarlane. “This guy is going to show Spawn how to improve his game and walk towards his own drummer. At some point I want Spawn to be taken out of his title and his name is just Gunslinger.”
The Scorched will be McFarlane’s team’s book, designed for readers who “want to watch a handful of characters and how they interact with a high-flying roster.” The team will be made up of Spawn, Gunslinger, She-Spawn, and the Redeemer, with a few more coming and going.
“If you want your books to be more concrete, check out Gunslinger or King Spawn or even the current Spawn book. You can now get your fix multiple times a month now,” says the co-founder of Image Comics. “You don’t have to go out and buy them all because the continuity will be so tight. I’m not going to do this to the readers. It will be a shared universe and if you’re inclined to do it, you can step into your own. store and get your solution now every week. “
Most of McFarlane’s fellow founders of Image Comics were quick to launch lines for their corners of the business in the ’90s, and although McFarlane did spin-off titles every now and then, considers Spawn’s Universe his first real attempt. to create a formal world. for his characters. Why now? We asked him the question and got a surprising answer.
“At some point I have to make myself obsolete,” says McFarlane. “That should be the point of the comics, right? I can’t be the epicenter of it all at all. I should be like Frank Sinatra, who spent his time in the sun, my kids don’t care. what they like music “Yeah. Do they have their favorites? Yeah. Does not caring about Sinatra affect their life one iota? Not for a second. “
“This is the next evolution and the question shouldn’t be ‘why do this now? “But rather” what took you so long? “. I hope 30 years will have an equally huge impact. So why not?”
Spawn’s Universe will be available simultaneously in comic book stores and on digital platforms – and over 300 issues of Spawn are already here, right at your fingertips.
For the best digital comic book reading experience, check out Newsarama’s list of best digital comic readers for Android and iOS devices.
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