Marvel.com has posted a seven page, colored, lettered preview of “Incredible Hercules” #115. The book is written by Greg Pak and Fred Van Lente with pencils by Khoi Pham and hits stores on Wednesday, March 19. Pak, Van Lente, and Pham will also sign copies of the book on the 19th from 6 to 8 pm at Jim Hanley’s Universe, 4 West 33rd St., New York City, across from the Empire State Building.
Click here to check out the preview.
Pak Talks Comics: Hulk Slash for the Hero Initiative
In his latest BrokenFrontier.com “Pak Talks Comics” column, Greg Pak shows off his contribution to the Hero Initiative’s Hulk cover benefit. Check it out.
And click here to submit your questions for next week’s column.
2008.04.18 – 04.20 – Greg Pak at the New York Comic-Con
Comic book writer Greg Pak will attend the New York Comic-Con from April 18 to 20, 2008. More details soon!
More love for “Incredible Hercules” #114
Comixtreme continues to love “Incredible Hercules” — here’s an excerpt from Adam Chapman’s review of issue #114:
Two years ago, the thought of a high-profile book starring Amadeus Cho and Hercules would not even have been a consideration, not even enough fodder for a joke. And yet here the book is, consistently engaging and interesting, making Hercules more interesting and entertaining than ever before, and making Amadeus Cho himself ever more interesting with additional shades of grey being added to his character. This is one of, if not the BEST Marvel book currently being published, a true success story, that Hercules has managed to headline a book that respects his character and makes him a serious hero again.
Click here to read the whole thing.
“Incredible Hercules” #114 was written by Greg Pak and Fred Van Lente with pencils by Khoi Pham. Tell your local comic store to hold a copy for you today!
Tuesday Sneaks: What the heck is this?
Find out this Thursday in the next edition of the “Pak Talks Comics” column at BrokenFrontier.com!
2008.02.27 – “Battlestar Galactica” Vol. 3 trade paperback
The third trade paperback of the “Battlestar Galactica” comic book series written by Greg Pak hit comic book stores on February 27. This final storyline of the series focusses in particular on Sharon, the Cylon played by Grace Park on the television show. Here’s what WizardUniverse.com had to say about the last issue of the series:
… the emphasis here is on human relationships and human tragedy, even if the ‘human’ in question happens to be a machine. Throughout, it’s easy to hear the voices of Katee Sackhoff, Edward James Olmos, James Callis et al delivering Pak’s smart, sad dialogue. Way to close on a high note, BSG team.
Tell your local store to hold a copy for you today!
Click here for more information about the comic book series.
Tuesday Sneaks: Exclusive preview images from “Warbound” #4!
It’s Tuesday Sneaks time! Today, feast your eyes on two never-before-revealed pages from “World War Hulk Aftersmash: Warbound” #4, written by Greg Pak with pencils and inks by Leonard Kirk and colors by Val Staples.
[Click on each image to see the larger version in a new window]
“Warbound” #4 hits comic book stores on March 19 — tell your local comic shop to order a copy for you today! And click here for more info about the book Comixtreme calls “highly recommended.”
Inside the Comic Writer’s Studio interviews Greg Pak
Eric Moreno has posted an extensive interview with Greg Pak as part of ComicBloc.com’s “Inside the Comic Writer’s Studio” series. The article covers everything from earliest influences to Ann Richards to improv comedy to Robot Stories and Warlock and Hulk. An excerpt:
ELM: When working with sci-fi concepts, can you just go all out and let loose all of your wildest ideas, no matter how implausible they may be or do you still have to reign some of them in?
GP: During my years doing improv comedy, one of the best things I learned was to take one crazy idea and explore it thoroughly. On an improv stage, there’s always a huge temptation to toss aliens and the Titanic and a presidential assassination subplot and an Elvis impersonation into a scene about a mouse who doesn’t like cheese. And you might get some cheap laughs with each new, crazy addition. But then you can easily lose the chance to really explore that mouse and his cheese problem and get to some really deep, character-based, emotionally resonant laughs.
In a similar way, sci-fi stories tend to work best when you take one concept and explore it thoroughly. The madder Hulk gets, the stronger he gets. That’s the central hook and it provides the essential metaphor. It might be cool to see him start to fly when he’s sad and get really smart when he’s hungry and shoot optic blasts from his eyes when he’s happy. But then it’s very easy to lose track of the story and end up with briefly flashy spectacle without heart or a point that no one wants to read after a few pages.
Newsarama’s Best Shots loves “Incredible Hercules” #114
Corey Henson has written a rave review of “Incredible Hercules” #114 for Newsarama’s Best Shots. An excerpt:
Much like Walt Simonson’s classic run on The Mighty Thor in the 80s, writers Van Lente and Greg Pak are mixing Hercules’s mythological history with his modern day superhero adventures. Hercules and his teenage companion, Amadeus Cho, are fugitives on the run from SHIELD and a small squad of Avengers led by Herc’s relentless brother Ares. Ares has poisoned Hercules with Hydra blood, driving him mad and inducing hallucinations of his life as a Greek god. It’s a terrific way to use the character, as I’ve never really really bought into the stories where Hercules, and similarly Thor, are treated as standard superheroes. The characters are much richer when their mythology is referenced, as they stand out more from the pack of their spandex-wearing colleagues. Besides, a lot of times, the mythological stories are way crazier and more fun to read about than anything seen in most comic books.
Click here for the full review.
“Incredible Hercules” #114 was written by Greg Pak and Fred Van Lente with pencils by Khoi Pham and colors by the late Stephane Peru. The book hit comic book stores on February 20.
Amadeus Cho makes the Eights
ComicBookResources.com is running a fun series of articles interviewing Marvel Executive Editor Tom Brevoort about which Marvel characters the Skrulls would most hope to replace, capture, or convert during the upcoming “Secret Invasion” event. Here’s the blurb about Amadeus Cho, deemed the Eight of Hearts in the Skrull’s deck of most desireables:
Until ‘World War Hulk,’ he really hadn’t come to the attention of many people,†Brevoort continued. “Now that he has, though, he’d be a critical asset to neutralize if the Skrulls thought he might tumble to their plans.â€
Replacing Cho would give the Skrulls many advantages, the greatest being it would eliminate someone who could devise a way to detect them. Cho is also infamous for finding and exploiting holes in the plans of large organizations like S.H.I.E.L.D. In his adventures, Amadeus has come to befriend heroes like Hercules and the Atlantean princess Namora.
Like most teens, Amadeus has a disdain and distrust for authority, like like Iron Man and groups like S.H.I.E.L.D., which is something the Skrulls have certainly noticed. “Amadeus has shown a penchant for wanting to side with the underdog, or with anybody whose situation in some way mirrors his own, or that he feels an empathy with,†Brevoort remarked. “So it’s possible that they could convert him to the Skrull cause without any need for a complex deception.”