WITH JOSE GONZALEZ’S VAMPIRELLA, WALTER SIMONSON’S BATTLESTAR GALACTICA, AND EDGAR RICE BURROUGHS’ JOHN CARTER: WARLORD OF MARS – THE MARVEL YEARS

Dynamite Entertainment proudly announces the expansion of their Dynamite Art Edition line to include three new high-end collections that meticulously reproduce the actual storyboard and cover artwork from classic 1970s comic books.

Jose Gonzalez’s Vampirella Art Edition and Walter Simonson’s Battlestar Galactica Art Edition celebrate the seminal work of two master storytellers, while the John Carter: Warlord of Mars – The Marvel Years Art Edition showcases the artistry of numerous industry legends, including Gil Kane, Carmine Infantino, Dave Cockrum, and many more. Scanned in high-resolution color and printed at the original size of the artwork, these gorgeous hardcover collections preserve every detail of the prestigious artists’ meticulous skill and hard work.

The process of creating each oversized Art Edition format involves high-resolution color scanning of original storyboard artwork, capturing the look of the artwork as originally illustrated, with all blue lines, corrections, pasted letters, editorial notes, and other distinctive creative elements intact. Each scan is then printed on heavy stock paper to give readers the most realistic experience of what it would be like to hold actual storyboard pages.

Jose Gonzalez’s Vampirella Art Edition honors an illustrator whose mesmerizing and macabre interpretation of the raven-haired heroine established him – in many readers’ minds – as the definitive Vampirella artist. Introducing an unparalleled level of sophistication to the visual storytelling of Warren Publishing’s Vampirella Magazine in the 1970s, Gonzalez transformed the one-time horror hostess into a layered protagonist and industry icon. Longtime fans will thrill to see his mesmerizing and macabre artwork in the Art Edition‘s high-quality reproductions, representing ten complete stories selected from throughout his entire body of Vampirella work, including “Resurrection of Papa Voudou” (as written by Archie Goodwin), “The Blood Queen of Bayou Parish” (Steve Englehart), “An Eye for an Eye” (Bill DuBay), “Spawn of the Star Beast” (Rich Margopoulos), and more.

“For me, the initial exposure to Jose Gonzalez’s lush artwork was eye-opening,” says Steven Morger of Big Wow Art. “The reproduction of the original stories in black and white allowed for a subtlety which was never approached in four color comics. I was lucky enough to be able to acquire a number of stories from the original series over the years. I am looking forward to Dynamite Entertainment’s efforts to expose new readers to the artwork that I love and to give longtime fans access to the work as it was originally created.”

Walter Simonson is one of the most prolific artists ever to work in the comic book medium, a universally admired innovator whose work – on Manhunter, The Fantastic Four, The Mighty Thor, Jack Kirby’s Fourth World, the list goes on – leaves a mark in the hearts and minds of readers for years afterwards. Walter Simonson’s Battlestar Galactica Art Edition commemorates the master draftsman’s senses-shattering work on the Battlestar Galactica comic book series, published by Marvel Comics from 1979 to 1981. Truly, the adventures of brash pilots Apollo and Starbuck were never so epic as they were under Simonson’s skillful hand, as demonstrated in the scanned storyboard art of the complete stories contained therein. While Simonson himself assumes writing chores in many of the Art Edition contents, contributing writers also include Steven Grant, Roger McKenzie, and Bill Mantlo.

“Marvel’s Battlestar Galactica comic will always hold a special place in my heart,” says Simonson, artist and frequent writer on the series. “I’d been penciling the series for a year in the late 1970s when I was given the opportunity to write a few issues. It was my first professional writing gig, and I loved it. I wrote four of the title’s last five issues. I knew the characters as they had developed in the comic quite well, and as a fledgling writer, I had no idea what I was doing, and consequently, no fear. I got reference from every Galactica book or magazine I could find at the time, and I studied video tapes of the episodes my pal, Allen Milgrom, had made on what have been one of the earliest home video tape machine. The late Archie Goodwin, one of the finest writers and editors the comics business has ever seen as well as a friend, was very complimentary about the writing and offered me my next writing gig when Galactica wrapped. My career as a writer/artist in comics had been launched, thanks in large part to Adama, Apollo, Starbuck, and the rest of the doughty crew of the Battlestar Galactica and their bitter enemies, the Cylons. Thanks, guys. I don’t know that I could have done it without you.”

The John Carter: Warlord of Mars – The Marvel Years Art Edition is the product of a recent and comprehensive licensing agreement between Dynamite Entertainment and Edgar Rice Burroughs, Inc., a fruitful arrangement that opens the vaults of the Burroughs library for the enjoyment of science fiction and fantasy fans everywhere. This Art Edition collects high-end reproductions of stellar artwork from a huge assembly of industry pioneers, including Gil Kane, Rudy Nebres, Bernie Wrightson, Alan Weiss, Ernie Chan, Sal Buscema, Larry Hama, Ernie Colon, Carmine Infantino, Dave Cockrum, Alex Nino, George Perez, John Byrne, Bob McCleod, Ricardo Villagran, and Mike Vosburg. The cover artwork and interior pages are drawn from throughout the 1977-1979 run of John Carter: Warlord of Mars originally published by Marvel Comics.

“We are very pleased that our new licensing agreement with Dynamite Entertainment not only creates a fully new John Carter: Warlord of Mars comic book line, but also encompasses the reproduction of the rich, vibrant art of earlier periods by many masters of the medium”, says James Sullos, President of Edgar Rice Burroughs, Inc. “These are some of the legendary artists who contributed so much to comic art. I know that fans everywhere will want to add this beautiful edition to their collections”.

Tom Fleming of Fanfare says, “I was thrilled to hear that Dynamite is doing a John Carter of Mars art edition. I have a great fondness for the original novels and the Marvel comic book series was released shortly after I had finished reading the books. The series boasted work by some of the true giants in the industry and seeing the original art at its full size will be such a treat. I acquired my first John Carter original art page more than 30 years ago and continue to collect to this day. I am happy to be sharing art from my collection and I am also looking forward to seeing all of the other contributions.”

“Words cannot begin to express how delighted I am that we’re able to announce the expansion of our Art Edition program,” says Nick Barrucci, Dynamite’s CEO and Publisher. “With timeless classics like Jose Gonzalez’s Vampirella; to showcasing one of my heroes, Walter Simonson, on one of his earliest works; and finally, an Art Edition that features Gil Kane, Carmine Infantino, and many other great artists from the Marvel years of John Carter; these are great high-end collectibles for fans, and just the tip of the iceberg for what we have in store for 2015!”

The Dynamite Art Editions are solicited for retailer orders in Diamond Comic Distributors’ Previews catalog, the premiere source of merchandise for the comic book specialty market. Comic book fans are encouraged to place preorders through their local comic book retailers or online booksellers.