Category Archives: Drew Ford

June 3, 2018 · 6:00 pm

Kickstarter: AZTEC ACE: THE COMPLETE COLLECTION by Doug Moench (Ends June 29)

AZTEC ACE: THE COMPLETE COLLECTION by Doug Moench

Audiences can come and go but a work is always there to be enjoyed. Sometimes, a work can be, as they say, ahead of its time and thus miss its audience. Such is the case with the exceptionally quirky and quite impressive time travel tour de force comic, Aztec Ace. What exactly goes on here? you may ask. Well, if you’re a time travel fan, this story hits plenty of the sweet spots: a dynamic main character on a mission; a plausible cat and mouse framework; and dazzling displays of messing with the time space continuum. That’s it in nutshell. More details follow. Aztec Ace was indeed a time travel comic ahead of its time. Now, thanks to IT’S ALIVE Press, this gem from the ’80s is getting the deluxe treatment it deserves. Head over to the Kickstarter campaign (ends June 29) to make this happen right here.

First ever complete graphic novel collection of AZTEC ACE, created by legendary comic book scribe Doug Moench, w/new cover by Dan Day!

Aztec Ace is a comic title formerly published by Eclipse Comics. Originally written by Doug Moench and pencilled by Dan Day, 15 issues appeared from 1984 to 1985. The characters reappeared in the 1988 Total Eclipse comic series. Other contributors to Aztec Ace were inker Nestor Redondo, inker Ron Harris, artist Mike Gustovich, artist Tom Yeates, colorist Philip DeWalt, colorist Steve Oliff, colorist Sam Parsons, letterer Carrie Spiegle, and Eclipse editor cat yronwode. The Aztec Ace logo was created by Denis McFarling.

The story revolves around a time traveller named Ace (real name: Caza), whose goal is to save the timestream from unraveling through various intricate adventures. Ace is from the 23rd Century, with his base in pre-contact Aztec Mexico; he often visits ancient Egypt. His main enemy is Nine-Crocodile, who creates time paradoxes in an attempt to save his own dimension at the expense of other realities, especially, the modern world as we know it.

All or nothing. This project will only be funded if it reaches its goal by Fri, June 29, 2018 10:41 AM PDT.

Characteristics of the series are time travel, the use of cultural icons such as political figures, historical situations, songs, and cult movies in unexpected situations, and philosophical musing. Historical renderings of ancient cultures were detailed and imaginative. Careful reading, broad knowledge, and patience were required of the reader, as well as some understanding of the ongoing storyline, all of which possibly prevented it from gathering a large following.

Aztec Ace has never been reprinted or collected in any form.

Aztec Ace has never been reprinted or collected in any form. IT’S ALIVE Press is working directly with Doug to Kickstart this collection. Also, some comic book superstars have created exclusive Aztec Ace sketches, which will only be available through this campaign. There are sketches from Bill Sienkiewicz, Jeff Lemire, Kelley Jones, Paul Pope, Michael Avon Oeming, Matt Kindt, Michael Wm. Kaluta, Joe Staton and more!

Aztec Ace has never before been reprinted or collected in any form.

Support the Aztec Ace Kickstarter campaign right here!

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Filed under Comics, Drew Ford, graphic novels, IT’S ALIVE! Press, Kickstarter, Time Travel

Tagged as comic books, comics, Entertainment, graphic novel, graphic novels, Kickstarter, Media, Pop Culture, Publishing, Time Travel

January 3, 2018 · 9:01 am

Kickstarter for THE SILVER METAL LOVER by Trina Robbins

THE SILVER METAL LOVER by Trina Robbins

Jane is 16 years old and believes that she does not know how to live her life. We can all relate to that–but Jane’s world is far more complicated, set in the distant future where robots are capable of providing human companionship. “The Silver Metal Lover,” the 1981 cult classic science fiction novel by Tanith Lee, was adapted in 1985 into the highly engaging graphic novel by Trina Robbins. It has never been reprinted in any form until now. Drew Ford runs his own imprint at IDW called IT’S ALIVE! and he has a stellar track record for finding gems from the past and giving them a whole new life. A Kickstarter campaign in support of an exciting new edition is reaching its final stages, closing January 5th. Check it out right here.

THE SILVER METAL LOVER by Trina Robbins

This new edition will have a new cover and afterword by Colleen (A DISTANT SOIL) Doran, a new foreword by Gail (BIRDS OF PREY) Simone, and a new intro by Trina Robbins herself. All of this will be printed at 8.5″ x 11, full color, on glossy paper, all tucked inside a beautiful hard cover.

Drew Ford on this very special project:

“This cult classic science fiction romance is an important early example of ‘the graphic novel’ as a storytelling vehicle, telling an intimate story of a young girl’s first love…who just happens to be a robot! We are very honored to shine a light on the brilliant work of the late Tanith Lee. And we are thrilled to be working on our second book with the legendary Trina Robbins! Also, we must send out a huge THANK YOU to Colleen Doran and Gail Simone for coming along for the ride! We hope you will give it a look, and consider making a pledge.”

Many exciting rewards are being offered, including signed copies of the book, exclusive prints from Colleen Doran, sketches by comic book pros, and even original pages of comic book art by Trina Robbins!

This is a book that is sure to please fans of science fiction and comics alike. Visit the campaign right here.

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Filed under Comics, Drew Ford, IDW Publishing, IT’S ALIVE! Press, Kickstarter, Sci-Fi, science fiction, trina robbins

Tagged as Art, arts, comic books, comics, Entertainment, graphic novels, Kickstarter, Media, Pop Culture, Publishing, Sci-Fi, Science Fiction, trina robbins

April 27, 2017 · 10:00 am

Kickstarter: FAMILY MAN by Jerome Charyn & Joe Staton

FAMILY MAN by Jerome Charyn & Joe Staton

The story begins in New York City…one hour into the future. Crime runs rampant, rogue cops patrol the rubble-strewn streets, predatory gangs steal anything that isn’t nailed down, and the once powerful mafia dons cower in fear in their tenement prisons. Someone is killing the mob chieftains one by one, and the last survivors call on Alonzo, The Family Man, to hunt down the murderer. But it won’t be easy – not when Alonzo’s own brother Charles, the gun-toting Monsignor of the corruption-ridden New York City police department, is a prime suspect.

Full page of original art by Joe Staton

Jerome Charyn (The Magician’s Wife) is one of my favorite writers. He is a one-of-a-kind visionary. Charyn has worked with some of the best cartoonists in the world and his work with Joe Staton (Dick Tracy) is no exception. Take a look at the examples in this post and it will give you a taste of the hard-boiled, multi-layered tale that is FAMILY MAN. A Kickstarter campaign is on now thru May 21st in support of releasing, for the first time, a collected graphic novel of this classic work. Visit it right here.

Jerome Charyn & Joe Staton

This is a project that Mr. Charyn and Mr. Staton worked on in 1994, during the heyday of Paradox Press, an imprint of DC Comics. Take a closer look at the artwork and marvel over the distinctive shading made possible with the Craft Tint duotone process. These special bristol boards were coated with shading underneath the surface. The artist exposed the shading as needed. Back in 1994, FAMILY MAN ended up as a three-part comic book series of 96-pages each. Thanks to IT’S ALIVE! Press, this stunning work of comics can now be given the best possible presentation as a graphic novel. That includes displaying each page as it originally appeared on the art board

Close-up view of Joe Staton artwork

I really can’t say enough about the remarkable talent of novelist Jerome Charyn. We will pursue that further in subsequent posts. What I’ll say now is that he was way ahead of his time, at least in American circles, by taking his literary skills to the comics medium. In Europe, for example, that has been well understood for decades. In America, we’ve had time to catch up. If you read a Charyn work in comics, you are treated to a vast world of intrigue with characters that will get under your skin. For FAMILY MAN, Charyn and Staton serve up a nice pulpy noir tale set in New York City “one hour into the future.” It is a story about two brothers on separate sides of the law caught in a dystopia they understand all too well and which will pit them in a bloody conflict.

It’s not too late to join in and reserve your copy of FAMILY MAN. This is a wonderful opportunity to own a shining example of comics at its best. Check out the Kickstarter and learn more about rewards, including original art by Joe Staton, right here.

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Filed under Comics, Crime Fiction, Dick Tracy, Drew Ford, graphic novels, IT’S ALIVE! Press, Jerome Charyn, Joe Staton, Kickstarter, New York City, Noir

Tagged as Art, arts, comic books, comics, Crime Fiction, Dick Tracy, Entertainment, graphic novels, IT’S ALIVE! Press, Jerome Charyn, Kickstarter, Media, New York, New York City, Noir, Pop Culture, Publishing

November 8, 2016 · 12:30 pm

Kickstarter: VOYAGE TO THE DEEP by Sam Glanzman

Sam Glanzman’s VOYAGE TO THE DEEP was originally published in 1962 by Dell Comics and has never been reprinted. Drew Ford, known for finding lost gems in comics and bringing them back to print, plans to give this masterwork a well deserved return. This will be the third collection in Ford’s IT’S ALIVE! imprint. A Kickstarter campaign in support of this book is running now through Dec 3rd. You can find it right HERE.

Eisner Award nominee Drew Ford, left his position at Dover Publications earlier this year (where he put together over 30 graphic novel collections, one of which was nominated for an Eisner Award: THE PUMA BLUES by Stephen Murphy & Michael Zulli), to launch his own imprint called IT’S ALIVE!, were he will continue his mission of bringing lost and forgotten graphic novels and uncollected comic book runs back into print!

Currently, he is trying to collect (for the first time ever) VOYAGE TO THE DEEP by Sam Glanzman, a series of four interconnected 32 page comics books that have been out of print for almost 55 years! This will be the third collection from his new imprint, and he is raising the funds to do this through Kickstarter.

VOYAGE TO THE DEEP follows the adventures of Admiral Jonathan Leigh, as he commands the mighty Proteus (a shape-shifting atomic sub) through the deepest of Earth’s oceans, battling fanged sea creatures, arctic monsters, anti-mater generators, sonic attacks, and even terrorism!

Golden Age comic book master, and WWII veteran, Sam Glanzman has been drawing comics for over 70 years. And through Ford’s recent efforts, many new collections of Glanzman’s out of print work are now back on the shelves for long time fans to enjoy, and new readers to discover for decades to come. Mark Waid called Glanzman “…a National treasure in the field of illustration.”, and The A.V. Club praised Glanzman as “…one of the great storytellers of 20th century comics.”

The VOYAGE TO THE DEEP Kickstarter page has a handful of incredible Early Bird Specials, which will only last for the first few days of the campaign. And remember that if you end up becoming a backer, you will not only be helping Sam Glanzman, but you will also be helping Ford to continue his mission of saving the history of comics, one book at a time!

Visit the VOYAGE TO THE DEEP Kickstarter campaign running now thru Dec 3rd right HERE.

Kickstarter: IT’S ALIVE! Needs Your Help to Publish The First Ever Collection of DOPE by Trina Robbins

Page from the graphic novel, DOPE, by Trina Robbins

IT’S ALIVE! is an imprint that specializes in bringing great comics, many out of print for decades, to new readers. IT’S ALIVE! has partnered with IDW Publishing to make these wonderful books available to you. However, the imprint’s founder and editor, Drew Ford, is still responsible to come up with the funds to publish each book. Right now, a Kickstarter campaign is going on in support of the first ever collection of a comic book adaptation by Trina Robbins of Sax Rohmer’s 1919 novel, DOPE. The Kickstarter campaign runs thru August 19th and you can support it right here.

If this Kickstarter campaign is successful, IT’S ALIVE! will publish the first ever collection of Trina Robbin’s comic book adaptation of Sax Rohmer’s sensational 1919 novel, DOPE. The story centers around a talented young actress, who becomes fatally ensnared in London’s mysterious and glittery drug culture of the early 20th century. DOPE was both the first novel to speak openly about the world’s international drug trade, and the first story to center around the death of a celebrity by drug overdose. Robbin’s comic book adaptation was first published in 1981, serialized within the pages of ECLIPSE MAGAZINE (and later, ECLIPSE MONTHLY). The story started out in a black and white magazine, and finished up in color comic book. Since its initial publication, it has never been collected in any form.

Trina Robbins is one of the best cartoonists in a long history of great comics art. DOPE exemplifies her distinctive vision. The campaign ends soon, August 19th. Jump on board here.

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Filed under Comics, Drew Ford, IT’S ALIVE! Press, Kickstarter, trina robbins

Tagged as comics, Drew Ford, Drugs, Entertainment, graphic novels, IT’S ALIVE!, Kickstarter, Pop Culture, Publishing

June 5, 2016 · 1:30 pm

Kickstarter: Bringing Back RED RANGE by Joe R. Lansdale & Sam Glanzman

“Red Range” by Joe R. Lansdale and Sam Glanzman

Imagine an outrageous story, on par with Quentin Tarantino at his best, about an African-American seeking revenge over racists who have murdered his loved ones. Then imagine it created by some of the best talent in comics: Sam Glanzman and Joe R. Lansdale. That is what you get with RED RANGE, published in 1999 by Mojo Press. Unfortunately, Mojo went out of business that same year, and the book has been out of print ever since. Enter comics authority Drew Ford, responsible for bringing back to life a number of lost comics gems. His plan is to reissue the original RED RANGE in color. This is part of Drew Ford’s new publishing imprint, IT’S ALIVE!

Drew Ford has worked closely with both Sam Glanzman and Joe R. Lansdale to put some of their more important out-of-print works back on the shelves. For Glanzman, Ford put together the A SAILOR’S STORY collection, the U.S.S. STEVENS collection, and the ATTU collection. For Lansdale, Ford resurrected his first award-winning short story collection, BY BIZARRE HANDS.

So, it’s down to basic facts: books like these can remain lost to the general public or they can find a new home and new readers. Lend your support to the Kickstarter campaign to bring back RED RANGE, running until June 25th, right here.

Join the Kickstarter campaign right here.