The Image panel at the Baltimore Comic Convention was quite entertaining, with witty input from PR and Marketing Coordinator Joe Keatinge and creators including Richard Starkings (“Elephantmen”), Jeff Parker (“Underground”), Frank Cho (“50 Girls 50″), AJ Lieberman (“Cowboy Ninja Viking”), Michael Oeming (“Mice Templar”,”God Complex”), and of course Robert Kirkman (“Walking Dead”, “Battle Pope”, “Invincible”, “Haunt”).
First off was Richard Starkings, who mentioned an upcoming seven-issue “Elephantmen” arc called “Questionable Things” which ties up some loose ends in the series. Frank Cho was next up with news of a contest winner to be announced by the end of October. The contest was to draw a six-page sequence of “50 Girls 50.” The contest was designed to lighten Cho’s workload as well as encourage new artists. Michael Oeming was proud to say he spends less time working and more time enjoying life now, when referring to turning over the artwork on “Mice Templar” to Victor Santos. Although he is collaborating with Dan Berman on “God Complex” a mythology-heavy series about a modern Apollo somewhat defecting from the life of the gods. Oeming was also celebrating ten years in attendance at the BCC.
And now news from Robert Kirkman. Yes I believe he has earned his own paragraph. I mean no disrespect to the rest of the extremely talented Image creators and staff. Trust me, I’m envious of the Man AND his coworkers. And his family, friends….. Ok lets get back to the news. Kirkman began by joking, “If you didn’t buy it, leave,” when referring to his new series “Haunt.” “The Astounding Wolfman” will be finishing on issue twenty-five. “We had a good ending point,” stated Kirkman. Fans of the “The Walking Dead” were excited to hear that Rick and the gang arrive in Washington, D.C. And the area is a zombie-free zone! Kirkman implied this upcoming arc will be quite different from previous ones. Issue seventy will include a reappearance of sequids. Then the next “Invincible” installment will actually be a one shot called “Invincible Returns,” in which readers will be setup for the forthcoming Viltrumite war. Also Mark Grayson falls back on his old blue and yellow costume. Finally Kirkman expressed his excitment for “Image United,” a collaboration of characters in which each of these characters’ creators draws the characters from their own series.
To end the show, Joe Keatinge opened the discussion for questions. The first fan asked Kirkman if he had a favorite character in “Image United,” to which Kirkman replied he was excited to see more work by Todd McFarlane. The next question came from a close friend, who inquired about new issues of “Battle Pope.” Unfortunately for us Pope-fans, Kirkman believes he should close his career, as he began it, with “Battle Pope.” So we probably won’t see new issues for a while. The next fan approached with a gift, not a question, for Mr. Kirkman. The gift was appropriate for the Man, a t-shirt that read, “Zombies hate that I’m so awesome.” Another fan of “The Walking Dead” asked, “When Rick and them get to the safe zone, is that when the aliens will finally come down and we find out thats where the zombies come from?” “This an announcement of sorts. There’s definitely going to be something involving aliens, it’s going to be in ‘The Walking Dead’ #75, but it’ll be an out-of-continuity backup story, so we’re going to have some fun with that,” Kirkman responded, leaving looks of curiosity and astonishment on fanboys throughout the room. The issue will relate to the #50 variant cover (shown above).
The next fan attempted to apologize to the rest of the panel for asking another Kirkman question, which Richard Starkings promptly and hilariously rejected. The question however pertained to movement on “The Walking Dead” tv series. Kirkman explained the three-step process. First, the company (in this case, AMC) options a series, which gives them the legal right to make the show. With “The Walking Dead”, AMC has optioned. This leaves two steps. AMC could now shoot a pilot episode. Then they decide whether or not to air the pilot. When asked about casting ideas Kirkman said that Ed O’Neill could play every character, explaining that he would just cast people he wanted to meet. A few more questions were asked, but the questions weren’t about Kirkman or his work, so I lost interest. In all seriousness the panel was amazing and I was thoroughly impressed. I would like to thank those skillful creators/artists who participated in the Image Comics panel.
