Planes, Trains and Russian Super-Spies

Just in time for your Thanksgiving holiday reading needs, Black Widow #8 is available in finer comic shops everywhere. (CBR has a preview right here.) It's the conclusion of my first arc, "Kiss or Kill," and cues up the action in Widowmaker, my Widow/Hawkeye/Mockingbird crossover with Jim McCann.

Deadpool and Cable, Together Again

Wait... is this Deadpool, the Merc with a Mouth? Or is it Cable, the time-traveling mutant with the pouch-and-oversized-gun fetish? Could it be both? In the same body? You'll find out in February when you buy multiple copies of...

DEADPOOL & CABLE #26
Written by DUANE SWIERCZYNSKI
Penciled by LEO FERNANDEZ
Cover by DAVE WILKINS
 
Cable is dead, and no one’s more devastated than his old friend and partner, Deadpool (a.k.a. Wade Wilson, a.k.a. the Merc With the Mouth, a.k.a. the guy who’s in pretty much every other solicit this month). Sitting by Cable’s grave, Deadpool struggles to find the perfect way to honor his fallen mutant pal. Then… light bulb! Deadpool remembers Rumekistan, the troubled and totally fictional European country that Cable once tried to turn into a Utopia on earth. Deadpool travels there to establish up a Cable museum! A Cable amusement park! A Cable cable TV show! But Rumekistan isn’t quite what it used to be, and Deadpool’s appearance only makes things worse. To set things right, Deadpool will have to do more than just honor his old friend -- he must become him!
 
40 PGS./Parental Advisory …$3.99 

(God, do I love this Dave Wilkins cover.)

Back in Black

Tomorrow Black Widow #7, part deux of my three-issue arc, hits finer comic shops everywhere. CBR has a preview right here; hope you'll give it a kick.

Here's Looking At You

Black Widow #6, my first issue on the series, is now available in finer comic shops everywhere.

Frank Castle: Homeless!

Here's a reference photo I took a few years ago for the artists working on both Punisher: Six Hours to Kill and Werewolf By Night: In the Blood. I needed a Philly-area torture complex for the Punisher, and I also needed a place where Jack Russell could keep his giant werewolf-proof panic room. Feeling a little whimsical, I decided to use the same building -- the William Cramp & Sons Ship and Engine Building Company, down by the mighty Delaware River -- for both. Just imagine: Frank and Jack, crossing paths under a moonlit Philly night! (Below: Michel Lacombe's original art, showing the Punisher leaving the building.)

So I was sad to read today that they're tearing down the William Cramp & Sons building to make way for a bunch of I-95 exit ramps (via Philly Brownstoner). If anybody sees a pissed-off werewolf or a psychotic vigilante, you may refer them to the mayor's office.

(Deadpool and) Cable #25

Wednesday brings the last issue of my Cable run... and appropriately enough, it takes us right back to the beginning:

COVERS BY: Simone Bianchi, Rob Liefeld
WRITER: Duane Swierczynski
PENCILS: Paco Medina

THE STORY:
"TWO MUTANTS AND A BABY" DOUBLE-SIZED FINAL ISSUE CO-STARRING DEADPOOL! You know, before that red-headed would-be messiah/destroyer of the world showed up, Cable had another partner. That's right: Wade Wilson -- a.k.a. Deadpool! And while everybody's excited about Cable bringing Hope back to the present to rejoin the X-Men, they're forgetting the most important part of the story: The beginning, back when Cable first lifted the helpless baby out of her incubator up in Alaska. Wait -- You don't think Cable did that alone, did you? You don't think he managed to make his way across hundreds of miles, avoiding Predator X and Purifiers without a little assist, do you? Hell no. Cable asked for help from his favorite Merc with a Mouth and now, finally, this action-packed, oversized story can be told. Before there can be an end, there must be a beginning. Rated T ...$3.99

You can check out some preview pages right here. And yeah, while the last issue of a run isn't usually the place to start with a particular comic... you can actually dive in with this one, since it's essentially a prequel. Hope you enjoy it.

Cable Ready

Marvel Noise has posted a bunch of sample pages from Cable #3, out next Wednesday. At left is the variant cover by the legendary John Romita, Jr. I've had a few non-comics nerds ask me about variants. Basically, they're an incentive for a retailer; Marvel will slip one variant issue in with every 25 to 50 issues ordered. And boom, ready-made collector's item. So far, each issue of Cable has had a variant--the first by Cable co-creator Rob Liefeld, the second by David Finch. How rare are these? Well, I couldn't find the first one to save my life, and I only have a tearsheet of the second. Maybe I'll get lucky next Wednesday with #3...

Anyway, for the main cover of Cable #3, check the sidebar. It's just as cool, and my favorite of the Olivetti covers thus so far. If that doesn't sum up the feeling of fatherhood, I don't know what what does.

For Appearances' Sake

We're less than a month away from the release of Severance Package, which means I'll be crawling out of the ink-stained cocoon I've woven myself into lately to make a few public appearances. There are also a few comic-related events coming up, which is a new thing for me. I've said it before, but it's worth repeating: I'm a fundamentally shy person, and I became a writer because I thought I would able to hide behind my typewriter/computer for the rest of my ha ha HA HA HA HA hewwwwww.... sorry. These uncontrollable fits of laughter, boy they do sneak up on you.

Anyway...

This Saturday is Free Comic Book Day, and I'll be at Brave New Worlds in Old City (45 N. 2nd Street) from 3 to 5 p.m. to hang out, talk about Cable, and try to stonewall questions about the identity of the baby. Oh, and whatever else you want. Hope you can stop by, if you're in the area.

A week later, I'll be at Bagged and Boarded in Bensalem, PA (2337 Street Road) from 1 to 4 p.m. for the same reasons, only it won't be Free Comic Book Day. So you'll have to pay for stuff.

I'll also be at Wizard World Philadelphia, May 30 to June 1. Details to come.

And now, time to crawl back into the cocoon.

NY ComicCon Hangover: A Shameless Product Placement

This was taken at the "Make Mine Marvel" panel Saturday morning. If you squint, you can see X-Men editor Nick Lowe at the desk, and me to the right. I had no idea they were showing book covers as I spoke. For all I knew, Nick could have had "I'm With Stupid <----"-style images up on that big screen. For all I knew, he did. (Photo by The Bride.)

NY ComicCon Hangover: How I Almost Shook Stan Lee's Hand

I say almost, because I am a dumb ass.

See, here's what happened: I was at Saturday's "Cup O' Joe" panel, where Marvel ed-in-chief Joe Quesada made a few announcements, then fielded questions from a long line of fans. It's a funny, freewheelin' kind of panel. Early on, Joe announced the new Punisher MAX news, and called me up to tell the audience about it. "And then get the hell off the stage," he joked. I said something about Frank being my kind of character: "He's old, he's bitter, and he likes to kill people." Then, as per Joe's instructions, I got the hell off the stage.

"Hey, wait," Joe said. "I was kidding. You can stay up here."

But I felt weird about that; I mean, it was Joe's panel. So I sat back down.

"Now I feel bad," Joe said, then waited a beat before adding: "Okay, I'm over it."

It was a funny moment.

Announcements ended, Joe started taking those questions, and then halfway through the session... STAN LEE WALKED INTO THE ROOM.

To a lifelong nerd like me, there's no bigger celebrity on earth. In fact, Stan Lee was the first person I ever attached the label "celebrity" to. Even The Bride gasped when he walked into the room... and she's a far cry from a comics fan. Everyone knows Stan Lee. And to know him is to worship him.

Then came the moment that now sticks in my back and twists: Stan Lee proceeded to shake the hands of everyone gathered on the dais: Joe Quesada, Marvel's marketing and PR honcho Jim McCann, publisher Dan Buckley, writer/editor C.B. Cebulski, executive editor Axel Alonso...

And only later did I realize that the list could have included super-geek Duane Swierczynski... if only I had remained on stage.

So yeah. Big dumb ass here.

NY ComicCon Hangover: Red Hulk, Green Hulk

Seriously, the green/Ed Norton Hulk is there, standing way in the back. This was the throbbing, pulsating core of the Marvel area at the con. (Photo by The Bride.)

NY ComicCon Hangover: Tim Roth

Tim Roth at the Marvel booth, just after signing Incredible Hulk posters, and, presumably, naked chests. Or perhaps mine was the only one. (Photo by The Bride.)

NY ComicCon Hangover: A Punishing Weekend

The Bride and I spent the weekend at the New York ComicCon (or Comic Con or Comic-Con); in fact we're still here at the hotel, enjoying the relative quiet of Manhattan on a Sunday morning. (That would be relative to our two kids, who are usually up and singing and screaming by this time.) There's a lot to report, and a lot of photos to share, thanks to the Bride.

Also, two bits of news were announced this weekend: one, that I'll be writing an arc of Punisher MAX, right between arcs by Gregg Hurwitz and the one and only Victor Gischler. My story's called "Six Hours to Kill," and kicks off early in 2009. You can read more about this right here.

And two: I'm now an exclusive Marvel writer. Which, goddamn, feels so good to type.

Anyway, stay tuned for more later today, after we make it back to Philly and upload a bunch of photos. Including some with actual celebrities! And (I say this for David Hale Smith's benefit) ass crack!

Hot One

No, this is not a PSA illustrating the summertime perils of propane grills. This is Travel Foreman's awesome cover for Immortal Iron Fist #17, our first issue together, due out this July. (Click on the image to see an extra-large version.) Here's the skinny on the book itself:

IMMORTAL IRON FIST #17
Written by Duane Swierczynski
Pencils and Cover by Travel Foreman
“The Mortal Iron Fist" part 1 of 4
Marvels’ kickingest, punchingest, kung-fu-iest book just got bigger! Following the character-redefining, critically-acclaimed, fan-favorite events of “The Seven Capital Cities of Heaven,” the all-new IMMORTAL IRON FIST creative team of Duane Swierczynski (CABLE) and Travel Foreman (ARES) takes it to the next explosive level! Think you know everything there is to know about the traditions of the Immortal Iron Fist? If you do, then why’s Danny sweating bullets over an inescapable legacy that’s haunted the Iron Fists for centuries, huh? Tell us that, if you’re so smart. What was the deeper meaning of Xao’s ominous threat? And what incredible new adventure are Danny’s fellow Immortal Weapons embarking upon?

Iron, Like a Lion, in Zion

Some cool news that I've been sitting on for... oh, quite a few months now: I'm going to be taking over The Immortal Iron Fist starting this July. For a kid who grew up on Saturday afternoon Kung Fu flicks, and used to jump around in his underwear, thinking he was Caine, to the tune of Carl Douglas's "Kung Fu Fighting," it's a dream gig. Leaving the book are mad geniuses Ed Brubaker and Matt Fraction, who have spent 16 (plus) issues building the coolest, freakiest, Kung Fu/action/pulp/adventure ever, and I can't tell you how thrilled I am to be stepping into Danny Rand's yellow Ninja boots. The new artist is Travel Foreman, and you can see a sample of his work (from our first issue) at left. If you don't think this looks cool, ask someone to check your pulse.

A bunch of interviews popped up today at various comics sites, if you want to hear more from myself, Brubaker, Fraction and Iron Fist editor Warren Simons.

Comic Book Resources (Dave Richards)
Newsarama (Steve Ekstrom)
Comics Bulletin (Dave Wallace)

Update: Now there's a story from Tim Stevens up at Marvel.com, too.

Out this Wednesday: Cable #2

If you liked Cable #1, the second installment of the first story arc ("War Baby") is out this Wednesday at finer comic shops everywhere. And if you haven't gotten your Cable on, here's what you'll be missing in issue #2: robot tentacle asphyxiation (shown at left). Mutant cauterization. Jersey diner stand-offs. Salty Scottish barge captains. Who can say no to salty Scottish barge captains? Anyway, you can check out more preview pages at Marvel Noise.com.

Available Now: Cable #1

Just a quick reminder that the first issue of my X-Men comic, Cable, is out today. You can check out a sneak preview here, and over here. Even if you don't know much about the X-Men, I think you could catch on here with little to no trouble. This first issue is full of knifeplay, flying grenades, flesh wounds, parenting advice, Dirty Jersey diners, global disasters, beer for breakfast—you know, all of that good stuff. And all for just 299 cents!

Stéphane Peru

Punisher: Force of Nature is out today, but its release is suddenly a very bittersweet thing. Two days ago, I learned that Stéphane Peru, who did the colors for this issue, died unexpectedly. He was only 26.

I didn't know Stéphane very well; we only traded a few short emails as he sent in his color work (and I would tell him and the rest of the Marvel crew how much I dug it). But I've become quite friendly with Michel Lacombe, the artist of "Force of Nature," and he was very close to Stéphane. They worked together; they shared a studio together. They were, in Michel's own words, "family." And right now, my heart is breaking for Michel, his studiomates, and all of Stéphane's loved ones.

I knew I would never forget this issue; I had no idea it would be for this reason. Rest in peace, Stéphane.