As far as we’re concerned, THIS is the first big announcement of the show: First Second has picked up Paul Pope’s long unavailable SF/fantasy epic THB. (Shown above a con special edition of THB available only at AdHouse. GET IT QUICK!

First Second Books announced today its plan to publish Paul Pope’s highly anticipated multi-volume Martian epic, TOTAL THB, as well as an original commission for young readers, BATTLING BOY.

Pope’s sprawling TOTAL THB-a full-color, four-volume set totaling over 1200 pages-is scheduled to release in 2009. (An oversize Deluxe Collectors edition in black and white is planned as well). TOTAL THB will include the never-before-seen final chapters of the story, whose teenage heroine HR Watson comes of age on Mars with her extraordinary protector ‘THB’, a water-activated, inflatable bodyguard.

BATTLING BOY, to be published as a series in two simultaneous volumes, introduces a youthful hero who faces off against various demons in the city of Monstropolis. It will be released by First Second in 2008.

Says Pope, “I’m excited about the alliance THB will have with First Second. Mark Siegel is an old-time fan of the series, and together we will finally be getting the entire THB story out there-in full color and in a series of beautifully designed trade paperbacks, falling right on the heels of BATTLING BOY.”

Mark Siegel, Editorial Director of First Second, adds, “THB is a major milestone in graphic novels, and BATTLING BOY is highly accessible, his most mainstream project yet, and will introduce Paul Pope to a whole new world of readers.”

Dubbed the “Jim Morrison of American comics”, Pope has earned a sizeable reputation in the industry with his virtuoso brushwork and unmistakable blend of American, Japanese, and European influences. THB-Pope’s magnum opus-has gained an international audience through his self-published serialization.

Pope concludes, “I’ve always called THB my Dune. THB is the American Akira. It’s big and shimmering and strange and new, and hopefully it will reach a wide audience of readers who really love comics.”

This entry was posted on 07/25/07 at 5:11 pm and is filed under Books. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.