The ultra-violent but very popular manga GANTZ is coming out from Dark Horse. Googling for an image we found the above and other stuff that somehow tells us this one will cause a bit of…comment among the uninitiated.

Inarguably the most highly demanded manga in the last half-decade, the enormously popular seinen manga series, GANTZ, has taken the bright path to Dark Horse. Hiroya Oku, creator of GANTZ, has put together a cast of characters that are both sympathetic and strong to which anyone can relate. The wildly renowned anime, also entitled GANTZ from ADV, primarily follows the same story and has been translated in several different languages captivating audiences all over the world.

Gantz tells the story of a team of dead people who are forced to take part in a “game” that has them hunting aliens and other creatures who live among the populace of Japan. The story focuses on Kei Kurono, a teenage boy who died saving a homeless man from a train. He, along with a band of others who are recently deceased, is forced to complete a series of dangerous and complicated missions by a strange device called Gantz. On these missions characters can even die again, only to be quickly replaced by others like them. As the plot progresses, so does the intricacy of relationships between characters.

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The secret word is DIGITAL! You can’t spell Web 2.0 without COMICS, it seems, as all sorts of digital deals are being announced at this year’s San Diego, or else bubbling under the surface. Today’s big news: MySpace and Dark Horse are teaming to bring back the digital version of DARK HORSE PRESENTS with creators such as Joss Whedon, Rick Geary and Gerard Way on tap. The site goes live today.

More: PWCW’s son coverage.

MySpace, the nation’s most trafficked website, and Dark Horse Comics, pioneers of creator owned and licensed comics material, today announced a partnership to revive one of the most celebrated comic anthologies with the launch of a new online comic book, “MySpace Dark Horse Presents” (http://www.myspace.com/darkhorsepresents). The online series will include original content by top creators and premiere artists, all available exclusively on MySpace and free of charge to users. The announcement was made on-site at Comic-Con International in San Diego.

“MySpace Dark Horse Presents” takes its cues from the original Dark Horse Presents, a hard copy comic book published from 1986 to 2000, where high celebrated comics including Frank Miller’s Sin City and Paul Chadwick’s Concrete, made their mark in issues of the anthology and were later spun off into their own standalone comic franchises.

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Yikes! Somehow this never got posted

THURSDAY, JULY 26:
12:00 - 1:00 Joshua Dysart: Conan and the Midnight God
1:00 - 2:00 Tara McPherson: Lonely Heart
2:00 – 3:00 Will Vinton & Andrew Wiese: Jack Hightower
2:00 - 3:00 Chris Grine: Chickenhare
3:00 – 4:00 Matt Wagner: Celebrating 25 years of Grendel!
4:00 - 5:00 Jeff Smith: The Art of Bone
4:00 – 5:00 Eric Powell: The Goon, Chinatown
5:00 - 6:00 Rick Remender: Fear Agent

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CBR previews MARTHA WASHINGTON DIES by Frank Miller and Dave GIbbons, which is out next week.

ICv2 reports that new manga glut is coming this fall:

The number of new manga series launching in September, October and November has reached a new high according to the ICv2 Guide #45: Anime/Manga, which reports that 87 new series are slated to debut during those months. In the manga market report covering the second quarter of 2007, ICv2 reports that, according to retailers and distributors, sales of yaoi manga are growing, but not as fast as the number of yaoi releases, which could indicate the possibility of a logjam in the marketplace this fall since 32 out of the 87 new series are yaoi properties.

Is anyone concerned? Not really. The forecast calls for shakeouts and corrections not implosions. However, the word that the well-received EDEN published by Dark Horse has not been selling well leads various manga commentators to reach a shocking conclusion: Seinen manga — that is books aimed at older men, 18-35, traditionally the sweet spot for the superhero industry — just don’t sell very well here.
SaysEd Chavez:

Endo Hiroki’s EDEN, quite possibly the best title of 2007 (if it isn’t then Endo’s Tanpenshu might be then), is on the verge. Sadly not becauses it taking the world by storm as it should, but the title is not seeing the numbers it should get. And in this day and age that is not something any manga fan, EDEN fan or not, wants to hear. I have never heard a comment like that made at a panel before, so for a fan like myself it really sent a message as to how much DH loves that title and how much it needs help, as well. I never want to see a title discontinued or put on hiatus and generally when they do suffer such fate fans of the series are often the last to know. This time though DH made those at AX aware and the ball is now in the fans’ court.

Kethylia has an even more brutal conslusion

Anyway, the bottom line is simple: Seinen is not widely marketable or profitable in the US right now, and the quicker the boys acknowledge and accept it as The Money Pit of Manga Licensing, the better off we’ll all be.

Brigid rounds up the rest of the commentary.

Woman are consumers…who knew? Maybe this Minx thing has a shot.

PR:

Joss Whedon has long been championed by women around the world for his depiction of strong female characters. His breakout hit television show, Buffy the Vampire Slayer featured Buffy Anne Summers, played by Sarah Michelle Gellar as the young woman chosen by fate to battle demons, vampires, and other nightmares. Buffy inspired a generation with the show’s powerful depiction of women overcoming all odds to defeat the forces of darkness.

Dark Horse has been the proud publisher of the companion comics since 1998, and earlier this year brought Buffy back with a direct follow-up to season seven of the smash-hit TV series, written by Joss himself!

Now, Joss has teamed up with Dark Horse and eBay to offer fans a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to sit down to a private dinner–with Joss himself– at this year’s San Diego Comic-Con. Beginning on July 2nd, fans will have the opportunity to bid on seats at his table, all for a worthwhile cause. The charity auction will run from July 2 to July 12, and also offers additional rarities, including signed editions of Dark Horse’s upcoming Serenity hardcover. For complete details, visit ebay.com/josswhedon.

Funds raised from the charity auction will benefit Equality Now, an organization founded in 1992 to work for the protection and promotion of the human rights of women around the world. Working with national human rights organizations and individual activists, Equality Now documents violence and discrimination against women and mobilizes international action to support their efforts to stop these human rights abuses. For more information, please visit equalitynow.org.

The event is being managed on eBay by Auction Cause, a premier online auction management agency specializing in high-profile design, strategy, and cause marketing for corporations and nonprofits worldwide. For more information, please visit www.auctioncause.com

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Neil Gaiman is off in Budapest learning how to direct movies from Guillermo del Toro. Luckily he took daughter Maddie along and she’s been reporting from the set and posting an awful lot of pictures that we’re surprised they let out

Today we went on location to film Hellboy 2 and it definitely was not as fun for me. The temperature was about 100° F and 38° C, meaning it was quite hot! I got a little tan on my arms though! Anyway, they were filming up on a hill and I wasn’t allowed to go up there so I just had to sit down by myself and read my book, and occasionally people would tell me to move because I was in the camera shot. They are building a whole troll town in a quarry for the movie, and we got to go visit it today. The air felt really good down there because it was quite cold!! We had to wear hard-hats. Tee hee hee! Apparently where we were filming on location there were many ticks, and I was just wearing white flip-flops. Guillermo wanted me to wear socks so my feetsies wouldn’t be exposed to the ticks. We went to costumes to see if they had any socks, and they did. Unfortunately it was a pair of men’s long black socks. I think I might have looked a little funny walking around in pink shorts, black socks, and white flip-flops. Talk about embarrassing.

Artist Tara McPherson has designed a limited edition Hellboy for Dark Horse :
We began our Qee line with the classic 2.5 inch Hellboy Qee. Next up, the much-coveted large size 8″ Qee. Hellboy and Qee fans can rejoice and unite in toy heaven!

We asked Mike Mignola to pick an artist to design an 8″ Hellboy variant and he chose one of our favorite people: the talented Miss Tara McPherson! Tara was happy to comply, and has designed a magnificent Hellboy, turning it into a unique creation all her own! This piece is limited to 450, worldwide, so place your orders now!

Red Mile Entertainment, Inc. (OTCBB: RDML), a worldwide developer and publisher of interactive entertainment software, today announced it has entered into a multi-year, worldwide license agreement to develop and to publish video games based on the Sin City series of graphic novels by writer/artist and film director Frank Miller. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

The winner of multiple awards in its original comic-book and graphic-novel forms, the Sin City property achieved even greater public awareness with the 2005 release of the successful Frank Miller’s Sin City live-action theatrical feature film.

“Sin City enjoys a broad and devoted following. Its crime noir settings, richly detailed characters, hyper-real action sequences, and engaging stories provide an outstanding groundwork for video games,” said Chester Aldridge, CEO of Red Mile Entertainment. “Red Mile is enthusiastic about working with Frank Miller to create a franchise that is worthy of this great property.”

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Wow! Radical! And Blatant! And it’s another one of those Hollywood Studio development deals. Some very familiar names and faces involved however.

Fresh out of a first look deal with Dark Horse Comics, producer and renowned rock photographer Barry Levine has joined forces with Intandem Films who are raising a $100m film fund and representing a slate of comic book adaptations from Radical Publishing.

Levine’s Los Angeles-based film production entity Blatant Pictures will produce the genre-led product with wide ancillary market potential from the comic books, mass-market book publishing, toys, television, to films and videogames.

Levine’s recent high-end comic book to film adaptations which he shepherded at Dark Horse include Rex Mundi written by Jim Uhls (Fight Club) as a vehicle for Johnny Depp/Infinitum-Nihil to produce and potentially star, currently being fast-tracked by Warner Brothers/IEG and Universal Pictures repped R.I.P.D. to be directed by Dave Dobkin (Wedding Crashers) and produced by Sony-based Neil Moritz (I Am Legend, xXx) and Barry Levine’s mentor Mike Richardson (The Mask, Hellboy).

Already being developed through Radical Publishing is a large slate of projects. Two of the graphic novel properties have recently been picked up by Rogue; Blood on The Tracks and Hercules and a deal is also in place for a graphic novel trilogy created by Vin Diesel through his interactive label Tigon studios.

The first two projects to be developed through the Intandem, Blatant/Radical Partnership are the fantasy action approx. $35m Legends, written and illustrated by Nick Percival (2000AD) to be helmed by Patrick Tatopoulous and his Tatopoulous studios (The Last Voyage of the Demeter, Underworld, Independence Day, Stargate) and $25m Medieval, Blatant/Radical’s Wild Bunch of the 11th Century, based on the script by Peter Fedorenko and the graphic novel by Ian Edginton (Spiderman, Terminator) starring Til Schwieger (Laura Croft Tomb Raider, Barfuss) artwork by world renowned John Bolton (Batman, XMen).

LA manager David Schiff is packaging consultant on the projects .

Radical Publishing will also be introducing several comic-book licences to the marketplace. The first of which will be Intandem’s GallowWalker starring Wesley Snipes which will debut with Radical Publishing’s full slate of comic-book properties at San Diego Comic Con during July 2007.

Intandem’s $100m raise is steaming ahead, enforced by the recently struck relationship with SOCOM8 s.a (international commodities trading and real estate development company) who are one of the key investors in Blatant/Radical.

David Elliott (previously publisher of Tundra, Penthouse, Atomeka and Thrill-House and whose creative credits include Heavy Metal, Marvel, DC and Image) is Co-publisher and Editor in chief of Blatant/Radical.

The other day Chris Butcher had another complaint about Dark Horse: namely that despite the huge popularity of the new Joss Whedon Buffy book, the trade paperbacks of his work are not available:

I’ve bitched about Dark Horse’s inability to use their trade paperback program to properly capitalise on media events in the past, lots, but after they were almost able to meet demand for 300 (periodic multi-week outages of product, but not so bad if you were expecting it and just front-loaded a few hundred copies of the book) I figured they’d turned a corner. Not so, as you may have noticed above. The thing is, Dark Horse have actually been really good about keeping the single issues in print, and new printings of Buffy: Season Eight #1 and #2 are due in this week! But every single Joss Whedon trade paperback they publish is gone-daddy-gone, and 5-8 weeks from store shelves. Not to belabour the point, but this is totally unacceptable when the heat for the series is on NOW.

We’re proud to introduce a new feature to our ULTIMATE FIGHTER recaps: expert commentary from Rafael Kayanan. Rafael is a cartoonist of long standing, (check out his work on Conan #39 written by Kurt Busiek, now in stores and his art blog here.) but he is also a technical expert and fight coordinator for movies, with extensive knowledge of fighting techniques, both hand to hand and with edged weapons. He also watches TUF and we’re honored to have him offering his commentary as his schedule allows.

So…on to the fighting!
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Bob at Four Realities reports on last nights Bryan Talbot talk in Toronto:

Most of his presentation then looked at individual pages of the new book and discussed how they fit into the larger picture of either the history of Sunderland, the history of Carroll or the history of comics, occasionally adding some details and anecdotes that didn’t make it into the book. He also talks a bit about his work process and artistic choices, like where he deliberately evokes the styles of some older comics as it seems appropriate for the scene (Jack Kirby for the Battle of Hastings, Herge’s TINTIN for his trip to Morocco, 1950s “Boy’s Own” British comics for the heroic tale of Jack Crawford, Sir John Tenniel at various times, of course, like the adaptation of “Jabberwocky”). He also talks a bit about his artistic process in this book, which is heavily based in digital manipulation of images to get various effects, with a step-by-step look at how he took an image of the boat that Alice Liddell travelled to America on, added waves, smoke and birds and tinted it for final use. Some other interesting anecdotes on the production include how he got permission for use of photos of the Bayeux Tapestry with some product placement and how he sampled the colouring of some old comics to make the Jack Kirby inspired segment more authentic. There are several dozen interesting asides like that.

Plus, Everyone has been linking to this review of ALICE IN SUNDERLAND done in the style of the book and so will we.

Friday night we stopped by Hanleys to say hi to Bryan Talbot and get our copy of ALICE IN SUNDERLAND signed. It was an odd day, as the signing almost had to be cancelled when someone jumped out of the Empire State Building across the street. Only one leg made it all the way to the street, but it landed right across from Hanleys. Brrrrrr…we managed to snag an invite to dinner afterwards with Bryan and his wife Mary, who is a doctor of linguistics and got to grill Bryan with all kind of questions on how he managed to create this singular masterpiece.

Apparently the book has gotten tons of attention in England, where it was published by the UK arm of Random House. (The acquiring editor is also Salmon Rushdie’s editor.) Recounting as it does the history of Sunderland, a rather little known part of England, the book has made Talbot a local hero, with a gallery show and numerous cover stories in the local papers. It’s already broken even sales-wise, we’re told.

Anyway, you can have your very OWN evening with Bryan Talbot tonight in Toronto. Considering that he’s truly one of the unsung masters of the comics form (and an early adapter of the graphic novel format itself) we highly recommend checking it out:

Alice in Sunderland
A Conversation with Bryan Talbot
In support of his new graphic novel ALICE IN SUNDERLAND
Monday, April 16th, 2007, 6PM
The Merril Collection (Lillian H. Smith Library, 239 College St.)
Free to attend.

Hosted by SPACE’s Mark Askwith

Bryan Talbot is coming to Toronto! The creator of One Bad Rat, Luther Arkwright, and the artist of The Sandman Special #1: The Song of Orpheus is touring North America in support of his massive new graphic novel, Alice In Sunderland.

Talbot will be doing a presentation from the work, and will be interviewed on stage by Mark Askwith from the SPACE channel.

We’re very excited to see such an esteemed creator visiting us all the way from the U.K., so save the date and make sure to come out for this rare appearance. Both The Tale of One Bad Rat and the brand-new Alice In Sunderland are available for sale at The Beguiling now!

Bryan Talbot has several East Coast appearances this week, including a presentation at the Lewis Carroll Society of America which is open to the public. He’s touring in support of his amazing new book ALICE IN SUNDERLAND, which we’re still only halfway through. Catch him where you can! Here’s his schedule for the rest of the year from his site:

Washington DC: Wednesday April 11th 2007, 6-8 pm Big Planet Comics, 4908 Fairmont Ave. Bethesda, MD, 301-654-6856.
Baltimore: Thursday April 12th, 2007: 5:30-7:30 pm Cards Comics & Collectibles, Inc: 100A Chartley Drive, Reisterstown, MD, 21136; (410) 526-7410
New York: Friday April 13th 2007, 6-8 pm Jim Hanley’s Universe 4 W 33rd St New York, NY 10001 (212) 268-7088
Saturday April 14th 2007: Lewis Carroll Society of North America, Butler Library, Room 203, Columbia University, NYC, 11.00 - 11.55am, Alice presentation and book signing (Open to the public)

April 16th 2007; 6pm, The Beguiling, The Merril Collection
Lillian H Smith Library, 239 College Street, Toronto
416 -533 9168; Presentation by Bryan Talbot, hosted by Mark Askwith
Saturday 21st April 1-2pm Forbidden Planet 59 Grainger Street, City Centre, Newcastle, NE1 5JE.Signing with cover artist Jordan Smith Tel: 0191 261 9173 (also see the Forbidden Planet events page for more info)
Saturday 21st April 4pm-5pm Borders Unit 8A Goodwood Square, Teesside Retail Park, Thornaby, Stockton-On-Tees, TS17 7BW Signing with cover artist Jordan Smith Tel: 01642 608651
Sunday 22nd April, 2 - 3pm Waterstones, 69 Saddler Street, Durham
DH1 3NP, 0191 3831488: Signing with cover artist Jordan Smith
Saturday 5th May: 1-2pm Smiths 41-43 Mesnes Street, Wigan, Lancashire, WN1 1QY Tel: 01942 242 810
Saturday 5th May: 4-6pm Waterstones C3-5 Fishergate, Preston, PR1 3LJ Tel: 01772 555766
Saturday 12th May & Sunday 13th May Bristol International Comics Expo Ramada Plaza Hotel, Redcliffe Way, Bristol, BS1 8NJ
Saturday 26th May: 11am Travelling Man: 7-11 Corn Exchange, Leeds, LS1 7BR Tel: 0113 3935356
Saturday 26th May: 3pm Travelling Man: 54 Goodramgate, York, YO1 7LF Tel: Gary 01904 6287887
Sunday 27th May 12pm Travelling Man 4-4a Dale Street, Manchester, M1 1JW Tel: 0161 2371877
Saturday 2nd June 10-6pm Asylum Books and Games 29 Adelphi, Aberdeen AB11 5BL Tel: 01224 574637
Sunday 3rd June 1-2pm Waterstones 174-176 Argyle St, Glasgow, G2 8BT Tel: 0141 2484814
Sunday 3rd June 5-6pm Forbidden Planet 40-41 Southbridge Street, Edinburgh, EH1 1LL Tel: 0131 558 8226

We’ve spotted the cover of the final Frank Miller/Dave Gibbons collaboration on Martha Washington, and here’s the solicitation info:

MARTHA WASHINGTON DIES

FRANK MILLER (W), DAVE GIBBONS (A), and ANGUS MCKIE (C)

On sale July 11, FC, 24 pages, $3.50 One-shot

On Earth, the battle for freedom rages on. The year is 2095 and the day is the one-hundredth birthday of Martha Washington. She is the leader of a small, resolute band that will not forfeit the pursuit of liberty—no matter what the cost. Today, the cost will be high. Martha has seen much in her hundred years, from the triumphs and tragedies of the battlefront, to the deepest reaches of space. Today, she will finally see the truth.

Includes a special section of never-before-seen production sketches and drawings that predate Martha’s first series, Give Me Liberty, along with Frank Miller’s original plot notes, all wrapped inside a high-quality card stock cover.  This all-new story by two of comics’ legendary creators is the unprecedented conclusion to one woman’s epic struggle for life’s most valuable quality—freedom.

Miller and Gibbons reunite to tell the final chapter!

Thanks to Richard Starkings for pointing out the cover.

Via PR

Even the U.S. Government can appreciate the classic political artwork of frequent New Yorker cover artist Eric Drooker. The Library of Congress has just purchased the original artwork of Drooker’s political masterwork, Flood! to rest in their public prints and photos collection. These pages have found a permanent home alongside graphic novel pioneer Lynd Ward’s 1930s originals, and the work of comics legend, Will Eisner.

“At first I was amazed that the U.S. Government would invest in a set of images so overtly critical of itself,” says Drooker, “but the Library of Congress represents a progressive wing of the government. Over the years, various collectors have tried to purchase original art from the book, but I never wanted to break up the cycle of engravings. I think it’s fantastic that now, scholars of future generations will be able to examine the original work in its entirety.”

To celebrate, Dark Horse Comics is proud to announce a new edition of this powerful graphic novel, with an additional chapter. An American Book Award winner and an Editor’s Choice of The New York Times, Flood! is a modern novel written in the timeless language of pictures, with an expressionist, film noir edge. Flood! explores all the joys and sadness of big city life, while prophetically gazing into the not-so-distant future.

In The New York Times Book Review, Pulitzer Prize winner Art Spiegelman (Maus) best described Flood! as “a complex, dream-charged vision of alienation in the wet, mean streets of New York City, where primal natural urges are suppressed in the lonely isolation of crowds. It’s a picture of a soulless civilization headed toward the apocalypse. It’s a poetic and lyrical novel—told virtually without words.”

He goes on to praise Drooker’s artistic storytelling. “Since images are usually open to broader interpretation than prose, each drawing in the sequence must work not only as a self–centered composition but also as a kind of hieroglyphic picture-writing. The page acts as a curtain to be raised, each page offering up new visual surprises. Mr. Drooker has discovered the magic of pulling light and life out of an inky sea of darkness.”

Drooker adds “Since Flood! was first published, the ‘graphic novel’ has emerged as a serious literary form. A number of sequential artists have created powerful dramas in words and pictures. My aim was slightly different: I was dispensing with the words—allowing the pictures alone to tell the story. The challenge to me, as a visual artist, was to explore how far I could communicate without resorting to words, to create a more powerful, universal tale.”
This special edition of Flood!: A Novel in Pictures features a bonus chapter, “After the Flood,” which includes thirty-two pages of new graphics, preliminary art, and an in-depth interview with the author. This definitive edition of Flood! is a unique record of our country’s turbulent past—and corporate present—and a must-read for students of graphic storytelling. This third edition also features a new cover by Drooker and a complete re-design. Flood!: A Novel in Pictures, was followed by Drooker’s acclaimed book, Blood Song: A Silent Ballad.

Flood!: A Novel in Pictures features art and story by Eric Drooker. This third edition arrives on sale April 25, carrying a retail price of $14.95.

For more information on the artist and his other works, please visit www.drooker.com.

Just one more 300 parody video because it’s got KITTENS.

§ Someone here was complaining that Queens is to be left out of the Spidey 3 festivities taking place at the end of the month, but in what we can only term a fitting move, the movie will premiere in that fine borough:

The event, slated for Queens because it is Peter Parker’s hometown, is set for April 30, four days before the pic’s May 4 global bow. It is part of both the Tribeca Film Festival and “Spider-Man Week in NYC,” a co-venture by the city and Columbia Pictures. The film’s global debut is set for April 16 in Japan.

§ Meanwhile CBR posts new FF 2 stills. Please go there for more. Howabout them skintight suits, eh?

§ More in the endless rounds of SIN CITY 2 gossip

The stars of the SIN CITY prequel have been told not to discuss ANGELINA JOLIE’s possible involvement in the film. Jolie has been linked to the graphic novel adaptation, A DAME TO KILL FOR, but director ROBERT RODRIGUEZ is keen to keep his big name star under wraps and he’s told his cast members not to reveal any details. Actress ROSARIO DAWSON, who will reprise her character, GAIL, opposite other Sin City alumni BRITTANY MURPHY and JESSICA ALBA, says, “The lead actress is going to be absolutely fabulous; but I can’t tell you who it is.” But Dawson does reveal to Movies.com, “It’s going to be the prequel to my segment in the first one, so you’ll understand a little bit more what the argument was between (co-star) CLIVE OWEN and my character.”

But what does Clive Owen look like BALD, that’s what we want to know.

§ Gilbert Hernandez has a new series coming out entitled SPEAK OF THE DEVIL at Dark Horse. What with Love and Rockets, and New Palomar, and his graphic novels, Gilbert seems pretty prolific these days.

Val Castillo is a young gymnast with a strange hobby—looking through her neighbors’ windows. At first, no one knows the identity of the neighborhood peeper, only that the suspect wears a devil’s mask.

When a friend discovers Val’s secret, he joins her into a dark journey of spying and discovery that includes peering into the bedroom of Val’s own father and stepmother. Intimate details of neighbors’ lives, better left quiet, become chatter and threaten all involved, eventually snowballing into a dark journey that even the strongest soul would not care to endure.

Speak of the Devil #1 features story and art from Gilbert Hernandez (Love & Rockets). The miniseries arrives on sale July 25.

§ Eric Powell’s THE GOON is also coming back at DH:

After a long hiatus from the regular series to work on The Goon: Chinatown and the Mystery of Mr. Wicker graphic novel, Eric Powell, the mastermind behind The Goon is back! It’s been more than a year since Eric has written and drawn the ongoing adventures of his fan-favorite, award-winning antihero, and he aims to prove that the wait was worth it.

The brand-new story is the beginning of major upheavals in the Goon universe. The Zombie Priest and his latest abominations continue to plague the streets, but his madness and use of forbidden magic is drawing forces to Lonely Street that he may not be able to control. Plus the Goon comic is now offering 50% more poop jokes than all the Marvel and DC superhero titles combined. Suck on that, X-Men!

300 has landed at #12 on this week’s Hardcover Bestsellers list at Publishers Weekly. While it’s not the only listing for a graphic novel on a nationally recognized bestseller list (SANDMAN: ENDLESS NIGHTS charted a few years and ago and there have been others including, we believe, the ALIEN movie adaptation back in the day) it’s certainly a strong showing for the Dark Horse books.

We’re assuming Dirk hadn’t seen this when he castigates Dark Horse for their PR:

The following headline can currently be found on the Dark Horse homepage: “300 GRAPHIC NOVEL IS NUMBER ONE IN THE NATION!!!!!”

The 300 graphic novel is currently the #1 best selling graphic novel in the nation! Congratulations to Frank Miller and Lynn Varley!!!! Plus, a very special thank you to all the fans who have helped to make the book such a huge success.

The blurb is dated “Updated 3/23/07,” and I suppose it’s possible that Bookscan might be telling a different or more current story than, say, the USA Today listings. I hope so. I’d hate to think that Dark Horse, of all companies, doesn’t consider manga volumes to count as “graphic novels.”

We’d hate to think that Dirk is so in love with his manga that he ignores any evidence that goes against the worldview that he is hellbent on promoting each and every day. While we agree with him that it’s silly to ignore the huge success of manga, it’s equally silly to ignore the success of things that AREN’T manga…cuz it CAN happen y’know.

A variety of PR that dropped into our mailbox from Dark Horse recently.First off, Jeremy Atkins has been promoted to Director of Publicity. Way to go, Jeremy!

They also announced that they will be releasing the cult hit manga MPD-PSYCHO

MPD-Psycho was deemed too shocking for other publishers, with violent images that most thought were too graphic for the American public.

But coming this June, the most-requested manga series in recent memory will be presented uncut and uncensored from Dark Horse Comics. Brace yourself for a dark journey into madness: Eiji Otsuka and Sho-u Tajima’s MPD-Psycho.

Police detective Kobayashi Yousuke’s life is changed forever after a serial killer notices something “special” about the detective. Kobayashi is stable police detective until he witnesses the killer he’s hunting mutilate Kobayashi’s own girlfriend. The event triggers several dormant personalities that push Kobayashi into a complex tempest of deviants and evil forces, ultimately creating a multiple personality detective.

Earning praise for its consistently shocking plotlines and Sho-u Tajima’s clean, arresting art style, MPD-Psycho is the manga event of the decade. The title was rated the eighth most wanted Japanese series in U.S. fan polls and has sold more than four million copies in Japan.

MPD-Psycho is written by novelist and manga visionary Eiji Otsuka, author of The Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service, with sleek, stylish art from Sho-u Tajima. MPD-Psycho comes shrink-wrapped and carries an 18+ content advisory.

The trade paperback arrives on sale June 6 and retails for $10.95. Prepare for gory!

Finally, Charles Vess has sculpted a “FAIRY PRINCESS” statue for Dark Horse. Picture below, PR in the jump.

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Publishers Weekly has some hard numbers on the distribution of the 300 graphic novel, still going strong at #8 on Amazon. 80,000 copies of the book are on their way for next month, with many more already on shelves:

In a conference call that also included DH v-p of business development Michael Martens, Richardson sought to dispell rumors that the publisher would not have enough books to meet retailers’ needs. He said that 300 has shipped about 250,000 copies since January 2006. He added that the bookstore market should have 25,000 to 30,000 copies in stock (plus another 10,000 copies at online book retailer Amazon.com) and that bookstore and comics shop retailers have stock to meet demand. Richardson said part of the confusion over the availability of the title is that retailers fearful of getting caught short are reordering even though they have the book in stock. There have been complaints in the past about the availability of reprints for DH’s Sin City and Hell Boy graphic novels after those films opened, although the publisher disputes the notion that it did not have enough books available.

300 handily vanquished the opposition at this weekend’s box office, taking in about $31.2 million for a total of $127.5 after 10 days. It was a 56% drop-off from the bofftastic opening weekend but the WB expects it to reach $200 million. Meanwhile, it’s also expect to slay them overseas.

Thanks to smashing bows in five Asian territories plus exceptionally strong holdover-market performances, “300″ decisively dominated international boxoffice for the weekend, battling its way to an estimated $15.6 million from about 1,300 screens in 13 markets.

The Warner Bros. International release took the No. 1 spot in each market it played. The fresh territories included South Korea (an estimated $6.3 million in five days from 353 screens), Turkey ($1.5 million from 115 sites), Thailand ($917,000 from 120 spots), Hong Kong ($730,000 from 33 sites for an astonishing $22,121 per-screen average) and India ($582,000 from 161 sites).

The biggest of the holdover markets for director Zack Snyder’s rendition of Frank Miller’s graphic novel about the Battle of Thermopylae in 480 B.C. is Greece, where the film earned an estimated $2.5 million at 140 screens in its second weekend for a per-screen average of $17,857. The second-weekend tally is exceeded only by “300’s” record-setting opening weekend in the market. Upcoming this weekend are “300″ openings in such major territories as the U.K., France, Italy, Spain and Mexico.

Variety has more, with predctions of “massive” worldwide grosses:

“It will go very, very, very well in Spain,” says one Iberian exhib, who predicted around $16 million for the title and listed violence and piracy as the only possible downsides.

“There’s lots of excitement about it,” a German booker notes. “It even got a standing ovation at the Berlinale. The movie is going to attract male viewers looking for brutal action and female viewers eager to see Gerard Butler in the buff.”

Meanwhile, Ghost Rider has been holding it’s own at the box office, taking in $197.7 million worldwide.