Alternative Comics Reveals Fall Plans

Alternative Comics has come back in a big way under new publisher Marc Arsenault, and their new set of books for Fall 2014 is no exception.

Headlined (for me at least) by a new Noah Van Sciver comic, the imprint has a strong lineup of books coming out both digitally and in print, timed to ensure that they aren't flooding the market all at once. Though most are set for later this year, a few of the digital releases will be coming up soon.

A few books originally planned for earlier have been moved around as well, such as Megan Kelso's "Unspoken," which is now coming out in November.

A look at the highlights from my perspective, going in release order. You can find the entire list here.

June Digital Releases:

At the Shore by Jim Campbell makes its digital-only debut on June 27th, as the first issue in a five-issue series from a Meathaus alum who is (sadly) probably better known for coloring Marvel books. This story about a group of students who head to the shore for some fun but end up finding danger lurks under the surface was originally presented in Krachmacher and will have a print release in 2015, for those of you who are anti-digital types.

The Josh Shalek Collection will begin in June as well, also digitally. The prolific, Portland-area creator's main series, Falling Rock, will be serialized, along with other works. Falling Rock celebrates the outdoors and the many many people that make up a National Park. If you've never tried this one before and are digitally inclined, this is a good way to check out Shalek's stuff.

Misnomer and Kingdom/Order by Reid Psaltis is from a creator I've never heard of, but the cover image provided by Marc has me very interested and curious about the contents. Apparently a person adept at drawing animals, Psaltis is actually working to become a nature illustrator for scientific stuff, which is kinda awesome. The plan is to serialize his creature work and anthology materials, starting in June.

August:

Night of the Living Vidiots by Andy Ristaino is billed by Marc as "Sci-fi, horror, and comedy melted together and topped with a Twilight Zone twist." That's a recipe for a comic that's likely to be right up my alley, and then he doubled down by mentioning it features gothic anime, kaiju, and a haunted sweatshirt.

A.

Haunted.

Sweatshirt.

Ristaino is a storyboard artist and character designer for Adventure Time, which is really just the cherry on top of what promises to be a really fun comic. It's 128 pages and retails for $19.99.

Death in Oxaca #1 by Steve Lafler is a new series, which will be available in English and Spanish for the digital editions. Featuring a cast of characters that includes a chicken-eating vampire and of course luca libre wrestlers, this one should be worth checking out, especially if you are someone who enjoys quirky comics. Issue one will be 36 pages and $4.99.

October:

A City of Whiskey and Fire by Noah Van Sciver and Daniel Landes features the pair telling the story of the Great Fire in Denver in 1863, a point of history I was previously unaware of, though it makes sense as most cities had one (or more) in their past. Van Sciver's ability to draw historical pieces was cemented with The Hypo, one of the best books ever written about Abraham Lincoln. This is a second edition, and is not to be missed. If you're only going to get one book from this list, make it this one. It's 20 pages and $4.99.

That's some great comics, and you can find those and more at the Alternative Comics website.