Top Cow Productions, Inc. is proud to announce that the winner of the Pilot Season 2011 event is Jeremy Haun’s and Jason Hurley's THE BEAUTY.
THE BEAUTY beat out seven other competitors to take the Pilot Season crown in the most competitive voting period in the history of Pilot Season. This year saw the adoption of elimination-style voting as titles competed over three rounds to determine the overall winner. At the deadline, nearly one million votes total had been cast by fans for the Pilot Season 2011 titles. Other Pilot Season 2011 contenders included THEORY OF EVERYTHING by Dan Casey, Nick Nantell, and Thomas Nachlik; ANONYMOUS by Matt Hawkins, Alan McElroy, and Michael Montenat; MISDIRECTION by Filip Sablik and Chris DiBari; THE TEST by Joshua Hale Fialkov and Rahsan Ekedal; SERAPH by Lance Briggs, Phil Hester, and Jose Luis; FLESHDIGGER by Shannon Eric Denton, Brad Keene, and Alex Sanchez; and CITY OF REFUGE by Morgan Davis Foehl, and Dennis Calero.
In the world of THE BEAUTY, a new STD spreads across the world, but this is a disease you want to catch. It makes all infected people unspeakably attractive. But after the world's face-lift, two detectives discover some nasty, undesirable side effects. Will the world decide to stay beautiful at an unspeakable cost, or resign themselves to an ordinary-looking life?
With THE BEAUTY having been declared the official winner, the creative team will now work with Top Cow's editorial department to plan out the full series.
"Now that we've won we're going to be able to finish the story. I'm really excited to do that. It's exciting to be co-writing and drawing something like this," said Haun. "The process is surprisingly fast and a hell of a lot of fun. The trick of it is going to be balancing work on The Beauty with my regular art duties on The Darkness monthly book. Luckily, they're both books that I absolutely love. It also doesn't hurt that I just love to work. As crazy as it may seem, drawing two books is kind of my idea of fun.”
"Winning Pilot Season is easily the biggest moment of my career so far, and I couldn't be happier. It was a hard-fought battle, but thanks to all of the fans of The Beauty, we came out on top," exclaimed Hurley. "I can't wait to get back to work on the book. We've got a lot of exciting stuff planned for the future of The Beauty, and since we've won Pilot Season, we'll be able to share all of that with our fans. More than anything, I just want to send a huge thank you out to all of our family, friends, and fans for their support throughout the entire voting process. It's thanks to them that we're able to continue The Beauty."
This PILOT SEASON, the fans came out in full force, crashing the first poll several times for the chance to vote for their favorite 2011 Pilot Season one-shots. Pilot Season is an annual initiative Top Cow began in 2007, inspired by a concept from the television industry: a number of “pilot issues” are submitted for consideration to be “picked up for a season,” except instead of TV executives deciding their fates, it's the fans!
Previous winners of Pilot Season include: CYBLADE, VELOCITY, TWILIGHT GUARDIAN, GENIUS, and 39 MINUTES. The CYBLADE, VELOCITY, and TWILIGHT GUARDIAN series have been released and can currently be found at your local comic book shop or through Top Cow’s digital distribution partners. 39 MINUTES and GENIUS are currently in production and will be given release dates soon. All eight of the 2011 competitors are available at your local comic shop or through Top Cow’s digital distribution partners including comiXology, Graphicly, and iVerse. A trade paperback collecting all eight titles is planned for release in March 2012 and will carry a price of $19.99.
© C Harris Lynn, 2012
REED GUNTHER, the creator-owned, all-ages adventure begins on June 1st, and the creators want you to take part in the fun! Join fans across the country at local comic book shops and order REED GUNTHER #1 for a chance to win an original page of art from the book!
By hanging a REED GUNTHER Wanted poster in their local comic shop, fans will be entered into the contest for a chance to win an original page from issue #1 drawn by the series artist, Chris Houghton. Once the poster is displayed, fans can email a photo of themselves with the REED GUNTHER Wanted poster and send it to the creators at mail@reedgunther.com. The contest ends on April 28th, so be sure to visit your local shop soon!
"This is a really easy way to score some original artwork," said writer Shane Houghton. "Chris generously gives me a page after we complete an issue, and I tell you, nothing keeps you warmer in the winter than original artwork."
Artist Chris Houghton humbly added: "This is a page from the first issue. If Reed Gunther ever gets as big as one of those caped superheroes, just think of how much that’ll bring in for you! We’re basically giving you your retirement fund!"
Creators Shane and Chris Houghton are excited to help their fans spread the word about the upcoming REED GUNTHER #1 and to encourage local comic shops to explore this new Image Comics book full of all-ages adventure and fun.
REED GUNTHER #1 (APR110403), a 32-page, full-color all-ages western comedy for $2.99, will come galloping full speed into a comic store near you on June 1st, 2011.
© C Harris Lynn, 2011
Berkeley, CA - 14 February 2011 - Those who have dreamt of having their work featured on the cover of a Top Cow comic will get their chance with the NETHERWORLD "We Are All Lost" Variant Cover contest. Artists, amateur and professional alike, are encouraged to enter their images of an urban landscape with the phrase “We Are All Lost” embedded into the setting. The best entry will be selected to appear in April as the retailer incentive variant cover for NETHERWORLD #1.
Top Cow Productions, Inc. and Heroes and Villains Entertainment present NETHERWORLD, a gritty supernatural story about the message on the walls of a city with no sun and no hope. Ray, a former cop turned private eye and junkie, has been entreated to find a girl named Madeline. As he searches through the city's twisted underbelly, Ray must unveil the darkest secrets of NETHERWORLD, including his own.
"The guys over at Heroes and Villains along with Bryan Edward Hill and Rob Levin has created a tremendously rich and vivid reality in NETHERWORLD. The phrase "We Are All Lost" plays an important part in establishing the tone of the series and was featured prominently in our teaser campaign," explained Top Cow Publisher Filip Sablik. "We wanted to take that a step further and really involve the fans in 'tagging' pieces of art to create a unique variant cover for the first issue."
Images can represent any city’s urban landscape and may feature original art of any medium, including photography and digitally-manipulated public domain images. Entries must be submitted at http://www.topcow.com/barn from February 14th, 2011 to 6pm PST on March 1st, 2011. Rules can be found here.
Besides being awarded the opportunity to have their art featured on the cover of NETHERWORLD #1, the winner will also receive other prizes, such as: an original sketch from artist Tony Shasteen, one copy of Netherworld #1 signed by co-writers Bryan Edward Hill and Rob Levin and artist Tony Shasteen, ten copies of their variant cover, and a selection of Top Cow comics and trade paperbacks!
NETHERWORLD #1, a 32-page, full-color comic book for $3.99 will be in stores on April 13th, 2011.
© C Harris Lynn, 2011
In celebration of Superman's 700th issue, DC Comics has put together a unique essay contest, the winners of which will be visited by Superman as he walks across the country, visiting cities and towns along the way. Your town will also be featured in an upcoming issue of Superman during the "Grounded" storyline by J. Michael Straczynski.
To enter, simply write a 75-1000 word essay on why Superman should visit your hometown. Your hometown must be within 50 miles of Superman's trail (following) to be eligible for the contest, and entries must be received by 10:59pm, CST (11:59p, EST).
CHICAGO
DES MOINES
OMAHA
DENVER
SALT LAKE CITY
LAS VEGAS
LOS ANGELES
PORTLAND
SEATTLE
If you are eligible, send your entry to:
Alex Segura
c/o THE SOURCE blog
DC COMICS
1700 Broadway, 5th floor
New York, NY 10019
Superman's walk begins in Philadelphia. Along the way, he will pass through Illinois, Nebraska, Colorado, and more. For more information, see DC's official blog, The Source.
© C Harris Lynn, 2010
The Miss America pageant will not return to cable network, TLC, despite last year's ratings, which were the highest ever for the 89-year old contest on cable TV. The Miss America pageant ran for three years on the network, but the contract was not extended today. The network did not say why it chose not to renew the contract, though it may have to do with controversy surrounding Christian-based comments promoting hatred toward homosexuals which have surrounded the pageant in the last few years.
Carrie Prejean stated she did not believe in gay marriage, based on her "conservative" Christian beliefs, which she then said cost her the competition. More recently, Lauren Ashley - who claimed to represent Beverly Hills - said gays should be put to death. Representatives from Beverly Hills were quick to denounce Ashley's comments and point-out that have no association with any beauty pageant and Ashley was not a representative of their town.
Sam Haskell, the chairman of The Miss America Organization, said TLC had told them they were not renewing the contract back on January 30th, though. Haskell claims the network had wanted a new, two-year, contract for less money. Haskell also said he would find another network for the pageant and that at least four other networks had already expressed interest in airing the show.
Reports do not mention the Christian hatemongering, suggesting instead that low ratings were the cause of the dispute.
© C Harris Lynn, 2010
3 November 2009 (Berkeley, CA) - For the past several months, LIBERTY MEADOWS creator Frank Cho and THE 'NAM writer Doug Murray have searched for the artist to illustrate their all new miniseries, 50 GIRLS 50. Today, they're proud to announce the search is over with winner, Axel Medellin!
"The number and quality of the submissions really blew me away. I mean, I knew there were a lot of talented comic artists out there, but I hadn’t expected so many to try this out," Murray said. "Judging was very difficult. We had to grade the entries on multiple counts: the fidelity to the model sheets produced by Frank, the story-telling displayed, the quality of the layouts—all of these factors came into play. We managed to pick the final four artists, but choosing a winner out of the four was extremely difficult since each artist had what we were looking for in terms of quality and clear storytelling skills. Frank and I went back and forth to the very last minute on who the winner should be, with Axel beating out the competition."
Axel Medellin will be illustrating next year's 50-GIRLS-50 based off a story conceived and co-written by Cho and Murray. In addition, he will be working alongside Cho, as he works off the NEW ULTIMATES illustrator's character and world designs. Cho will provide covers for every issue.
Cho added, "Thank you all for the time and effort you put into this. Also for the simple humanity and kindness you showed each other within the various threads of the 50-GIRLS-50 blog. I was as impressed by that as I was by the artistry of your entries."
50-GIRLS-50, a full-color 32-page comic book for $2.99, will be released in early 2010.
© C Harris Lynn, 2009
That's right: the cast and crew of The Simpsons have completely given-up (in case you haven't seen the show in the last two-three years) and now want you to design the newest character. All you have to do is come up with a name, brief description, and a handful of catchphrases; an artist will do the rest. If you win the contest though, you will be flown out to Los Angeles to meet with the artist and design your new character!
© C Harris Lynn, 2009
Are you going to Comic-Con International in San Diego? Will you be dressed as your favorite Marvel character? Then get your friendly neighborhood, star-spangled, best-at-what-you-do self down to the Marvel Booth at Comic-Con for The Marvel Costume Contest taking place on Friday, July 24th at 4:00 PM!
If you have the heroic (or villainous) qualities to participate in this exciting contest, make sure to be at the Marvel Booth (#2429) by 3:30 PM to register! All you need to do is wear a costume of your favorite Marvel character (but keep it family friendly!) and you could win the Grand Prize of a Marvel Omnibus signed by Stan Lee! All entrants may also be featured in a gallery on Marvel.Com! The winner will be determined by you, the fans, as you vote on who you want to be crowned this year’s winner!
© C Harris Lynn, 2009
25-year old Joey "Jaws" Chestnut put away 68 hot dogs in 10 minutes at the annual 4th of July Coney Island Hot Dog Eating Contest yesterday. Beating his own record of 66, Chestnut took the Mustard Belt and the $20,000 prize - the third competitive purse in a row for ol' Jaws.
Chestnut's arch-rival, Japan's own Takeru "Tsunami" Kobayashi, only got through 64. The six-time winner has been Jaws' main competition for over a decade now. California's Joey Chestnut not only rules in dogs, he also holds world records for eating 11 lbs. of macaroni and cheese in seven minutes, and 188 jalapeno peppers in 10 minutes! Some guy in South Park inexplicably maintains the record for largest stool.
The hot dog eating competition, a 4th of July tradition, was first held in 1916. The winner ate 13 hot dogs. This year's contest was broadcast live on ESPN.
© C Harris Lynn, 2009
MILWAUKIE, OR, May 15 – Beginning today, G4 and Dark Horse Comics are kicking off a search for the ultimate Comic-Con fan who will receive the opportunity of a lifetime: the chance to appear in G4’s special coverage of the year’s most buzzed about convention.
One lucky winner will be selected as a "Special Correspondent" to G4 and join Attack of the Show hosts, Olivia Munn and Kevin Pereira, as well as Comic Book Expert, Blair Butler, on the show floor. Dark Horse, one of the largest comic book publishers, with titles like Hellboy, Star Wars, Umbrella Academy, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and Alien, will also welcome the winner as their "official guest," granting access to their special event and more. To enter, fans are encouraged to create a video that demonstrates their pop-culture knowledge and on-camera abilities, and submit to g4tv.com/comiccon.
The "Con-Test" kicks off Friday, May 15th, 2009, and closes at 11:59PM on June 22nd, 2009.
Once again, G4 will present special coverage of Comic-Con 2009 direct from the show floor. Last year’s attendance broke all records, topping 160,000 people, and solidifying Comic-Con as one of the biggest pop-culture conventions in the world. G4 and Dark Horse Comics will bring one lucky fan into the heart of it all and put them in the spotlight at this massive event devoted to comic books, sci-fi, fantasy, horror, movies, video games, TV, and more. G4’s Kevin Pereira and Blair Butler will announce the winner live on Attack of the Show on June 29th.
"Comic Con International has become the ultimate pop-culture gathering for fans of almost any medium,” said Dark Horse President, Mike Richardson. "What better way to reward our fans than with a chance to appear on the ultimate pop-culture television show with our creators and top talent? The winner of this contest is sure to have the time of [his/her] life!"
"G4 viewers are huge fans of Dark Horse Comics, and Comic-Con is the perfect opportunity for us to team up,” said Neal Tiles, President of G4. "Comic-con is a major event for our audience and we are excited to reward the hard and true comic book fans with a chance to experience the phenomenon in person."
Contest details:
- Fans must submit a video that demonstrates their knowledge, and love, of pop-culture.
- Submission dates: May 15th, 2009 – June 22nd, 2009.
- Winner will receive airfare and accommodations for themselves and 1 guest to Comic Con ‘09
- Winner will have an opportunity to act as "Special Correspondent" for G4 and appear on-air
- Winner and guest will each receive a Dark Horse grab bag valued at $600.
- Winner and guest will be given special access to all Dark Horse related events and signings.
- Contestants will be judged on overall knowledge of all things pop-culture, creativity, and on-screen charisma demonstrated in their videos. G4 and Dark Horse Comics want to find the ultimate pop-culture fanatic and stand-out personality who deserves this special Comic-Con opportunity.
- Videos must be at least 30 seconds in length and no longer than 10 minutes.
For official contest rules - and to submit videos - please visit g4tv.com/comiccon
© C Harris Lynn, 2009
Marvel is pulling out all the digital stops to promote the upcoming Pet Avengers. First off, there's the pet contest. Dress up your pet as your favorite Marvel superheroes. If chosen, your pet will be featured as Lockjaw's online ally. Or dress it up as your favorite Marvel villain and he might wind-up fighting Lockjaw online! Check out the entries already posted and add your own.
Then, check out all the free digital offerings from Pet Week. Read first appearances of Lockjaw, Ebony, Redwing, Devil Dinosaur, Zabu, and many more online - for free!
Finally, do not forget to pick up your copy of The Pet Avengers, hitting shelves this May 13th.
© C Harris Lynn, 2009
16 March 2009 (Berkeley, CA) - In conjunction with The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's Team In Training, THE SWORD's Luna Brothers are spearheading a contest to raise money for the organization, giving fans the chance to win in a big way.
"When our friend, Rommel, told us that he was running the San Diego Rock N Roll Marathon and raising money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society to help fight blood cancers, we were more than happy to help out for such a worthy cause," Jonathan Luna said.
Working in conjunction with the Society's Team In Training member, Rommel S. Calderon, the Lunas have developed a contest in which fans can enter a chance to win a signed and personalized copy of the GIRLS: THE COMPLETE COLLECTION hardcover and a sketch of your choosing by The Luna Brothers! Second prize includes signed copies of ULTRA: SEVEN DAYS and THE SWORD, VOL. 1: FIRE. And third is a personalized Spider-Woman: Origin trade paperback.
All fans have to do is donate $10 or more via the contest's website. Each $10 donation counts as one entry, so, the more you donate, the better your chances of winning. All proceeds will go directly to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society and Team In Training. The cutoff for entries will be June 29th, 12pm PST, and the winner will be announced on July 3rd.
More information and the entry details can be found at http://tnt.rcalderon.com.
© C Harris Lynn, 2009
Arrrggh! There are a lot of these as late, no? Well, that's just the way things are when you've been away for basically two weeks; I'm still getting resituated and back into the swing of things. I don't know about you, but I always feel better when I know what's going on, so I'd rather post a lot of minutiae than just leave you wondering when the next post is coming.
I'll be away tomorrow. I'll be back tomorrow afternoon, but I have to leave really early, so I probably won't get more than one or two things out, at best... of course, you know how that goes - I may get a burst of energy and it'll be the biggest day of the month. But I wouldn't count on it.
I have the Hybrid TPB - received it, in its entirety, a while back - that's just one of the many perks of this job. Another is that I'm about to get a $15 iTunes gift card if no one enters the contest. Anyway, I've already started the review, but it's a 120-page book and I've been gone a while, so it's coming slowly. At any rate, it is coming.
Speaking of Studio 407, Nan Flanagan gave them a shout-out on Twitter today (a Twit-out?) and I thought I would include that:
RT @simondyda: http://studio-407.com/np/np... looks like fun
Both NanFlanagan and simondyda are from the AVL, which we covered a few days back.
Speaking of HBO, did you catch the season premiere of Flight of the Conchords? Relax, they've already shown it about 2340970912093470971097405097029874090784 times since last night, so you aren't likely to miss it no matter how hard you try, but you have to see it! Literally a laugh a minute! (I know they also premiered it online, but I pay for HBO, so I actually opted to wait.)
American TV has become so enraptured by the soap opera concept of "filler" (different from "padding"), which is basically - and literally - the scripting of nothing at specific intervals: the intervals at which viewers are most likely to be doing other things. If you are thinking to yourself, "What about commercials?" well... you're starting to get why there's such a high turnover in TV writer-dom.
This is not a theory of mine, mind you, this is a real practice: "filler" is written into shows so viewers don't miss something important and the practice started with soap operas. Dramatic developments are strictly scheduled to fall in beats and before (commercial) breaks. If you think you are going to "shake things up" by going against this formula, well... you're not. (You'll still get work though, the head writers will just edit your work to match the formula and consider you "slow" - and you'll eventually give-in so you can get an actual writing credit, which results in actual residuals.) Filler has become even more prevalent these days because so many of us multitask.
Because TV in other places of the world do not handle commercials the same way we do here, this is not something they have to deal with (which is why I wanted to work for the BBC or another channel like it), so TV shows are still actual events designed to watch. And Flight of the Conchords is precisely that - even moreso because of the musical interludes: you can "watch" it and laugh at the dialogue and enjoy the music, but you will get much more out of it if you actually sit down and watch it.
Um, what else? Let's see...
Oh! I will be gone tomorrow - wait, I covered that. Contest. Some template editing. About that, Blogger has this whole "gadgets" thing and part of what I'll be doing is trying some of those out in place of the scripts and coding already present, so it may be touch-and-go for a bit on that front. Also, there are so many tags that I am going to add another box o' ads or two. Yes, I'd like to make a few extra cents here and there, but it also looks so... stark when you get toward the bottom of the scroll; I need something to break-up the negative space.
I'll try to schedule a few things to run while I'm away tomorrow, so you won't miss me.
© C Harris Lynn, 2008
That's right: The Weirding is running its first ever contest, sponsored by MTV and iTunes. You can win a $15 iTunes gift card just for telling us about some moment you experienced which you wish had never been caught on film (in the comments below). You don't have to upload the video to win here at The Rundown, but you can go to What the Flip's official website and upload your footage there for a chance to win a camcorder.
That's it, that's all - nothing more to do - but watch What the Flip on MTV or visit the site for episodes and more footage. Flip gave 100 students, many aspiring filmmakers, 100 camcorders and then edited the footage they returned into themed episodes. You can also win a camera and share your videos. Check out an episode here at The Rundown.
The Rundown's What the Flip Contest runs through February 15th. We will then choose a winner at random from all the entrants using Random.org. The winner will be announced here on Monday, February 16th. There will be only one winner.
What are you waiting for? Leave a comment, relating a filmed experience you wish no camera had ever captured, along with your e-mail address so we can extort the living shit out of you if you wish to be notified by e-mail, for your chance to win a $15 iTunes giftcard from MTV, iTunes, and The Rundown on The Weirding!
Then be sure to come back on February 16th to see if you won!
© C Harris Lynn, 2008
The nominations for the 27th annual CBG Fan Awards are now open. Like last year, they are taking CBGXtra.com voters into special consideration. Any comics material with a 2008 cover date or copyright is eligible for consideration. Creators are eligible only if they had work published with a 2008 cover date or copyright. Only one entry per name and street address/P.O. box will be counted. The categories are as follows:
- Favorite Comic-Book Editor
- Favorite Comic-Book Writer
- Favorite Comic-Book Penciller
- Favorite Comic-Book Inker
- Favorite Comic-Book Colorist
- Favorite Comic-Book Letterer
- Favorite Comic-Book Artist
- Favorite Comic-Book Story (arc or individal issue)
- Favorite Comic Book (series or mini-series)
- Favorite Original Graphic Novel or Album (no reprints)
- Favorite Comic-Book Character
- Favorite Comic-Book Publishing Company
Nominations are open until the end of February (28th) and final voting is open until March.
© C Harris Lynn, 2008
12 January 2009 (Berkeley, CA) - It's easy to say you're a big fan, but PROOF creators Alex Grecian and Riley Rossmo give you the chance to show it with the upcoming Prove You're A PROOF Freak Contest!
"Since issue number one, Riley and I have been blessed with a terrific fan base who often go out of their way with grassroots efforts to promote the series," Grecian said. "The Prove You're A PROOF Freak contest takes it one step further, by giving fans the chance to show off their fandom in a creative way - cut cardboard, sculpt ice, paint the side of your house, mow the logo into your corn field - do whatever it takes within legal means to show the world how much you love PROOF! Our favorite PROOF display could have three readers winning big!"
Photos of entries are due to letterstoproof@gmail.com no later than 12:00 PM EST time on April 1st, 2009. The top 10 entries will be published in PROOF, with the second runner up receiving a copy of PROOF #1 signed by Grecian and the first runner up receiving an original sketch by Rossmo. The Grand Prize winner will be drawn into PROOF as a Victorian-era circus freak, created using their name and likeness, and receive a page of art from the issue they appear in! In addition, those entries done in conjunction with their local comic book shop will also award their store with a signed copy of PROOF #1 and an original page of PROOF art!
PROOF VOL. 1: GOATSUCKER (MAR082085), a 128-page full-color tradepaperback for $9.99, and PROOF VOL. 2: THE COMPANY OF MEN (OCT082281), a 128-page full-color trade paperback for $12.99, are available now.
Alex Grecian and Riley Rossmo are the sole judges of this contest. Their decision will be final. No purchase necessary. All photos sent in will become the property of Alex Grecian and Riley Rossmo. The character based on the grand prize winner will also be the property of Alex Grecian and Riley Rossmo. Image Comics is not responsible for contest results or displays. Visit the Proof forum at ImageComics.com for updates.
© C Harris Lynn, 2008
16 October 2008 (Berkeley, CA) - To coincide with the upcoming LIQUID CITY anthology, editor Sonny Liew is inviting the artists of Deviantart.com to submit their own robot designs for the chance to win big!
"The variety of robot designs is practically limitless," said editor Sonny Liew. "I hope we'll see lots of fun and interesting ones sent in for the contest."
The LIQUID CITY Draw-A-Robot Contest is your chance to one of three signed copies of LIQUID CITY for the grand prize: a page of original art from the story by Liew and Mike Carey, "Faces." To enter, simply create and design an original robot - no fan art - and submit it by November 2nd 2008 (EST). Winners will be notified on the Liew's DeviantArt journal on November, 5th.
LIQUID CITY (SEP082215), a full-color 326-page anthology for $29.99, will be in stores November 5th 2008.
Follow the link above for more information!
© C Harris Lynn, 2008
Top Cow Productions, Inc. is proud to announce that the winner of the Pilot Season 2011 event is Jeremy Haun’s and Jason Hurley's THE BEAUTY.
