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The first is the kind of thing I always like to see -- someone usually used to four-color comics discovering an indie one-color and liking it. "Acrobatic flea" at HeroPress praises the "depth of detail" in Shokyet's art and Shepherd's writing, which "sweeps you up" into Peter Blood's story.
The second is also a kind of review I like -- praise from an experienced comics reader and reviewer. Ed Sizemore at Comics Worth Reading calls Captain Blood "a great comic. It’s everything you want from a good historical adventure book."
Captain Blood #2 will be available for pre-order in August. Keep an eye out for our announcement so you can take the Diamond order number to your retailer and make sure this great new series is able to continue!
- JdG
So, please prepare yourself for the tropical adventure "Captain Blood and the Peril of Indie Comics" It's new comic book day in tropical Barbados, and there's nothing to be found at the local Comic Book Shoppe to tempt Miss Arabella Bishop. The gallant Captain Blood decides the time is right for an insurrection! Of comic book readers educated about what they want and how to get it, that is. The opinions of Captain Peter Blood do not necessarily reflect those of SLG Publishing. He makes some good points, though. For a preview of the actual comic book series Captain Blood, click here.
Pages 2-3 follow under the cut after page one, or you can read the whole thing at our website.
Captain Blood #1 by Matthew Shepherd and Michael Shoyket is in stores now, by god!
( The exciting conclusion awaits beneath the cut! )
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All Peter Blood wanted was to be left alone. A doctor living in 17th century England, Blood spends his days tending to his patients and reminiscing about his time adventuring through Europe. Blood soon winds up on the wrong side of a rebellion and is sentenced to ten years of hard labor on the island of Barbados. Escaping slavery, Blood begins his career as a pirate and becomes one of the most famous Pirates in the Caribbean as well as one of literature's best anti-heroes. Based on the novel by Rafael Sabatini, Captain Blood is not your average swashbuckling tale!
And here's a sneak peek at issue #2's cover. Remember to ask your retailer to order it! It will be in the July issue of Previews.
- The Electric Playground gives us a quick interview with Chumble Spuzz creator Ethan Nicolle. It's the first story after the intro:
- Michael May reviews Captain Blood #1 by Matthew Shepherd and Michael Shoyket at Robot 6*. He's not a fan of the in medias res approach the adaption takes, but still writes, "Having read the first issue now, I’m anxious for the second and that’s a great indicator of a successful series." He also warns that our trailer spoils the ending of the first issue, but I'm not sure that revealing that a character named Peter Blood in a series called Captain Blood becomes a sea captain is much of a spoiler. Oh, crap, I did it, too. Well, now you have no reason not to watch the trailer:
*Disclaimer: I do freelance work for Robot 6.
- JdG
I was going to point you to this cool review of Captain Blood and tell you that it is more than a pirate comic book, it is a way cool adventure series.
Then I got to thinking, something that most often gets me in trouble, about a few encounters I had with some loyal readers at the recent Emerald City Comic-Con in Seattle. When I talked up our newer releases to these people (people who I am going to remind you identified themselves as avid followers o four company) I was often told that they would be sure to look for the books when they came out.
The impression I got was that a lot of our followers assume that because we have been around for 23 years and they see new items listed in the Previews and that we are the people who published Johnny the Homicidal Maniac or Milk & Cheese or Gargoyles that they could expect to see all of our books out on a comic book store shelf.
Well, I am here to tell you that is not the case. These days the safe assumption for fans would be that they will NOT see our newest releases at a comic or book store, at least not on the shelf for them to buy. If you are interested in something like Captain Blood or Fat Chunk (or ANYTHING we publish for that matter) and your plan is to buy it at your local retailer (whoever that might be) then you had better let that local retailer know you want the book or comic in question, otherwise they may just pass up ordering it altogether.
This is not a missive on how retailers suck, they don't. They are doing the best they can with limited resources just the way we are. A comic shop can only order so much stuff and the decisions they have to make are based on the need to pay rent and not on what they think may or may not have artistic merit. I should mention that all of the stuff we publish that shops consider essential (stuff by Jhonen Vasquez or Evan Dorkin or Serena Valentino) started life as low-selling, poorly circulated comics. It was only because readers went into stores and demanded those books that anybody listened and started carrying them on something beyond a special order basis.
This was also true of our much-ballyhoed relationship with Hot Topic. If the fans who bought our comics at Hot Topic had gone into those stores and asked where the books were and asked that they be brought back, I can reasonably assure you that company would have brought those books back. For as much work as it took us to get comics into those stores, if they didn't sell and if people did not ask for them then they would not have gotten beyond the initial testing phase.
So, don't assume that because a book has an SLG logo on it, or because you saw a Johnny book on a shelf somewhere that you will see all of our newest releases in that same store. Times are tough for everyone right now and given our long history of publishing first-time creators stores are less willing to risk dollars on something that might not sell and they are probably going to err on the side of caution and not carry something, or order very lightly on, a book or comic from an unknown creator.
If you think Captain Blood is something that you would like to buy in a store, then let the store know you want it. Same with Fat Chunk, or anything for that matter. Ask for stuff by name (not just SLG stuff, but any publisher's product) because THAT is the way the retailer figures out there is demand for something.
Anyway, sorry for the long sermon. Thanks all for your support
Dan Vado
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I just sent out some preview copies of Captain Blood #1 to a few reviewers. If you're a reviewer and would like to receive a digital preview copy, please email me at slgchief@slgpubs.com. (Please note that there may be a bit of a delay if you send it to me after tomorrow afternoon, due to my much-mentioned jury duty, but, do not fear, I will send it!)
In the meantime, here's an excerpt from Matthew Shepherd's note in issue 1:
There has also been a deliberate attempt, by both author and artist, to avoid the Errol Flynn movie at all costs. I still haven’t seen it. I didn’t want to get caught up in either recreating that adaptation, or trying so hard not to that good ideas got marched off the plank; similarly, Mike chose to invent his cast without any visual reference beyond the book itself.
Artist, author, and editors alike have all fallen in love with Captain Blood. Anyone who enjoys this comic should buy (or download--Project Gutenberg is a fantastic resource) the novel. As much as we’ve tried to capture the majesty of the original here, there are entire sections that had to be cut to arrive at a comic-sized comic, and some utterly fantastic writing.
- JdG
SLG Publishing to Release Adaptation of Classic Caribbean Pirate Tale
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Peter Blood had always been a driven man. He was a soldier, a sailor, a captain, and a doctor. Nothing seemed unattainable for the skilled Dr. Blood. But when an act of compassion during a rebellion thrusts him into the bottom trenches of slavery, Peter must use his wits and experience to fight his way back to freedom. Shepherd's Captain Blood promises to chronicle Blood's ascension to power as he eventually becomes one of the most notorious pirates to roam the seven seas.
The book will be filled with epic sea warfare, forbidden romance, drunken debauchery, unrelenting action, and yes, even political intrigue. This isn't any ordinary pirate story, however. It's as much a story of one man's journey of transformation and strength in the face of defeatist-inducing circumstances as it is a tail of revenge, violence, and adventure. "Blood is no cardboard-cutout hero," Shepherd said. "He's a tactical genius, but also a rash, bullheaded leader whose sense of nobility gets him into as much trouble as it gets him out of it."
Captain Blood #1 is 24 page one color comic book printed in a sepia tone and priced at $3.50. The comic flies in the face of a recent move by SLG Publishing to an all graphic novel release schedule. "Given the state of the economy and recent sales figures it became apparent that selling a graphic novel, even something based on a familiar character like Captain Blood, is becoming more and more difficult," said SLG president Dan Vado. "We want to start moving back to products with lower price points which might still have a longer shelf life."
A short trailer and ten page preview of the first issue can be seen at www.slgcomic.com/previews. For more information please contact Dan Vado at dvado@slgpubs.com
