The B7 Comics Kickstarter campaign for the all-new Dan Dare: First Contact graphic novel has hit its fundraising target on Kickstarter – and the publisher has just announced J. H. Williams III as cover artist for the project’s hardcover edition, a Kickstarter exclusive.
Dan Dare: First Contact is the first volume in a planned three-book reimagining of the classic British adventure strip character. The 112-page, A4, graphic novel, illustrated by Marc Laming (James Bond, Eden, Endeavour), written by Alex de Campi (Rogue Trooper: Ghost Patrol and Duncan Jones’ Madi: Once Upon A Time in the Future), coloured by Michael Woods, will be published by B7 Comics (Pilgrim: Secrets & Lies, Mr Jones’s Smoking Bones and Hancock: The Lad Himself).
As we previously reported, Chris Weston (2000AD, Paranoid Gardens) is providing the cover for the paperback edition, J. H. Williams III the hardback cover.
The Dan Dare: First Contact Project is here
There are plenty of Kickstarter exclusives on offer, including the special hardback edition and a chance to be drawn as a character in the actual book. We will also be offering limited edition A2 posters of the cover art by J.H. Williams III.
“Alex de Campi has written a cracking tale, a real page turner,” says B7 Media publisher Andrew Mark Sewell, “with some stunning artwork by Marc and colourist Michael Woods, that both acknowledges original artist/creator Frank Hampson’s influence whilst bringing Dare bang up-to-date.”
J. H. Williams III is a longtime veteran of the Arts and a New York Times bestseller. He has created significant works for Image Comics, DC Comics, Amazon, and Marvel, among others. J.H.’s current work on the ACBD award-winning Echolands from Image Comics has been met with critical acclaim. He’s garnered multiple awards, including Eagles, Eisners, GLAAD, Harveys, Ringos, Inkwell, National Cartoonist Society, a coveted Nebula – all for projects such as Promethea, Batwoman, Batman, Desolation Jones, The Sandman Overture, and Where We Live. And he has happily gained an honour award from the Grey School of Wizardry.
Never one to settle for a single artistic vision, J. H. has also branched out into arenas beyond the comics industry, illustrating album covers for legendary rock bands Blondie and The Sword, art design for Jerry Other of the Misfits, music and art collaboration as one half of The Sound And Paint Men, illustrations for Bram Stoker’s Dracula that was later adapted into Dracula: A Storybook Portfolio, published by Image Comics. Other book illustration projects include The Witness novella by J.M DeMatteis.
Also in the past, he has designed graphics for Marvel theme park flags, t-shirts, jerseys, boogie boards, ties and snowboards, and even has briefly dabbled collaboratively in fashion. Beyond visual arts, his other creative endeavors include various writing roles, with Echolands and Batwoman being prominent examples, along with soon to come various Image Comics titles.
J. H. lives with his ever cherished wife and adorable cats in a land of desert mountains and valleys of sand, listening to music and collecting vinyl records.
• The Dan Dare: First Contact project is here
If you have already backed this project and selected the Paperback Edition as a Reward or Add-On at any point in the campaign, it will have Chris’s cover
If you have already backed this project and selected the Hardback Edition as a Reward or Add-On at any point in the campaign, it will have J.H. Williams III’s cover.
Check out B7 Comics titles on the B7 Media Store
- About the Author
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John is the founder of downthetubes, launched in 1998. He is a comics and magazine editor, writer, and Press Officer for the Lakes International Comic Art Festival. He also runs Crucible Comic Press.
Working in British comics publishing since the 1980s, his credits include editor of titles such as Doctor Who Magazine and Overkill for Marvel UK, Babylon 5 Magazine, Star Trek Magazine, and its successor, Star Trek Explorer, and more. He also edited the comics anthology STRIP Magazine and edited several audio comics for ROK Comics; and has edited several comic collections and graphic novels, including volumes of “Charley’s War” and “Dan Dare”, and Hancock: The Lad Himself, by Stephen Walsh and Keith Page.
He’s the writer of comics such as Pilgrim: Secrets and Lies for B7 Comics; “Crucible”, a creator-owned project with 2000AD artist Smuzz; and “Death Duty” and “Skow Dogs”, with Dave Hailwood.
Categories: British Comics, British Comics - Graphic Novels, Comics, Creating Comics, Crowd Funding Projects, downthetubes Comics News, downthetubes News
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