NEGATIVE LAND! The new Copra Press series can be read exclusively on Patreon.
Additionally, I’ll be posting tons of behind-the-scene Copra art and How-To essays.
Oh, and commissions – check it out and spread the word!
Category: Comics I Make
My comic book work includes Fut Miso and Panorama. Also thrown in there are a few collaborations as well as some early works. Zegas, my main comic book project, has its own category.
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C O P R A #29
COPRA #29 is here!
Two stories for the price of one! Our lead story features the reunited Copra members making a hasty “escape” from Compota Kingdom.
The back end showcases Team X trying to ambush a target with dangerously mixed results, as these few preview pages promise…
And here are a few close-up shots that I took as I was working on these pages. Not as messy as I expected!
Convention Time
MoCCA (NYC)
East Coast Comicon (Secaucus, NJ)
CAKE (Chicago, IL)
HeroesCon (Charlotte, NC)
SPX (Bethesda, MD)
Those are the shows I’ll be at this year and I hope to see you there, so mark your calendars.
There you have it, 24 full-color pages on sturdy Cougar Opaque paper for five bucks. Get COPRA #29 while you can, and prepare for next time: COPRA turns 30!
Heavy duty COPRA Vinyl Stickers are here! You can get them both in one shot, or individually, and they feature all-new artwork for our wide cast of heroes/villains. I also drew and handcrafted the top label, so get them while supplies last.
As for comics, COPRA Round 4 is available and ready to be held by us. Bergen Street Press can make sure that happens, and so can your Local Comic Shop; tell them R4 is in Previews ( Diamond Code: SEP161366 ) and they’ll come through.
Oh, hey, I should mention that Paste listed COPRA as one of their 25 Best Comics of 2016 as did the Beat and ComicBook.Com. Also, the A.V. Club Readers’ Poll repped COPRA as one of the best comic series in 2016. The season of lists has officially begun. [UPDATE: Comicverse weighed in on the Best Indie Comics 2016.]
Some interesting discussions have been popping up about this here comic. I already linked to Abhay Khosla’s massive overview (which is strangely unavailable but has been rescued by Abhay himself for posterity) — but in response to one of his followers, Abhay went off again. I appreciate that Copra gets looked over in several ways, most times pretty intensely, as onlookers always approach it very differently. I relate to overanalyzing things that perhaps weren’t built to be held under tight scrutiny, so all this activity is deeply appreciated.
Ron Edwards, over at Comics Madness, feels the same way. All the topics brought up are important to me, so I’m happy that the discussion is being cultivated. Ron wrote a piece on Mark Gruenwald which at a glance, I basically disagree with, but I look forward to forming a rebuttal when I get the chance. Like I said, I’m into these discussions.
There’s also a Copra write up by Kim O’Connor in the inaugural issue of Critical Chips, edited by Zainab Akhtar (who ran a feature on her Comics & Cola blog called Comics Shelfie in which I contributed to long ago). Anyway, I’ve yet to read the piece in question (copy’s in the mail), but I like Kim’s writing so I’m very much looking forward to it. [UPDATE: Got my copy, read it, loved it. Now available digitally.]
Last but not least, the COPRA Subscription 2017 is now live!
Wherever you are, whatever you do, stay safe and have a happy holiday.
Categories
C O P R A #27
COPRA 27 is here and ready and available. GET IT.
Below you will find a 3 page preview with an assortment of related panels.
Wait, there’s more…
Comicbook.com listed Copra Versus #1 in 10 of the Best New(ish) Comics of 2016 So Far
Comicbook.com also interviewed me, though I consider it more of a convention weekend ramble.
Oh, hey, look — these folks have some recommendations for you and your friends!
io9: The Best Suicide Squad Story in Comics Isn’t Being Published by DC
Vulture: Five Suicide Squad Comics to Read Before Seeing the Movie
Dorkly: 5 Suicide Squad Comics That Are Way Better Than the Movie
Comics Alliance: If You Loved ‘Suicide Squad’, Try These Comics Next
Hazel & Wren: What We’re Reading
Medium: What We Talk About When We Talk About COPRA
Living Between Wednesdays Podcast: Episode 56
Comic Bastards – CBMFP: Episode 251
Les Inrocks (France): Copra, the Comic Book That Reinvents the Anti-Hero Team
There’s something about this issue’s tone that I found oddly appealing as I was working on it. Don’t think I’m too proud of myself or anything weird like that. Maybe it’s that this issue works as a self-contained story but still propels the larger arc forward. Maybe it’s the specific color palette I used or the new cast of characters. I can’t put my my finger on it exactly but I do know I can’t wait for you to read it. Here, meet the new crew:
Name: LELO
Eyes: aqua
Name: EREBUS
Height: 5’3
Name: NEESHA
Hair: black
CCCCC OOOOO PPPPP RRRRR AAAAA 22222 77777
Quick Guthie. #Copra27 pic.twitter.com/kUNkzSw9qv
— Michel Fiffe (@MichelFiffe) July 15, 2016
COPRA Round 4 is coming very soon — and we couldn’t be more excited! This one collects Copra issue 18 – 24 and has a couple of extra pages of brutality to complete it.
In more immediate news, join me, Chuck Forsman, and Bergen Street Press at this year’s HEROES CON June 17th – 19th! Come to Tables AA-1214 & 1215 in Indie Island to get some books and make off with one of these special one-of-a-kind COPRA / REVENGER standees.
Also, the entire Bergen crew has a Heroes Con panel Friday at 5:30 pm in room 207CD. Drop by!
Deathstroke the Terminator created by Marv Wolfman & George Pérez
I would also like to mention a massive Copra-centric essay by one of my favorite writers, Abhay Khosla, who really got to the root of analogues and how we see them. It’s deeply layered and much broader and funnier than what I just described. I’m honored that his scope was aimed my way. Take a minute: The Title of This Blog Post is “Abhay Thinks He Can Write About COPRA Better Than You — Nowhere to Hide – Nowhere to Cry – I Sunk Your Battleship Edition: 666”
Next time, you’ll find me trying to get Copra #27 out the door. See you then!
Cyborg Superman aka Hank Henshaw created by Dan Jurgens
Categories
COPRA VERSUS #1
COPRA VERSUS #1: DY DY
°°° Now Available °°°
°°° A mini-series with villains galore. °°°
°°° Unlock DY DY’s secret origin. °°°
°°° Procure a copy for yourself. °°°
°°° Think about it if you must. °°°
°°° Obtain it digitally, even. °°°
°°° But please don’t tease me. °°°
°°° Pin-Up by Derek Marks. °°°
°°° The one responsible and his current bible. °°°
°°° Real love stories are revenge driven. And vice versa. °°°
X O X O
COPRA is now digitally available via comiXology!
For the occasion, I’ve amassed an exhaustive guide of the very first issue’s coverage and availability. Read on and you’ll find store listings, interviews & reviews, and ordering information just in case there was anyone left who is on the fence about COPRA. There’s no way to miss out on this one, so check it out and get hooked.
The image above is the wraparound cover for the anniversary issue, Copra #25, which has its own variant cover. Limited to 35 signed and numbered copies, these “naked” (logo-less) editions were assigned to family and friends. Each copy came with a certificate of authenticity.
Copra’s print run is already pretty limited, making them collector’s items by nature (that’s more for practical reasons and less by design). I’ve always tried to make cool extras & incentives for subscribers, such as sketches and hand pressed prints. This time I wanted to make something ultra rare, but I also didn’t want to make it so different from the main issue that it would’ve been frustrating for readers to not have. You never know when one of these variants will pop up, though; keep your eyes peeled!
Here’s the preliminary sketch for the double cover (with some costume designs on the side). You can see more process type stuff over at the Copra Press Club.
One more thing: the season of Best Of 2015 lists is over, but let’s not forget how COPRA ranked!
Comics Alliance: Continued Excellence in Serial Comics Runner Up
Comics Alliance: Outstanding Cartoonist Nomination
COPRA #25, the Double Size Anniversary Issue, is finally here!
This marks three years of Copra-making, that’s a big deal to me. Three years of trying to get these issues out month by month (albeit with a couple of breaks between 6-issue arcs this past year) — that’s a lot of face time at the board. For someone who is hyper-critical of his own work, it’s odd for me to be happy with the total results of such an endeavor (definitely in a more abstract sense; I cannot look at old pages, no way). I wouldn’t dedicate my life to this if it didn’t fulfill me this much, so it’s definitely a labor of love. Issue 25 isn’t just another comic, it’s a celebration of the mania that keeps it all going.
About the comic itself, it’s a flashback issue, a glimpse into the mission that turned it all around for our crew. It features some old favorites, Vitas and Man-head in particular, as well as some newer faces. It’s a perfect jumping on point, actually, even if you’ve never read Copra, since you can read Copra #1 pretty much right after this issue.
Copra #25 Preview
In addition to the 32 page feature, I had a host of cartoonists contribute to this issue, starting off with Tim Hamilton…
… followed by pin-ups from Chuck Forsman, Kat Roberts, Jeffrey Brown, Sloane Leong, Paul Maybury, and Matthew Allison…
… and capped off with a short story by Benjamin Marra!
REVIEW
I can’t help but be really excited for 2016. I have tons of Copra plans brewing — twists & turns in the ongoing series, a spin-off mini-series, going digital, and more!
Don’t forget COPRA #25! Make sure to check it out, get a copy for yourself and one for that friend of yours whose been wanting the best modern superhero comic in the world.
That friend wants Copra.
–Michel Fiffe
Categories
COPRA Round Three Pre Order
Tell your stores: Copra Round Three is available! Order Code: NOV151123
OR you can buy it now directly from Bergen Street Press themselves!
OR you can get a copy from me at this upcoming CAB. I’ll be downstairs at TABLE D30 with limited quantities.