Here’s a throwback – a Skullkickers interview from the December 2011 issue of GameFan magazine.

Steve Morris at the Beat talks to Jim Zub all about Skullkickers, creator-owned comics, reboots, the business, and what else he’s working on.

Give it a read!

Over on Katie’s Korner they’ve added a review of Skullkickers Vol. 1: 1000 Opas and a Dead Body that also includes some recommended educational components teachers or librarians could use in tandem with the book. We’re flattered and thrilled that they enjoy the book so much and appreciate the extra effort put into enhancing its value as a resource in a classroom.

“What I like most about Skullkickers: 1000 Opas and a Dead Body is its ability to blend various stylistic techniques that invite comic book, anime, and graphic novel readers of all persuasions to its pages.”

What a way to head into San Diego Comic-Con this week!

Just found out that Skullkickers has been nominated for the 2013 Harvey Awards in the ‘Special Award for Humor in Comics’ category. Amazing!

Thank you to all the professionals who put our name in to secure this nomination. All of us on the team are thrilled to be considered. If you’re a cartoonist/comic pro I’d be thrilled if you could consider voting for us on the final ballot, which you can find right HERE.

Our latest issue arrived Wednesday and it looks like we’re on a roll! Critics and readers seem quite happy with our story, art and adjectives.

• Newsarama: “10/10 Overall, it’s not often that a comic can blend an action story that is not only fun to read but genuinely funny.”

• Unleash the Fanboy: “4.5/5 I am SOLD on this series. I can’t believe I’m so late to the party. Jim and company have an awesome thing going and I highly recommend you pick up this issue.”

• Fanboy Comics: “If you like your fantasy and action with a good dose of humor, read Savage Skullkickers #1 today, and then go out and buy the back issues of Skullkickers. Just a side note, you will have to fight me for them.”

• Page and Panel: “By the end of this issue, long-time readers will be grinning from ear-to-ear”…”This is like a Skullkickers’ love letter to Skullkickers, about Skullkickers, by the Skullkickers crew”

• Capeless Crusader: “THIS BOOK ROCKS! I’m convinced Skullkickers has something for pretty much everyone”

• Gamma Squad: “The comic you should be reading this week”…”Skullkickers is not a profound book. It’s just funny. Very, very funny, and sometimes, that’s really all a comic book needs to be.”

• One Quest: “8/10 I really can’t say enough just how much fun Skullkickers is, and I’m pretty disappointed with myself for waiting so long to get started with it.”

• Comic Vine: “4/5 Overall, I love this book and you will too. I highly recommend it.”

• Comic Bastards: “4/5 The art is fantastic; visually the style is very pleasing to the eye. The book is colorful and looks very polished and the panels look good.”

• Nerdlocker: “4/5 Honestly, I had a blast reading this.”

• Sound On Sight: “…the crackling dialogue eventually materializes in full and proves complementary to the colorful art style.”

A DARKER SIDE OF SKULLKICKERS IN JUNE
DARK SKULLKICKERS DARK #1 is dark, possibly gritty

This June, Image Comics beats a horse to death and you’re all invited to watch! It’s a new comic that’s not new at all… but it is dark. “How dark?” you ask? It’s so dark we had to use the word twice – DARK SKULLKICKERS DARK!

“This may be the worst thing we’ve ever done,” said Image PR and Marketing Director Jennifer de Guzman. “It’s a pale reflection of the industry’s need to spin rebooted series through endless hype, turning the crazed hamster wheel of entertainment promotion until it’s fallen apart. Good-bye, integrity.”

DARK SKULLKICKERS DARK #1, written by old industry pariah Jim Zub and drawn by young pencil jockey Edwin Huang, wraps up the fourth story arc of SKULLKICKERS, the series people keep saying they’ve heard about but haven’t had a chance to try yet but, dangit, they will at some point if they see the collections on sale or something.

“Fun comic books are a thing of days past,” said series creator Zub. “In order to grab a modern audience I’ve dipped into the darkness of my own heart and spilled my blood upon the pages of this sequential masterpiece. Oh yeah, there’s beer in it too.”

If you’re one of the few and proud collectors of SKULLKICKERS irritated that you won’t have a SKULLKICKERS #23 to add to your collection, fret thee not. In addition to the regular “Dark Dark” cover we’re offering a special “issue #23 variant” B cover to keep your collection copacetic. We’re looking out for you, baby.

We’ve dug as deep as we can go. We’ve entered the darkness. DARK SKULLKICKERS DARK #1 will be available in June wherever dark comics are sold. Pre-order it now from the April issue of Previews. Order the old trades too. They’re pretty good.

A few more Uncanny Skullkickers #1/Skullkickers #19 reviews rolled in over the weekend…

• Comic Book Resources: “It’s a lot of fun, and it’s great to see Zub and Huang’s fantasy and parody title still kicking with energy and ideas.”

• eXpert Comics: “7/7 …the most consistently well-crafted book in the last 2 years.”

• Ain’t It Cool News: “…the humor, the action, and the absurdity of it all is still intact and ready to crack wise like it cracks brain helmets.”

• Inside Pulse: “Skullkickers is a lot of fun, and it looks like Zub is having a good time switching up the formula a little by rearranging the players.”

• Nerd Machine: “Uncanny Skullkickers #1 is a great way to get into the series from the newly established ground floor.”

• Comic Booked: “5/5 Well done Team Skullkickers, even with a new #1 you continue to impress me.”

• One Quest: “8/10 Uncanny Skullkickers #1 is a great place to pick up this story, and gives you all the back story you need”

• Nerds on the Rocks: “Uncanny Skullkicker #1 will do well to remind many why we love the medium so much. It’s fun, it’s colorful, it’s action-packed and it’s worth a read!”

• Panel Culture: “Hand over fist, the funniest book we read this week.”

Who knew a lil’ old #1 on the cover could bring so much attention?

Thank you everyone who picked up a copy of UNCANNY SKULLKICKERS #1. The feedback from retailers, readers and reviewers has been overwhelmingly positive. Here’s the word from the internet at large:

• The Beat: “Uncanny Skullkicker’s #1 does work as an excellent jump-on point for readers, with an inclusive sense of humor which fizzes on the page. The characters are fun to read about, the artwork is striking and tells the story well, and it left me interested in going back and reading the previous 18 issues.”

• Newsarama: “8/10 …a Mountain Dew-fueled Saturday night around the kitchen table playing Dungeons & Dragons wrapped up into 22 pages of highly polished comic fun.”

• Weekly Crisis: “Must Read. Zub combines elements of the fantasy genre while at the same time making you laugh yourself silly. The book is just plain old fun!”

• Multiversity: “8.8/10 Jim Zub’s jokes are laugh-out-loud funny, the story is exciting, and the artistic team of Edwin Huang and Misty Coats is dynamite.”

• Futile Position: “Uncanny Skullkickers #1 is a great issue. It’s not only a good jumping on point for those new to the series it also sends the series off in a new direction with a new central dynamic and the usual balance of fantastic action scenes and truly-funny funny parts”

• Comic Vine: “4.5/5 …an original adventure story with perfect amount of satire and parody.”

• IGN: “7.7/10 All in all, Uncanny Skullkickers #1 is worth at least a chance to win your loyalty.”

• Nerds of a Feather: “Pick of the Week. …a witty book that provides moments of genuine laughter and has an interesting cast of characters.”

• Eat@Shrimpy’s: “9/10 …one of the smartest, funniest, self-aware books on the market”

• Image Addiction: “Thank god, they finally added adjectives. I don’t think I could have tolerated another issue without them.”

• Fanboy Comics: “Jim Zub delivers a crazy world full of giant monsters, insane magic, and some of the coolest action heroes you’ll ever meet. His skullkickers aren’t quite good guys and gals, they’re just the heroes we’re stuck with.”

• Page & Panel: “Issue #1/#19 doesn’t miss a step in fire-grilling some of the craziest, over-the-top violence and wrapping it in a buddy-comedy tortilla, ready for your consumption!”

• Graphic Policy: “8.5/10 After a too long break, this week sees a new release, either the nineteenth issue or the first issue of an ‘uncanny’ new series. Either way, the issue kicks ass!”

• Comicosity: “8.5/10 Skullkickers is an adventure title in its purest form. Every page flip reveals a new monster, or trap, or any number of scenarios you wouldn’t have expected when you first opened the comic.”

• Comic Bastards: “5/5 …this is the best fake first issue I’ve read in the past two years.”

• First Comics News: “9/10 …every panel successful conveys the journey the characters are going on with crisp visuals and a fun layout.”

• Here Be Geeks: “All in, Skullkicker is still a great comedic take on the fantasy genre. There’s really not much to fault, other than wishing for even more of the funny, but that’s only a good thing.”

• OH! Entertainment: “Skullkickers will bring a light dose of humor and big time adventure into your comic book reading, and it will do so in an attractive package.”

• Fellowship of the Geeks: “Titles like this are what make me want to review comics. And read comics. It’s just brilliant, folks.”

• Nerd Span: “It’s a new direction with all the old charm and magic. It’s a great jumping on point for new readers and an issue old readers will thoroughly enjoy.”

• Alpha Comics: “Don’t skip to the last page and ruin the ending of the epic tale of the dwarf in the water that is equal parts Ben Hur, Citizen Kane and M. Night Shyamalan.”

• Third Eye Comics: “Imagine a buddy comedy like THE HANGOVER, and then mix that with the fantasy world setting of LORD OF THE RINGS or DUNGEONS & DRAGONS. Now, throw in some bloody slapstick gore ala ARMY OF DARKNESS, and you’ve got yourself a very cool little read.”

Today’s the day!

UNCANNY SKULLKICKERS #1 (aka. Skullkickers #19) arrives in comic shops across North America and Europe today to kick-off our fourth story arc called ‘Eighty Eyes on an Evil Island’!

In addition to our ridiculous adjective-laden title we have four spiffy covers to choose from-

Cover A: UNCANNY COVER by Edwin Huang and Misty Coats
Cover B: LEGACY NUMBERING COVER by Chris Stevens
Cover C: ECCC CONVENTION EXCLUSIVE COVER by Chamba
Cover D: PHANTOM RETAILER VARIANT COVER by Chamba

Buy your favorite or collect them all. Let us know what you think of the new issue and, as always, tell your friends we’re bringing the goods.