Marvel teases more Ultimate Universe titles. Mad Cave Studios has added two hires to their team. ComicsPro preview teases that horror is the hottest comic book genre.
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Episode Transcript:
Marvel teases more Ultimate titles.
Mad Cave expands team.
Horror is so hot right now.
This is Comic Book Club News for February 18, 2025.
Marvel Teases More Ultimate Universe Titles:
Marvel is teasing what’s coming up in May for their Ultimate Universe books including at least one highly anticipated character debut. But perhaps more intriguing, there are more titles being added to the line.
Per Marvel, “This summer, the Maker’s return unleashes some surprising developments for this twisted world he created, and fans should stay tuned for upcoming announcement about new ULTIMATE comic launches.”
While we wait for those announcements, here’s what’s coming up in May for the line. Ultimate Sabretooth debuts in the pages of Ultimate Wolverine #5. While there aren’t many more details than that, based on the cover he seems more like Ultimate Werewolf By Night.
In Ultimates #12, someone leaves the team. And the biggie, Ultimate Spider-Man #17 finds the Sinister Six at war in New York, Peter teaming up with his son Richard, and it sure seems like something bad is gonna happen to Green Goblin.
More on this as it develops.
Mad Cave Adds Two To Team:
Mad Cave Studios is adding two industry veterans to their team: Sarah Brunstad is joining as Editor, and Troy-Jefferey Allen is joining as a Digital Marketing Specialist.
Brunstad previously worked as an Editor for Marvel, working on Captain Marvel, Black Widow, Aliens vs. Avengers and more. She’ll kick off her career at Mad Cave working on the upcoming benefit anthology LA Strong.
Allen, meanwhile, previously worked at Diamond Comics Distributors, and will be working to, per a press release from Mad Cave, “strengthen Mad Cave’s presence, ensuring that the company’s groundbreaking stories connect with fans in new and exciting ways.”
Congrats to both hires, as well as Mad Cave on the, uh, hires.
ComicsPro Preview Teases Horror Is So Hot Right Now:
ComicsPro is happening this upcoming weekend, a chance for comic book retailers to meet with publishers to discuss the state of the industry. And in a sneak peek at what to expect, there’s one main conclusion: horror is SO hot right now.
Per ICv2 via Circana BookScan, which measures sales at comic book stores to customers, horror graphic novel sales were up 20% in 2024, versus 2023, and up 50% from 2019. The fastest growing series included several evergreen titles including The Walking Dead, Tales from the Crypt, and American Vampire, as well as newer books like Skybound’s Universal Monsters: Dracula.
However, overall graphic novel sales were down 8% in 2024, versus 2023, with adult graphic novels including Manga accounting for 60% of the market, Kids graphic novels 35%, and YA graphic novels the remaining 5%.
We’ll be hearing a lot more about this as the march to ComicsPro continues.
For Comic Book Club News, I’m Alex Zalben. And have you ever listened to John Phillip Sousa’s ComicsPro March? Good stuff.
Got tips or stories you’d like us to cover? Email us at comicbookclublive@gmail.com.
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