With C2E2 taking place this weekend in Chicago, a lot of announcements from various comic book publishers are taking place including two from Lion Forge.
Among them was the news that webcomic WITCHY will be released as a collection from Lion Forge in September.
The multi-nominated title from Ariel Slamet Ries about a witch who is dealing with the death of her father as well as a threat from the Witch Guard.
That wasn’t the only news from the con in the Windy City from Lion Forge, as they also announced a new ongoing sci-fi title coming later this year.
ARMY OF ONE #1 from Tony Leeand Yishan Li with coloring by Bryan Valenza will be released in October.
Full press releases are below. All artwork courtesy of Lion Forge.
#C2E2: LION FORGE ANNOUNCES THE COLLECTION OF ARIEL SLAMET RIES’S WITCHY THIS SEPTEMBER!
Beloved Webcomic Finds a Home in Print
at Lion Forge in September 2019
ST. LOUIS, MO—In conjunction with the Lion Forge panel at C2E2, the publisher of “comics for everyone” announces the collection and publication of Ariel Ries’s beloved webcomic, Witchy! Praised around the internet since its first appearance five years ago, Witchy was nominated for the 2015 Ignatz for Outstanding Online Comic, the 2016 DINKy for Outstanding Web Comic, and the Danish “Pingprisen” for Best Online Series in 2017 and 2018.
Now, Lion Forge announces the first long awaited print collection for release just in time for back to school reading!
“For the past 5 years, I’ve poured everything into making Witchy and aside from the support of my fans it’s sometimes felt like a lonely road— until Steenz contacted me about working with Lion Forge to publish Witchy” says creator Ariel Slamet Ries. “Since then we’ve all been hard at work together to make the book worth the read, for both old and new readers. Having Witchy published has always seemed like a far off dream, and I have Lion Forge to thank for taking this leap with me. With the help of my editors Hazel Newlevant and Steenz, the Witchy book has become something truly special!”
In the witch kingdom Hyalin, the strength of your magic is determined by the length of your hair. Those that are strong enough are conscripted by the Witch Guard, who enforce the law in peacetime and protect the land during war. However, those with hair judged too long are pronounced enemies of the kingdom, and annihilated. This is called a witch burning
Witchy is an ongoing webcomic about the young witch Nyneve, who is haunted by the death of her father and the threat the Witch Guard poses to her own life. When conscription rolls around, Nyneve has a choice to make; join the institution complicit in her father’s death, or stand up for her ideals?
“When I started at Lion Forge two years ago, I was thrilled to be able to bring in new titles (specifically webcomics) to our acquisitions process. So when I had the opportunity to bring my first pitch in, I knew it had to be the vibrant, magical, and compelling webcomic, Witchy” says editor Christina “Steenz” Stewart. “Two years and two editors later, I’m excited to finally see it in print. I know fans of the series will be thrilled to see it packaged so beautifully, and readers new to the world of Hyalin are going to love it as much as I did when I read it all those years ago.”
Witchy is updated online every Tuesday and Friday, with the print edition to be solicited in the July-dated PREVIEWS catalog for release in September.
About the Author:
Ariel Slamet Ries is an eggplant fanatic and longtime lover of dogs in snoods from Melbourne, Australia. She studied animation for 4 years before throwing away the prestige and money to pursue comics. She’s still waiting to see how that will turn out.
#C2E2: LION FORGE ANNOUNCES ARMY OF ONE, AN ALL-NEW SERIES LAUNCHING THIS FALL!
Tony Lee and Yishan Li Introduce A Mind-bending and Groundbreaking New Twist on Interdimensional Science Fiction
ST. LOUIS, MO–Lion Forge continues to ramp up its 2019 line of creator-owned comic book series with concepts every bit as original and unique as the creators behind them. Today, in conjunction with the Lion Forge panel at C2E2 in Chicago, the company unveils Army of One, an all-new series launching in October!
Created by New York Times Bestselling Writer Tony Lee (Doctor Who, Star Trek, Pride & Prejudice & Zombies, Spider-Man) and Yishan Li (Hellboy and the B.P.R.D 1956, Sugar, Buffy: The High School Years, and Blue Beetle),and colored by Bryan Valenza, Army Of One is a story of friendship, sisterhood in a fight against unsurmountable odds, with a few twists and turns along the way.
“I’ve known Yishan since 2005 – we worked for the same UK comics publisher, and over the years always joked that we should do something. After catching up at SDCC in 2016, we decided that it was now or never” says writer Tony Lee. “We wanted to do something different, that really showcased our skills. I threw out the idea of a girl facing multiple alternate world versions of herself, within a matter of minutes Yishan sent me some concept designs – and I knew right then that we had something magical here. It took some time to fine tune the story and the characters, but once Greg Tumbarello brought us to Lion Forge, we knew we’d come home. They’ve given us the freedom to truly craft a story that’s different to anything I’ve done before – and if you’ve read the scope of stories I did for Doctor Who, you’ll know that’s expansive!”
Seventeen year old Carrie Taylor always knew she was different to the other students, but when she’s saved from nightmarish creatures by doppelgängers of herself, other ‘Carries’ from alternate dimensions, worlds and timelines, she learns the horrifying truth – that she is one of a thousand shattered shards of Sister Fortune, a great Mystic from another dimension; scattered into the multiverse after an apocalyptic battle with her greatest rival, Brother Havoc.
Now, after a millennia of constant death and rebirth, the shards of Sister Fortune are locked in an endless war against each other. In the midst of this, a small band of rebels band together, attempting to unify a force of thirteen doppelgängers, all with the aim of stopping Brother Havoc from finally taking over all of the Multiverses.
But is Carrie one of these shattered shards – or is she something new? And when she learns the truth about her heritage, which side will she choose?
“This is a really exciting adventure on an epic scale – multiple parallel universes colliding in an ageless battle between Good and Evil” says editor Mike Kennedy. “But what makes this series so engaging is never knowing who truly is Good or Evil… different universes have different definitions, and our parallel heroines have different agendas and backstory motivations. This is a complex and exciting new storyline that I think readers will really get sucked into!”
Army of One will be solicited in the August-dated PREVIEWS catalog for release in October, offered to retailers in a fully returnable standard comic format, priced at $3.99. Further details to be revealed in the coming months!
