SDCC ’23: J. Michael Straczynski brings creator-owned projects to Dark Horse

Last month it was announced that writer J. Michael Straczynski would be returning to comics to helm a new Captain America ongoing series for Marvel Comics. Now Dark Horse Comics has announced that Straczynski will bring new creator-owned projects to the Portland-based publisher.

In a statement announcing the deal, Straczynski expressed the appropriate enthusiasm at working with the team at Dark Horse:

“I’m very excited to be pairing up with Mike Richardson and Dark Horse for my forthcoming creator-owned work in graphic novels, miniseries and ongoing series,” Straczynski said. “Mike is a stand-up kind of guy, and that philosophy is at the center of his company. Anyone who says ‘Just write what you want’ is my kind of guy.”

While Straczynski has had notable runs on titles like Amazing Spider-Man and Superman for Marvel and DC, the writer and Babylon 5 creator is no stranger to creator-owned work. Under the “Joe’s Comics” imprint at Top Cow, Straczynski created a pair of series, Rising Stars and Midnight Nation, with a murderer’s row of artists including Gary Frank, Ken Lashley, Brent Anderson, and more.

Details on Straczynski’s new Dark Horse projects are as-yet-unrevealed, but the writer offered some broad strokes of what the first few might be:

“We’re keeping most of those details under wraps for now, but suffice to say it’s a very wide runway. First up will be an international, geopolitical thriller that blends science fiction with the superhero genre in a way we really haven’t seen before. It’s going to be a huge story with massive global and personal stakes. This will be balanced by individual character stories designed to challenge the tropes of the superhero genre, building on what I did with books like Supreme Power, Midnight Nation and Rising Stars and taking it to the next level.

Finally, there will be titles in the modern dark fantasy and historical fantasy genres, along the lines of Neil Gaiman’s Chivalry, also from Dark Horse. Stories about strong characters that are challenging and fun, not nihilistic or too terribly dark. To that end, I’m proud to be part of the Dark Horse family of writers, artists, and other ne’er-do-wells.”

Look for more info on the Dark Horse Comics projects from J. Michael Straczynski as they become available.

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