In the comics world, writer Steve Niles has enjoyed (and does enjoy) a tremendous amount of success and respect. His major work, 30 Days of Night, was a master class in creating a high-concept yet deeply poignant and horrifically scary comic.

His latest creation, Breath of Bones, looks to be carrying on the fine tradition established by 30 Days of Night. The story is simple: The giant clay monster from Jewish legend goes on a Nazi-killing rampage in order to protect the inhabitants of a small Jewish stronghold and an injured British pilot.

But that’s where the simple ends. But to give away any more would be spoiling it for you. Instead, we’ve got some preview pages for you to enjoy.

Look for Breath of Bones #1 in stores June 12. Check out all the pages after the break.

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Among fans of sword and sorcery epics and legendary characters, Robert E. Howard’s Conan is a big favorite. His exploits in comics, movies and more have entertained and enthralled millions around the world for many years.

And now, Conan is back again and Dark Horse has him in a new four-part miniseries from Fred Van Lente and Ariel Olivetti. The miniseries is alled Conan and the People of the Black Circle and it takes place a decade later than the current Conan ongoing series.

“I’m thrilled to be working from one of the best Conan stories Howard ever wrote, with the most interesting female lead and one of the Cimmerian’s most compelling adversaries,” stated Van Lente. “But what I’m most excited about is seeing what Ariel Olivetti does with my scripts—he was born to draw Conan, and his painted artwork should attract anyone who doesn’t know anything about Conan or Robert E. Howard but just loves things that are awesome.”

Check out the full cover after the break. Look for Conan and the People of the Black Circle #1 in stores October 16.

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We figure Marvel and DC get enough coverage, so we mostly try to bring you news from the smaller, more indie publishers. This time around that’s Dark Horse and their upcoming book Dark Horse Presents #24.

This issue is special for many reasons, but the one were most interested in today is the debut of a brand new superhero in the Dark Horse universe: Blackout.

In Blackout, “the commonplace life of Scott Travers changes forever when he comes to possess an extraordinary piece of technology that allows him to access a mysterious dimension within our own.” Okay, that’s good so far. But wait, there’s more.

Blackout writer Frank Barbiere says, “Blackout has a very fun sci-fi/mystery mythology that comes straight from DH Publisher Mike Richardson, and I think readers will be surprised and intrigued by what we have in store for them! Working with artist Micah Kaneshiro is a delight, and I look forward to bringing our story to DHP.”

Catch Blackout appearing in Dark Horse Presents #24, on sale May 22. Check out the full cover after the break.

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Brad Bell and Jane Espenson are a dynamite duo. The team has created the winning Web series, Husbands, which was recently picked up by the CW’s online content branch, CW Digital Studio.

In case you’re not familiar, Husbands follows a gay actor (Bell) and a gay baseball player (Sean Hemeon) who wake up in Vegas married. Despite having only known each other for six weeks the two decide to go for it and that means dealing with moving in together, petty fights, cute make ups, and public scrutiny (and then some).

Not only will fans get to see existing episodes via CW but the network is also funding new episodes. Bell and Espenson, who also created Husbands: The Comic with Dark Horse, are excited to continue exploring the still very much newlywed relationship of baseball superstar Brady and outgoing actor Cheeks.

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It’s no surprise that one of the more anticipated games of 2012 for The Flickcast is Prototype 2. Since getting a peek at San Diego Comic-Con and getting hands on at NYCC, we are counting down to Prototype 2′s April 24th release date. Also looking forward to the release are the folks at Dark Horse Comics. Starting February 15th, Dark Horse will be launching an all digital three part web series focusing on filling in the events of what transpired between the first game and Prototype 2.

The first entry, “The Anchor,” illustrated by Paco Díaz, continues the story of Alex Mercer, the protagonist from the first game, while the second story, “The Survivors,” illustrated by Chris Staggs, follows a small group of residents of New York trying to escape the city after it has been transformed into NYZ with the outbreak of the Blacklight virus. The third and final story, illustrated by Victor Drujiniu, is “The Labyrinth” and provides fans a deeper look into the backstory of PROTOTYPE 2′s new protagonist, Sgt. James Heller.

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Fans who like their comics available on the go will be happy to learn that Dark Horse is taking their catalogue of Star Wars titles digital. Finally, when someone glances over your shoulder and spies you leering at Slave Leia on your iPad, you at least have the excuse that you’re reading.

Dark Horse and LucasFilm announced that over 50 comics from the Star Wars universe are now available for purchase from Digital.DarkHorse.com. The announcement was made yesterday from the Dark Horse Star Wars Comics 20th Anniversary Panel.

Among the books listed is:

Star Wars: Crimson Empire series
Marvel’s adaptation of Episode IV: A New Hope
The Clone Wars
Knights of the Old Republic
Legacy: War
Knight Errant
The Old Republic
Jedi: The Dark Side
and the top-selling Darth Vader and the Lost Command.

Most single issues will be priced at the standard $1.99, with KOTOR #1 and Clone Wars #1 available for free download and Crimson Empire #1, Knight Errant #1, and The Old Republic #1 for $.99.

With Comic-Con only about a week away expect lots more announcements of events, panels, signings and more over the next several day. This time around its the folks at Dark Horse Comics with the announcement.

They’ve got a whole bunch of events planned for Comic-Con including stuff at their booth, panels in various Con rooms and a green screen full of exciting showings.

To make things easier, we’ve included the full press release so you can make sure to include Dark Horse in your Comic-Con planning. Check out out right here:

DARK HORSE ANNOUNCES SAN DIEGO COMIC-CON 2011 SCHEDULE! SIGNINGS, PANELS, AND GREEN SCREENS, OH MY!

July 13, MILWAUKIE, OR—It’s here! San Diego Comic-Con 2011 is upon us, and Dark Horse Comics is telling you all the goods ahead of time! Plan accordingly!

SIGNINGS
Wednesday, July 20
7:30 p.m.—Preview Night Reveal

Thursday, July 21
11 a.m.— Fábio Moon and Gabriel Bá
11 a.m.—Tara McPherson (The Art of Tara McPherson)
12:30 p.m.—Eric Powell (The Goon)
2 p.m.—Bruce Campbell (My Name Is Bruce) *Ticketed by Lottery
3 p.m.—Morgan Spurlock (Supersized)
3:30 p.m.—Jerry Robinson (Jet Scott)
4:30 p.m.—Jill Thompson (Beasts of Burden)

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The San Diego Comic-Con schedule continues to roll out and now Friday’s list of events, panels, screenings and more has been released. Where Thursday was chock full of diverse programming from comics to movies to a super geek extravaganza in the Joss Whedon / J.J. Abrams panel, Friday has more of a recurring theme going thought it. That theme? Star Wars.

That’s right, Comic-Con has chosen to honor one of the greatest film franchises of all time and bring you several panels and events directly related to that theme. Some of the highlights of Friday’s schedule for us include screenings of Batman: Brave and the Bold, Dimension Film’s Piranha: 3D panel, the Dark Horse Comics panel, AMC’s The Walking Dead panel and the Big Bang Theory panel.

In addition, one of our favorite shows, Spartacus: Blood and Sand, comes to the Con for the first time as well as these: Sony Pictures’ The Other Guys and The Green Hornet panel, a Girls Who Kick Ass panel, the True Blood panel and premiere screening of 30 Days of Night: Dark Days and Batman: Under the Red Hood.

Yes, Friday at San Diego Comic-Con looks to be yet another day chock full of great things to see and experience. Sadly, you won’t get to see it all because you just can’t be in three paces at once. If only they could perfect that cloning technology. We can dream. Until then, get used to some disappointment.

Click through for the full Friday schedule. Of course, be sure to check back right here for more on San Diego Comic-Con.

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If you’re a Star Wars fan, then this news is for you. Dark Horse has just announced a new way to feed your Star Wars needs. Writer John Jackson Miller (Mass Effect: Redemption, Knights Of The Old Republic) will be writing a new tale of Star Wars called Star Wars: Knight Errant first as an ongoing comic series, and then as a novel to be published by Del Ray Books. The novel will be set in the same era and feature the same characters but following them in an all-new adventure.

Knight Errant will introduce us to Kerra Holt, a young Jedi who’s about to realize that her role in the galaxy is far more important, and vastly different than she could have ever imagined. The series and novel will be set one thousand years before Episode I, in the “Dark Age of the Republic.” According to Dark Horse, this pivotal time in the history of Star Wars has been largely unexplored, until now.

Miller, in particular, is very excited to be taking on this new Star Wars project:

“There’s such wonderful chaos going on in the galaxy in this period,” said writer John Jackson Miller. “More than a generation before Darth Bane introduced the Rule of Two, Sith Lords are colliding not just with the Republic, but with each other. Kerra’s going to find that good intentions just may not be enough in a galaxy gone mad! This is a wide-open area to explore, and I’m thrilled that Dark Horse and Del Rey have given me this opportunity to do so.”

“With John writing both the comics and the novel, Knight Errant will be a Star Wars story on a scale we’ve never undertaken before,” said comic-series editor Dave Marshall. “This will be a first-of-its-kind opportunity to introduce the Expanded Universe of the Dark Horse comics to the fans of the Del Rey novels and vice versa!”

The Star Wars: Knight Errant comic hits stores later this year with the novel coming out early in 2011.

Cult movie legend Bruce Campbell has been in and out of the limelight about a dozen times since his indie debut in Sam Raimi’s 1981 classic, Evil Dead. Since then, he’s been attached to most of Raimi’s other projects, from Spider-Man to Hercules and Xena. Back in 2007, Campbell decided to branch off a bit and spoof himself in the film My Name is Bruce.

The film was enough of a hit with fans that Bruce says they’re going back for a sequel.

In the film, Campbell plays an exaggerated version of himself, when a local town is tormented by an ancient demon, they figure to call the guy who’s fought them over and over again in movies. The movie carries some of Raimi’s horror/comedy formula, while pumping out some great moments. According to a recent e-mail to Ain’t It Cool News, Campbell is ready for a second go.

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300, one of the biggest hits of 2007, directed by Zack Snyder and based off the comic book mini-series by Frank Miller (The Spirit, Sin City the movie and comic series), is now supposedly getting a prequel. For the prequel, the story is set in time to see the battle of Marathon – which took place ten years before the events of 300.

During the battle, Xerxes’ father, Darius I, battled the Athenians. I believe this is passingly mentioned in a mocking tone in 300, when Leonidas denies acquiescing to Xerxes’ messengers, before kicking them down a giant hole in the middle of town.

Miller, who will again be writing and drawing the comic series before it’s taken to the big screen, has said to the LA Times, “It’s the Battle of Marathon through my lens” and that he’s just about ready to begin. Of course, the interesting thing about 300, and some might say the frightening thing about this new story; is the level of fact and stylization Miller had put into his original story.

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The upcoming film Solomon Kane can’t seem to catch a break. Casting allegedly began back in 2001, when it was announced Christopher Lambert (Highlander) would be taking on the Pulp role. That version eventually died out, and the project went on the shelf for several years.

Later, in 2007, it was announced that James Purefoy (Rome) would take on the titular role, with British director Michael Bassett handling the directing duties. Principal photography began in early 2008, and the film wrapped nearly a year later. The film has been completed for quite some time, but has yet to find a US distributor, which means we may never get to actually see it in theaters.

With that said, other countries are still planning on a late December/early January release date, and with that comes some great marketing and clips from the film. After the jump, check out the brand new “Hall of Mirrors” sequence, which shows that the film will have just as much suspense as it will action.

We’ll be sure to bring you more news on a US release of Solomon Kane as it comes to us.

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When it comes to the Terminator mythology, I often wonder if the War Against the Machines is best left unexplored. I mean, let’s be honest — it’s the glimpses of grilled rats and a desperate humanity that made it so frightening. Once Terminator: Salvation and Fox’s The Sarah Connor Chronicles spent a lot of time in the Can’t-Really-Be-Changed future, it became rather boring.

However, I think if you’re going to explore that bleak future, a Dark Horse series is the place to do it.  As you may have heard already, Zack Whedon has been given the enviable task of penning a new series that will explore the life and times of Kyle Reese. Before Reese was sent to 1984 to save Sarah Connor and inadvertently fathered John, he was just your average soldier. Whedon’s six issue series aims to bring him to life, and describe just what it’s like to live under the robotic regime.

Whedon is joined by some top-notch artists. The new “Terminator” series will be drawn by Andy MacDonald, who you’ll recognize from NYC Mech, Punisher War Journal. If you’ve read NYC Mech, you should be pretty excited as he’s really the man for Skynet’s rubble. But if you prefer to judge a comic book by its cover, you’ll undoubtedly be pulling these, as the covers will be done by Y: The Last Man’s Massimo Carnevale

The first issue will be on shelves by March 2010. Even though my interest in the Terminator franchise has really cooled, I’d be interested in picking this up.  2 hours of raging against the machines and scrounging for food is a bit much, but 6 issues strung over a period of months? That’s a dystopia I can invest in.

Do you love Star Wars? Of course you do. Comics? Check. How about the iPhone? Copy that. Well, if you’re actually a fan, reader and avid user of these three things then today is truly your lucky day. Why?

Well, its simple really. Dark Horse Comics, in partnership with Lucasfilm and THQ Wireless, has just announced that they will release Star Wars comics to the iPhone for the first time ever. Excited? You should be. It’s pretty darn cool.

Here’s all the info from the official Dark Horse Comics press release:

In a partnership that will echo through the cosmos, Lucasfilm, THQ Wireless, and Dark Horse Comics will release Star Wars™ comics to the iPhone mobile platform for the first time ever!

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For yesterday’s The Pull List, go here.

Absolution #1 – Avatar – $3.99

Score: 8.0

Back in early July, we had the chance to talk to Christos Gage about his creator owned property, Absolution, from Avatar Press. The interview can be read here.  This week, Absolution came to stores and delivered what people were hoping for from the title. Absolution takes a different approach to the superhero genre. Unlike Garth Ennis’ edgy work on The Boys which has superheroes as corrupt drug addicted sexual perverts, Gage reinvents the wheel as he poses the question about what could cause a hero to snap.

Unlike the “heroes” of The Boys, Gage’s hero John Dusk is actually a good person. He uses his powers to save the lives of innocents and defeat bad guys. There is no corporate backing or monetary gain for John by doing it. He is the equivalent of a super powered beat cop. And like some cops who have been on Special Victims Units or the homicide for too long, Absolution explores what it takes to break a man.

The issue begins with John Dusk, the spandex wearing hero seen on the cover of the issue, as he fights White Power, a superpowered white supremacist. John’s powers can be compared to a toned down version of the Green Lantern or the Invisible Woman as he controls his aura around him that allows him to make crude objects with it that can be used both offensively and defensively. When things take a turn for the worst in the fight, John must use lethal force to stop his assailant. Even knowing the criminal is a rapist and murder, John still tries to keep him from dying until he sees two of White Powers captives, causing him to make a decision he can never step back from.

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