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Status | Active |
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Founded | 2004[1] |
Founder | Nick Barrucci |
Country of origin | United States |
Headquarters location | Mount Laurel, New Jersey |
Distribution | Diamond Book Distributors (books) [2] |
Key people | |
Publication types | Comics |
Fiction genres | |
Official website | www |
Dynamite Entertainment is an American comic book publisher founded in 2004 by Nick Barrucci [1] in Mount Laurel, New Jersey, known for publishing comic book adaptations of licensed feature film properties, such as Army of Darkness , Terminator , and RoboCop ; licensed or public domain literary properties such as Zorro, Dracula, Sherlock Holmes, Alice in Wonderland , Red Sonja, Tarzan, and John Carter of Mars; [3] and superhero books including Project Superpowers , which revived classic public domain characters, [4] and original creator-owned comics like The Boys . [5] [6]
Creators who have produced Dynamite's books include Alex Ross, John Cassaday, Matt Wagner, Garth Ennis, Howard Chaykin and Frank Miller. Dynamic Forces, a distribution of Dynamite's comics and books, announced a partnership with Diamond Distribution in 2008, when Diamond had the rights to publishing the international versions of books made by Dynamite Entertainment. [7]
Dynamite Entertainment was founded by Nick Barrucci in 2004, initially publishing one comic: Army of Darkness , [1] a miniseries it published through Devil's Due Publishing until it began self-publishing its own titles later that year. After devoting itself to publishing only Army of Darkness, which included a second miniseries, Dynamite published Red Sonja , starting with a 25-cent issue #0. It sold 240,000 copies. Issue #1 of Red Sonja, the first to sell at the full cover price of $2.99, sold 100,000 in initial orders, securing a stable position in the American comic book industry. [8] By 2009, Dynamite was publishing 14–20 comic books and 2–10 collections per month. [6]
Dynamite focuses primarily on comic book adaptations of licensed properties, such as Sherlock Holmes, The Lone Ranger, and Red Sonja. The company also publishes original titles like Project Superpowers , and creator-owned comics like The Boys . [6]
Among its adaptations are those based on classic literature such as Alice in Wonderland , [9] Dracula , [10] and Zorro ; [11] television series such as Xena: Warrior Princess [12] Battlestar Galactica , [13] and Buck Rogers, [14] and films such as Darkman , [15] The Good, the Bad and the Ugly , [16] RoboCop , [17] Highlander , [18] and the Terminator franchise. [13]
Its film adaptations also include those of classic monsters such as Dracula, [19] Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde, Frankenstein's Monster, and the Wolfman.[ citation needed ]
The company gradually built its graphic novel program with titles like Howard Chaykin's American Flagg! , reprints of Marvel Comics' Red Sonja series, and material by creators like Jim Starlin and Jae Lee. [6]
In addition to publishing crossover storylines in which characters from these various properties meet, such as Terminator/RoboCop, [20] and Vampirella/Dracula: Unholy!, [21] Dynamite has also produced intercompany crossover books with other publishers. One, titled "Monster War", was released through Image Comics in 2005, and consisted of several titles that pitted the classic monsters against Top Cow published characters Witchblade, the Darkness, Magdalena, and Tomb Raider . [22] The other was a 2006 crossover between DC Comics' Red Sonja/Claw The Unconquered: Devil's Hands. [23]
In February 2007, Dynamite Entertainment acquired the publishing rights to Garth Ennis' creator-owned series The Boys after the book was cancelled six months into its run by DC Comics' WildStorm imprint. [5]
In 2009 Dynamite announced it would publish new comics featuring Lee Falk's The Phantom . [24]
In 2010, Dynamite began publishing comic books based on The Green Hornet, beginning with a miniseries written by Kevin Smith and followed by Green Hornet: Year One, which was written by Matt Wagner, and another written by Brett Matthews. [25]
In May 2010, Dynamite Entertainment acquired Chaos! Comics' library, which included and all of that publisher's associated assets, with the exception of Lady Death. Among these properties were the publishing labels Black Label Graphics, Infinity Comics, and the properties Evil Ernie, Smiley The Psychotic Button, Chastity, Purgatori, Jade, Omen, Bad Kitty, Cremator, Lady Demon. [26]
In October 2013, Dynamite announced it would launch a line of comics based on titles originally published by Gold Key Comics, the first of which would be Magnus: Robot Fighter , The Occult Files of Doctor Spektor , Solar: Man of the Atom , and Turok . [27]
In July 2016, author Andy Mangels stated in a New York Times interview that he was writing a new intercompany crossover mini-series for the company, in conjunction with DC Comics, Wonder Woman '77 Meets the Bionic Woman, which brought together the Lynda Carter television version of the Amazon superhero with Jaime Sommers, the cyborg super-heroine played by Lindsay Wagner in the 1970s TV series, The Bionic Woman . [28] [29] The series was released in that December. [30]
In July 2019, Sony Pictures Television and Amazon Studios premiered an adapted television series of The Boys for Amazon Prime Video after a brand licensing agreement was granted by Dynamite. [31] [32]
In 2022, Dynamite announced a deal with Disney to create a new line of comics based on various properties, including Gargoyles (TV series) with spin-offs including a Halloween Special, Dark Ages mini series, and Quest mini series, and Darkwing Duck with spin-offs including Negaduck and Justice Ducks, as well as Disney Villains characters including Maleficent , Scar (The Lion King) , Hades (Disney) and Cruella De Vil . They also have the first comic book series on Lilo & Stitch and will be the first American publisher of The Nightmare Before Christmas comics
In October 2023, Dynamite announced a deal with Warner Bros. Discovery to create a new line of comics based on various properties, including Thundercats , Space Ghost , Jonny Quest , The Powerpuff Girls , The Wizard of Oz , The Flintstones, and We Bare Bears . [33]
Thundercats #1 sold over 170K copies. [34]
Battlestar Galactica is an American science fiction media franchise created by Glen A. Larson. It began with the original television series in 1978, and was followed by a short-run sequel series, Galactica 1980, a line of book adaptations, original novels, comic books, a board game, and video games. A reimagined version aired as a two-part, three-hour miniseries developed by Ronald D. Moore and David Eick in 2003, followed by a 2004 television series, which aired until 2009. A prequel series, Caprica, aired in 2010.
Red Sonja is a fictional sword and sorcery comic-book superheroine created by writer Roy Thomas and artist Barry Windsor-Smith for Marvel Comics in 1973, partially inspired by Robert E. Howard's character Red Sonya of Rogatino.
Vampirella is a vampire superheroine created by Forrest J Ackerman and comic book artist Trina Robbins in Warren Publishing's black-and-white horror comics magazine Vampirella #1, a sister publication of Creepy and Eerie.
Christopher James Priest is an American comic book writer who is at times credited simply as Priest. He changed his name legally circa 1993. He was the first black writer-editor in mainstream comics.
Gail Simone is an American writer best known for her work in comics on DC's Birds of Prey, Batgirl, Dynamite Entertainment's Red Sonja, and for being the longest running female writer on Wonder Woman to date. Other notable works include Clean Room, Secret Six, Welcome to Tranquility, The All-New Atom, and Deadpool.
Steven McNiven is a Canadian comic book artist. He first gained prominence on CrossGen's Meridian, before moving onto books such as Ultimate Secret, Marvel Knights 4, New Avengers, and Civil War, illustrating storylines such as "Old Man Logan."
Paul Renaud is a French comic book artist and illustrator, and working for both European and French markets.
Ernesto Colón Sierra was a stateside Puerto Rican comics artist, known for his wide-ranging career illustrating children's, superhero, and horror comics, as well as mainstream nonfiction.
Battlestar Galactica has been adapted to the comic book format since its inception, with six publishers to date taking on the project of relating the story of the Colonial Fleet and their adversaries, the Cylons, at different points.
Daniel Alan Brereton is an American writer and illustrator who has produced notable work in the comic book field.
Roger McKenzie is an American comic book writer best known for his work on Daredevil with Frank Miller. McKenzie has also written for a variety of independent comics publishers, such as Pacific Comics, Comico Comics, Sirius Comics, Pied Piper Comics, and Eclipse Comics.
Stjepan Šejić is a Croatian comic book writer and artist, known for his work on the series Witchblade, Aphrodite IX, Sunstone, and The Darkness among others.
Brandon Jerwa is an American comic book writer and musician residing in Seattle, Washington. Jerwa is best known for his work on comic tie-ins for several prominent licensed properties, including Battlestar Galactica, Highlander, G.I. Joe and Army of Darkness. Jerwa also collaborates frequently with fellow writer Eric S. Trautmann.
Joyce Chin is an American comic book artist. She has created content under the Marvel Comics, DC Comics, Dynamite Comics, Image Comics, Dark Horse Comics, and IDW Publishing labels. A large portion of Chin's work has been in creating comic book covers.
Red Sonja is an upcoming American sword and sorcery film directed by M. J. Bassett and written by Tasha Huo and M.J. Bassett, based on the character of the same name. The film stars Matilda Lutz as the title character, alongside Wallis Day, Robert Sheehan, Michael Bisping, Martyn Ford, Eliza Matengu, Rhona Mitra, and Veronica Ferres.
Erica Schultz is an American comic book writer, letterer, and editor. She is the first woman to write a Spawn comic, and is best known for her writing work at Marvel on titles like Daredevil, X-23, and Hallows' Eve.
Amy Chu is an American comic book author who runs the comic imprint Alpha Girl Comics as well as writing comics for other publishers. She wrote the six-issue miniseries Poison Ivy: Cycle of Life and Death and a few Wonder Woman issues for DC.
Jack Herbert, Jackson Herbert Santos de Sousa also known as Jackson Herbert, is a Brazilian comic book artist whose published work includes interior illustrations and cover art. He entered the industry in 2005 when he was selected by an agency to work in the U.S. market. He is known for the Kirby Genesis series in which he has worked with the best-selling and Eisner award winners Kurt Busiek and Alex Ross and for his contributions to various Dynamite and DC Comics titles.
Joseph Michael Linsner is an American comic book writer/artist, known as the creator of the mature-audiences supernatural character Dawn, and for his illustrations of female characters. He is a popular cover artist in the comics industry.