Industry | Comics |
---|---|
Founded | 1986 |
Defunct | 1994 |
Headquarters | Newbury Park, California, U.S. |
Key people |
|
Owner | Marvel Comics (from 1994) |
Parent | Malibu Comics (from 1988) |
Eternity Comics was an American comic book publisher active from 1986 to 1994, first as an independent publisher, then as an imprint of Malibu Comics. Eternity published creator-owned comics of an offbeat, independent flavor, as well as some licensed properties. One of its most notable titles was Ex-Mutants . Eternity was also notable for reprinting foreign titles, and introducing Cat Claw , The Jackaroo , and the Southern Squadron to the U.S. market.
Such well-known creators as Brian Pulido, Evan Dorkin, Dale Berry, Ben Dunn, Dean Haspiel, and Ron Lim got their starts with Eternity.
Eternity began publishing in 1986 in Newbury Park, California, privately financed by comics distributor Scott Mitchell Rosenberg, [2] and helmed by Brian Marshall and Tony Eng. [3]
The company debuted with such titles as Earthlore, Gonad the Barbarian, The Mighty Mites, Ninja, and Reign of the Dragonlord (with only Ninja lasting more than a couple of issues).
In April 1987, The Comics Journal revealed that Eternity — along with publishers Malibu Comics, Amazing Comics, Wonder Color, and Marshall's own Imperial Comics — had been financed by Rosenberg. After this was made public, Rosenberg discontinued most of the publishers, keeping Malibu and retaining the Eternity label as a Malibu imprint. Eternity also took over publishing a number of Imperial Comics' titles, including Battle to the Death, Nazrat, and Probe. [1] In late 1988, Rosenberg also brought in Canadian publisher Aircel Comics under the Eternity/Malibu umbrella. [4]
One of Eternity's most successful titles was its 1988–1994 licensing of the Robotech franchise. The creators, the Waltrip brothers, began with direct adaptations of the Robotech II: The Sentinels scripts and novels, before eventually writing additional stories that expanded the canon beyond the initial 85 animated Robotech episodes and The Sentinels. As the series progressed, the Waltrips began deviating from the Sentinels novels, adding new story elements and new characters.
During its existence, Eternity was no stranger to legal squabbles. The popular title Ex-Mutants was first published by Eternity in 1987–1988, and was then moved to the independent black-and-white publisher Amazing Comics (with contractual problems later forcing the title to be published under Amazing's successor, Pied Piper Comics). A legal dispute followed, and after running out of money for the struggle, creators David Lawrence and Ron Lim surrendered: the title returned to Eternity and was later published in a revamped version by Malibu. [5]
Eternity's 1989 publication of The Uncensored Mouse , which reprinted Mickey Mouse comics from the 1930s — without Disney's permission — led to a run-in with Walt Disney Productions. Eternity printed The Uncensored Mouse with totally black covers, bagged (to prevent casual buyers from flipping through the comic), and the inside of the comic had a printed notice: "Mickey Mouse is a registered trademark of Walt Disney Productions" so as not to confuse the market that it was an authorized Disney production. Eternity believed it had not violated any copyrights because strips had fallen into public domain. Regardless, Disney brought a lawsuit against the company and the series was cancelled after just two issues (six issues were solicited). [6]
Similarly, Eternity's 1989-1992 adaptation of the popular Japanese manga Captain Harlock was discontinued after it was discovered that Eternity/Malibu did not have the Captain Harlock rights. The alleged representative for the rights to Harlock to whom Malibu paid money, claiming to represent Coral Pictures, turned out to be fraudulent and was in no way connected to the actual rights holders. [7] [8]
Malibu stopped using the Eternity imprint before Marvel acquired Malibu, [9] when Eternity's last two franchises moved to other publishers in the middle of 1994: Ninja High School returning to Antarctic Press and Robotech moving to Academy Comics.
About Scott Rosenberg of Sunrise Distributors, and Eternity, Imperial, Amazing, Malibu, and Wonder Color Comics.
Comico: The Comic Company was an American comic book publisher headquartered in Norristown, Pennsylvania. Its best-known comics include the Robotech adaptations, the Jonny Quest continuation written by co-creator Doug Wildey, and Matt Wagner's Mage: The Hero Discovered and Grendel. Once considered a major contender on the American market, Comico went into bankruptcy in 1990, although it continued to sporadically publish books until 1997. In 2009, two of Comico's original founders launched an original webcomics site called CO2 Comics, which they explained was the reincarnation of Comico.
Slave Labor Graphics (SLG) is an American independent comic book publisher, well known for publishing darkly humorous, offbeat adult comics. Creators associated with SLG over the years include Evan Dorkin, Roman Dirge, Sarah Dyer, Woodrow Phoenix, Jhonen Vasquez, and Andi Watson.
Evan Dorkin is an American comics artist and cartoonist. His best known works are the comic books Milk and Cheese and Dork, the latter of which features his comic Eltingville. His comics often poke fun at fandom, even while making it clear that Dorkin is a fan himself. Dorkin also served as a writer on the Adult Swim animated series Space Ghost Coast to Coast from 1994 to 1999, and created a pilot for an animated adaptation of Eltingville for Adult Swim in 2002.
Malibu Comics Entertainment, Inc. was an American comic book publisher active in the late 1980s and early 1990s, best known for its Ultraverse line of superhero titles. Notable titles published by Malibu included The Men in Black, Ultraforce, and Night Man.
An original English-language manga or OEL manga is a comic book or graphic novel drawn in the style of manga and originally published in English. The term "international manga", as used by the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, encompasses all foreign comics which draw inspiration from the "form of presentation and expression" found in Japanese manga. This may also apply to manga-inspired comics made in other languages.
NOW Comics was a comic book publisher founded in late 1985 by Tony C. Caputo as a sole-proprietorship. During the four years after its founding, NOW grew from a one-man operation to operating in 12 countries, and published almost 1,000 comic books.
Brian Anthony David-Marshall, often credited as Brian Marshall, is an American comic book and collectible card game industry figure. He has worked in all facets of both industries, from publishing to retail, from writing to editorial. He was a founding partner of Eternity Comics, a comic book publisher active in the late 1980s and early 1990s; and is currently president and publisher of the Web3-based digital entertainment company InterPop.
Robotech comics first officially appeared in print in 1985, though Comico published the first issue of its license from Harmony Gold USA under the Macross name.
Scott Mitchell Rosenberg is an American film, television, and comic book producer. He is the chairman of Platinum Studios, an entertainment company that controls a library of comic-book characters and adapts them for film, television and other media. Through Platinum Studios he is affiliated with Moving Pictures Media Group. He is also the founder and former president of Malibu Comics, and is a former senior executive vice president for Marvel Comics.
Pied Piper Comics was a short-lived American comic book publishing company that operated from 1986 to 1988. The company was founded by Mark L. Hamlin and Roger McKenzie, with writer/editor David Campiti playing a major role.
Aircel Comics was a comic book publisher founded by Barry Blair, in Ottawa, Ontario in 1985. In 1988, it merged with American publisher Eternity Comics, itself an imprint of Malibu Comics, and in the late 1980s was taken over by Malibu before ceasing publication in 1994. It was best known as the original publisher of The Men in Black, a comic book which was later adapted into a media franchise.
Ben Dunn is an American comic book artist and publisher.
Ex-Mutants was a comic book series created by writer David Lawrence and artist Ron Lim, along with comics packager David Campiti in 1986. It was first published by Eternity Comics and then Amazing Comics, Pied Piper Comics, and finally Malibu/Eternity. Malibu created a shared universe called Shattered Earth with the characters. In 1992, Malibu comics rebooted the franchise with a new continuity. A video game for the Sega Genesis based on the rebooted version was released in 1992, being developed by Malibu Interactive and published by Sega of America, Inc.
Robotech II: The Sentinels is a 1988 American-Japanese animated film written and directed by Carl Macek. Part of the Robotech franchise, it is set between the events of The Macross Saga and The Masters from the original 1985 television series. The film follows Rick Hunter, now a major general, as he leads Earth's forces aboard a new space station on a diplomatic mission to the Robotech Masters, unaware that the Masters have come under attack from the Invid.
David Campiti is an American animation producer, comic book writer, talent agent, and packager. He was deeply involved with a number of comics publishers in the late 1980s and early 1990s, including Eternity Comics, Pied Piper Comics, and his own entity, Innovation Publishing. As CEO of Glass House Graphics, Campiti oversees an international animation studio and agency of illustrators, writers, painters, and digital designers.
Jason Waltrip and John Waltrip are identical twins who comprise a comic book art and writing team, known for their work on Robotech comics and in webcomics.
Richard Renick Hoberg is an American comics artist and animator.
The Uncensored Mouse is a 1989 comic book series published by Malibu Graphics' Eternity Comics line. The series reprinted Mickey Mouse comic strip stories from 1930, including the first two sequences, "Lost on a Desert Island" and "Mickey Mouse in Death Valley". Only two issues were published. While these early sequences had been reprinted in Italy in the 1970s, The Uncensored Mouse was the first English-language reprint since the strip's newspaper run.
Sunrise Distribution was a Commerce, California-based comic book distributor which operated in the early-to-mid 1980s. Owned by Scott Mitchell Rosenberg, the company was intimately connected to a number of small comic book publishers from that era, including Eternity Comics and Malibu Comics, as well as three extremely short-lived publishers: Amazing, Imperial Comics, and Wonder Color.
Adventure Publications was an American comic book publisher founded by Steve Milo in 1986, based in Fairfax, Virginia and active from 1986 to 1993. In 1989, it merged with American publisher Malibu Comics, becoming the Adventure Comics imprint.