THE BLACK BEETLE ~ NO WAY OUT #3 is here!

~~ Click on the cover for a large preview of NO WAY OUT #3 ~~

Hello Pulp Friends,

     The third episode of The Black Beetle's NO WAY OUT is airing this Wednesday in all your favorite comicbook stores, and you can get a meaty preview by clicking the cover above.

Please trust me when I say this is the prettier chapter yet and make sure to be there in about 30 days for the explosive conclusion of the first adventure/foray of The Black Beetle on the shelves.
Hope you enjoy the read :)

The Black Beetle: No Way Out #3
Written by Francesco Francavilla
Art by Francesco Francavilla
On sale April 17th, 2013     
Under the watchful gaze of the mysterious Labyrinto, Black Beetle fights for his life! Is this the doing of a man that Black Beetle thought was dead? Could a zombie mobster be commanding the foes of Colt City’s dark avenger?! If he survives the night, the investigative insect will be left with questions to ponder as he takes his investigation . . . to the morgue!


Have a wonderful Pulp Sunday, everyone :)

Cheers,
Francesco

THE BLACK BEETLE is here!

~~ Click on the images for biggie ~~

Hello Pulp Friends,

     It's another Black Beetle inspired Pulp Sunday, and I hope that's ok with y'all :)
The reason is that this week the third cover of the series was revealed: you can see it above (first cover showcasing the name of the city BB operates in too) and here is the solicits text to tease you while you wait for the release (in March) ;)

The Black Beetle: No Way Out #3
Written by Francesco Francavilla
Art by Francesco Francavilla
On sale March 20, 2013     
Under the watchful gaze of the mysterious Labyrinto, Black Beetle fights for his life! Is this the doing of a man that Black Beetle thought was dead? Could a zombie mobster be commanding the foes of Colt City’s dark avenger?! If he survives the night, the investigative insect will be left with questions to ponder as he takes his investigation . . . to the morgue!  

    Next we have a sneak peek at NO WAY OUT #1 that my editor Jim Gibbons kindly gave in his blog post on the Dark Horse website. I suggest to click on the image to really enjoy this spread in all its glory :)

    THE BLACK BEETLE NO WAY OUT #1 is still available for pre-orders: here's a pre-order form Dark Horse put together to make things easy for you. Just click on the image, print out the form, bring it to the shop, and -voila- it's done! :)




    Last but not least- BLACK BEETLE NIGHT SHIFT (aka #0) is coming out in stores this coming Wed. I received some advance copies and it's BEAUTIFUL (and I am not saying that just because it's my baby ;))

    If you missed the 3 part story in Dark Horse Presents, here's your chance to read it all in one place. And if you didn't miss the DHP issues, than you can still pickup this collected edt because of the brand new and retro pulp cover and the few pages of extra material we put in this.

    Check out the snapshot I took and see for yourself :)

Have a wonderful Pulp Sunday, everyone, and Happy Holidays with family and friends. Taking next Sunday off but I will see you on the 30th. :)

Cheers,
Francesco

THE BLACK BEETLE Finds "NO WAY OUT" Of The Shadows

~~ Click on the images for biggie ~~

Hello Pulp Friends,

     I am so excited to share the latest 2 lobby cards with some support words from two comicbook legends and a huge inspiration of mine: Jim Steranko and Warren Ellis. I am lucky enough to call Jim a friend and he has always been enjoying The Black Beetle since the ashcan from a few years ago, so having his stamp of approval (being the Pulp authority he is) really means a lot to me.
     And to add another cherry to the pie, Warren asked to see the pages from issue 1, enjoyed it and gave me the blurb I used on the lobby card below. More thumbs up from these greats means I might be doing this right :) Let's hope I don't screw it up along the way ;)


     Issue #0 (collecting the NIGHT SHIFT 3-parter published in DHP plus extra material) is coming out in less than two weeks and there is still time to put in pre-orders for issue 1 coming out in January.

     Speaking of issue 1 of NO WAY OUT, here's an excerpt of an interview that was recently published on CBR (done with Daniel Glendening) in which I talk a bit of the story, The Black Beetle, and show some sneak peek of the book (first 3 pages).

~~Ŧ~~

     Back alleys shrouded in darkness and long shadows cast by dim streetlights, all-night diners and wise guy gangsters, esoteric artifacts and Nazi secret agents: this is the world readers have come to associate with classic noir, and the world readers will find in writer/artist Francesco Francavilla's "The Black Beetle" from Dark Horse Comics. With the release of "The Black Beetle" #0, collecting the three-part story "NightShift" that originally ran in Dark Horse's anthology series, "DarkHorse Presents," on December 19 and the subsequent launch of "The Black Beetle: No Way Out" four-issue miniseries on January 16, Francavilla continues his impressive rise in the comic book industry. Francavilla nabbed the 2012 Eisner Award for Best Cover Artist as well as the 2012 Eagle Award for Favourite Newcomer Artist. He brings his signature graphic, pulp aesthetic to every panel of his developing series, eagerly sharing the process on his "Black Beetle"-centered blog.

     "We are still at a very early phase of the Black Beetle's history," Francavilla told Comic Book Resources. "We know he operates in Colt City and we know he is some sort of masked vigilante or hero. The events in 'Night Shift' span one night -- We've learned what the Black Beetle is capable of, and where his 'base of operations' is located."

     The Black Beetle is a hero, to be sure, and he's willing to take a bullet in defense of the innocent. However, he is not without his flaws, as hinted at in "Night Shift," and Francavilla compares him to Humphrey Bogart's character Rick Blaine in the 1941 film, "Casablanca."

     "[The Black Beetle] operates outside the radar of the law, which allows him to get information on criminal activity in Colt City and act accordingly, sometimes adopting unorthodox measures," said Francavilla. "He is a hero, after all -- not a perfect hero, but still a hero."

[...]

      "There is something else going on more than just simply 'protecting the citizens of Colt City,'" said Francavilla. "What is that 'something else?' That's one of the major plot-points that we'll discover a bit at a time through the next several issues in the series."

[...]

    "A main goal I had for this book is to explore several genres of the pulps," Francavilla explained. "'Night Shift' was a mix of spy-war story with some supernatural elements, while 'No Way Out' is more of a crime-mystery story."

     Francavilla cites the pulp and noir films and serials of the 1930s, '40s and '50s as direct influences on The Black Beetle, as well as classic pulp crime fiction writers like Dashiell Hammett and Raymond Chandler. The series is also clearly indebted to early masked-heroes like The Shadow and The Spider.

     "I always loved the high entertainment value of those stories," said Francavilla. "You didn't need to know much going in except that some bad guy is going to do something bad and The Shadow or The Spider was going to take care of him. Same goes with the gangster or crime movies from that period: you were going in without any pre-conception or knowledge of the characters; getting to meet the hero (or anti-hero) during the movie, and deciding to like or hate him or her at the end. You probably thought you knew how the movie was going to end, but somehow the whole experience wasn't as predictable as you thought. And that made it fun, entertaining. Hopefully I will be able to achieve the same effect with 'The Black Beetle.'"

~~Ŧ~~

So please spread the word about BB, pre-order #1 and #2, tell your store to order some extra copies, and -last but not least- have a wonderful Pulp Sunday, everyone :)

Cheers,
Francesco

Kara Bocek pag.10

(click on the above image for a bigger reading experience ;))

Hello Pulp friends :)

with the new features I am introducing to Pulp Sunday (like the illustrated pulp tales ala "Nightmare Town") and the plan to bring back some old time radio show (with related lobby cards) as well, I realized I can't have everything on Sundays, so here's the idea.
What if I move Kara Bocek to Wednesday, which is by tradition comic's day? And leave the OTR and the illustrated prose for Sundays? Do you like the idea? Or you prefer Kara Bocek to be a Sunday strip?
Lemme hear from you, I am open to suggestion s and feeback.

Meanwhile hope you enjoy page 10 above: we are about one third into this tale and things are gonna escalate from now on :)

Cheers,
Francesco

All images © 2010 Francesco Francavilla.
KARA BOCEK, BLACK BEETLE & COLT CITY created by, ™ and © 2006-2010 Francesco Francavilla

Kara Bocek pag.9

(click on the above image for larger view)

Hello Pulp friends :)

sorry for the a-lil-more-than-a-month pause on Kara Bocek. As you may know by now, I had computer virus/issue that put me behind on my work deadlines and having to attend to my first big Con of the year on the other Coast of the US didn't really help to make up some of the lost time.
Hopefully things are back to normal so we go back to our weekly appointment with your favorite pulp hero :)

So here's finally Kara Bocek page 9!!!
I didn't plan that way, but this page reads also like a quick recap of what happened so far, so what better way to jump back in the story? :)
All I am hoping is that it was worth the wait: I know many of you have expressed (via email, via blog, viat live at Cons, and via twitter) how much you were missing Kara Bocek: that makes me very happy because it shows you guys care about BB and that's all that really matters.
Keep showing the love and spreading the word :)

Cheers,
Francesco

All images © 2010 Francesco Francavilla.
KARA BOCEK, BLACK BEETLE & COLT CITY created by, ™ and © 2006-2010 Francesco Francavilla

Black Beetles - Part 8

Dear Pulp Friends,

after the Australian love from Jason Paulos, the Black Beetle gets more international love today, this time from Panagiotis Mitsobonos, Athens, Greece :D

Panagiotis is a Pulp Sunday friend and he was kind enough to take some time off his schedule to do a tribute to the Black Beetle. That, of course, makes me feel again like a proud dad :)
Love the Ted McKeever vibe of it, almost a chalked graffiti on the walls of a Colt City alley, reminding the crooks that THE BLACK BEETLE IS ALWAYS WATCHING! :D

You can check more of Panagiotis' work here.

σας ευχαριστούμε, Panagiotis :)

Cheers,
Francesco

KARA BOCEK, BLACK BEETLE & COLT CITY created by, ™ and © 2009 Francesco Francavilla

Black Beetles - Part 7

Hello Pulp Friends,

hope you all had a wonderful Xmas time this past weekend :)

Coming back from my little visit @ the in-laws, I found these two cool Black Beetle tributes under the tree (metaphorically speaking ;))
They are both by a good friend and talented pulp artist Jason Paulos. I really dig the "SPIRIT/Eisner" vibe of these and they definitely bring back our pulp hero in the noirish settings of Colt City in "NO WAY OUT".
Thank you so much, Jase, you nailed it! :D
To check out more on Jason's own creation like the pulp Detective "HAIRBUTT the Hippo" or the EC inspired horrors of "EEK", I invite you to visit his site :)

Stay tuned for KARA BOCEK page 5 this week :)

Cheers,
Francesco



KARA BOCEK, BLACK BEETLE & COLT CITY created by, ™ and © 2009 Francesco Francavilla

"Kara Bocek": more studies

Hello Pulp friends :)

I am sharing these with you all as they come along.
Please meet Aziz Haktan (on the left) and Ihsan Bey (on the right).
Aziz is the owner of an Antiques shop in Constantinople, and he has a special item Black Beetle is interested in.
Ihsan... well, he is one of the bad guys of this story, but you have to wait to see how bad he is ;)
This is gonna be FUN :D

Spread the word: BB is back! :)

Cheers,
Francesco

All images © 2009 Francesco Francavilla.
BLACK BEETLE & COLT CITY created by, ™ and © 2009 Francesco Francavilla

"Kara Bocek" and the Pulp December

Hello Pulp friends :)

So let's get this December started, shall we? :D
Planning to bring the PULP/NOIR back to Pulp Sunday after the Horror October
and SciFi November. That means also more Black Beetle tales! :)

We left Black Beetle in his free-fall from an 18 story building in the prologue of "NO WAY OUT", remember? Well, as mentioned that story has developed to be a 6 issue mini and you will be able to see what happen next hopefully in 2010 (really pushing things around to make the mini hit the stores next year).


Meanwhile, since I can't keep BB away from Pulp SUnday, I decided to do a short web-tale of our beloved hero. "KARA BOCEK" will be set a few years before "NO WAY OUT" and will introduce some of the elements that will be part of the BB bigger arcs later. The change of settings is not just temporal but also geographical as we are now in Constantinople (today's Istanbul), Turkey and not in Colt City.
Expect Casablanca vibes in this ;)


Just worked on this "lobby card" (inspired by a pulp movie ;)) and the couple of concepts you see in this post (introducing Elsa Vogel) and now I need to layout the whole story in
the next few days so I can have Sunday strips going on Pulp Sunday for the
whole month.
Hope you guys dig the poster & the concept and will be on board for this ride. And please, let me hear from you because if it's just me and BB it's half fun :)

Cheers,
Francesco

All images © 2009 Francesco Francavilla.
BLACK BEETLE & COLT CITY created by, ™ and © 2009 Francesco Francavilla

Black Beetles - Part 2

Hello Pulp friends :)

Yesterday I shared the beautiful Black Beetle sketch I unexpectedly received from Dan Brereton this past weekend. I was already very excited by this joyful surprise so you can imagine how I felt when I saw a seconf BB tribute being dropped on my table. My dear good friend Dar left me speachless when he delivered this in my hands. Thank you so much, Dar! :)

I will be talking about his beautiful "HUNTER" soon. (If you haven't picked up yet, do yourself a favor and pick up the hardcover: a magnificent book and a true labor of love for the subject matter)

To see the past tributes/homages to BB check this after Heroes Con post.
I am a lucky man :D

Tomorrow I will be back with more Pulp Sci-Fi.

Cheers,
Francesco

All images © 2009 respective Creators.
BLACK BEETLE & COLT CITY created by, ™ and © 2009 Francesco Francavilla

Black Beetles - Part 1

Hello Pulp friends :)

as I was mentioning earlier, I received some unexpected surprises at this past weekend Dragon*Con. No, I am not talking of the Power Woman who turned out to be a dude ;). I am referring to some tributes to my Black Beetle drawn by a couple of artists who I have a huge admiration for and that I am honored to call friends :)

Let's start first with the awesome Dan Brereton, of Nocturnals fame. He did a quick sketch of BB and I took a little time this morning to put some colors on it. Hope you guys dig the drawing as much I did :)

It's always cool to see my own creation drawn by artists whose work I admire, like it happened in the past with Steve Epting and Dave Flora, among others.

Stay tuned tomorrow for part.2.

Cheers,
Francesco

All images © 2009 respective Creators.
BLACK BEETLE & COLT CITY created by, ™ and © 2009 Francesco Francavilla

TUMP!

Hello Pulp friends :)

with today's page, "NO WAY OUT" is taking a little break. Good things are happening to Black Beetle so you will be able (hopefully sometime soon-ish) to read the whole first mini (132 pages circa) printed on nice paper and holding it in your hands :D
Somehow I managed to package a really good story, I think, and can't wait to show it to you guys :)

Meanwhile I am planning to go back and doing a few more illustrated OTR shows (with related mp3) and few more special weeks (like Mad Doctors or a British Pulp week, like a friend was suggesting :)). And there will be more little tales from Colt City: that city is just too big to be just about BB ;)
As you can see, there will be still pleanty of Pulp goodness in here so stay tuned!

Hope you dig page 10 and have a great Pulp Sunday everyone :)

Cheers,
Francesco

All images © 2009 Francesco Francavilla.
BLACK BEETLE & COLT CITY created by, ™ and © 2009 Francesco Francavilla

OOOOPS!!!

Hello Pulp friends :)

Sorry for the "CLICK HERE" button but when you see the pages (yep, double spread this week, baby! ;)) you will know why :)
Lemme know when you click on it ;)

Have a great Pulp Sunday everyone :)

Cheers,
Francesco

All images © 2009 Francesco Francavilla.
BLACK BEETLE & COLT CITY created by, ™ and © 2009 Francesco Francavilla

CHINK!

Hello Pulp friends :)

Things will get REALLY HOT next week: meanwhile hope you are enjoying the story (and this Holiday weekend) so far. :)

Have a great Pulp Sunday everyone :)

Cheers,
Francesco

All images © 2009 Francesco Francavilla.
BLACK BEETLE & COLT CITY created by, ™ and © 2009 Francesco Francavilla

UH?!?

Hello Pulp friends :)

here's page 6, another silent (kinda) page. I did say Black Beetle is done talkin', right? ;)

Hope you guys dig it and wait to see what happens next :D

Thanks again to all those who purchased the ashcan at Heroes and online: will be shipping the books soon, time to draw a little sketch of our hero inside for you guys :)

Have a great Pulp Sunday everyone :)

Cheers,
Francesco

All images © 2009 Francesco Francavilla.
BLACK BEETLE & COLT CITY created by, ™ and © 2009 Francesco Francavilla

BB & Heroes

Hello Pulp friends :)

Heroes was (once again) a great show for me (thanks to all who commissioned me convention sketches and bought my books and prints) and for Black Beetle too: I sold out of the 30 copies I brought with me at the show (10 de-luxe and 20 regular). Everyone was picking up the sample ashcan I had on my table and ask the same question: "When it's coming out?" :D
I think our BB has definitely made an impression on the crowd at the show :)

I had a couple of BB requests (convention sketches - above is one of them) and had collegues and friends doing some BB fanart/homage as well (our own Dave Flora actually did his way before the show :)), a couple of them with a smiling BB :).
Steve Epting, Dave Flora, Brad Millette, Manuel Aguillera, Cory Laub: thank you so much, guys, it's always cool to see the different takes on our new pulp hero :)
I gave all of them the old paper treatment and posted below for all to see :D

I will be shipping some more ashcans and prints soon to those who ordered via blog/website - thank you again for the support and for diggin Black Beetle :) Anybody else who's interested in a copy of the ashcan, please email me with your choice (regulare or deluxe) and I will take care of you (as long I still have copies available).

Stay tuned for this Sunday next BB page!

Cheers,
Francesco











All images © 2009 respective Authors.
BLACK BEETLE & COLT CITY created by, ™ and © 2009 Francesco Francavilla

Black Beetle: "No Way Out" Ashcan

Hello Pulp friends :)

I am so glad you all enhoyed page 5, and trust me, things are getting even hotter in the next 4-5 pages. But before we get to those (in the next weeks) I am gonna be at Heroes Conthis weekend, and, as mentioned, I will have some BB goodies.

What goodies? Well, first of all I am printing a limited (numbered and signed) 100 copies of the very first Black Beetle ashcan, "No Way Out" (that's the title of the first arc).
It contains the first 5 sequential pages (which you have seen on Pulp Sunday) and a sketchbook section with lots of concepts and illos. The ashcan is limited to 100 copies and I will only bring part of those to Heroes, so I will have a few more for Dragon Con and SDCC and some to sell online to those interested.
The book is fully colored, tip to toe, has 12 pages plus inside covers, and measures approx. 7.5x10.75" (magazine size). You can see the front cover above and the interior front cover below.
All books come with a quick Black Beetle sketch (when purchased from me - I am planning to send some to a few stores without sketch) in the inside back cover (I create a space there for this purpose).
Those who are interested please email me using the contact button via my website.

Other goodies are a large print, 13x19", archival ink on archival paper, of the cover/movie poster above (email for rates if interested), and other items like the mousepads and shirts which are also available on Zazzle and CafePress (that's where I ordered mine ;)).
Cafe Press
Zazzle

Of course, if you are going to be at Heroes, feel free to stop by even if just to say hi :)
Have a great Pulp Week everyone :)

Cheers,
Francesco

UPDATE! Hey all -

Just wanted to post an update on the ashcan prices. I am getting lots of email requests so thank you all so very much for your support. I am printing 100 of these in 2 versions (50 each, all graphics & content is the same):

Version 1 (#1-50/100): The deluxe model - has in-house-printed cover on bristol board (more muted colors & a bit more pulpy feel on the cover), includes quick BB bust or quick BB full figure sketch - $20 + shipping
Version 2 (#51-100/100): The regular model - has commercially printed cover, includes quick BB head sketch - $10 + shipping

Once again, the content and graphics (cover and interiors) are exactly the same so nobody is missing anything between the two versions. The difference is just in the cover paper and the sketch it comes with.

Shipping costs - $5 domestic US; $11 international - all ashcans sent U.S. priority or global mail envelope
Due the limited run on these, please limit orders to one copy each.

Prints are 30$ + shipping for 11.7x16.5" and $40 + shipping for 13x19" - archival ink on archival paper.

Just email me with what you want and I'll send you my paypal address. Those who already emailed me don't need to re-send email - I will reply to you all soon. Probably I won't be shipping anything until I get back from Heroes convention since I still have to pack and draw some more Zorro pages before I go. :)

Again, thank you so much for the support and the positive reaction to Black Beetle, I really appreciate it :)

Cheers,
Francesco



Update #2
Just got today my shipment from Zazzle, just in time for the show. I ordered a few BB items to have at the show and also to check on the quality and the quality is definitely there :D
I took a (quick) picture of what I will have at my table (and on the WEB after that).

Cheers,
Francesco



All images © 2009 Francesco Francavilla.
BLACK BEETLE & COLT CITY created by, ™ and © 2009 Francesco Francavilla

PFFT! PFFT! PFFT!

Hello Pulp friends :)

Page 5 is here - I told you things were getting HOT, didn't I? ;)

Next Sunday I will probably take a break since I will be at Heroes Con in Charlotte (if you are going make sure to stop by my table and say hi - planning to have also some Black Beetle goodies with me), so I will see you in two weeks for the new Black Beetle page (or maybe sooner...).

Have a great Pulp Sunday everyone :)

Cheers,
Francesco

All images © 2009 Francesco Francavilla.
BLACK BEETLE & COLT CITY created by, ™ and © 2009 Francesco Francavilla

Enough Talkin'...

Hello Pulp friends :)

ANd here's page 4 - things are getting HOT ;)

Speaking of Black Beetle, I set up a couple of online stores where you can pick up some cool BB merchandise, if you feel inclined to, of course ;)
Cafe Press
Zazzle

Also below the poster for this week special: starting tomorrow, you will find a daily Mad Doctor visiting Pulp Sunday. Make sure to stop by and say hi to the doctors ;)

Have a great Pulp Sunday everyone :)

Cheers,
Francesco



All images © 2009 Francesco Francavilla.
BLACK BEETLE & COLT CITY created by, ™ and © 2009 Francesco Francavilla

Faccia D'Angelo

Hello Pulp friends :)

Please meet Joe Fierro!
Hope you guys are enjoying the story so far.

Have a great Pulp Sunday everyone :)

Cheers,
Francesco

All images © 2009 Francesco Francavilla.
BLACK BEETLE & COLT CITY created by, ™ and © 2009 Francesco Francavilla