Billy Batson and the Magic of Shazam!

SHAZAM!

2009-07-02T15:55:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone!

I'm writing to say that i've had an amazing time on Billy Batson and the Magic of Shazam and as i see my time done and i am stepping off of the series to move onto other things, i look forward to seeing what the new creative team does with it.

the new team is made up of about 6 people . . . two writers(Art Baltazar and Franco), a penciler(rotating between Byron Vaughn and Stephen DeStefano) , an inker(rotating between Ken Branch and Stephen DeStefano), a colorist, a letter and different cover artists . . . WHEW! that's a lot of awesome people. ;) no wonder i took a bit with each issue doing it by myself. ;) anyway, they are gonna work great together to bring everyone a lot of "marvelous" fun each month.

i thank you all for a wonderful experience on it and thank DC(jann jones and dan didio) for giving lil' ol' me the singular best opportunity to completely develop, present, produce, and have fun establishing a brand new series about our favorite captain. . . Captain Marvel. i hope there's a good foundation to build on, and i can't wait to see where it goes from here.

i want to also thank all of you great and amazing fans that write to me and have visited me at all the conventions. your constant support and encouragement and letters have been awesome and made me enjoy working in Captain Marvel's universe even more. and to those that got the special decoders that i made, i give a loud and warm shout of . . . SHAZAM!

on a small note...the wonderful jann jones came up with my credits on the books . . . "words, pictures and heart" . . . and i want to thank her because that is truly what i gave to this series . . . my heart into it. and thank you all for recieving it and enjoying it through the storytelling.

now, as i venture off into new stories with other characters, i look forward to seeing all of you great fans again at other shows and conventions and connecting with you through new books and creations. . . . . especially those concerning a certain bear in a red cape . . . ;)

so, for any new info about my projects and stories and adventures please check out my blog at http://www.theastonishfactory.blogspot.com

and website at http://www.theastonishfactory.com.

as always . . . take care and ALL the best in everything,

mike . . .

and don't forget the magic word . . .

SHAZAM!

Magic of Shazam #5

2009-07-02T11:43:00.000-07:00

hey gang,

hope all is well.

issue #5 came out with my cover on it.

hope ya liked it.

anyway, hope you continue to enjoy the further adventures of Billy and Captain Marvel.

all the best in everything,

mike . . .

1st arc

2009-04-17T14:10:00.000-07:00

1st story arc . . . Test post again from the phone . . . So love these characters . Now time for doc sivana ... :} Thank you all for the support and enjoyment of my take on the characters. I hope you continue to enjoy the series no matter who is presenting it... take care, m . . .

2009-04-17T13:40:00.001-07:00

Wahooo! It works ! I can send stuff to my blog from my phone . . . Here's Herobear on his visit to DC Comics last november . . . Had to stop by 'ol dan's office. :}

2009-04-17T13:36:00.001-07:00

just testing the bloggin' from my phone . . .

2009-04-17T11:29:00.001-07:00

Testing a post to my blog from my phone . . .

'nother nice review for 4

2009-04-09T13:28:00.000-07:00

hey gang,

here's another nice review of issue #4.

nerds with kids

things are going good on Billy Batson's next issue.

i'll have some stuff to show sooooooon.

the next adventure with doc sivana is becoming a favorite.

billy and mary have their work cut out for them.

nothing like a mad scientist to bring a fun story to your mind.

;)

again, i want to thank DC for the very great continued opportunity to work on this series. and also a big shout out to Dan Didio. . . he's always an awesome supporter and i can't thank him enough for caring about the book and my creative drive of it.

it's always a good thing at the end of the day to know that your editor's got your back.

i love this series and i thank you all for sticking with it and enjoying the adventures of lil' billy. there are lots more stories on the way. we may have some other writers/artists helping out here and there, but no worries, it will still be filled with the "magic of Shazam."

AND i'll make sure i don't pull a brain-fart and write the "wisdom of samson" again.

hahahaha ;)

ugh. at least i got it right in rest of the book. mary refers to it as the wisdom of Solomon.

okay, enough of my babbling.

talk with you again soon.

as for now....

SHAZAM!

all the best,

m . . .

BBatMoS Reviews and News

2009-04-08T11:46:00.000-07:00

hey gang,

just wanted to say how great you fans are and pass along some very kind reviews for the latest issue of the Magic of Shazam.

how cool are these??

. . .

BBatMoS issue #4 Review 1

BBatMoS issue #4 Review 2

now for some news. . .

soooooo, i'm a little bit slow in case you hadn't noticed.

and not just in the mental arena.

;)

anyway, i heard that it was announced last weekend by DC that Art and Franco of Tiny Titans fame will be taking over the writing of Billy Batson and the Magic of Shazam. these two guys are so great and talented. i think you will most definitely be in good hands. i don't know who DC is talking to about the series as far as artists, and even other writers, but i'm sure things will get announced as they get finalized. they feel it would be better that they put together teams to run with the book, and i think anything that puts out more Shazam is never a bad thing.

;)

am i bummed? wellll, maybe a little bit.

though i may take a bit longer with my work, i hope you know that it is a definite labor of love. life is busy and i do the book completely by myself, but in the end i'm glad for the purity of vision that comes through. however, it probably is much better to put "teams" on it than just one person. that way it comes out waaaaay more often.

now, i will definitely be doing my next 2-issue story line with Dr. Sivana, and i will finish that up.

we'll see what happens next.

from day one of developing this for DC i have had so much fun creating a new world for one of my most favorite comic book characters to play in. Jann Jones took a chance and was a very kind person to champion me to do this. i know she's gone from DC now and onto great new green pastures, but she was one awesome editor while i had the opportunity to work with her.

also, i can't tell you fans enough how thankful i've been for your support and constant encouragement of my little series.

all the letters and comments and conventions visits have been amazing and humbling.

i'll always remember that part of all of this.

thank you so much.

okay, that's enough babbling for now.

back to the writing/drawing/coloring board.

;)

take care and i wish you all the best in everything,

m . . .

Ooooops!

2009-03-31T20:42:00.000-07:00

oh everyone!

i would like to say that i pulled a verrrrry good April Fool's joke on you all . . . wouldn't that be great? but nooooooooooooo.

ack!

i'm so sorry.

soooooooo on page 1 of the new issue i wrote that the "S" in Shazam is the wisdom of "Samson."

whaaaaaaaaaaaaaat???? who broke into my studio and forced me to write the wrong name.

it's supposed to be the wisdom of "SOLOMON"!!!!!

oh i'm so sorry for my mistake. i'd like to blame black adam or dr. sivana or even that little worm mr. mind . . . but, unfortunately the mental potato-head that accomplished this brilliant bit of numbskullness was none other than myself. for in my delirious late night finishing of this page i totally spaced... being that i work 50 hours a week at disney studios, and that the page was done at about 3 in the morning while i was on a 10 day trip with my son to Washington Dc with his 8th grade history class...welll, let's just say i goofed big time.

wow, i hope every person buys one now. because you know that they'll be collectible becausssssse . . .

;)

oh i will make ABSOLUTELY sure that this is changed when the collection comes out.

hahahaha

and anyone that comes up to me for a signing of issue #4...well, i will personally change it on their copy.

oog... what an embarrassment to discover that you are mortal. ;)

okay, i hope you all can laugh about it with me and know how very much i love our Captain Marvel and his heritage and there is no way anything is being changed in the magic of shazam's name. it's perfect just the way it is.

this is just simply my dumb mistake, and add to it that since we have had editor changes lately, it just slipped by everyone else along the process too.

anyway, no more and never again.

promise.

;)

all the best and please enjoy the rest of this fun issue.

mike . . .

BBatMoS #4 Arrives

2009-03-29T10:53:00.000-07:00

this wednesday...April 1... please go visit your stores and check out issue #4.
wahoooo!
it's the end of the chapter of my first story arc with the characters.
it's the face off between Captain Marvel and Black Adam so i really hope you all enjoy it.

i'm continuing on with the next 2-part story with Dr. Sivana. i think you're all gonna like it a lot.
the ol' Doc gets to be at his best . . . a mad scientist.
;)

anyway, please keep enjoying the book and all things Captain Marvel. :)

all the best,
mike . . .

Magic of Shazam #4

2009-03-20T17:58:00.000-07:00

hey everyone,

save the date . . . APRIL 1 . . .
ISSUE #4 arrives in stores.
i do hope you all like it.
:)
because you are all the very best fans...here are some sneak peeks at the issue.
it is the face off with Black Adam, and i had a great time with this one.

enjoyyyyyy!

all the best,
m . . .

Some NEW Shazam goodies . . .

2009-01-06T00:16:00.000-08:00

hey everyone. . .
look how fun these are!!

i'm really blown away . . .DC is putting out two new t-shirts that are inspired by the new book.
wahoooooo!
:)
one is the cover for the upcoming issue #4 and the other is the lightning bolt with jacket flap from how i designed Cap's costume.
how coooooooooool!!!
you can get them through Diamond Distribution and i also found a few different sites that are taking pre-orders (they aren't due out until March) . . .
Red Magic of Shazam shirt at Things From Another World
Blue Captain Marvel and Black Adam shirt at Things From Another World

BOTH shirts at Urban Collector

anyway, it's a good way to start the New Year.
now i can yell Shazam and turn into Captain Marvel anytime i want.
;)
enjoy!

all the best,
m . . . :)

Merry Christmas Eve Shazam!

2008-12-23T23:29:00.000-08:00

:)
well gang,

call your friends and get the word out, issue 3 arrives in your stores today!
wahoooooo!
enjoy!!!!!! look, even Cap is callin' his friends . . . ;)

i do so hope you like the issue. think of it as my Christmas present to you. :)
i put a bunch of fun stuff into this one. even Mary mocking Cap with hand puppets . . . ;)

also, you can visit Newsarama where they have a little preview of the 1st 5 pages up for everyone to check out.
and as an added Christmas bonus, i'm putting up the black and white versions of pages 1-5 and the color version of page 6 here.

soooooo, Merry Christmas to you all... the best fans around.
and Happy New Years to you toooo
'09 is gonna be even better,
mike . . . :)

page 1

page 2

page 3

page 4

page 5

page 6

Shazam Issue 3 sneak peaksssss :)

2008-12-03T08:31:00.000-08:00

hey gang,

hope you had are getting ready for a GREAT Holiday season!
:)
this is my most favorite time of the year!
and while you're all being good boys and girls in waiting for a happy Christmas Eve to arrive and deliver Issue 3 of Billy Batson, i thought i'd bring some early Christmas gifts to ya. . .
soooooo, here are some panel sneaks in full color and Holiday cheer. this issue is going to be a tough one for Billy and his sis. Theo has become more than just a nuisance to them. Billy is really going to need Solomon's Wisdom to get out of this one.
i hope you all enjoy the issue.
:) i'm really proud of it. also, thanks for your patience as you wait for the issues. we are on a bi-monthly schedule, but sometimes life takes over for all of us. regardless, you'll never get an issue from me that hasn't been given the very best full effort of love and care and investment of quality. these characters are very important to me and the world they are living in is one that i respect and love creating.
so, with no further babbling . . .enjoy the sneak peaks and the fun!
:)
all the best,
m . . .

Updates to the world o' Batson and Shazam!

2008-11-05T23:32:00.000-08:00

hey everyone,

sorry for the lack o' updates lately.
it's been kinda crazy. all is good, just a crazy time of life.
anyway, i realized that i hadn't snuck any peeks at issue #3 and i thought i should give you at least a few sneaks of images. so, i'll hold off on any color sneaks just yet, but here are some black and white fun images. this is a really great issue. it's quickly become my favorite so far. of course, issue #4 is gonna be so cool too, so i think i'm just enjoying each and every issue as it comes out. i really hope you all continue to enjoy 'em all tooooo. :) this world of Shazam is a great universe to tell stories in and i am always honored to be able to add to the heritage of one the greatest characters ever created.
so, thank you all for the support and kind words for our exciting lil' series and just know that plenty more fun is on the way.

in fact, to give a little more thanks, here's some sneak info as a reward for visiting and supporting :) , i'll give you some scoops on issues 5 & 6.............................

it's a two part story and ooooooooohhhhh, they are sooooooo fun. i'm having a great time crafting these ones because they are bringing back the good(or rather mad) scientist Dr. Sivana!!! wahoooooo! it's a fun little adventure that plays into the extremely entertaining character that he is and puts him into his simple element...being a mad scientist bent on taking over the world. of course, nothing is simple or easy when it comes to Sivana, so just wait to see what he has planned for the Big Red Cheese and his sis.
anyway, when i can i'll try and sneak more info for you on those.

okay, thanks again for visiting.
take care and all the best in everything,
mike . . .

Billy Batson #2 Newsarama Preview

2008-09-17T07:13:00.000-07:00

hey all,

well, the book came out today!

there's also a preview for it on NEWSARAMA.

wahoooooo!

i hope you all like it.
:)

enjoy!

all the best,

mike . . .

BBatMoS #2 on September 17th

2008-09-13T16:37:00.000-07:00

SHAZAM!
:)
hey all,

it's here!
don't forget to visit your local comic shop and pick up Billy Batson and the Magic of Shazam #2 this week on wednesday.(september 17th)!
wahooooo!

i will actually be in NY for the first time. i've never been there. it will be a very fun adventure. i'll be lecturing at Blue Sky Studios and then visiting DC Headquarters for the first time. i'm very excited to visit and be there when the new book is being released.

i really hope you all enjoy this further adventures of Captain Marvel.
this is a fun one.

take care and all the best,
mike . . .

Issue 2 sneaks . . .sssshhh ;)

2008-08-28T10:05:00.001-07:00

hey everyone,
so issue 2 should be out verrry soon. thank you alllll for your great patience. the book looks awesome and i can't wait for you all to read it. i'm told that it's being sent from the ROE as we speak.
;)
in the meantime, as promised before, i've snuck into the vault and borrowed some more images to share here. i figured i'd be generous and share with you some color without dialogue this time. not too much of course. i don't wanna give it all away. ;)
anyway, enjoy!
:) i hope ya like . . .

take care and all the best in everything,
mike . . .

updates :)

2008-08-07T20:45:00.000-07:00

hey everyone!

hope you are all having a great summer.
i'm finally getting a chance to sit and update on things.
whew it's been crazy. lotsa family stuff and lotsa trips.
speaking of trips . . .
San Diego was AWESOME!
thanks to everyone that came by to visit me at the DC Booth when i was signing. you were all so cool. so many people are being so positive with this new series.
thank you.
now we're going up to one of the coolest comic shops around for a signing . . . Atlantis Fantasy World in Santa Cruz, CA. the great Joe Ferrara owns and runs it and has been a friend since when i had just thumbnail sketches of Herobear long ago. they're having a huge "Kid's Day" in the town so it should be a great time. (little known fact . . . Joe's original store was the comic shop in the movie "Lost Boys." :) )
now, BBatMoS #2 is supposed to be out sooooon. i can't wait for you all to read it. i really like this one. don't you go skipping to the end either. it's got a fun surprise. anyway, because i likes you all soooo much, i thought i'd get ya a couple little sneak peeks of panels from the issue.
:)
and since i love looking at the drawings uncolored, i thought i'd give you the line-art versions.
First it seems that Billy is making sure that Mary understands how things should be, however, Mary doesn't really seem like she's going to obey . . .

And Next . . . Cap and Mary are trying to dodge someone annoying and obnoxious . . .

ALSO . . . a big thank you and shout out to the very cool Walt Grogan of the Marvel Family Website. He created a very fun translator page for the code for Issue #1 and posted it here. enjoy!

well, enough of my babbling for now. thanks for coming by. and thank you ALL for your support of Captain Marvel.
see ya all soon, and who knows, i might be sneaking some more images out to you.
:)
take care and all the best,
m . . .

Magic of Shazam #1 Reviews! :)

2008-07-06T16:56:00.000-07:00

hey gang,

first off . . .

thank you.
thank you for finding this little book from DC and finding it enjoyable. it has meant a lot over the last few days to hear from so many people posting and emailing to me their enjoyment and genuine liking of this book.
:)

second . . .
people have found this new Captain Marvel series and are sharing it with kids and i love it! i've taught kids of different ages, i have kids of my own(love 'em so much), and i've traveled and lectured with all ages of kids and grown-ups and you don't know how awesome it is to see a book being shared by both grown ups and kids alike.
at the end of the day, the goal of this book/series for me is to put something "good" out there for an all ages group of great fans. something with some good morals and a sense of just simple goodness and playful fun. nothing to overthink. just something to enjoy on a level of good heartedness.
so to all of you that have found it...let me say thank you again for enjoying it.
:)
now, here are some other fun reviews to check out.
IGN review
Comic Book Resources Review
Comic Coverage Review

and along that line of thought, i would love to hear from happy parents and their kids about their enjoyment of the book. we want to promote the good word and what better way than to hear from the mouths of the fans.

take care everyone and all the very best,
mike . . .

BBatMoS ISSUE #1 is out!

2008-07-02T18:17:00.000-07:00

hey everyone!

well the day is here!
Issue #1 of Billy Batson and the Magic of Shazam! is in stores today!
wahooooooo!
:)
hope you all like it and enjoy the new adventures of Captain Marvel.
thank you so much for the great emails and notes i'm already getting.
you are all awesome fans.

here are some links to some fun reviews and comments . . .
NEWSARAMA preview
NEWSARAMA review
BROKEN FRONTIER review

i think one of my favorite comments is that people are getting the fun and the heart in the story. and that means a whole lot. thank you.
also, i love that people can hear patrick warburton's voice as they read it. i totally have always saw him as Captain Marvel.
very fun.
very fun, indeed.
:)
take care and all the best,
mike . . .
p.s. thanks to walt grogan for the very cool retailer request card up above that he created on his fun Marvel Family site.

Billy Batson Interview

2008-06-18T12:13:00.000-07:00

hey all,

i forgot to put up a link to an interview i did with the folks at Westfield comics, so here it is . . . . . Westfield Comics-Mike Kunkel Interview. . .
enjoy my babbling.
;)

all the best,
mike . . .

Billy Batson #2 and #3

2008-06-18T10:25:00.000-07:00

hey all,
here are the covers to issues #2 and #3.
hope you like.
i've seen the proofs for issue #1 and i can't wait for everyone to get them.
i really hope you all like this new series as much as i'm liking creating it.
we're getting ready for San Diego and it's gonna be a blast to meet everyone and talk
about Captain Marvel.
:)
take care and all the best,
mike . . .

ISSUE #1 Variant!

2008-05-27T10:48:00.000-07:00

hey everyone!

sorry, things have been really busy lately and i completely forgot to post the Variant cover for ISSUE #1! I realllllly hope you like it.
:)
soooooooo, here ya go . . .

tell your friends and family and store owners( if they're not the same person ;) ) to check it out and enjoy!
:)
issue #2 is this month's previews and we're cranking away on getting ready visiting San Diego Con in July.
thanks for coming by the lil' blog here and for all your support.

take care and all the very best,
m . . .

Issue #1 Billy Batson and the Magic of Shazam!

2008-04-14T20:41:00.000-07:00

here's the cover everyone. . .
it's due in stores on July 2, 2008.
here's the info at DC . . . Billy Batson and the Magic of Shazam! #1

tell your retailers to order a bunch! :)
i'll post the variant pencil/black and white cover soon.

hope you all enjoy.
:)

all the best,
m . . .

Newsarama Wizard World article

2008-03-21T15:35:00.000-07:00

so, Vaneta Rogers from Newsarama put together a "floorbuzz" article about all the stuff that was heard and talked about on the floor at LA Wizard World.

here's our little snippet from when Dan Didio and Darwyn Cooke came by . . .

---- " . . . . Another face in the crowd who wasn't an official appearance at the show was Darwyn Cooke, who couldn't talk to us about any of his projects as we caught him talking with Dan Didio and Bob Wayne in Artist's Alley. In fact, we were asked to kindly walk away far enough to not be within hearing distance, so something is obviously brewing for Cooke at DC. However, we did hear Didio invite Cooke to stick around at the con for the Countdown panel later that day, which he did, and he announced that he'd be doing an issue of Jonah Hex with Jimmy Palmiotti and Justin Gray. For Cooke's comments, we have full coverage of the panel.

We also snapped a picture of the three of them as they posed with Mike Kunkel, the Herobear and the Kid creator who is doing DC's upcoming kid's title Billy Batson and the Magic of Shazam. Kunkel showed Didio the hand-made decoder he made to give away to one lucky fan at the show. For every personal appearance Kunkel is doing this year, he's hand-making a one-of-a-kind decoder to give away at each show.

" What's a decoder, you ask?"
(So did we.)
"Back in the old days, there was a code that was in the comic so you could find these secret messages. And we're going to do it for our version of Captain Marvel too. It's like Christmas Story. So somewhere in one of the books, it will say, 'drink your Ovaltine,'" he laughed. "I will use the code in different spots in the issues and give the kids the opportunity to find the code."

The creator was giving out bookmarks that had the code on it, although the code can be figured out pretty easily because it's basically the alphabet turned backwards. But the nostalgic-looking, one-of-a-kind decoder makes it quick and easy to decode it, so fans can get a chance to win it if they see Kunkel at San Diego Comic Con, Free Comic Book Day at Atomic Comics in Phoenix, or a number of other cons he's hoping to attend this year.

We also overheard the creator talking to Didio about the scheduling for the new series, which we confirmed later with Kunkel as being July. "That's what we're shooting for," Kunkel said. "You already heard what it is. You heard Dan and I saying it will be monthly and will be ongoing. We want it out before San Diego Comic Con, so it will be either the first or second week of July and I'm totally excited about it."

What will happen in the first couple issues of Billy Batson and the Magic of Shazam?
"The first story arc is actually the return of Black Adam," Kunkel said. "It introduces him in the world and his relationship with Billy. Theo Adam is a young punk bully kid. And it's also Billy and Mary's world. It's what it's like to have these powers and be a kid. If you were given this magic word, what would you do with it? So it's all of our sort of imaginations and what we would do with it."

What's his favorite thing in the first couple issues he's finished? "One of my favorite things in it is Billy being Captain Marvel, but not in a situation where you'd expect him to be Captain Marvel. That's all I can say about it," he said.

"I think what I love about all of it is that I'm getting the chance to let you know the characters. So when he's Captain Marvel, he's still Billy, but you know Billy much better. He may have the wisdom of Solomon when he's Captain Marvel, but he still has the brain of a kid, so he has the impulses of a kid. He's not dumb and he's not dopey, but imagine you had all the knowledge in the world, but you still made a bad decision.

It's fun. And I love his relationship with Mary. It's basically my son and daughter. So that I'm enjoying." ----- "

well, i guess the word is out now more officially about the release date . . . :) :) :) :) :)

yessssssssssss. we are planning on Billy Batson and Magic of Shazam #1 to come out the first or second week of July. of course, that would mean that it is in the MAY PREVIEWS. how conveeeeeeeeeenient that it is previewed in the month with my favorite # . . . 5.

and i CAN'T wait! i look forward to sharing this new ongoing series for all of you to enjoy.
:)
take care and all the best.

SHAZAM!
m . . . :)

let's say . . . .

2008-03-17T22:38:00.000-07:00

hmmm, now this would be just babbling talk here, so pretend you aren't really listening to me.
;)
but let's just say that if hypothetically a magazine were to . . . oh, i don't know, um . . ."preview" something #1 saaaaay in May '08, then that would mean that it would time-travel and arrive in July '08 inside the stores that would carry that certain "something #1."

riiiiiiiiight?

hmmmm. interesting.
welllll, i'm just babbling here, so don't mind me.
maybe.
;)

all the best,
mike . . .

Shazam and Wizard World LA 2008

2008-03-17T17:14:00.000-07:00

well it was a great time at Wizard World LA.
i shared Herobear, Sokmunster, and of course i talked Captain Marvel.
:)
everyone is really excited about the new series and it was fun to share some sneeks to the fans coming by. every kid and kid at heart ;) that came up seemed to gravitate to the images Captain Marvel on the postcards i had and as we talked, it was only confirmed even more that there was a genuine ALL AGES love for Captain Marvel and for the new series. it was fun to explain the old code to new fans too.
i really enjoyed talking to you all about the "Marvel" universe!
;)
thank you so much for coming by. . .

it was good to see Dan Didio, Senior Vice President — Executive Editor, DC Universe, who stopped by to say hi and also checked out the #3 Captain Marvel Transpositioning Decodifier. we talked Captain Marvel shop talk and about it's launch date.
more on that later ;) . . .

also saw Darwyn Cooke(yellow hat) and Bob Wayne and Dan again . . .

and also of course . . .
we gave away the Decodifier!

there was a super turn-out of a crowd.

and keith, our lucky recipient was very happy to receive his very own Decoder!
:)
it was a great surprise and everyone was genuinely happy.

thanks again to everyone that came by this weekend. it was great fun. i look forward to seeing more of you in the future.
all the best,
mike . . .
:)

the decoder. . .

2008-01-29T09:55:00.000-08:00

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well, it has begun. . .
this year, i decided to do something different for the fans. i have created something one-of-a-kind for each convention that i go to this year. something that hopefully will be enjoyed throughout the entire year and hopefully encourages a new kind of enjoyment and attention on Captain Marvel in a different fun way. it is the Captain Marvel Transpositioning Decodifier and it is my gift to you the fans. my hope is that it helps to add to the nostalgic aspect and feel of the series and the heritage of the character. like most of us know, there was the old Captain Marvel code in the original books that would be used to decode the secret messages from Captain Marvel. now, online there is a brilliant site for decoding these messages at Marvelfamily.com

what i wanted to do was add to the heritage of Captain Marvel by creating a tangible real world decoder.

so,we will have bookmarks with the original code for everyone to use to decode the secret messages in the new Billy Batson and the Magic of Shazam book . . .

howeverrrrrrr . . . one lucky fan will have "lightning strike them" and they will win the Captain Marvel Transpositioning Decodifier! :)
my gift.

this past weekend at the Phoenix Comic Con, we had our first recipient . . . timmy. he loved it! his parents were blown away and have embraced the fun of all ages comics with their son in the very best way. it's exciting to see the next generation enjoying comics and having them shared with his dad and mom. here he is in his AWESOME "Malcom Reynolds" costume(from Firefly/Serenity fame). . .

some other "fans" that were on hand at the Con as well, and i was honored to be there with them . . . Mike Bullock (world famous creator of the great Lions, Tigers and Bears and writer of the Phantom(note his ring!! very cool). . .

and also the amazing Matt Wagner( world famous creator of Mage and Grendel)

i head off to the Atlanta comic Expo in two weeks and another decoder will be presented. i look forward to meeting you all as the new Billy Batson and the Magic of Shazam series comes out this year and we get a chance to enjoy more adventures, nostalgic whimsy and all-ages fun with the Big Red Cheese. :)
all the best,
mike . . .
SHAZAM!

KSLVMRC XLNRX XLM DROO YV RMGVIVHGRMT . . . ;)

2008-01-22T08:58:00.000-08:00

---SHAZAM!---

. . . YVXZFHV R'N Z UZM NBHVOU, ZMW R XZIV ZYLFG GSV DLIOW LU XZKGZRM NZIEVO ZMW ZOO LU RGH TIVZG UZMH . . . RG'H RNKLIGZMG ULI FH GL URMW MVD DZBH GL HSZIV GSV UFM ZMW MLHGZOTRZ, ZMW VMXLFIZTV LGSVIH GL VMQLB GSRH DLIOW ZMW GSV XSZIZXGVIH DRGSRM RG.

VMQLB ZMW ZOO GSV YVHG,
NRPV . . .

SNNNN. . .

2008-01-17T07:50:00.000-08:00

----SHAZAM!---

LLLLLLS,GSVIV DROO YV OFXPB UZMH, GL YV HFIV.
:)
GSRH RH TLRMT GL YV Z UFM BVZI ULI GSV DLIOW L' XZKGZRM NZIEVO . . .

:)
ZOO GSV YVHG, NRPV . . .

some earrrrrly development scribbles . . .

2008-01-11T09:19:00.000-08:00

hey all,

hope everyone is doing well.
so, when i first got asked to work on Captain Marvel, i put together a Series Bible for DC. in it were takes on the characters, story summaries, plots and outlines aaaaand some early development images.
some were seen in the Newsarama interview i think, however just for fun, i thought i'd drop some of them here too. again, these are earrrrrrrly images of development, yet there are still things i like about 'em. naturally i'm pushing the art even more and refining it even more as i've been immersing myself deeper and deeper into the "marvel" universe. ;)
but in the meantime, i hope you enjoy these. i know for me, it's always fun to see the process of things as they are being created.

take care and all the best,
m . . .

Happy Shazam Year 2008 ! :)

2008-01-09T08:03:00.000-08:00

hey everyone,

hope you alllllllllllll are having a great new year.
things are moving very nicely on the Magic of Shazam. verrrrrry nicely.
:)
sorry it's been a little while since an update. things have been very, very busy over the last couple months.
"life tends to take over and the blog tends to wait" seems to be the way of things recently. but i'm hoping to update things more regularly now. sort of a New Year's thing. sorta. ;)
i wanted to first thank you all for the kind words great support i've been getting about Captain Marvel. wow! the response has been wonderful and tremendous. thank you, thank you. i can't wait to get the first issue out to you all to enjoy. speaking of that...we're planning for 2008 and beyond as we speak and its gonna be sooooo great! (and by "we", i mean DC and meeee, not "me, myself and I." I haven't gone crazy just yet.;) ) we're planning some fun stuff for this series. the release will be very soon, just can't quite say when at this time, though, if you knew my favorite number, then that might give a clue. ;) anyway, the nice thing of all this is that my plan has always been to build up a good lead time of issues before we go out. i really want to make sure that it comes out very regularly to be enjoyed. and that's working perfectly.
:)
alsoooooo, i'm starting to plan my convention schedule and the first two conventions i'm going to are going to be the PHOENIX COMIC CON on January 25-27,2008 and also the ATLANTA COMIC EXPO on February 8-10,2008.
more will be announced soon.
i really look forward to meeting all of you at some of shows this year. i had a great time at my last one which was Chicago. in fact, i finally got some pics from it that i posted up here for fun. it was a great time and i look forward to more this year! :)
again, Happy New Year to you all. have a the very best year.
all the best,
m...

Newsarama Shazam Pics and Interview

2007-09-20T07:58:00.001-07:00

finalllly i can talk more about the series and show more artwork!
:)
here's a link to a brand new NEWSARAMA interview.

i'll try and sneak more images here on the blog toooo.

enjoy!!

:)
m . . .

Clubs and secret codes...

2007-09-11T10:00:00.000-07:00

. . . SHAZAM!. . .

SVB VEVIBLMV,
GSVIV DZH Z GRNV DSVM XLNRXH IVZOOB IVZXSVW LFG GL PRWH . . . GSVB SZW LUURXRZO XOFYH ZMW HVXIVG XLWVH ZMW GIRVW GL YFROW Z KLHRGREV XLNNFMRGB GSILFTS GSV XLNRX XSZIZXGVIH. DVOO, DV'IV SVIV GL HZB RG'H MVEVI GLL OZGV GL VMQLB GSZG ZTZRM. :)
HL, R DZMGVW GL RMXOFWV BLF ZOO RM LMV LU GSV XLLO HVXIVGH LU GSV XZKGZRM NZIEVO DLIOW. LXXZHRLMZOOB, GSVIV DROO YV XLWVW MLGVH ZMW HGFUU SVIV LM GSV YOLT ZMW ZOHL RM GSV YLLPH. . . HL GL SVOK DRGS GSRH, BLF NFHG YV ZYOV GL GIZMHOZGV GSVN. SVIV ZG NZIEVO UZNROB.XLN HRGV BLF'OO URMW ZOO PRMWH LU XZKGZRM NZIEVO TLLWMVHH. . . RMXOFWRMT GSRH SVIV GIZMHOZGLI LU GSV LUURXRZO XZKGZRM NZIEVO HVXIVG XLWV.
BLF ZIV MLD RM GSV XZKGZRM NZIEVO XOFY.
:)
VMQLB ZMW ZOO GSV YVHG,
NRPV . . .

K.H. GSZMPH GL DZOG TILTZM ULI XIVZGRMT Z EVIB XLLO HRGV GL GIRYFGV XZKGZRM NZIEVO!

Soooo much Shazam!

2007-08-29T10:07:00.001-07:00

I've absolutely loved the adventures of the big red cheese since i was a kid, and have had little collectibles here and there.
but let's just say that nowwwwww i have even more reason and
i've had THE best time these days hunting down
any and all Captain Marvel "research" stuffff.
;)
old, new, toy, book, collectible . . . allll good.

:)
take care and all the best,
m . . .

DC Shazam Story Bible cover

2007-08-29T09:54:00.000-07:00

actually the final one has sketches alll over it, but unfortunately i can't show thaaaat one just yet. so here it is sans sketches and scribbles.
:)
sooon i can show more. i promise.
:)

all the best,
mike . . .

SHAZAM!

2007-08-15T12:20:00.000-07:00

welcome to the brand new blog about the brand new DC Comics Captain Marvel series entitled. . . BILLY BATSON AND THE MAGIC OF SHAZAM! by me . . . Mike Kunkel.
:)
here you will find sneak peeks, behind the scenes, and all kinds of fun stuff relating to this new All-Ages seres.
so enjoy and thank you for visiting!
:)

SHAZAM!

all the best,
m . . .