Thursday, July 2, 2009

SHAZAM!

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!

15 comments:

Lan Pitts said...

God bless you, man. Hopefully one day, the series will see you back on it. Never say never.

Joe Romano 2 said...

NOOOOOO, say it ain't so Mike. I loved the series and the talent and heart you brought to it. What is your next project? I can't wait to pick up what ever you do next. God Bless and best of luck to you Mike.

mike . . . said...

thanks so much guys!
i'll miss the big red cheese a ton, but it was time to step off and move out of the way of the new teams.

more goodness is coming soon.
i'm getting going on some new fun projects and will have news soon.

all the best,
m . . .
:)

Little John said...

Was issue #4 your last issue? Say it ain't so! Any talk of a trade?

/I am now a sad panda.
//But the talk of a bear in a red cape brightens my day just a bit.

Unknown said...

Wait! I'm confused.
I thought issue #5 was going to be your story.
Am I wrong? Weren't you going to do a Dr. Sivana story? I saw this on another site . . .

http://www.badgercomics.com/product_info.php/DC_Comics/Billy_Batson_and_the_Magic_of_Shazam_(2008)__5/ukv/1/products_id/13324
Written by Mike Kunkel Art and cover by Mike Kunkel

"Strange things are happening, and Captain Marvel is pretty sure it has something to do with a certain crazy doctor! With the help of two sentient cockroaches, Dr. Sivana has recently escaped from Fawcett City Penitentiary and set out to take over the world. Using the one skill he has - being a mad scientist - Sivana creates a robotic mayhem on the city of Fawcett. But he needs more power, and it would appear that his archenemies Captain Marvel and Mary Marvel might be just what the doctor ordered."

Oh I'm sad. I have loved your work on this series of Cap with my kids so much. Well, I can't wait to read what you create next. Thank you for making such heartfelt projects for all ages.

Brian said...

Mike, you did a great job on this series and I can't wait for a collected edition that I can gift to family and friends.

While I thought Shazam was cool, I'll be jumping through my skin if we see more Herobear in the near future. I've been commissioning artists to do some Herobears for my son's room and I'm hoping to eventually get one from you. You can see them here...

http://www.comicartfans.com/GalleryDetail.asp?GCat=8868

Any chance you'll come out to Chicago for the Wizard con or the one in April by the guys who handle the NYCC?

Either way, whatever you do, I'll be buying it for myself and my boy.

Thanks a ton, Mike!

Brian Wisniewski

Mike...'s mum said...

Well issue #5 had your cover, but the interior credits were for the new team.

Sorry to see you go, Mike..., but looking forward to watching your other projects hop along!

Walt Grogan said...

Hi Mike--

I'm sorry to see you go. I loved your stories, art, and the joy you injected into the book. I'll definitely be looking for what's coming up on your horizon!

Best,
Walt

the4thpip said...

Gonna be said to see you go... I'll give the new team a shot, but I cannot promise anything.
;-)

Good luck with your next endeavors!

acespot said...

The newest issue doesn't have your heart. In truth, it reads a bit flat.
Plus, your artwork is sorely missed.

Please come back?

Renzo Soto said...

Congratulations mister! you have a incredible art. I love BBATMoS.
Really great!!!

Please, go to my blog:

http://renzosoto.blogspotcom

Elder Roxas said...

Are you really off the series for good? The internet has some conflicting info; some sites say that you will work on stories and somewhere on DC's site I thought I saw you slated for at least artwork on some future issues, but other places (including here on your own site) seem to say that you're hands off now. :(

Haha, I feel slightly cheated because I subscribed to the series just as you stopped writing. I guess I'll have to hunt down your issues on eBay...*sigh*...

staceyrebecca said...

oh man. I'm so sad! Your Shazam is what got my 6-year-old into comics and he was thrilled to see you at the Phx con last year. We miss your humor. Good luck on your new endeavors!

abhishek singh said...

i love your version of shazam!!
brilliant to see him back this way:)
beautiful work

Anonymous said...

I found out about your work after Wikipedia'ing Captain Marvel and...wow, I love your art style! It's so cool and fun!

I'll be sure to check the book out. It looks like a fun read.

--john