Hey, stranger!
“Oh, look who’s here, little old Math. Where were you last week when I needed someone to remind me to pre-order What If...? Jessica Jones #1????”
Well, I was busy writing the most insane research article I ever did in my entire life. Truly something only crazy people would do. And all just for you!!!! You have to check that out in our next fanzine! If you don’t, I’ll die just like Tinker Bell.
“All that fancy fanzine talk, and where does it bring you??”
“I want you to close your eyes...
...and I want you to picture the first piece of art you discovered.”
This is how this amazing new indie by friend of the store Christian Ward begins.
Being an artist has a way of freeing you, but it can also be a prison of its own making. The same things that give you voice will try to silence you. Channelling the atmosphere of Ram V’s Eisner-nominated Rare Flavours, this is a horror story about a mysterious patron and financier who has a nefarious way of maximizing profit while minimizing their life. Vulture economy turns revenge story in the moody and sinister The Patron #1.
Ward is on writing duties, while John Pearson takes care of the art. John is definitely a name to watch out for. He’s been popping up on cool variant covers for a while and worked with Tynion on The Department of Truth #14, as in the Scientology deviation issue. His art is paint-like and carries a stroke of eerie with his use of colours and shadow. One burning spread page in the first issue will entice you and get you stuck if you are not careful.
Just to show you how much we support our friends and their wonderful work: if you subscribe to the series, we will get your copy of Issue #1, Cover A signed by Christian Ward himself.
Oh yeah, a signed issue right in your pull box. And if you are extra lucky, you might even win a signed sketch to go with it!
The Patron #1
The Patron #1And because we’re so sure you’ll like it, and because Christian Ward is apparently trying to make this impossible to resist, he made Issue #0: THE PATRON: THE COLD OPEN available to download for free!!!
Issue #0 is a prequel, which Chris says is practically autobiographical, minus all the killing 👀
You can register to get the PDF ONLY UNTIL 8:00 AM Berlin time on Monday, June 22nd, 2026.
Rob Liefeld doesn’t just write for Twitter, he also writes comics.
Jokes aside, for everyone who doesn’t like him, there are two others who would buy every single thing he puts his hands on. Badrock #1 is spinning out of Youngblood for his own solo series. As someone who has been consumed entirely by ’90s comics, you will figure out the reason when you get our next fanzine in your hands, I don’t know if I’m having a heat stroke or if this comic is completely not real.
I’m not familiar with the work of Lady Rock... little Drag Race joke here, but I’m assuming it’s some kind of The Thing parody. Ballpark on how right I am, please?
The internet tells me his catchphrase was supposed to be “Yabba-dabba DOOM,” but the legal department didn’t like it. I don’t know if this is actually a positive or a negative for my interest in the dude, but f%ck all legal departments everywhere anyway for being buzzkills, except for Walt’s, please don’t sue me.
You actually probably know Badrock, like me, from a bunch of crossovers with Image titles, but can’t blame a guy for wasting good jokes, right?
Everyone who subscribes to the series will get a rock sign- I’M JUST KIDDING.
Badrock #1
Badrock #1BLIND BAG ALERT!
Guys, I got caught by this phenomenon. I confess, I was just kinda selling you the excitement, but holy god, how fun it is to open these little treats. Robert Kirkman hid a whole goddamn unannounced new ROM comic in the MASK blind bags last week, and I WILL try to bribe Heiko to get me one of those copies.
DNX, Marvel’s next big crossover event between Fantastic Four and X-Men, is the one getting in on the fun. I know we are all tired of events, but hear me out... A F4 and X-Men crossover is always a blast, and the potential in there is ACTUALLY big.
If that’s not enough to convince you, feel these Skottie Young variant collecting, some of which will only be available as blind bag items.
Do we have packs? Of course!
You can check out everything on pre-order here.
Be sure to get your stuff on before Saturday at 4 p.m. You can email Heiko, our single-issues specialist, if you have any questions about how to do so.
No jokes with him this week because, again, I need him to score me a copy of ROM. So no cake recipes this week, please. Only pertinent questions on Manage Comics and pre-ordering deadlines.
See you next week,
Math
