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Read more about the article Frankensteining a pandemic horror film festival

Frankensteining a pandemic horror film festival

The last time I was in a movie theater was March 13, 2020. COVID-19 had finally arrived on the U.S. shores and we weren’t quite sure what it would mean, but everything was starting to shut down. I figured it would probably be one of my last opportunities to visit the cinema for a couple of months, so I chose the earliest screening of Valiant’s Bloodshot.

It was an uncomfortable experience. The theater was mostly empty but one of the few other attendees chose to sit two seats away from me. He spent the film coughing, snorting, and, at least twice, spitting. I was pretty sure that was going to be it. My zeal to get one last film in would result in hospitalization from this virus we were still trying to understand.

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Image Expo reaches effective frequency

imageexpoConsidering how successful the 2012 and 2013 Image Expos were for the 21-year-old company it comes as a no surprise the company’s hosting a third in 2014. The surprise in the announcement is that Image Expo will be making a return to San Francisco’s  Yerba Buena Center for the Arts only six months after the previous expo.

Image seems to have learned that by hosting a solo event they can command headlines in a way that’s impossible during a large convention due to the “quantity over quality” convention reporting of many comic news websites. By hosting the Image Expo on January 9 the company is carving out a little island in the middle of what amounts to the convention doldrums. In recent years the headline producing convention season has been book-ended by Emerald City in March and either Comikaze Expo or New York Comic Con in October or November. There are very good reasons for not hosting a convention between Thanksgiving and Valentine’s Day, but it’s important to remember that the Image Expo is first and foremost for retailers and media. Image has essentially adopted and twisted the convention model used by large companies who want to get all of their clients in one place to announce new product developments or highlight best uses.

In 2012, Image Expo was criticized for the lack of female creators on the stage. While not completely excusable (there were a number of titles being promoted that featured women) it is worth noting that  Image Expo, unlike traditional conventions, had a much smaller pool of creators to tap when navigating availability and schedules. The company has made efforts to not repeat that error with 33 percent of their 2014 announced creators being women. Taking the stage will be Pretty Deadly‘s co-creator Kelly Sue DeConnick and Beast‘s Marian Churchland. Churchland has kept busy doing beautiful illustrations for titles such as Elephantmen  and Madame Xanadu, but hasn’t released a solo book since Beast, so it’s likely she’ll be announcing a new project.

Other creators in attendance will include Super Dinosaur‘s Robert Kirkman, Satellite Sam‘s Matt Fraction, Fear Agent‘s Rick Remender, and Prophet‘s Brandon Graham. Kirkman, Fraction, and Remender were also in attendance at Image Expo 2013 to announce new projects or give updates on existing endeavors.
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Dead Universes (part III): Reading order

ghost

Originally published October 18, 2013 | Updated April 2026
Originally published in 2013, this post explores how to approach reading three major Dead Universes: Defiant, Valiant, and the Ultraverse. The reading strategy you choose affects how you collect. Do you read series-by-series as they were originally published? In chronological order? Or by release date? Knowing this decision upfront will help you invest in Dead Universes strategically.

This post has become even more relevant in 2026. ShooterWorks.com‘s notes on Schism, Defiant’s never-published universe-wide crossover event, now pair with an active Schism Kickstarter that successfully funded in 2025. All 160 pages of Schism were penciled and inked in 1994 before Defiant’s closure halted completion. Backers will receive at minimum digital issues 1 through 4, with print editions and hardcover collections available at higher tiers. This makes the reading order question more urgent for collectors interested in completing Jim Shooter’s vision for this universe.

Deciding how to read a Dead Universe informs the best way to collect a Dead Universe. Do you read it series-by-series, as it was originally published? In chronological order? Or by release date? Knowing this will help determine how to invest in Dead Universes.

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Dead Universes (part II): Best Practices

Marvel's ad after they bought out Ultraverse.
Marvel’s ad after they bought out Ultraverse.

Originally published October 8, 2013 | Updated April 2026

The best practices for collecting Dead Universes differ from modern comics. Whether you’re starting with Defiant, Valiant, or the Ultraverse, these principles will help you build a complete collection affordably and strategically. Originally published in 2013, this advice remains relevant in 2026 because the fundamentals of smart collecting haven’t changed.

In the previous post, we explored how accessible Dead Universe collecting can be. The barrier isn’t cost, it’s strategy. Unlike hunting for mint condition variants, collecting Dead Universes is about completing stories affordably. Here are the principles that will guide your approach.

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