Originally published October 8, 2013 | Updated April 2026 Reading and collecting Dead Universes might seem daunting. These universes were published decades ago, never collected into modern trade paperbacks, and…
Game and comic writer William Harms will be signing copies of his Top Cow book 39 Minutes at The Escapist on October 19. Harms, who’s written for everyone from Marvel to 2K, received IGN’s “Best Story of the 2009” award for the PS3 title InFamous. In the world of comic writing he’s released a number of independent titles including Impaler and Bad Mojo and has lent his pen to established properties that include Captain America and Wolverine. In August, Top Cow released the hardcover trade paperback of Harms 2010 title 39 Minutes. The title was the company’s 2010 winner of their “Pilot Season” competition where fans determine which one-shot will be developed into a series. Harms will be signing at Escapist, 3090 Claremont Avenue in Berkeley, starting at 3 p.m. The description of 39 Minutes is below:
Originally published October 8, 2013 | Updated April 2026
In 2013, we began exploring the death of shared comic universes from the 1990s boom. Over a decade later, we’re revisiting this series. Jim Shooter passed away in June 2025, and the successful Schism Kickstarter, completing his unfinished Defiant Comics story, reminded us that these dead universes still matter to creators and collectors. The time felt right to explore them more deeply: not just what they were, but why they disappeared, and what their legacy tells us about comics history.
TR!CKSTER, 2631 Ashby Avenue in Berkeley, is planning a month of events to celebrate their one-year anniversary. The comic boutique, which specializes in creator-owned publications, let loose a torrent of…
Mythbusters has posted the trailer for their “Zombie Special” which was filmed on the grounds of Alameda’s retired Navel Air Station using many zombies from the Bay Area. The episode will explore zombie myths with the help of Michael Rooker who played “Merle Dixon” in AMC’s The Walking Dead. The Mythbusters zombie special comes out the same week as the launch of the fourth season of The Walking Dead which premieres on October 13. In addition to the episode trailer they’ve also posted “Mythbusters‘ Top 10 tips to outlast the zombie apocalypse.” The zombie episode of Mythbusters can be seen on Discovery October 17 at 10 p.m. (PST).
We’re especially excited about this episode as our very own Maddie Greene was a member of the zombie horde during filming. You can see her in the trailer hanging on a rusty door around the 22 second mark (also screen capped).
This appearance on Mythbusters is only the most recent step in Greene’s evolution from Zombie Scholar to actual zombie. She started off publishing the blog “Zomploitation” on which she’s reviewed nearly 200 zombie films (taking a hiatus in 2009), she founded the Madison Zombie Lurch in 2005 (perhaps the first Zombie Protest March in the country), and had a starring role in the original version of Z-Town: The Zombie Musical (she can also be heard on the cast recording available at CDBaby).
Litquake is an annual Bay Area event that seeks to foster the region’s sense of literary community. Between October 11 and 19 venues open their doors to let in the literature-hungry hordes for readings, workshops, panels, happy hours, and more. Tucked in amongst the established authors, poets, barfly wordsmiths, professors, and publishers are a handful of events focused on the literary form of funny books.
First up is a visit to the Cartoon Art Museum, 655 Mission Street, on October 15 for Sumos and Saints which features Gene Luen Yang and Thien Pham discussing “comics, education, and ‘80s cartoons.” Gene Yang is the creator behind the critically acclaimed and well honored American Born Chinese. Thien Pham is the co-founder of handmade comic distributor Global Hobo. In 2011 Pham and Yang partnered to publish Level Up. The talk starts at 7 p.m.
Inconveniently, October 18 is a night only Jamie Madrox can fully enjoy.
On the 18th at the Variety Preview Room, 582 Market Street, there will be readings from Super Stories of Heroes & Villains. This anthology, edited by Claude Lalumière, features a collection of original superhero focused short stories. According to the publisher “you’ll find the exploits, machinations, and epic mêlées of these superpowered aliens, undead crusaders, costumed crime fighters, unholy cabals, Amazon warriors, demon hunters, cyberpunk luchadores, nefarious megalomaniacs, daredevil sidekicks, atavistic avatars, adventuring aviators, gunslinging outlaws, love-struck adversaries, and supernatural detectives.” Joining Lalumière at this event will be authors Tim Pratt and Camille Alexa. A Q&A about the book will be moderated by Terry Bisson. The event begins at 7 p.m.
At the same time the Cartoon Art Museum will be hosting “Comics on Comix” which will feature comedians riffing on comics ranging from Superman to Mad Magazine. Comedians expected to perform include Joe Klocek, Ivan Hernandez, Karen Macklin, Tom Smith, Mike Spiegelman, and Marc Weidenbaum.
(more…)