Dark Horse Comics Declares 2014 “The Year of the Horse”

Sure, the Chinese have been claiming a Year of the Horse once every twelve years for centuries.  As fortune would have it for Dark Horse Comics the stars aligned perfectly for them so that their declaration of making 2014 their “Year of the Horse” actually falls on the Year of the Horse according to the Chinese Zodiac.  Coincidence?

If you subscribe to that method of thinking or not doesn’t really interest me.  You have to admit though that it is an interesting twist when you consider the January 3rd announcement that Dark Horse Comics was losing the Star Wars license to Disney’s, I mean Lucasfilm’s partner Marvel.  The Star Wars series is what most people thought of as their “bread and butter“.  Luckily for us according to an interview posted on Comic Book Resources (CBR) the powers that be at Dark Horse assure us that simply isn’t true and that in fact, the Star Wars series was more of an emotional loss than financial.

This news couldn’t come sooner for me.  I have been counting the days until Dark Horse releases the continuation of the Firefly franchise with the new series “Serenity:  Leaves on the Wind” this month.  In fact, I spent time earlier this week pre-ordering both the standard and variant covers of the first three issues at ***Things From Another World (TFAW.com).  I must admit, after hearing about the loss of Star Wars I was more than concerned that the potential financial loss would impact Serenity’s return.  Thankfully that does not appear to be the case!

I highly recommend reading the interview and implore you to head over to Dark Horse Comics and check out their titles.  They have some fantastic stories already on the shelves and some new ones that I’ll be picking up in 2014.

I think it’s imperative to support those who we feel do good work in our culture and to not let the erratic ebb and flow of what I call “Hipster Fandom” dictate where we spend our money.  I mean let’s face it – Marvel appeared to have no interest in doing Star Wars before all the recent hype with the new movies, and Disney buying Lucasfilm’s and blah, blah, blah.  The boys at Dark Horse loved the Star Wars universe and it was their heartfelt desire to keep the comics going.  They didn’t need an uptick in fandom from the bandwagoner’s or the promise of 3 new films to do it.  They did it for the love of the stories and the characters who live them.

***SIDE NOTE:  It’s my first time ordering from them so will review their service once I receive a few shipments from them.  Let me know if you use them and what you think.

Happy 11th Birthday to the Crew of Serenity

With Autumn officially beginning this weekend it brings to mind for me two things – pumpkin flavored everything anywhere you go and that it’s time to once again watch Firefly!  Every year during the Autumn months I find time to re-watch Firefly, Serenity and re-read the comics as well.  Though the timing varies from year to year, it’s been the same ever since I fell in love with the show.  This year will be no different.

Last year there was an endless supply of all things Firefly due to the 10th Anniversary of the show, but this year things seem to be a bit quieter.  Guess the 11th “Birthday” of a thing isn’t quite as special to most – but it is to me!

So Happy 11th Birthday to the Crew of Serenity!

Firefly: Browncoats Unite – 10th Anniversary Reunion Special on Science Channel

It was 10 years ago that Joss Whedon gave us what has been called the most popular SciFi show ever created – Firefly.  Tonight we get to see the cast reunited in a 10th anniversary special airing on the Science Channel called “Firefly:  Browncoats Unite“.  The show was filmed earlier this year at the San Diego Comic Con (SDCC) and reunited Whedon with the crew of Serenity:  Nathan Fillion, Sean Maher, Summer Glau, Adam Baldwin, Alan Tudyk, Gina Torres, Jewel Staite, Morena Baccarin.  The show will also bring back executive producer Tim Minear and executive story editor Jose Molena. (I have not seen anything indicating that Ron Glass was in attendance, but I also heard that Morena Baccarin wasn’t in attendance either, yet she is listed – so we will find out tonight exactly who all did show up for the reunion)  

(note:  this information is from Science Channel‘s page as it reads today)

I remember hearing about the show back when it first came on the air and admittedly not giving it much attention.  It wasn’t until a few years ago that I sat down and did a marathon of the show that I fell in love with the cast, characters and even the ship “Serenity“.  I have collected everything I could possibly get my hands on in regards to the comics, DVD, etc. and am excited at the prospect of more Firefly content coming thanks to the dedication of the fans – or Browncoats.  The show tonight is what I hope is just the beginning and Joss Whedon has already confirmed they are already working on new Firefly comics with Dark Horse Comics – there just hasn’t been any release dates listed yet.  Fingers crossed we’ll get a commercial during the show tonight giving us that!!

I’m embedding a video below that I found while searching for more content on the show.  It’s only a minute long, but that’s plenty of time for Nathan Fillion to get the others to put their hands in and promise to bring us a 20th anniversary show.  I’m placing it here to remind him of his comittment!  ;o)~

Post Script:  I believe this is the most tags I’ve EVER used for a single post!!!