October’s hardcover reproduces Charlie Adlard’s pencils for monumental story arc

Why this has piqued our interest. The Walking Dead is one of the strongest running franchises in comics and with All out War creators Robert Kirkman and Charlie Adlard changed the status quo of the series forever. To celebrate this Image are releasing a special Artist proof edition in October and from all signs it looks like a must have.

In October, fans of Robert Kirkman’s THE WALKING DEAD will see the New York Times best-selling comic as never before with the publication of THE WALKING DEAD: ALL OUT WAR ARTIST PROOF EDITION. In this 248-page hardcover from Image Comics/Skybound, artist Charlie Adlard’s raw pencils for the twelve-issue arc are reproduced, uninked and unaltered from how they appear on his artboard. The ALL OUT WAR story arc marks a major turning point in THE WALKING DEAD, as Rick Grimes unites several communities to fight the villainous Negan and his “Saviors,” while around them the dead continue to roam. The future of the Survivors, Hilltop, and Kingdom communities depends precariously on Negan’s right-hand man, who has turned against him — and not everyone is going to see it through the war alive.

"I've always enjoyed books that show the ‘process,’ and All Out War certainly does that,” said Adlard. “Presenting the pencils as they are is an interesting thing, because they were done to show an inker what to do. So, at times, they are rough, fudged, incorrect...etc, but hopefully still provide an insight as to what goes into making a comic book.”

Adlard has penciled and inked more than one hundred issues of THE WALKING DEAD. Inker Stefano Gaudiano was brought onto the art team (which includes toner Cliff Rathburn and letterer Rus Wooten) at the start of the ALL OUT WAR story arc. 

“And just sometimes it's nice not to have a finished thing,” continued Adlard. “To be able to see the little bits of ‘magic’ occurring in the happy accidents of random pencil marks, which were never intended for anyone other than Stefano to see, where I wasn't caring that it would be seen by a wider audience, makes it all a little bit bolder.”

ALL OUT WAR has never before been collected in a single volume, and this edition presents the monumental story in a whole new way. THE WALKING DEAD: ALL OUT WAR ARTIST PROOF EDITION will be in comic book stores on October 1 and in bookstores on October 8. It is available for pre-order now.

The hit historical fantasy adventure goes into a 4th printing

The first issue of Chris Dingess (Being Human) and Matthew Roberts’ (BATTLE POPE, FOUR LETTER WORLDS) critically acclaimed Skybound series MANIFEST DESTINY has sold out instantly and will go into its 4th printing. Readers and critics alike keep discovering the troupe of explorers and joining the vibrant historical fantasy adventure. 

Praise for MANIFEST DESTINY:
 
“Historical fiction can be a gamble in comics… By keeping it weird and focusing on their characters, Dingess and Roberts make a great case for how well it can work.”
—Marykate Jasper, Comic Book Resources
 
“Salvation lies west, and Manifest Destiny is proof - taking a smart spin on otherwise barren narrative territory, Chris Dingess, Matthew Roberts and Owen Gieni have produced an opening issue that will pique your interest and get you invested in our heroes. This is the kind of trailblazing you won't want to miss.” —David Pepose, Newsarama
 
“Dingess and Roberts have done a terrific job here, establishing the ugly side as well as the wonder of this expedition to the West. Manifest Destiny is looking to be one revelatory journey.” —Michelle White, Multiversity Comics
 
“Manifest Destiny #1 promises to be some really solid storytelling, focusing on a time when the world was still a mystery to those who thought themselves above it, and a world which too often valued the pioneer spirit above basic human decency.” —Andy Hunsaker, Crave Online
 
“It is way too early to start making best comics of the year lists, but we can safely put Manifest Destiny on the contenders list.” —Cody Ferrell, Comic Book Therapy
 
MANIFEST DESTINY #1 has completely sold out at the distributor level, but may still be available in comic stores, and is currently available digitally on the Image Comics website (imagecomics.com) and the official Image Comics iOS app, as well as on Comixology on the web (comixology.com), iOS, Android, and Google Play.

Image Comics and Skybound are excited to announce that the first issue of MANIFEST DESTINY, the new ongoing series by Chris Dingess (writer TV's Being Human) and Matthew Roberts (Battlepope), will receive a special variant cover (SEP138206) by INVINCIBLE artist Ryan Ottley. Skybound’s newest original series follows Lewis & Clark's historic expedition to explore America, only for them to uncover the monsters of the uncharted frontier. With a gripping story by Dingess and breakout art by Roberts and colorist Owen Genii (GLORY), this series joins the ranks of genre boundary-pushing comics like GHOSTED and CLONE published by Robert Kirkman’s Image Comics imprint, Skybound. Final orders for the variant cover are due TODAY, Monday, October 21, so retailers and readers alike should get their orders in now! MANIFEST DESTINY #1 can be ordered with the Diamond Code: SEP130486 and the Ryan Ottley variant cover of MANIFEST DESTINY #1 can be ordered with the Diamond Code: SEP138206