Two More Exciting 2021 Releases: Lucky Luke and Mister Invincible
We’ve already heard about October’s Asterix book release, but what else is coming up? It’s been a busy start to the year, with a couple more announcements that will make for exciting reading, no doubt.
New “Mister Invincible”
Creator Pascal Jousselin posted this to Instagram last week. It’s the cover to the third volume of his wonderfully creative and mind-bending series, “Imbattable,” published by Magnetic Press here in the States as “Mister Invincible.”
It’s too early for Magnetic Press to make any announcements, but I wouldn’t hold my breath, if I were you. Their first collection of the series spanned the first two albums in the series. You’d think Magnetic would wait for a fourth volume before packaging their next book. That could be a long-ish wait.
On the other hand, they could decide that they need to strike while the iron is hot and might want to get a second “Mister Invincible” book out as quickly as possibly.
So, yeah, I could argue both points.
That said, you can buy the first two albums separately as “issues” under the Magnetic label on Comixology.
I don’t think they’ll publish the new albums as issues as they go, but you never know. I think Magnetic’s business model would mean publishing to paper first and then digital in individual issues later.
My preference has always been that every album gets a direct translation and printing in North America, but I understand that those economics wouldn’t work out so well. It’s a better “value” to spend $25 or $30 for three books together than $12 or $15 per book three times.
I’m just a purist who wants to emulate those grand French collectors’ bookshelves. Seriously, there’s nothing cooler to me than seeing walls of bookshelves filled with albums. You see them in Franco-Belgian artists’ studios a lot, but they pop up on Reddit and Instagram from time to time, too.
I should write an article about some of those someday, too.
Note: The image you see in the header at the top of this article comes from Journal Spirou #4310, back in November. I’m assuming that story, in which Imbattable travels to “the real world”, will be included in this volume.
Matthieu Bonhomme Returns to Lucky Luke!
Matthieu Bonhomme’s “The Man Who Shot Lucky Luke” was a critical and popular success five years ago. I glowed over it in my review.
And, now, Bonhomme has finished work on a second Lucky Luke book. Click on that link to see an early design for the cover, which has a very heroic quality to it — like the original Star Wars poster or a Frazetta painting composition.
“Wanted, Lucky Luke” will be released in April. The plot summary has Luke dealing with bounty hunters who are coming after him and the three sisters he gets mixed up with helping along the way.
If you want to know what’s going on with his “Empress Charlotte” series, worry not. He’ll be returning to it to finish it off with two more volumes after this Lucky Luke break.
Update: My review of “Wanted Lucky Luke” is now published, as is my Hyperanalysis of its first two pages.
Imbattable is awesome. Hard to know what Magnetic will do – they may not publish any more ‘Mister Invincibles’ at all. How many translated French BDs series have been abandoned in the past? I still wish they had had the balls to change his name to Unbeatable though – it would have been o so simple to change that i on his shirt to a u.
Matthieu Bonhomme is doing a 2nd Lucky Luke book in honor of Lucky Luke’s 75th birthday. You do know that this year is Lucky Luke’s 75th birthday.
And did you know that Jean Graton creator of Michel Valiant died yesterday at the ripe old age of 98 years old?
You wouldn’t hold my breath ? Thanks for your consideration ;-D
I wouldn’t want you to turn blue, though. That wouldn’t be so smurfy!
P.S. Thanks, I’ve clarified my phrasing. =)