Oh, yeah, well…

Chapter 274: New books this week...

Hello!

Thought I’d pop in with a quick update. Things are quietly busy over here at Fort Ashcan. A lot of very fun behind the scenes things happening that will be in front of the scenes things soon enough.

In the meantime I did some more talking. First up I joined the fine folks at Fanlight Zone.

We chat Abe and Spawn and all the good stuff. Give it a watch if you feel so inclined. I might say some cool stuff. I honestly don’t remember what I said, and that feels unlikely, but I might.

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And this next one is a curveball. Sort of. I did yet another interview (not the curveball) but this one wasn’t about comics. I spoke to the folks at Dying Scene for their 4 Records podcast where I spoke about four albums that had a big impact on me at four distinct periods of my life.

If you know me well, these probably aren’t a surprise. But it was really fun to break down their relationship to who I was and who I am now. Looking back on these albums sort of becomes a chicken or the egg situation where I try to figure out if I connected to the work because it spoke to who I was or if it helped inform who I was so I connected to it. It is a thing I think about a lot in relationship to art, so I had a blast talking about it.

And if you don’t know, you can place your finger over Paul Simon’s face and it makes it look like Art Garfunkel has an all-time kick ass ‘stache.

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Since I know some of you are art collector’s thought I’d pass along this little tidbit. Andy MacDonald andymac has decided to start selling pages from IF DESTRUCTION BE OUR LOT… #1. They’re up for sale now and they are moving, so if you want one you should get to it. Obviously I’m biased but I think the pages are truly gorgeous and I’m jealous of all the folks who have already grabbed some.

Just imagine, you could own the first appearance (and last) of Toasty the Breakfast Robot™.

Or this awesome city scape with Bus™.

If you want to get yourself a page-

Big release week here. First up the second print of IF DESTRUCTION BE OUR LOT… #1 is out now. I have been told these are selling at a pretty brisk pace so if you want one move quickly.

Cover is of course by Tyler Boss, homaging our book WHAT’S THE FURTHEST PLACE FROM HERE?. A real ouroboros of references there. But if you missed the book or want all the homage covers, head to your shop now to grab a copy.

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Next up is SPAWN #376. My first full issue with the big man. Stephen Segovia crushes it on art and we introduce some brand new characters as we get you caught up on the world of Spawn.

We designed this book to be a jumping on point for new readers, so hopefully some of you will jump on with us. We have some real fun stuff planned in this book and in KING SPAWN.

But you don’t have to take my word that it’s a good time.

The good folks at Fanlight Zone and AIPT have reviews to help you understand if Spawn is right for you. (It is.)

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And lastly the trade paperback collection of DC VS. VAMPIRES: WORLD WAR V vol. 1 is in comic shops now.

Join myself, Otto, Pierluigi, Damian, Ollie, Dinah, Alfred, Barbara, Scott, John, and the rest of the (remaining) DC universe as they continue their vampire wars. If you like your superheroes post apocalyptic and bleak, this ones for you. If you like some hope maybe wait for volume 2… Although that wouldn’t make much sense. Probably just pick this one up either way.

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Also, some folks have been asking me about getting comics signed. I don’t really do conventions so the best way to get them is from local comic shops. The good news is we went to a bunch and signed books. So if you want signed copies of IF DESTRUCTION BE OUR LOT…,KING SPAWN, and SPAWN you should be able to grab copies from the following shops while supplies last.

MIDTOWN COMICS has signed copies of IDBOL #1 here, here, and here or available in their NYC shops.

THIRD EYE COMICS has signed copies of IDBOL #1 here. KING SPAWNs and SPAWNs are sold out online but might still be available in their shops in the DMV area.

BRAVE NEW WORLDS has copies of IDBOL #1 and KING SPAWN available in shop, so go to Philly and get some Wawa while you’re there. I also signed some copies of WE’RE TAKING EVERYONE DOWN WITH US and WHAT’S THE FURTHEST PLACE FROM HERE? so go grab them.

WORLD’S END COMICS has signed copies of IDBOL #1 as well as some DC VS VAMPIRES and WHAT’S THE FURTHEST PLACE FROM HERE? 7”s. So if you’re near Kingston NY, stop in and grab some signed books.

Going to get a little cultured here. My longtime Marvel editor Jake Thomas, who I worked with on stuff like THE PUNISHER and THUNDERBOLTS, is also an excellent writer. A real double threat. He often helped me shape and form my books and is truly one of the most collaborative editors I’ve ever worked with. So if you liked any of those books we worked on, there is a decent chance you like Jake’s storytelling.

Well good news for you people in L.A., Jake has written a new play brilliantly entitled WAITING FOR GAL GADOT and it is being performed as part of the Hollywood Fringe Festival. I am in NYC so I can’t go see it, but if you are on the west coast (2nd best coast) you can and then tease me and make me jealous. And if you’re wondering, yes the man who plays Leonardo in a TMNT cartoon and Dean Venture is in it.

June 5th, Friday, 8pm (THAT’S TONIGHT!!!)

June 17th, Wednesday, 7:30pm

June 20th, Saturday, 2pm

June 23rd, Tuesday, 10:30pm

June 28th, Sunday, 3:30pm

The show's Fringe site and ticketing can be found HERE.

Go get yourself some culture and see a cool play this month.

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That’s it for me.

Stay safe. Take care of each other. Someone told me naps are bad for you now?

-Matthew Rosenberg

NYC 6/5/26

UPCOMING RELEASES:

IF DESTRUCTION BE OUR LOT… #2 - June 17th

KING SPAWN #56- June 24th

SPAWN #377- July 1st

IF DESTRUCTION BE OUR LOT… #3 - July 15th

KING SPAWN #57- July 27th