On the sixteenth of August I had the pleasure of sitting down with comicbooked.com‘s editor Justin, our regular panel of experts as well as Aspen Comics’ Vice President and Editor In Chief Vince Hernandez. I have been an avid reader and a fan of Aspen Comics for years now, having followed Aspen’s founder Michael Turner through his early years on books like Fathom and through Cannon Hawke, Kiani, through Soulfire and through his extensive work on Superman, Batman, Supergirl, Justice League and the Marvel Comics titles like Civil War and the Hulk. I always somehow knew and recognized through all those titles, Vince confirmed it, that Michael had a vision and a dream and a direction for Aspen. His philosophy on the representation of women was always clear and cohesive, a celebration of beauty and a glorification of strong, powerful female role models. Aspen’s books and characters are robust and alluring and independent. Beyond Michael’s passing, Vince and the team at Aspen comics have carried this dream and his vision forward.
During our hour and a half together, I learned a lot about Hernandez as well. He is someone who has been in the industry for many, many years and his curriculum vitae includes such things as writer, editor, letterer and a wide range of titles including Fathom: Kiani, Executive Assistant: Iris, Lola XOXO, Deflec, Worlds of Aspen and Charismagic. This broad array of experience over the years has given Hernandez the perfect skill-set to helm the company that his friend started thirteen years ago. His deep roots with the company have given him something you can’t teach or train for: love. You can tell he truly loves what he does in the way he describes the work and the people he works for and his excitement for the things to come (He gave us a few fantastic teasers of what is to come). This very same passion and love is something that is largely missing in the comic book industry in recent years, and it is refreshing to see someone put their heart in to it. It is infectious and carries over to the staff and the creators and on to the pages of the comic books that we pick up at our local comic book shops and at conventions.
Aspen Comics is truly special and – based on what Hernandez explained to us – will only keep getting better. I encourage you all to watch the interview below. You will learn some exciting news about Aspen Comics, some great jumping on points, including a few recommended trade paperbacks, and a rather enlightening discussion around the recent DC/Aspen variant cover collaboration that used some Michael Turner art pieces.
Aspen Universe Revelations # 2 (W: Joshua Hale Fialkov / A: Jordan Gunderson) will be available on 08/24/2016 in multiple covers at your local comic book shop.
ABOUT ASPEN COMICS:
“Aspen MLT, Inc. is an entertainment publishing company founded in January 2003 by superstar comic artist Michael Turner. Priding itself on producing entertainment properties of the highest quality visual and storytelling elements, Aspen MLT, Inc. quickly carved its mark on the comic book industry.
In addition to Michael Turner’s runaway hit, the number one best-selling comic series Fathom, Aspen MLT, Inc. also debuted the fantasy adventure epic series Soulfire in 2004. Both properties have continued on in Turner’s vision with a host of exciting mini-series. Fathom has expanded beyond the series proper and continues to grow with the additions of the new titles Fathom: Dawn of War, Fathom: Cannon Hawke, Fathom: Kiani and more. The Soulfire Universe has also seen it’s fair share of mini-series in addition to the main volumes including Soulfire: Dying of the Light, Chaos Reign, Shadow Magic, and New World Order. As well as continuing to deepen the worlds of Fathom and Soulfire, Aspen continually creates thrilling new properties including it’s newest titles the adventure-comedy Shrugged, the action-adventure series Executive Assistant: Iris, the supernatural-thriller Dellec, and the action-espionage series Mindfield.
Along with their own successful properties, Aspen MLT, Inc. collaborates with some of the comic industry’s most successful companies and endeavors. Michael Turner and Aspen have collaborated with Marvel Comics including cover work for the best-selling events Civil War, World War Hulk, and Ultimatum. As well, Aspen collaborates with DC Comics providing covers for such best-selling titles as Superman/Batman: The Return of Supergirl, The Justice League of America, and Eisner-nominated covers for the critically-acclaimed and top-selling mini-series Identity Crisis. In 2006, Aspen joined forces with television giant NBC to create the online comic adaptations for the hit television series “Heroes.” Aspen is currently teaming up with Valhalla Studios to produce the horror-adventure series Dead Man’s Run, as well as collaborating with director McG’s Wonderland Sound and Vision to produce the horror comic Haunted City. Aspen also produced the one-of-a-kind Anarchy digital graphic novel for the popular body spray company, Axe.”
Great interview! It was a blast!