Comic(s) Relief: Mark Millar’s Chrononauts Blends Apollo 13 & The Time Machine
Plus a little bit Guardians of the Galaxy and Doctor Who.
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Mark Millar is one of the top names in the comics field right now, having written some of the most iconic characters in the medium for the big two (DC & Marvel), as well as creator-owned titles that have crossed over to the big screen, such as Wanted and Kick-Ass. Now he’s launching a new Image series that merges two of our favorite things: astronauts and time travelers. Called Chrononauts, the series debuted some swanky cover art on Entertainment Weekly, which you can see below.
Millar provided the “Apollo 13 meets The Time Machine comparison we worked into the headline, but he also namedrops Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy movie. That flick has thus far earned $770 billion worldwide, so that’s certainly not a bad target to chase. So expect crazy sci-fi action leavened with a dose of affable goofiness and a general sense of fun. Chrononauts follows two daring pioneer time travelers who venture back to plant “an American flag in the soil the day before even Columbus arrives,” says Millar. “But of course it all goes horribly wrong and so we have these two guys stranded in the time-stream, trying to get home, but at the same time at this incredible advantage the people around them don’t have.”
The titular chrononauts won’t remain stranded in early America, however. Instead they’ll be hopping around the timeline like The Doctor, only presumably with less crippling heartbreak. “It’s essentially a buddy story about two best friends who can jump around between 16th-century Persia, the American Civil War or New York in the ’20s,” Millar says.
Chrononauts is set to launch in March 2015.
Army of Darkness: Ash Gets Hitched #4 (Dynamite Entertainment)
Is there anything more romantic than the sound of wedding bells and a revving chainsaw? The happy union of timelost bad-ass Ashley J. Williams and lovely maiden Sheila is threatened by an Army-No-Longer-Limited-To-Darkness and their unstoppable leader, The Faceless Man. Will our hero overcome the Deadite hordes and get some sugar? Or will the undead armies force the bride and groom to hail The Faceless One as the king, baby? The ultimate experience in matrimonial horror ends here!
Dicks: End of Time #6 (Avatar Press)
GARTH ENNIS and JOHN MCCREA have saved the final over the top insult for last! If you thought Dougie and Ivor couldn’t possibly screw up any more than they already have, you’re in for a treat. Having wrecked the timeline and faced the horror of the Dong, the Dicks have one last chance to make it right before they destroy everything. Just us in celebrating the final adventure of the Dicks. Available with Regular, Offensive, and Classic Moment Incentive covers by series artist John McCrea.
Doctor Who: The Twelfth Doctor #2 (Titan Comics)
On a frozen planet spinning around a dying star, the Doctor and Clara stumble across the lone survivor of a species that once conquered the galaxy.
Is it a prisoner? Cryogenically suspended pioneer? Or something altogether more sinister? Caught in a deadly mystery, Clara and the Doctor’s actions will have scorching repercussions for the universe!
Godzilla: Cataclysm #4 (IDW Publishing)
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Guardians of the Galaxy #21 (Marvel)
As the Guardians of the Galaxy encounter an entire world full of alien symbiotes, they ask themselves…was allowing Flash Thompson to join their ranks a wise decision?
The Last Fall #3 (IDW Publishing)
IDW’s original sci-fi/military drama continues! Wounded and abandoned, Marcus Fall desperately struggles to survive in the care of a beautiful enemy surgeon. But terrible secrets are revealed that rock Fall’s world, proving all is not as it seems in love and war!
An all-new original sci-fi/military drama from the creative team behind the critically acclaimed Children of the Grave — fan-favorite writer Tom Waltz (TMNT) and artist Casey Maloney (Star Trek).
Magnus: Robot Fighter #8 (Dynamite Entertainment)
Magnus discovers an Arctic research station that pre-dates the Age of the Singularity! What horrendous secrets will he discover, what will it mean for human and robotkind… and how do these discoveries continue to unlock The Gold Key Universe?
Predator: Fire and Stone #2 (Dark Horse)
THE GOOD, THE BAD, AND THE UGLY MOTHER%*@$#!
After the mayhem and terror of Weyland-Yutani’s disastrous mission to the site of the Prometheus, Galgo’s troubles continue when his ship is shanghaied by a Predator stowaway! Its obsession with a mysterious, deadly quarry sends them to the last place in the universe Galgo’d like to revisit — the Xeno-infested LV-223!
Star-Slammers Remastered #8 (IDW Publishing)
Buckle up for explosive conclusion of the re-colored Star Slammers series by Walter Simonson!
The Strain: The Night Eternal #4 (Dark Horse)
Known as the Born, he works with the rebellion, but he’s a vampire… Who, or what, is Mr. Quinlan? And what, exactly, is his connection to the Master? This issue sheds light on the past of the mysterious and badass bloodsucker slayer who is bent on destroying the Master’s strain and ending his reign.
The final chapter in the Strain Trilogy — by Guillermo del Toro and novelist Chuck Hogan — begins here!
Terminator Salvation: The Final Battle #11 (Dark Horse)
Locked in a war neither can win, John Connor and Skynet contemplate the unthinkable — an alliance against the murderous intelligence ravaging them both. But with Connor’s foretold death nearing, is it too late?!
Transformers: Primacy #4 (IDW Publishing)
END OF THE ROAD! The final secrets of war for CYBERTRON are revealed! Everything has been leading to this — war has engulfed OPTIMUS PRIME’S world, and MEGATRON stands on the verge of triumph! But can any survive the battle of the titans?!
Winterworld #4 (IDW Publishing)
Scully and Wynn learn that the promise of paradise is a lie. Chuck Dixon and Butch Guice bring the first arc of this new ongoing to an explosive finale. What they thought was a sanctuary proves to be a death trap. The two friends are separated by their captors and Wynn faces a primordial horror on her own. The world is cold but the grave is colder as events race toward a deadly conclusion!
Zero #12 (Image Comics)
The Agency is back in play. The weaponized fungus spreads. An old incident brings repercussions.
