They say the Disney vault giveth and then taketh away. While Walt's studio is known for providing decades of quality entertainment for the whole family, they can be downright miserly when it comes to witholding those gems and keeping them out of circulation for years and years. Just imagine a big ol' padlock with mouse ears on it.
But then every once in a while, that vault opens up and something slips out to the delight of children and kooky old fetishists alike. This is one of those times.
Starting this January, Boom! Studios is set to publish classic stories from throughout the 70 year history of Disney comics in a series of reprints. It all starts in Walt Disney Comics and Stories #715 and Mickey Mouse #304. We're looking at original Disney tales from master cartoonists like Don Rosa, Daan Juppes, William Van Horn, Floyd Gottfredson and Gil Turner with scripts from the likes of Carl Barks, Ruud Straatman, and Bill Walsh.
There's a Gottfredson Mickey Mouse story from 1932 being reprinted for the very first time! "70th Heaven!" by Dutch artist Daan Jippes and "Don't Worry About It." a Goofy story by Italian artist Romano Scarpa, see their first American printings ever!
Each issue weighs in at 40 pages, and at $3.99 a piece, they're a perfect starting point for anyone who's ever wondered why Disney comics get so many readers so hot and bothered. I grew up reading old Mickey and Donald Duck comics, and I cringe whenever I think back on that yard sale when my dad unloaded the whole lot of them to some neighbor kid. These books showcase some of the best storytellers in the medium, writers and artists from America and Europe from the 30s and up through the 80s. Good on Boom for making this happen.
Walt Disney Comics and Stories #715 and Mickey Mouse #304 hit shelves in January.
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Want!
I’ll more than likely pick up at least one Disney title, everyone loves ‘um.
I like that you guys are posting more and more stuff like this that previews material that’s not out for a few months. It makes things easier for people like me, the dedicated DCBS buyer. Gonna add these both to my next order! Thanks!
Er…why aren’t these being published by Marvel? I know that BOOM Studious/BOOM Kids has the license for them but…wouldn’t you think that the publishing would eventually move back towards Marvel to develop their kids line?
Boom!’s been doing a fantastic job with the Disney properties across the board – they look great and read better, even for adults. I’m glad The Mouse is sticking with the current set up.
Long-term prediction: Disney/Marvel acquires Boom! and lets it run as a largely independent subsidiary.
I was hoping for Carl Barks Donald/Scrooge oversized hardcovers. 🙁
I’ll be the Hell out of this!
@Win: I’m with you. I’ve been dying for Boom to publish some Barks and/or Rosa Uncle Scrooge Hardcovers. Who do I have to write to to make that happen?
I think the bigger story here is that they’re not being published by marvel. Wonder when Disney’s publishing deal with Boom! is up.
If we learned anything from the DC / Warner relationship is that you keep your things separate. Its not a coincidence that we’ve never seen Bugs Bunny in a Batman costume, or Daffy Duck as Superman. These two mega universes are kept separate for a very good reason.
I think Disney is doing something similar here. They signed their deal with Boom! while they were in the process (internally or other) of acquiring Marvel didn’t they? Boom! has a clear interest in publishing licensed properties for kids. Marvel does not.
@wally:
Uhm, there have been countless WB/DC "crossovers"…
@muddi900–not as many as you’d think or expect, and when you do its usually a one time special…Never a regular recurring thing. I was talking to a friend who works in in licensing at WB…its a very specific corporate policy in his handbook that you don’t mix the two universes. Two separate brands that are supposed to live on their own.
@wally Yeah that’s a fair statement but you also have to "eat your own dogfood". Disney is now in the business of publishing comics. It doesn’t make sense to have it’s own properties "outsourced" to another publisher. What kind of message does that say about its faith in Marvel’s handling of the characters?
This deal might have been made before Disney bought Marvel. It probably took a while to "remaster" all these stories so it is possible Boom got the green light to do this a year or two ago and they‘re only releasing it now.
@azrael–yeah i totally see that. But Marvel would be WRONG for Disney comics. You’d have to create a new imprint, kind of like how Disney does with its Cartoon Network DXHD. They’d need to create a whole new division and prob don’t want to at this point. That costs money. Boom is set up better to do this right now that marvel/disney is. Disney owns a publishing division for kids books besides Marvel, but still lisences lots of things out to other publishers. Seems like they wanted comics now , but not the infrastructure. Maybe eventually they will take it back.
@Tork–It takes a while to buy a company like Disney. Without knowing the timeline, It would be safe to say that Disney has a long term plan in place.