Press Release
Dynamite Entertainment is proud to announce the upcoming May 28th release of Doctor Spektor: Master of the Occult #1. The new comic book series reimagines a classic supernatural detective into a monster-hunting media sensation, courtesy of writer Mark Waid (Daredevil) and artist Neil Edwards (Fantastic Four). Doctor Spektor will be the highly anticipated fourth release in the publisher’s successful Gold Key line, which includes Turok: Dinosaur Hunter, Magnus: Robot Fighter, and Solar: Man of the Atom.
In the new series, Doctor Adam Spektor has spent the past fifteen years travelling the globe, ending the threat posed by werewolves, vampires, ghosts, and other supernatural beings. Beyond his monster hunting, he has become renowned as a television legend, Wall Street wolf, internet mogul, tabloid bad boy, master metaphysicist, and spiritualist. Yet his success has brought him no peace. Some part of him is missing, something he needs, but can’t name. The Master of the Occult is about to find what’s missing… and in a very unlikely place.
“This project is a blast,” says Mark Waid, one of the comic industry’s leading writers and current writer of Dynamite’s The Green Hornet series. “It plays into all the non-superhero things that interest me – magic, performance, celebrity culture, and the pressures one feels under the public spotlight. Doctor Spektor is a pop-culture illusionist who’s half Criss Angel, half Van Helsing – a demon hunter who has turned vampire-and-werewolf-and-zombie killing into a reality show. Now he’s finally found something that scares even him – and the world watches him crumble when he tries to confront it. Can he redeem himself in the public eye, and in his own?”
The announcement of Doktor Spektor’s May release follows upon the successful launch of Turok: Dinosaur Hunter #1 in early February. Due to high demand, the first printing of 37,000 units sold out through Diamond Comics (the world’s largest distributor of English language comic books) prior to its on-sale date, a rare feat in the modern comic market. The Turok debut also garnered a huge wave of fan and critical praise, which bodes well for the new Gold Key line of comics, publisher Dynamite Entertainment, and licensor Dreamworks Classics.
With over twenty-five years of experience in his field, Mark Waid has written a wider variety of well-known characters than any other American comics author, from Superman to the Justice League to Spider-Man to Archie and hundreds of others. His award-winning graphic novel with artist Alex Ross, Kingdom Come, is one of the best-selling comics of all time.
Neil Edwards is a comic artist based in Wrexham, North Wales, and has contributed artwork to dozens of highly recognizable comic book series, including Fantastic Four, X-Factor, The Mighty Avengers, Captain America: First Vengeance, Dark Avengers, Green Lantern Corps, Iron Man 2.0, The Adventures of Superman, and Shadowman.
“I love how Mark Waid and Neil Edwards are pushing the occult detective concept past all boundaries with the new Doctor Spektor series,” says Nick Barrucci, CEO and Publisher of Dynamite Entertainment. “They’re taking all the elements you love about Constantine, The X-Files, and Supernatural, and shining the hot spotlights of Hollywood on them. While most occult detectives do their grim work in the dark, keeping the otherworldly menaces secret for the safety of the world, Adam Spektor flaunts his trade – and his failures – for all to see. We’re proud to work with this spectacular creative team, and excited that Doctor Spektor: Master of the Occult will bring something completely unique to horror and superhero comic fans everywhere!”
Doctor Spektor: Master of the Occult #1 will feature a wide selection of cover variants, presented by some of comics’ most talented artists. The Main Cover will be supplied by Christian Ward (Young Avengers, Atomic Robo), and a Subscription-Only Variant Cover, intended as a reward for dedicated fans who preorder with their local comic shop retailers, will feature the art of Eisner Award-winning artist Francesco Francavilla (Afterlife with Archie, Black Beetle). A Blank Authentix Cover will be created for the first issue, featuring blank white space on the cover perfect for convention artist commissions or the creative whims of the do-it-yourself fan.
Additional cover artwork by Phil Hester (Green Arrow), Jae Lee (Batman / Superman), and Ken Haeser (The Living Corpse) will be featured on special Retailer Incentive Original Art Covers, rewarded to and available from select retailers that meet certain ordering thresholds through Diamond Comic Distributors.
In addition to the Retailer Incentive Original Art Covers, Dynamite Entertainment is offering other special rewards and opportunities for retailers to support the Doctor Spektor: Master of the Occult launch in a big way:
• Any orders of the Doctor Spektor: Master of the Occult #1 Main Cover and Subscription-Only Cover will be fully returnable.
• Artist Roberto Castro (Lords of Mars, Spider-Man Vs. Vampires) has created a Retailer Exclusive Variant Cover, available for retailers to order through Diamond Comics. Numerous retailers can share the Castro artwork, but have personalized store names built into the front cover.
• Dynamite also invites retailers to contact their Marketing Manager, Keith Davidsen (keith.davidsen@dynamite.com, 856-312-1040 x114) if they would like to create unique Doctor Spektor: Master of the Occult #1 Retailer Exclusive Variant Covers featuring artwork not available anywhere else.
Doctor Spektor: Master of the Occult #1 will be solicited in Diamond Comic Distributors’ March Previews catalog, the premiere source of merchandise for the comic book specialty market, and slated for release on May 28, 2014. Comic book fans are encouraged to reserve copies of Doctor Spektor with their local comic book retailers. The Gold Key releases of Turok, Magnus, Solar, and Doctor Spektor will also be available for individual customer purchase through digital platforms courtesy of Comixology, iVerse, and Dark Horse Digital.
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About Dynamite Entertainment:
Dynamite was founded in 2004 and is home to several best-selling comic book titles and properties, including The Boys, The Shadow, Vampirella, Warlord of Mars, Bionic Man, A Game of Thrones, and more. Dynamite owns and controls an extensive library with over 3,000 characters (which includes the Harris Comics and Chaos Comics properties), such as Vampirella, Pantha, Evil Ernie, Smiley the Psychotic Button, Chastity, Purgatori, and Peter Cannon: Thunderbolt. In addition to their critically-acclaimed titles and bestselling comics, Dynamite works with some of the most high profile creators in comics and entertainment, including Kevin Smith, Alex Ross, Neil Gaiman, Andy Diggle, John Cassaday, Garth Ennis, Jae Lee, Marc Guggenheim, Mike Carey, Jim Krueger, Greg Pak, Brett Matthews, Matt Wagner, Gail Simone, Steve Niles, James Robinson, and a host of up-and-coming new talent. Dynamite is consistently ranked in the upper tiers of comic book publishers and several of their titles – including Alex Ross and Jim Krueger’s Project Superpowers – have debuted in the Top Ten lists produced by Diamond Comics Distributors. In 2005, Diamond awarded the company a GEM award for Best New Publisher and another GEM in 2006 for Comics Publisher of the Year (under 5%) and again in 2011. The company has also been nominated for and won several industry awards, including the prestigious Harvey and Eisner Awards.
