Top Cow Unveils Free Comic Book Day Plans

[ENGLISH] LOS ANGELES, Calif., April 27th, 2009 – Top Cow Productions, Inc. proudly announced its plans today for this weekend’s Free Comic Book Day, Saturday, May 2nd which takes place in comic shops across North America. Free Comic Book Day is an annual event where participating direct market stores give out free comics to anyone that walks into their store. Top Cow is participating again in the event with their Free Comic Book Day offering, Cyberforce/Hunter-Killer First Look. The issue serves as an introduction to the publisher’s summer event of the same name, which brings together the two popular teams Cyberforce and Hunter-Killer. The series and Free Comic Book Day offering is written by Mark Waid (Amazing Spider-Man, Irredeemable) and drawn by Kenneth Rocafort (Astonishing Tales, Madame Mirage). Both teams were co-created by Top Cow founder Marc Silvestri and Hunter-Killer was co-created by writer Mark Waid. The teams have been absent from a regular series for several years and this marks their return to the forefront of the Top Cow Universe.

Writer Mark Waid will be appearing at Collector’s Paradise in Winnetka, CA and artist Kenneth Rocafort will be appearing at the Puerto Rico Comic Con in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Other Top Cow creators making appearances in Los Angeles include Michael Broussard, Rob Levin, Nelson Blake II, and Rick Loverd. Additionally, Top Cow mainstays Ron Marz and Phil Hester will be appearing in various parts of the United States to celebrate the annual event.

Complete details follow below:

Collector’s Paradise
7131 Winnetka Ave.
Winnetka, CA 91306
(818) 999-9455
Signing 12pm-3pm
Mark Waid (Cyberforce/Hunter-Killer)
Joe Benitez (The Darkness, Magdalena)
David Wohl (Witchblade, The Darkness)

Puerto Rico Comic Con & Pop Culture Expo
100 Convention Boulevard
San Juan, PR 00907
http://www.thepopcultureexpo.com/
Signing
Kenneth Rocafort (Cyberforce/Hunter-Killer, Madame Mirage)

Beach Ball Comics
024 W Ball Rd. Ste. G
Anaheim, CA 92804
(714) 826-6127
Signing 11am-2pm
Michael Broussard (The Darkness)
Ryan Winn (The Darkness)
Rick Loverd (Berserker)

Comic Bug
1807 ½ Manhattan Beach Blvd
Manhattan Beach, CA 90266
(310) 372-6704
Signing from 3pm-5pm
Joshua Hale Fialkov (Cyblade, Pilot Season: Alibi)

Earth-2 Comics
15017 Ventura Blvd.
Sherman Oaks, CA
(818) 386-9590
Signing from 12pm-2pm
Filip Sablik (Publisher)
Sheldon Mitchell (Witchblade Annual, Freshmen Summer Special)

Metropolis Comics
16509 Bellflower Blvd
Bellflower, CA 90706
(562) 263-0277
Signing from 11am-1pm
Joshua Hale Fialkov (Cyblade, Pilot Season: Alibi)

Capes Comic Book Lounge
6208 Maple Street
Omaha, NE 68104
(402) 558-0212
Signing
Jeremy Haun (Berserker)

Earthworld Comics
537 Central Ave
Albany, NY 12206
Signing 12pm-6pm
Ron Marz (Witchblade, Broken Trinity)

Krypton Comics
2819 S. 125th Street
Omaha, NE 68144
(402) 391-4131
Signing 10am-6pm
Phil Hester (The Darkness)

ART ATTACHED: Cyberforce/Hunter-Killer First Look cover

About Top Cow Productions Inc.
Top Cow Productions, Inc. (www.topcow.com), a Los Angeles-based entertainment company, was founded in December of 1992 by artist Marc Silvestri, who also co-founded Image Comics earlier that same year. Top Cow currently publishes its line of comic books in 21 languages in over 55 different countries. The company has launched 20 franchises (18 original and two licensed) in the industry’s Top 10, seven at #1, a feat accomplished by no other publisher in the last two decades. Its flagship franchise, WITCHBLADE, was TNT’s #1 original film of 2000 and the subsequent TV series was released on DVD on July 29, 2008. A feature film, co-produced by Platinum Studios, Inc. and Arclight Films, is slated to begin production in Australia with director Michael Rymer. WITCHBLADE is also the first American property to be fully adapted in Japan as an original anime and manga by Studio GONZO in 2006. Top Cow’s other flagship property, THE DARKNESS, was developed into a major next-generation video game release by Starbreeze and 2K Games and achieved platinum sales status. WANTED, an Eisner-nominated miniseries published by Top Cow from 2003-2005, is now a major motion picture from Universal Pictures starring Angelina Jolie, James McAvoy and Morgan Freeman. Virtually all of Top Cow’s other properties are in development as feature films, live-action television, animation or video games. Top Cow has also successfully licensed and merchandised its franchises into toys, statues, clothing, lithographs, puppets, posters, magnets, shot glasses, lighters, lunch pails, wall scrolls, mouse pads, die-cast cars, calendars, Christmas ornaments, Halloween masks, trading cards, standees, video games and roleplaying games.