New A-Team Comic from IDW and Twentieth Century Fox

Two original titles hit the shelves in march to celebrate the upcoming release of the A-Team movie.

San Diego, CA (February 22, 2010) – In anticipation of the summer movie event The A-Team, starting in March, IDW Publishing, in partnership with Twentieth Century Fox Licensing & Merchandising (Fox Licensing), will launch two A-Team comic book series, entitled A-Team: Shotgun Wedding and A-Team: War Stories.
The original stories penned and inked by some of the industry’s biggest
names, will give fans an in-depth look at the upcoming action-adventure
from Twentieth Century Fox – The A-Team – which will hit theatres June 11, 2010. Each series will be available as single issues in March and April, and collected into individual graphic novels in May.

“Like many, I was a huge fan of the original A-Team television series in the 80’s,” said A-Team comic editor and co-writer Tom Waltz.
“I’m happy to report, after reading the new movie script, the updated
A-Team movie has all the wit, swagger and kick-ass action of the
original series, but tells a story much bigger than was possible on the
show. For our comics, we’ve worked directly with the filmmakers to
build a solidly action-packed foundation for a new generation of A-Team
fans.”

“This comic project is the ideal collaboration between
the studio, the production, the filmmakers and the publisher maximizing
everyone’s talents for the best product. IDW has demonstrated their
ability to bring on some of the best writers and artists in the comic
book industry and work closely and effectively with all the
constituents. The A-Team has a huge following and these comics, much
like the upcoming film, contemporize this enormously popular
action-adventure franchise and deliver fresh, compelling stories and
art to the fans,” said Virginia King, Vice President U.S. Sales for Fox
Licensing & Merchandising.

Taking inspiration from the eagerly anticipated feature film – The A-Team
– the comic book series provides the back story for the characters in
the film and documents several of the team’s first missions. War Stories
features four stand-alone, bi-weekly issues that each focus on a
different member of the team, offering details of their Desert Storm
adventures as Army Rangers before each joins The A-Team.

Co-written by comics great Chuck Dixon (G.I. JOE) and Erik Burnham (Nanovor: Game Day), the series kicks off with Hannibal and B.A. in March, followed by
Face and Murdock in April. Each team member’s story will feature a
different artist in order to best bring out every character’s
individual personality. Hugo Petrus (Marvel Illustrated) will provide interior art for Hannibal, and Casey Maloney (G.I. JOE: Rise of Cobra) tackles B.A. in March. In April, Alberto Muriel (Legion: Prophets) revives Face, followed by Guiu Vilanova (After the Fire), who delivers Murdock. Fan-favorite artist Michael Gaydos (Alias) will provide covers for every issue.

“I was a devoted A-Team fan from the first episode and love all of these characters. Pure action and excitement,” said Chuck Dixon.
“I jumped at the chance to join Erik and work on this property and it’s
been better than expected. The dialogue and characterizations came so
naturally to me, it was scary.”

Also starting in March, A-Team: Shotgun Wedding,
a bi-weekly four issue series, gives fans a taste of the team’s
missions after they’ve officially formed The A-Team. This original
adventure, co-plotted by the movie’s director, Joe Carnahan, and Waltz
(who also handles the scripting) follows the team from frigid Alaska to
sunny San Diego and onto a wedding cruise that becomes utter chaos.
Artist Stephen Mooney (Angel: After the Fall) adds heat to every explosion, while John K. Snyder III offers eye-catching covers.

Visit IDWPublishing.com to learn more about the company and its top-selling books.

A-Team: Shotgun Wedding #1 (of 4; $3.99; 32 pages) will be available in stores on March 10, 2010. Diamond order code JAN10 0987.

A-Team: War Stories: Hannibal ($3.99; 32 pages) will be available in stores on March 17, 2010. Diamond order code JAN10 0989.

A-Team: Shotgun Wedding #2 (of 4; $3.99; 32 pages) will be available in stores on March 24, 2010. Diamond order code JAN10 0988.

A-Team: War Stories: B.A. ($3.99; 32 pages) will be available in stores in March 2010. Diamond order code JAN10 0991.

A-Team: Shotgun Wedding #3 (of 4; $3.99; 32 pages) will be available in stores in April 2010.

A-Team: Shotgun Wedding #4 (of 4; $3.99; 32 pages) will be available in stores in April 2010.

A-Team: War Stories: Face ($3.99; 32 pages) will be available in stores in April 2010.

A-Team: War Stories: Murdock ($3.99; 32 pages) will be available in stores in April 2010.

About The A-Team
THE
A-TEAM follows the exciting and daring exploits of a colorful team of
former Special Forces soldiers who were set up for a crime they did not
commit. Going “rogue,” they utilize their unique talents to try and
clear their names and find the true culprit. THE A-TEAM in theaters
only June 11, 2010.

Liam Neeson, whose many credits include
the Oscar-winning “Schindler’s List” and the recent box office hit
“Taken,” portrays Hannibal Smith, a master planner of inventive
missions requiring split-second timing, unusual skills and a team of
incredibly proficient and…eccentric soldiers; Bradley Cooper, who shot
to movie superstardom in the smash comedy “The Hangover,” is Templeton
“Face” Peck, who can procure anything for the Team’s unorthodox and
daring activities; Quinton “Rampage” Jackson, a professional mixed
martial artist and a top rated UFC light heavyweight, is B.A. Baracas,
the Team’s driver and muscle; and Sharlto Copley, who stars in the
surprise summer hit “District 9,” is H.M “Howling Mad” Murdock, a
gifted pilot – and certified loon. Jessica Biel (“The Illusionist”)
stars as Capt. Charisa Sosa, a former love interest of Face’s, but
who’s now relentlessly pursuing the Team for a crime not of their
doing. Patrick Wilson (“Watchmen”) is Lynch, a mysterious CIA
operative who is a key player in the Team’s most explosive mission.

Joe
Carnahan (“Narc,” “Smokin’ Aces”) directs from a screenplay by Skip
Woods (“X-Men Origins: Wolverine”), Carnahan, and Carnahan’s writing
partner Brian Bloom (writing credit not final), based on the television
series “The A-Team.” The producers are Ridley Scott, Tony Scott,
Jules Daly, Stephen J. Cannell, Alex Young, Iain Smith, and Spike
Seldin.

About IDW Publishing
 IDW is an award-winning
publisher of comic books, graphic novels and trade paperbacks, based in
San Diego, California. Renown for its diverse catalog of licensed and
independent titles, IDW publishes some of the most successful and
popular titles in the industry, including: Hasbro’s The
Transformers and G.I. JOE, Paramount’s Star Trek; Fox’s Angel; the
BBC’s Doctor Who; and television’s #1 prime time series CBS’ CSI: Crime
Scene Investigation. IDW is also home to the Library of American Comics
imprint, which publishes classic comic reprints; Yoe! Books, a
partnership with Yoe! Studios; and is the print publisher for ComicMix.

IDW’s original horror series, 30 Days of Night, was launched as
a major motion picture in October 2007 by Sony Pictures and was the #1
film in its first week of release. More information about the company
can be found at IDWPublishing.com.

About Twentieth Century Fox Licensing & Merchandising
A
recognized industry leader, Twentieth Century Fox Licensing and
Merchandising licenses and markets properties worldwide behalf of
Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation, Twentieth Television and Fox
Broadcasting Company, as well as third party lines. The division is
aligned with Twentieth Century Fox Television, one of the top suppliers
of primetime entertainment programming to the broadcast networks.

Source: Press Release
Syndicated from The Outhouse – The Greatest Comic Book Website
Posted originally: 2010-02-22 14:11:11