Farewell to Azim Akberali…

It is with great sadness and a heavy heart that we say goodbye to Azim Akberali, who has passed away after a lengthy battle with illness.

One of the founding members of Orang Utan Comics, Azim contributed both interior art and, most notably, a series of stunning fully painted covers to a number of Markosia titles over the years. He painted the cover to, and worked on interior art for the Eagle Award nominated Eleventh Hour, and was also nominated for an Eagle Award in his own right. He went on to provide cover art for Alpha Gods, Hypergirl and The Return of the Son of Eleventh Hour, as well as numerous projects at Tidalwave Productions, including their Political Power: Barack Obama comic.

More than being a great artist Azim was a great friend and a kind, generous spirit. He will be sorely missed.

Markosia Are Not Accepting Submissions That Utilize AI Art

Here at Markosia we stand shoulder to shoulder with our artists and would like to ensure everyone that we will never knowingly publish any project that utilises AI generated art and have now amended our Submissions Guidelines to make this clear.

Not only are there concerns as to the legality of using art that’s generated by sampling other’s work without their consent, we also feel that there is an ethical concern. Markosia is built upon the hard work of countless artists and we believe it’s not only impossible to replace them with machine learning code but it would also be wrong to do so.

Technology is supposed to make our lives easier and free us to pursue our personal creative endeavours, not to free us from having to make art so we can spend more time working!

So rest assured, whether you’re an artist or a reader, you will never see AI art in our books.

Markosia Alpha Gods Giveaway!

To celebrate the 200th edition of our newsletter, Markosia Mailing, we’re giving away a copy of the Alpha Gods Omnibus!

Written by Ian Sharman with art by Ezequiel Pineda and JJ Alonso and coloured by Mauro Barbosa, Yel Zamor, Leigh Wortley and Patrik Mock, this special Omnibus edition collects Alpha Gods: Emergence, Alpha Gods: Betrayal and Alpha Gods: Revelation, the complete first Alpha Gods story arc. Also included are seventy five pages of extras featuring rare and never before seen production artwork produced during the development of the series.

We’re also giving away five runner up prizes of Alpha Gods: Emergence, the book that kicks off the entire Alpha Gods saga!

Don’t forget to complete all the options to unlock eight more chances to win, including signing up to our newsletter to unlock five bonus entries!

Click HERE to enter now!

ComicScene Awards!

Don’t forget to nominate your five favourite Markosia comics published between January 2020 and November 2021 in the ComicScene Awards!

There’s a whole host of our comics and graphic novels that are eligible for the awards, from The Intergalactic Adventures Of Zakk Ridley Vol 2: Sins Of The Past #1 to Noah: The True Story Of The Flood #s 1 and 2…and everything in-between!

(We think our EiC might be a little biased in his nomination recommendations there…)

Click HERE to submit your nominations!

Chris Bradshaw RIP

It is with a very heavy heart that we announce the death of one of our family, Chris Bradshaw, writer and creator of ‘Nazi Werewolf Zombie Inferno’.
Chris sadly died on Monday evening in hospital after succumbing to illness. He will be very sorely missed by us and we send our deepest sympathies to his family and friends.

RIP, Chris, my friend.

Here is a touching tribute by someone who knew him better than most, Tina Jackson:

Chris Bradshaw 16/10/1961-04/10/2021

As Chris’s many friends around the world recall him and bring him to life in their memories, the word ‘epic’ comes up over and over again. This passionately talented man was a singer, a screenwriter, an actor and with his collaborator Karl Jull, the creator of a none-more-bizarro graphic novel, Markosia’s Nazi Zombie Werewolf Inferno. He was so alive, such a vital presence, that writing about him in the past tense feels wrong.

In every part of his life, he walked the walk. Part Flash Harry, part Lord Byron, part Richard Burton and entirely, beautifully, uniquely his own creation, Chris rollicked through the world with a piratical punk swagger and a devilish glint in eyes smeared with kohl. He was outrageous, had a wicked way with words, the quickest of wits and the true raconteur’s ability to spin a yarn.

Whatever he did he was true to his vision and gave it his own original, larger-than-life spin – for instance, as a singer his gravelly baritone croon brought layers of gothic mystery to the abrasive industrial rock of Burning Retna. In his last years he recorded a beautiful song, A Ghost Story, under the name of Christopher Paris (find it on YouTube!) and was working on a script about the Sex Pistols’ US tour, short stories, and the manuscript of a novel.

In his personal life, Chris was a hugely generous, kind, humane man who thought deeply, cared profoundly, drew people to him wherever he went and made friends he kept for life. He was a loyal friend whose company guaranteed a great time and unforgettable conversation, and a man with a such a great, big, loving heart that it’s unthinkable that it’s stopped beating.

As well as his own exceptional work, he can be found walking through several of the tales in Stories from the Chicken Foot House (Markosia), which is dedicated to him. Rock’n’Roll Dream Tour has my name on it but it’s shot through with his ideas and Captain Chris Rock is him all over.

He was a star who shone very brightly, and burning out, leaves the biggest hole. He will be missed by a lot of people who love him.

Shine on, my crazy diamond.
Tina

Dimensioneer: Origins! – COMING SOON!

In a vast demon realm of virtually unlimited dimensions, the mighty Zaltavar has ruled for endless eternities! The only dimension yet to fall under the sway of this hell spawn is the one we live in on Earth. It has long been his desire, and the desire of his master, CH’THULU, to shred the “Unbreakable Barrier” and take over the multi-dimensional gateway that is Earth!

The only thing in the way of his ultimate conquest is The Dimensioneer!

The first of a stunning series of Graphic Novels chronicling the life and adventures of The Dimensioneer!

Written and illustrated by Dan Reed, Dimensioneer: Origins will be released on August 16th and is available to pre-order now from the links below!

Markosia Comics Bundle 7 on Groupees!

Markosia has once again teamed up with Groupees to offer a fantastic bundle of digital graphic novels and raise money for the International Society for Children with Cancer!

Just $2.50 will grab you AloneNotLonely, Bloodfellas, Hope Falls, Life Cycle, Shepard, Terminus At Fenton’s Green, The Indifference Engine 2, The Undoubtables and White Knuckle.

Increase your payment to just $5 and you’ll also get Emily Corn, Knowledge, Witchfire, Bayou Arcana, The Hill, Aleister Crowley: Wandering The Waste, Dark Lies, Darker Truths, Slaughterman’s Creed, Voivod and Betty ‘the Slayer’ Mitchell.

That’s 19 graphic novels for as little as $5!

But, there’s more, if total sales hit $1,000 you’ll also get Trumpocalypse Now! And another book will be unlocked when we hit $1,500!

Not only that, but the person who contributes the most will receive all six previous Markosia bundles of digital books on Groupees! At the time of writing the current highest contributor has contributed just $8, so a contribution of just $9 could get you dozens of digital graphic novels!

So click HERE to head on over to Groupees now, bag yourself a fist full of digital comics, and give some money to charity! Everyone’s a winner with Markosia and Groupees!

The Intergalactic Adventures Of Zakk Ridley Vol 2: Sins Of The Past #1 – COMING SOON!

30 pages | Full Colour
ISBN: 978-1-914926-08-2

Writer: Ian Sharman
Artist: Ewan McLaughlin

Zakk Ridley’s back and this time it feels like the whole universe is after him…and not just for his rugged good looks. But that’s what happens when you paralyze the galactic president and then do a runner! Can Zak and his trusty friends, Dan and Kyouri escape the cold, hard hand of justice…while also dealing with a spate of kidnappings?! Can a vast cast of space pirates and space ninjas stop them?! Probably not, but you’ll have to read the book to find out…

This prestige format single issue includes a bonus six page story set before The Intergalactic Adventures of Zakk Ridley Vol 1, which is exclusive to the print edition, appearing in full colour for the first time!

Written by Ian Sharman and featuring fully painted artwork by Ewan McLaughlin, the long awaited first part of Zakk Ridley’s return will be released on August 30th and is available to pre-order now from the links below!