Newsarama: Filip Sablik in "Back the New" or "Fighting Cynicism"

It’s Autumn again. Where did 2010 go, friends? Seriously it seems like only yesterday I was playing video poker at the Hard Rock Café Casino to finish out 2009. I swear it was only minutes ago I was finalizing plans for San Diego Comic-Con and feeling the cold sweat inducing panic of hard printing deadlines rushing headlong at my deer-in-the-headlights expression.

Autumn 2010 means cooler weather (for you poor suckers who live in four seasons), mid-term elections, the return of pumpkin as the flavor-du-jour on everything from your latte to your ice cream, and a new crop of TV pilots hoping for at least one good season in the sun. For us at Top Cow it also means its time for a new crop of Pilot Season comics.

This year we have five different new concepts by five unique creative teams. A mix of season pros and wet-behind-the-ears newcomers fighting for your attention and trying to create something you haven’t seen before. So much of the comics released in recent years have been about nostalgia. I get it. Nostalgia is a warm blanket, a comforting hot cup of cocoa. It reminds us of better, bygone days in troubled times. We know what we’re going to get and what to expect. But I’m here to challenge you take a chance on the new. Stretch past your comfort zone and reach to discover a different genre or an undiscovered creator.

Read more about Pilot Season 2010 from Filip here.
Source: Newsarama

Graphic Policy: Top Cow at Baltimore Comic-Con 2010

Top Cow Productions, Inc. proudly announced today that they will be returning to the 2010 Baltimore Comic-Con, Baltimore’s premier entertainment convention, this weekend August 27-28,2010. This marks the third consecutive year the publisher has had a presence at the show.

Top Cow Publisher Filip Sablik and Direct Market Liaison Atom! Freeman will be bringing writer Ron Marz (Artifacts, Witchblade) and artist Nelson Blake II to the show. Marz and Sablik (Pilot Season: The Asset, Last Mortal) will be on hand for signings both days at the Top Cow booth. In addition, Sablik will be available throughout the show for portfolio reviews for aspiring artists.

The publisher will be offering an exclusive Baltimore Comic Con variant cover to Velocity #1 for the event by Michael Broussard.

Read the full release, including mention of our panel, here.
Source: Graphic Policy

Comic Book Page Podcast Chats Pilot Season 2010 with Filip Sablik

Bob Bretall talks with some of the creators about items in the July 2010 Previews catalog.

Items mentioned:
Top Cow Pilot Season 2010: Interview with Filip Sablik
Pilot Season: 39 Minutes: Interview with William Harms
Freedom Fighters #1: Interview with Jimmy Palmiotti

Get the podcast here.
Source: comicbookpage.com

CBR Commentary Track: Artifacts #1

Warning: Major spoilers for "Artifacts" #1 lurk ahead.

The thirteen Artifacts of the Top Cow Universe are currently being united in the pages of "Artifacts," a 13-issue limited series written by Ron Marz and illustrated by a team of artists including Michael Broussard. Over the past several months, CBR News spoke with Marz and Top Cow publisher Filip Sablik on a weekly basis to discuss the thirteen deadly Artifacts at the center of the series - thirteen objects that could destroy the world when assembled all at once.

With "Artifacts" #1 currently available in comic book stores, the time for preparation is at an end and answers are most assuredly on the way. Continuing our coverage of Top Cow's most ambitious comic book event to date, CBR sat down with Marz, Broussard and Sablik for a detailed analysis of "Artifacts" #1, unearthing a behind-the-scenes look at the construction of the issue.

Read the full article here.
Source: CBR

CBR: The Top Cow: 'We Create' Media Panel

A herd of devoted fans flocked into a packed room for the Top Cow: "We Create" Multimedia panel at Comic-Con International in San Diego on Saturday, sitting before a panel consisting of Top Cow publisher Filip Sablik, president Matt Hawkins, CEO Marc Silvestri and American Original founder Jeff Katz, with plenty of guest panelists and prominent announcements to follow.

The Top Cow panelists kicked things off with a first look at a trailer cut specifically for Comic-Con. Featuring a flashy music video with quick cuts, concert footage and all sorts of burning fanfare, the trailer teased a project built around September Mourning front woman Emily Lazar that's billed as a cross-media entertainment endeavor across comic books, digital downloads, video games, jewelry and much more. Lazar briefly joined the panelists on stage and Silvestri described the mysterious project, saying: "It's coming out real fast and we're going to start teasing it out through the Top Cow Universe. If David Bowie had technology today, this would be Ziggy Stardust."

Although he wouldn't tip his hand on what exactly the Lazar-centric project entails, Silvestri made a promise to the panel's attendees. "I'm being very genuine here," he said. "You're going to remember this day."

Read all our panel announcements here.
Source: CBR

CBR: The Road Ends with the Thirteenth Artifact

The Thirteenth Artifact, currently unidentified within the pages of the Top Cow Universe, will finally be revealed over the course of "Artifacts," the 13-issue limited series from writer Ron Marz and a team of illustrators including Michael Broussard. Once revealed, this final Artifact will take its place alongside the twelve previously identified Artifacts: the Witchblade, the Darkness, the Angelus, the Rapture, the Spear of Destiny, the Glacier Stone, the Ember Stone, the Blood Sword, Pandora's Box, the Wheel of Shadows, the Heart Stone and the Coin of Solomon. Once identified - and once unified with the other twelve - readers will finally learn just how dangerous the Thirteenth Artifact really is. To learn more about the Artifact, CBR News spoke with "Artifacts" writer Ron Marz and Top Cow Publisher Filip Sablik for the final installment of our weekly interview series.

"Obviously, you're going to have to read the series to find out what the final Artifact is - we're not even going to give you the name at this point," Marz told CBR. "I guess the main thing to say about it is that it's been hidden for a reason. There's a reason that this thing has been hidden very much off the playing field. All of that will start to become clearer once we reveal what the Artifact is and where it's been all this time."

Read the full article here.
Source: CBR

CBR: The Heart Stone Beats on the Road to "Artifacts"

Matters of the heart are typically quite complicated. Matters of the Heart Stone, however, bring the word "complicated" to a whole new level.

The Heart Stone is one of thirteen deadly Artifacts scattered about the Top Cow Universe, taking its rightful place alongside others such as the Witchblade, the Darkness, the Angelus, the Rapture, the Spear of Destiny, the Glacier Stone, the Ember Stone, the Blood Sword, Pandora's Box and the Wheel of Shadows. While the true nature of the Heart Stone remains shrouded in mystery, its potential will be unlocked within the pages of "Artifacts," the upcoming 13-issue limited series from writer Ron Marz and a team of illustrators including Michael Broussard. CBR News spoke with Marz and Top Cow publisher Filip Sablik to learn more about the Heart Stone, its mysterious powers and its unidentified bearer.

Both Marz and Sablik acknowledged that the Heart Stone is "one of the more mysterious Artifacts," making the topic somewhat difficult to discuss in detail without spoiling major events of the "Artifacts" series itself. "While being a little bit veiled, the Heart Stone essentially lets you see to the heart of the matter and to the truth of who a person is at their core," Sablik told CBR.

Read the full article here.
Source: CBR

CBR: Wheel of Shadows Spins The Road to "Artifacts"

Time is on your side, yes it is, if your name happens to be Sabine and you're in possession of the Wheel of Shadows.

An elite Angelus warrior, Sabine has significantly upped the ante on her power set thanks to her possession of the Wheel of Shadows, one of thirteen deadly Artifacts lurking about the Top Cow Universe alongside the Witchblade, the Darkness, the Angelus, the Rapture, the Spear of Destiny, the Glacier Stone, the Ember Stone, the Blood Sword and Pandora's Box. But in seeking out the Wheel of Shadows, has Sabine finally bitten off more than she can chew? Only time can tell, but time is running out as we inch ever closer to the debut of "Artifacts," the soon-to-launch 13-issue series written by Ron Marz and illustrated by a team of artists including Michael Broussard. CBR News spoke with Marz and Top Cow publisher Filip Sablik to learn more about the Wheel of Shadows, its current bearer Sabine and their mutual role in the continuing "Artifacts" saga.

Like most shiny objects with a beautiful golden trim and an alluring obsidian interior, the Wheel of Shadows is not to be treated lightly - especially considering that it was most recently seen hidden in the depths of Hell. As is the case with the rest of the Artifacts, the Wheel offers its wielder with a very specific set of skills: in this instance, time manipulation.

Read the full feature here.
Source: CBR

What the Con: Top Cow Comes to the November VA Comicon

Great news everyone! Top Cow Publisher Filip Sabilik will be coming to the VA COMICON for our BIG 2-day show on November 20-21.
He has offered to do portfolio reviews for all aspiring Top-Cow artists! This could be your once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to get your skills noticed by the studios that produce Witchblade, Wanted, Cyberforce and more!

Read it here.
Source: vacomicon.com

Word Balloon Podcast: Top Cow's Worlds Collide with Filip Sablik

The Top Cow publisher is here to discuss The Darkness, Witchblade, new books like Angelus, Broken Trinity:Pandora's Box, and everything that leads to this summer's TC event Artifacts. Plus Robert Kirkman & Marc Silvestri's pilot season , and Top Cow's future in the digital market.

Get the podcast here.
Source: wordballoon.blogspot.com

CBR: Pandora's Box Opens on the Road to Artifacts

Every Artifact within the Top Cow Universe is shrouded in some degree of mystery, but few Artifacts are quite as enigmatic as Pandora's Box.

Currently at the center of its very own miniseries, Pandora's Box is one of the thirteen deadly Artifacts lurking about in the Top Cow Universe, joining the ranks of the Witchblade, the Darkness, the Angelus, the Rapture, the Spear of Destiny, the Glacier Stone, the Ember Stone and the Blood Sword. Although the Artifact itself remains shrouded in mystery, the very provocative name of Pandora's Box is a good indicator that this item holds great destructive potential - potential that could be realized within the pages of "Artifacts," the upcoming 13-issue series written by Ron Marz and illustrated by a team of artists including Michael Broussard. CBR News spoke with Marz and Top Cow publisher Filip Sablik to learn more about Pandora's Box, its ties to the Glacier and Ember Stones, and its overall role in the world of the Artifacts.

According to Marz and Sablik, Pandora's Box itself has ties to the famous legend of its namesake, if only symbolically.

Read the full article here.
Source: CBR

Comics Nexus: Witchblade & the Darkness March to the End in Top Cow's 13-Part Artifacts Epic

Artifacts promises to be Top Cow’s most ambitious art series to date and will weave together story lines from a number of Top Cow titles, including Witchblade, The Darkness, Angelus and Broken Trinity: Pandora’s Box. It has been known that thirteen mystical Artifacts guide the fate of the Top Cow Universe. For centuries, it’s been whispered that bringing together all 13 artifacts would bring upon mankind’s destruction. The series will begin with a mysterious figure who seeks to put Armageddon into motion.
Unique to the mega-series Artifacts will be the fact that the series will be split between three teams, each completing four issues. Marz will reunite with artist Michael Broussard (The Darkness, Unholy Union), who will pencil Artifacts #1-4. The remaining two art teams will be announced in the future. Additionally, a special guest artist will complete the ultimate 13th issue of the series

Read the full article here.
Source: comicsnexus.insidepulse.com

CBR: The Blood Sword Cleaves The Road to "Artifacts"

As the bearers of the Ember Stone and the Glacier Stone respectively, Glorianna "Glori" Silver and Michael "Finn" Finnegan are pretty evenly matched - but when the Blood Sword is thrown into the mix, Finn suddenly has an unexpected and literal edge on his competition.

As if one Artifact wasn't enough, the Glacier Stone-wielding Finn is also in possession of the Blood Sword, one of thirteen deadly Artifacts within the Top Cow Universe alongside the likes of the Witchblade, the Darkness, the Angelus, the Rapture, the Spear of Destiny and, of course, Glori's own Ember Stone. But is it an Artifact that Finn will always remain in possession of, or is the sword destined for another owner? We'll find out in the pages of "Artifacts," the upcoming 13-issue series written by Ron Marz and illustrated by a team of artists including Michael Broussard. CBR News spoke with Marz and Top Cow publisher Filip Sablik to learn more about the Blood Sword, its history and its future.

Marz offered some history on the Blood Sword, which first appeared in "Witchblade" #86.

Read the full article here.
Source: CBR

iFanboy's A Taste of Comics #7 - Burgers

With C.B. Cebulski out traveling the world in the name of comics, Filip Sablik, Russ Cundiff and Ron Richards pick up the Taste of Comics baton and have a rousing discussion of recent meals, great comics, a discussion about Digital Comics as well as talking about the great american dish: Burgers.

Listen to the podcast here.
Source: iFanboy

Graphic Policy: Top Cow at Supercon

Top Cow Productions, Inc. proudly announced today that they will be exhibiting at Florida Supercon in South Florida this weekend. Three three-day comic book, anime, animation, video game, fantasy and sci-fi convention will be open to the public on Friday, June 18 running through Sunday, June 20, 2010, at the Doubletree Miami Mart Airport Convention Center in Miami.

Read the full release here.
Source: Graphic Policy

CBR: The Glacier Stone Freezes the Road to "Artifacts"

In the Top Cow Universe, there are times when a rivalry can be boiled down to a simple notion of fire and ice. But for low-level thug Michael "Finn" Finnegan, the last thing he ever expected in life - indeed, the last thing he wanted - was to come into opposition against a fiery Artifact-wielder such as Glorianna "Glori" Silver.

No matter his desire, that's exactly the situation that Finn has found himself in as the wielder of the Glacier Stone, one of thirteen deadly Artifacts carried by a handful of characters within the Top Cow Universe including Sara Pezzini (Witchblade), Jackie Estacado (The Darkness), Danielle Baptiste (The Angelus), Tom Judge (Rapture) and the Magdalena (The Spear of Destiny). Finn and the Glacier Stone are two of the many key components in the upcoming 13-issue "Artifacts" miniseries written by Ron Marz and illustrated by a team of illustrators including Michael Broussard. To learn more about Finn and the Glacier Stone, CBR News turned to Marz and Top Cow Publisher Filip Sablik for the sixth installment of our weekly "Road to Artifacts" series.

Finn is not only new to the notion of the Artifacts; he's also new to the Top Cow Universe. The character first appeared in "Broken Trinity," the 2008 miniseries written by Marz and illustrated by Stjepan Sejic. A low-level Irish thug, Finn was sent by Jackie Estacado to look out over Sara Pezzini and their daughter Hope - but his level of involvement soon escalated to something considerably more elemental.


Read the full article here.
Source: CBR

Newsarama: THE DARKNESS: ORIGINS VOLUME 2 Coming This Month

DARKNESS FANS CAN DIVE INTO JACKIE ESTACADO’S BEGINNING WITH THE WITCHBLADE

THE DARKNESS: ORIGINS VOLUME 2 TRADE PAPERBACK

LOS ANGELES, Calif., June 8, 2010 – Top Cow Productions, Inc. proudly announced today that the long sold-out early issues of The Darkness will be re-released as The Darkness: Origins Volume 2. Scheduled to be in stores June 30, 2010, The Darkness: Origins Volume 2 continues the rebranding presented as part of the publisher’s “Origins” trade paperback line reprinting of classic Top Cow Universe stories that includes the recently released Witchblade: Origins Volume 1 and 2, and The Darkness: Origins Volume 1 trade paperbacks.

Read the full release here.
Source: Newsarama

CBR: Magdalena Prays on the Road to Artifacts

One can't walk the road to "Artifacts" without Patience. No, really.

Better known to the Top Cow herd as the current Magdalena, Patience is a warrior woman that comic book scribe Ron Marz describes as the Catholic Church's monster hunter. She's also the wielder of the Spear of Destiny, one of thirteen deadly Artifacts carried by certain characters within the Top Cow Universe including Sara Pezzini (Witchblade), Jackie Estacado (The Darkness), Danielle Baptiste (The Angelus) and Tom Judge (Rapture). It's an object that will most assuredly come into play during "Artifacts," the July-launching 13-issue limited series written by Marz and illustrated by a team of artists including Michael Broussard. CBR News spoke with Marz and Top Cow Publisher Filip Sablik to learn more about Patience, the Spear of Destiny and their mutual roles in the forthcoming series.

Read the full article here.

Source: CBR

CBR: Experience "Rapture" on the Road to "Artifacts"

Hell hath no fury like a man of god scorned - a man like Tom Judge, wielder of the Rapture.

Judge is one of the Top Cow Universe's elite Artifact-bearers, a group consisting of Sara Pezzini (Witchblade), Jackie Estacado (The Darkness) and Danielle Baptiste (The Angelus). But there's a major distinction between Judge and the aforementioned bearers - unlike these Earth-dwellers, Judge's current place of residence is the depths of Hell. Of course, that's not to say that he won't have an important role to play when the time comes for "Artifacts," the 13-issue series written by Ron Marz and illustrated by a team of artists including Michael Broussard. CBR News spoke with Marz and Top Cow Publisher Filip Sablik to learn more about Judge and his role in "Artifacts."

"Tom Judge is a defrocked priest, and like a lot of the other characters in the Top Cow Universe, he's somebody with a lot of shades of grey," Marz told CBR of Judge. "He's very much a fallen man and also a guy who paid the ultimate price for his sins and got sent straight to Hell - which is where he currently resides."

Read more about Tom Judge and the Rapture here.

Source: CBR

iFanboy's A Taste of Comics #6 - Breakfast

With the large string of conventions behind them, C.B. Cebulski, Filip Sablik, Russ Cundiff and Ron Richards get together to talk about their favorite spots around the country for the first meal of the day, breakfast. In addition to the world of breakfast, they talk up some of their favorite spots to eat, including the best meatball sandwich and best pastrami sandwich for lunch and the amazingness of Dumpling trucks.

In comics, C.B. is loving Ultimate Spider-Man, Ron raves about Daytripper, Filip is late to the game but loves Detective Comics and finally Russ throws a curveball questioning the paper quality at Vertigo and Filip and C.B. share their opinions and it ain't pretty