Image Comics co-founder Erik Larsen will launch a new Ant book for the company starting this August. The current run of Ant just concluded, and this new series will integrate the character more fully into the Image Universe, and provide the perfect jumping-on point for readers.
Ant, and the story of how she came to be, is a fascinating one. Created by artist Mario Gully, who also goes by the name OMG, during a one-year prison stint for robbery, the Ant made her comics debut at Arcana Press, and later moved to Image Comics, which brought the character onto Erik Larsen’s radar. At the time, Larsen was serving as the company’s Publisher in addition to writing and drawing his long-running Savage Dragon series, also for Image. When Gully brought Ant on board with Image, he and Larsen discussed ways to make her a character that would fit into Image’s scope. Larsen ended up plotting and doing layouts for the book, and when the book concluded, Larsen was at the helm; he has even bought the rights to the character, and this August, the Ant will star in a brand new ongoing.
A press release from Image Comics recounts Ant’s history as well as Larsen’s involvement with the character, saying that buying a character was something he had never done before. The press release went on to say that Larsen hopes to bring cohesion to the character, citing the previous book’s five different writers over 11 issues; the series relied on flashbacks that never made narrative sense, and Larsen promises the new series will touch on the original Ant series and make “sense of it all.” The first issue will recap the character’s origin, making it a good jumping-on point for new readers.
Larsen’s enthusiasm for the project and character shines through in the press release. Larsen claims in the press release that he hasn't had this many ideas for a book since Savage Dragon’s debut over 25 years ago at Image Comics. Larsen’s track record on Savage Dragon, one of Image’s longest-running titles, shows what he can do on characters he is passionate about. Larsen hopes to help Ant fulfill her potential by exploring how she fits in with the rest of the Image Universe. Clearly, Larsen is passionate about the project, and Mario Gully made the right call in selling the rights to Larsen.
Image Comics co-founder and Savage Dragon creator Erik Larsen will bring Ant to the Image Universe, expanding her role in it and providing a fresh start for new readers. Ant #1 will be on sale in print and digital August 25.
Source: Image Comics