We’ve always expected that Disney would be making some major cuts to Fox since they acquired the entertainment assets back in March.

Among the first things to go were some employees. At the time, some 4,000 employees were to be affected by this merger, which also included Disney shutting down Fox 2000, a branch of Fox that released films like The Devil Wears Prada, The Fault in Our Stars, and The Hate U Give. Now Disney is moving on to other projects by cutting out even more titles. More on this below.

Mouse Guard, Vol. 3
The Black Axe
Hardcover
Written and Illustrated by David Petersen
Archaia Entertainment
Release Date: July 23, 2013
Cover Price: $24.95

The legend lives on! Mouse Guard, Vol. 3: The Black Axe, the prequel chapter in David Petersen‘s epic saga has arrived. Join me as I recount my quest through the pages of this valiant tale.

It is Spring, 1115, 37 years before the events of the Fall and Winter of 1152. The Guard mouse by the name of Celanawe is recruited by his only living relative, an elderly mouse named Em, to venture out in search of the long-lost mythic Black Axe. Accompanied by a bitter, rugged ex-ship captain called Conrad — looking to reclaim his title and good fortune — the two set forth on a grand adventure that pits them against a group of vicious weasel hunters, deep sea creatures, thieving, murderous mice, and a giant fox. As Celanawe and Em embark on their journey, much is revealed about the legend of The Black Axe and what’s in store for the future of its next wielder.

In a move to continue growing the size and diversity of their comic book output, BOOM! Studios has announced today that they have merged their operations with Archaia Entertainment. The Archaia brand will live on as an imprint of BOOM! Studios, join their normal line, as well as the KaBOOM! line designed for all-ages books. Today’s announcement declares that this move gives BOOM! the largest independent company-controlled comic book catalog (Image doesn’t count since individual creators maintain ownership under Image, that’s kind of their thing).

BOOM! Studios have been steadily expanding for years, adding original series to their licensed comics. They have had a number of great creators working for them, from Frank Miller and Mark Waid to Paul Jenkins and Brian Stelfreeze. They are currently riding high on a series of successful tie-ins to some Cartoon Network properties, notably their line of Adventure Time books.

Comics fans, it’s our day!!! It’s our Super Bowl. Our World Series. Our Wrestlemania. It’s FREE COMIC BOOK DAY!!!

Every year, on the first Saturday in May the comics industry comes together and gives out FREE COMIC BOOKS!! Depending on your local comic store, you can choose one or up to ALL of the specially selected free comic books that a slew of publishers put out. Chances are, if you’re a comics fan, you all ready know just what you’re going to pick. But, if you haven’t had the time to look over the Free Comic Book Day website, here’s a brief rundown of SOME of the titles that will be given away at thousands of shops throughout the country. In NO particular order, they are…

Whenever I go to a convention like New York Comic Con, I’m typically on the movie coverage beat. I spend most of my morning waiting on a lengthy line to get into whatever the big theater where all the movie panels are held and new footage from upcoming films is previewed. I then spend the rest of my day in said theater typing away on my laptop, then later I type away in the press room.

All of this means and barely eat or pee or see the light of day and when I do get a chance to break away, I head right to the Con floor to snag some freebies, check out some of the awesome costumes, and peruse through the enormous selection of books, comic books, and trades. Because while I’m obsessed with movies, I WANT BOOKS!!!

I was fortunate enough to gets lots of wonderful freebies, too many to mentioned here. Therefore, here’s a list of 7 noteworthy books plus 7 single-issue comic books (and a few honorable mentions) that I delightfully snagged at the Con.

Dracula’s Heir

I saw the little Quirk Books sign and instantly recognized them as the publishers of The Indiana Jones Handbook, which I reviewed back in June. So of course I ran right over and proceeded to salivate all over their selection of titles. While I wanted pretty much all of them, I decided on Dracula’s Heir, an interactive mystery based on the lost chapter of Bram Stoker‘s Dracula which takes place 10 years after the events of the classic novel. What adds to the coolness of the book (and the Quirk’s other “Interactive Mystery” titles) is that it comes with a bunch of removable clues like newspaper clippings and journal entries and once you’ve solved the mystery, there’s a final sealed up chapter at the end of the book that you break open — love it!!!