Dynamite Comics will be publishing James Bond comics in 2015 according to The Hollywood Reporter. They report that Dynamite now has worldwide rights to publish comics, digital comics and graphic novels about the character of James Bond. Several representatives of the companies release statements about the news, indicating what their future plans may be for the franchise. We will post each statement seperately and analyze what the prepared release may indicate.
In a statement accompanying the news, Dynamite Entertainment publisher Nick Barrucci called the character “one of the greatest cultural icons in the world” and the Bond movie series “one of the most successful film franchises ever, a franchise that reinvents itself to be in tune with each generation.” He said that Dynamite was “excited to build upon Fleming’s source material with new canonical stories, and … honored … to be a small part of his legacy, to be able to bring new stories to fans around the world.”
This is an encouraging statement, as it indicates that Dynamite's treatment of the character will be respectful and that they recognize the popularity of the character. They are also attempting to be canonical to the source material and keep new stories in canon. His indication of Fleming's stories may indicate comics based directly from Fleming's original novels, although this may not be the case though they do have the rights to use them. In addition, another statement was prepared:
Ian Fleming Publications Ltd. managing director Corinne Turner added that her company was “thrilled that 007 will be revisiting the world of comics, as Fleming’s novels have a long and successful history in this medium, ever since they began to be published as newspaper comic strips in the late fifties,” and called Dynamite “the perfect partners to take on the challenge of continuing this legacy.”
There is yet another reference to the novels here as opposed to the films. This is a further indication that source material may be drawn from the novels. The reference to the newspaper comic strips also indicates that this new comic series may share continuity with these previous series and pick up where they left off. They do seem to be very concerned about mainting the canocity of these comics. The most interesting tidbit comes from the last paragraph in the Hollywood reporter story:
The Bond deal allows Dynamite to both adapt existing Bond stories (Fleming wrote 14 Bond books during his lifetime) and create all-new material. As part of the announcement of the deal, Dynamite announced plans to create a series set prior to 1953’s Casino Royale, documenting the early years of the spy’s career, to launch in 2015.
So this last bit confirms that the deal is based primarily on the James Bond of the novels rather then the films. It is extremely interesting to know that we will be gaining comics that attempt to portray the character before he was formally introduced in Casino Royale. It is strategic as well to release this series before the release of Bond 24, as a way to pick up interest in James Bond again before the movie is released.
Will you be buying this comic series? Let us know!
