Beckett lands Terminator comic licence

It's the combination of something old and something new - specifically, the Terminator franchise returning to comics, but courtesy of a magazine publisher, rather than a comic book publisher. In June, Beckett Comics will release a prequel of T3: Rise of the Machines - a new Terminator 3-based ongoing series.

The new publishing arrangement is a coup for Beckett, as the license was previously held by Dark Horse (after being held by Now Comics from 1988-90), who published their last Terminator comic, The Dark Years in 1999. Beckett Comics is a division of Beckett Publications, which is best known in the direct market for its line of collectible magazines, such as Beckett Yu-Gi-Oh Collector, Dragon Ball Z Collector, and Beckett Pokemon & Anime Collector, as well as a number of sports-collectible publications.

The first arc of the new series, entitled "Before the Rise," will be written by Ivan (Gene Fusion) Brandon from a story concept by Jeff Amano, and will tell the story of a band of freedom fighters in the future waging war against SkyNet and its army of robots.

The initial two-issue storyarc of the series will be followed by "Eyes of the Rise," which will depict the events of the film from the perspective of the T-X, the new Terminator model which goes up against Schwarzenegger's Terminator in the film. The "Eyes of the Rise" is written by Miles (Bastard Samurai) Gunter, adapted from the film screenplay.

Goran (Outlaw Nation) Parlov and Mike ( Grendel: Red, White, & Black) Hawthorne will illustrate the series. Parlov is being inked by Salgood (Muties) Sam, while Hawthorne is being inked by Rick (Avengers) Remender. Colors will be by Paul (Ultimates) Mounts and Matt (Daredevil) Hollingsworth, who also has signed on as Beckett's color art director.

The first four covers of the series will be by Simon Bisley and Hajime Sorayama.

"It's great to have Simon working with us on Terminator 3," Amano said. "Nobody else can bring the level of intensity necessary for this iconic character. Arnold looks like he could reach out of the page and throttle you, and also, getting a master of Sorayama's caliber was a real coup. This is a man who has built an astonishing career out of his unique and beautiful images of robots. I can't think of a better artist to capture the menace and deadly beauty of the new female Terminator."

The first issue of Terminator 3 is an extra-sized issue, scheduled to be in stores in June. The series will follow monthly. Issues will run over 50 pages each, and be prestige format. Cover price for Terminator 3 will be $5.95

According to sources, the production team on T3 is heavily involved with both the creation of the comic, as well as the marketing. Additionally, Before the Rise will be the first time Arnold Schwarzenegger has allowed his likeness to be used for original comics fiction. Outside of the Marvel adaptation of Terminator 2: Judgement Day, the Beckett Comics versions will be the first time the "Schwarzenegger Terminator" has appeared in comic versions of the property.

Beckett will publish two versions of their Terminator comics, a magazine-sized format for newsstands and bookstores, as well as a comics-sized edition for the direct market. Newsarama has learned that preorders for the magazine-sized edition placed through magazine distributors have already significantly exceeded numbers of the top-selling direct market monthly comics.

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