Books

Down Set Fight: 10th Anniversary Edition

Story by Chris Sims & Chad Bowers
Art by Scott Kowalchuk

“With nothing else like it on the shelves, this title is playing on its own field. Pad up; it packs a wallop.” —Booklist

One man versus every mascot in professional sports—THEY WILL ALL BE PUNCHED! Chad Bowers, Chris Sims, and Scott Kowalchuk’s heartwarming and hilarious Down, Set, Fight! returns in a deluxe tenth anniversary hardcover, perfect for fans old and new alike!

“Fearless” Chuck Fairlane was football’s fastest rising star, but his career came to a screeching halt when he was expelled from the league after goin’ HAM and causing the biggest brawl in the history of sports. Years later, Chuck has found peace as a high school football coach, until costumed mascots begin attacking him for seemingly no reason. Before long, Chuck’s going to discover that you can’t run away from the past—but you CAN punch it square in the face!

X-Men ’92: The Saga Continues

Story by Chris Sims & Chad Bowers, Steve Foxe

Art by Scott Koblish, Alti Firmansyah, Salva Espin

Revisit a beloved X-Men era in this series inspired by the classic cartoon! The 1990s roll call is as uncanny as ever: Professor X, Cyclops, Storm, Wolverine, Rogue, Gambit and Jubilee! And they’re facing off against their decade’s fiercest foes, both on Battleworld and at a newly expanded Xavier’s School! But who are the Shadow Queen and Alpha Red?! And with the X-Men under siege, can X-Force ’92 save them? New mutants arrive at the school, Lila Cheney teleports in for Westchester’s biggest music festival, and deadly menaces threaten mutantkind ― including the Brood and Apocalypse! But when the X-Men found their own nation on the island of Krakoa, will they finally find peace? And which mysteriously long-lived mutant is guiding them from the shadows? Collecting X-MEN ’92 (2015) #1-4, X-MEN ’92 (2016) #1-10 and X-MEN ’92: HOUSE OF XCII #1-5.

Deadpool: Bad Blood

Story by Chad Bowers & Chris Sims

Art by Rob Liefeld

Cable, Garrison Kane, and more familiar faces guest-star in Rob Liefeld’s most ambitious Deadpool story ever!

Wade Wilson has been shooting, stabbing and otherwise annoying people for a long time. He’s made a lot of enemies. But one he can’t quite place is the brutal Thumper, who keeps showing up out of the blue to pound him into jelly! What is Deadpool’s past connection to this beefy face-masher? Wade has as much of a clue as you do! So he decides to call in some help from an old friend/foe/friend: Domino!

Can Deadpool and Domino uncover Thumper’s secrets before Wade gets his keister kicked in again?

And can answers be found in a secret mission from years ago that brought Deadpool and X-Force together? Check it out—before Deadpool checks YOU out!

SwordQuest: RealWorld

Story by Chris Sims & Chad Bowers
Art by Scott Kowalchuk

“This was one of the smartest (and weirdest) video game adaptations I’ve ever read. Bowers & Sims weave an amazing tale about aging, loss, regret and redemption around a for-real cheesy video game from the ’80s.” — Patton Oswalt

In 1984, Peter Case was on his way to being crowned champion of SwordQuest, set to win the last of four contests and lay claim to a golden sword worth over $50,000! But when the game was discontinued, Peter found himself without a game to finish.

Now, over thirty years later, Peter’s stuck in a different kind of game entirely — the game of life, and he’s losing fast. But when he learns that all the prizes meant for the SwordQuest contest of his youth are on display in the World Arcade Museum, he finds an unknown determination that sees him put together a team of like-minded losers for the ultimate heist job — a real-life sword quest!

Chris’s Note: Chad, Scott and I consider this to be a sort of spiritual sequel to Down Set Fight, and along with that one Guardians of the Galaxy annual, it’s my pick for the best thing Chad and I ever did together.

Dracula the Unconquered

Story by Chris Sims
Art by Steve Downer
Letters by Josh Krach

An all-ages action adventure story starring Dracula!

Resurrected ten years after the events of the novel, Dracula is no longer Lord of the Undead — and his successor is a whole lot meaner. Fleeing London with his human sidekick, Thalia, Dracula must travel the world to regain his powers and take on the new sovereign of the night! Airships! Deathtraps! Carmilla! Truly, this one’s got it all!

One of my favorite things I’ve ever done, sadly unfinished due to, uh, not making any money on it. Still pretty fun, though, and the long gap between the issues means you can see Steve’s art level up an insane degree every time he finished one. Here, read it for free.