THE LAB PRESS Presents ESSENTIALS, An Original Graphic Novel
Created by The Lab Press
By Luke Arnold, Doc Wyatt, DaNi, Glenn Fabry, Jason Howard, Vince Locke, Brendan McCarthy, Andrea Mutti, M.K. Perker & Bill Sienkiewicz
Latest Updates from Our Project:
Just a few more days!
almost 2 years ago
– Mon, May 13, 2024 at 05:57:29 PM
We’re in the home stretch for our ESSENTIALS campaign, and we’re so glad to have you here with us! Thanks for helping us make this first book launch such a fun experience!
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The Comic Book Yeti’s Andrew Irvin spoke with Jason Howard about his work establishing an emotionally resonant objective reality in ESSENTIALS. Jason explained that, as an artist, his “main focus is finding what the story needs and trying to convey that visually to the reader. There is a sequence with the character Buttons who is having an internal struggle, and showing her decision in that struggle felt like a key moment in the story to me. I had a lot of fun breaking from the reality of the story and finding a visual way to show that.”
**** Last week, we talked a bit about the limited edition pin Matthew The Jeweler (@matthewthejeweler) is making for ESSENTIALS! Yesterday, we got to see the finished piece in person, and it’s incredible! Check it out, and sign up to get one of your own with THE LAB PRESS Alchemist Package.
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Convention season is upon us! This weekend THE LAB PRESS’s Publisher and Chief Creative Officer, Nicholas Kalikow and Mike Zagari will be at the Lake Como Comic Arts Festival alongside ESSENTIALS artists DaNi, Glenn Fabry, and Bill Sienkiewicz and a who’s who of renowned artists from around the world.
No matter where you are in the world, there’s no shortage of spectacular comic events!
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We’re excited for a strong finish to our ESSENTIALS campaign and for you all to finally get to see the book! Tell your friends and remember to follow us at @thelabpress on X, Instagram, Facebook, Bluesky, and LinkedIn for the latest news. And don’t forget to head to thelabpress.com to sign up for our newsletter. Good things wait people who sign up to the newsletter.
The Reviews are in!
almost 2 years ago
– Fri, May 10, 2024 at 12:14:37 PM
Hello again! We hope you’re having a great end of your week! Can you believe this is the last Friday of the campaign? It’s true!
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You’ve heard us talk about how great ESSENTIALS is, but don’t just take our word for it! Zack Quaintance at The Comics Beat just published the first review of ESSENTIALS. We’re so grateful for his thoughtful and enthusiastic look at this new graphic novel.
"I read the book cover to cover once I’d started it. It’s fun and immersive and (obviously) a real page turner. And if that’s not enough, it also has a poignant thought at is core about the value of a well-lived life, one that grounds the sci-fi craziness and gives us some nice moments (particularly near the ending). If this is indicative of the other work that The Lab Press has coming, than the future is bright. Overall, Essentials is an interesting read with fantastic art, and shiny big swing for a brand-new comics publisher."
**** In addition to all of the amazing comics artists we’ve had the pleasure of collaborating with on this project, we’ve also teamed up with ‘Matthew The Jeweler' (@matthewthejeweler). Matthew has made a limited number of breathtaking 19.5 gram, solid 14K gold pins designed to match the flower Buttons wears throughout her reality-shifting journey.
Matthew The Jeweler is only creating 10 of these beautiful pieces, but you can sign up for this exclusive tier now with THE LAB PRESS: Alchemist Package, which also includes the Audacious Edition oversized hardcover book with matching slipcase, the signed bookplate, the 2024 Digital Sampler PDF & placement on THE LAB PRESS mailing list.
The Walking Dead meets Jurassic Park! Allan Amato and Andy Belanger bring you their startling vision of a post-post apocalyptic world. Humanity exists in vastly smaller numbers, within fortified enclaves mirroring the early city-states of ancient Greece. While a vaccine inoculating humans against a bite has been created, most of the planet is still subject to roving herds of undead. But while humanity is slowly clawing it way back from the brink, underneath the veneer of civilization lies a fervent minority plotting against the yoke; religious zealots that insist god’s plan for the Rapture is being interrupted, disgraced politicians flung from the halls of power after their abysmal handling of the initial outbreak. Their plan is to release the park’s occupants back into the fledgling city, destabilizing the new regime. With additional art by MIke Mignola, Royal Boiler, and Bill Sienkiewicz
'If, like me, you're a sucker for some of that old-time, god-fearin', desert highway, fire-and-brimstone shit, you've hit the motherlode! Allan Amato's voluptuous ecclesiastical prose creates an overwhelming and claustrophobic nightmare vision of bad faith and divine judgment you won't forget!' - Grant Morrison
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As we prepare for the final week of the ESSENTIALS campaign, we’re so happy to have almost 300 fans along for the ride! Thank you! Be sure to follow us at @thelabpress on X, Instagram, Facebook, Bluesky, and LinkedIn for the latest news. And don’t forget to head to thelabpress.com to sign up for our newsletter. (Spoiler: good things happen to people who sign up to the newsletter.)
One More Week!
almost 2 years ago
– Thu, May 09, 2024 at 08:42:25 AM
Hello and happy Thursday! Today is the second-to-last Thursday of our ESSENTIALS campaign! We just have 7 days to go! We are incredibly grateful for all of your support, and we can’t wait to get these books into your hands!
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ICYMI: Luke and Doc caught up with Brad of Comic Book Couples Counseling to discuss their work on ESSENTIALS and the joy of making comics.
“What comics do so well is they simultaneously depict the interior and exterior worlds. You get to show in one moment something so incredible, an incredible piece of art about what's happening on the outside and also hear the interior thoughts of someone in there.” — Luke Arnold
The whole ESSENTIALS team has had a blast throughout the campaign. We even dug up a blooper of Doc cracking himself up with one of the Snuggles puppets while we were recording the video for the Kickstarter campaign.
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This is such a great time for crowd-funded comics on Kickstarter! The folks at PaperFilms recently launched a campaign for a brand new collection of 21 DOWN by Jimmy Palmiotti and Justin Gray with art from Jesus Saiz, Paul Mounts and Joe Jusko. The collection features the first 12 issues AND the unpublished 13th issue for the first time!
Whether you’re reading this classic Wildstorm series for the first or fifth time, you’re sure to have a good time! Support the project here!
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We say it a lot, but we truly do appreciate your support for ESSENTIALS! Tell your comic loving friends that they still have a few days to back ESSENTIALS and don’t forget to follow us at @thelabpress on X, Instagram, Facebook, Bluesky, and LinkedIn for the latest news. Head to thelabpress.com to sign up for our newsletter.
More Zombies?!?!
almost 2 years ago
– Mon, May 06, 2024 at 09:27:57 AM
How was everyone’s Free Comic Book Day weekend? We hope everyone had a chance to celebrate and support their local shops. We love to see so many people getting out and celebrating this amazing medium.
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Last week, Alex DiVincenzo at Broke Horror Fan shared an exclusive look at some of Vince Locke’s ESSENTIALS pages. This tense, action-packed scene features the first appearance of the book’s protagonist, Harris Pax, and Vince captures the drama and excitement of the moment beautifully.
Luke Arnold explained that “Harris Pax was the only scientist who anticipated the end of the world. Every other surviving human is now trapped in a subjective reality, disconnected from each other and the real world. Harris must now travel into the realities – each of them a fantastically distinct mini-universe – to convince the dreamer to leave the dream behind. We quickly learn that this is easier said than done, as most of us – no matter how depressing, frightening, or dangerous our thoughts may be – will cling to a world that we know and understand at all costs. On top of that, there is an evil entity hidden in each reality, attempting to force a much darker outcome”
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As we’ve been sharing ESSENTIALS, Luke and Doc have shared a lot of great insights about the book. Just imagine how much you could learn from sitting down to lunch with these two! Well now’s your chance. If you sign up for THE LAB PRESS TWO Package, you and one friend can sit down with Luke and Doc for a meal at this year’s San Diego Comic Con!
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We wanted to draw your attention to a Kickstarter campaign that comic art fans definitely won’t want to miss. Clover Press and Marvel are joining forces to release The Marvel Art of RUSSELL DAUTERMAN, a deluxe hardcover high-end coffee table book featuring iconic pieces of art from fan-favorite creator, Russell Dauterman!
The campaign also features exclusive prints, posters, trading cards, and even a puzzle!
This is a must-have for Marvel fans and art collectors alike.
Thanks again to all 278 of you for supporting audacious books like ESSENTIALS! We’re thrilled to be joined by so many incredible creators and fans. Be sure to follow us at @thelabpress on X, Instagram, Facebook, Bluesky, and LinkedIn for the latest news. And don’t forget to head to thelabpress.com to sign up for our newsletter.
Talking Toys and Tattoos!
almost 2 years ago
– Mon, Apr 29, 2024 at 11:34:47 AM
Time flies, doesn’t it? It’s hard to believe we’re already halfway through THE LAB PRESS’ first Kickstarter campaign. Your excitement about ESSENTIALS is infectious! Thanks to all 264 of you who have pledged your support so far! We’re looking forward to welcoming more people to the ESSENTIALS fan club soon.
“Writing ESSENTIALS was a delight because we’re never locked into one mode or genre of storytelling, We get to jump from reality to reality, playing with the different tropes. It’s as freeing as doing an anthology, but unlike an anthology, we have one cohesive story." - Doc Wyatt
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As if the graphic novel wasn’t exciting enough, there are a lot of other amazing rewards available as part of our ESSENTIALS campaign. There’s even an option for one fan to join us in Los Angeles to receive a one of a kind, official THE LAB PRESS tattoo of your choice! What better way to celebrate your new favorite comic publisher? The savvy tattoo aficionados out there know you don’t want to go on an empty stomach, so this reward tier also includes a lunch with THE LAB PRESS team! We’re excited to hang out with you, but act fast! There’s only one of these rewards available.
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If you’ve been keeping up with ESSENTIALS, you won’t be surprised to hear that we’re huge fans of ambitious comic collaborations. So, Death of Comics Bookcase, Vol. 1 is right up our alley. This collection of madcap short stories is written by Zack Quaintance and illustrated by some of the most exciting artists in the industry, including Anna Readman (Dancing Queen), Nick Cagnetti (Pink Lemonade), Luke Horsman (Enemy Earth), Pat Skott (Next Door), PJ Holden (Judge Dredd), and Ryan Lee (Mountainhead). It features colorists Brad Simpson (who *also* worked on Essentials), Jason Wordie, Ellie Wright, Dearbhla Kelly, and Doug Garbark, as well as letterers Becca Carey, Francois Vigneault, Rob Jones, Simon Bowland, and Shawn Lee.
In Death of Comics Bookcase, Vol. 1, a group of teens on a camping trip stumble into an old house to escape the rain, and they find...The Comics Bookcase! The grotesque anthropomorphic bookcase just wants to share comics with them, taking his new listeners on a tour of genres, from horror to high fantasy to superheroes and more! You can support this project here: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/zackq/death-of-comics-bookcase
If Zack’s name sounds familiar, it’s because you might know him as one of the smartest comic book reviewers. His hot takes on COMICS BEAT are a must read.
Anyhow, go back Death of Comics Bookcase, Vol. 1. The world needs more weird comics!
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It’s wonderful to have you all along for the ride as we prepare to publish ESSENTIALS. We hope you’ll bring some friends with you, too! Don’t forget to follow us at @thelabpress on X, Instagram, Facebook, Bluesky, and LinkedIn for the latest news. And don’t forget to head to thelabpress.com to sign up for our newsletter.
