The Charmed Manga is almost here and some new details arrive as we get closer to its October 31st release date.
First of all, we have a 2 page preview, one shared by Katy Rex (Writer) and the second shared by Dynamite Comics (Publisher).
The final cover was also revealed by Dynamite on Twitter.
We should be expecting some more previews soon.
Two more members of the creative team were also revealed. Lettering: Simon Bowland / Greytones: Pippa Mather.
Amanda Schank and Jen Bartel, who were announced as the artist and cover artist when it was first announced, are no longer attached to the Manga.
Jonathan Lau serves as both the main and cover artist.
The Charmed Manga, now titled CHARMED MAGIC SCHOOL, has a new cover and a new artist, Jonathan Lau, who is credited in the solicit as both the cover and interiors artist.
It is official. After years of failed attempts, the CW has ordered the reboot to series for the upcoming 2018–2019 season.
Executive Producer/Story by: Jennie Urman
Executive Producers: Brad Silberling (director), Ben Silverman, Carter Covington
Auspices: CBS Television Studios in association with Propagate Content
Below are Jen Bartel's cover thumbs (cover WIPS before the final version) for Charmed The Manga. Source
It seems like the B. cover concept made the final cut with some changes in the poses and Paige, instead of Piper, in the middle.
Read Charmed #1 over at BleedingCool and use the code DE50 for 50% off Dynamite titles at Comixology.
The press release announcing Charmed The Manga mentioned that it is going to be released in February 2018. Dynamite is still putting it together and is now planned for release later in 2018.
I promised you something cool on Twitter and here it is. An interview with Maria Sanapo, the interior and cover artist of the Charmed series by Dynamite comics. In it, Maria talks about being a Charmed fan, how she started working on Charmed, her interaction with fans at cons and more!
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CharmedComicFan: How did you start working on comics?
Maria Sanapo: I have always been interested in comics and illustration, I was born with it (I did this drawing when I was one) but at the beginning, I took another path. I graduated in 2011 with top marks, majoring in foreign languages but drawing comics was always in my heart.
After attending the Lucca Comics Festival and seeing that people were drawing for a living, I understood what I wanted to be. My parents didn’t share my excitement at first; they were terrified by the real me. But my father encouraged me after he remembered he wanted to be an artist as well when he was young. I attended the International School of Comics in Florence for two years (but didn’t finish), and told my father I would give up comics if I didn’t have a job within a year. It took me one month to get my first comics gig! I have to thank Marco (Santucci), my husband, who saw my potential and became my mentor.
You are a big fan of Charmed. What aspect/s of the show attracted you the most and made you a fan?
Well, I grew up with this show and it reminds me about middle school and when I talked about it with my friends, we were super enthusiast about it. We identified ourselves with the Halliwell sisters. In fact one of the things I liked the most was the fact that it spoke about three girls with their life, their concerns and their happy moments, they were ordinary girls like us, but with great powers enriched by the love they had for each other.
What are some of your favorite storylines in the show?
I love EVERYTHING about that show, but if I have to pick a specific storyline I would choose the suffered love story between Phoebe and Cole. It's so romantic!
How did you start working as the artist of Dynamite’s Charmed series?
I was working on another Dynamite series called "Grimm" (both covers and interiors), when my editor Anthony Marques, whom I thank for appreciating my work and giving me the opportunity to work with him, asked me if I wanted to work on the Charmed series with the supertalented Erica Schultz, the writer. Obviously the answer was yes!
Could you summarize your process of working on an issue of the comic?
Well, each artist has his own process, but there are some steps that are more or less the same for everybody. In my case at the beginning I have a deep look at the script in order to understand the situation where the story is set and to interpret what the writer wants. Then I gather all the references because each character has a specific look, specific body language etc. and finally I draw the story.
What tools do you use to create your interior pages and covers?
I work mostly in digital but I do some covers and pages on paper in order to have some originals. I use a program called Clip Studio Paint for the digital works and the classical brush and ink for the original art.
Which panel, page or issue in the 5 issue run was your favorite to create?
That's an interesting question: I loved drawing all the issues, but surely I had a ball drawing the sisters fighting together!
What did you find to be the most challenging thing when making the comic?
Drawing Djall, the villain. He had to be fascinating and terrifying at the same time. Two opposite things coexisting at the same time.
You got to create some original characters for the comic like Djall, Gabe and Shaina. How do you decide how new characters look and who was the most fun to realize into paper?
I was so lucky to have Erica who wrote the story. She gave me some directions about the character I had to create but she left me free to express myself. I think that this combination is fundamental to make things work!
Is there anything in the Charmed universe you didn’t get the chance to draw (a character, a location, a power etc.) but would love to sometime in the future?
I'd like to draw Cole. He is one of my favourite characters of the series!
You had the chance to meet fans of Charmed at cons (for example NYCC earlier this month). How was your experience interacting with the readers of the comic book?
I met a lot of Charmed fans during the cons I attended and I must say that they're fantastic people! They're magical, every time it's such a huge pleasure talking to them! Their enthusiasm and their passion help me to do my best in my work!
I also met Holly Marie Combs in Palermo and she's the sweetest person in the world!!!
A month ago you posted new sketches of Piper and Paige with the caption “back to work”. Anything you can say about them? Should fans have hope for more Charmed stories in the future?
The Charmed series I worked on is about a self-conclusive story so, I don't know if there will be another one but surely it would be great to draw it again!
Do you have any advice for new artists that want to be involved in comics?
Never stop if someone tells you that you’re not good. Instead, ask how can you improve. Don’t fear other people’s judgments; they are your potential future readers, their opinion is very important for you. Listen to editors’ advice during portfolio reviews and always ask how you can do better.
Finally, what projects are you currently working on and where can people find you online?
I'm currently going on working for Dynamite on the Sheena series (both covers and interiors). I love drawing strong female character!
You can find me on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mlsanapoart/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/MLSanapo
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mlsanapo/
Thank you very much, Maria!
Thank you, it has been a pleasure to chat with you!
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Maria was kind enough to also provide some never before seen B&W pages from Charmed #1 and the unreleased B&W Charmed #1 cover, to be featured with the interview.
For months since its release, the black & white variant of Maria Sanapo's cover of Charmed #3 was nowhere to be found! Not on Dynamite's site, not on Previewsworld, not on any comic book online store. But, I finally found it! (My OCD couldn't handle the cover section of the site being incomplete). So, here it is!
Charmed Volume 1, collecting issues #1-5, is out now!
Comixology / Google Play / Amazon
And this concludes the mini-series. Let's hope Dynamite announces a new one very soon!
Charmed Vol. 1 is out this Wednesday! Here is a 12 page preview that was released for it. You can also download it in PDF.
Maria Sanapo posted new sketches of Piper and Paige on Instagram.
"Can you believe it, Charmed fans? We made it to the end! Thank you SO much for taking this journey with us. And thank you to Maria, Tom, Heartwork Studios, Anthony, and the rest of the Dynamite crew for letting us put our own special touch on these amazing characters. And a special thanks to Risa from CBS for keeping us in line! If I had my way, we’d have witches on the Moon!
PAGE 1:
Leo getting socked right in the jaw! What a way to open a book! Look, we all know Leo is a lover, not a fighter, but there are some instances when he gets to flex his muscles. We’ve seen him
fence and delve into swordplay. We’ve seen him be a straight up gladiator. So it wasn’t out of the realm of possibilities for him to throw a few punches to protect his charges, and his wife! Go
Leo!
PAGE 2:
When I wrote this page, I thought Dynamite and/or CBS was going to kick it back to me in a heartbeat. I had the image in my head of several suit-wearing people sitting around a conference table
(not unlike Phoebe’s Bay Mirror meeting in book 1) saying, “Who does this comic book writer think she is?! Just throwing in unicorns willy-nilly!” I know, no one says, “willy-nilly” and I’m not
important enough to warrant such a meeting, but let me dream! Either way, I was able to get a unicorn into the story and the little girl inside of me went, “SQUEEEEEEE!”
PAGE 3:
I love Shaina, and I love her admiration for the Charmed ones. I mean, she makes potions mimicking Piper’s powers. Who does that? Well, Charmed superfans, probably. Meanwhile, at P3, the
remaining Charmed ones, Phoebe and Piper, are overwhelmed by a hoard of demons. I guess having the art show at P3 wasn’t such a good idea.
PAGE 4:
Luckily reinforcements are on their way in the form of Shaina, Leo, and her bag of fabulous potions! It’s still a harrowing ordeal when you have to gently kick these demons’ asses, because,
remember, they’re still real people beneath those red eyes and angry exteriors.
And I hope Phoebe is willing to dip into her savings, because bar tables aren’t cheap!
PAGE 5:
Phoebe is the Kung Fu Halliwell sister, but I think Piper holds her own. Of course there had to be a bit of the Piper and Leo arguing in here. It’s in all marriages. Trust me. But I love Maria
and Heartwork’s work on the last panel. Piper with her badass freezing powers augmented by Shaina’s potions is just such a great image.
PAGES 6-7:
I know what you’re going to say, “Witches can’t be frozen.” Well, when a witch’s soul has been removed, she’s no longer a witch, therefore she can be frozen, so there! I really do like Phoebe and
Shaina’s back and forth, though. Phoebe offended by Shaina’s fangirling over Piper’s powers, and offering to show some literal battle scars to prove her worthiness. Also, we didn’t want Shaina to
be a “throwaway” character. We wanted her to have a significant role in this story. So after saving Leo’s ass with a unicorn (sounds painful!), she gets help save the world by reuniting the Power
of Three. Definitely a fangirl moment. The problem is that now Paige is taken from Gabe. His fate is up in the air! It’s a tough decision for Paige, but she’s able to put aside her feelings for
Gabe long enough to realize there are innocents at stake at P3 that still need the Power of Three to release them.
PAGES 8-9:
Seeing Gabe like that really gets Paige riled up. She fluctuates between sorrow and anger and the will to do something about it! The Underworld, here they come! We know from book 4 that Maisey
isn’t as innocent as she appears, as she was the one who infected Djall in the first place. She shows a vicious side now, holding Gabe hostage. Paige’s rage takes over, though. The idea of Paige
being susceptible to her anger is something that’s been explored in the show often, especially in the early years of Paige becoming a witch. Though this act doesn’t fall under “personal gain” as
it’s in the service of saving Gabe…
PAGE 10:
…But, as we see, Gabe isn’t restored like they thought. It seems like Djall has a tighter grip on the painter than we thought. We didn’t want it to be so simple: Maisey dies and *Poof!* Gabe is
back to normal. No, no, no…There are still consequences to be had.
PAGE 11:
We know Djall is really self-centered, but, let’s be honest, he’s known Maisey for 500 years. That’s a LONG time. He has to feel SOMETHING now that she’s gone, and oh boy he does. I also love
that Maria put in the EKG heartbeat to signify Maisey’s expiration. That was very cool. But lest we forget the demons who had entrusted Djall with this master plan all along. The natives truly
ARE restless and decide to voice their opposition a little more forcefully than before. Too bad Djall is way more powerful than any of them.
PAGES 12-13:
One of the things that always seems to trip up a simple vanquishing potion is that it requires something of the demon/monster/whatever they’re trying to vanquish. Now, I’m sure they could’ve
taken some blood off Gabe’s clothes, but potions work best when it’s fresh, so off Phoebe and Paige go to navigate the mess that is Gabe’s studio. Knowing how messy my desk is, it’s true…You
can’t tame a creative spirit.
PAGES 14-15:
So many of the great Charmed battles happened at the Halliwell Manor, as did Prue’s death (DAMN YOU, SHAX!) So why would this big showdown be any different? Despite the protections of the Manor,
demons seem able to just waltz right in. I know Cole was able to circumvent any protective magic even before he was the Source of All Evil, but I digress. This showdown is particularly cool
because while the Charmed ones seem easily defeated by the all-powerful Djall, we see where the REAL magic is coming from. Leo stands guard as Shaina concentrates with all her heart on the
illusions cast on the first floor. Let’s hope that attic door holds.
PAGES 16-17:
These first three panels are my Beauty and the Beast panels. The sisters, cloaked from Djall by Shaina’s illusions, emerge from household object just like when the Beast’s spell was broken. Djall
is more confident than most demons, but he’s no Source or even The Triad. With potions thrown and spells cast…
PAGE 18:
…Even Gillian is returned to her former self. I’m sure the demon, Vephar, who was possessing her would’ve loved to get some rich souls like those art patrons.
PAGE 19:
Every demon has to have a spectacular vanquishing with a big, loud, boom, or in this case, THOOOOOM! And with that, Djall is gone to a fate worse than The Underworld itself…the land of sand worms
and powerlessness. Doesn’t sound like a fun time for him.
PAGE 20:
With Gabe released from Djall’s spell, Paige FINALLY gets her kiss! WE all know he’s not Henry, so it’ll be a short-lived romance, but let the girl have her moment! Shaina, exhausted from saving
the day, realizes that being a Charmed One isn’t all fun and games. She’ll go back to her mild mannered life as a college student…for now, but don’t count her out from helping in the future!
Illusions is a pretty cool and USEFUL power to have.
PAGE 21:
P3, like the Manor, is supposed to be a safe place for the sisters, which is probably why so many episodes end there. It’s there place to relax a bit and breathe. Despite the demon-free week,
it’s not 100% stress free as Elise tries one last time to get Phoebe to take that editorial position. The size of the contract alone should’ve scared her away. I signed fewer pages for my
mortgage!
PAGE 22:
And here we are…at the end of our journey. Gabe is restored and the world is safe from evil once again…or is it? For the record, I don’t know what that lady is doing with that cat, but I love
cats, and cats with bowties are even better, so kudos to Maria for putting it in.
THANK YOU for taking this wild ride with us! We hope to do it again!"
In their latest press release for the Charmed Manga, Dynamite revealed that Charmed: A Thousand Deaths will release on October 2017 and Charmed Manga will release on February 2018. We now have even more specific dates.
A wave of new info about the Charmed Manga just hit!
Creative Team: Writer: Katy Rex (Jade Street Protection Service), Artist: Amanda Schank (Wayward ), Cover Artist: Jen Bartel (Jem and the Holograms)
Release Date: February 2018
Summary: A blend of supernatural fantasy, horror, humor and heart, the Charmed Manga introduces Delia, a young girl learning to live with her burgeoning
supernatural powers. When she accidentally unleashes them – with disastrous results – at her school, the incident gets the attention of Phoebe, Piper, and Paige Halliwell: three witches with a
lot of experience managing magical abilities. With the assistance of the sisters and the Magic School, Delia begins to make a new life for herself, but magic has a way of getting out of
control…
Katy Rex:
“The Charmed series has proven immensely popular to dedicated fans in any of its incarnations,” says Nick Barrucci, CEO and Publisher of Dynamite Entertainment. “We’re excited to have the opportunity to tell this story in an innovative and new format, fully accessible to readers and die-hard fans a whole new story and a whole new experience! Having writer Katy Rex join the creative team is immensely exciting thanks to her ability to create strong and inspiring female characters.”
Assistant Editor Matt Humphreys agrees, “We’ve really got an incredible team of creators working on this project. Katy’s written an enchanting story, Manda’s art is absolutely beautiful, and as a result, the book they’re putting together is really remarkable. (And Jen’s cover, of course, is spectacular!) I think fans of the series, whether they’re new or long-established, are going to be very pleased with it.”
Charmed premiered in 1998 to critical acclaim and commercial success, and by the end of its eight-season run had won numerous awards, aired in more than 20 countries and attracted an average audience of 4.5 million viewers per episode. Dynamite Entertainment’s comic adaptation of the series debuted in March 2017, and the trade paperback collection of that first story arc – entitled A Thousand Deaths – will be available in October 2017.
The Charmed Manga Edition, under license by CBS Consumer Products, will be solicited in Diamond Comic Distributors’ December 2017 Previews catalog, the premiere source of merchandise for the comic book specialty market, and is slated for release in February. Comic book fans are encouraged to reserve copies of Charmed with their local comic book retailers. The Charmed Manga Edition will also be available for individual customer purchase through digital platforms courtesy of Comixology, Kindle, iBooks, Google Play, Dynamite Digital, iVerse, Madefire, and Dark Horse Digital."
Sources: BleedingCool / Forces of Geek
The final issue of "Charmed: A Thousand Deaths" is here!
Preview the issue here.
Discuss the issue in the spoilers section.
Here's a video of Holly talking about the Charmed comics and Charmed coming back. The interview is from March 2017.
@H_Combs talks all things #charmed in this short comic con video and about the #charmedprequel dose she want it back doesn't seem so sure! pic.twitter.com/vbFkaRgVzk
— scott wilson (@ScottWilson200) 25 Μαρτίου 2017
Charmed #4 is out today!
Spoilers discussion page is now up.
A tentative cover for Charmed: The Manga has appeared online. Very interested to see more about this title!
Release date: 11/7/2017 or 10/25/2017. Both dates appear in different online stores. Consider the date as tentative as the cover.
For more info about the Manga, read this post.
Maria Sanapo posted some sneak peeks from Charmed #5 giving us an update that she has now completed the interiors for the miniseries.
Interesting to note that Maria has tagged Holly Marie Combs in the second image. Could this be Piper? What do you think?
Dynamite and Erica Schultz were at BEA during the weekend. Erica was signing issues of Charmed #1 for the fans. Here is a video from Dynamite in which Erica talks about her process adapting the characters from the show, the response of the fans, her favorite Halliwell sister and future plans for the series.
Dynamite on Twitter: "We're with @EricaSchultz42 at BEA! Stop by booth 2615 to have your copy of #CHARMED #1 signed by the spellbinding writer now!!" Link
The Charmed banner at the Dynamite booth has a November 2017 release date for the volume of Charmed: A Thousand Deaths.
Maria Sanapo: "Who's Piper talking to??? 😲😎❤ Charmed #5 work in progress!! Love for my job!! ⭐️❤⭐️❤⭐️❤️⭐"
Link
Byron Brewer interviewed Erica Schultz about Charmed #5, the final issue of the miniseries. Below are some highlights. You can read the whole interview in the link.
ERICA SCHULTZ: Can you believe how time flies?! This experience has been terrific. The fans have been great, and the book has been well received by everyone. Working with Maria, Heartwork Studios, Tom, and the whole crew at Dynamite has been a wonderful experience, and I’m very lucky to have this opportunity and to work with this group.
When I got the call from Dynamite that I would be writing Charmed, I was very nervous because I know how dear these characters are to the fans. The previous Charmed comic books had expanded the universe and took the cast and adventures outside of the realm of the TV series. That was a great way to take the story and give it a new life.
As a fan myself, though, the goal was to go back to basics and give the readers a story that could be read in a comic as easily as played out on their TVs. And from the fan reaction, I’d say we accomplished that.
BYRON BREWER: Even finite stories often wander during the course of an arc or a mini. Erica, at the end of the day, did you tell the story of the Charmed Ones you set out to tell?
ES: I believe we did. From the beginning, this story was outlined and broken down issue by issue, so we stuck to that pretty faithfully. I think that if there was any deviation it came with the character of Shaina. She was never a “throwaway” character, and we always had her playing a role in the final showdown, but I think that expanded as the story went from outline to script. I think she’s great, and people will be happy with how much of a role she plays.
Also, we really expand on Djall’s background in issue 4. It was a fun and research heavy issue, so I hope the fans like it. In fact, I just got a sneak peek at some pages from Maria for this issue, and they’re beautiful…but what do you expect from a pro like her?
BB: As the finale approaches in issue #5, are there any threads of story you would love, as a writer, to weave into another Charmed mini, if the opportunity presented itself? Can you say what that (those) might be?
ES: Well, I’d love to write another Charmed series no matter what. The team Dynamite assembled is fantastic to work with, and the characters are so fun to play with.
If I had to give my Charmed “wishlist,” I’d love to do a story about Leo before the war. Who was he before he became a whitelighter? We got that one episode where his former friends were haunting him, and there were hints here and there, but nothing truly substantial on him. I think it’d be fun to explore his background.
I’d also love to expand on Shaina and maybe give her an adventure of her own. Maybe she goes back home for a holiday and there’s a demon attack in her hometown. How does she handle it on her own?
I also think it would be fun to explore the Warren line more. We see these three powerful witches and have an inkling of how they got that way through the TV series, but really focusing on their ancestry for an entire mini would be a fun story. Writing a Charmed series where we just focus on Melinda, her life, her adventures would be really fun to do.
If you read Charmed #3, here is Erica's commentary on some of the pages:
Page One
We pick up right where we left off from book two, in the Eisenberg Gallery, where the Halliwell sisters are confronted by Djall and Vephar (in the guise of Gillian, the gallery manager). We wanted there to be a smooth transition from the previous book into now, because there’s so much ground to cover.
So we start off with sisters taken off guard, but we all know how they can turn on a dime.
This just has to be pointed out: Maria and Heartwork Studios have done such a great job in giving these paintings life. Even in the smallest way, they really pop off the page.
Page Two
I love Piper’s tug of war with Djall. It’s fun and shows a playfulness and humor that was part of the TV show.
What I think this page really shows is Maria’s incredible talent for character acting. The facial expressions, the looks in their eyes, Maria really brings them to life in her line art.
Also anyone who knows Charmed from TV knows the fun fashion that was showcased in the series. Maria has such a great sense of style with these outfits.
Page Three
Okay, I love Shaina. I think she’s gorgeous. Maria created a beautiful, fun, and kick ass gal. She’s got style, and she’s so eager to help the sisters out. Shaina will play a big part in our finale, so keep an eye on her.
We also see Paige taking charge here, which plays off her back and forth with Piper. Sibling rivalry is something that was always a part of the show. I think the interesting parts of season 4 of the show was Piper taking on the mantle of the big sister and Paige reconciling her independence with being part of a larger family now.
Page Four
The enemy of my enemy…that seems to be the way Vephar is looking at her alliance with Djall. Could he possibly make good on all the promises he made to the demons of the Underworld? We’ll soon find out. But Djall can’t resist asserting his authority one more time.
Page Five
Lest we forget Gabe! The man of the hour! Gabe is so humble in Paige’s praise. We’ll see more of that, don’t you worry.
And who can get over Shaina’s fangirl expression? Love it!
We also get a glimpse of Paige’s own protective nature toward her charges. When Djall gets a little TOO close to Shaina, Paige is quick to change the subject and get between them, even physically. She has her own mama cat streak in her.
Finally, Erica was on the Sundaycomicspodcast talking about Charmed and more. You can listen to the whole podcast in the link.
It's CharmedComicFan's anniversary today! 🎂
If we were a Charmed season, we would now be fighting Zankou. The original site was created on May 18th, 2010 to share the latest news for the then upcoming Season 9 comics!
With the Dynamite miniseries continuing, the Charmed Manga coming this Fall and Pat Shand's novels in the horizon, Charmed is going strong even after all these years. And let's hope it continues doing so!
Thank you all for visiting, commenting and sharing!
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