Deathstroke #35 Solicitation

September looks like another lean month, unfortunately.

Written by CHRISTOPHER PRIEST
Art by CARLO PAGULAYAN and JASON PAZ
Cover by ROBSON ROCHA and DANIEL HENRIQUES
Variant cover by FRANCESCO MATTINA 

In this corner: Deathstroke, suffering from a traumatic brain injury at the hands of Batman! In the other corner: Batman, with Deathstroke’s knife in his gut! All of this with the feds invading Wayne Manor—and now they’re in the catacombs under the mansion, which lead to the you-know-what-cave! If they’re going to escape, Batman and Slade are going to have to work together. 

ON SALE 09.05.18
$3.99 US | 32 PAGES
FC | RATED T+

I believe this is the final part of the Batman vs Deathstroke mini-series-within-a-series. We'll wait and see if the Deathstroke title can retain some of the additional readership it picked up as a result of the bat's guest-appearance.

Deathstroke #34 Solicitation

As revealed by, and copied from, CBR.com.

Written by CHRISTOPHER PRIEST
Art by CARLO PAGULAYAN and JASON PAZ
Cover by ROBSON ROCHA and DANIEL HENRIQUES
Variant cover by FRANCESCO MATTINA 

It’s part five of “Batman vs. Deathstroke,” and “The Stormy Present” finds our two marquee combatants locked in the Batcave, forced to resolve their differences—or die trying! The showdown only turns saltier when the feds seize Bruce Wayne’s assets, including Wayne Manor, after Slade drops a dime. And Deathstroke shows Batman he’s not the only detective in town, as Slade closes in on the mystery of his relationship with Robin. 

ON SALE 08.01.18
$3.99 US | 32 PAGES

I mentioned in the post about the solicitation for #33 that I'd want to have a look at the sales figures for the first installment of this six-part story. Based on what is provided by Comichron, issue 31 sold almost 39,000 copies. I don't believe that digital sales and such are included. That's good for 40th place for the month.

But is it good?  Only if the book can ride that momentum for a while. The previous issue sold well under 18,000 and placed 115th for the month. An intriguing guest-appearance by Batman and family is an excellent way to potentially showcase the book's quality to a new audience but it's going to have to stick. Those sales figures for #30 are about at the cancellation level.

That aside, Deathstroke will appear in the trade Paperback for Justice League: Justice Lost (issues 39-43 of the regular series) as well as Justice League: No Justice, both out in September.

Deathstroke #33 Solicitation

Aside from the Beach Blanket Special mentioned a few days ago, Deathstroke's 33rd issue hits stores in July as the second half of the Deathstroke vs. Batman storyline begins.

Written by CHRISTOPHER PRIEST
Art by CARLO PAGULAYAN and JASON PAZ
Cover by ROBSON ROCHA and DANIEL HENRIQUES
Cariant cover by FRANCESCO MATTINA 

Forced to team with Deathstroke, a man he loathes, Damian Wayne must discover the truth of his lineage. Is he really Bruce Wayne’s son, or is Slade Wilson his true father? As Batman draws closer to finding them both, Deathstroke must complete a hit, while Robin shadows the killer for hire. 

ON SALE 07.04.18
$3.99 US | 32 PAGES

Despite getting terrific reviews, Deathstroke's sales totals were starting to tickle cancellation territory, based on March results on Comichron. I'm going to make a point to see how much of a bump the Batman guest-appearance gives him in April.

Justice League #43 Out Today

When solicitations are revealed and a title has two issues released in the same month, DC will display the cover for only one of them. That's what happened when the solicitation for Justice League #43 was sent out and so I admit I'm seeing this cover for the first time today!

“JUSTICE LOST” finale! Struggling to save one of their own and extricate themselves from the grip of war, the Justice League’s hand is forced by the mercenary Deathstroke! Decisions must be made about Red Lion’s brutality, the insidious tactics of the Fan and the League’s role as the World’s Greatest Heroes. When the dust settles, will the old alliances still stand?

David Yardin is the cover artist. Captures the classic look quite nicely, thank you.

DC BEACH BLANKET BAD GUYS SPECIAL #1

When you think of fun on the beach, you think of Deathstroke! The following was picked up on Comic Book Resources who reported on it yesterday.

Written by PAUL DINI, LEE BERMEJO, GABRIEL HARDMAN, CORINNA BECHKO, TIM SEELEY, SHEA FONTANA and more Art by CARLOS D’ANDA, GABRIEL HARDMAN, DAVID WILLIAMS, OTTO SCHMIDT and more Cover by AMANDA CONNER 

It’s summertime in the DCU and the bad guys are taking over! Beat the heat with 10 all-new stories by top comics talent starring DC’s most spectacular super-villains!

In this issue, find out what Mr. Freeze does on the hottest day of the Gotham City summer! Learn what made Grodd such a bad gorilla! Then, while in a small beach town, Deathstroke gets hired for murder by the last person he’d expect! And The Joker and Bizarro team up for a truly weird summer bromance! 

On sale JULY 25
ONE-SHOT • PRESTIGE FORMAT • 80 pg, FC, $9.99 US • RATED T+

No cover appearance but Deathstroke's story is significant enough to get mentioned in the solicitation. Working with averages, it would be about 8 pages long so I'm not sure if I want to shell out that kind of cash for it. I may just gamble that it will show up in a trade at some point down the road. As usual though, it's just good to see him included.

Deathstroke 1/4 scale Status by Stiven Trujillo Sanchez

I don't collect action figures, statues, busts and what-not but I do love coming across them and appreciate the talent a work involved.

I believe I was introduced to the piece below on Pinterest. After some digging, I found out that it is the work of Stivens Trujillo Sanchez. If you're dying to get your hands on it, well, you'll need to contact the man himself because it was apparently a custom piece. Can't get this one on Amazon.

Love the batarang stuck in the gargoyle and the rifle resting behind him. Excellent work. If you want to have a closer look, check out Sanchez' Art Station page.

June 2018 Deathstroke Solicitation

In addition to issue #32 of the ongoing Deathstroke book, the trade paperback of The Lazarus Contract storyline combining issues of Deathstroke, Titans and Teen Titans comes out as well on July 18th. To this point, it was only available in hardcover.

DEATHSTROKE #32
Written by CHRISTOPHER PRIEST
Art by CARLO PAGULAYAN
Cover by ROBSON ROCHA
Variant cover by FRANCESCO MATTINA 

“BATMAN VS. DEATHSTROKE” part three! When a retired superhero gets caught in the crossfire between the World’s Greatest Detective and the DCU’s most deadly assassin, could an entire legacy be wiped out? Lines are crossed when Deathstroke and Batman’s feud takes its darkest turn yet—and there’s no going back! 

On sale JUNE 6 • 32 pg, FC, $3.99 US • RATED T+ 

Justice League #41 Variant Cover by J.G. Jones

I'd kind of forgotten that Deathstroke is showing up in Justice League this month, as is the Red Lion character from his series. Bleeding Cool included a variant cover to that book among a list of 14 a few days ago. Feast your eyes, folks.