Written by Ron Marz (Witchblade, Green Lantern) and featuring the art team of Michael Broussard (The Darkness), Rick Basaldua (The Darkness), Sal Regla (Magdalena) and Sunny Gho of IFS (Velocity), the Artifacts event series promises to be Top Cow's most ambitious art series to date and will weave together story lines from a number of Top Cow titles. The first issue kicks off with the abduction of Hope, the daughter of Sara Pezzini and Jackie Estacado and quickly spirals into a conspiracy, which threatens to destroy the entire Top Cow Universe.
"We have been working on Artifacts for almost two years and nothing has been more gratifying than hearing and seeing the reaction from reviewers and fans alike," commented Top Cow Publisher Filip Sablik. "Ron, Michael, Rick, Sal, Sunny, and Marc have delivered a breath-taking, show-stopping first issue and let me assure you, we are just getting warmed up."
"We've been talking about Artifacts being a chance to put our best foot forward, so to speak, in terms of introducing the entire Top Cow Universe to readers," added Marz. "So I'm absolutely thrilled with the response we've received, especially going to a second printing so quickly. I'm proud of what Michael and I and everyone else on the creative and editorial teams has produced, and I want to get it into as many hands as possible."
On Saturday, July 31st, Top Cow will co-host two bi-coastal launch parties to celebrate the release of this momentous first issue. The Los Angeles release party will be held at Collector's Paradise from 7-10pm PST. Broussard, Basaldua, and Publisher Filip Sablik will be at the event signing copies of the Collector's Paradise exclusive variant cover of Artifacts #1, as well as an exclusive limited edition print featuring art from Broussard. Collector's Paradise is located at 7131 Winnetka Ave in Canoga Park. Additional information can be found at the store's website at http://comicsandcards.net.
The New York release party will be held at Midtown Comics at Times Square from 3-5pm EST. Marz will be at the event signing copies of the Midtown Comics' exclusive variant cover of Artifacts #1. Midtown Comics is located at 200 W 40th Street (Corner of 7th Avenue) in New York. Additional information can be found at the store's website at http://www.midtowncomics.com/.
Momentum for the race to Artifacts began after the publisher released an Artifacts guide as part of the Top Cow Artifacts #0 Free Comic Book Day issue. Artifacts #1 is the perfect place for faithful readers to see their loyalty pay off, and for new readers to enter the Top Cow Universe.
