Phoenix Comic Con wrap-up. . .

well, i just wanted to say thank you to all the great fans that came by in Phoenix. it was an awesome Convention. so many great artists and creators there. my son and i drove out and had a great boy's weekend. it was the best time. we even got to meet Wil Wheaton, star of one of mine and my son's most favorite movies of all time "Stand by Me." Alec was blown away to meet Wil all grown up, because he's only known him from the movie. Wil was generous with his time and extremely nice. Stand by Me is also a huge inspiration for the way i tell stories about childhood and friendships and especially the tone of Herobear, so it was a
tremendous honor to share Herobear with Wil and get a chance to talk a little bit.




we also got to meet a lot of great fans of our Astonish books(Herobear and Sokmunster) and the upcoming Captain Marvel book. one fan at one of the booths nearby fell in love with Sokmunster and carried him around, and another fan showed off some amazing tatoos of Herobear. i was extremely honored by this.





one of the other fun highlights was getting to sit in the "Bandit." the replica car from Smokey and the Bandit fame. i love those movies. so silly and fun.




so, now coming up is the Atlanta Comic Expo and then it looks like Wizard World L.A. i can't wait to see more fans and talk and visit more. alsoooooo, if you haven't seen the fun goodness that was given away at Phoenix, please visit the Shazam Blog :)


all the best,
m . . . :)

Happy New Year 2008! :)

hey everyone,

i know it's been forever since i've posted.
i'm sooooooooooo sorry.

i've been so swamped lately.
from working full-time doing storyboards and design for Disney and Henson to developing 4 of my own projects at Nickelodeon, Cartoon Network, Sony, and Discovery to my working on my dream project Captain Marvel for DC Comics and then throw in family and a couple Holidays and ...WHEW! things have been a little crazy. :)

but it is now a new year and time to look at what is planned . . .

first up, I'm getting ready to leave Disney this month so that i can focus on some of the other projects. not that i'm not enjoying Disney, i just need to work on my own projects and i definitely want to spend a heck of lot moooooooore time in 2008 drawing and writing about lightning bolts.
;)
next, i'm planning my Convention schedule. the first two Conventions i'll be attending will be the PHOENIX COMIC CON(January 26-27, 2008) and also the ATLANTA COMIC EXPO (February 8-10, 2008)


that's it for now...more news to come soon.

hope you allll had a great Christmas and Happy New Year!
all the best,
m . . . :)

The Artist Within

hey all,

i wanted to pass along something cool to you to check out ...i recently had the privilege to meet the author/photographer for an absolutely awesome brand new book coming out from Dark Horse.
it is entitled "The Artist Within"
it is such a great book that profiles so many legendary cartoonists and comic book artists. wonderful pictures and small bios of people such as Sergio Aragones, Jack Kirby, Al Hershfeild, Big Daddy Roth, Mort Drucker, Jack Davis, ... it is very inspiring and cool to see them all in there "studios." and actually it's helped me explain to my kids who some of the famous cartoonists are that i sometimes babble on about. ;)
anyway,if you get the chance, go and peruse it and you may find something for an early Christmas gift.
:)

all the best,
mike . . .

Newsarama Shazam Interview

hey all,

well i'm finally able to show some more of the artwork for Billy Batson and the Magic of Shazam.
wahoooooooooooooo!
:)
i was very honored to do a NEWSARAMA interview.
please check it out and ALSO, don't forget to visit the new MAGIC OF SHAZAM BLOG for other updates and behind the scenes fun stuff.
:)
take care and all the best,
m . . .

blog for the big red cheese

hey all,
i just wanted to first thank you for checkin' back here and enjoying the stuff that gets posted to this lil' blog.
i've gotten such a great response to the Shazam announcement. thank you all for being excited about it. it's gonna be fun!
:)
and second, i wanted to let you know that we now have a fun new Shazam Blog for the new DC book . . . Billy Batson and the Magic of Shazam.
here's the actual link written out. . .
wwww.kunkelshazam.blogspot.com

along with having news and announcements and regular things like that . . . i'll try to sneak extra sketches, scribbles and behind the scenes stuff for the book toooo.
:)
anyway, thanks again for visiting.

enjoy and all the best,
m . . .

Billy Batson and the Magic of Shazam!

well gang, it's official.
:)
they announced my book DC this weekend at Chicago con.
wahooooo! i'm having sucha great time here and am so grateful to meet so many awesome people that are excited about the new Captain Marvel series... Billy Batson and the Magic of Shazam! :) :) :)
i can't wait to share more. i'm hoping that you all like the new fun all ages take on it. finalllllly i can share what all the "slivers" were, so here ya go . . .

:)
i hope you all like and enjoy the new series.
everyone has been very encouraging and i can't thank DC enough. they are excited to establish a very strong All Ages line. not just for kids but for the kids at heart toooo. :)
more to come soon.
take care and all the very best,
mike . . .

Wizard World Chicago 2007

wellllllllllllllll,

i'm heading off to Chicago Con this weekend.
wahooo!
it's my first time to this convention, heck, it's my first EVER to the windy city.
i'm anxious to check it all out!
i figure Saturday is always the busy day so i look forward to exploring the con and maybe even a panel or two.
in fact, i thiiiiiiink i might check out the DC Universe Panel on Saturday from 11:00 -12:00pm. i hear it might be a good one. so if anyone else is there, that might be a great panel to visit.
;)
seeing as i haven't been to a con officially at a booth for nearly 3 years, i thought it would be great to get a chance to sign and visit. well, a friend has generously been able to work out a little bit of time for me at a table on Saturday. soooooooo if you get the chance to visit(after the DC panel) ;) ;) ;), please come by and visit and say hello between 2pm and 4pm on this coming Saturday, in Artists Alley table 4010.
i'll have some Herobear TPB's, some stuffed Herobears, some original artwork, and other fun stuff. :)

okay, enough o' my babbbling. i'll give ya the whole scoop of my adventure to the windy city when i get back.
who knows, maybe even an update while i'm there. i'll try for Saturday/Sunday.
all the best,
m . . . :)

Back from Con

well, the family and i had a chance to sneak down to San Diego Comic Con last week and visit with some friends and have an important meeting or two.
very cool.
i have to admit though, i very much miss having a booth and getting to visit more with fans and friends. i can honestly do without all the hollywood hoopla, i just enjoy a con with fans and readers and other creators, and the excitment that all the books bring.
now, the con is usually a big blur to me, so please forgive me if i can't remember everyone, but there were a number of new and old friends/creators that i was especially thankful to run into and visit and meet and on occasion hang with in person at the con . . . art baltazar, bobby chiu, david colman, stephen silver, courtney huddleston, scott zirkel, scott sava, mike bullock, kevin grevioux, pascal campion, donnachada daly, christian slade, chris sanders, tony bancroft, jann jones, dan didio, jeph loeb, terry moore, tom beland, charles vess, and many more my brain has forgotten but that i am blessed and thankful to know.
it was fun and wonderful to see you all. :)
now back to work and seeing what the future holds.
hey, i had someone ask me about those darn "slivers" that snuck onto my blog there for a while.
was i gonna find anymore?
was i gonna explain 'em?
whoa, whoa, slow down, i said . . . then i quickly had to use the jedi mind trick and change the subject to something else of course...anyone ever been to Chicago Con? i hear goood things about it and i'm curious to see what it's about.
maybe this is a good year to learn more.
maaaybe.

how's that for random?
:)
well that's it for now.
more random thoughts and fun scribbles to be posted soon.
:)
all the best,
mike . . .

My Gym Partner is a Monkey Comic cover

hey everyone,

well, to take a break from the sliver fun, i thought i'd put up a little bit o' extra work i did last week.
some of you may or may not know that i've been working as a character designer at cartoon network for the last 3 and 1/2 years. i was on Juniper Lee for most of it, and the last year or so i've been on My Gym Partner is a Monkey.
this is such a great, fun show!
i love it for all its wackiness and silly humor! it gives such a great opportunity to draw a lot of crazy designs and special poses.
anyway, i recently was asked to do the cover for the debut issue of Gym Partner in the Cartoon Network Comics from DC. just something fun on the side. i'm not gonna be able to do the inside story as i've got some prior committments that are gonna consume for a bit, but i really wanted to help out by doing the cover.
so here's the cover image. sooon i'll post some of the ruff pencil designs and poses from the show too.
enjoy and all the best!
m . . .

more SHHHHH!

well, after rich johnston's comments on Comic Book Resources, i don't know whyyyyyyy, but i couldn't help but send out a few more slivers o' fun. . . it just seemed like the right thing to do.
:)
you know, its amazing how connected to the world of rumours and secrets he might realllllly be. . . . . ;)


not that i'm admitting anything that is.
;)

enjoy and all the best,
mike . . .

p.s. funny thing . . . someone explained to me the other day that "NDA" means . . .

N o
D irect
A nnouncements
;)

Glorious TechnoKunkel

hmmmmmmmmmm . . .
someone tipped me off about an interrrrrresting comment on Comic Book Resources...
according to Lying in Gutters there's a new SHAZAM! series written and drawn by ... me. . .
:)

" IN GLORIOUS TECHNOKUNKEL

Mike Kunkel is writing and drawing a new ongoing Shazam! series. Check his blog to see some of his teases and a wee mention on Jeff Smith's board, too. "

"teases" on my blog, huh? hmmmm. why, i have no idea what they're talking about.
;)
now, iiiiiifffffffff i was blessed with this opportunity, then i'd be almost giddy about it and Heaven knows i'd realllly love for it to be in TechnoKunkel...so iiiiiifffff this is perhaps, possibly, maybe, could be, per chance true, then i'd do everything i could to indeed make it be gloriously technokunkely fun for all ages.

if that is.

;)

all the best,
m . . .

Ultimate Spiderman Cover on EBAY! :)

hey everyone,

Remember a few month's ago the Spidey Cover? Rememmmmmmmmber... well, for issue #100 of Ultimate Spiderman, Marvel and the Hero Initiative, asked 100 artists to do one of a kind covers for the book as a fundraiser for the Hero Initiative Charity.
so, now the last batch of the covers are being offered on EBAY for charity auction.

here's the link to ALL the remaining covers including MY spidey scribble :). . .
Hero Initiative EBAY Auctions
If you get the chance to check out 'em out please visit with some spare couch change and find a favorite one to support and help very, very good cause.
:)
take care and all the best,
m . . .

Uncle Kunkel

welllllllll, i figured i'd take a little break from all the "sliver fun" and show you some other fun stuff. . .

this picture is actually what all the slivers fit into.






;)just kidddddddding!


actually, my lil' sis is gonna have a baby this year, so it would appear that i will now be officially "Uncle Kunkel."
;)
i helped out recently to do their Baby Shower invite, and since she and my brother-in-law live in Hawaii, i created some Aloha fun.
enjoy!
:)

all the best,
m . . .
p.s. more slivers may still find their way to the ol' blog world of Astonish. ;)

Shhhhhh . . . some more ;)

wellll, i still can't say anything. sorrrrrrrrrrrrrry. though i CAN say how i'm sooooooo excited about this!
:)
:)
:)
but in the meantime . . . here's another sliver of fun.
:)
some of you have had some great guesses. i can't confirm anything, but i might deny some guesses.
it's not a new Herobear. . . yet. howeverrrrr, i am working on a brand new graphic novel now of Herobear and the Kid. so look for more of that coming in the near future.
it's not Spidey. nope, no webslingin' storytellin' from here yet. maybe someday the right situation will arise.
no, this is something else. something equally as cool and fun. same as spidey, it's something i've wanted to work on since i was a little kid.
anyway, that's all the babbling about it for now.
more again soon.

enjoy and all the best!
m . . .
:)

Shhhhh! again ;)

arrrrgh, i still can't yet tell ya what cool stuff is coming, but here're some more "slivers".
i know they're not much, so save your thunderous applause for the real reveal.
;)
there will be some goodness announced hopefully by Free Comic Book Day 2007.
:):):)

enjoy and thank you all for visiting this lil' blog o' stuff.
:)
take care and all the best,
mike . . .

Shhhhh!

hey gang,

sorry for the lack of new posts lately.
there's been a lightning storm of stuff to keep me busy, and things have had me super swamped. however, i'm hoping that verrrrrrrry soon i can announce something verrrrrrrry cool.
verry, verrrry coool and fun.
unfortunately, i can't say just yet. . . but, shhhhh, i can give you a couple "slivers" of a sneak peak . . .

sliver 1. . .

sliver 2. . .


hahaha . . . i know, i know . . . not much there. i'm sorry. but if you knew what to look for, there are clues in this blog post of what it might be . . .

i'll leave it up to you until i leave another sliver of info.

more soooon!
:)
all the best,
m . . .

EMPEROR in "King of the Beasts"

soooo . . . a long time ago. . . BEFORRRRRRE CGI penguins were popular . . . my friend scott sava and i sold a show called EMPEROR to Nickolodeon
and we went into development to do a little short cartoon for them as a test pilot. well, one thing led to another and we finished it about a year or so
ago. it test rather well, but they weren't too sure because looming on the horizon was Dreamworks and their sale to Viacom . . . which owns
Nickolodeon . . . which now has become the place for Dreamworks to develop tv series stuff . . . liiiiiiiike a penguin series based on the penguins in Madagascar.
arrrrrrgh.
anywaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay, the rights have all reverted back to us(yea! :) ) and i'm trying to figure out what to do with it now. i'd like to re-imagine the characters into a 2-d world again and then take it into publishing and merchandise imagery of this little Napolionic emperor penguin trying to take over the world from his Zoo enclosure. he's greedy and power hungry and is only trying to remind everyone of who should be first in line . . . him.
;)
he's very much in the vein of daffy duck or plankton from spongebob and i love that, because it gives him a fault that can be used to make him vulnerable and thereby, likeable. he's not perfect and he reminds us of what happens when we get too full of ourselves.
of course, HE likes to remind everyone, including his little brother Ollie, and a crazy squirrel named Eugene, that he is an Emperor penguin for a reason . . . HE should be in charge, and his basic view on everything is very simple . . . . "How does it benefit me?"
;)
sooooo, now that we're looking for a direction and new home for Emperor, it seemed like a good idea to at least share it with everyone. here for your enjoyment is the humble lil' short that we did for them pretty much all by ourselves using each of our companies The Astonish Factory and Blue Dream Studios to produce a 6 minute mini-pilot . . .
Emperor is insulted that his own little brother would rather be a lion when he grows up . . . Emperor decides to explain that just because there aren't any emperor penguins in Africa, it is no excuse for the lions to be promoting themselves as "king of the beasts."
:)

i do hope you like it. it was a lot of work, but fun and also a very good learning experience. i guess we'll see what happens next with the little penguin
that would be emperor . . .
:)
enjoy!
m . . .

kids in the class #9,#10,#11 and #12

here's the last four . . . numbers 12, 11, 10 and nine
seems that this is taking a bit more o' my time.

so, luckily there're no more
kids in the class,
just one of their teacher,
to round out the mass.

enjoy!

:)
m . . .

kids in the class #7 and #8

here's number 7 and lil' number 8
today i gave two, so you wouldn't have to wait . . .

:)
m . . .

kids in the class #6

another of the pics is 'ol numba 6 . . .


:)
m . . .

kids in the class #5

and 5 is here, so give a cheer . . .

:)
enjoy!!
m . . .

kids in the class #4

well here it is 'ol #4,
stepping out onto the floor . . .

enjoy!
;)
m . . .

kids in the class #3

one more from me . . . #3.
:)
i can't stop rhyming! aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh


;)
enjoy!
m . . .

kids in the class #2

#2 for all of you.
see, i can rhyme . . . :)

enjoy!
m . . .

kids in the class #1

hey everyone,

so at my kids' school, they are having a fund raiser that all the classes are participating in. each of the classes offers up something to be auctioned. soooooooooooooo, since i have so much free time . . . i agreed to illustrate a book with all the kids in my daughter's class all doing their favorite sport and with their favorite animal.
:)
only 'cuz i loves my lil' girl. :)
aaaaand my son too, but he had too many kids in his class so i said no way. heehee
;)
actually they're doing somethin' else, so i get to do this cool illustrated book.

i'm just about done and i decided that i'd share 'em with ya. over the next two weeks i'll post a new image every day so you can see them all done.
i'm really having fun with this and i hope you enjoy all the images.
all the best,
m . . .
here's kid number 1 . . .

Annie Awards part deux

well gang, it was a verrrry fun night last night at the Annie Awards . . .
:)
my wife and i got all dressed up and went to the awards show and saw a lot of friends that i haven't seen in a while. it really was a tremendous gathering of talented folks. and to top it off . . . I WON! wahoooooooo! how crazy is that?! i thank God for the blessing and opportunity. considering i didn't know about the online voting or how it all worked, i had said earlier that it's all in God's hands. i had no way of even voting for myself! ;) Thanks to everyone that voted! and congrats to all that were nominated and all the other winners. there are so many great artists i'm thankful to work with and be around in this industry.

the very cool part of the award too was that the presenters were Harland Williams and
Edie McClurg. Edie is in one of my ALL-TIME favorite movies . . ."Ferris Bueller." she played the secretary "Grace." and Harland Williams was a voice in a short that i did with my good friend Scott Sava at Nickolodeon. so it was very great to have them present my category and ultimately the award.
:)
anyway, it was a wonderful night. i'm very thankful and honored. the nominees i was with are all amazing artists and it was great to be included with them in this category.

a friend was very kind and sent this pic to me last night of me up on stage babbling in front of the audience . . . i actually have a very blurry memory of what happened and what i said, so it was nice to see that i wasn't passed out on the floor.
;)
take care and all the best,
mike . . .

The Annie Awards

well, i just wanted to ask for everyone to keep their fingers crossed this weekend. . .
:)
i've been very blessed and honored with being nominated for an Annie Award for Best Character Design on an Animated Television Series. the nomination is for Juniper Lee and i'm nominated with some really amazing other artists too. . .

Ben Balistreri – Danny Phantom “King Tuck” – Nickelodeon

Mike Kunkel -– The Life & Times of Juniper Lee “Party Monsters” – Cartoon Network Studios

Carlos Ramos – The X’s “Homebody” – Nickelodeon

Eric Robles – The X’s “You Only Sneeze Twice” – Nickelodeon

so the awards are on Sunday night. fancy-shmancy evening attire and all the hoopla. i'm excited to go and very excited for everyone that has been nominated for the evening. it's a great feeling to be included with so many talented people.
so much talent in this industry, its nice to be reminded of everyone that is out there that is working so hard to entertain the world with cartooooons. :)
thanks to all that voted and i'll let everyone know on monday how it went!
:)
also . . . here are a few samples from the episode that i was nominated for.
enjoy!
:)
p.s. and if you want to visit and learn more about the Annies, here's the link to the annie awards :
http://www.annieawards.com/

Spiderman Cover

hey all!

well, i got to achieve a very fun dream of mine. . . draw Spidey officially for Marvel!
:)

recently for Marvel and the Hero Initiative, a hundred artists were asked to do covers for issue #100 of Ultimate Spiderman as a fundraiser for the charity.

you can read more about it here . . . http://www.comicbookresources.com/news/newsitem.cgi?id=9471

anyway, i was late as usual, but i finally finished mine and here it is. i love drawing Spidey. his shape and poses can be so fluid and full of animation. i did it all in pencil, since i stink at inking. :)
enjoy! i hope ya like it.

now i've just got to convince them to let me do a complete Spidey story . . .
;)


all the best,
m . . .

Another fun Juniper Lee comic story

well, i did some more Juniper Lee comics freelance.
here's the latest story . . . penciled by me and inked by the fabulous Millet Henson. :)
Juniper gets a cold and has to help her brother take down an odd old 50's sci-fi type monster.
i had some fun with this one.
:)

enjoy and all the best!
m . . .