Hey, superhero fans! Do you miss Marvel Comics’ Fantastic Four? Do you wish there was a super-group of heroes you could enjoy that pays homage to the work of Stan “The Man” Lee and Jack “King” Kirby on the adventures of the First Family of the House of Ideas while blazing new trails? Then let me introduce you to The Formidables!
Created by French writer/artist Chris Malgrain—my old creative partner from the one-off comic Stan Lee’s Alexa—and edited by yours truly, The Formidables are a quintet of superheroes battling evil and bigotry in 1950s America, with their first challenge coming in the form of a Communist super-villain…who’s disguised as a white supremacist! It’s a unique take on the genre, with Chris examining topics like race relations and sexual identity in a Cold War setting, with an appropriate amount of punching and explosions mixed in, of course—we are talking superhero comics, after all!
My involvement with the series came about when Chris approached me to tweak his dialogue and captions; with English being his second language, he wanted to make sure it read cleanly for U.S readers. And since we’re both familiar with the writing style of “classic Stan Lee,” I knew exactly where he was going with the text and could make the (very minor) adjustments.
Not long after Chris published The Formidables #2 through his Oniric Comics company, he was approached by another indie publisher, Red Anvil Comics, with an offer to take over the publishing and distribution; up to that point, Oniric’s titles had only been available through online distributor Indy Planet. Chris said yes and soon enough the contracts were signed. Now it was official: Red Anvil was the new home of The Formidables. And to make it event publishing, Red Anvil decided to release the first two issues at the same time!
Even better (well, where I’m concerned) is that Chris insisted I now be included in the cover credits. I tried to talk him out of it—after all, my role has been more editor than co-writer—but that’s how he wanted it to be, so who am I to argue?
The Formidables #1–2 are listed in the current (August) edition of Diamond Prevues from Diamond Comic Distributors, with publication scheduled for October, so pick up a copy and turn to page 416 for more information. And then be sure to place an order for them at your local comic shop!
