More Classics Mash-up Fun!

Variant cover byEarl Norem.

While imitation may be the sincerest form of flattery, in the media world (including comic books), it must also have some sort of financial return.

Given this, I am glad to see the second in what I hope is a growing trend of Classics Illustrated homages in mainstream comic book publishing. This mini-movement first found its way onto my radar (and pull list) in February with the release of Marvel's Deadpool Killustrated. Written by Cullen Bunn (creator and writer of Oni Press' fantastic horror-fantasy-western Sixth Gun), Deadpool Killustrated held, for me anyway, an added layer of meta-coolness due to its unusual connection to the book my classes and I were reading at the time, Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer.

This morning, while checking my twitter feed for inetsring info tidbits, I noted that independent publisher IDW's June 2013 solicitations revealed another mash-up play on the Classics Illustrated format, Mars Attacks Classics Obliterated. Featuring a superior creative lineup including Phil Hester, John McCrea and Kelley Jones, this book promises hijinks that put our favorite 1960's Topps trading card Martians into direct conflict with literary heavyweights Moby Dick, Robinson Crusoe and others.

Mars Attacks Classics Obliterated, with an expected in-store release date of  6/5/13, will be 48 page in length and a carry a pricetag of $7.99.