Hey, friends. Have you heard the news? The bugs are coming back for another feeding.
BUG WARS Book Two kicks off in August, a new eight issue series by the same crew of Blooddrunk Bug Warriors that brought you last year’s BUG WARS Book One, “Lost in the Yard,” the dark fantasy comic that the Hollywood Reporter named One of the Year’s Best. That crew includes my co-creator and one of the world’s most kickass fantasy artists, Mahmud Asrar; his partner in badass imagery, the venerated colorist Matthew Wilson; nothing less than the best letterer and designer working today, Becca Carey; and the bug wrangler of all bug wranglers, our esteemed editor Heather Antos.
Here’s the official press release from Image Comics.
This time around, we add a dash of Lord of the Flies to our Lord of the Rings, as more kids get in on the backyard bug-killing action, including some new neighbors and Slade Slaymaker’s beleaguered brother, Sydney, AKA the Annihirazer or He Who Lays Waste to the Grass. There’s also a mysterious exterminator who enters the fray, one of the heavily-armed, Raze-spraying Exterminauts of Krawll. If you think a battle axe is good for killing bugs, can I interest you in a machine gun full of insecticide? And of course there’s that creepy new bad guy, the Squirrel King, who commands all the crawling, skittering, slithering and flapping beasts of the Woods, beasts that are suddenly making more and more incursions into the Yard, killing every bug and Myte they can find, while searching for the one they call the Worldstomper.
This is the story we were previously going to call “The Fellowship of the Fucked Up,” until it was pointed out that putting an F-word in the title of your book becomes more trouble than it’s worth. So now we’re calling it “The Coming of the Wardoom.” Though don’t worry, there’ll still be plenty of F-words and fucked up shit on the insides. Book Two goes even bigger than Book One, as we venture into previously unexplored parts of the Yard, filled with new bugs, new Mytes, new beasts and new hints at the truth behind the death of Slade’s father and the nature of his mystical amulet.
Expect a plethora of awesome variant covers by a crew of our favorite artists, including another bagged adult variant, this time by the great Babs Tarr. I’ll be highlighting each of those covers as we creep closer to August.
The Countdown to Infestation has begun.
If I saw you at a comic con in the last couple months, hello again, and thanks for coming out. My 2026 world tour, officially titled Jason Aaron: Absolute Bastard, has so far included stops in Seattle for Emerald City Comicon, Orlando for MegaCon, back home to KC for Planet Comicon, and then across the big pond to Porto for Comic Con Portugal. Seattle and Orlando proved to be the busiest appearances I’ve ever done, as the Absolute effect continues. And hats off to Seattle for continuing to be such a city full of readers. Y’all pretty much cleaned out our entire stock of creator-owned comics at that con, which warmed my shriveled, little snakeskin of an Alabama heart.
Portugal, of course, was beautiful. Warm, passionate fans and incredibly gracious organizers. I drank gallons of port and managed to eat my way through a Francesinha. Eter Restaurante & Wine Bar served without a doubt the best meal I had in Portugal and probably one of the best I’ve had anywhere recently. Another Porto food highlight was the Cachorrinho at Gazela, which is a Porto hot dog. Super crispy, stuffed with cheese and Portuguese linguiça sausage, topped with spicy piri piri sauce. Comes with perfectly salted fries and preferably a couple large, cold beers. Delicious.
My valiant effort to visit every tiki bar on the face of the planet continues. Seattle’s Inside Passage was a huge hit. It has that winning combo of gorgeous, kitschy decor and dynamite drinks, including a great mix of classics and originals. My Panorama Punch came in a ‘62 Seattle World’s Fair glass. Of course I had to hit the always entertaining Trader Sam’s Grog Grotto at Disney’s Polynesian Resort while I was in Orlando, which remains one of my favorite tiki bar experiences anywhere. In Porto’s Bali-Hai Polynesian Bar, the decor is the highlight, as it’s a lovely spot full of vintage tiki furnishings. I believe Portugal makes the eighth different country where I’ve visited a tiki bar, and I’m always looking to add to that list. Let me know if you’ve got a favorite tiki spot I should try.
Cast announcements for the SOUTHERN BASTARDS pilot rolled out in recent weeks. Say hello to the people who’ll be bringing Craw County, Alabama to life. The leads consist of Erin Kellyman (Roberta Tubb), Kevin Bacon (Earl Tubb) and Tim McGraw (Coach Euless Boss). Other recurring roles include Jonathan Tucker as Esaw Goings, Ethan Suplee as Materhead, Amin Joseph as Sheriff Hardy Whitworth, Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor as Roberta’s mother, Vernetta, and Cara Buono as Shawna. Derek Luke plays a new character, Uncle Lou. Reinaldo Marcus Green has also been announced as the pilot’s director. And this is all in the works from Onyx Collective, POV Entertainment, and Proximity Media, in association with Fifth Season, to air on Hulu.
In terms of the production, I imagine I’m not really supposed to say anything just yet, so I’ll just add: let’s go, Rebs, and fuck Wetumpka.
—ABSOLUTE SUPERMAN #19 hit stores this week, part two of REIGN OF THE SUPERMAN, that sees Superman vs. King Shazam vs. Absolute Steel. This is without a doubt the most epic fight we’ve had so far in the series. Writing it had me thinking back to the cosmic battles from my THOR: GOD OF THUNDER days, along with the classic Miracleman/Kid Miracleman throwdown from MIRACLEMAN #15 by Alan Moore and John Totleben. Everything with the world of ABSOLUTE SUPERMAN will continue to grow and expand as we go, including Kal-El’s powers and the scope of the challenges he’ll face. Right now, he’s still basically just a baby, facing a King Shazam who’s had 3000 years to stew in his powers and his rage. Gonna be quite the battle. And there’s still two more issues to go in this arc!
—THUNDARR THE BARBARIAN #3 came out a few weeks ago from Dynamite. And here are Michael Cho’s gorgeous covers for the upcoming issues #4 and #5. I’ve had so much fun with this series, getting to explore one of the most cherished fictional worlds from my childhood. Without Thundarr, I may not be here, doing what I do. Feels special to get to craft this continuation of his story, especially alongside an artist who’s kicking as much ass as Kewber Baal. If you wanna see an important piece of my origin story, go read THUNDARR.
—Did you see the awesomeness that is Russell Dauterman drawing the Mighty Thor meeting Wonder Woman? As colored by Matt Wilson, reuniting the team from the Jane Foster saga? If you missed it, there’s a second printing of Marvel and DC’s SPIDER-MAN/SUPERMAN #1 coming soon.
—Next stop on my international con tour/tiki bar cavalcade…Houston for Comicpalooza, May 22-24. Hope to see you there. More info here.
This has been Beard Missives, direct from the piri piri sauced face of Jason Aaron.
This week’s newsletter has been brought to you by Tropical Sunset Mini Starbursts, Nature’s Bakery Oatmeal Crumble bars (Raspberry Lemon and Apple flavors), and Licor de Ginja Mariquinhas Sweet & Sour Cherry Liqueur.
As always, thanks for reading. See you in the funny books.
Jason Aaron
KC, May 6, 2026
THUNDARR #4 — May 20, 2026
MARVEL/DC: SPIDER-MAN/SUPERMAN #1 2nd printing — May 27, 2026
ABSOLUTE SUPERMAN #20 — June 3, 2026
THUNDARR #5 — June 17, 2026
ABSOLUTE SUPERMAN #21 — July 1, 2026
THUNDARR #6 — July 17, 2026
STAR WARS MODERN ERA EPIC COLLECTION: THE SCREAMING CITADEL — July 21, 2026
THOR BY JASON AARON OMNIBUS Vol. 1 (New Printing) — August 11, 2026
THE EC COMICS TREASURY OF TERROR Vol. 1 — September 8, 2026
TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES BY JASON AARON Deluxe Edition — October 13, 2026
ABSOLUTE SUPERMAN Vol. 3: THE NEVERENDING BEGINS Trade Paperback & Hardcover — November 3, 2026
May 22-24, 2026 — Comicpalooza, Houston, Texas
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