mitch gerards

‘The Sheriff of Babylon Vol. 1: Bang. Bang. Bang.’ (book review) at Forces of Geek

 

 

The Sheriff of Babylon Vol. 1: Bang. Bang. Bang
Written by Tom King
Illustrated by Mitch Gerards
Cover by John Paul Leon
Published by Vertigo Comics
ISBN: 978-1401264666 | Price $14.99
Release date: July 13, 2016

Crime and war in post-9/11 Iraq is captured in Sheriff of Babylon written by Tom King (Batman, The Vision) and drawn by Mitch Gerads (The Activity, The Punisher).

King draws on his experience as a CIA officer to create a deeply personal rich reflection of the Baghdad of 2004 through the eyes of a former cop and current military contractor Christopher, his Muslim Iraqi girlfriend Sophia and former Iraqi police officer Nassir.

By being exposed to the environment, King has created, along with the carefully researched accuracy of Gerads’ artwork, a military crime fiction of the highest order—it just so happens to be in comic book form.


Dig Boston and League Podcast Comics Picks of the Week for Wed. July 22, 2015

 

 

 

 

 

COMICS

Let the punishment end!The Activity team of Nathan Edmondson and Mitch Gerads took over The Punisher for an extended run so hopefully we’ll see some of this Frank Castle in Netflix’ Daredevil Season 2. Punisher #20 promises to go out with a BANG! … We’re going dark with this week’s picks. JLA Gods And Monsters Batman (One Shot) puts alternate reality Man-Bat Kirk Langstrom in the Bat Suit! Be sure to check out the latest from Bruce Timm and DC Animation on iTunes or wherever you get your movies. … Titan brings us Blacklist #1 based on the James Spader TV series of the same name. Will the Concierge of Crime Raymond Red Reddington help the FBI? Tune in to your Local Comic Shop to find out! … Picks this week from LeaguePodcast.com!

 

 

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Dig Boston and League Podcast Comics Picks of the Week for Wed. June 24, 2015

 

COMICS

Mickey Mouse heads out on The Lost Explorers Trail with help from Goofy and Eurasia Toft in a brand new Mickey Mouse #1 from IDW! … We all remember 1992, right? Well, maybe some of you were just born. This was a time when comics had more hologram covers and pouches than you can shake a Mjolnir at. X-Men ‘92 #1 transforms us to that magical time when En Vogue ruled the airwaves. … Nathan Edmondson and Mitch Gerards’ Punisher #19 closes in on Frank Castle’s last days, hot on the heels of him Jon Bernthal being cast as Big Pun in Daredevil Season 2. … Picks this week from LeaguePodcast.com!

Get Batman comics, graphic novels, toys & more at TFAW.com!

Timey-Wimey Tees at TeeFury.com

Nintendo Retro t-shirts

EARTH PRIME TIME: NATHAN EDMONDSON OF THE ACTIVITY AND WHERE IS JAKE ELLIS?

THE ACTIVITY - MITCH GERARDSSome interviews are so sensitive that you might get a call from an unknown number asking you to take it down for the sake of national security. We hope we’re not getting another one of those calls this week, as we got a chance to talk to the top spy-fi and espionage comic book writer in the business, Nathan Edmondson. Nathan has written Grifter for New 52, as well as a recent Ultimate Iron Man series for Marvel (now in trade paperback). For creator-owned work, Nathan’s The Activity and Jake Ellis series continue to draw attention from real military and fans of spy fiction, and more books are in the works including being tapped by Ubisoft to develop a Splinter Cell comic series. We conducted the following interview over a secure line.

 

DIGBOSTON: Hi Nathan, Thanks for taking the time today. We’re just now caught up with The Activity, a special ops book you do with artist Mitch Gerards. What’s the inspiration for such a real world espionage book?

NATHAN EDMONDSON: Mitch and I are fascinated by this nearly untouchable world, and when we found a side of it never seen before in fiction, we knew we wanted to tell stories about it.

The attention to detail on the missions are really what grabs me with this book in particular. How important is the tech to the book?

Tech is second to soldiers and story, but technological superiority is part of what makes a group like this so effective on the battlefield.

We do our best not to distract with the tech, but to give a real-world feel of the gadgets and gear employed by Tier 1 operators on missions.

The Activity - Mitch Gerards

The Activity - Mitch Gerards

I have a relative that dealt with special ops military, he’s pretty tight-lipped about his time there, but I understand you have had some great support from ex-military and special forces members. 

How do you gain access to the right people you need to help you tell an accurate story? And who or what is at U.S. Army Entertainment Liaison Office?

The armed forces has offices that are set up to provide information and support to the entertainment world.  We have worked a bit with the Army’s office, but most of our direct research comes from relationships we’ve forged with individuals who have or who continue to serve in the Special Operations community.  In the back of the trade you’ll see a list (though names are changed and much information withheld) of some of those who have given us support.

We are careful, however, not to disclose information that would compromise any of these individuals.

The Activity - Mitch Gerards

A Comic Book Fan gets to pick the Mission Codenames! - The Activity - Mitch Gerards

This is a very different flavor of book from your other series, as you are not only showcasing the heroes on the ground with direct action, but also dealing with the structure of the whole operation including international cooperation. 

At some points a team member or a team might disagree with the orders from on high—but ultimately carries out the mission. Other missions may get scrubbed or not go as planned. Is your Activity team balanced well? Will there be any roster changes coming up?

If you’ve read issue 11, you know there are some changes stirring within Team Omaha.  In the real world, part of what makes a Special Missions Unit team effective is they grow together and train together as a team so that they can trust one another fully and completely on the battlefield.

[READ MORE at DIGBOSTON.COM]

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