Gallery: The 7 Best DRM-Free Comics Announced at Image Expo
01Nameless
Thanks to its creator-owned business model and forward-thinking [DRM-free digital distribution](http://stag-komodo.wired.com/underwire/2013/07/drm-free-comics-download-image/), Image Comics is an attractive place to publish -- and read -- comics these days, particularly the original work of big-name superhero creators. Yesterday the third Image Expo came to San Francisco, a one-day event where indie comics publisher Image Comics adopts the Apple model and announces a number of high-profile projects during one marathon session before settling down for smaller chats and a late-night party that makes everyone out of town feel jealous. More than 15 projects were announced during the two-hour keynote session -- you can read the complete list [here](https://www.imagecomics.com/content/view/image-expos-exciting-announcements) -- but we've picked out seven new projects worth checking out (in print or digital) over the coming year. __Above: *Nameless*__ --------------------- Despite the chops of its creative team -- *Batman Incorporated* duo Grant Morrison and Chris Burnham -- the horror series *Nameless* is a wild card. It's is the story of a character Morrison describes as a post-modern protagonist, a smart, screwed-up guy equal parts Batman and BBC Sherlock. Morrison and Burnham hope to take the horror tropes of the 21st century -- zombies et al. -- a step deeper than we've become accustomed to. "Everyone's read the exact same books, seen the same movies and TV shows, so everything's starting to feel a little comfortably same to me," Burnham said. "I don't want the readers of a horror book to feel comfortable at all." Either way, it's worth checking out on the strength of its creative team alone. Even if it's not perfect, it's almost guaranteed to be interesting. —*Rachel Edidin*
02The Wicked and the Divine
__*The Wicked and the Divine*__ ------------------------------- Okay, let's be real: I would buy literally any comic from writer Kieron Gillen and artist Jamie McKelvie, and so should you. Although they recently teamed up for Marvel's *Young Avengers* -- a title that made our [best comics of 2013 list](http://stag-komodo.wired.com/underwire/2013/12/best-comics-2013/) -- *The Wicked and the Divine* is their first creator-owned collaboration since the musical-magical series *Phonogram*. It's a story about twelve gods who incarnate in charismatic, gifted human forms but die within two years, and the mortal devotee who wants to join them, no matter what the cost. In Gillen's words, it's "a superhero comic for anyone who loves Bowie as much as Batman." Sold. —*Rachel Edidin*
03Casanova Acedia
*Casanova Vol. 4: Acedia* ------------------------- *Casanova* is back. The dimension-tripping, body-swapping, frequently metatextual adventures of Superspy Casanova Quinn are returning to comics not only with the creative team of Matt Fraction and artists Gabriel Ba and [Fabio Moon](http://instagram.com/p/i9so1xTC8u/), but no less than Pulitzer Prize-winning author Michael Chabon scripting back-up stories. *Casanova* was Fraction's passion project long before he broke into the big leagues at Marvel Comics on titles like *Thor*, *Invincible Iron Man* and *Hawkeye*, but it remains his most fearless and beautiful work. If you've never read *Casanova*, you should definitely get on that, but also don't let it dissuade you from diving in; this volume opens on an amnesiac Casanova wandering in Los Angeles who doesn't know anything about himself, either. --*Laura Hudson*
04Bitch Planet
__*Bitch Planet*__ ------------------ A feminist, sci-fi take on women-in-prison sexploitation by *Captain Marvel* and *Pretty Deadly* writer Kelly Sue Deconnick? *Yes, please.* Illustrated by Valentine De Landro, the series follows five convicts on an all-female penal planet trying to make their escape by way of gladiatorial combat. It's worth noting that, at least in premise, *Bitch Planet* bears a striking resemblance to the "Prison Ship Antares" arc of Alex de Campi's *Grindhouse*, likewise a prison sexploitation homage set in space. I tend to think this is a genre mash-up that makes intuitive sense and is thus more zeitgeist than swipe, but I'm still crossing my fingers for the crossover de Campi proposed when she mentioned the similarity [on Facebook](https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10151930623311297&set=a.184519116296.132374.539446296&type=1&stream_ref=10)). —*Rachel Edidin*
05TechJacket Digital
*TechJacket Digital* -------------------- With no offense meant to writer Joe Keatinge or illustrator Khary Randolph, the most interesting thing about the *TechJacket Digital* -- a revamp of an earlier comic by *Walking Dead* creator Robert Kirkman -- may be the way it will released: as a digital-only miniseries, and all at once. We've seen Image poke and prod at digital distribution conventions before -- the last Image Expo saw the announcement of the publisher's [own DRM-free storefront](http://stag-komodo.wired.com/underwire/2013/07/drm-free-comics-download-image/), and more recently, they've partnered with Dropbox for cloud integration -- so watching them adopt an equivalent of the Netflix release model maybe shouldn't come as much of a surprise. Releasing all three issues of the series simultaneously may allow for "binge-reading," but it also raises the question of whether or not having to individually purchase each issue (as opposed to simply having access to all three through a subscription model) will act as a barrier to that kind of thing. Could this be the future of digital comics, or just an unexpected side-trip? —*Graeme McMillan*
06Fadeout
*The Fade Out* - Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips ---------------------------------------------- For some years now, the partnership of writer Ed Brubaker and artist Sean Phillips has produced some of the best crime comics out there, from *Sleeper* through *Criminal* and *Incognito*. The announcement of *The Fade Out*, a new series from the pair about the death of a Hollywood starlet in the 1940s that's described as being "epic" in scope and dealing with World War II, suggests a return to more straightforward crime fiction from their current horror series *Fatale* -- and also marks the beginning of a new era for the two creators, with both having signed a five-year publishing deal with Image that gives them the chance to publish whatever they want through the company, while retaining full ownership. In other words, five more years of comics from one of the best teams in mainstream comics. It's pretty much a win-win for everyone, really. —*Graeme McMillan*
078house
*8House* -------- Brandon Graham is one of the most interesting creators working at Image these days, making his new series about eight magical houses that control the universe and are engaged in magical warfare seem particularly attractive one. But the fact that *8House* is going to be an anthology that also features work by the likes of artists Marian Churchland and Emma Rios just makes it even more of a must-read. Graham's work on titles like *King City* and *Multiple Warheads* reveal him as a cartoonist in the truest sense, creating work where word and pictures interplay to the point of being inseparable, while his run as writer on *Prophet* over the last couple of years has demonstrated that he can play well with others and create amazingly imaginative sci-fi worlds that are as alien as they are inviting. This might end up the best-looking book on the stands when it appears later this year. —*Graeme McMillan*
