Posted in: Comics | Tagged: historical, indie, self-publishing, stan lee

Stan Lee Beats His War Drums, Revives the Fallen Yi Soon Shin

Published Tue, 17 Jan 2012 13:23:28 -0600

Last updated Tue, 17 Jan 2012 13:23:48 -0600

Staff Writer Keith Davidsen writes for Bleeding Cool.

Yi Soon Shin: Warrior and Defender was a historical comic book series that chronicled the conflicts of a legendary Korean naval commander who stood outnumbered against a Japanese army of "samurai and ninja in a violent orgy of blood and heroics." Self-published by creator Onrie Kompan, the series was distributed by Diamond Comics for two issues, but was dropped before the first storyline could conclude. It was a gorgeous series that never quite made it to the big leagues.

Well, it's gotten big league attention now.

Stan "The Man" Lee has lent his support to the graphic novel of Yi Soon Shin: Warrior and Defender by providing a foreword for the collection. To quote the book's introduction, "The level of commitment of this gifted team is tremendous and they have succeeded in telling a great story, which is the first rule of comics."

"Onrie Kompan's devotion to the history of Korea, combined with his genuine love of comics, has helped him weave a truly inspiring and epic story while Giovanni Timpano's sensational artwork brings it to life with his grand, full-scale illustrations."

Diamond Comics has solicited the graphic novel as part of its upcoming February catalog, giving the book a second lease at life.

Here's a look at some interior pages. We're pretty sure these pages (one taken from each of the four issues compiled into the graphic novel) have never been seen without dialogue and word balloons.