The Hero Business graphic novel by Bill Walko is comicbook about an agency which caters exclusively to superheroes — because with great power comes great marketability! As your typical comicbook aficionado, Walko got to theorizing where a struggling student like Peter Parker managed to get his hands on those custom-branded spider-tracers; how Batman replaced his sidekicks so quickly, and even why those superhero team-ups occur so coincidentally. Well, unlike most comic book readers, Walko decided to write the story of how that all occurs, with his comic, The Hero Business.
Welcome to The Hero Business, where super-powered promotion is all in a day’s work. The series revolves around an agency that services the superhero community. Don’t go thinking that this is some boring office job, as the battles that are raged inside this office can rival the flying fisticuffs of its clientele. Under the humorous hijinks, desperate co-workers are harboring deep, dark secrets. And when the dirty details are exposed, they just may doom the company before the next crossover season! According to Walko, The Hero Business is The Avengers meets The Office, serving up equal parts satirical sitcom, superhero saga, and ongoing soap opera.
Well, if this all sounds entertaining to you then you’ll want to help fund The Hero Business: Season One Graphic Novel; a 220+ full-color trade paperback. The collection includes six complete storylines, 50 “Coffee Break” gags, plus guest comics by some of today’s most talented up-and-coming artists. Each storyline stands on its own, with all six comprising the mega story arc of Season One. The book serves as a perfect introduction to new readers; while there are a number of new bonuses included for longtime fans. The first storyline has been specially re-mastered exclusively for this collection, and is also packed with previously unseen sketches, and wrapped in a new digitally-painted cover.
Bill Walko told us “I’m the creator, writer, and artist behind The Hero Business [which] launched in 2010 as a webcomic, it has garnered a dedicated fan following as well as critical acclaim.
The series marks my first push into self-publishing. Having spent most of my career as a graphic artist and illustrator, I really wanted to create a humor-based comic book that celebrated the fun side of super-heroics.” He went on to say that inspiration struck him when he thought of melding his own marketing experience with the world of costumed crusaders. “What if there was a marketing agency just for superheroes? An entity that arranged those seemingly accidental team-ups? An agent negotiating your center spot in super-team group shots? A crisis management expert to cover up the less-than-heroic antics of the world’s greatest heroes? Much like real life, these super celebrities would be backed by a clever (and sometimes unscrupulous) unseen marketing machine.”
Well, that’s when the name hit him: The Hero Business — which then became a comicbook, inspired by a marketing career and a lifetime of comic book reading, instantly started to write itself. Now five years in, the first phase of the series is complete, and he is happy to compile “Season One” into a high-end trade paperback collection. Needless to say, the hardest thing about launching an indie series is building an audience. And that’s where Kickstarter come in.
The goal of this Kickstarter is to produce a large quantity of books, with finer-quality printing and plenty of extras to reward everyone’s participation in the project. The larger print run will also enable The Hero Business to reach a bigger audience through retail outlets and other venues. Walko’s ultimate goal is to make The Hero Business financially viable, so that he can continue its ongoing saga for future seasons. As can be expected, he’s having a load of fun celebrating the absurdities of the super set, and his cast of characters has quite a few more stories to tell.
This project will be funded on Wednesday, June 10, 2015.