"We are Ghost Machine."
If I can start this comic book article off with a sports analogy (as one does): do you all remember the absolute lunacy that surrounded Lebron James and 'The Announcement' of where he would be playing basketball heading into the 2010-11 NBA season? Of course you do, because that moment in history was beyond unavoidable and folks who have never even touched a basketball knew what was going on at the time.
Okay, now imagine that happening in the comic book world, but instead of there only being (1) Lebron James (Chris Bosh was there too, but whatever) and instead of them 'taking their talent to South Beach', you had (13) of the most medium-defining and commercially-successful creators of the last 30 years band together and create a brand-new, wholly original comic book company. Need I say more?
With legendary scribe Geoff Johns leading this bohemian orchestra, the ensemble joining him to curate this newly constructed universe, aptly named Ghost Machine, includes a laundry list of the heavy-hitters: Jason Fabok, Bryan Hitch, Gary Frank, Brad Anderson, Rob Leigh, Lamont Magee, Francis Manapul, (takes a deep breath) Brad Meltzer, Ivan Reis, Peter Snejbjerg, Peter J. Tomasi, and Maytal Zchut. Initially announced back at New York Comic Con last year, readers will finally get a healthy taste with the release of the beefy 64-page one-shot Ghost Machine #1. I know, you are already sold -- but wait, there's one more super-cool bullet point: It's only $4.99.
[shameless plug alert] We had Geoff Johns and Gary Frank on the show back in November of 2023, and we centered the conversation around the return of their pseudo-flagship character Geiger and how he integrated into the wider Ghost Machine universe. Looking back, I still really love what Gary said when asked about what excited him most about the creation of GM:
"Geoff and I have obviously worked together for a few decades now. the fact is that we both enjoy doing the same thing with the stories. And we both enjoy a kind of a human aspect of it and building believable characters. That's what we are doing here."
With Ghost Machine #1, We start with 'The Unnamed', which consists of Geoff Johns and Gary Frank's Nuclear Man GEIGER and the robotic war machine (with a heart) JUNKYARD JOE -- and Johns, along with Bryan Hitch, also introduce the cheeky, immortal British soldier REDCOAT. Here's what Hitch had to say about Redcoat and how the character differs from what he has worked on before:
“Simon [Redcoat] is almost the opposite of every superhero I’ve worked on. It’s a huge, magical, historical world we’re creating that spans centuries and if Simon does save the world, it won’t be his idea to do it. The big world building is great and hugely engaging to create, but dropping a character like Simon into it is brilliantly disruptive and that’s where all the action, adventure, romance, comedy, good, evil and good old-fashioned running away comes from."
Along with The Unnamed, we also have our sci-fi corner (and the one I'm most looking forward to) ROOK: EXODUS, written by Johns and illustrated by best-batman-drawer-ever Jason Fabok. When the world engine falls into the wrong hands, Rook and other Wardens like him (folks with animal masks who can talk to said animals) must stop the evil that plans to rule the world. Honestly, you had me at "written by Johns and illustrated by Jason Fabok".
There is also the 'Family Odysseys' universe with writer Peter J. Tomasi and artist Francis Manapul’s time-displaced ROCKETFELLERS. Tomasi headlines another title within this universe called HORNSBY & HALO with frequent collaborator Peter Snejbjerg. Not a lot is known at the moment about either title, but I'm getting 'rated PG' vibes, which makes sense for Tomasi because I, like a lot of folks, LOVED his run on Super Sons. Here's what Tomasi said about working on both titles:
"I'm so excited to be working on the Family Odysseys of books right now. As I've done with Batman and Robin and Super Sons, I love crafting stories about young characters going through life-changing adventures, and watching Peter Snjebjerg fill Rose [Hornsby] and Zack [Halo] with so much vibrancy and energy while wrestling with the good and evil nipping at their heels is amazing and we can't wait to share their stories!”
Lastly, we have Geoff Johns back with his Blackest Night and Aquaman collaborator and superstar artist Ivan Reis on HYDE STREET. Reis is the latest to join the Ghost Machine party and this is their most recent announcement, only revealing that this will be a horror title within the larger GM universe. Here's what Reis had to say about the title:
“Hyde Street will blow your mind. It is the kind of story that will pull you in and make you fear every Hyde Street in your own town. It is a lot of fun creating a brand-new universe that is at once dark and twisted, yet also very relatable in terms of human fears and emotions.
Now, I know what you are thinking: "wow Chris, all you talked about in this article was Lebron James and broadly summarized each title. Did you have any honest thoughts here?" Fear not random (fictional) reader, for I have.... thoughts!
When I initially heard rumblings about Ghost Machine at NYCC last year, of course, I was mildly interested based on the roster of creators involved and was willing to give the first issue or two a chance. Eventually. Truthfully, it wasn't until I had the opportunity to physically sit down with Geoff Johns and Bryan Hitch [pictured below] and later Johns and Gary Frank to discuss Ghost Machine and their contributions to it that I 100% bought in.
Listening to everyone involved (specifically Geoff) talk about their stories/characters within Ghost Machine had me chugging the Kool-Aid and coming back for seconds. The genuine passion and animation heard in the voices of bonafide comic book LEGENDS revealed to me everything I needed to buy into Ghost Machine without hesitation.
What I'll end on here is I truly believe that there is something in this universe for everyone. The amount of über-care given by each person involved with GM -- from the creators themselves to the BTS team, is immediately evident. Again, after not only hearing these creators talk about their books in-depth, but also reading each story within this one-shot (there's also plenty of Geiger and Junkyard Joe already out there), you'd be hard-pressed not to find a character/title to latch onto (might I recommend: people in animal masks talking to actual animals?).
Something Geoff said when we spoke to him on the show (and I'm paraphrasing here) is, "character comes first with these stories". I know I'm not alone when I say that when it comes to compelling storytelling, that's all I can ask for. If the creator cares about the characters they are writing/drawing, so too will the reader.
