Modern Tales announced today that Athena Voltaire will join its subscription-based anthology webcomics site on Monday, June 2nd.
Set in the 1930’s, Athena Voltaire chronicles the globetrotting adventures of its titular heroine. Series co-creator/artist Steve Bryant describes the book as "Indiana Jones starring a James Cameron-style female pilot." Bryant continues "Obviously, that’s an oversimplification, but that’s the ‘high concept’ in a nutshell. Mix in liberal doses of Hitler’s bizarre occult obsessions, creatures and lots of cliffhangers and you get a good idea of what we’re doing."
Athena Voltaire made its debut on the Modern Tales spinoff site, Adventure Strips in September, 2002.
To celebrate it’s relaunch on the Modern Tales flagship, Athena Voltaire will be updating daily with Rapid-Fire Reruns of Athena Voltaire and the Terror in Tibet through July 2. "We feel that the Rapid-Fire Rerun of the first story arc is a great jumping on point for new readers and an ideal refresher course for those who have been with us since day one," Bryant stated. "That way, everyone will be up to speed when the second story starts on July 8th."
The Terror in Tibet, the strip’s first storyline, follows the aviatrix as she is hired to accompany a climbing expedition to Mt. Everest. "Athena gets caught between two parties of explorers (Nazis and black magicians), each bent on uncovering a secret that lies in a Tibetan Monastery at Everest. She finds herself asking ‘what are these men willing to kill for?’ as well as discovering what tore the members of a previous expedition limb-from-limb."
The strip has generated considerable buzz, garnering positive reviews from industry pros. Tim (Punisher, Hellblazer) Bradstreet describes Athena Voltaire as "rollicking high adventure," while Mark (Xenozoic Tales, Superman: Man Of Steel) Schultz calls it "fun and compelling" with "stylish storytelling and gorgeous rendering."
A critical darling as well, Athena Voltaire has received glowing reviews at Ain’t It Cool News ("Why HASN’T CrossGen picked this title up?") and Comic World News ("It’s as good as anything by Top Cow"). Trisha Sebastian, Deanna Lytle and Sheena McNeil of Sequential Tart unanimously agree that the strip is exceptional.
Joining Bryant on Athena Voltaire are co-creator/scripter Paul Daly and colorist Chad Fidler, who exclaims "I believe the work we have done so far on Athena is the best of our careers. Each episode is so packed with cool stuff, whether it’s exotic locales, daring escapes or the supernatural, it’s hard not to do great job!"
An enthusiastic Bryant sums it up "Modern Tales is clearly the industry leader when it comes to webcomics; just look at the diverse talent in their stable: James Kolchaka, Lea Hernandez, Donna Barr, Gary Chaloner and more. We’re thrilled to be staying on as a part of the Modern Tales family."
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