Skullkickers Signs With Surge Licensing

For Immediate Release
June 28, 2011

Contact: Elan Freedman
Surge Licensing, Inc.
elan@surging.com
516-939-2226

Surge Licensing Signs Breakout Comics Series – Skullkickers^TM
For Exclusive Licensing and Entertainment Representation

The Hangover Meets World of Warcraft
in Zub’s Serialized Adventure Series

Jericho, N.Y. — Surge Licensing, Inc., the agency known for developing off-the-wall comic book properties such as the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and, more recently, Axe Cop have signed an exclusive licensing and entertainment agreement with Swords and Sassery, Inc. to develop TV/film, video games, toys, apparel and other tie-ins for Skullkickers – an on-going series published by Image Comics that debuted in September 2010 and continues to sell-out print runs into its second story arc.

Created by Jim Zubkavich and Chris Stevens, Skullkickers is the story of two monster killing mercenaries – a giant bald-headed warrior and a short red-headed dwarf. They’re an odd pairing, a medieval fantasy-esque “Jay and Silent Bob”, in search of fame and fortune. The two adventurers, affectionately known as “Baldy” and “Shorty”, make their living slaying werewolves, necromancers, plant monsters, the undead, and almost anything else readers can imagine from classic fantasy literature and games. Nothing will stop these two from getting paid and enjoying a fine pint of ale.

USA Today describes it best – “Imagine Clint Eastwood\’s The Man With No Name, Bad Boys and your local Renaissance festival thrown into a stein of the finest grog in town, and you have a sense of the full-on Skullkickers experience.”

As soon as Skullkickers comics began to hit shelves, issues immediately sold out.  The first 3 issues vanished from stores within days of release.  The first trade paperback collection quickly followed suit and Image has rushed a new print run to keep up with unexpected demand over the summer. A second trade, collecting the new story arc currently underway, will arrive in time for Christmas.

Skullkickers has been highly praised by pop culture news outlets including MTV, Bleeding Cool, G4 and Ain’t It Cool News, as well as virtually every fanboy site on the web.

“We couldn’t be more excited to work with ‘Zub’ and his team on Skullkickers, a comic with so much whimsy, charm and wit” exclaims Surge’s VP, Elan Freedman, “It’s a story that not only gives the masses a peek inside the fun world of fantasy adventure but rather it entirely busts down the door and brings readers in with a welcome parade of hilarious action and banter.”

Skullkickers’ irreverent approach to classic fantasy, a proverbial buddy cop movie slammed into Conan the Barbarian, plays with cartoonish violence and banter in a way that appeals to young teen boys, older fantasy fans and gamers of all ages.