Sheena, Queen of the Jungle is back

[drice6900]

Thought I would post this here since it crosses Golden Age with Modern Age:

 

linky

 

DEVIL'S DUE LANDS SHEENA

 

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In an age where classic properties with their roots in pulps are getting a fresh look, Devil’s Due has confirmed for Newsarama that it has secured the comic book rights to Sheena, Queen of the Jungle. Created in 1937 by Will Eisner and Jerry Iger, Sheena was the first female comic book heroine to have her own title in the spring of 1942, predating Wonder Woman. At Devil’s Due, the property will be under the creative direction of filmmakers Paul (The Spirit, Sheena) Aratow and Steven E. (Die Hard) de Souza.

 

“I think the success of titles like Red Sonja and Shana the She Devil have proven there's a market for characters like this,” Devil’s Due President Josh Blaylock said, when asked the obvious: why Sheena? “In addition to that, the take that Aratow and de Souza have on this is a complete overhaul of anything you've ever seen before. Think Veronica Mars, Buffy, Lost, and Tomb Raider thrown into a big mix...this Sheena is crossed with more mystical elements and a South American flair.

 

“This Sheena remains true to the original character, while bringing a new element to her. It's a story that spans from South America - as opposed to Africa in older versions - to New York, where her family originates. Sheena's been missing for over a decade, and when found and brought back into high society, what are first thought to be eccentricities of a spoiled Paris Hilton type are actually a cleverly developed alter ego, ala another famous comic book ‘Billionaire Playboy’ anti-hero most people know. This isn't just a sexy girl jumping around in the jungle - although we'll have plenty of that around, but involves corporate espionage, mythology, and ties to an ancient city dating back to a pre-Mayan era. Sheena has always had elements of ‘protecting the jungle’ from modern society, but in this new story there is more to it than that - there's a very ancient, haunting reason that the area she protects is necessary to the survival of the entire world.”

 

As de Souza explained it, he had a very specific why now? moment. “I was reading a piece in Time magazine about a day with our troops in Iraq, and there was a photo of a barracks with a big Dave Stevens rendition of Sheena on the wall. And I was struck by the power and poignancy of that continuity: Pin up girl for America’s troops for over sixty years. I called up Paul to ask him if he’d seen it, and he said, ‘Yes, not only did I see it, after a long Joseph Campbell-worthy journey, I’m just about to get the rights.’”

 

It was Aratow and Galaxy Publishing who, together with de Souza and the William Morris Agency (which represents Devil’s Due in Hollywood) that brought the deal together.

 

“And it’s the right moment for our one big retcon,” de Souza added, referring to the change in Sheena’s original location. “Today, the market and geopolitical forces that kept early 20th century Africa central in both headlines and the imagination apply with renewed force to South America. This is where the action is today: It‘s where action-adventure will follow. I would ask fans to give us a pass on this one, teeny, weeny little, er, ‘continent switch’: Everywhere else we stay true to what canon exists - we’re just following it to a twenty-first century conclusion.”

 

Backing up a little, Blaylock slowed down to offer a little Sheena 101:

 

“Sheena is arguably the first female super-hero, predating even Wonder Woman. Of course, thanks in part to her outfits, which were quite racy for the times, she was very popular with young boys throughout the ‘30s and 40's. Our modern Sheena lives between two worlds, one of high society and big business and one of the jungle where it's every man for himself, the two of which can be more similar than expected. She is the heiress to a billion dollar empire run by her very shrewd, sometimes malicious grandfather. It was his very business practices in South America that drove her father to leave the family trade, at which time a plane containing both he and Sheena crashed on the way home to New York City, where the father died and Sheena was thought dead. When she's found years later the real story begins. The dynamic between her and her grandfather is very tense and cutting, as they are both each other's family, yet secretly their respective nemesis. Sheena's still a blonde bombshell like in the old days, but being that we're setting this in South America, and with her family having ties to the area, this will be a more Latina Sheena than we've seen before.”

 

Expanding upon the flavor of the classic version of the character, de Souza pointed to the recent Lone Ranger launch by Dynamite, featuring an honest, ground-up retelling of the character’s origin story by Brett Matthews, as both characters share certain similarities. “The Lone Ranger is one of the iconic characters, and also one of the rare ones who moves between the wilderness and civilization - unlike Spiderman or Batman, who generally stalk urban environments,” de Souza said. “While the Lone Ranger is comfortable in the streets of say, Tombstone, though often in disguise, he is most himself in the wilderness…. He was adopted by the tribe that rescued him…..He has a really smart animal companion…. and a secret identity, though one rarely exploited. And a running villain with a blood feud kickoff. Hmmmm…”

 

For Blaylock, the full mix of ingredients that were presented to Devil’s Due made Sheena a safe bet in his eyes.

 

“Along with the strength and history of the character herself, we have some powerful players in the mix revamping this property in Steve de Souza, Paul Aratow, and the William Morris Agency,” Blaylock said. “We're getting in on the ground floor for a long run of Sheena comics, and will also be involved in the development of the new Sheena in other media as well. Actually, don't be surprised if you hear more news about DDP and de Souza working together as well.”

 

De Souza: “Sheena always had tremendous potential that I think was never realized, because over the years the title was always handed off to new people and platforms who never really got it out of first gear before the next group took over. It was a comic title that never delivered anything except what was on the cover: A sexy girl jumping around in the jungle - not that there’s anything wrong with that. And yet, despite this sketchy history, as we approach her 70th anniversary, she remains a cultural touchstone – everybody knows her even when they don’t know that they know her; when Kate gets cocky on Lost, and Sawyer says, ‘Hold on there, Sheena,’ it tells you she’s an American archetype that isn’t even just about comics, anymore.”

 

On the “not just about comics” front, according to Blaylock, Devil’s Due has the comic book license, and will be announcing a few other product categories soon. “We're involved on the development side for Hollywood, but that will be revealed as things progress,” Blaylock said. “At the present we're focused on creating a cool comic book.”

 

“Devil’s Due is the first place since Sheena’s creation that she’s been in the hands of comic creators who have a plan beyond this week’s plotline, and a passion for the character,” de Souza added. “How often do you get your hands on a Golden Age title, to do with it what you will? How often do you get to interview dozens, if not scores of hot models, all competing to appear on the next cover, all of them eager to… what? It’s not like that? Josh, you lied to me!”

 

On the comic book front, Devil’s Due will launch Sheena with a 99-Cent Sheena Preview Special in March by Robert Rodi with de Souza and Aratow, with pencils by Steven Cummings, and two covers by Tim Seely. The publisher plans to launch their first Sheena limited series in June. The titles will be available on pullboxonline.com.