In February, Boom! Studios is publishing a totally new version of a Carl Barks’ plotted story. The story has a new title “Somewhere BEYOND Nowhere”; a new script (by me); and art by the great Daan Jippes. It’s 12 pages long.

Why did I want to do a new version–especially since I scripted the original 2000 version? Well, that’s a bit of a story in itself…

Well, the original version (“Somewhere IN Nowhere”)–although it certainly has its charms and some nice art by Pat Block–strayed quite a bit from Carl’s original plot. Interference from one of the managers of the Carl Barks Studio (not Carl himself) twisted what was intended to be a snappy 10-12 pager into a bloated 28-page adventure story. I was continually encouraged to make the story longer. More importantly, I was given some misinformation about plot changes that Carl supposedly wanted.

It was only after the story was drawn that I learned how much the story differed from what Carl actually wanted. As someone who admired Carl personally and professionally, I felt horrible about this. I really felt we should go back to Carl’s original synopsis and do it the way he wanted. Fortunately, my editors at Egmont agreed and I was delighted when Jippes agreed to draw it.

It took me a few years to work up the courage to script this story. I couldn’t afford to do it wrong–again. And I wanted to honor Carl’s intent and legacy. So I felt I had to do my very best.

I think it came out well. (Certainly, Jippes’ art is magnificent!) But you can judge for yourself.

Boom! Studios is publishing “Somewhere Beyond Nowhere” in Donald Duck and Friends #363. Advance orders from the Diamond Comics Previews catalog are available through your local comic shop. Here’s additional info about the comic:

http://www.boom-studios.com/donald-duck-and-friends-363.html

Since Disney bought Marvel Comics today, I thought I’d reprint a comic I did recently for Comics Buyer’s Guide about the deal. Since I’ve worked for both Disney and Marvel, I couldn’t resist having a bit of fun with the merger. In fact, this art came from a DuckTales story I wrote (and William Van Horn drew) years ago. The dialog, of course, is new!