Broken Frontier

Act-i-vate alumni Dean Haspiel and Michel Fiffe bring their genre-bending Webcomics to the printed page in a black & white, three-issue creature romance double feature, entitled Brawl , this October.

"While "Immortal," my half of Brawl, made its debut online at Act-i-vate, I always intended it to get in print," explains Haspiel, the critically acclaimed artist behind Harvey Pekar's The Quitter . "I knew Michel felt the same way about his psychedelic horror story, "Panorama," so the collaboration was a must."

Both halves of Brawl are completely different as far as content, but that's exactly what the cartoonist pair intended.

"Dean and I are aiming for a fusion of Love & Rockets and Grindhouse ," adds Fiffe. "A two man anthology that strives to warp and evolve the comic book reading experience."

"Immortal"features Haspiel's anti-hero, Billy Dogma, in a hardboiled romance gone cosmic, while Fiffe's"Panorama"focuses on a teenage runaway suffering from his disturbing new found powers.

Fans of the digital strips are not the only ones thrilled to see the series make its way to a wider audience. Creators from throughout the comic book industry have heaped their praise on the pair's work.

Warren Ellis, creator of Fell proclaimed, "I honestly think that Dean Haspiel is the heir to Kirby."

While Nick Bertozzi, the cartoonist behind The Salon , raved, "Steve Ditko and David Cronenberg had a child and his name is Michel Fiffe."

You can read more on Immortal and Panorama through the Act-i-vate website, www.Act-i-vate.com. Brawl #1 (of 3) will be available in stores October 10th.