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Happy halloween – My latest DC Comics gig

Plus: Gwenpool, paddle steamers, and Peter Venkman performing Hemingway

Cavan Scott

• 8 min read
Happy halloween – My latest DC Comics gig

Hello there!

How are you doing?

I’m out on the road this week with George Mann, both of us wearing our IP developer hats. We’ve been teaming up with a range of companies to take the core idea behind their game, show, or brand and grow it into a full-blown franchise — digging into their lore, finding untapped potential, and exploring how it might expand into comics, TV and film, podcasts, and more.

It’s one of the most exciting parts of the job: taking everything we’ve learned from working in sprawling universes like Star Wars and Doctor Who, and applying it to something new.

And honestly? Ninety-nine percent of the time, it just means we get to nerd out with brilliant, creative people who are every bit as geeky as we are.

What’s not to love?

Coming up in today's Cavletter: new comic solicits, paddle steamers, Elzar Mann and your actual Bill Murray! 

Keep scrolling for more! 

NEW SOLICITATIONS

New comics are a-coming. Here are all my latest solicits, including news of a new DC super hero comic from yours truly!

DC'S ZATANNIC PANIC

Yup, that's right —I've written another scary DC story for spooky season.

Find out which of the heroes below I'm putting through the Halloween wringer soon!

A HAUNTING ANTHOLOGY TO USHER IN THE HALLOWEEN SEASON! Spooky stories for terrifying times, featuring bone-chilling tales from some of comics' most fearsome fabulists and harrowing artists! With spine-tingling shorts starring Batman, Ambush Bug, Raven, The Demon, Plastic Man, Swamp Thing, and, of course, the Mistress of Magic herself, Zatanna, as they summon spirits and struggle against the supernatural!

Out: October 1st, 2025 | Final Order Cut-off: September 01, 2025

GWENPOOL #5

DON'T BELIEVE THAT COVER — NOTHING IS OKAY!

Spider-Man is dead. Hawkeye is dead. Gwenpool is dead. EVERYONE is dead. Except Gwen Stacy. Gwen Stacy's alive — and she's FURIOUS! They wanted a weapon. They created retribution.

Plus: The Great Architect's secret identity revealed.

Out: September 03, 2025 | Final Order Cut-off: August 04, 2025

STAR WARS: TALES FROM THE NIGHTLANDS #2

After his defeat on Cloud City, Luke Skywalker is tormented by Darth Vader’s revelation. Is the Dark Lord of the Sith really his father? When a nightmare suggests otherwise, Luke can’t resist the opportunity to investigate . . . and comes face-to-face with . . . the Nightlander!

• A chilling, three-issue horror series from a galaxy far, far away . . .

• Written by Cavan Scott, the New York Times bestselling author of Star Wars: Tales from Vader’s Castle and a story architect of The High Republic initiative.

• Introducing the Nightlander, a Star Wars boogeyman designed by legendary artist Iain McCaig!

Out: October 15, 2025 | Final Order Cut-off: September 8, 2025

There have been a flurry of supercool things going on away from work.

I spent Friday among the trees at Westonbirt Arboretum watching the fab Paul Heaton perform with super talented Rianne Downey, the evening only made better by the fact that Billy flippin’ Bragg was the support act.

I’ve been a fan of Paul since the buying the first Housemartins single (gulp) 40-years-ago and the hits just kept on coming, one after another: 'Old Red Eyes is Back'. 'Happy Hour'. 'Rotterdam'. 'Song for Whoever'.

Just wow!

The evening ended with one of my favourite songs, 'Caravan of Love', originally bought on twelve inch by 13-year-old Cav in 1986 and still a classic.

Saturday morning, it was up bright and early to catch the world’s last sea-going paddle steamer from Clevedon!

Warning: this newsletter is now a PS Waverley fan account.

What a beautiful, beautiful ship and amazing trip, skirting around the Holm islands before continuing to Penarth in South Wales.

We came ashore at the end of Penarth pier which is the home of the wonderful art deco theatre which recently doubled as a US cinema in Doctor Who and the scene of a murder in the delightful Death Valley (if you’re a fan of cosy crime and aren’t watching this BBC gem, you’re missing out. Perfect Sunday night telly!)

An afternoon in a new place obviously meant seeking out the local bookshop and in Penarth that means the legendary Griffin Books. I was good and only picked up a signed copy of The Listeners by Maggie Stiefvater, which included a lovely letter for independent bookshop patrons which I thought was a really nice touch. 

And all that was topped off by seeing Bill Murray perform at the Bristol Beacon on Tuesday.

Yes, that Bill Murray. 

We had no idea what to expect from an evening that promised readings from Bill and music from classical trio Jan Vogler, Vanessa Perez and Mira Wang, but what we got was so much more. There was Bach, Hemingway, and Bill acting the fool, leading the audience in a singalong (shades of Scrooged there) and moments of glorious melancholy. Utterly bonkers one minute and hauntingly beautiful the next. 

And it also means that this year I’ve seen both Peter Venkman and Dana Barrett on stage.

Be still my Ghostbustin’ heart! 

ELZAR MANN-CHILD?

Rae asked me a question via my AMA form:

You said in a recent interview that Elzar Mann started out as an “alpha male” — but isn’t that kind of an outdated (and let’s be honest, loaded) label these days? The modern version of an alpha male often conjures up toxic masculinity and emotional detachment, which feels totally at odds with the vulnerable, flawed Elzar we meet in The Rising Storm. Was that really how you saw him at first? And how do you square that with the man he became?

Rae is talking about the recent roundtable interview on StarWars.com where, when asked about my favourite High Republic characters, I said:

I think it's Elzar Mann for me. His arc has been so incredible. He started as this alpha male, can-do-everything Jedi, and has just shown us all how to be a guy to ask for help, to get things wrong, to admit he needs people, and just to keep fighting. I would never have thought that of him when we first started discussing him, but I think he's going to be one of the characters I'm going to miss most.

And you’re right, Rae — alpha male is a loaded term these days. It’s come to mean something unbelievably toxic: emotionally closed off, domineering, allergic to vulnerability and, let’s face it, downright misogynistic and homophobic. 

That’s not who Elzar is… but it is who he thought he had to be when we first conceived the character — well, except for all the toxic, abusive, misogynistic, homophobic nonsense. No Jedi would ever sink that low, especially in the High Republic period.

When we first created him, Elzar was supposed to be a confident, charismatic Jedi who takes the lead, trusts his instincts, and doesn’t wait around for permission. He was supposed to be the guy who looked like he had it all figured out. But that was always a performance — and The Rising Storm is where that illusion starts to unravel.

Elzar’s arc is about dismantling that version of masculinity. He breaks. He asks for help. He admits he needs people. And he becomes more powerful because he’s willing to be vulnerable, not in spite of it.

So no, he’s not the internet’s idea of an alpha male. He’s not a red-pilled Jedi-bro — or as another emailer put it, ‘a posturing space-chad’.

He’s messy. Human. And still learning.

  • I’m really excited to see the artist of the latest runs of Star Wars: The High Republic Marika Cresta announce a new horror comic with Cullen Bunn. Deluge sounds fab. 
  • All Star Superman, a new full-cast audio from Penguin Random House, is out now, adapted by Meghan Fitzmartin. I’m so chuffed that my friend Marc Thompson – who many of you will know from the Star Wars audiobooks – is in the title role. Marc playing Superman just makes total sense. If any one embodies the values of the Man of Steel it’s him.

    In the early days of lockdown, Marc sent a very special audio message to my eldest daughter on her fourteenth birthday, a communication from Yoda himself telling her to be brave in those uncertain times. He’s a special soul. 

THAT'S ALL FOR NOW, FOLKS

Right, that’s enough from me – George and I are celebrating a great day by breaking open the miniatures we were given in one of our meetings. He's promised to teach me how to paint them – something I've always wanted to do, but have been too scared to attempt!

I'll let you know how I get on!

Until then, look after yourself and each other!

WHERE TO FIND ME ONLINE

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