Thrilled By Police Support, Eisner Winner Mike Baron Donates Thousands to Law Enforcement Programs and Charities before National Police Week
After quickly raising the needed funds to self-publish his latest comic ‘Thin Blue Line,’ a police-focused graphic novel coming out next month, Eisner-winning writer Mike Baron and his creative team wanted to give back to law enforcement and remind his readers about this week’s National Police Week.
Among comic book readers, Mike Baron is best known for writing The Flash, Nexus, Star Wars, and The Punisher for Marvel Comics, but this graphic novel is one of the only comics he’s written that will not be available at comic shops, chiefly because every publisher Baron submitted it to responded that making street cops the heroes did not align with their business model.
Baron’s legions of fans did not share those concerns, and their response to his crowdfunding campaign was tremendous.
“I was shocked at how easily we beat our modest crowdfunding goal,” editor Chris Braly says. “Mike’s fans, as well as the law enforcement community, came out in a big way on Indiegogo. We’re at the printer now and expect to ship in mid-June. Latecomers still have a chance to own a first printing of ‘Thin Blue Line’ by visiting thinbluelinecomics.com and grabbing a copy of what’s destined to be a VERY rare comic.”
‘Thin Blue Line’ tells the story of two police officers assigned to guard the mayor amid riots that begin over a police shooting.
“It’s not polemic, and definitely isn’t a cop recruitment book,” Mike Baron says. “It’s just a thrilling action drama, similar in many ways to elements my fans may recall from the five years I wrote The Punisher, which were grittier and more realistic than most mainstream superhero comics.”
The book’s penciller, Joseph Arnold, is an active-duty police officer, lending credibility to the story. Arnold always dreamed of working with Baron, but had very personal reasons for wanting to illustrate ‘Thin Blue Line’.
“I was eager to show another side of policing,” Arnold says. “The story emphasizes family, interpersonal dynamics, and shows police officers from many different backgrounds. I’ve put my heart into every page, and hope it has a positive impact on policing.”
A portion of the profits from ‘Thin Blue Line’ was donated to three police related programs which are important to the team and relevant to the story. They were Adopt a Cop, The National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund, and the National Fallen Officer Foundation.
The campaign also hopes to bring attention to National Police Week which celebrates its 60th anniversary this year and takes place this week.The book is now at the printer with a few hundred copies still available before the crowdfunding campaign is closed in mid-June. Please visit ThinBlueLineComics.com to learn more.
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