They’re using the cover from the prose novel in the listing, which I assume means Tor hasn’t submitted a cover yet. I’d say the cover from issue #1 of the comic book (shown here) would work just fine.

It’s taken a long time (and three publishers) to complete this adaptation of the Wheel of Time prequel, even though it only covered eight standard-sized comic books. (Check out the New Spring-tagged posts here for the whole story.) I’m sure Tor Publishing was frustrated, since they couldn’t actually release the collection until the individual chapters were complete, and Robert Jordan was extremely frustrated with the situation.

The same studio has also started adapting the main series. The third issue of Eye of the World arrived in stores earlier this week. According to this post, the original plan was for Eye of the World to cover roughly 36 issues, to be collected in six volumes. Just for book one.

Dynamite has been good at keeping the comics on schedule since they relaunched a few months ago, but at that pace, even if they never miss a month, it’ll take 42 years to adapt the whole series!

Well, hey — I’m not going to complain about early comics!

I probably won’t have time to read it, though. We’ve got plans for Wednesday evening, and my free time will probably be spent writing up and promoting a review of the new Flash issue.

UPDATE May 12: Yes, indeed, New Spring #8 was waiting for me at the comic store today! After nearly five years, the miniseries is complete!

ROBERT JORDAN’S NEW SPRING #8

32 pages FC • $3.99 • Teen +

Written by ROBERT JORDAN w/ CHUCK DIXON • Art & Cover by JOE COOPER

The long awaited conclusion is here!

The Historic binding of Al’Lan Mandragoran as Warder to Moiraine of the Aes Sedai is upon us and the search ensues for the Dragon Reborn, so that he may be saved to fulfill his destiny and oppose the Dark One in an ultimate Last Battle. However, followers of the Dark One also know the prophecy and a desperate race ensues with the fate of all mankind hanging in the balance. The Adventure has just begun!

It looks like they’ve changed artists. Also, I don’t recall Moiraine looking quite so much like Raven from The New Teen Titans.

The solicitations actually went out at the end of March, but I didn’t notice since I was busy getting ready for vacation at the time. I have a Google Alert set up to catch news, but it turns out I never switched out “Dabel Brothers” for “Dynamite” in the search terms. Oops.

According to Westfield Comics, the planned release date is June 30, 2010. If it ships on time, that’s seven months after Dynamite took over Dabels’ catalog, almost a year after the previous issue shipped, and almost five years since the first issue was published in August 2005.

It’s also the series’ third publisher. The first five issues were produced by Dabel Brothers and published by Red Eagle Entertainment before the series went on hiatus. Then issues #6 and #7 were published directly by Dabel Brothers. And now #8 is coming from Dynamite.

Update: Dynamite has a preview of the issue on their website.

Update 2: It looks like it may be out a lot sooner!.

Update 3: Yes, I picked it up on May 12, 2010!

They’re launching with a new #1 which reprints the contents the #0 and #1 issues that Dabel Brothers published last year.

No mention of New Spring, but at least there are signs of Eye of the World getting back on track.

Eye of the World is supposed to start up again in spring. I’ll believe it when I see it.

It’s also supposed to pick up with a monthly schedule — which at this point would constitute a genuine miracle.

Update: Dragonmount has posted an update saying that Dynamite is involved, which makes more sense and actually gives me a little more confidence that we’ll actually see some of these books. Plus, “spring” fits with the April date that Dynamite gave when talking about when they expected to start releasing the titles they acquired from Dabel Brothers. With luck we’ll see something when April’s solicitations go up later this month.

There’s no specific word on New Spring or the ongoing Wheel of Time adaptation, but since New Spring #8 is reportedly “complete and ready for printing,” it seems likely to be part of that initial April release.

If the book does come out in April, it will have taken nearly five years to complete the eight-issue miniseries (the first issue shipped in August 2005). Dynamite will also be the third company logo to appear on the cover, after five issues with Red Eagle Entertainment and two with Dabel Brothers’ own label.

At this point I don’t care much about the Eye of the World comics, since they only published one issue to start with (two if you count the prologue), but I’d really like to see New Spring finished!

Comic Book Resources has more on the deal.

To clarify that last item: It was an easy chair, sitting in the middle of the road. The pickup in front of me slammed on its brakes to avoid it. I slowed down and tried to move into the next lane — around the car that was pacing me — so that I didn’t end up getting plowed into by the giant truck behind me. (It takes a long time for those things to stop!)

Since reading The Gathering Storm (which was very good), I’ve been saying that the previous book, Knife of Dreams, was the point where Robert Jordan finally got The Wheel of Time back on track. Thinking back, though, it was actually the expanded version of New Spring that got me excited about the series again after the dull, plodding Crossroads of Twilight.

Dabel Brothers started an 8-issue comic-book adaptation of the prequel back in 2005, published by Red Eagle Entertainment. It got off to a great start…until the studio and publisher started to feud, and the comics ceased publication entirely after #5 came out in early 2006.

Two years later (summer 2008), Dabel Brothers announced that they would start adapting the main Wheel of Time series, but at the time had no plans to complete New Spring. Finally, in April 2009, they announced that they’d be finishing the miniseries. #6 came out in May, as did the Eye of the World prologue, but #7 didn’t come out until August. It’s November now, with no sign of #8…or of Wheel of Time #2. Meanwhile, Bleeding Cool has been reporting financial problems — like not paying artists — and the Dabel Bros. website has gone offline.

It doesn’t sound promising…but there is some hope. I posted about several stalled comic miniseries at Speed Force, and Dabel Brothers’ Derek Ruiz* stopped in to comment:

NS #8 News coming soon. It’s complete and ready for printing. Once I have more to tell you on release date I’ll make my way back here. [emphasis added]

He didn’t mention Eye of the World, and I didn’t follow up. One thing at a time, after all!

As I understand it, Tor has the rights to publish the collected editions — and I suspect that’s where the main audience for this is going to be. If Dabel Brothers can ship the final issue of New Spring soon, Tor can have a hardcover in bookstores next year to tide fans over while they wait for Brandon Sanderson to finish Towers of Midnight.

*I don’t really have a way to verify it was him, but the email address does match a previous comment.