Coming October 20 "The Wakanda Files: A Technological Exploration of the Avengers and Beyond"

View fullsize

UPDATE: The release date for The Wakanda Files has been pushed back two weeks to October 20th, but not to fear - it’s on the way!

After a few years in the making, so glad another book I’ve authored is on the way soon!

In September of this year, get ready for The Wakanda Files: A Technological Exploration of the Avengers and Beyond: a technical journal, in-world of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, that is a collection of artifacts collected by Wakanda’s War Dogs intelligence group and curated/notated by Shuri herself. Much in the style of Epic Ink’s outstanding The Jedi Path, The Rebel Files and The Bounty Hunter Code, this book has tons in store for fans of any of the MCU characters.

Working with my friends at Marvel Studios and the publishers at Quarto, particularly my amazing editor, Delia Greve was such a pleasure. I’m so proud of this book, and can’t wait for everyone to read. Here’s more from the official press release:

THE WAKANDA FILES: A TECHNOLOGICAL EXPLORATION OF THE AVENGERS AND BEYOND

By Troy Benjamin | Available September 29, 2020

An in-world book from the Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Wakanda Files— compiled by request of Shuri (Black Panther and Avengers: Infinity War) as part of her quest to improve the future for all people—is a collection of papers,articles, blueprints, and notes amassed throughout history by Wakanda’s War Dogs. In a nod to Wakandan technology, the pages of the book have a printed layer of UV ink with content that is visible only under the accompanying Kimoyo bead–shaped UV light.

Within the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), Wakanda has been on the forefront of what is technologically possible. Their ability to stay ahead of the rest of the world is second only to their ability to keep themselves hidden. As thearchitect behind many of Wakanda’s great advancements, Shuri is constantlyseeking ways to improve what has come before. To aid in her search, she researches the past for context, reference, and inspiration by compiling The Wakanda Files.

Organized into areas of study, including human enhancement, transportation, weapons, artificial intelligence, and more, The Wakanda Files trace the world’s technological achievements from the era of Howard Stark and early Hydra studies to modern discoveries in quantum tunneling and nanotechnology. Weaving together the stories, personalities, and technology that are the fabric of the MCU, The Wakanda Files offers insight into the enhancements, power, and technology behind Captain America, Thor, The Hulk, Iron Man, Spider-Man, Ant-Man, Wasp, Black Widow, Hawkeye, Stark Industries, Hydra, and much more.

About the author

Troy Benjamin is a Los Angeles–based book and comic book author who has written exhaustive fan-centric publications including the Haynes Ghostbusters Ectomobile Owner’s Workshop Manual, Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Declassified book series, How to Paint Characters the Marvel Studios Way, and has been a contributor to the official Guidebook to the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Hardcover w/plastic slipcase • 160 pages • $60.00 USD, $80.00 CAN • ISBN: 978-0-7603-6544-1

Enter the Time Vortex

My parents insist that after the birth of a child, time speeds up. And, in part, I think they’re right. It seems like it’s been the blink of an eye since the meeting my daughter in the fall of 2017 to her walking, talking, and spinning around like Lynda Carter’s Wonder Woman in the living room.

On the other hand, I also have non-scientific belief that we are caught in a time vortex. One where the laws of time and space have completely been defied. Time, as we perceive it, has been forever altered because of the current landscape of popular culture and how we’re consuming media as a whole.

In short, binge-watching culture has put us into timey-wimey-wibbly-wabbly territory that would make even The Doctor’s head spin.

Here’s why:

In August of 2014, on this very blog, I laid out all of the pop culture goodness that was to come from 2015 through the year 2020. Much of that has been shuffled around, cancelled, finally defined or did indeed happen. In fact, I had no idea at the writing of that particular article that a new Ghostbusters film was right around the corner in 2016. Let alone that a second Ghostbusters film would be entering pre-production as I write this now. Both of which would have been shocking revelations to that schedule.

But what I didn’t anticipate was what an abundance of riches would do to my consumption of popular culture. Not only that, but how I would perceive the passage of time. Let me take a few steps back. Sitting here in March of 2019, it’s difficult to believe that Marvel Studios released Black Panther just over a little than a year ago. It’s even more difficult to recollect that Thanos snapped half of the MCU out of existence a little less than a year ago in Avengers: Infinity War. Further still, Ant-Man and the Wasp feels like it was released ages ago. When in reality, it’s only been about seven months ago. Three movies in the same serialized storyline released in the same year was absolutely unheard of. I remember as a kid sitting and calculating the time between Tim Burton’s Batman in 1989 and Batman Returns in 1992 and hypothesizing that it would be at least another three to four years before we’d find out what happened to Batman in a third film. And it turned out, I was right. As, for better or worse, Batman Forever was released in 1995.

That was seemingly the norm for what felt like my entire childhood and adolescence. Movie comes out. Wait a few years, follow-up movie may or may not be behind it.

That’s completely changed.

Captain Marvel hits theaters this Friday. Avengers: Endgame is a little over a month away from being released. Though it’s felt like forever since the cliffhanger last year, the wait has relatively been small. Hell, I feel like the wait for the next chapter in the Skywalker Saga, Episode IX has been excruciatingly long. But, as I mentioned at the top of this article, Star Wars: The Last Jedi was released just a month after my daughter was born. Remember how I said that felt like the blink of an eye?

We’re living in a renaissance age that would have blown ten-year-old Troy’s mind. Marvel, Star Wars, Ghostbusters movies hitting one right after the other. The time in between films and television shows (not to mention streaming media where you get ten episodes plus at a time) has been reduced to nearly microscopic levels. In the scheme of things, waiting five years from 1984’s release of the original Ghostbusters to 1989’s release of Ghostbusters II didn’t feel like that much time at all. But having to wait a whole year from the announcement of Jason Reitman’s new film since having just seen a Ghostbusters film in 2016 feels like an eternity. We want everything. And we want it now.

If we’re not in some sort of time warp, it means we’ve all transformed into Violet Beauregarde. And I’m not sure I’m cool with that.

How to Paint Characters the Marvel Studios Way - Coming Soon!

Honored and privileged to be responsible in cultivating the insight and talent of Marvel Studios' Mightiest Artists for "How to Paint Characters the Marvel Studios Way!" There's much in store for aspiring artists, storytellers, and Marvel fans alike!

Here's more from Marvel.com:

Black Panther. Thor. Captain America. You’ve seen them fight on the big screen—now, you can paint them yourself! 

While celebrating the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Marvel invites fans of all ages to learn the tips and tricks of painting your favorite Super Heroes from the masters themselves…with a brand-new book called "How to Paint Characters the Marvel Studios Way"! 

In this beautiful hardcover, you’ll discover insights from some of the industry’s leading concept artists. Ryan Meinerding, Charlie Wen, Andy Park, Jackson Sze, Rodney Fuentebella, Anthony Francisco, and more of the artists behind the Marvel Studios Visual Development team will share their method behind creating iconic designs for all your favorite characters, from Captain America to Black Panther!

Within the stunning pages of this keepsake book, readers will learn these artists’ favorite tools of the trade, their tips for visual character development, their process of collaborating with filmmakers and other artists on the team, and the costume and props departments—and how it all comes together to create seamless film designs! Each five-ten page “character study” will take readers on a step-by-step journey through the artist’s approach to bringing a specific hero or villain to life. Not only will readers get a sense of how each artist works, from their tools to their process, they’ll also get to see how a character’s design was created—from blank page to a final approval!

Don’t miss "How to Paint Characters the Marvel Studios Way", coming soon!

Cover art by Ryan Meinerding, Andy Park, Jackson Sze, Anthony Francisco & Rodney Fuentebella (cover not final)

Now Available: Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Season Four Declassified

Available now at your local comic shop, Barnes and Noble, or online via Amazon - Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Season Four Declassified! Dive into the world of Ghost Rider, LMDs, and the mysterious and backwards Framework is this must-own collectable hardcover. Within the pages, get episode synopses, analysis from the cast, creators and writers of the show, behind the scenes tidbits and documentation, photos, artwork, and a whole lot more! As always, this book was an absolute joy to write from start to finish. For more information head to the book specific page here on the site!