ComiXology looks to take a big step forward with its comiXology Originals line -- comics exclusive to the digital distribution platform -- with Friday's announcement of both moving into publishing creator-owned comics for the first time, and offering a print-on-demand option for select comiXology Originals titles.

This is a significant expansion of the comiXology Originals, which has been primarily driven by comics released in tandem with publishers, such as Marvel's Avengers: Back To Basics and Valiant Entertainment's Valiant High. It's a move that could have a real impact on the comics industry: By publishing original creator-owned material directly, along with adding a print option, the leading digital distributor has moved closer to an analogous position to Netflix or comiXology's parent company, Amazon -- creating its own unique content while still distributing the work of a variety of other publishers.

RELATED: comiXology Execs Pursue ‘Super-Diverse’ Comics for New Originals Line

The news is set to be unveiled Friday afternoon via a livestream on Twitch, with the initial lineup of creator-owned material unveiled: Savage Game, created by Ryan Kalil of the NFL's Carolina Panthers, written by Shawn Kittelsen, and art by Chris B. Murray; Superfreaks written by Elsa Charretier & Pierrick Colinet and illustrated by Margaux Saltel; Elephantmen 2261: The Death of Shorty, the latest from the long-running Richard Starkings franchise, with artists Axel Medellin and Boo Cook; and Ask For Mercy from Starkings and artist Abigail Jill Harding. All are available now and free to read for members of Amazon Prime, Kindle Unlimited and comiXology Unlimited, and available for purchase on comiXology and Kindle.

In a nod to the binge-watching method of Netflix and Amazon, the complete Superfreaks series is available to read now (as individual issues, not in graphic novel format). Savage Game is now available via print-on-demand as well as digitally, and collections of Elephantmen and Ask for Mercy will also be offered in print.

And that's not all: comiXology has also made public an impressive list of creators with upcoming, yet-to-be-announced creator-owned comiXology Originals: Tyler Crook, Kristian Donaldson, Alti Firmansyah, Sam Humphries, Megan Kearney, Kel McDonald, Hope Nicholson, Mike Norton, MK Reed, Mark Sable, Tim Seeley, C. Spike Trotman, Jen Vaughn and Magdalene Visaggio.

For more, CBR talked to Chip Mosher, comiXology’s Head of Content, and David Steinberger, comiXology's CEO and co-founder, about the large-scale plans for comiXology Originals, what this lineup of creator-owned comics says about the program, the talent involved and whether or not these moves may make comiXology a competitor to some of the publishers they work closely with on the distribution side of the business.

CBR: David, Chip, this announcement feels like a big deal for comiXology Originals, and you're definitely positioning it that way with the Twitch livestream. comiXology Originals had been a comparatively smaller part of the overall comiXology picture -- how big of a piece of the puzzle do you see this program, and how important is it to keep growing it?

David Steinberger: I think the way I position it is, we are looking for the opportunities for us to be able to experiment; changing and experimenting with release windows, releasing things episodically versus the binge method with Superfreaks. It's something that's really important to us. Putting great content into our subscription program is also incredibly important to us. Having those two things together just makes us want to experiment, try a few things. If they work out, we'll increase how much we do it. If they don't, we'll change tactics and try again, you know?

Looking at the specific projects being announced, what significance do you see in these books in what they say about the overall vision of the Originals program?

Chip Mosher: Given that we're making all these titles available via Prime on release -- so internationally, if you're a Prime customer, you'll be able to read these books for free -- our guiding principle on content has been, "Are these projects great for people who have never read a comic before?" Savage Game, for instance, it's a 60-page, one-and-done graphic novel. It's super-strong, and if you've never read a comic book before, it's a great starter comic. I think you can say that for Elephantmen, I think you can say that for Ask For Mercy, and I think you can say that also for Superfreaks.

One thing that's clear, from both the new titles and previous comiXology Originals, is that it looks like deliberately wide swath of genres and tones. How important is that element?

Mosher: We're looking at experimenting with different release strategies, be it the subscription services, or be it binge-reading. We want to have content that has mass appeal. Our mission is to make everybody on the planet a comics/graphic novel or manga fan. The whole comiXology Originals program really serves our mission.

You've announced a pretty major league list of additional creators with comiXology Originals titles to be announced in the coming months. How aggressively are you developing this line, and the types of creators you're working with?

Mosher: We have these titles that we're announcing and releasing at the same time, and then at San Diego Comic-Con we'll reveal the other series and titles coming out. We're super, super-happy with the group of people that we're woking with for the 2018 rollout, and we'e definitely looking to add more.

Not to ask either of you to speak for these creators, but in what you've observed in your positions, what do you see as this programming offering that's unique? Given the profile of the talent named, you could imagine they'd be able to bring their projects to other, more traditional outlets.

Steinberger: The way I think about it is, obviously this initial group of creators for us are creators that are experimental and excited by the idea of being part of a line that's going to get some amount of visibility throughout comiXology and Kindle. For us, the way we think about it is, comiXology has been part of Amazon for over four years now, and one of the things that really resonated with us when we joined Amazon was, they're very customer-obsessed. It's one of their leadership principles, and that was true for comiXology, as well.

What's interesting is, you can also be customer-obsessed towards creators -- what services you provide, what environment you provide them to flourish in. I think everybody would probably say it's super-interesting to be able to be a part of something where we, as a part of Amazon, can highlight these works and provide some assistance to some of the other places where IP is being presented -- whether that's Amazon Studios, or video games, whatever. Even Amazon Publishing, who do a lot of prose books. So I think that's one reason they like working with us.

I think for the most part, it's, we talked to them at the right time, so they were excited by the prospect of being highlighted this way. They didn't mind us playing with release schedules. And I think even having seen the [print-on-demand] quality, feeling like, "Oh, I can have my work in print as well, and it looks amazing," is a big highlight for a creator.

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Let's talk about print on demand -- hearing the top digital comics distributor is experimenting with that space is a bit surprising to hear. What led to that decision?

Mosher: One of the cool things that we're doing is offering a print option. Savage Game will be available at launch via print through print on demand. My favorite story coming out of this round of comiXology Originals titles is, we did this print-on-demand test, and I really wanted to get some people's opinions on it. One of those creators is Richard Starkings, who I've known for a long time, who has bridged the gap between print and digital. David and I met with Richard in San Diego, showed him the samples -- we thought they were amazing, and wanted to get his view on them. He was just over the moon, and immediately started talking to us about Elephantmen and Ask for Mercy. That's sort of how those deals came about.

We're looking to get new people reading comics, and there are people that read only digital. There are people that read only print. There are people who read both. We want to be in the formats that people want to read comics in, so having the print-on-demand option for Savage Game, and other titles coming out later in the year, is just a great thing for customers. And also, the creators want to see their work in print, too.

RELATED: Avengers Head Back to Basics with ComiXology Originals Series

I may be getting several steps ahead of myself, but is there any concern in growing this aspect of comiXology -- publishing creator-owned work, having a print component -- that you may be eventually viewed as a competitor to publishers you work with as a distributor?

Steinberger: I don't have any concern with that, because the way we see it right now is, we're getting to experiment in ways that publishers probably won't try themselves. We're very good partners with the publishers that sell our books with us. We'll be sharing information about the success, or lack of, of the program.

I think there's a tremendous amount of incredible creators out there. One thing we heard maybe a year and a half ago that, to be fair, scared the heck out of me, was retailers saying, "Oh, there's just too much great content. I can't possibly stock all this great content." If we can be somewhat helpful, to stock or have available content that maybe wouldn't get the direct market audience right away, and may become a direct market book, I'm happy to do that. I think we would be very proud to be able to expand the amount of genres, creators, creator-types, character lead-types, that wouldn't necessarily make it to the direct market, and be a channel for that.

It's a step beyond our Submit program, which is a curated but open system for creators to submit their work, because we're a little more involved and we're curating it for the comiXology Originals brand. But that was one of the scariest things I've ever head, because digital, we obviously don't have shelf space issues. This was just months before some retailers spoke of having trouble in the market segment. The confluence of those two things is really scary to me -- being able to open up and have another channel for creators who aren't going to be picked up by publishers, it's a great honor. It's a great opportunity for us.

Rest assured, we have a couple of more comiXology Originals from Marvel that are going to be coming out. We're still deeply working with publishers, and love working with them. Frankly, if we can bring in a bigger audience by offering all of these on Prime -- no publisher is just going to put up all of they books, not right now anyway, onto Prime Reading -- it's a super-interesting way for us to reach the millions and millions of Prime members, and try to connect them to any of these books that are full series, really satisfying reads, great art, lots of different genres. We can match them up with a book they'll like and create a new fan -- that's to the benefit of the entire system. Publishers will flourish more, direct market will flourish more. We already know we make print readers and we make new digital readers.

To me, it's like the direct market retailers. I don't know a single one that thinks we're out to get them, and they all think that digital has benefitted their business, in terms of people walking in and buying several volumes of Saga after reading it on comiXology Unlimited, as an example. I'm hoping, and expect, that publishers will see this the same way. It's just another avenue for more creators and more talent, and opportunities to get more readers into comics -- which will ultimately benefit the entire system.

Keep reading for more information on the initial lineup of comiXology Originals creator-owend comics.

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Official Press Release

Savage Game

Created by Ryan Kalil, written by Shawn Kittelsen, with art by Chris B. Murray

From NFL player Ryan Kalil and his company Strange Turn comes an original 60-page sci-fi graphic novel that is high tech version of The Island of Dr. Moreau. What happens when a rogue titan of Silicon Valley creates his own island nation with no laws to hold him back? You get the Savage Game, where audiences watch genetically modified hybrid creatures fight to the death in a fantastic gladiator-style battle. But Conner Bowen isn’t having it. He’s on a quest to stop his mad father and the Savage Game. But is it too late?

Original 60pg Graphic Novel – $4.99 on Kindle and comiXology

Free to read for members of Amazon Prime, Kindle Unlimited and comiXology Unlimited

Available in print for $6.99 as a Print-on-Demand graphic novel exclusively on Amazon.com

“Working on Savage Game has been a labor of love for everyone and I am really thrilled that it's finally coming out with comiXology Originals and via Amazon’s Print-on-Demand,” said Savage Game creator Ryan Kalil. “I am very excited for the reader response and for the future of Savage Game.”

Superfreaks

Written by Elsa Charretier and Pierrick Colinet with art by Margaux Saltel

An all-new 5-issue superhero mystery debuting digitally in its entirety – a thrilling story perfect for binge reading - with art by rising star Margaux Saltel. All the world’s superheroes have disappeared overnight, and it’s up to their untrained, largely overlooked teenage sidekicks to find out what happened – while dealing with the biggest crisis Earth has ever known -- much to the public’s displeasure. Can they save the day?

5-issue series – all issues available to binge read now

Issue are $2.99 each on Kindle and comiXology

Free to read for members of Amazon Prime, Kindle Unlimited and comiXology Unlimited

“Not only am I ecstatic about Superfreaks being released today, but doubly so having the entire series being available all at once,” said Superfreaks writer Elsa Charretier. “Readers will experience all the cliffhangers we intended as storytellers, while binge reading the entire series the same day it's released. And when the world’s superheroes have disappeared overnight, you don't want to wait to see what's happened."

Elephantmen 2261: The Death of Shorty

Written by Richard Starkings with art by Axel Medellin and Boo Cook

The iconic Elephantmen debuts asacomiXology Originals title with issue 1 of Elephantmen 2261: The Death of Shorty, a 5-issue monthly mini-series. Described by J.J. Abrams as “An Awesome and Unexpected Story. You Must Check it out!” and lauded by Andy Serkis as “Bold, mythic and heartbreakingly cool, Starkings’ universe is a breed apart!”, Elephantmen 2261: The Death of Shorty, is the next adventure of the pulp science fiction series Elephantmen, which debuted nearly 15 years and 80 issues ago from Image Comics. This all-new story is a whodunit that draws our heroes, Hip Flask and Jack Farrell, into the curious death of an Elephantman known to his friends as “Shorty”.

5-issue miniseries – issues will be available monthly – $2.99 per issue on Kindle and comiXology

Free to read for members of Amazon Prime, Kindle Unlimited and comiXology Unlimited

Print edition will be available via Print-on-Demand exclusively on Amazon.com

“Once I realized Elephantmen sold more digitally than in print, I suggested to my friends at comiXology that we create a brand new Elephantmen series exclusively for digital readers,” says Elephantmen creator Richard Starkings. “And yet – for those who’d rather hold a print version – you’ll still be able to order a Print-on-Demand paperback collection as soon as it’s complete! I’ve seen what Amazon can do with Print-on-Demand and it's absolutely unbelievable!”

Ask For Mercy

Written by Richard Starkings with art by Abigail Jill Harding

An action-packed and artistically stunning dark fantasy story from Elephantmen creator, Richard Starkings and breakout talent, Abigail Jill Harding. Ask For Mercy is a World War II fantasy horror story in the tradition of John Carpenter’s The Thing and Sandman. Mercy is snatched from her own place and time to join a team of Monster Hunters who are actually Monsters themselves, and together they have to take on a Pantheon of Hideous Creatures summoned to our world by Nazi evil!

6-issue series – issues will be available every 6 weeks – $2.99 per issue on Kindle and comiXology

Free to read for members of Amazon Prime, Kindle Unlimited and comiXology Unlimited

Print collected edition will be available via Print-on-Demand on Amazon.com