NewMen #17
☆ Be the first to review + Add to your collection — Join freeNewMen #17 anchors the first chapter of the two-part 'Girthquake' arc, bringing recurring Extreme Universe villain Girth back to center stage in what amounts to a contained character study within an otherwise crossover-heavy series. As one of the last self-contained story beats before the title was swept into the Extreme Destroyer event, the issue represents writer Eric Stephenson and artist Todd Nauck's ongoing effort to build genuine character momentum — juggling a large ensemble cast with civilian supporting players — inside the frequently turbulent publishing environment of mid-1990s Image Comics. The 'Girthquake' arc is also notable for its consequences: NewMen #19 opens with police questioning the team about their battle with Girth, and a Seattle hospital scrambling to treat the wounded villain, showing the creative team paying unusual attention to in-world aftermath. For collectors of Extreme Studios continuity, the issue stands as a snapshot of the series at peak Stephenson/Nauck collaboration, just before the ongoing was suspended for the New Force mini-series.
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We Buy Collections ▸History
NewMen was co-created by Rob Liefeld as part of his Extreme Studios imprint at Image Comics, debuting during the Extreme Prejudice crossover before receiving a 1994 mini-series written by Eric Stephenson with art by Jeff Matsuda. When the ongoing launched, Matsuda stepped away and Todd Nauck took over penciling duties for the bulk of the first twenty issues, with Stephenson scripting throughout — a stable creative pairing that helped the title maintain a more reliable publication schedule than many of its Extreme Studios stablemates. By issue #17, Stephenson was also serving as editor on the book, giving him unusual dual control over the material. The issue's title, 'Girthquake (Or... The More You Ignore Me, the Closer I Get!),' reflects the playful, self-aware tone Stephenson brought to the series, distinguishing it stylistically from heavier Liefeld-driven titles.
Trivia · 8 facts
- Published August 1995 by Image Comics under Rob Liefeld's Extreme Studios imprint; cover-dated consistently across multiple sources.
- Story title: 'Girthquake (Or... The More You Ignore Me, the Closer I Get!)' — part 1 of a 2-part arc concluding in NewMen #18 (September 1995).
- Full creative team: script by Eric Stephenson; pencils and cover by Todd Nauck; inks by Lary Stucker and Robert Lacko; colors by Laura Rhode (with Electric Pickle separations); letters by John Workman Jr.; cover colors by Andre Khromov.
- Eric Stephenson also served as editor on the issue, giving him both writing and editorial oversight of the title at this point in the run.
- Girth — a recurring antagonist of the NewMen who first appeared in NewMen #2 ('And Then Came Girth!', May 1994) — is the central villain of this arc; this issue is not his first appearance but his most prominent solo-spotlight story.
- The issue features a large ensemble cast including the core NewMen team (Byrd, Dash, Exit, Kodiak, Pilot, Reign, Bootleg) alongside mentor David Proctor and a set of civilian supporting characters (Adam Booth, Derrick Rowland, Jamie Forester, Jason Drew, Lisa Richards, Thomas Runningbear Jr.).
- NewMen #17 falls just two issues before the series was drawn into the Extreme Destroyer crossover event; the Girthquake arc is among the last self-contained storylines before that imprint-wide disruption.
- The ongoing NewMen series was put on hiatus after issue #20 and temporarily replaced by the four-issue mini-series New Force, starring the same cast, before resuming under Liefeld's Maximum Press banner with issue #21.
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