Separation anxiety: Newsarama talks to Image Comics Publisher Erik Larsen about what the departure of Powers and Kabuki means to the company:

Newsarama: "From just the basics, the Icon deal sounds a little like what the Image founders wanted 12+ years ago - a place/imprint to do their own thing with creations that the creators own, with little or not editorial input from Marvel. Does that factor make this somewhat even a little more-for lack of a better word, painful?"

Larsen: "Uhhhh--no.

"I think some people are really blowing this out of proportion. On our end--it's a couple books--and books come and go all the time. For Marvel--it's a couple books--and they've already got a hundred of 'em that they're making more money on--this won't be a serious revenue stream for them if the Icon deal is anything like the Image deal. As far as retailers and fans go--there won't be much of a change--the same books will be coming out by the same creators.

"Dale Keown took Pitt from Image and self-published. Groo went from Marvel/Epic to Image to Dark Horse. Bone was here for a while and then Jeff Smith went back to self-publishing. Both Gray Area and Phantom Jack were supposed to be Marvel/Epic titles and they ended up at Image. These sorts of things happen all the time. I'm not happy to see these two titles go by any means but I'm hardly getting ready to slit my wrists either."