Mel Joy San Juan has finished work on the pencils and inks for Ascendant: Star-Spangled Squadron Volume II. It turned out to be an exceptionally complex project to draw that stretcher her skills - some scenes were so complex that we had to model them with 3D avatars to make sure we kept continuity of action. But it has come together gloriously.

Meanwhile, Pradeep Sherawat has finished 50 of the 64 pages of color. The remaining pages will get done over the next two weeks. The book will then be handed over to Kathryn Renta for layout and lettering, and then it'll be sent to you in PDF and sent to the printers for glorious full-color production.

Here's some sneak previews of the latest colors:

Star-Spangled Squadron Volume II continues to progress. I expect to have all of the colors finished by the end of this month, with lettering done in May, and PDFs delivered in June. Here's some of the latest pages.

This is one of my favorite pages in the book. Here we see Stiletto confronting Zambada, the drug lord who murdered her parents. Unfortunately, Zambada has hired a new ascendant bodyguard, Low Key, and things do not go as planned. Both Zambada and Low Key are cameos appearances by high-tier backers. You know who you are, guys -- I hope ou are delighted at the opulent magnificence of your villainy!

Stiletto doesn't take kindly to being sent into an ambush, and she takes it out on the man who arranged it: Renard the Fox.

But Renard doesn't take kindly to being humiliated in front of his harem, so he turns to an associate for revenge...

When I launched the Ascendant line back in 2020, I wanted to see the Ascendant universe realized with the sort of big, bold, art style that had made me a fan of comics in the 1990s. I feel like we've delivered on that; and Ascendant: Star-Spangled Squadron II is the best-looking book yet in our product line. Every page is beautifully detailed and lavishly colored. Huge thank you to Mel Joy and Pradeep for their efforts to bring the Ascendant Universe to life!

rogress continues on Ascendant: Star-Spangled Squadron Volume II. Check out some of the latest pages from our elite art team of Mel Joy San Juan and Pradeep Sherawat as Aurora meets Levitee the levitating manatee and fights off skinchanger Serengeti.

There are five real-world celebrities featured in the New York Aquarium shot - can you identify them? Leave us your guesses in the comments! The first person to correctly name all five of the celebrities will get a complimentary Squadron Challenge Coin and Membership Card included with their order.

If you haven't already gotten into the Ascendant universe, be sure to grab your copy of Ascendant: Star-Spangled Squadron volume I from the Autarch Emporium. If you miss the days when heroes were truly heroic and the supergirls were actually stunning, Ascendant: Star-Spangled Squadron is the comic series for you.

Star-Spangled Squadron II is coming together beautifully. Mel Joy San Juan is finishing up the last set of penciled and inked pages. Meanwhile Pradeep Sherawat has been sending colored pages on a daily basis. Kathryn Rent is teed up to start doing the lettering.

Today I wanted to give you a sneak peek at the amazing work. Here's what the Mel Joy - Pradeep team-up looks like!
 

I hope you will agree that's some damn fine coloring!  Stay tuned for more updates in the days and weeks ahead. And remember, to every challenge heroes will ascend!