“Swimsuit Specials” were all the rage in comics back in the ’90s. Back then, publishers tried to cash in on the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issues by doing a version with their characters in skimpy swimwear. Of course, back then, the “models” were exclusively women. Things are a little more equal opportunity today. Case in point, DC Comics’ brand new G’nort’s Illustrated Swimsuit Edition, hitting your local comic shop this summer. If you’re wondering who the heck G’nort is, he’s an anthropomorphic dog-like alien who is the universe’s most incompetent Green Lantern. Fortunately, his name also rhymes with the word “sports.”
G’nort will be our guide through a 48-page collection of some of DC’s sexiest swimsuit covers over the years, all collected in one issue. We’re talking artists like Amanda Conner, Paul Pelletier, Nicola Scott, Mikel Janín, Jeff Dékal, Daniel Sampere, Gleb Melnikov, Derrick Chew, Stanley “Artgerm” Lau, Emanuela Lupacchino, Joëlle Jones, Megan Huang, Terry Dodson, Babs Tarr, Pete Woods, Joe Quinones, Hélène Lenoble, Otto Schmidt, Michael Allred, Sweeney Boo, David Talaski, Jenny Frison, and more. You can see examples of their heroes in beachwear in the gallery below:
Additionally, this one-shot will include Steve Orlando and Paul Pelletier’s Midnighter and Apollo story, “Out There.” This was originally published in DC Cybernetic Summer. Most surprisingly, there’s a new 8-page story featuring The Penguin. Julie Benson and Shawna Benson will clothe Oswald in the tightest bathing trunks you can imagine, in a story with art by Meghan Hetrick. And of course, as with any good Swimsuit Special, there will be a centerfold. There will be three potential centerfolds with each copy, but who they will feature will remain a mystery for now. There will be a main cover by Vasco Georgiev, along with cardstock variant covers by J. Scott Campbell and Adam Hughes, and a 1:25 variant cover by Pablo Villalobos. The G’nort Illustrated Swimsuit Edition goes on sale on August 29.
