Ronda Rousey, the Judo, UFC, and WWE champion, actress, and memoirist is adding comics to her résumé. She has partnered with AWA to present her first graphic novel, Expecting the Unexpected, which is seeking backers on Kickstarter.
Rousey teamed with artist Mike Deodato Jr. (Avengers) on a story about a pregnant woman who must fight assassins when a price is put on her head. The book pairs Rousey’s experience as a fighter with Deodato’s own martial arts background “to create the most accurate and action-packed fight scenes in comics,” per the Kickstarter page.
“Her codename: ‘Mom.’ With a fake baby bump filled with guns, she’s built a reputation as one of the deadliest hit-women on the planet. But on the verge of her big break in the criminal underworld, Mom makes a fateful decision: sleeping with a potential target (who just so happens to be a top-ranked assassin himself). What follows is a wild mashup of action, adventure, comedy, and romance as a newly pregnant Mom with a bounty on her head fights off wave-after-wave of assassins, falls in love with her baby daddy, and decides how to face her personal and professional predicament,” the description reads.
The 160-page graphic novel is an oversized edition measuring 7-1/2” x 11-1/2”. It comes with covers by Deodato, Frank Cho, and Rahzzah.
Reward levels start at $20 for a digital edition, $25 for the softcover, and $40 for the hardcover with Deodato’s cover. All three levels include the Kickstarter exclusive backmatter and access to Rousey’s choreography videos. Higher pledge level add-ons include a Zoom roundtable call with Rousey, signed editions, in-book sketches, the chance to be drawn in the book, plus a t-shirt, bookmark set, sticker set, and cover art bundle.
The Kickstarter campaign is open through August 27, 2024.