Comics
Told Ya So: ‘Hack/Slash’ And ‘Mercy Sparx’ Colorist Files Suit Against Devil’s Due Publishing
Yesterday we brought readers the news that “HACK/SLASH” creator Tim Seeley would be taking out a personal loan in order to pay the debts owed to the various artists who had contributed their work to his story since ex-publisher Devil’s Due couldn’t (or wouldn’t) pay up themselves. In that article I postured that lawsuits would likely be filed before the month was up, and boy was I half right. Read on for the skinny.
Today website Bleeding Cool broke the news that colorist Rachelle Rosenburg (“HACK/SLASH”, “MERCY SPARX”) had already filed suit against the publisher, and according to her hearing in Chicago, was due $3530 from the publisher. Here is an excerpt from the article.
“Comic book colourist Rachelle Rosenberg has won a court judgement for $3530 against Devil’s Due Publishing. She wrote about the process here, but the news today is that, after traveling to Chicago for the hearing, the judge ruled in her favour.”
The full article can be read at Bleeding Cool.
The news came straight from Rachelle’s official blog, which detailed the situation, and did so in a very tasteful way. Here is part of what the blog had to say…
“In three days, I am going down to the court of Illinois and filing suit against Devil’s Due Publishing. I have been fairly quiet about it for several reasons. One being I am just scared out of my mind what people might think. However, the truth of the matter is that I did the work. I did it well. And I didn’t do it for free. Yes I love coloring and I love my job, but I do it to help pay the bills and put food on my table. I am one of those amazingly, lucky people that gets paid to do something they absolutely *love*.
I’m not going to get into the nitty gritty details or start slandering anyone, even though I would be fully justified. I loved working with the people at DDP. My editors were amazing and you can’t say enough good things about people like, Tim and Sam. And while doing work for them, I grew. You can’t look at my first cover for them and look at the one I finished almost a year later and say, that I didn’t grow as a colorist. I will always be grateful for the opportunity they gave me. However I love this industry and the fact that there are many publishers like DDP getting away with not paying the talent is just not right. And I don’t understand why so many people seem to just turn their head and look the other way. It’s wrong… and on Thursday, I am going to stand in front of a judge and take a stand for myself and what I believe is right.
That’s not to say I’m not trembling at the thought of it. That I didn’t wish they just paid me. Or that I wish someone else was taking the stand instead of me.”
To read the rest head on over to her official blog, here.
I think I stand firm with everyone else on this when I say: good for you girl. It’s not a fun, glamorous, or easy process to go through, but it is only right. Comic book artists, writers, colorists, all the way down the line are hard working, dedicated people who deserve to be paid for what they do. They have bills to pay just like the rest of the world, and lord knows they aren’t able to go out and buy $30 million dollar houses like Lady GaGa. I hope she gets what she deserves from them. What say you?
Comics
‘You’ll Never Leave This Place Alive’ – IDW Dark’s Next Horror Comic Will Make You Question Reality
Five friends. Four houses. One perfect life. Bloody Disgusting is excited to exclusively announce You’ll Never Leave This Place Alive, a brand new horror comic from IDW Dark.
From Eisner-Nominated writers Jackson Lanzing and Collin Kelly, and rising horror artist Heather Vaughan, You’ll Never Leave This Place Alive is described as a “paranoia-laced, socially-conscious, horror mystery that will leave you questioning reality, and reveal that this crafted world is more of a nightmare than the idealistic dream they were expecting.”
Phoebe Joplin has never questioned the world her parents built: a secluded community where she and her friends were raised to be smarter, stronger, and better than anyone else. No distractions. No dangers. No secrets. Until the night of their graduation.
When one of them dies under impossible circumstances, Phee starts to pull at the edges of her perfect life—and what she finds is something far more terrifying than she ever imagined.
Because this place isn’t a sanctuary. It’s a cage. And no one who discovers the truth ever leaves it alive.
Collin Kelly & Jackson Lanzing (Batman – One Bad Day: Clayface, Star Trek: The Last Starship) co-write the upcoming IDW Dark horror comic, featuring art by Heather Vaughan.
Jackson Lanzing said in a statement to Bloody Disgusting, “You’ll Never Leave This Place Alive is in many ways a spiritual successor to our last creator-owned horror, The Principles of Necromancy – a dive into the promise and consequence of playing god with the blood of innocents. But the Hivemind book this reminds me of most is Clayface: One Bad Day. This is a deeply human story with intensely raw emotions – five best friends and their five mysterious parents, tearing one another apart for the promise of some impossible glory that’s waiting just beyond their darkest actions. We’re thrilled to be bringing this story to life with our long-time partner in crime, editor Heather Antos, at IDW Dark – and we’re particularly excited to give our Clayface fans a new, brutal and emotional horror made just for them.”
Adds Collin Kelly, “We’re deconstructing a feeling that seems universal these days; our elders have a death grip on their power, without any intention of giving it up to the generations that come next. YNLTPA is about growing up with the limitless potential of the future… and realizing how much it’s a lie we’ve been fed to keep us under the yoke of the past. Bringing this brutal experience to life is our artist and co-creator, Heather Vaughan, who brings an incredible amount of humanity to our cast. But it’s in our youthful leads that Heather’s art really shines – you are going to fall in love with these young people, even as they go through the worst experience of their lives. What we’ve all crafted together is going to be tragic, painful, but above all else, sincere – with a future so uncertain, there’s only one thing we can trust: you’ll never leave this place alive.”
“Some horror stories are about monsters in the dark. YNLTPA is about realizing the monsters raised you,” previews Senior Group Editor Heather Antos. “Working with Jackson Lanzing and Collin Kelly on this series has been a dream in the darkest possible way. They’ve built a story that’s layered, brutal, and deeply emotional, and every issue gives artist Heather Vaughan opportunities to push the art into places that feel both haunting and deeply personal. Some horror comics will keep you up at night…this is one that will stick with you for years to come.”
The first issue of You’ll Never Leave This Place Alive goes on sale October 14, 2026! Make sure to pre-order at your local comic shop by September to guarantee a copy.
Exclusively check out the various covers for Issue #1 down below.
IDW Publishing’s horror imprint IDW DARK features comics like A Quiet Place: Storm Warning, Smile: For the Camera, The Exorcism at 1600 Penn, Beneath The Trees Where Nobody Sees, The Twilight Zone, Event Horizon: Dark Descent & Event Horizon: Inferno, and more.
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