Comics
‘The Gates Of Misery’ Swing Open With Stories From Cronenberg, Knautz & Kostanski
After a successful Kickstarter brought the retro comic book anthology to life , the pages are now ready to be read by those outside of the crowdfunding campaign. Artist / illustrator extraordinaire, Matthew Therrien, has made a masterpiece that harks back to illegal late night page turning under covers with a flash light.
The Gates of Misery is a comic-book horror anthology, comprised of a series of tales of terror by some of the most creative and imaginative minds in the horror industry. Creator Matthew Therrien, like so many horror fans who grew up with classic horror comics from the 60s and 70s, wanted to make something equally as exciting for today’s modern horror fanatic. The idea was simple: allow horror writers and filmmakers — many of whom have never written for comics before — the chance to create their own 6 page horror stories. With no budget restrictions (one of the benefits of telling stories in a graphic format like this), the writers were free to create anything they desired; whatever they chose to pull from the depths of their nightmarish minds.
The unifying factor? The Mount Misery Cemetery. Whenever anyone is buried within this particular graveyard, the cemetery itself learns their entire life story, and for those willing to listen, it will recount some of the most gruesome and grizzly deaths. But only to those who aren’t faint of heart.
Our first 32 page issue contains four unique and unsettling stories by Steven Kostanski (Manborg, ABCs of Death 2, The Void), Brandon Cronenberg (Antiviral), Jon Knautz (Jack Brooks: Monster Slayer, The Shrine, Goddess of Love), and Dave Alexander (award winning filmmaker and current editor of Rue Morgue magazine)!
The first issue introduces the over arching comic book voice emanating from ‘Mount Misery’ a golden hued cemetery with guarding gargoyles and musty mausoleums. The terror tales begin with Astron-6’s Steven Kostanski who tells a steampunk science story ‘Re-Phase Malfunction ‘. It is enthused with his humor demonstrated in ‘Manborg’ & ‘ABCs of Death 2’ segment with body melting results. Brandon Cronenberg puts a new wheel spin on the classic road kill redemption in ‘Death in Li Tolqa’. Andrew Barr guest illustrates Jon Knautz’s unorthodox hell spawn buddy story, ‘Darrel And Lenny’, while Rue Morgue Magazine’s Dave Alexander ends the tome with a quick draw cowboy camp fire closer that is brilliantly simple yet effective.
Take a look at some panels from the comic and grab a copy here as well as following on social for future edition news.
Comics
‘Witchblade’ is Getting Resurrected This Summer in New Comic Series from Top Cow and Image Comics
Witchblade, the popular comic series that initially ran from 1995 to 2015 and launched a TV series, is getting resurrected in a new comic series from Top Cow and Image Comics. It’s set to unleash heavy metal, black magic and blood this summer.
Look for the new Witchblade series to launch on July 17, 2024.
In Witchblade #1, “New York City Police Detective Sara Pezzini’s life was forever fractured by her father’s murder. Cold, cunning, and hellbent on revenge, Sara now stalks a vicious criminal cabal beneath the city, where an ancient power collides and transforms her into something wild, magnificent, and beyond her darkest imaginings. How will Sara use this ancient power, or will she be consumed by it?”
The series is penned by NYT Best-Selling writer Marguerite Bennett (Animosity, Batwoman, DC Bombshells) and visualized by artist Giuseppe Cafaro (Suicide Squad, Power Rangers, Red Sonja). The creative duo is working with original co-creator Marc Silvestri, who is the CEO of Top Cow Productions Inc. and one of the founders of Image Comics. They are set to reintroduce the series to Witchblade’s enduring fans with “a reimagined origin with contemporary takes on familiar characters and new story arcs that will hook new readers and rekindle the energy and excitement that fueled the 90’s Image Revolution that shaped generations of top creators.”
Bennett said in a statement, “The ability to tell a ferocious story full of monsters, sexuality, vision, and history was irresistible.” She adds, “Our saga is sleek, vicious, ferocious, and has a lot to say about power in the 21st century and will be the first time that we are stopping the roller coaster to let more people on. I’ve loved Witchblade since I was a child, and there is truly no other heroine like Sara with such an iconic legacy and such a rich, brutal relationship to her own body.”
“The Witchblade universe is being modernized to reflect how Marguerite beautifully explores the extreme sides of Sara through memories, her personal thoughts, like desire and hunger, in her solitude and when she is possessed by the Witchblade. So, I had to visually intersect a noir True Detective-like world with a supernatural, horror world that is a fantastic mix between Berserk and Zodiac,” Cafaro stated.
Marc Silvestri notes, “This is brand new mythology around Sara, and I can’t wait for you to fall in love with her and all the twists and turns. Discover Witchblade reimagined this summer, and join us as we bring all the fun of the 90s to the modern age and see how exciting comics can be. I can’t wait for you to read this new series.”
Witchblade#1 will be available at comic book shops on Wednesday, July 17th, for $4.99 for 48 pages. And it’ll come with multiple cover variants.
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Cover A: Marc Silvestri and Arif Prianto (Full Color)
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Cover B: Giuseppe Cafaro and Arif Prianto (Full Color)
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Cover C: Blank Sketch Cover
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Cover D (1/10): Dani and Brad Simpson (Full Color)
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Cover E (1/25): Marc Silvestri and Arif Prianto, Virgin Cover (Full Color)
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Cover F (1/50): J.Scott Campbell (Full Color)
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Cover G (1/100): Bill Sienkiewicz. (Full Color)
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Cover H (1/250): Line art by Marc. Virgin Cover, Inks (B/W)
Witchblade #1 will also be available across many digital platforms, including Amazon Kindle, Apple Books, and Google Play.
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