Comics
OMFG: Crossed: Badlands Heading Your Way!
As you should well know by now, the infamous CROSSED is getting it’s own ongoing series beginning this March. The all-star creative team of Garth Ennis and Jacen Burrows are bringing you one of the most intense, bloody, and insane horror books out there. Each arc will take travel to a new place in the world, following a mass pandemic that turns the population into nutty psychopaths who would make John Wayne Gacy proud. This is not one to miss. Check out a whole lot of details and a sweet preview from Avatar after the break.
Responding to overwhelming fan and retailer support for their wildly successful comic book horror franchise, Avatar Press has announced the launch of a new, ongoing CROSSED comic book series on March 14, 2012, with a bi-weekly release schedule and its first story arc reuniting the creative team of superstar writer Garth Ennis (Preacher, The Punisher) and original series artist Jacen Burrows (NEONOMICON). Concurrent story arcs will be spearheaded by well-established comic book writers such as Jamie Delano (Hellblazer) and David Lapham (Stray Bullets). The worldwide release of CROSSED: BADLANDS will be marked by a special “C-Day” in-store event for comic shop retailers, designed to maximize comic fan awareness and drive sales for area retailers.
Since its debut miniseries in 2008, CROSSED has captured the attention of comic book fans across the world with the high tension and visceral horror of its premise: in moments, a viral contagion spread over the face of the Earth, turning much of the populace into sadistically evil psychopaths. The CROSSED: BADLANDS series will present tales from all over the globe, with each story arc provided by a different creative team. Beginning with issue #1, Garth Ennis and Jacen Burrows relate a story of a young Englishman, scrambling to avoid roving bands of the “Crossed,” while simultaneously dealing with the traumatic death of his wife.
The return of Ennis and Burrows to the CROSSED universe has been one long demanded by readers. Regarding his return to script the new CROSSED: BADLANDS series, Ennis says, “It feels cold and bleak and bad and dark, which is exactly how I hoped it would. You don’t write CROSSED with the sun shining in your heart; you write it around midwinter, watching the long night devour the feeble day.”
Artist Jacen Burrows has dedicated several months to the artwork of the first BADLANDS story arc, working ahead to accommodate the bi-weekly publishing schedule. While his most recent sequential artwork was showcased in Alan Moore’s NEONOMICON, a critically-acclaimed Lovecraftian horror series, he has been consistently contributing to CROSSED as a cover artist for every single tie-in comic book (including the FAMILY VALUES and PSYCHOPATH miniseries, as well as the best-selling original graphic novel, CROSSED 3D). His recent body of work has solidified his reputation as a master storyteller of both subtle, atmospheric horror and visceral, bloody gore.
“The horror genre has been through a lot as it has gotten more popular in the mainstream. It’s been abused and defanged by charlatans out for a quick buck, those who make one-dimensional, generic, formulaic product,” says Burrows. “With CROSSED, we want to do real horror that pushes the envelope so we can explore the limits of the human condition. It isn’t about violence so much as showing the stakes the characters are facing, and it is our willingness to go to that edge that makes the world so affecting.”
o promote the launch of CROSSED: BADLANDS, Avatar Press is working with Diamond Comic Distributors and retailers in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom to celebrate “C-Day,” an in-store event meant to expand readership and drive sales for comic shops. C-Day Survival Kits will be available to retailers, containing promotional goods including posters, counter displays, temporary tattoos, buttons, posters, masks, and rare Bonus Edition comics. As a tool for retailers, Avatar Press will simultaneously release the CROSSED: GET INFECTED C-DAY EDITION comic book, a special reissue of the first-ever CROSSED story that serves as a perfect introduction to the entire series.
All the products and promotional materials needed for a successful C-Day event are available for retailer order through the current, live January Previews catalog. Retailers are also invited to contact Keith Davidsen, Avatar’s dedicated retailer support person, with any questions about the event, or for ideas on how to maximize the promotional opportunity. He can be reached by phone at 217-714-0746, by e-mail at keith@avatarpress.net, and via Twitter at @avatarpress.
As with many of their comic books, Avatar Press will offer several different cover editions of each CROSSED: BADLANDS issue, providing fans with the freedom of choice for which graphic, visceral images they want to collect.
CROSSED: BADLANDS #1 Regular Edition
$3.99 SRP, Diamond Item Code: JAN120877
CROSSED: BADLANDS #1 Torture Edition
$3.99 SRP, Diamond Item Code: JAN120878
CROSSED: BADLANDS #1 Wraparound Edition
$3.99 SRP, Diamond Item Code: JAN120879
CROSSED: BADLANDS #2 Regular Edition
$3.99 SRP, Diamond Item Code: JAN120883
CROSSED: BADLANDS #2 Torture Edition
$3.99 SRP, Diamond Item Code: JAN120884
CROSSED: BADLANDS #2 Wraparound Edition
$3.99 SRP, Diamond Item Code: JAN120885
The supernatural world of Korean folk horror movie Exhuma grows larger with the arrival of prequel spinoff webtoon Maengjong this weekend, Variety reports today.
Naver Webtoon debuts Maengjong on May 30.
The series hails from Haemuri (Olgami) and will trace the high school origins of how shaman duo Hwarim and Bonggil, played by Kim Go-eun and Lee Do-hyun in the 2024 film, came together to face occultish threats.
The story is set to begin when “Hwarim, who has been concealing her identity following a childhood encounter with a snake spirit called Jin, crosses paths with Bonggil at their school.”
Variety notes that Exhuma director Jang Jae-hyun participated in the project’s early concept stage.
“We are presenting ‘Maengjong,’ a new series capturing the appeal of the horror-occult genre, ahead of the full summer season,” said Lee Jeong-geun, Naver Webtoon’s Korea webtoon content leader. “With the high school story of Hwarim and Bonggil, who left a strong impression in the film ‘Exhuma,’ enhanced by Haemuri’s characteristic tense direction, we expect it will be a welcome work for genre fans.”
“It is meaningful that the spin-off story of ‘Exhuma,’ loved by many audiences, expands by meeting the new grammar of webtoon,” said Lee Hyeon-jeong, managing director of the film business division at Showbox, which distributed the film. “We hope it will be a fresh experience for both film fans and webtoon readers.”
Exhuma was a breakout hit in 2024, becoming the first Korean occult film to surpass 10 million ticket buyers and the country’s highest-grossing film of the year. I wrote in my review that “the intricately woven Exhuma delivers one of the year’s biggest surprises in horror so far.”
The bond between Hwarim and Bonggil was one of the film’s highlights, making this prequel webtoon a must for fans.
You must be logged in to post a comment.