Comics
Rossmo And Spencer Create A City Of Terror In ‘Bedlam’ This October!
We’ve been waiting a long time for this, since it was announced last year that Nick Spencer and Riley Rossmo were teaming up on a new horror series. Two of the best in their respective fields are teaming up for ‘Bedlam’, a book that screams terror. Finally, some real details about the book are released today by Image Comics. The series is set in a city that has been terrorized by a crazed killer known only as Madder Red. Check out more below.
Official press release from Image Comics:
Berkeley, CA – August 23, 2012 — BEDLAM, the new Image Comics series by Nick Spencer (MORNING GLORIES, THIEF OF THIEVES) and Riley Rossmo (GREEN WAKE, DEBRIS), is set in a city that has been terrorized by a maniacal killer and crime boss called Madder Red.
The killer has been rehabilitated and has reclaimed his given name, Filmore Press, but the city of Bedlam is still soaked with the blood and madness he left in his wake.
“It’s a scary world these characters live in. A desperate one. It’s brutal what we put them through,” says writer Spencer. “The shocks aren’t confined to the last page, they’re peppered throughout. There are a lot of ‘shift in your seat uncomfortably’ moments. You don’t get Riley Rossmo to draw your book and not heap on the horror and violence.”
Rossmo’s art is in a moody wash of muted tones, with shocks of stark red.
“Bedlam’s art is pulling a bit stylistically from my last three books,” said Rossmo. “I’m trying for a cleaner line, lots of spotted blacks, and strong well-designed color palettes. The Film ‘M’ and David Mazzucchelli are big visual influences. I’m super-happy with the pages I’ve finished so far.”
BEDLAM’s first issue is to be released on Halloween, and the creative team anticipate that it will be the first of many.
“There’s a long-form, big commitment story here, that we will hopefully tell for years to come,” said Spencer. “It’s like Morning Glories in that sense. The book’s not going to be around a little while then vanish. The goal here is to build a mythology around a modern American metropolis, with Madder Red as our guide. It’s exhilarating, starting down the path of something like this.”
At 48 pages, BEDLAM #1 (AUG120461) is a double-sized introduction to a cityscape of murder, mayhem and mystery with a cover by Frazer Irving (Xombi) . It is available for pre-order now.
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.
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