Comics
Review: Clive Barker’s ‘Next Testament’ #1
A combination of dark fantasy and horror, Next Testament #1 will sneak inside your head and get your heart racing. Smart, edgy, and frightening – this is exactly what you expect to come from the mind of Clive Barker, one of the greatest horror storytellers of our time (kudos also goes to his writing partner Mark Miller). Definitely get your hands on “Next Testament” because this comic is going to be epic.
Written By: Clive Barker and Mark Miller
Art By: Haemi Jang
Publisher: Boom! Studios
Price: $3.99
Release: May 29, 2013
Following a vision he dreamed about, Julian Demond, a wealthy and eccentric old man, walks across the endless desert. Could this crazy old man actually be a chosen prophet? Or, is he just another religious nut? There is something to be frightened about Julian because he truly believes he is being guided by a higher power. Julian suddenly sees something buried in the sand and is compelled to dig it up. What he unearths is a powerful god, who may or may not bring about the apocalypse.
Barker and co-writer Mark Miller ask themselves, “What if God returned to Earth?” But, this God that Barker and Miller are writing about is from the Old Testament. This god is neither compassionate, nor forgiving as a bloody war is waged upon humanity. The religious themed premise is quite broad and grand in scope, but the writers find a way to centralize the idea through their characters. The narrative is also about a prodigal son trying to reconnect with a father he abandoned years ago.
Having read the novella, “The Last Illusion,” I am really happy that Barker has brought in his wicked sense of humor. Tristan Demond and his wife, Elspeth, have such a snappy and hilarious banter between them. The issue really stands out because of the quirky dialogue between the two as they search for clues about Julian’s whereabouts. Readers will instantly like these protagonists and wonder if something bad is going to happen to them.
Artist Haemi Jang has an interesting character design for the powerful god that Julian unearths. A mishmash of primary colors, the heavenly figure looks like a walking and talking stained glass window. In wide shots, Jang captures the isolation and scorching heat of the desert landscape. Notice Julian’s facial expressions after he finally meets his personal god. Jang depicts Julian as if he has had found inner pace and meaning in his life.
Because of their pseudo-detective story, Jang portrays Tristan and Elspeth as if they are “The Thin Man” couple, Nick and Nora. During the couple’s scenes, Jang plays around with the film noir aspects, such as the crooked and high angle shots. Jang always keeps Tristan and Elspeth together in the same panel. The pair have their eyes looking at each other, as if their minds are in sync.
Horror fans are going to want to get their hands on this one. “Next Testament” #1 hooks its readers with an interesting and foreboding premise. If you haven’t read any of Clive Barker’s works (really?!?), then this is the perfect place to start.
4/5 Skulls
Reviewed by – Jorge Solis
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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