Comics

“The Empty Man” Made Cullen Bunn Do It

Published

10 years ago

May 16, 2014

BOOM! has made a name for itself in the world of horror comics over the past few years, garnering some of the best talent in the business to tell their tales of terror. Now, they have a new horror series is on the way from Cullen Bunn and Vanesa R. Del Rey, and this one sounds creepy. “The Empty Man” follows a community plagued by disease that forces people to kill other and themselves under the guidance of “The Empty Man”. I’m really looking forward to this one, and you probably will be too after checking the cover art below.

Look for it in shops on June 11th, 2014.

May 14, 2014 – Los Angeles, CA – When you think of a good horror story, you might imagine some kind of monster, like the werewolves of CURSE or the nightmare fuel of CLIVE BARKER’S HELLRAISER. However, some of the scariest stories are the ones that hit home—stories that are just realistic enough to make you wonder if it really could happen. This June, BOOM! Studios plays on those fears with THE EMPTY MAN, a dystopic version of the world we know, where a terrifying disease has taken on almost deific connotations and has inspired a wave of murder cults. People are killing each other and themselves, and the same words keep popping up: “The Empty Man made me do it.” Writer Cullen Bunn (The Sixth Gun, Magneto) and artist Vanesa R. Del Rey (HIT) are two of the most exciting talents in the industry, and perfectly in sync on this haunting new crime procedural.

“My favorite horror stories are of the grounded variety, balancing terror with real-world human concerns,” said BOOM! Studios Editor-in-Chief Matt Gagnon. “The disease and investigation that are at the heart of THE EMPTY MAN completely hit that mark. Combining a bit of J-horror and a bit of the police procedural, Cullen Bunn and Vanesa R. Del Rey—both visionaries in their own right—have crafted a gripping story that explores some of our darkest fears.”

It’s been one year since the first reported case of the Empty Man disease, and no drug has been able to slow its progress. The cause is unknown, and the symptoms include fits of rage, hideous hallucinations, suicidal dementia, followed by death, or a near lifeless, “empty” state of catatonia. As murder cults rise nationwide, the FBI and CDC enter a joint investigation of the Empty Man, hoping to piece together clues to stop the cult and uncover a cure.

THE EMPTY MAN #1 arrives in comic shops on June 11th with a cover price of $3.99 under Diamond order code APR140958. The main cover is illustrated by series artist Vanesa R. Del Rey, with an incentive cover available in a limited quantity from Goñi Montes (CLIVE BARKER’S NEXT TESTAMENT). Not sure where to find your nearest comic retailer? Use comicshoplocator.com or findacomicshop.com to find one! It’s also available for order directly from boom-studios.com.

Lonnie Nadler

3 Comments

Comics

‘Witchblade’ is Getting Resurrected This Summer in New Comic Series from Top Cow and Image Comics

Published

1 week ago

April 18, 2024

Meagan Navarro

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.