I’m sure some of you saw the strange hypno sloth that was making it’s way through the internet last week. Many creators shared the damn thing, and it’s beautiful face was almost everywhere. I didn’t share it here for fear of driving everyone on the site insane. However you can’t resist it’s majestic looming presence. So much so that James Tynion IV is taking the idea and running with it in his new series from BOOM! “Memetic.” A meme can take over the world, infect minds, and inspire people to create but what if it was toxic? That’s what we’ll find out this October.

From BOOM!

A meme is an idea that spreads rapidly through various social media channels, and is usually something funny and innocuous. It was only a matter of time before a weaponized meme led to the utter annihilation of the human race…in 72 hours, to be exact. Award-winning publisher BOOM! Studios is pleased to announce the new original title MEMETIC, a three-part limited series of oversized issues (each issue covers a 24-hour period) that shows the true terror of the internet. The world will end not with a bang, but with a single online image when creator and writer James Tynion IV (THE WOODS, Batman Eternal) teams up with newcomer Eryk Donovan (In the Dark Horror Anthology, House in the Wall) to bring horror to a whole new generation this October.

“THE WOODS is just the beginning,” said BOOM! Studios Editor-in-Chief Matt Gagnon. “James Tynion IV is one of the brightest new voices to emerge in recent years, and it’s been a flat-out joy to make a home for his original projects at BOOM!. With MEMETIC, James and Eryk show us the destructive power of the internet, a terrifying look at how imagery and ideas can shape the behavior of our culture.”

In MEMETIC #1: A Meme is an idea that starts with an individual, and then spreads to multiple persons and potentially entire societies. Richard Dawkins suggests a meme’s success comes from its effectiveness to the host. But history shows that destructive memes can spread just as rapidly through society. MEMETIC shows the progression of a weaponized meme that leads to the utter annihilation of the human race within 72 hours. The root of this apocalypse is a single image on the internet, a “meme” in the popular sense. A meme that changes everything.

The 48-page MEMETIC #1 arrives in comic book shops on October 22nd with a main cover by series artist Eryk Donovan for the price of $4.99 under the Diamond order code AUG140952. A Meme variant cover will be available in limited quantity. Not sure where to find your nearest comic retailer? Use comicshoplocator.com orfindacomicshop.com to find one!