Comics
Comic Book Review: “Zombies VS. Robots” #1 Is Quick, Expressive, and Clever
“Zombies vs. Robots” #1 poses an interesting question: when reading about a world in which humans are extinct, with whom do we (the human reader, unless you’re a robot, in which case I mean no offense) relate?
WRITTEN BY: Chris Ryall, Steve Niles
ART BY: Anthony Diecidue, Ashley Wood, Val Mayerik, Jay Fotos
PUBLISHER: IDW Publishing
PRICE: $3.99
RELEASE: January 21, 2015
Reviewed By Katy Rex
We make jokes about the imminent singularity and our impending robot overlords, but in most versions of the fictional future worlds we’ve seen depicted, humans still have some hold. In Zombies vs. Robots, humans are a thing of the past– “no masters,” one robot says upon rebooting an old model. With such a silly title, one might expect bloody zombie head explosions and laser death rays to be major points of action, but those things are unremarkable when they occur– because zombie heads getting destroyed are simply a logical means to an end, and laser death rays are simply another technology. This book has a lot more to say than the kind of ridiculous and emphatic fun its title might suggest. It’s still fun and explode-y, but it’s smart, too.
The first issue follows Dronebot Oris-1 as (he? she? it?) re-enters earth’s atmosphere to evaluate the situation on the surface. There’s a great deal of exposition about the way the earth got this way– overrun by zombies, with a few machines here and there doing who-knows-what exactly in a futile conflict. Is it really a war? Without real sentience, even if one side “wins,” what will be left? Whirring robots carrying out mindless tasks infinitely? Zombies with no prey, shambling aimlessly and starving? Is that victory? This issue may be pretty exposition-heavy, but for a mere 32 page comic book, it prompts the reader with more questions than it could possibly answer in such a short time– or maybe at all. And it does so consciously.
Zombies vs. Robots may have started the strange mashup genre, and even won an Eisner for its efforts, but with this issue the creative team are reminding us that silly is only a jumping off point. There’s limitless potential when you really think about the consequences of bizarre pairings like zombies and robots.
The art is expressive and vibrant, equally portraying the inorganic robots and the, erm, extra organic zombies as characters, occasionally suggesting the potential of sentience. It’s realistic and not cartoony, which lends to the serious and critical tone of this ridiculously-premised book. The color palette is what really cements the post-apocalyptic tone.
The two shorts that take place within this universe that are included at the end of the book continue to make use of this color palette, but change the art style with the artist- the main book is drawn by Anthony Diecidue, but Tales of ZVR (which looks very much like the highly detailed bonus material we’re most accustomed to seeing in a rereleased omnibus) is by series creator Ashley Wood, and The Orphan features an entirely different creative team from the rest of the book, with Steve Niles writing, Val Mayerik on art, and Jay Fotos pulling in that aforementioned color palette. With such a large team working on the single book, the consistency of the tone and universe is impressive, and the world is lush and fleshed-out.
Overall, this quick, expressive, and clever book is absolutely worth picking up this Wednesday.
—
Katy Rex writes comics analysis at endoftheuniversecomics.com, comicsbulletin.com, and bloody-disgusting.com. She also writes scholarly articles for various academic journals. She really likes butt jokes, dinosaurs, and killing psychos and midgets in Borderlands 2. She has a great sense of humor if you’re not an asshole.
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.
You must be logged in to post a comment.