McNamara + Massaggia explore history, privacy + serial killers in ‘Past Tense’

The new graphic novel from Dark Horse Comics arrives next year.

Jason McNamara and Alberto Massaggia will team up for a new graphic novel, Past Tense, that’s set to come out from Dark Horse next year. They’ll be joined by colorist Paul Little and designer Sonia Harris on this new story about serial killers and the loss of privacy.

“To me, horror works best when it reflects real-world concerns,” McNamara said. “If we have a modern bogeyman, it is our loss of privacy. I wanted to couple that with my fascination with unsolved mysteries. What if we could send a hidden camera back through time, not to change history, but to view it as it truly occurred?”

McNamara is the writer of Ghost Band, The Cicada, Sucker, The Rattler and many other graphic novels and comics that feature monsters, serial killers, dystopian futures and more. So he’s no stranger to horror — they probably play pool together. Massaggia, meanwhile, is the artist of the Behemoth Comics series Hotline Miami: Wildlife.

Here’s the description of Past Tense from Dark Horse: Ashley is a tour guide at PAST TENSE, a company that sends camera drones into the past to view history’s most depraved events. When Ashley discovers Silas Green, an unknown serial killer working in the past, she begins hosting “exclusive” tours of his murders. The only problem? Silas is still alive in the present. And when he learns of his newfound infamy, he is inspired to come out of retirement to make Ashley his final victim, now and forever.

“Ashley is just that kind of character that I love to work on,” Massaggia said. “She’s strong and stubborn, with a hint of cynicism because, a bit like all of us, she has to go through the challenges of life that become more complicated day by day. And when everything will be against her another time, she has to use just these features to face the distress and the pain that stands out in front of her.”

Look for Past Tense in stores next June.

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