Chuck Austen and Patrick Olliffe have reunited for another new series from Comixology Originals — The Tormented, a new five-issue digital comics series that will debut next week. They’re joined by colorist Lee Loughridge, letterer Jodi Wynne and editor Greg Lockard.
Austen, Olliffe and Loughridge previously worked together on Edgeworld, a science fiction series released by Comixology. This new series brings together horror and reality TV.
“Ryan Auster, our protagonist in The Tormented, sees ghosts, but kept it from his ghost-hunting family because he feared his family more than the ghosts, and because he’s been hiding it his whole life. Now in his 20s, he still hasn’t quite learned how to deal with the unexpected spirits, demons and otherworldly creatures that are constantly invading his life,” said Austen. “This series has been an absolute trip to create with Pat, and I hope readers have as much fun reading the story as we’ve had making it.”
Here’s how Comixology Originals describes the series:
Ryan Auster is the son of legendary ghost hunters Vera and Adam Austerhölle, but this is a fact he doesn’t share willingly. Unlike his father, mother, and sister, Ryan never had “the gift” to “see” the paranormal, so they’d leave him behind whenever they went out to investigate. But Ryan was hiding his abilities, terrified of the consequences of his supposed “gift,” and the parents who gave them to him. Then, one life-altering night, his entire family is brutally murdered. Instantly orphaned, Ryan was raised by various foster families—many of whom faced horrible fates of their own.
Now, as an adult, Ryan finds himself the charismatic host of a children’s online cooking show. But when that series suddenly ends, and his pushy producer discovers Ryan’s family history, Ryan is unexpectedly and unwillingly sold as the host of a brand-new ghost hunting reality TV series. Ryan desperately needs the money, but he knows that if he agrees to host “Restless Spirits,” and use his supernatural “gifts,” it will make him a beacon that draws—not only the beings that gruesomely butchered his family—but all the many horrors that hide in the darkness, marking him, and his newfound friends on the show, to suffer the same fate as his murdered family.
“Working with Chuck on The Tormented has been a blast!” says Olliffe. “He and I have developed a great give and take working relationship during our time creating Edgeworld so we hit the ground running with this new project. Once the concept was in place the designs for the characters came quickly, Ryan popping into my head immediately. I’ve changed my art style a bit for The Tormented to hopefully accommodate a darker story. Regardless, Lee always makes me look good! Very excited for The Tormented to enter the world and for people to see what Chuck, Lee, Jodi and I have come up with!”
Take a look at some of the interior artwork:
The first issue will be available on Comixology next Tuesday.
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