Def Leppard’s arrival on the comic scene isn’t supposed to happen until next spring, but apparently that wait is just too long — a special “zero” issue featuring a preview of the graphic novel Hysteria will rocket into stores this October.
Named for the best-selling Def Leppard album, the graphic novel Hysteria is being co-written by the band’s guitarist, Phil Collen, and The Cursed Library scribe Eliot Rahal. It will feature artwork by Alex Schlitz, colorist Fabi Marques and letterer Andworld Design, and will be released through Vault’s musically inclined imprint Headshell.
“Blending music and comics together like this is an incredible and insane dream, and I could not be more thrilled by the work Eliot, Alex and Vault have put into Hysteria. It has been a joy and one hell of a ride. I know fans are going to love it,” Collen said.
The Hysteria zero issue will be released with both a standard cover as well as a hyper-limited foil variant edition signed by Collen. Each signed copy will come with a CGC witnessed certificate of authenticity. Only 200 copies will be available from local comic shops, so if you’re interested, tell your local retailer that you’re getting it (but are you getting it?)
Def Leppard is currently touring with Journey and has been promoting the graphic novel’s release before their set. Here’s a picture a friend of mine took at their show when they came through Texas a few weeks back:
(Now that, Marvel, is a good use of a QR code).
The graphic novel Hysteria is about Foz, the frontwoman of indie band called Darkside, after she inherits her father’s estate and discovers it comes with a half-remembered, cursed guitar from her childhood. The guitar “speaks to her,” promising fame and success, but when Darkside’s equipment is stolen ust before they’re set to take the stage with Def Leppard, Foz goes on the warpath to get it back.
The zero issue will arrive in October, and the full graphic novel is due out next spring.