Christopher Cantwell + Victor Santos ‘revive’ the forgotten comic ‘Kid Maroon’

Things get surreal in the publicity for Vault Comics’ new series.

Vault Comics has announced Kid Maroon, a “revival” of a “lost” and “forgotten” controversial comic strip from the 1940s.

Yep, that’s a lot of words in quotes. Vault first announced the project with claims that they’d obtained the rights to a 75-year-old comic strip that nobody remembers by legendary cartoonist Pep Shepard, who people also don’t remember. But wait, there’s a fan website and everything, with comments! So he’s gotta be real, right?

But then they announced the creative team, and suddenly everything made sense. The series is written by Christopher Cantwell, who wrote The Blue Flame for Vault (in addition to things like She Could Fly and Iron Man and that recent Thanos miniseries that got a little “meta” at times). But The Blue Flame, in particular, told the story of a street-level repairman-turned-hero trying to make a difference in his community — or was it about an Adam Strange-like hero who was put on trial by a galactic tribunal with the fate of the entire planet Earth at stake? Sometimes it was hard to tell what was actually real across the 10 issues (which were excellent, by the way; if you haven’t read it, I recommend it), and Cantwell and Vault seem to be taking a similar approach with this new title, including how they market it.

So take the quotes and such they’re sharing for what they are — something fun that’ll probably make the book that much more interesting. What you need to know is Cantwell is good at this sort of thing, and he’s joined by the wonderful Victor Santos, who drew Polar, Ginger’s Revenge, Violent Love and other noir series.

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Preview Vault + Def Leppard’s ‘Hysteria’ graphic novel in a zero issue this October

It’s kind of like buying the single before the album is released.

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. 

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SDCC | Def Leppard + Vault Comics team for a graphic novel named after the band’s iconic album ‘Hysteria’

Def Leppard’s Phil Collen teams with Eliot Rahal and Alex Schlitz on the story of the world’s most dangerous guitar.

Vault Comics is no stranger to working with musicians, having released Deathstalker with Guns’n’Roses’ Slash and the upcoming Dying Inside with Fall Out Boy’s Pete Wentz. Now, through their Headshell imprint, they’ve announced a new graphic novel that shares a name with one of the best-selling albums of all time, Hysteria.

Co-written by Def Leppard guitarist Phil Collen and The Cursed Library scribe Eliot Rahal, the graphic novel will feature artwork by Alex Schlitz, colorist Fabi Marques and letterer Andworld Design.

“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 graphic novel will not only feature Def Leppard, but will introduce a band called Darkside, whose frontwoman inherits a guitar that promises her fame — but it comes with a price.

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SDCC | Vault Comics announces ‘Godfather of Hell’ by Cavan Scott + Pius Bak

The neo-noir series begins in October.

Cavan Scott and Pius Bak will show what happens when you send an ambitious mobster to hell in Godfather of Hell, a new series coming this fall from Vault Comics.

The series will focus on Dario Santini, a mobster who meets an untimely death and goes to hell — only to find that hell is just another business opportunity.

“Two of my favorite genres collide in Godfather of Hell: gangster noir and exorcist terror,” said Scott. “Brace yourself for visceral body horror, lashings of black humor, and moments of super-cool swagger brought to life by Pius’ neon-soaked art. It’s sexy, gritty and downright terrifying!”

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Cody Ziglar + Ryan Lee will unleash ‘Goobers’ on the world this fall

The comedic horror comic draws from b-grade films like ‘Night of the Creeps’ and ‘Ghoulies.’

Spider-Punk and Miles Morales writer Cody Ziglar steps away from the Spider-verse and returns to his small-town roots with artist Ryan Lee (Rick and Morty) for Goobers, a new title launching at Vault Comics this fall.

The title will be colored by Kurt Michael Russell, lettered by Andworld and designed by Adam Cahoon, and it pulls from such inspirations as Night of the Creeps, Garbage Pail Kids, Get Out and Ghoulies, among others.

“I  grew up watching ’80s and ’90s b-horror films,” said Ziglar. “I also grew up in a small country town. Goobers is a love letter to both! I love being able to smash some of my favorite genres, movies, and comics together with my love of North Carolina. I also loved being able to voice the frustration of growing up in a small town and being self-conscious about what they thought of me and how I lived my life. Back in 2021 during peak COVID, I moved back home for six months to spend time with my parents and that’s where Goobers was truly born.”

Ziglar said that return to his home town inspired the story — along with some of his favorite horror films, of course.

“I kept wondering what made certain towns feel the same, even if there are small changes, and landed on the obvious answer: alien worms must invade and body-snatch folks,” Ziglar said. “Goobers, in many ways, in just my comedic look on processing those emotions while also paying homage to some of my favorite films like Shaun of the Dead, Night of the Creeps, Get Out and Revenge of the Living Dead.”

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Vault Comics launches ‘spicy’ comics line this summer with ‘Lilith’

Threshold will feature science fiction, fantasy and horror stories for mature readers.

Vault Comics will launch a mature readers imprint this summer, with the first sexy title for the sexy new imprint being Corin Howell’s sexy horror series Lilith.

According to Vault, the Threshold imprint will feature science fiction, fantasy and horror stories, much like the traditional Vault line, but with “a spicy new twist.” They plan to announce several more titles in the coming months. Vault hasn’t shied away from adult-oriented content in the past — they already publish a comic titled Money Shot — so it’ll be interesting to see where they go with Threshold.

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Slugfest | Dark Horse will release Sergio Aragonés’ ‘Louder Than Words, Actions Speak’

Plus: LEGO Ninjago, free ‘Barbaric,’ 350 issues of ‘Spawn’ and more.

Slugfest is a roundup of cool announcements about projects coming to a shelf near you. Hit the links for more information.

Dark Horse has announced plans to collect Sergio Aragonés’ Louder Than Words and Actions Speak miniseries into one volume appropriately called Louder Than Words, Actions Speak.

Both volumes came out about 20 years ago and were previously collected by Dark Horse. The collection will have a new cover by Dark Horse by Aragonés and colorist Carrie Strachan.

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‘Verse’ returns to the web before the release of a third print collection

The conclusion to Sam Beck’s epic fantasy will arrive in print this summer.

Verse, the long-running webcomic by Sam Beck that went offline when Vault Comics began collecting it in print, has returned to the web as Beck and Vault prepare to release the third and final volume, Verse: The Song.

“I started Verse off as a webcomic, so you can’t imagine how thrilled I am that it’s finally returning to the web,” Beck said. “It’s always been important to me to bring it back to its original form, and I hope it gets everyone excited for the final book in the series.”

Verse is set on a world where magic is feared–only evil monsters known as Vell use it. But when the main character, Fife, discovers a girl named Neitya with mysterious powers, they team up on an adventure that will change everything.

Here’s a look at the cover for the third volume:

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Vault announces a ‘Deathstalker’ comic series

Slash, Steven Kostanski, Tim Seeley, Jim Terry and Kurt Michael Russell will bring the cult classic sword-and-sorcery movie franchise to comics.

Following their successful Kickstarter campaign, Vault Comics has announced a Deathstalker comic series for next year.

Presented by Guns’N’Roses guitarist Slash and based on a story by Steven Kostanski, Deathstalker will feature the work of writer Tim Seeley (Hack/SlashMoney Shot), artist Jim Terry (Come Home, Indio), and colorist Kurt Michael Russell (Money Shot).

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Slash + Vault Comics announce a ‘Deathstalker’ comic

Tim Seeley, Jim Terry and Steven Kostanski join the GNR guitarist on the project that resurrects the 1980s film franchise.

Guns’N’Roses Guitarist Slash and Vault Comics, through their rock’n’roll Headshell imprint, are teaming up to bring the 1980s fantasy film Deathstalker to comics.

“I’m excited to be kicking off a new era of Deathstalker,” Said Slash. “From Tim Seeley, artist Jim Terry, writer-director-creature FX-wizard Steven Kostanski, and myself, our Deathstalker is a re-imagining of that fine specimen of ’80s sword and sorcery. With fantasy, you get a little of everything: horror, magic, sex, thrills, blood, guts, swords and weirdness. You know—all those things you can’t look away from. And that’s what we’re bringing. So—please—if you share my love of all things wicked, check it out!”

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Vault will publish ‘He Who Fights With Monsters’ graphic novels

The first adaptation of the hit fantasy series will arrive in 2024.

Vault Comics will team with Podium Publishing to bring He Who Fights With Monsters, the popular series of books by Travis Deverell, to comics.

He Who Fights With Monsters is among the best long-form fantasy series I’ve ever read,” said Vault CEO Damian Wassel in a press release. “I just can’t get enough of it. The whole team at Vault is so excited to bring Shirtaloon’s amazing world to life in the graphic novel medium.”

Deverell, whose pen name is Shirtaloon, has written nine books in this “Literary Role Playing Game” series, with a 10th arriving in November. It’s about an office-supplies-store middle manager who becomes a heroic interdimensional adventurer who battles cannibals, cultists, wizards, monsters and more.

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Horror gets personal in ‘Something Crawled Out’ by Son M. + MadCursed

The new Vault Comics title, announced today in San Diego, will arrive in October.

Son M. and Cas ‘MadCursed’ Peirano will get up close and personal with horror in a new title from Vault that will debut this fall. Something Crawled Out will introduce a woman who enlists her best friend to help find her missing sister — only for her to start to suspect her best friend is the Devil himself.

The new title is colored by Vittorio Astone, lettered by Jim Campbell and designed by Tim Daniel.

“Love is a violent thing. I’ve always been obsessed with the inherent connection between brutality and beauty, and the way we express our relationships in different ways” said Son M. “Something Crawled Out is about two desperate people trying to save someone they love, and thus committing unspeakable acts of violence onto others along the way. I’ve always wanted to write horror that was so tied to expressions of the Final Girl trope, mixed with the active presence of the Hunter. Rather than reacting to the tragedies around her, Eddie is constantly causing devastation in her desperation to find her sister.”

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