A new comic book series imagines a Detroit where racial unrest is inflamed by a violent serial murderer.

 

Rodney Barnes’ Killadelphia is easily one of the more inventive horror comics to come along in many years, given how the series combines vampire horror with a very grounded look at crime, corruption and murder in a major American metropolis. Fans of that series will definitely want to keep an eye out for Barnes’ next horror epic, a period piece dubbed The Butcher of Black Bottom.

 

This new slasher horror series pairs Barnes with Argentinian artist Germán Erramouspe. The Butcher of Black Bottom will debut digitally on Barnes’ Substack channel, Dark Apocrypha Presents, and will later be released in print form through his Zombie Love Studios imprint.

Check out the slideshow gallery below for an exclusive first look at The Butcher of Black Bottom:

 

The Butcher of Black Bottom: Exclusive Preview Art

There are no vampires to be found this time (that we know of), but plenty of blood will be spilled all the same. The Butcher of Black Bottom is set in 1920’s Detroit, a time when the city is seeing a large influx of African American migrants from the South and racial tensions are reaching a boiling point. Adding fuel to that fire is the titular serial killer. Has Detroit attracted its own Jack the Ripper?

“The Butcher of Black Bottom speaks to the struggle to find racial harmony in a post-Civil War America. Where the migration of blacks from the south meets an industrializing north wrestling with its own issues,” said Barnes in a press release. “As one might imagine finding peace was no easy chore.”

This series is one of several new horror projects Barnes is debuting in 2022, alongside previously announced books like Blacula (an adaptation of the 1970’s Blaxploitation film) and Crownsville, a ghost story set in a black insane asylum.

 

For the first time since 2019, Comic-Con is returning to the San Diego Convention Center on July 21 – 24, 2022!

And I will be there!

I will be at the event Friday the 22nd/Saturday the 23rd and I have some fun stuff in store.

Friday July 22nd:

2:30-3:30pm: How the Best Horror Comics Summon Readers’ Worst Nightmares

Join Michael Walsh (The Silver Coin), Joshua Williamson (Nailbiter), Trish Forstner (Stray Dogs), and myself as we discuss the horror genre’s revival over the past decade, what it takes to send chills down your readers’ spines, the nuance of dark storytelling, and why tales that thrill are now more popular than ever.

Click here to learn more about this event.

4pm-5pm: Comic signing at the image booth

I’ll be signing comics at the Image Booth from 4pm-5pm on Friday July 22nd. Bring copies of the Mandalorian issue #1 or any of my comics to get signed.

Saturday July 23rd:

5:30pm-6:30pm: Monsters Are for Everyone Panel

Whether in extreme horror, sci-fi explorations, or fantastical fun for kids, the love for monsters is real. Experts in the field Steve Niles and Shannon Eric Denton (Monster Forge Productions), Rodney Barnes (Killadelphia), Hans Rodionoff (Man-Thing), Brea Grant (Halloween II), Dirk Blackman (Underworld: Rise of the Lycans), Ken Lashley (Black Panther), Kevin Grevioux (Underworld), Tim Seeley (Hack/Slash), and Thomas Healy (Spawn EiC) discuss inspirations and their upcoming film, comics, and toy projects that revolve around this ever-evolving appreciation of the monstrous things that scare and delight us.

I hope that you’re as excited as I am!

Get more excited by checking out an at home panel I did for the 2020 virtual Comic-Con below.

Henry Barajas (author of La Voz de M.A.Y.O.: Tata Rambo), Rodney Barnes (author of Killadelphia), Darcy Van Poelgeest (author of Little Bird: The Fight for Elder’s Hope), and David F. Walker (author of Bitter Root) discuss comic books that tackle real world issues, be it environmental activism, civic engagement, physical and mental health awareness, and more, (including how their work is being used by librarians and educators). Viewers will leave with programming and acquisition ideas designed to inspire their readers to see the world differently and then change it for the better.

To learn more about the upcoming San Diego Comic-Con visit comic-con.org/cci. Updates will be made as they come in and there are a lot of great things in store.

I hope to see you there!

Dynamite has announced that American Gods and Killadelphia writer Rodney Barnes is the writer of a new James Bond comic book series launching in October, James Bond: Himeros, drawn by Antonio Fuso and coloured by Adriano Augusto in which “Bond must enter the dangerous and sensitive world of sex trafficking. The new series, titled after the Greek god of sexual desire related to Eros (aka Cupid) and Aphrodite, dives into when that desire goes too far and is used for evil. It will take the legendary super-spy to bring justice to those most vulnerable among us.” “There’s an elegance to James Bond that’s timeless,” said Rodney Barnes. “He has a unique skillset and approaches the tasks at hand with wit and humor, yet underneath there’s a strong ethical sense that drives him.”

Billionaire British financier Richard Wilhelm finds himself behind bars, after being charged with trafficking minors to his secluded private island in the South Pacific. Now in custody, his political, personal, and criminal connections to others in high society across the world are in danger of being exposed. Elite arms developer Anton Banes is one of these parties, and he won’t stop at anything to cover his tracks. Including hiring a mysterious assassin with the codename Kino to take out Wilhelm and any evidence. Which leads to 007 being brought in to figure things out, and even to protect Wilhelm’s right-hand woman Sarah Richmond, with a head full of secrets that everyone on all sides is after. A “Bond girl” like no other, can Sarah be trusted by Bond, and does she have blood on her own hands..?

 

James Bond Himeros issues 1-5 are available now on Dynamite.com 

Coming soon:

Dynamite has also recently announced that they will dropping a hardcover James Bond Himeros which will go on sale August 17th, 2022. You can see more information about that here.

 

 

Zombie Love Studios in partnership with Snoopadelic Films have announced the upcoming release of Tales From The Crip, a horror anthology graphic novel from legendary rapper Snoop Dogg and Eisner Award nominated creator and award-winning television writer-producer Rodney Barnes (The Boondocks).

Tales From the Crip is described as a horror anthology in the tradition of the classic EC Comics of old and featuring urban themed horror stories penned by Barnes and introduced by Snoop Dogg.

The graphic novel joins a growing line-up of upcoming titles from Barnes’ Zombie Love Studios which includes Blacula, a graphic novel adaptation of MGM’s classic 1970s film; Crownsville, a ghost story set in the first black insane asylum in America; and Florence and Normandie, a science fiction epic set in South Los Angeles from Barnes and rapper Xzibit.

Tales From the Crip is set for release in Fall 2022.