I'm writing a new comic book series

And introducing the Fred Spread

Below the fold:

• Ordering Toxic Avenger #1

• Sick ass art from Fred Harper

In addition to the new ongoing series Toxic Avenger Comics, I can finally announce the I’m writing The Toxie Crusaders, a five issue mini-series with artist Tristan Wright that goes on sale September 10.

For anyone who isn’t my exact age, The Toxic Crusaders was a short-lived 1991 cartoon and toy line that reimagined the infamously violent cult movie Toxic Avenger (1984) as cool, kid-friendly mutants fighting pollution aliens. Basically a cross between Captain Planet and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. If you’ve read the first volume of my Toxic Avenger run, you may know that characters and ideas from the show have been reshuffled to line the backbone of the this new story.

Our Crusaders series will branch off from the main book, following Toxie, Major Disaster, Junkyard, No-Zone, and the all-new character Fungirl as they attempt to wage war on the alien conspiracy discovered during the quarantine of Tromaville.

I absolutely adore Fungirl, by the way, whose origin you will be able to read in Toxic Avenger Comics #2 before her full debut on the team. The breakout character potential here is truly moldy.

While my plans with the Toxic Avenger and Crusaders are squarely in the spirit of the properties, and I have heard nothing but good things from the Troma faithful, the truth is that I have never been interested is making a pure nostalgia play or writing rote fan service. This is new shit. I have no interest in boring anyone, least of all myself, nor of limiting the audience. A headline announcing this series called Toxic Crusaders "The Avengers Of Gross Mutants," but this book is also going to be the X-Men of environmentalism, the Doom Patrol of body horror, and The Harbinger of horny weirdos.

If you like any of those comics or concepts, then this book is for you, regardless of what you were doing on Saturday morning in 1991. The artist, Tristan Wright, is the absolute perfect person for this book. I’m going to sing his praises in a future newsletter when I can wow you with some of the pages he is turning in. He is doing career-making work.

It is time to pre-order Toxic Avenger Comics

Toxic Avenger Comics kick off July 9 and this is the last week to tell you to pre-order from your comic shop. Please call your local shop and tell 'em you want Toxie. Or, less-phone-centric, order from their website. The way the comics market works now, pre-orders determine a lot.

As I think you can now see, I have a lot of plans for these characters and storylines. Years worth, if all goes well. We will need reader support to do that, so set up a subscription with your shop and let me know if you do—I’m giving away some cool stuff.

Introducing the Fred Spread

My collaborator on the main series, Fred Harper, is turning in the best work of his career for Toxic Avenger Comics #1, a straight horror story that drops the humor for an issue to lean into a disturbing tale of missing kids and horrid mutations. Here is a two page spread from that issue, with teenagers drinking at the skeletal remains of Pluto, the giant mutant teen who went on a rampage in Toxic Avenger #2.

This is what I have come to call a Fred Spread. If you can, observe it on a desktop.

The Toxic Avenger lends itself to big action and grody detail. When writing issue 1 of the initial series, I wanted the debut of a mutated Toxie to appear on a double page spread, to emphasize the large body Fred was giving him and swing for the kind of comic I wanted to make. What could easily have been a splash followed by a page of action instead becomes the first Fred Spread.

It worked so well that I kept including them in subsequent issues. Now, I’m not claiming we invented this approach or anything—it’s a common enough layout—simply that we are employing it as a signature motif to showcase Fred’s art and the size and detail we want to get out of some of our imagery. As I write the new series, I am ensuring many luscious Fred Spreads will be included. Toxic Avenger Comics #1 has two of ‘em. Here’s another from issue 3.