Walking Dead Creator Launches New Comic Series DIE!DIE!DIE!

The Walking Dead creator Robert Kirkman and former showrunner Scott M. Gimple have dropped their brand new comic series, the charmingly titled DIE!DIE!DIE!, out of nowhere. Aside from achieving widespread acclaim for his work on the The Walking Dead comic, Kirkman has had considerable recent success with a number of other titles including Outcast and Invincible, both of which have been or will be given the small screen treatment. Kirkman has also worked as an executive producer on AMC's The Walking Dead adaptation. Similarly, Gimple held an executive role on the TV series, however the producer has largely worked on television and film projects such as Drive, Flashforward and Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance, with limited experience in the world of comics.

In a society dominated by social media and instant news, it has become increasingly difficult for the entertainment industry to deliver genuine surprises. As such, when a shock release does come out, the resulting attention can actually be more effective than a lengthy marketing campaign. A high-profile recent example of this technique in action would be The Cloverfield Paradox, which was released out of nowhere on Netflix on the night of the Super Bowl, generating plenty of buzz in the process.

Related: Negan's New Look In Walking Dead Season 9 Revealed

Kirkman and Gimple have now shockingly released their new ongoing comic series without any build-up whatsoever. Written by both Kirkman and Gimple, DIE!DIE!DIE! is published through Image/Skybound Entertainment and features art from Batman Incorporated artist Chris Burnham, with coloring by Nathan Fairbairn and lettering from Rus Wooton. DIE!DIE!DIE! focuses on a secret society within the U.S. government that manipulates world events by assassinating a variety of unlucky victims.

As with many other Robert Kirkman titles, DIE!DIE!DIE! promises to pull no punches in terms of violence and gore and in a press release, the writer even suggested that "PUKE!PUKE!PUKE" might have been a more appropriate title. Speaking about the new comic and its sudden release, Kirkman claimed he wanted "to make going to a comic shop exciting again."

As Kirkman's comments suggest, any sort of surprise release is a rare occurrence in 2018, so a new title that genuinely catches comic fans unaware is a novel and much-appreciated move and one that should bring plenty of eager readers to the fledgling series. However, the tactic is also a risky one. As displayed with The Cloverfield Paradox, surprise releases can generate an increased amount of buzz around a new release but if said release doesn't live up to that extra attention, the backlash can be magnified significantly. Only time will tell as to whether DIE!DIE!DIE! ends up being a huge surprise hit or a misfire from the creator of The Walking Dead, but those with little interest in reading comics should fear not - a TV version is likely only two or three years away.

DIE!DIE!DIE! Issue 1 is out today.

Source: Image/Skybound Entertainment

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