EC COMICS BLOOD TYPE

Corinna Bechko who wrote one of my all-time favorite comic book series, Image Comics sci-fi themed INVISIBLE REPUBLIC, is now scripting a new horror title for EC Comics being released this summer. Bechko is teaming up with Eisner Award-winning illustrator Andrea Sorrentino for BLOOD TYPE which digs deeper into a vampire first introduced within a previously published short story from an EC Comics anthology of horror tales.

WHEN YOU'RE A VAMPIRE, EVERYBODY SUCKS . . . SOONER OR LATER! Meet Ada, an immortal vampire whose misdeeds have landed her on the doorstep of an idyllic Caribbean resort. . . . An island paradise teeming with wealthy tourists and superstitious locals—an ample food supply for the thirsty vamp looking to get away from it all! But as Ada stalks the boundaries of her new hunting ground, she'll soon become embroiled in a deadly game of cat and mouse by moonlight . . . as an older, wiser, and entirely different kind of predator reveals its own carnal hunger for greed and power. Who will survive when a brand-new kind of BLOOD TYPE declares war on a cunning bloodsucker with nothing left to lose . . . and what will be left of them?!

Picking up in the immediate aftermath of Ada’s first appearance in the titular short story “Blood Type” from EPITAPHS FROM THE ABYSS #3, BLOOD TYPE is intended to be the first in a new slate of semi-regular EC Comics limited series that will spotlight and continue a select few of the razor-sharp short stories introduced in the pages of EC’s monthly anthology titles. The first issue will be released with multiple covers to choose from by Miguel Mercado (Buffy the Vampire Slayer), Andrea Sorrentino (Bone Orchard), Albert Monteys (Universe!), and Naomi Franq (Black Hammer: Barbalien), BLOOD TYPE #1 seeps into comic shops everywhere on June 18th.

“Horror has just always been where I've felt most at home, something Andrea and I have in common,” Corinna Bechko commented to ageekdaddy.com.  “With BLOOD TYPE we've cooked up a wicked tale that expands on a character I fell in love with as soon as I put her on the page. Does she love me back? Not a chance, and that's her charm. She's a vampire, but that doesn't mean she sparkles or is ready for romance. She is, however, ready to take over a tropical paradise.”

“I think horror is just my thing,” Andrea Sorrentino added in about BLOOD TYPE. “I've worked on many different things like superheroes and sci-fi in my career, but when it's up to horror, this is where I feel at home …The opportunity to connect with the deepest fears of the reader through some imagery is a great and satisfying challenge. This is why when I've been asked if I was up to collaborate with EC Comics (one of the greatest of the comic horror producers) for two short stories first and then the launch of this exciting new limited series, it has been an honor for me. I can't wait to join Corinna Bechko and my long time collaborator Dave Stewart on colors for this new, amazing project. It's going to be a lot of fun and I can't wait for readers to put their eyes on what we are doing here!”

You can get your first bite of BLOOD TYPE on Free Comic Book Day. Before BLOOD TYPE #1 arrives in comic shops everywhere this June, readers can rediscover the killer short that first launched Ada into infamy inside the pages of EC PRESENTS BLOOD TYPE #0 – Oni’s 2025 Free Comic Book Day release by Bechko and artist Jonathan Case (Green River Killer), alongside other fan-favorite shorts from EC's first year at Oni Press by creators Charlie Adlard (The Walking Dead), Chris Condon (Ultimate Wolverine), Kano (Gotham Central), and Matt Kindt (BRZRKR, Mind MGMT) with an all-new cover by Eisner Award nominee Tyler Crook (Out of Alcatraz, Harrow County).

DRACULA OF TRANSYLVANIA

This year marks the 90th anniversary of Universal Pictures releasing DRACULA which began an era of classic monster movies from the studio featuring iconic characters ranging from The Creature from the Black Lagoon to Frankenstein. In commemoration of the occasion, noted author and artist Ricardo Delgado is publishing through Kickstarter a novel which expands upon the Bram Stoker story that inspired the 1931 movie about Dracula starring Bela Lugosi as the infamous Count from Transylvania. The Kickstarter campaign for Delgado's 428 page hardcover DRACULA OF TRANSYLVANIA book runs through March 25 with a delivery date for pledgers in the summer of 2021.

In DRACULA OF TRANSYLVANIA, the year is 1899. Young Solicitor Jonathan Harker braves ghosts, demons, living skeletons, and armies of rats—all of which pale in comparison to his encounters with Dracula of Transylvania, the Son of Satan. The demonic, shapeshifting vampire imposes his wrath, malice and vengeance upon an England about to enter the Modern Era. The romantic side of Dracula is tossed aside and the pure horror of his vileness incarnate is portrayed in this book written by Ricardo Delgado.  He’s spent the past thousand years putting sword to flesh and tearing at the tapestry of history as the son of Satan himself. Kings, Popes and armies fear Dracula. And this story shows why you should too!

In addition to writing DRACULA OF TRANSYLVANIA, Ricardo Delgado also drew 28 lavish illustrations that are incorporated into the book. This aspect of the book really stands out based upon Delgado's reputation as a story board artist for Hollywood movies including Apollo 13, Men in Black, Jurassic Park 3, and Star Trek: First Contact. He has also created a dinosaur comic book series, Age of Reptiles, for Dark Horse Comics, and written two novels, the children’s novella Sam Specter and the Book of Spells and the hard-boiled science fiction noir Warhead. Click here to check out his DRACULA OF TRANSLYVANIA Kickstarter campaign.

To further bring Dracula to life, enact your own vampire encounters with BendyFigs from Noble Toys. Their Universal Monsters Collection let you pose and play with Dracula, The Monster from the Black Lagoon, Frankenstein and Frankenstein's Bride to imagine your own horror movie scenes. The Dracula BendyFig is approximately 7 inches high and comes equipped with a fabric cape and Hollywood film themed display base. Avoid his mesmerizing gaze because this officially licensed vampire toy wants to drink your blood!

BendyFigs feature an enclosed wire frame hidden within a rubbery body allowing these action figures to be posed without the need of visible joints that can distract from a toy's appearance. This makes them stand out from other action figures and great for displaying. For more information about BendyFigs or to purchase some head over to noblecollection.com

New Vampire Horror Series will try to Thrill TV Viewers on FX Cable Network

THE STRAIN has gone full circle now.  Originally created as an outline for a television series pitch by filmmaker Guillermo del Toro when no networks picked it up for a pilot the idea was transformed into a trilogy of New York Times Best Seller books and a comic book series.  Now the cable network FX has picked up THE STRAIN for a 3 season run with the first episode airing on Sunday July 13th at 10pm ET/PT.

The first episode of the show starts with a plane landing at JFK airport than going dark and silent.  When it is boarded, all of the passengers are found dead and the Center for Disease Control is brought in to investigate as authorities fear this tragedy was caused by a viral outbreak on board the flight.  The CDC sends their top investigator Ephraim Goodweather (played by Corey Stoll - Congressman Peter Russo in the first season of Netflix's House of Cards drama) to find out what is going on.  Goodweather is stumped as it appears the cause of the trouble appears to originate from a mysterious giant coffin filled with soil and worms found in the plane's cargo hold.  The infection quickly jumps from the plane to the airport to New York City.  Turns out though it isn't a virus but rather a vampire infestation that is the cause of this plague.

Season one's 13 episodes of THE STRAIN will be based on the first novel and tells the story of the eight days in which the outbreak first surfaces and infects New York City.  The main characters are similar to the ones from the novels and comic books, the CDC expert, an elderly pawn shop owner who encountered the vampires as a child in World War II era Europe, and a pest exterminator who encounters this new vampire infestation while on the job.  The show throws in a computer hacker character not from the books and comics to slightly differentiate the show's scripts from the prose. These four characters team together to tackle the Master, one of seven ancient vampires, who is responsible for bringing the strain to New York City.  What is the Master's grand plan and how does a rich industrialist lurking in the shadows play into it?

Watch THE STRAIN on FX to find out!

Oh, one other note to mention!  These vampires aren't the ones of Buffy the Vampire, Dracula, True Blood, The Twilight Saga that look like normal humans who need to avoid the sun, rather they are more like the Reapers from the movie Blade II (directed by del Toro) that have three-way jaws with leach like suckers that shoot out of their faces and bodies that are grotesque.  Like The Walking Dead this is not a show you want to allow children to watch!