Manifest Destiny Explores Explorers

In the nascent days of the USA, there was a sense of exploratory entitlement best described as manifest destiny. The concept was that American settlers were destined to spread across the continent and spread they did. There are numerous recountings of such travels, but few of them were chronicled in comic book form. Until now, with Image Comics proud to present Manifest Destiny written by Chris Dingess and illustrated by Matthew Roberts.

“I'm fascinated by the pop culture phenomenon of taking historical characters, both real and fictional, and placing them in big, fake, extraordinary adventures,” said Dingess when asked about the origins of the series, “I'm also intrigued by the modern world's growing obsession with vast government conspiracies, both real and fictional. I was excited to take these two concepts and make them have a baby. And Matt Roberts has made this baby very pretty.”

In 1804, Captain Meriwether Lewis and Second Lieutenant William Clark set out from St. Louis, Missouri with the intent of blazing a trail to the western coast of North America—a trip that would set the foundation for the future of the United States of America. But what the history books don’t tell you is the true purpose of Lewis and Clark’s journey to the west. In this imaginative retelling of their famous trek, Lewis and Clark embark on a secret mission under direct orders from President Thomas Jefferson. They are going to do more than explore the wild frontier: they’re going to catalog exotic life and eliminate the monsters that stand in the way of the safe and rapid expansion of the United States.

Instead of being a dry reinvention of history, Dingess and Roberts are aiming for something that’s a lot of fun and action-packed, but still true to the era they’re depicting. Roberts is interested in being historically accurate. “Chris has written such a crazy, fun adventure, but he always leaves me enough rope to hang myself in the details,” said Roberts. “For example - I had no clue how in vogue popped up collars were in the early 19th century. That and leather chokers. Researching and drawing all these things is such a turn from drawing shiny, spandexed muscles. I'm having a blast.”

Manifest Destiny #1 will be in stores on November 13 and is currently available to pre-order from the September issue of Previews (Diamond Code SEP130486). Full press release below.

MANIFEST DESTINY REVEALS THE SECRET MISSION OF LEWIS & CLARK Famous explorers meet monsters and worse on the American frontier In 1804, Captain Meriwether Lewis and Second Lieutenant William Clark set out from St. Louis, Missouri with the intent of blazing a trail to the western coast of North America—a trip that would set the foundation for the future of the United States of America. But what the history books don’t tell you is the true purpose of Lewis and Clark’s journey to the west... The newest series from Image Comics imprint Skybound, MANIFEST DESTINY reveals the true story of Lewis and Clark and their voyage to claim America for the United States. Writer Chris Dingess (Being Human) and artist Matthew Roberts (BATTLE POPE) have introduced a new wrinkle to American history, combining elements of classic adventure tales with a very modern type of paranoia. In this imaginative retelling of their famous trek, Lewis and Clark embark on a secret mission under direct orders from President Thomas Jefferson. They are going to do more than explore the wild frontier: they’re going to catalog exotic life and eliminate the monsters that stand in the way of the safe and rapid expansion of the United States. “I'm fascinated by the pop culture phenomenon of taking historical characters, both real and fictional, and placing them in big, fake, extraordinary adventures,” said Dingess when asked about the origins of the series, “I'm also intrigued by the modern world's growing obsession with vast government conspiracies, both real and fictional. I was excited to take these two concepts and make them have a baby. And Matt Roberts has made this baby very pretty.” Instead of being a dry reinvention of history, Dingess and Roberts are aiming for something that’s a lot of fun and action-packed, but still true to the era they’re depicting. Roberts is interested in being historically accurate, in addition to making sure MANIFEST DESTINY has an exciting visual style. “Chris has written such a crazy, fun adventure, but he always leaves me enough rope to hang myself in the details,” said Roberts. “For example - I had no clue how in vogue popped up collars were in the early 19th century. That and leather chokers. Researching and drawing all these things is such a turn from drawing shiny, spandexed muscles. I'm having a blast.” MANIFEST DESTINY #1 will be in stores on November 13 and is currently available to pre-order from the September issue of Previews (Diamond Code SEP130486). ABOUT IMAGE COMICS Image Comics is a comic book and graphic novel publisher founded in 1992 by a collective of best-selling artists. Image has since gone on to become one of the largest comics publishers in the United States. Image currently has five partners: Robert Kirkman, Erik Larsen, Todd McFarlane, Marc Silvestri and Jim Valentino. It consists of five major houses: Todd McFarlane Productions, Top Cow Productions, Shadowline, Skybound and Image Central. Image publishes comics and graphic novels in nearly every genre, sub-genre, and style imaginable. It offers science fiction, fantasy, romance, horror, crime fiction, historical fiction, humor and more by the finest artists and writers working in the medium today. For more information, visit www.imagecomics.com.