Dynamite Celebrates 20th Anniversary of Chaos! Comics

Dynamite Entertainment is all about exploding. Exploding in popularity, fun and chaos...as in Chaos!, a six-issue miniseries heralding the return of the shared Chaos! Comics universe, will launch its first issue on May 7th, 2014. And if that wasn't enough, then how does the fact that Tim Seeley joining Mirka Andolfo in reuniting Evil Ernie, Purgatori, Chastity and more in the cataclysmic Chaos! Comics 20th Anniversary revival. Dynamite will offer several cover editions to commemorate the event, including artwork by J. Scott Campbell, Tim Seeley, Emanuela Lupacchino, Charlie Adlard, Carlos Rafael, Ken Haeser and Michael Turner.

CEO and Publisher Nick Barrucci says, "The year 2014 holds special meaning for the folks at Dynamite, and our staff's decade of hard work has given us an opportunity to see - and serve as the publishing home for - the 20th anniversary of the groundbreaking Chaos! Comics line. Let the spine-chilling, gut-wrenching, mind-blowing shenanigans of Evil Ernie and friends commence!"

In the upcoming miniseries, several terrifying figures - including the undead Evil Ernie, goddess Purgatori, vampire Chastity and supernatural band of misfits known as The Omen - individually witness visions of the world's impending doom, and rush headlong into conflict. Some try desperately to avert the nuclear holocaust, out of altruism or self-interest, while others just want to raise some hell. So begins the return of the Chaos! universe on an epic scale, the resurrection of fan-favorite boogeymen and femme fatales amidst a violent, apocalyptic upheaval.

Chaos! #1 will feature a wide selection of cover variants, presented by some of comics' most talented artists. The Main Cover will be supplied by Campbell. Variant Cover A will feature the artwork of Seeley himself, while Variant Cover B showcases Lupacchino. A Subscription-Only Variant Cover, intended as a reward for dedicated fans who preorder with their local comic shop retailers, will feature the art of Carlos Rafael. A Blank Authentix Cover will be created for the first issue, featuring blank white space on the cover perfect for convention artist commissions or the creative whims of the do-it-yourself fan. Additional cover artwork by Adlard and the late Turner will be featured on special Retailer Incentive Original Art Covers, rewarded to and available from select retailers that meet certain ordering thresholds through Diamond Comic Distributors.

In addition to the Retailer Incentive Original Art Covers, Dynamite Entertainment is offering other special opportunities for retailers to support the Chaos! launch in a big way. Haeser has created a Retailer Exclusive Variant Cover, available for retailers to order through Diamond Comics. Numerous retailers can share the Haeser artwork, but have personalized store names built into the front cover design. Dynamite also invites retailers to contact their Marketing Manager, Keith Davidsen (keith.davidsen@dynamite.com, 856-312-1040 x114) if they would like to create unique Chaos! #1 Retailer Exclusive Variant Covers featuring artwork not available anywhere else.

Full press release below.

Dynamite Celebrates the 20th Anniversary of Chaos! Comics in May,

Revives Iconic Horror Characters for Brand-New CHAOS! Miniseries

March 14th, 2014, Mt. Laurel, NJ:  Dynamite Entertainment is proud to announce that Chaos!, a six-issue miniseries heralding the return of the shared Chaos! Comics universe, will launch its first issue on May 7th, 2014.  Popular horror scribe Tim Seeley (Hack/Slash, G.I.Joe Vs. Transformers) will be joined the talented artist Mirka Andolfo in reuniting Evil Ernie, Purgatori, Chastity, and more in the cataclysmic Chaos! Comics 20th Anniversary revival.  Dynamite will offer several cover editions to commemorate the event, including artwork by J. Scott Campbell, Tim Seeley, Emanuela Lupacchino, Charlie Adlard, Carlos Rafael, Ken Haeser, and Michael Turner.

Dynamite first announced the upcoming Chaos! miniseries during New York Comic-Con 2013, identifying the event as a cornerstone in their celebration of ten years as a comic book publisher.  CEO and Publisher Nick Barrucci says, "The year 2014 holds special meaning for the folks at Dynamite, and our staff's decade of hard work has given us an opportunity to see - and serve as the publishing home for - the 20th anniversary of the groundbreaking Chaos! Comics line.  Let the spine-chilling, gut-wrenching, mind-blowing shenanigans of Evil Ernie and friends commence!"

In the upcoming miniseries, several terrifying figures - including the undead Evil Ernie, goddess Purgatori, vampire Chastity, and supernatural band of misfits known as The Omen - individually witness visions of the world's impending doom, and rush headlong into conflict.  Some try desperately to avert the nuclear holocaust, out of altruism or self-interest, while others just want to raise some hell.  So begins the return of the Chaos! universe on an epic scale, the resurrection of fan-favorite boogeymen and femme fatales amidst a violent, apocalyptic upheaval.

Thanks to a monumentally successful run in the 1990s, the Chaos! Comics universe appealed to a huge demographic of comic readers, those who were - as Seeley puts it - looking for "something dangerous, scary, and sexy to read.  Chaos! was like punk music, late night horror movies, and a lingerie catalog rolled into one perfect creation."  Dynamite gave that fan base a hint of the new Chaos! to come when they released the 2012/2013 Evil Ernie miniseries to fan and critical acclaim.

Chaos! #1 will feature a wide selection of cover variants, presented by some of comics' most talented artists.  The Main Cover will be supplied by J. Scott Campbell (Danger Girl).  Variant Cover A will feature the artwork of writer Tim Seeley himself, while Variant Cover B showcases Emanuela Lupacchino (Ghost Rider).  A Subscription-Only Variant Cover, intended as a reward for dedicated fans who preorder with their local comic shop retailers, will feature the art of Carlos Rafael (Warlord of Mars: Dejah Thoris).  A Blank Authentix Cover will be created for the first issue, featuring blank white space on the cover perfect for convention artist commissions or the creative whims of the do-it-yourself fan.

Additional cover artwork by Charlie Adlard (The Walking Dead) and the late Michael Turner (Fathom, Soulfire) will be featured on special Retailer Incentive Original Art Covers, rewarded to and available from select retailers that meet certain ordering thresholds through Diamond Comic Distributors.

In addition to the Retailer Incentive Original Art Covers, Dynamite Entertainment is offering other special opportunities for retailers to support the Chaos! launch in a big way:

• Artist Ken Haeser (The Living Corpse) has created a Retailer Exclusive Variant Cover, available for retailers to order through Diamond Comics.  Numerous retailers can share the Haeser artwork, but have personalized store names built into the front cover design.
   
• Dynamite also invites retailers to contact their Marketing Manager, Keith Davidsen (keith.davidsen@dynamite.com, 856-312-1040 x114) if they would like to create unique Chaos! #1 Retailer Exclusive Variant Covers featuring artwork not available anywhere else.

Chaos! #1 will be solicited in Diamond Comic Distributors' March Previews catalog, the premiere source of merchandise for the comic book specialty market, and slated for release on May 7, 2014.  Comic book fans are encouraged to reserve copies of Chaos! with their local comic book retailers.  Chaos! will also be available for individual customer purchase through digital platforms courtesy of Comixology, iVerse, and Dark Horse Digital.

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About Dynamite Entertainment:

Dynamite was founded in 2004 and is home to several best-selling comic book titles and properties, including The Boys, The Shadow, Vampirella, Warlord of Mars, Bionic Man, A Game of Thrones, and more.  Dynamite owns and controls an extensive library with over 3,000 characters (which includes the Harris Comics and Chaos Comics properties), such as Vampirella, Pantha, Evil Ernie, Smiley the Psychotic Button, Chastity, Purgatori, and Peter Cannon: Thunderbolt.  In addition to their critically-acclaimed titles and bestselling comics, Dynamite works with some of the most high profile creators in comics and entertainment, including Kevin Smith, Alex Ross, Neil Gaiman, Andy Diggle, John Cassaday, Garth Ennis, Jae Lee, Marc Guggenheim, Mike Carey, Jim Krueger, Greg Pak, Brett Matthews, Matt Wagner, Gail Simone, Steve Niles, James Robinson, and a host of up-and-coming new talent.  Dynamite is consistently ranked in the upper tiers of comic book publishers and several of their titles - including Alex Ross and Jim Krueger's Project Superpowers - have debuted in the Top Ten lists produced by Diamond Comics Distributors.  In 2005, Diamond awarded the company a GEM award for Best New Publisher and another GEM in 2006 for Comics Publisher of the Year (under 5%) and again in 2011.  The company has also been nominated for and won several industry awards, including the prestigious Harvey and Eisner Awards.

All characters, names, logos, etc. are ™ and © their respective owners.  Press release written by Keith Davidsen.