Exclusive: Oni Press Shares Covers For Neo-Noir Parable ‘Night People’ #3

Oni Press has given Comicon an exclusive look at four covers for Night People #3, the penultimate chapter in their new “beyond noir parable” that begins on March 3, 2024. From writer Chris Condon and artist Artyom Topilin comes the next neon-saturated tale of desperation, fanaticism, and murder, based on the work of neo-noir icon Barry Gifford. 

Night People is based on the follow-up to Gifford’s novel Wild at Heart, following a fascinating and fully realized cast of outsiders, loners, and lost souls through four interlocking narratives. They travel a path of intoxication, lust, and spontaneous violence from New Orleans to Egypt City, Florida, and back again.

The mini-series will pair Condon with a different artist through each of the series’ four interlocking tales punctuated by lipstick, sweat, and blood. Issue #1 features the art of Brian Level, followed in order by Alexandre Tefengki, Topilin, and Marco Finnegan.

In the third chapter, you’ll meet Easy Earl Blakey, who was having an uneventful evening at Alfonzo’s Mexicali Club until a heated argument at a neighboring table erupted into a hail of bullets. Now Earl, who can barely remember what happened next, is wanted for shooting a New Orleans cop — and the only thing he can think to do is drive.

“Night People is beyond noir, a parable that embodies both a revision of the past and riddle for the present, informed by the Church on the One Hand and the Church on the Other Hand that portends a future wherein whomever is left on the planet are cast forth on an even more mysterious and perilous voyage on a ghost ship sailing into the Sea of Red,” said Gifford. “As evidenced by this powerful graphic representation of my novel, the quest for a safe harbor is never ending.”

“Each issue is unique in terms of story, so it makes sense to have each issue have a different, unique artistic approach,” said Condon. “I’m so thrilled to see the artistic powerhouses Oni Press has brought onboard to tackle this adaptation with me. The way Barry’s book works is that you never know what turns it will take or what characters you’ll be following in any particular chapter. We’ve utilized that approach in this adaptation, and I think we’re crafting something that should be exciting for readers and will have them coming back issue after issue to see where this wild story is going to go next.”

Night People #1 is available for pre-order at your local comics shop.