Sci-Fi And Dark Comedy Collide In Space – ‘Vampires On Mars’ #1 Launches April 2
by Brendan M. Allen
Billionaires and their hobbies, amiright? Paul Allen (no relation) and his submarines. Zuck and his fancy cows. Ellison’s catamarans. Bezos, Musk, and Branson with their silly space tourism contest. Those last three are exactly the kind you’d expect to back a monster-manned mission to Mars, if only to be the first to plant their corporate flag on the War Planet.
Gary Laurie, billionaire, dreams of being the first person to successfully send a manned mission to Mars and back. Despite hiring the best engineers and scientists money can buy, they haven’t been able to come up with a viable solution. With each failed attempt, Gary falls further down the billionaire’s list, which is a fate worse than death.
In a last-ditch effort to save his dream of being the first person to send a manned mission to and from Mars, the desperate billionaire realizes there’s only one way to do it successfully. He must turn his astronauts into vampires.
From writer George O’Connor, illustrator Fernando Pinto, colorist Ellie Wright, and letterer Justin Birch, Vampires On Mars begs the question “How much of your humanity are you willing to give up to get what you want?”
Each issue features an exclusive interview with astronomer and science writer Phil Plait discussing the current state of Mars missions, what the reality of sending vampires into space would really be like, and more.
“You’re told to write what you know, and well, I’d totally become a vampire if it meant I’d see humans land on Mars,” said O’Connor. “This story is about how much of your humanity you’re willing to sacrifice to achieve your goals, wrapped in the over-the-top perfection of Fernando Pinto’s art and the Ringo-nominated duo of Ellie Wright on colors and Justin Birch on letters. Relevant for today? Yes. Layered? Indeed. But more importantly, we threw freakin’ vampire astronauts into the vacuum of space to see how horrifically wrong it would go. The answer? Very, bloody wrong.”
“I could tell you about how awesome this story is,” said Fernando Pinto. “About how the comedy and horror elements of George’s amazing scripts meld together in a perfect cocktail of fear and fun. I could tell you about how hard we’ve worked on it, pulling together all of our influences to make what we think is one of the most fun comics you’ll read this year. But, honestly, if a title like “Vampires on Mars” doesn’t make your brain stem salivate just picturing how awesome a comic about FREAKING VAMPIRES CAUSING HELL ON A SPACE EXPEDITION TO FREAKING MARS, I can’t help you. You need to find Jesus.”
The Vampires on Mars #1 campaign begins April 2 and ends April 26. Pre-register at this link for notifications on launch.