Image Comics/Syzygy Unleash Covid-19 Crime Thriller ‘Dark Honor’ This May

Dark Honor is a new five-issue crime thriller set at the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic written by Ethan Sacks (Star Wars: Bounty Hunters, Old Man Hawkeye), K.S. Bruce, and Brian DeCubellis, with art by Fico Ossio (Black Lightning, No One Left To Fight), David Messina (Ultimate Spiderman, 3 Keys), Gabriel Guzman (Lady Earth, Predator), Jamal Igle (Molly Danger, The Wrong Earth); and  colours by Raciel Avila, and letteres by JAME.

“The city is in lockdown. The streets are empty. And the underworld is up for grabs! This razor-sharp, crime thriller is set in New York City at the dawn of the pandemic—where the COVID-19 virus isn’t the only unseen threat.

The Hundred have protected New York’s crime families for a century—now the city belongs to a new killer. Dark Honor brings a gritty, neo-noir twist to New York’s criminal underworld, where the real plague isn’t the virus but the power struggle left in its wake.”

—and will launch in May from the Syzygy line at Image Comics.”

This Covid-19 crime series is Bruce and DeCubellis’ comic book debut after working in the movies, notably their work on Trust (2021), and Manhattan Night (2016), starring two-time Academy Award winner Adrien Brody.

DeCubellis, stated of the project’s origin:

“Dark Honor was born in the earliest days of COVID-19 in New York. As we wrapped filming Trust in March of 2020, the city was shutting down, and we wanted to capture that surreal moment. Inspired by neo-noir crime films, we created Rain, a street-savvy hero, and the Hundred Warriors, with Grigor embodying COVID—a relentless, unexpected killer.”

Bruce added:

“Dark Honor may be fiction, but its backdrop is real—the empty streets, released prisoners, and desperate scrambles for survival, as an unknown disaster hits New York. Initially written as a screenplay, it felt too raw for film. But with Ethan Sacks’ adaptation, Chris Ryall’s expertise, and an incredible creative team, we’re honored to bring this story to comics.”

Ethan Sacks also explained how he got involved:

“Once I heard K.S. and Brian’s incredible pitch, I knew I wanted to be a part of bringing Dark Honor to comics readers. They had me at ‘Hello’—or more accurately, at a modern crime story set in New York City during the earliest and deadliest weeks of the COVID-19 epidemic. Having covered the damage COVID-19 did to my city in 2020 as a journalist for NBC News, it’s been a creative boon to now tackle that place and time as a comic book writer. And with a murderers’ row of talented artists—Fico Ossio, Dave Messina, Jamal Igle, and Gabriel Guzman—it’s only fitting for a book about a row between murderers.”

Dark Honor #1 will be out on Wednesday, May 28th from Syzygy/Image Comics.