‘Grendel’ Creator Matt Wagner Is The Latest Artist To Create Connecting Covers For Skybound’s ‘The Walking Dead Deluxe’
by Olly MacNamee
Skybound/Image Comics have revealed the latest set of connecting covers for The Walking Dead Deluxe series, from comoc book legend Matt Wagner (creator of Grendel), with colours by Brennan Wagner. This connecting series covers the ‘All Out War-Part 1’ (The Walking Dead Deluxe ##115-120), which sees the start of the war between Rick and his friends and allies and Negan and his Saviors. The biggest storyline in The Walking Dead history.
Here’s Wagner on his take on the covers:
“When Skybound offered me these covers, they asked if I could possibly weave them all together into some sort of continuous tapestry. My first idea was to link the covers as frames in an animated sequence that changed characters with every issue, the action charging left-to-right and finally turning back on itself. For me, the funnest part was the canopy background of Walkers and making sure that each and every one of the 100+ undead were completely different from each other. And then Brennan’s incredible coloring made the whole thing flow as one grand montage!”
Nachie Marsham, Senior Editor at Skybound, added:
“All Out War is one of the most pivotal storylines in all of The Walking Dead, and having the chance to bring in Matt and Brennan for this set of covers was a truly amazing opportunity. They created something uniquely their own while capturing the heart of the story. The covers are a mangled delight to see, and I can’t wait for people to get their hands on them!”
The Walking Dead Deluxe is written by Robert Kirkman, with art by Charlie Adlard and colours by Dave McCaig with each issue continuing to include additional materials, such as pinups and exclusive “Cutting Room Floor” commentary by Kirkman, celebrating the secret history of the series.
The Walking Dead Deluxe #115 will be out on Wednesday, June 18th, 2025 from Skybound/Image Comics with The Walking Dead Deluxe #116 out on July 2nd, 2025, The Walking Dead Deluxe #117 out July 16th, 2025, The Walking Dead Deluxe #118 out on August 6th, 2025, The Walking Dead Deluxe #119 out on August 20th, 2025, and The Walking Dead Deluxe #120 tbc.