GRAPHIC VIOLENCE: THE DEATH ANGEL COMIC BOOK’S ARTIST, COLORIST, AND WRITERS EXPLAIN HOW THEY KILL AS ONE

Joshua Emerick, artist of the Death Angel comic book and cofounder of Golden Lobster Press , which is releasing it
The first step was to get the look. It was important that the look be dark, but not too dark. We wanted room for the band members’ personalities to shine through, and we feel that they do. We wanted to make sure that there was a big dose of the guys doing what they love and dream of doing, so we got to know what they enjoy, and also some fantastic things, such as what superpowers each would like to possess. We then put them into an impossible sci-fi scenario and let them be awesome.

Eric Kochanski, the colorist
I've worked with Josh on a couple projects before, and each time we start a new project, we get more efficient and end with an even better result than the last. With his art style, it gives me the option to exaggerate different scenes and really make the pages stand out. Working with Dennis [Pepa, Death Angel’s bassist], who's an artist in every sense of the word, is even better for us because he gives an artist's mind into what we're trying to convey. Anyone can say "Make it look cool," but with this project, we get the benefit of having someone who speaks the language and knows how to tell us what he wants.

Dave Mowery and Lee Ebersole, the writers
The basic premise of the comic is overthrowing oppression against overwhelming odds. Death Angel time-travel into the future on a mission spearheaded by the Grim Reaper to stop a bionic madman named Ludwig from enslaving all of mankind with his pipe organ of doom. I don't think I would equate our Death Angel comic to a Kiss moneymaking machine; it's more of a sci-fi adventure than a lunchbox advertisement. Our goal was not to make the comic simply a mindless throwaway story. We wanted to show how these guys rage against the system, but still remain affable and engaging while kicking some ass. We stayed on course to produce a fun, action-filled story that stayed true to who the band are on a personal level. Of course, it's doubtful that any of them can create sonic force fields in real life, but who knows? I think some of these music-based comic guys try and create personas for the band members on their own and that's where their weakness lies. We don't purport any lofty ideals or morals to alienate the audience like some do. We just put the boys into some harrowing situations that we know the audience will want to see. We took the actual band, a sci-fi storyline, and great artwork, mashed them together and came up with something we're really proud of.