BOOM! Studios has announced Crocodile Black, a new pandemic-era crime thriller from Incredible Hulk writer Phillip Kennedy Johnson.
Per BOOM!, Crocodile Black launches early this coming May. The series teams Johnson with artist SOM. The debut issue features a main cover by Andrea Sorrentino, as well as a variant cover by Christian Ward.
“What makes someone turn to crime — especially in a modern, pandemic-riddled dystopia?” an official synopsis reads. “During the height of the 2020 COVID-19 Pandemic, Danny — a seemingly mundane young man lost in escapism with a spiraling lack of control over his life — sees something during a delivery job that will change him forever, turning his life as dark as the black, crocodile-skin boots he can’t take his eyes off of…”
Check out the covers for Crocodile Black #1 below:
Phillip Kennedy Johnson talks Crocodile Black
“Crocodile Black is a story about dark reinvention. It’s about hidden trauma, unchecked obsession, the power that masks give us, and a dead man’s black crocodile-skin boots. It’s about a COVID-era kid with no prospects finding something he never knew he wanted, and using it to become someone he never knew he wanted to be: a dangerous man,” Johnson said.
“At the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, I was fascinated with how many people left behind jobs they hated or college programs they were never that interested in, and pursued paths they’d been afraid to before. Crocodile Black is a thought-provoking, disturbing take on that phenomenon. It’s a story I hope will leave readers asking themselves, ‘Given the opportunity, could I be capable of great things, too … or terrible things?'” he continued.
“Som is a visionary, a genius of an artist,” the writer concluded. “He was the only choice to draw Crocodile Black. Much of Som’s work illustrates the otherworldly or grotesque violently intruding on reality, which we really wanted to capture for this story. I routinely get art back from Som with elements that are so distinct or haunting that it impacts the way I write for him going forward. More than any other, that kind of collaboration is the reason I love the medium like I do. Som is a joy to work with, and I’m beyond excited for readers to experience Crocodile Black.”
SOM chimes in
“I found Crocodile Black to be a harrowing tale of immoral dissent triggered by PTSD and blended with the cold narration style of contemporary American Crime fiction. It strikes a delicate balance between mayhem and sanity which I often try to capture in my works. And having lived the dysphoria that COVID-19 was, who wouldn’t want to talk about the time that changed us. Needless to say, I just had to grab this,” SOM himself added.
“It was Philip’s [sic] writing that pulled me in,” the artist continued. “He has an incredible understanding of the medium and creates brutally harrowing moments page after page with such aplomb, that it becomes a joyride for someone like me. It pushes me to create visuals that could do justice to the writing. I truly hope this labour of love fascinates you all the same way it fascinates us. People at BOOM! were an absolute treat to work with. Ramiro understands an artist’s creative approach, and went out of his way to give me the time I needed to visualise the story. So thrilled to be a part of this series.”
Crocodile Black #1 goes on sale Wednesday, May 8 from BOOM! Studios.
