AfterShock Comics have announced a third volume of writer Elliott Kalan and artist Andrea Mutti’s hit horror satire, “Maniac of New York: Don’t Call It a Comeback.” The latest installment sees New York celebrating the demise of serial killer Maniac Harry, with Maniac Task Force Director Gina Greene now disappeared to parts unknown. Zelda Pettibone, the NYPD detective who helped her take him down, is struggling to resume her life, when a copycat emerges, attacking locals in Central Park.
Kalan says, “The first thing readers will discover in ‘Vol. 3: Don’t Call It a Comeback,’ is how the Maniac can go back to killing when he was seemingly killed at the end of ‘The Bronx is Burning!’ They’ll also see how Zelda, Gina, and our other characters have handled the fallout of coming face to face with the monstrous Maniac. Not only that, but we’ll get to attend a glamorous New York high society event, and see what happens when the inevitable pro-Maniac contingent arises.”
When asked which horror movies inspired the story this time round, Kalan replied “I feel like I was more inspired by the real world that we live in than by any particular movies. I think readers will see the parallels even more clearly this time than in the past. There’s more political and media satire in this storyline, so in a way I was digging back into my years at The Daily Show. And if I’m being honest, I was probably heavily influenced by A Face In The Crowd. Hmm, and maybe there’s a touch of Night At The Museum. I mean, if it was a bloody horror movie.”
For more for Kalan, scroll below for a full Q&A, as well as an unlettered preview. “Maniac of New York: Don’t Call It a Comeback” #1 will be released for $4.99 on December 7, with a main cover by Mutti, and an incentive cover by Jonathan Luna. “Maniac of New York” Vols. 1 and 2, “The Death Train” and “The Bronx is Burning,” are both available now in single issues and trade paperback.
ELLIOTT KALAN ON AN OVERVIEW OF THE FIRST TWO ARCS FOR BOTH NEW AND EXISTING READERS:
“In case anyone in America needs a reminder of the exploits of our most beloved slasher killer, in MANIAC OF NEW YORK: THE DEATH TRAIN, we were introduced to a New York that has been plagued for years by Maniac Harry, an unkillable masked slasher. It’s a hard problem to solve, so the government has mainly decided to ignore it. But new Maniac Task Force Chairperson Gina Greene has a private vendetta against Maniac Harry, and teams with cynical NYPD Detective Zelda Pettibone to go after Harry when the Maniac starts killing his way through a subway train. In the end, they’re able to save two little kids, but the Maniac gets away. In MANIAC OF NEW YORK: THE BRONX IS BURNING, Zelda and Gina are still on the case – and pariahs for failing to catch Harry the last time. Maniac Harry terrorizes a Bronx high school, then follows the national anthem to Yankee Stadium for a major league killing spree. Zelda and Gina catch up to him, and Gina unleashes a barrage of Molotov cocktails, burning Harry to ashes on live television.”
ELLIOTT KAKAN ON A FEW THINGS THAT READERS CAN LOOK FORWARD TO DISCOVERING IN THE NEW ARC:
“The first thing readers will discover in VOL. 3: DON’T CALL IT A COMEBACK, is how the Maniac can go back to killing when he was seemingly killed at the end of THE BRONX IS BURNING! They’ll also see how Zelda, Gina, and our other characters have handled the fallout of coming face to face with the monstrous Maniac. Not only that, but we’ll get to attend a glamorous New York high society event, and see what happens when the inevitable pro-Maniac contingent arises.”
(WITH THERE BEING MANY NODS TO SO MANY AMAZING FILMS IN THE PREVIOUS ARCS) ELLIOTT KALAN ON IF THERE ARE ANY FILMS IN PARTICULAR THAT INSPIRED HIM FOR THIS THIRD ARC:
“Thank you! I have to say, with this one I feel like I was more inspired by the real world that we live in than by any particular movies. I think readers will see the parallels even more clearly this time than in the past. There’s more political and media satire in this storyline, so in a way I was digging back into my years at The Daily Show. And if I’m being honest, I was probably heavily influenced by A Face In The Crowd. Hmm, and maybe there’s a touch of Night At The Museum. I mean, if it was a bloody horror movie.”
ELLIOTT KALAN ON WHAT’S NEXT FOR HE AND MANIAC HARRY:
“That’s a good question! We’ll have to see how DON’T CALL IT A COMEBACK turns out! But I’m always excited to tell more stories of the Maniac. At some point, maybe we’ll get to delve into his surprisingly long history – and of course, there’s always the question of what happens if the Maniac of New York finds his way out of New York. That’s right, nowhere is safe!”