Earlier than The Strolling Useless, one indie zombie comedian blazed a gory path of spine-tingling terror that left readers wide-eyed and trembling, drawing up the blueprint for the right way to make a smash hit title within the course of: Deadworld. Although the later collection, Strolling Useless, would go on to be thought-about the gold normal in zombie comics, the affect of Deadworld on Kirkman’s opus is evident.
Deadworld – created by writers Stuart Kerr, Ralph Griffith, Gary Reed and artist Vince Locke – A black-and-white marvel of debauchery and violence that, apart from being a exceptional doc of its period, nonetheless manages to seize a sure uncooked essence of ‘80s horror.
An oddity for its time, Deadworld made its mark by depicting a zombie-filled United States caught within the throes of full annihilation.
Deadworld’s best contribution to the style is maybe its unforgiving world. First printed by indie label Arrow Comics in 1987, the collection initially targeted on seven younger inventory characters, as they set out from Louisiana through college bus, crossing the nation searching for civilization. Ultimately, this premise gave rise to a graphic story of struggle between the few survivors left and the supernatural forces of an otherworldly demon lord, led by the wise-cracking King Zombie. Nicely earlier than The Strolling Useless’s 2003 premiere, Deadworld did extra than simply exhibit a distinct segment within the comics marketplace for mature, intense zombie horror: it offered a template for constructing an environment of zombie-driven impending doom.
Although the realm of zombie comics will perpetually be outlined by its main franchise, The Strolling Useless, Deadworld truly originated a number of of the extra well-known zombie comedian tropes, lengthy earlier than its extra well-known successor. The similarities are many, together with a Governor-esque character named Moloch, who runs a militarized camp whose denizens get pleasure from gladiator fights as leisure, and using zombie physique elements to disguise survivors – in Deadworld’s case, the pores and skin of zombies. Notably, the bombastic, sentient King Zombie shares many persona traits in frequent with Strolling Useless villain Negan. Most notable, nonetheless, is Deadworld’s visible type.
A lot has been manufactured from The Strolling Useless’s sparse, black-and-white creative type. On this sense, Deadworld is a direct antecedent, having additionally been rendered in black-and-white. Finally, regardless of the numerous similarities, Robert Kirkman’s The Strolling Useless would come to outline itself and its type as distinct from Deadworld, taking a way more realism-oriented strategy to the idea than the older collection, evoking a extra relatable air of tragedy amidst the oft nihilism-tinged villains its heroes take care of. Deadworld, whereas equally bleak, makes larger use of the campy, fantastical parts of horror, together with extra outright humor, together with the considerably farcical King Zombie.
Whether or not the similarities between The Strolling Useless and Deadworld are the results of sure engrained limitations of the zombie apocalypse idea, or are indirectly deliberate homages by Kirkman to the sooner collection, followers of the Kirkman comedian – in addition to its tv adaptation, and subsequent spin-offs – ought to acknowledge the parallels between the 2 franchises. Deadworld has continued in some kind or one other within the many years since its 1987 debut, with the rights to the collection at the moment being held by Picture Comics, which additionally launched The Strolling Useless, that means that whereas a crossover is unlikely, it’s removed from unimaginable.