Witch Doctor (comics)

Last updated
Witch Doctor
WD-TPBCoverColor-large.jpg
Publication information
Publisher Skybound Entertainment
Format Ongoing series
Genre Horror, dark fantasy, medical drama
Publication date 20112013
No. of issues10 (as of February 2013)
Main character(s)Dr. Vincent Morrow, Eric Gast, Penny Dreadful
Creative team
Created by Brandon Seifert, Lukas Ketner
Written by Brandon Seifert
Artist(s) Lukas Ketner
Letterer(s) Brandon Seifert
Colorist(s) Sunny Gho, Jamie Grant, Andy Troy
Editor(s) Sina Grace
Collected editions
Under the Knife ISBN   1-60706-441-3
Mal Practice ISBN   1-60706-693-9

Witch Doctor is a US comic book created by writer Brandon Seifert and artist Lukas Ketner. It was the first title published by Skybound Entertainment, an imprint of Image Comics. As of early 2014, Witch Doctor consists of a four-issue mini-series, an issue #0 printed as a flipbook with The Walking Dead #85, a one-shot subtitled Witch Doctor: The Resuscitation, and a second six-issue mini-series entitled Witch Doctor: Mal Practice, which debuted in November 2012. The first mini-series and #0 issue were reprinted in a collected edition called Witch Doctor Vol. 1: Under the Knife , while the second mini-series and The Resuscitation are scheduled to be collected as Witch Doctor Vol. 2: Mal Practice in June 2013.

Contents

A first issue was printed in July 2010, Black and White, with title "First Incision - Interview with the Tapeworm", the flipbook with The Walking Dead #85 is the same, but colored.

Description

Witch Doctor combines elements of the horror and medical drama genres. The protagonist, Dr. Vincent Morrow, is a maverick doctor who specializes in "supernatural medicine," supplementing common medical practices with magic. Dr. Morrow's "cases" predominantly involve infectious supernatural creatures like vampires, demonic possession, as well as elements based on the cosmic horror of H.P. Lovecraft. In the first Witch Doctor mini-series, Dr. Morrow treats (and battles) a vampire, demons possessing a child, faerie changelings, and Deep Ones (crossed with the Creature From the Black Lagoon), among others.

Dr. Morrow is assisted by Eric Gast, a paramedic who is apparently new to the world of the supernatural, and "Penny Dreadful", a college student who seems to be infected and controlled by a supernatural creature of some sort.

While Dr. Morrow demonstrates the knowledge of a practicing medical doctor, his equipment and diagnoses are almost totally supernatural. He wields Excalibur, owns the Holy Grail (used predominantly as an IV or a syringe) and many other magical artifacts. Spellcraft is provided mostly by these artifacts, as well as pills and intravenous infusions (for example, Morrow swallows a "sleeping pill" in order to cast a spell to put a patient to sleep).

List of major characters

Reception

The first Witch Doctor mini-series was both a sales and a critical success for Skybound, earning praise from comics media sources like IGN, [1] horror publications like Fangoria, [2] and geek culture media sites including Boing Boing, [3] io9, [4] and The A.V. Club. [5]

Witch Doctor #1 was number 163 on Diamond Comics Distributors' top 300 chart for June, 2011, selling an estimated 12,592 copies. [6] It was the fifth highest-selling title from Image Comics for that month, behind The Walking Dead #86, Invincible #80, Spawn #208 and Haunt #16. Witch Doctor #1 received a rating of 4 out of 5 from Comic Book Resources, [7] a rating of 7.0 out of 10 from IGN, [8] and a rating of 5 out of 5 from Comics Bulletin. [9]

Cory Doctorow gave Witch Doctor Vol. 1 a positive review on Boing Boing, calling it "charmingly demented" and stating "Ketner and Seifert's sensibility is perfectly potty, and their titular doctor is a blend of Doctor Who and Spider Jerusalem. The metaphysics they reveal through the gruesome adventures in this volume has a weird internal consistency, but it's so cockeyed and frankly revolting that I can honestly say it never occurred to me before they scarred me with it." He concluded, "This is a fine debut, and I can't wait for future volumes." [10]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Archie Comics</span> American comic book publisher

Archie Comic Publications, Inc., is an American comic book publisher headquartered in Pelham, New York. The company's many titles feature the fictional teenagers Archie Andrews, Jughead Jones, Betty Cooper, Veronica Lodge, Reggie Mantle, Sabrina Spellman, Josie and the Pussycats and Katy Keene. The company is also known for its long-running Sonic the Hedgehog comic series, which it published from 1992 until 2016.

<i>Pumpkinhead</i> (film) 1988 film by Stan Winston

Pumpkinhead is a 1988 American supernatural horror film. It was the directorial debut of special effects artist Stan Winston. The film has built up a cult following since its release. The first in the Pumpkinhead franchise, it was followed by a direct-to-video sequel, two TV film sequels, and a comic book series. The film was originally called Vengeance: The Demon and it was inspired by a poem written by poet Ed Justin. The film inspired a video game called Bloodwings: Pumpkinhead's Revenge.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Doctor Occult</span> Fictional character

Doctor Occult is a fictional superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, Doctor Occult is an occult detective, private investigator and magic user who specializes in cases involving the supernatural. Doctor Occult first appeared in 1935 during the Platinum Age of Comic Books. He was published by National Comics Publications and Centaur Publications within anthology titles. He is the earliest recurring, originally featured fictional character still used in the DC Universe. He is sometimes affiliated with the All-Star Squadron and has appeared in paranormal-related stories by DC and Vertigo Comics titles. Doctor Occult also has appeared in one DC-based video game set within DC's multiverse canon.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robert Kirkman</span> American comic book writer

Robert Kirkman is an American comic book writer, screenwriter, and producer. He is best known for co-creating The Walking Dead, Fear the Walking Dead, Invincible, Tech Jacket, Outcast, Oblivion Song, and Fire Power for Image Comics, in addition to writing Ultimate X-Men, Irredeemable Ant-Man and Marvel Zombies for Marvel Comics. He has also collaborated with Image Comics co-founder Todd McFarlane on the series Haunt.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stanley and His Monster</span> DC Comics comic book series

Stanley and His Monster is an American comic-book humor feature and later series from DC Comics, about a boy who has a monster as his companion instead of a dog. Created by writer Arnold Drake and artist Winslow Mortimer as a backup feature in the talking animal comic The Fox and the Crow #95, it went to its own 1960s title and a 1990s revival limited series.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Weird West</span> Term applied to three hybrid genres of the Western

Weird West is a term used for the hybrid genres of fantasy Western, horror Western and science fiction Western. The term originated with DC's Weird Western Tales in 1972, but the idea is older as the genres have been blended since the 1930s, possibly earlier, in B-movie Westerns, comic books, movie serials and pulp magazines. Individually, the hybrid genres combine elements of the Western genre with those of fantasy, horror and science fiction respectively.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jericho Drumm (comics)</span> Fictional character in Marvel Comics

Dr. Jericho Drumm is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. He first appeared in Strange Tales #169 as Brother Voodoo. The character was created by Marvel publisher Stan Lee, writer Len Wein, and artist John Romita Sr. Since replacing Doctor Strange as Sorcerer Supreme in The New Avengers #53, the character has been referred to as Doctor Voodoo, a title originally assumed by his evil twin brother Daniel, whose ghost he controls.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Universal Classic Monsters</span> Horror and science fiction films made by Universal Studios (1930s–1950s)

Universal Classic Monsters is a media franchise based on a series of horror films primarily produced by Universal Pictures from the 1930s to the 1950s.

<i>Ghosts</i> (comics)

Ghosts is a horror comics anthology series published by DC Comics for 112 issues from September–October 1971 to May 1982. Its tagline was "True Tales of the Weird and Supernatural", changed to "New Tales of the Weird and Supernatural", as of #75, and dropped after #104.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Creation Entertainment</span> American entertainment company

Creation Entertainment is an American for-profit entertainment company located in Glendale, California, which produces fan conventions for fans of various films and television series, mainly in the science fiction, horror, and fantasy genres. Creation Entertainment hosts about 20 conventions annually in various locations such as Chicago, Illinois; and Burbank, California. Creation was founded in 1971 by comic book fans Gary Berman and Adam Malin in New York City. Since then, it has organized over 2,300 conventions.

<i>The Many Ghosts of Doctor Graves</i> American supernatural-anthology comic book

The Many Ghosts of Doctor Graves is an American supernatural-anthology comic book that was published by Charlton Comics, often featuring stories by writer-artist Steve Ditko. The eponymous Dr. M. T. Graves was a fictional character who hosted the stories in each issue of this title, and very occasionally took part in a tale.

<i>This Magazine Is Haunted</i> Horror comic book

This Magazine is Haunted is a horror comic that was originally published by Fawcett between 1951 and 1953. Running 14 issues, it was the first of Fawcett's supernatural line; a string of titles which included Beware! Terror Tales, Worlds of Fear, Strange Suspense Stories, and Unknown Worlds.

<i>Frankenstein</i> (Prize Comics) 1940-1954 American comic book series

There have been many comic book adaptations of the monster story created by Mary Shelley in her 1818 novel Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus. Writer-artist Dick Briefer presented two loose adaptations of the story in publisher Prize Comics' successive series Prize Comics and Frankenstein from 1940 to 1954. The first version represents what comics historians call American comic books' first ongoing horror feature.

<i>The Witching Hour</i> (DC Comics) DC comics

The Witching Hour is an American comic book horror anthology published by DC Comics from 1969 to 1978.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Horror comics</span> Horror comics book

Horror comics are comic books, graphic novels, black-and-white comics magazines, and manga focusing on horror fiction. In the US market, horror comic books reached a peak in the late 1940s through the mid-1950s, when concern over content and the imposition of the self-censorship Comics Code Authority contributed to the demise of many titles and the toning down of others. Black-and-white horror-comics magazines, which did not fall under the Code, flourished from the mid-1960s through the early 1980s from a variety of publishers. Mainstream American color comic books experienced a horror resurgence in the 1970s, following a loosening of the Code. While the genre has had greater and lesser periods of popularity, it occupies a firm niche in comics as of the 2010s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Skybound Entertainment</span> American multi-platform entertainment company

Skybound Entertainment is an American multiplatform entertainment company founded by Robert Kirkman and David Alpert. It operates in concert with Image Comics.

<i>Penny Dreadful</i> (TV series) 2014 horror drama television series

Penny Dreadful is a horror drama television series created for Showtime and Sky by John Logan, who also acts as executive producer alongside Sam Mendes. The show was originally pitched to several US and UK channels, and eventually landed with Showtime, with Sky Atlantic as co-producer. It premiered at the South by Southwest film festival on March 9 and began airing on television on April 28, 2014, on Showtime on Demand. The series premiered on Showtime in the United States on May 11, 2014, and on Sky Atlantic in the United Kingdom on May 20, 2014. After the third-season finale on June 19, 2016, series creator John Logan announced that Penny Dreadful had ended as the main story had reached its conclusion.

<i>Wytches</i> (comics) Six-issue comic book limited series

Wytches is a six-issue comic book limited series written by Scott Snyder and illustrated by Jock. The first issue of the series released on 8 October 2014 and is currently published through Image Comics. The rights for a film adaptation have been purchased by Plan B Entertainment, but it has since evolved into an animated series for Amazon Prime Video.

<i>Chilling Adventures of Sabrina</i> 2014 American comic book

Chilling Adventures of Sabrina is an American comic book series published by Archie Horror, an imprint of Archie Comics, beginning in 2014. The series is a darker take on the characters and setting of Sabrina the Teenage Witch. It is written by Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa, with art by Robert Hack, and is inspired by the appearances of Sabrina in Aguirre-Sacasa's other Archie series, Afterlife with Archie.

<i>Avas Demon</i> 2012 science-fantasy webcomic

Ava's Demon is a science fantasy webcomic written and drawn by Michelle Czajkowski Fus and colored by a number of colorists. The comic, which has been ongoing since 2012, is known for its painted art style and animations. The first physical publication of Ava's Demon was released in 2013 after a successful Kickstarter project, and another Kickstarter in 2020 became the most-backed webcomic Kickstarter at the time.

References