Posted in: Comics, Image | Tagged: chew, image comics, john layman, rob guillory

John Layman Teases the Return of Chew 2 From Image Comics

Published Thu, 28 Nov 2019 15:00:32 -0600

Earlier this year, John Layman talked about the potential return of his five-year comic with Rob Guillory, Chew. After first talking about the effect its publication had on him.

After CHEW ended I was exhausted. 64 issues (mostly) on time was grueling. I took a year off. Lost thirty pounds. Traveled the world. Sorta assumed I'd do some Big Two work-for-hire, but that never materialized. I didn't even want to THINK about CHEW…

…until I did.

— LAYMAN (@themightylayman) June 14, 2019

Sometime in 2018 the floodgates started to open, and the ideas started coming again. I'd had enough of a mental rest, and I started writing CHEW again. I really, REALLY wanted to have something concrete to announce for its tenth anniversary (spoiler: I don't.)

— LAYMAN (@themightylayman) 14 June 2019

But I can announce I've got more than 100 pages of CHEW stuff written, three different projects set in the CHEW-niverse, and that does not even count CHEW2, which would star Olive Chu, and be set in a post-alien occupation sci-fi work.

— LAYMAN (@themightylayman) 14 June 2019

There is also the complication that Rob is now working on his own book, FARMHAND, through Image, and it's really good, but that of course affects his availability. Any CHEW book going forward would be different, then. That terrifies me.

— LAYMAN (@themightylayman) 14 June 2019

The three books I have in progress are:
•A series of minis featuring a character you already know from CHEW.
•A globe-trotting series featuring a new character set in same world.
•A mini so fucking weird I can't describe it (it's likely to see the light of day first.)

— LAYMAN (@themightylayman) 14 June 2019

Anyway, that's what's going on with CHEW.

I can't believe I still have to tell people this, but cartoon has been dead for years. In fact, we've been on Hollywood merry-go-round (quietly) two other times since then. End result is nada. Feels like CHEW on TV or movies is cursed.

— LAYMAN (@themightylayman) 14 June 2019

Speaking of cursed, we were doing variant covers for Leviathan by a different artist every issue. We were gonna surprise everybody with a wraparound Leviathan/Poyo cover by @Rob_guillory for issue #4. Leviathan looking more DOA by the day, though, so here you go: pic.twitter.com/JmrAU6YOEz

— LAYMAN (@themightylayman) 14 June 2019

Post script: Don't get too excited by the prospect of "new CHEW." At this point only one of the books *might* happen. No artists are attached for other stuff. Nothing is approved. Nothing is on a schedule. At this time I am writing this stuff purely for myself.

— LAYMAN (@themightylayman) 14 June 2019

I fully expect to die of old age soon (VERY soon!!!) leaving behind stacks and stacks of unpublished CHEW stuff.

— LAYMAN (@themightylayman) 14 June 2019

And today, for Thanksgiving, John Layman teased the following with the news that it would be announced next week. And yes, that looks a lot like Chew 2 with art from Rob Guillory… from Image Comics. Maybe for March 2020?