Posted in: Comics | Tagged: Backstagers, boom, boom studios, james tynion iv, Rian Sygh

Backstagers Gets a Halloween Special in October from James Tynion IV, Rian Sygh, Special Guests

Published Thu, 05 Jul 2018 14:55:18 -0500

Last updated Thu, 05 Jul 2018 21:20:19 -0500

More and more each year, it feels like Comic-Con isn't about the comics anymore, which is perhaps why comic book publishers have taken to releasing a lot of their Comic-Con news before Comic-Con actually starts. BOOM! Studios is one such publisher, announcing a number of new comics in the 10 days prior to the event's start in their Road to San Diego branded marketing initiative. Follow-up marketing initiatives may or may not include Bunking in a Single Hotel Room with Six Other People of San Diego, Searching for Wi-Fi at San Diego, and Recovering from Plague After San Diego.

But let's not get ahead of ourselves. As part of BOOM!'s Road to San Diego, BOOM! on Thursday announced The Backstagers Halloween Intermission #1, a one-shot special hitting stores in October from series creators James Tynion IV and Rian Sygh, along with special guests Sam Johns (The Backstagers: Valentine's Intermission), Shan Murphy (Bouquet), Abby Howard (Junior Scientist Power Hour), and Savanna Ganucheau (Bloom). A press release provides further details:

With the days getting shorter and the nights getting spookier, the Backstagers are back for the Halloween season with all-new tales of terrors and creepy creatures. When Sasha accidentally falls asleep backstage, he ends up locked in the theater overnight! What lurks in the shadows, what terrors will he discover, and what the heck are the stage managers chanting? With back-up stories spotlighting your favorite Backstagers, this spine-tingling tale of the stage will leave you with goosebumps you can see from the back row!

While James Tynion, descendent of a long and proud line of James Tynions, said:

A year back, Rian and I talked about how we might be able to continue to visit the world we had created in The Backstagers. We had the thought that we'd bring the sweet boys of the St. Genesius Stage crew back with a couple of oversized specials. The first came out on Valentine's Day, and let us delve into one of the core pillars of the series, the powerful love and friendship between our characters. But the second was always the one I was most excited about. The Halloween Intermission issue lets us expand the spookiest mythology behind the St. Genesius theater, to tell a genuinely frightening story that captures the heart and soul of the book and these sweet boys. I'm really proud of what Rian and I have cooked up for you, and with Sam Johns writing super spooky back-up stories for incredible art powerhouses like Abby Howard, Savanna Ganucheau, and Shan Murphy…It's going to be one heck of a Halloween!

Rian Sygh added:

I was so excited when James and I were coming up with this story, I love our characters so much and I was so pleased when we decided to give the Stage Managers their time to shine since they didn't get much opportunity in the first series. I'm mostly excited about drawing a lot of Halloween nonsense since its one of my favorite holidays. It's been especially interesting seeing other people's art for the Back-Up stories. Collaborating with these incredibly talented cartoonists has been a dream, and makes me feel like The Backstagers have a lot more stories to explore than I could ever draw on my own!

While BOOM! Senior Editor Shannon Watters is revealed to be the sort of terribly misguided person that would try to give kids something to read while trick-or-treating instead of giving them a candy bar:

Who needs candy when you have comics as sweet as the THE BACKSTAGERS HALLOWEEN INTERMISSION?! Our boys in stage blacks are back, and giving us all a high-quality haunting just in time for the spookiest time of the year."

With a variant cover by Veronica Fish, Backstagers Halloween Intermission #1 hits stores in October.