Posted in: Comics, Manga, Viz Media | Tagged: cruella, Cruella the Manga: Black White and Red, manga, viz media

Cruella the Manga: Black White and Red: Viz Publishes Prequel to Movie

Published Sat, 07 Aug 2021 13:02:12 -0500

Cruella, the prequel movie that's the not-terribly-secret original of Cruella DeVille, the dog-murdering villainess of Disney's 101 Dalmatians, seems to be quite popular. Popular enough for a manga prequel to be published to coincide with the release of the movie. The movie could become a camp classic, or at the very least, a cult.

Cruella the Manga: Black White and Red: Viz Publishes Prequel to Movie — "Cruella the Manga" cover courtesy of Viz Media.

We all love to love a villain. Villains get to be sassy, they get to be dismissive, and they get to push past the boundaries of polite society that we dare not ourselves. Plus, they always have the most fun.

This month, VIZ will publish Cruella: The Manga. The character arc we have all been waiting for. The story of Estella's transformation to Cruella – the untold backstory of where it all began… Oh and, it's fabulously set in London's fashionable 1970's punk rock era.

She wasn't born Cruella. Gifted with talent, innovation, and ambition, Estella dreamed of becoming a fashion designer, but the world seemed intent on making sure her dreams would never come true. A naughty girl with a defiant streak against authority, this is Estella's life on the streets with her best friends and partners-in-(petty)-crime, Horace and Jasper. A trio of wily scammers and thieves, they liberate wallets and valuable pieces from their former owners, but Estella is harboring a different ambition for her boundless creativity – the fashion industry.

To coincide with the Disney live-action feature film Cruella, we discover where it all began for Estella – a young fashion designer in 1970s London whose obsession with rising to the top of the industry leads her down a path of growing cruelty.

Story and illustrations by Hachi Ishie. The untold chapter in Estella's Life is sure to be a hit with fashionistas and fans of Disney's notorious villain.