Posted in: Comics | Tagged: Comics, entertainment, kickstarter, Luke Parker, Merrick: The Sensational Elephantman, Nic J Shaw, tom ward

The Elephantman In The Room – A Different Tale of Merrick

Tom Ward writes for Bleeding Cool:

On the 24^th of June 1886 Joseph Merrick arrived at Liverpool Street Station, exhausted but finally back in his own country. He had been betrayed, abandoned and left for dead in Europe by his manger who had stolen his life savings. With nowhere to go, even unable to enter a workhouse, he approached strangers for help but his unintelligible speech and shocking appearance only drew a crowd of onlookers. Unable to make himself understood, huddled in a corner and suffering from Bronchitis the police eventually summoned Frederick Treves to the scene after founding his card in Merricks possession .

Joseph Carey Merrick  was an English man with severe deformities. His skin appeared thick and lumpy, he developed an enlargement of his lips, and a bony lump grew on his forehead, his right arm and both feet were enlarged. Rejected by his father and stepmother he left home aged 17 and joined the Workhouse before entering a career in human curiosity shows where he was exhibited as "Half-a-Man and Half-an- Elephant". It was here that The Elephantman first met Frederick Treves, a Surgeon at the London Hospital.

What if The Elephantman's condition actually imbued him with enhanced strength and toughness, his skin as thick as his namesake? What if Frederick Treves had a secret life and an ulterior motive for helping Merrick? He was best friends with Thomas Hardy, an English writer with an interest in the occult. He was also a member of the Athenaeum club along with Conan Doyle, a firm believer in spiritualism and magic. What if these three men were part of a secret society that thought Merrick's abilities would be useful to them?

My name's Tom Ward, this is the premise to my new comic, Merrick: The Sensational Elephantman. Myself, artist Luke Parker and Letterer Nic J. Shaw have already completed issue #01 and released it for free download, a full 22 pages of story plus extras and a guest artist pin-up gallery, including Artyom Trakhanov (UNDERTOW), Simone D'armani (Spider King), Tiernan Trevallion (Absalom) and many more. Our Kickstarter for issues 2-4 is well on its way and we have been in the top 4 most popular comic Kickstarter in Europe since we launched.

We want BLEEDING COOL to be part of this, so as a special treat to you guys the first 10 backers who go for a physical reward tier and message us saying they came from BLEEDING COOL will also receive a limited reproduction of the Autobiography of Joseph Carey Merrick that is normally reserved for backers over £40.

Find the kickstarter here: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/ourtom/merrick-the-sensational-elephantman

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