Vertigo Comics is relaunching with several new socially aware comic book series

If anyone ever tells you that comic books are for kids… they’re kind of half-right. Thing is, comic books aren’t just for kids. Plenty of options exist today for series which will blow your mind, like a hippie discovering that bathtubs are basically opposite-boats. Image, Aftershock Comix and plenty of ther studios have comic books that make for great mind-bending reading.

Reading them wouldn’t have been possible without Vertigo Comics though. The DC Comics imprint made a name for itself in the late 1980s when it kickstarted a more mature line of comic books, starting with Neil Gaiman’s magical Sandman and continuing with iconic series such as John Constantine: Hellblazer and Preacher.

Vertigo was where the weirdest and the wildest comic books found a home, but the last couple of years have been a bit… rough for the publisher. While Vertigo is still as relevant as ever, DC Comics is planning to make it even more topical with a relaunch that focuses on “bold voices across various entertainment backgrounds”. “It’s time to rebuild DC Vertigo,” editor Mark Doyle said in a press statement.

We’re returning to our roots by spotlighting the most exciting new voices in comics, as well as bringing new voices to comics. From the corners of television, games, music, activism, podcasting, comics and more, all of our creators are passionate and have something to say. These sophisticated stories have amazing new characters and vast worlds to explore. That’s what it has always been about for me – new stories, new voices, new possibilities. We’re creating a new generation of DC Vertigo classics for readers of all genres.

How does Vertigo plan to do that? With an opening salvo in September that’ll see a new series launch every month and offer commentary on the social issues of today. Here’s a look at the upcoming series that’ll mark a new age for DC Vertigo:

Border Town

• By Eric M. Esquivel and Ramon Villalobos

When a crack in the border between worlds releases an army of monsters from Mexican folklore into the small town of Devil’s Fork, Arizona, the residents blame the ensuing weirdness —the shared nightmares, the otherworldly radio transmissions, the mysterious goat mutilations — on “God-dang illegals.” With racial tensions supernaturally charged, it’s up to new kid in town Frank Dominguez and a motley crew of high school misfits to discover what’s REALLY going on.

Hex Wives

• By Ben Blacker and Mirka Andolfo

“The women are too powerful. They must be tamed.” A malevolent conspiracy of men brainwashes a coven of witches to be subservient, suburban housewives. But it’s only a matter of time before the women remember their power…

American Carnage

• By Bryan Hill and Leandro Fernandez

In this thrilling crime saga, disgraced FBI agent Richard Wright, who is biracial but can pass for white, goes undercover in a white supremacist group believed to be responsible for the death of a fellow agent.

Goddess Mode

• By Zoë Quinn and Robbi Rodriguez

In a near future where all of humanity’s needs are administered by a godlike A.I., it’s one young woman’s horrible job to do tech support on it. But when Cassandra finds herself violently drawn into a hidden and deadly digital world beneath our own, she discovers a group of super-powered women and horrific monsters locked in a secret war for the cheat codes to reality.

High Level

• By Rob Sheridan and Barnaby Bagenda

Hundreds of years after the world ended and human society was rebuilt from scratch, a self-interested smuggler with a price on her head is forced to traverse a new continent of danger and mystery to deliver a child messiah to High Level, a mythical city at the top of the world from which no one has ever returned.

Safe Sex

• By Tina Horn and Mike Dowling

A dystopian sci-fi thriller about a ragtag team of sex workers fighting for the freedom to love in a world where sexual pleasure is monitored, regulated and policed by the government.

Second Coming

• By Mark Russell and Richard Pace.

God sends Jesus to Earth in hopes that he will learn the family trade from Sun-Man, an all-powerful superhero, who is like the varsity quarterback son God never had. But, upon his return to Earth, Christ is appalled to discover what has become of his Gospel and vows to set the record right.

Vertigo Comics was responsible for inspiring a new generation of writers and creatives. Hopefully, this latest relaunch can be the spark that lights that fire again.

Last Updated: June 8, 2018