AfterShock Comics have announced “Dogs of London,” a sci-fi gangster series set in 1960s London, written by Peter Milligan with art by Sao Paulo-based illustrator Artecida, colors by Valentina Bianconi, and lettering by Rob Steen. The comic follows Frank and Terry, two former members of the Dogs, a gang who ruled London’s underworld in the ’60s. “They thought they’d escaped their troubled pasts, but the past isn’t dead – it’s just bashed about a bit and very pissed off. Spanning different times and classes, ‘Dogs of London’ is a brutal, bloody tale of violence, love, revenge… and sleeping dogs who refuse to roll over and play dead.”
Milligan said “‘Dogs of London’ is on one hand a brutal SF Gangster story about revenge, class and the changing face of crime and society – on the other it’s a story about trying to escape from the intractable bonds of your destiny. My first series in America was ‘Skreemer,’ a story that used a weird gangster tale to explore a kind of American experience – so I’m really excited to be telling, now, a very different kind of gangster story, one that explores a very British experience but also dramatizes universal themes of love, revenge, violence, and fate. And dog-bites. Sorry, did I say dog-bites?”
For more from Milligan, head below for a full Q&A, as well as an unlettered preview and the retail incentive cover by Dave Johnson. “Dogs of London” #1 releases on May 4, with a cover by Andy Clarke with colorist Jose Villarrubia, and will retail at 32 pages for $4.99.
PETER MILLIGAN ON WHAT THE BOOK IS ABOUT AND WHY HE IS EXCITED FOR IT TO BE RELEASED:
“DOGS OF LONDON is on one hand a brutal SF Gangster story about revenge, class and the changing face of crime and society – on the other it’s a story about trying to escape from the intractable bonds of your destiny. My first series in America was SKREEMER, a story that used a weird gangster tale to explore a kind of American experience – so I’m really excited to be telling, now, a very different kind of gangster story, one that explores a very British experience but also dramatizes universal themes of love, revenge, violence, and fate. And dog-bites. Sorry, did I say dog-bites?”
PETER MILLIGAN ON SOME OF THE INSPIRATIONS BEHIND CREATING THE BOOK:
“There’s a strong tradition of British gangster movies which are quite distinct from what you’ll find in America or elsewhere. From the classics like Brighton Rock, Get Carter, and The Long Good Friday… all the way to modern-day iterations like Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels and Sexy Beast. How much do these films glamorize violent thugs? How much do we care? These films and these kinds of questions all went into the mix from which DOGS OF LONDON emerged, barking, and fighting and disturbing the neighbors.”
PETER MILLIGAN ON (3) REASONS WHY COMIC BOOK READERS SHOULD PICKUP THIS BOOK:
1. I’ve never written anything quite like it – and I don’t think readers will have read anything quite like it either.
2. For all its violence, brutality, and weird science – and there’s plenty of all that – at the heart of DOGS OF LONDON is a love story. Romeo wears a stolen wristwatch. Juliet wears Mary Quaint. And neither expect to get out of here alive.
3 Artecida’s art is amazing, effortlessly moving between different times zones and moods.
PETER MILLIGAN ON HIS PROCESS OF CREATING A COMIC BOOK , INCLUDING SOME OF THE CHALLENGES AND HOW HE OVERCOMES THEM:
“I usually start fairly loose. Themes, ideas, things that have grabbed my interest. This might be triggered by a news item, a conversation, something I read, or usually just something that occurs to me while looking at the world. I don’t usually start thinking a lot about plot until I have the themes, the big ideas behind the story. Then come characters and plot. I guess this transition, from vague ideas and themes to a story that’s dramatized with living, breathing characters is the real challenge – but it’s also bloody interesting.”
