As the highly anticipated reunion of My Chemical Romance remains on hold for the foreseeable future, bassist Mikey Way has created a new graphic novel titled “Electric Century” along with a corresponding album from his other band of the same name. Mikey Way and Shaun Simon worked together on “Collapser” from DC’s Young Animal imprint, but are teaming up once again to bring “Electric Century” to life with the help of artist Toby Cypress (“Retcon,” “The Gravediggers Union”) at Z2 Comics.
The graphic novel follows former sitcom star, Johnny Ashford, who gets arrested after driving drunk through a storefront. When Ashford’s girlfriend, an aspiring actress, bails him out, he begins to see a hypnotherapist who sends him back to his happy place of 1980s Atlantic City. Here he relives his childhood on the boardwalk, as shadowy specters watch him from all around. When Johnny’s addiction shifts from alcohol to his hypnotic trips, he discovers a way to stay there, while his girlfriend searches for him in the real world.
Way states, “The genesis of the story has been many years in the making,” and that “getting to bring the two things I am most passionate about together – comics and music – has been exciting, challenging, and unbelievably rewarding. I’ve been wanting to tell this type of story about my home state for a long time. I truly hope everyone enjoys it.” Z2 Comics owner Josh Frankel states that the collaboration with these three artists will “not only lead to one of our best books so far, but what is sure to be one of the best comics of the year.”
“Electric Century” is scheduled to be published, along with the corresponding album, this September in comic shops, book stores, and record stores. A special deluxe limited edition is currently available for pre-order exclusively through Z2, which includes the full-length album on vinyl LP, an exclusive deluxe edition graphic novel signed by the writers, three limited edition art prints, and a t-shirt, retailing for $99.99.
