Via AIPT Comics, former “Venom” writer Donny Cates and artist Ryan Stegman have unveiled both their new imprint, and the first title from that new line. “Vanish” will be the first ongoing series from Cates and Stegman’s KLC Press (short for Kids Love Chains). J.P. Mayer and Jason Keith round out the creative team, providing inks and colors respectively.
Both Cates and Stegman had teased the announcement earlier, with Stegman tweeting the imprint logo, and Cates dropping a vague teaser image. The reveal itself came from the two-year anniversary episode of the Steg-Man and His Amazing Friends podcast, with artwork revealed on the accompanying YouTube stream. Stegman has posted his revealed covers on his Twitter, although the stream also showcased variants from Skottie Young and Daniel Warren Johnson.
Cates and Stegman were reluctant to give out too many details on “Vanish,” and were hesitant to unveil the publisher KLC Press would be working under, though Cates promised more information would be announced either next month or early August. He was willing to discuss many of his influences when writing the story. In addition to some “My Chemical Romance emo nonsense,” the writer cited “Akira,” “WildC.A.T.S.,” and “Spawn” as influences. “Kids love chains” was something Todd McFarlane joked when asked about the success of the Image launch title, and Cates previously used the phrase as the title for the first arc of “Crossover.”
When asked about the similarities between the lead character and Marvel villain Codex, Cates simply responded “You’re probably right, because that’s the dopest design of our entire ‘Venom’ run.”
