Orphan Black Expands The Mystery With IDW Comic Series
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How heartwarming it is that Comic-Con, despite the growing attention paid to movies and TV shows, can still deliver ground-rattling comic book news. I thought I’d heard the best news of the week with the announcement that Snake Plissken is returning for an Escape From New York comic series, but it’s been equaled by news of an upcoming Orphan Black series from IDW Publishing. Will a copy of Tatiana Maslany come with each issue?
Orphan Black‘s Temple Street Productions is teaming with IDW on the project, which won’t rehash the TV series’ central plotline, but will delve into surrounding stories. Temple Street Managing Editor John Young said in the press release that the huge fan reaction to the show at last year’s Comic Con inspired them to “give back to fans of the show through a medium so vital to the science fiction world.” The series was recently renewed for a third season, which will open up this clone-filled universe even more. But there’s already a solid foundation to build on.
As IDW’s Chief Creative Officer and Editor-in-Chief Chris Ryall put it:
Orphan Black, in addition to being a captivating TV series, is a perfect premise for comics. And as the second season has expanded the series in exciting new directions, that has only increased the amount of stories we’ll be able to tell in comic-book form.
Details about the comic series’ creative team and story direction will be revealed soon, and IDW is shooting to get Orphan Black into stores in early 2015, perhaps to coincide with Season 3. Below you can see the first cover, as illustrated with detailed precision by Nick Runge.
It’s interesting to think about where they can take this comic without stepping too heavily into the show’s territory. Perhaps they’ll tell a prequel tale that delves into the life of Beth, the cop clone that threw herself in front of a train at the beginning of the series. Or maybe a closer look into the Dyad Institute and its employees. Given most of the clones—plus Felix, Art, and Paul—are on the cover, I guess they’ll aim at something more layered than just a single-note prequel tale. Whichever way it goes, I’m all in on this.
