Eibon Press Presents Lucio Fulci’s Gates of Hell Trilogy in Comic Form on FEBRUARY 10!
Steve Barton
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The debut of last year’s comic series based on the classic Lucio Fulci film Zombie rocked our fucking worlds, and Eibon Press has quickly become a force to be reckoned with in the indie publishing arena. Producing extremely high-quality comics in very limited runs, packaged in special album sleeve jackets with all sorts of extras like stickers and bookmarks and brochures, Eibon is the new high-water mark of quality and collectibility.
And of course there have never been movie adaptation comics quite like this, either. We here at Dread support these guys 100 percent. In fact, when I first met Eibon co-founder Stephen Romano and Gates of Hell artist Derek Rook, it was more than 16 years ago, and they had just started this project. I thought they were true horror heroes then, and it’s just as true today. Only what they are doing today is even better. These boys never lost sight of “the prize” and have really come into their own, making some of the best horror comics we’ve ever seen. If not THE best.
This tradition continues with The Saga of the 7 Gates.
Yes, you read that right. Eibon Press has officially licensed all three of Lucio Fulci’s most famous horror films, City of the Living Dead (The Gates of Hell), The Beyond and House by the Cemetery; and they are being combined into an epic series unlike any other in the history of horror movie comics.
The Saga of the 7 Gates re-tells the famous stories of each film, while re-inventing them into an “extended comic book universe,” which suggests (as many fans have often speculated) that these three legendary films may all part of the same terrifying timeline. Expanding on the characters and themes of Fulci’s films, Romano has adapted each movie into its own three-issue series, with a fourth sequel series entitled ESCAPE FROM THE BEYOND to follow, making it an epic 13-part “quadrilogy.” Hot fucking damn, huh?
The first 3-issue series begins on FEBRUARY 10, when Lucio Fulci’s Gates of Hell #1 becomes available for pre order at eibonpress.com!
As I mentioned, this has been project over 16 years on the making, and the first issue of Gates is a true labor of love, created by fans, for fans. Page for page, it is the highest quality issue yet produced by Eibon Press. And you’ll see the film re-invented as you’ve never seen it before.
“There once was a time when movie novelizations and comic books based on films made a more linear sense,” says Eibon co-founder Shawn Lewis. “Back in the 70s and early 80s, you couldn’t see these films but a few times in theaters–or with Fulci films practically at all. So if there was a comic book or a novel, you could read that and re-live the plot word for word. It was a way to own the movie. Well, now, if you wanna own the movie, you can own the fucking movie. So with the Eibon Fulci Comics stuff, we’re looking at these things in a different way. We’re seeing how we can re-invent these stories into a new medium and add that extra touch. With The Saga of the 7 Gates, we have this incredible opportunity to bring these films together like never before. Over the past 16 years, people have started to regard Gates, Beyond and House as a sort of ‘unofficial trilogy.’ It gets screened all the time as The Gates of Hell Trilogy or whatever. So the fans have come to own these movies in a way, with their own view of what they are. And we think that’s the best way to come at these comics. It’s an approach Fulci himself would have really loved. The idea that his art has been handed over to the people who love it most, who are now re-inventing it and finding all these hidden meanings.”
Lucio Fulci’s Gates of Hell is a sort of remake of the classic film, which hits all the beats and a lot of the classic dialogue you know and love, but in a wild new style and with new mysteries and intentions. The art by Derek Rook invokes the gritty tone of Fulci’s film, while the script by Stephen Romano expands the story.
“I’ve been a fan of Fulci all my life,” Romano says. “And 7 Gates is the ultimate Fulci tribute project. Derek Rook spent literally 10 years doing his artwork for this bad bastard, and you can really tell. The love for the medium and for this film just oozes off every page. He’s just done an extraordinary job. It’s even better than our Zombie series in its own twisted way. For example, in the first issue of Gates, we have the infamous scene where Catriona MacColl as Mary Woodhouse is buried alive and Christopher George as Peter Bell has to hack her out of the coffin with a pick-axe. Derek was able to re-invent that scene with a lot of reverence to the film, and the style just reeks of 1980s Italian horror film sleaze, but steeped in the same subtle/not-so-subtle genius Fulci always brought to these things. And it’s all bookended by an expansion of what’s in that movie and a re-imagining of certain themes that help it become its own weird animal. We think fans will really love this.”
“Each of the films in the Fulci’s Gates of Hell trilogy have their own flagship bad guy characters. The Beyond has the wierdo zombie painter Scwhiek, House by the Cemetery has, of course, the infamous Dr. Freudstien. And Gates of Hell has Father Thomas, the insane priest who hangs himself in a graveyard to raise some hell. We’ve re-invented him as a Deacon, and he’s an even wilder, stranger character. Since he’s so quiet in the movies, I thought it would be fun to have him communicate with the reader in other ways, and we even sewed his fucking lips together! That’s a visual that helps us to preserve the vision of Fulci, while using the comics medium to the creepiest, most visceral effect.”
Lucio Fulci’s Gates of Hell #1 hits the public on Friday, February 10, at 7pm. That’s when pre-orders for the first issue begin. And keep an eye on Eibon’s well-traveled social feeds for daily news and updates. The first ish of Gates will undoubtedly sell out fast, as did the first issue of Zombie, so be there early to get yours! We’ve already seen this “bad bastard” and can personally guarantee that your collective horror dicks will be blasted right into the dirt. It’s just nasty, nasty stuff; and we’re proud to support it with every last ounce of raging fan appreciation we can muster!
BE THERE ON FEBRUARY 10!!!
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