Clive Barker's Night Breed #1
This issue marks the first comic book appearance of Aaron Boone, Dr. Philip Decker, Narcisse, Peloquin, Lori Winston, Leon Kinski, and Lt. Joyce — transplanting the entire cast of Clive Barker's 1990 dark-fantasy horror film into the medium for the first time. As the opening chapter of Epic Comics' 25-issue run, it represents one of the most ambitious horror-franchise adaptations of the early 1990s, arriving at a moment when Barker's name on a comic was itself a commercial and creative signal about mature horror on the direct-market shelf. Notably, the comic was adapted from Barker's original screenplay rather than the theatrically released cut of the film, making it a kind of parallel or 'director's-cut' version of the story in sequential art form — a distinction that gave the issue independent narrative value beyond straightforward movie tie-in work. The series as a whole, which this issue launches, would expand the Nightbreed mythos far past the film's events and eventually cross over with the Epic Hellraiser line, cementing the property's place as a cornerstone of Barker's comics universe.
In "... Where the Monsters Go," writer Alan Grant and John Wagner launch a chilling descent into madness and myth, following Boone as he flees from a psychiatrist who may be as dangerous as the nightmares haunting him. With Jim Baikie handling pencils, inks, and colors, the story unfolds in a grim, dreamlike world where the line between delusion and reality blurs, leading Boone to a fabled place called Midian. The cover by Jim Baikie captures the eerie, otherworldly tone of a 1990 Marvel comic that dares to ask: what if the monsters aren't just in your head?
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Epic Comics — Marvel's creator-friendly imprint — timed the release to coincide with the film's February 1990 theatrical debut, with issue #1 hitting stands on February 20, 1990 (cover-dated April 1990). The scriptwriting was handled by British 2000 AD veterans Alan Grant and John Wagner, working from Clive Barker's original screenplay, with Barker credited as a consultant and D.G. Chichester serving as consulting editor and Carl Potts as executive editor; Jim Baikie, also a 2000 AD alumnus, handled both pencils and inks for the film adaptation arc. The comic was produced on high-quality baxter paper with full color printing — standard for the Epic line — and the first four issues were later collected in the 1991 trade paperback 'Nightbreed Genesis,' with a Mike Mignola cover; the entire run was subsequently remastered and collected by BOOM! Studios in the 2016 hardcover 'Clive Barker's Nightbreed Archive,' which also included the Hellraiser/Nightbreed crossover 'Jihad.'
Trivia · 8 facts
- First comic book appearances of Aaron Boone, Dr. Philip Decker, Narcisse, Peloquin, Lori Winston, and Leon Kinski (Kinski), all transferred directly from Clive Barker's 1990 film.
- Published by Marvel Comics under the Epic imprint; release date February 20, 1990; cover date April 1990. The series ran for 25 issues total, from April 1990 through March 1993.
- Written by Alan Grant and John Wagner (both known for 2000 AD work, including Judge Dredd), with interior art and inks by Jim Baikie — all working from Clive Barker's original screenplay, not the theatrical cut of the film.
- The story's title is '...Where the Monsters Go,' following Aaron Boone as he discovers Midian, encounters the hospital-bound Narcisse (who reveals Midian to him), and is attacked by Peloquin before being shot down by police under Decker's manipulation.
- The first four issues adapt the film; from issue #5 onward the series launched original storylines, including the 'Blasphemers' arc pitting factions of Nightbreed against each other over Aaron Boone's soul and leadership of the Breed.
- The series later incorporated crossovers with other Barker properties: the two-issue 'Hellraiser vs. Nightbreed: Jihad' crossover, and a later arc bringing in Rawhead Rex.
- The film-adaptation issues (#1–4) were collected in the 1991 Epic trade paperback 'Nightbreed Genesis,' featuring a cover by Mike Mignola.
- BOOM! Studios remastered and collected the entire Epic run — including the film adaptation and the Hellraiser crossover — in the 2016 hardcover 'Clive Barker's Nightbreed Archive,' with a foreword by D.G. Chichester.
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Reprinted in Meltdown #1 (1991)
Key issues in Clive Barker's Night Breed
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