Exclusive: Jeff Lemire & Mike Deodato Jr. Unleash Berserker Unbound at Dark Horse Comics

Prolific writer Jeff Lemire has been a fixture at Dark Horse Comics for several years now, but always under the ever-widening umbrella of his Black Hammer universe. Artist Mike Deodato Jr., on the other hand, has been a Marvel Comics stalwart for decades, producing major work for the publisher on everything from Thunderbolts and Original Sin to Infinity Wars and the upcoming Savage Avengers. Today, Paste can exclusively announce that former Thanos collaborators Deodato Jr. and Lemire will reunite this August to kick off Berserker Unbound, Lemire’s first non-Black Hammer work for Dark Horse, and Deodato’s first non-Marvel project after years as a company exclusive.

“I really wanted to draw a barbarian story and Jeff turned this dream of mine into a reality with this deeply emotional story of friendship seen through multiple dimensions,” Deodato Jr. said in a statement. “I am not exaggerating when I say this book has the most epic battles I’ve ever drawn! Berserker Unbound is a turning point in my career.”

Berserker Unbound opens as a relentless sword-swinging warrior emerges from a wormhole into a modern urban metropolis. The loincloth-clad fish-out-of-water must adapt to his surroundings while safeguarding this new world from a cruel wizard seeking to obliterate everything in his path. Along with Lemire and Deodato Jr., colorist Frank Martin and letterer Steve Wands will bring this adventure to sequential life.

“As soon as I had a chance to work with Mike Deodato on Thanos at Marvel I knew it would be the start of a beautiful partnership,” Lemire added. “We immediately started talking about the potential of teaming up for a creator-owned series. Mike is an incredible artist and, with Berserker Unbound, I tried to model a story to all of his many strengths. Berserker Unbound is many things. It has magic, action, and blood, but it also has heart. And it’s not at all what it first appears to be. We’re both very excited to be working together at Dark Horse, with Frank Martin and Steve Wands, to build the worlds of both Berserker and the world of Cobb, his unexpected companion.”

Berserker Unbound #1, the first of four issues, goes on sale August 7th, 2019, and is available for pre-order at your local comic shop. The first issue features a variant cover from Hellboy creator Mike Mignola, and Paste readers can take an exclusive first look at Deodato Jr. and Martin’s main cover below.

Berserker Unbound Cover Art by Mike Deodato Jr. & Frank Martin