Exclusive Preview: Incognegro: Renaissance Tackles “Passing” & Anti-Black Violence in 1920s New York
Creators Mat Johnson & Warren Pleece Return to the World of their 2008 Vertigo Graphic Novel
Main Art by Warren Pleece Comics Features Mat Johnson
While the entire initial slate of legendary editor Karen Berger’s Berger Books imprint at Dark Horse will surely reflect Berger’s long history of taste-making at Vertigo comics, Incognegro: Renaissance carries perhaps the most direct legacy from DC Comics’ mature-readers imprint. Writer Mat Johnson and artist Warren Pleece’s original Incognegro graphic novel was first published by Vertigo in 2008, and follows black reporter Zane Pinchback, whose light skin allows him to go “undercover” to investigate lynchings in the 1930s American South. Incognegro: Renaissance, which launches Feb. 7, is a prequel mini-series set before the events of the graphic novel, as Zane goes “incognegro” for the first time to determine who murdered a black writer at a “scandalous” interracial party in 1920s New York. Check out an exclusive first look at interior pages below, along with the complete solicitation text from Berger Books and Dark Horse.
Incognegro: Renaissance #1
Writer: Mat Johnson
Artist: Warren Pleece
Release Date: February 7
After a black writer is found dead at a scandalous interracial party in 1920s New York, Harlem’s cub reporter Zane Pinchback is the only one determined to solve the murder. Zane must go “incognegro” for the first time—using his light appearance to pass as a white man—to find the true killer, in this prequel miniseries to the critically acclaimed Vertigo graphic novel, now available in a special new 10th Anniversary Edition. With a cryptic manuscript as his only clue, and a mysterious and beautiful woman as the murder’s only witness, Zane finds himself on the hunt through the dark and dangerous streets of “roaring twenties” Harlem in search for justice. A page-turning thriller of racial divide, Incognegro: Renaissance explores segregation, secrets, and self-image as our race-bending protagonist penetrates a world where he feels stranger than ever before.
Incognegro: Renaissance #1 Cover Art by Warren Pleece
Incognegro: Renaissance #1 Interior Art by Warren Pleece
Incognegro: Renaissance #1 Interior Art by Warren Pleece