Elk's Run
Four figures standing in a mine shaft, silhouetted against a bright light.
Elk's Run #1 (March 2005). Art by Datsun Tran.
Publication information
PublisherHoarse and Buggy
Speakeasy Comics
FormatLimited series
Genre
  • Thriller
Publication dateMarch – December 2005
No. of issues8
Creative team
Written byJoshua Hale Fialkov
Artist(s)Noel Tuazon
Letterer(s)Jason Hanley
Colorist(s)Scott A. Keating
Editor(s)Jason Rodriguez
Collected editions
Villard BooksISBN 978-0-345-49511-2
Oni PressISBN 978-1-620-10279-4

Elk's Run is an eight-issue limited comic book series created by writer Joshua Hale Fialkov, artist Noel Tuazon, and colorist Scott A. Keating, featuring covers by Datsun Tran.

Publication History

The first three issues of the series were published by Joshua Kialkov's Hoarse and Buggy Productions, which had earlier begun publishing the five issue anthology series Western Tales of Terror (2004–2005).[1] The first issue (which featured an eight-page backup story, "The Generic Monsters in: Where Werewolf?", by Fialkov and artist Nate Bellegrade) had a print run of only eight-hundred copies, making it difficult to find despite positive reviews.[2][3] The series was then picked up by Canadian publisher Speakeasy Comics, which released a "Bumper Edition" in October 2005,[4] collecting the first three issues and featuring a new cover by Darwin Cooke. This was followed by an individual fourth issue in December 2005; however, Speakeasy became defunct in February of 2006, resulting in the cancellation of the remaining four issues.[5][6]

In June 2006, the Villard Books imprint of Random House announced that they would be collecting all eight chapters of the series in trade paperback form.[7] The collection, simply titled Elk's Run, was released on 27 March 2007 with an introduction by Charlie Huston. In 2015, all eight issues were released digitally by Oni Press on a weekly schedule, beginning 25 August 2015, leading up the release of a new hardcover collected edition on 11 November 2015, with an introduction by Ian Rankin.[8]

Reception

The series was generally reviewed positively, with the second issue "Community Bulletin" section featuring positive quotes from Warren Ellis, Brian Michael Bendis, and Brian K. Vaughan. Entertainment Weekly gave the first issue a rating of "A",[9] while Variety gave it an "A-".[7] Publisher's Weekly concluded of the trade paperback that "And although the story is sometimes marred by simplistic characterization... Fialkov builds the suspense incrementally until the cycle of violence became a wave of disasters."[10] The horror magazine Rue Morgue gave the series a glowing review:

Elk's Run is easiest described as Steven King's The Body (a.k.a. Stand by Me) crossed with M. Night Shyamalan's The Village, but comic's best kept secret is actually a great deal more. Five issues deep, this series just effortlessly generates momentum — a stunning achievement.[11]

Based on the first four issues, the series was nominated for the 2006 Harvey Awards in the categories of Best Writer, Best Artist, Best Letterer, Best Cover Artist, Best New Talent, and Best Continuing or Limited Series, while issue #3 was nominated for Best Single Issue or Story.[12]

References

  1. ↑ Weiland, Jonah (21 December 2004). "Fialkov Talks 'Western Tales of Terror' and 'Elk's Run'". The Horror of It All. Comic Book Resources. Archived from the original on 2006-01-04.
  2. ↑ DiChristopher, Tom (8 March 2014). "Pow! Bang! Slam! Indie comics go digital". CNBC. NBCUniversal. Archived from the original on 2016-04-19.
  3. ↑ Goldstein, Hilary (5 April 2005). "Elk's Runs Out". IGN. IGN Entertainment Inc. Archived from the original on 2005-04-06.
  4. ↑ Stevens, Tim (3 July 2005). "Speakeasy Comics Press Release". Inside Pulse. Archived from the original on 2020-08-14.
  5. ↑ Staff writer (27 April 2006). "Monthly list of cancelled comics". Archived from the original on 2012-07-13.
  6. ↑ Fialkov, Joshua (27 February 2006). "Speakeasy, RIP". The Fialkov. Archived from the original on 2023-11-04.
  7. 1 2 Staff writer (5 June 2006). "Elk's Run Gets Collected". IGN. Archived from the original on 2023-11-04.
  8. ↑ Chin-Tanner, Tyler (31 August 2015). "Full Circle: Joshua Hale Fialkov Speaks about the 10th Anniversary of 'Elk's Run' and the Return of 'The Life After'". Broken Frontier. Archived from the original on 2015-09-06.
  9. ↑ Bernadin, Marc (3 June 2005). "Must List". Entertainment Weekly. No. 823. p. 59 – via Poorly Drawn Animals.
  10. ↑ Staff writer (22 January 2007). "Elk's Run". Publisher's Weeksly. Archived from the original on 2022-10-07.
  11. ↑ Butler, Gary (March 2006). "Blood in Four Colours". Rue Morgue. No. 54. Marrs Media Inc. pp. 74–75. ISSN 1481-1103.
  12. ↑ Staff writer (2006). "2006 Harvey Award Nominees". The Harvey Awards. Archived from the original on 2009-01-22. Retrieved 2009-07-18.

See also


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