Comic Book Men, is a reality TV show about a small comic book store in Red Bank, NJ, owned by Kevin Smith. In one episode the staff of Kevin Smith's "Jay and Silent Bob's Secret Stash" promoted an idea for a horror comic book to Dynamite Entertainment. The publisher accepted the idea and now Cryptozoic Man is coming to comic book stores.
The concept of Cryptozoic Man was on Comic Book Men Season 2 Episode 14 and was created by Comic Book Men Bryan Johnson and Walter Flanaghan. The four issue horror mini-series is about a middle-aged husband and father named Alan Ostman. His daughter goes missing while on a camping trip in Bigfoot country. Then Ostman is abducted by aliens and learns the world may end if he doesn't stop the "cryptids" and a psychopath in a pig-shaped leather bondage mask. But in order to stop these "cryptids," Ostman may have to sacrifice his humanity.
Writer Bryan Johnson describes the concept in even more detail:
"What do you call a man who's lost everything, a race of creepy extraterrestrials, a psychopath who sports a bondage-style, leather pig mask, a dimension choc-a-bloc full of nightmarish creatures, as well as Bigfoot, El Chupachabra, and a host of other cryptids? You call it Cryptozoic Man! It's a delicious monstery stew coming your way just in time for Halloween!"
Artist Walter Flanaghan, who will be doing the artwork for the mini-series, had this to say:
"I am so psyched about the Cryptozoic Man project because it has a little of everything I love about comics... It has action, science fiction, and horror elements, plus my favorite type of comic book hero: the monster hero. Cryptozoic Man is the story of a man who will stop at no lengths to find his missing daughter... even going so far as allowing himself to be transformed into a horrifying patchwork monster made up of the creatures of legend: Bigfoot, the Loch Ness Monster, and the Jersey Devil.
Bryan and I are hoping readers will dig the vibe we are going for in the book... We want to bring a weird and spooky twist to these famous creatures, legendary beasts that still bring a sense of mystery and wonder by themselves. As well as sprinkling in some aliens, inter-dimensional portals, time travel, and much, much more along the way in our creepy cosmic comic!"
Johnson and Flanaghan pitched the idea of Crytozoic Man to Dynamite Entertainment with an endorsement from Stan Lee (co-creator of Spider-Man and The Avengers) in a concept video. Nick Barruci, Dynamite Entertainment's CEO and publisher, commented that:
"We've kept a close eye on the Comic Book Men show, thanks to our long association with Kevin Smith... When Bryan and Walt came to our office to make the pitch, they did so in style, with more flair and imagination than we could've anticipated. Although they did have a leg up with Kevin, there is the flipside. I think you can imagine how much ribbing that Kevin, Ming, and Mike would give them if we gave the thumbs down, right? They definitely had an edge with Walter having drawn a few Batman series at DC. The pitch was fun, intriguing, and out-of-the-box different, and we enjoyed it a lot. How could we not publish their new project? Cryptozoic Man is wild and offbeat, humorous and terrifying. It's a great addition to our line, perfect to place alongside our Army of Darkness or Dresden Files comics."
The first issue of Cryptozoic Man will be released in October. See the Comic Book Men pitch there idea in this clip from Comic Book Men Season 2 Episode 14:
An all-around nerdette, I’m a comic book connoisseur, horror aficionado, video game addict, anime enthusiast and an aspiring novelist/comic book writer. I am the head of the comic book department and the editor-in-chief of Entertainment Fuse. I also write and edit articles for Comic Frontline. I am also an intern at Action Lab Entertainment, a comic book publisher at which I edit comic book scripts, help work on images in solicitations and help with other comic book related project. My own personal website is comicmaven.com.
Writer Bryan Johnson describes the concept in even more detail:
"What do you call a man who's lost everything, a race of creepy extraterrestrials, a psychopath who sports a bondage-style, leather pig mask, a dimension choc-a-bloc full of nightmarish creatures, as well as Bigfoot, El Chupachabra, and a host of other cryptids? You call it Cryptozoic Man! It's a delicious monstery stew coming your way just in time for Halloween!"
Artist Walter Flanaghan, who will be doing the artwork for the mini-series, had this to say:
"I am so psyched about the Cryptozoic Man project because it has a little of everything I love about comics... It has action, science fiction, and horror elements, plus my favorite type of comic book hero: the monster hero. Cryptozoic Man is the story of a man who will stop at no lengths to find his missing daughter... even going so far as allowing himself to be transformed into a horrifying patchwork monster made up of the creatures of legend: Bigfoot, the Loch Ness Monster, and the Jersey Devil.
Bryan and I are hoping readers will dig the vibe we are going for in the book... We want to bring a weird and spooky twist to these famous creatures, legendary beasts that still bring a sense of mystery and wonder by themselves. As well as sprinkling in some aliens, inter-dimensional portals, time travel, and much, much more along the way in our creepy cosmic comic!"
Johnson and Flanaghan pitched the idea of Crytozoic Man to Dynamite Entertainment with an endorsement from Stan Lee (co-creator of Spider-Man and The Avengers) in a concept video. Nick Barruci, Dynamite Entertainment's CEO and publisher, commented that:
"We've kept a close eye on the Comic Book Men show, thanks to our long association with Kevin Smith... When Bryan and Walt came to our office to make the pitch, they did so in style, with more flair and imagination than we could've anticipated. Although they did have a leg up with Kevin, there is the flipside. I think you can imagine how much ribbing that Kevin, Ming, and Mike would give them if we gave the thumbs down, right? They definitely had an edge with Walter having drawn a few Batman series at DC. The pitch was fun, intriguing, and out-of-the-box different, and we enjoyed it a lot. How could we not publish their new project? Cryptozoic Man is wild and offbeat, humorous and terrifying. It's a great addition to our line, perfect to place alongside our Army of Darkness or Dresden Files comics."
The first issue of Cryptozoic Man will be released in October. See the Comic Book Men pitch there idea in this clip from Comic Book Men Season 2 Episode 14:
