God of Comics – Ice Cream Man #1

Ice Cream Man #1 (Image Comics)

Okay, we did an anthology comic on Monday, we can do another one…

I’ve mixed feelings about anthologies, which is fitting given the mixture that anthologies of any sort are. Some stories are going to come across as stronger than others, but – most infuriatingly – different people are going to find different stories that speak to them depending upon who and when they are. The book that’s influenced me the most as a writer was an anthology, and different stories in that book have been my favorite at different points in my life.

The one thing an anthology needs is some underlying theme or device to tie everything together, and this one has one of the weirdest I’ve come across – some dude driving an ice cream truck. An Ice Cream Man, if you will.

Ice Cream Men are a rare breed. They’re modern faerie lords, heralded by music that calls to children and the curious, strangers from some strange land that come bearing treasure for those that can pay the right price. Normally, that fare is a handful of coins because most Ice Cream Men don’t have any means of accepting cards, which is frustrating because who carries change anymore?

I suppose we’re about to discover the answer to that question: desperate people, sorrowful people, people trapped in the miasma of human experience. Did I mention this is a horror anthology? The Ice Cream Man jingles into the lives of an unsuspecting few, offering a little something for everyone, changing the course of fate one cool coned treat at a time.

This book is the brainchild of W. Maxwell Prince, and he’s got Martin Morazzo and Chris O’Halloran helping him on this mad journey. Down down down into the abyss they go and what can we do except follow them? Our will to resist melted long ago.

Buyer beware. We all scream for ice cream.