The Ocean Is Haunted In Dead Seas #1 [Preview]

Written by Cavan Scott. Art by Nick Brokenshire. Lettered by Shawn Lee. Published by IDW Publishing.

Ghosts are real. Perhaps not in reality, but in the upcoming comic Dead Seas, they are. Five years ago, spectres of the dead suddenly appeared and began to haunt the living. Terrible for ordinary folk, but it’s a profitable endeavour for corporations.

It turns out that the ectoplasm can be turned into miracle drugs. Captured ghosts are put on a tanker in the middle of international waters, where prisoners are harvesting the ectoplasm in exchange for a reduced sentence. However, as prisoner Gus Ortiz will soon learn, it won’t be an easy job. There are many dangers, but the ghosts might be the least of his concerns.

Writer Cavan Scott spoke about his inspiration and teaming-up with his Star Wars: Return to Vader’s Castle collaborator:

“I grew up obsessed with disaster movies, but there was only one problem: there were never enough ghosts! Dead Seas is my chance to put this terrible wrong right, and who better to team up with than Nick Brokenshire. Working together on Star Wars Adventures: Return to Vader’s Castle, it soon became clear that we share the same ghoulish sense of humor and I knew immediately who I wanted to bring Dead Seas’ tortured spirits to life. Or should that be death?”

Nick Brokenshire appears to be the best artist for Dead Seas, as he explains that the ocean runs in the family:

“I have something of a sea-faring background – my dad was a deep-sea diver, my sister an accomplished sailor, and I enjoy long soaks in a bubble-bath – so the whole sea adventure angle is very appealing to me. Add weird, twisted ghouls and the recipe is delicious, I’d say!”

This six-part miniseries is the latest in the IDW Original line. It’s a masthead for IDW Publishing to release exciting creator-owned comics, where interesting ideas can flourish similarly to Image Comics or Vertigo. If previous comics, such as Earthdivers or Crashing, are anything indication, IDW Original will be worth keeping an eye on.

Dead Seas #1 is available from all good comic book shops, online stores, and digitally on Kindle from December 21st.

Want to take a look inside? Read a short preview of the debut issue below.

Additionally, take a look at the two variant covers for this issue.

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