Barbaric: The Black Knight, Dick Tracy Halloween Special & The Judge Dredd by Carlos Ezquerra Apex Edition
From Vault Comics, Mad Cave Studios & Rebellion
Here are the latest news and previews in comics, including:
A new one-shot from Vault Comics.
News on a Dick Tracy Halloween Special.
Another new series from Mad Cave Studios.
And a new artist edition from Rebellion.
Vault Announces Barbaric: The Black Knight One-Shot From Moreci & Balbi For October 2025, Fifth Barbaric Arc To Follow
Barbaric is a fantastic series, and it’s great to see a fifth story arc and an upcoming one-shot from Vault Comics.
Vault Comics is thrilled to announce the long-awaited return of the smash-hit comic BARBARIC, with a brand new one-shot, BARBARIC: THE BLACK KNIGHT, written by Barbaric co-creator Michael Moreci, drawn by Guilherme Balbi, colored by Fabi Marques, lettered by Jim Campbell, and designed by Tim Daniel. Then in December 2025, Barbaric will return for its fifth full arc with artist and co-creator Nathan Gooden returning to art duties.
BARBARIC: THE BLACK KNIGHT is an over-length one-shot featuring Flail, the talking…well, Flail! Deadheart, Serra, and Ka return after their (mis)adventures in Queen of Swords to defeat the evil witch Doxon once and for all. Too bad a familiar face…on a spiked ball at the end of a vicious weapon wielded by an ancient knight...has other plans. Someone isn’t making it out of this one-shot in one piece, so you should probably read it—IF you want to keep calling yourself a Barbaric fan.
"It's great to be back! BARBARIC has been away for a bit, but we're returning with a vengeance. Our latest one-shot, THE BLACK KNIGHT, is essential to the BARBARIC story. We really start to see the bigger picture come into focus, and I am incredibly excited to deliver this into readers' hands. The art by Guilherme is out of this world, with fantastic colors from Fabi Marques. They help make BARBARIC return in emphatic fashion. All you followers of Axe, Owen, and Soren, get ready--we're about to go on a hell of a ride."
BARBARIC is co-created by writer Michael Moreci and artist Nathan Gooden. Among Vault’s best-selling series, BARBARIC has sold hundreds of thousands of copies worldwide and was named one of the best comics of 2021 by Entertainment Weekly, Thrillest, CBR, Comics Beat, & more. The story follows Owen, a bloodthirsty barbarian and his drunk axe as they roam an untamed, mythic realm battling supernatural cultists, hungry giants, creatures of the night, and more in their quest to somehow, amidst all this chaos, do some good.
BARBARIC: THE BLACK KNIGHT will hit store shelves this October and will feature incredible variant covers by fan favorite artists like Nathan Gooden, Luana Vecchio, Corin Howell, and more. The full synopsis can be read below:
An over-length one-shot featuring Flail, the talking…well, Flail! Deadheart, Serra, and Ka return after their (mis)adventures in Queen of Swords to defeat the evil witch Doxon once and for all. Too bad a familiar face…on a spiked ball at the end of a vicious weapon wielded by an ancient knight...has other plans. Someone isn’t making it out of this one-shot in one piece, so you should probably read it—IF you want to keep calling yourself a Barbaric fan.
No One Stays Buried Forever in The City
Dick Tracy is a favourite of mine, and I’m glad to see another Halloween special coming from Mad Cave Studios in October.
As the chill sets in and the masks go on, something sinister stirs beneath the surface of The City, the badge is back for blood.
This Halloween, Mad Cave Studios invites readers to slip into the shadows of The City for a moody new 40-page noir thriller with a DICK TRACY HALLOWEEN SPECIAL! From crime fiction powerhouse Alex Segura (Secret Identity) and esteemed writer Michael Moreci (Barbaric), joined by crime editor and consultant Chantelle Aimée Osman, this thrilling one-shot features art by Craig Cermak (Red Team), colors by Mark Englert (Department of Truth), and letters by Jim Campbell (Barbaric)—with Cover A by Geraldo Borges (Thunderbolts) and Cover B by Soo Lee (Disney Villains: Maleficent).
THE GHOULS AND GHOSTS ARE OUT IN THE CITY - and so are some of Dick Tracy's deadliest Rogues...or are they? As Tracy, Pat, Sam, and Tess try to piece together the return of one of The City's most bloodthirsty killers, other Tracy baddies start to creep out from under the woodwork. But the heroes dig deeper into the twisty mystery and discover something new - and perhaps more sinister! Featuring the Mad Cave debut of one of the most iconic Dick Tracy characters ever - THE KID!
“One of the highlights of Dick Tracy for Michael, myself, Geraldo, and the entire team, is to explore different corners of Tracy's world, and to slowly reveal parts of his A-list Rogues Gallery—and what better time to do that than with another seasonal special,” said Alex Segura. “When it appears like Tracy's deadliest villains are returning, guns blazing, Tracy and Tess have to figure out the truth—with the help of an unexpected but very recognizable assistant! Craig Cermak joins us again on art and does his usual bang-up job, bringing a deadly All Hallow's Eve to life for Tracy and his pals.”
"It's a blast to be able to do these specials and explore fun corners of the Dick Tracy universe,” said co-writer Michael Moreci. “We're really doing some fun stuff in this Halloween edition (for the best time of year, of course), and I think fans of our current run and fans of classic Dick Tracy will find a lot to love here."
Artist, Craig Cermak, added, “It’s a treat to be working with the whole Dick Tracy crew again for an action-packed Halloween mystery. Alex and Michael provide so many great character moments and a very clever way of including the most infamous enemies Tracy has faced. It’s a joy to get to draw so many of the iconic cast of Tracy’s world wrapped in the scariest season of the year. It’s the perfect opportunity to get very dark and moody with the art, and mixed with the energetic, thrilling drive of the tale. I think readers will be captivated by this sinister new case Tracy and the gang must solve.”
Honoring the legacy of Chester Gould while carving out a bold new path, Mad Cave Studios—alongside Tribune Content Agency and New Wave Comics—marks a defining moment in the official new era of Dick Tracy.
The Dick Tracy Halloween Special arrives October 29, 2025, from Mad Cave Studios. Preorder now through your local comic shop and get ready to face the ghosts of The City.
Your Next Digital Nightmare Starts Now
New science fiction tales from Mad Cave Studios, with Terrorbytes bringing us a selection of stories this autumn.
No algorithm is safe.
Mad Cave Studios is proud to announce TERRORBYTES, a chilling sci-fi horror anthology that unplugs the comforts of modern tech to expose the real cost beneath the surface. Co-written by Eisner, GLAAD, and Ringo Award-winner Mark Russell (The Flintstones, Superman: Space Age) and Mad Cave’s own CEO Mark London (Battlecats, Wolvenheart), this ongoing series launches Fall 2025 with a revolving cast of top-tier artists and storytellers—and a mission to make you question the very screens you’re reading from.
In an age where technology intertwines seamlessly with our everyday lives, TERRORBYTES delves deeper into the shadows of our digital existence, exploring the uncharted territories of human consciousness shaped by technological evolution. This new series pushes the boundaries of speculative fiction, presenting stories that challenge the very essence of identity, morality, and reality in a hyper-connected world. In the first issue, a headset that lets users relive their greatest memories at the moment of their death extracts a brutal price.
“There’s never been more horror stories to tell than right now,” said Mark Russell. “Terrorbytes gives us the chance to tell some of these stories before they come true and to tell them in a futuristic science fiction setting that makes them seem avoidable. This is one of those series I feel lucky to work on because, if nothing else, it feels like therapy to me.”
“I’m thrilled to be part of this anthology series that explores the dark intersection of technology and humanity - and this series is going to be relentless,” said Mark London. “Working alongside Mark Russell and Mike Marts on these cautionary tales feels like we’re creating something truly relevant for our digital age, something that will genuinely disturb people in the best possible way. We’re not just telling stories here - we’re holding up a mirror to the technological nightmare we’re all living in, making readers question what we’ve already surrendered to our screens and smart devices without even realizing it. This is Black Mirror meets classic horror comics, and every page will stick with you long after you close the book. It’s going to be brutal, brilliant, and absolutely necessary. Readers won’t be able to look at their phones the same way again.”
Each issue delivers standalone stories that tap into our worst digital-age fears—stories that feel uncomfortably close to home, yet set just far enough in the future to feel like warnings. This is Tales from the Loop meets EC Comics, a jolt to the system through brutal, brilliant storytelling that explores surveillance, AI ethics, online radicalization, deepfakes, virtual reality, and everything we never meant to hand over. The upcoming issues will feature standout art from Juan Doe, Alberto Ponticelli, Val Halvorsen, and Felix Ruiz, each bringing their own unique style to the series.
So log off. Terrorbytes #1 hits shelves in Fall 2025.
The Judge Dredd by Carlos Ezquerra Apex Edition announced
From Rebellion is some original art and more from the legendary Carlos Ezquerra in The Judge Dredd by Carlos Ezquerra Apex Edition.
Rebellion is proud to announce that the incredible work of one of comics' greatest ever artists – Carlos Ezquerra – is to be showcased in the Judge Dredd by Carlos Ezquerra: Apex Edition.
When you think of Judge Dredd, one artist comes to mind before any other – “El Maestro”, Carlos Ezquerra.
The artist who co-created and designed Dredd with writer John Wagner in 1977, Ezquerra not only set the tone – and the bar – for adventure and action in Dredd’s world, but also created the design framework for Mega-City One, a legendary locale for one of the all-time great characters to deliver justice and punish Lawbreakers!
This November, we are delighted to to be publishing a collection of his stunning original artwork for the next volume of our Apex Editions.
Ezquerra undeniably drew the first and definitive Judge Dredd – and this collection of his art will do justice to his vision of the character, printed at the size that he drew each page, and newly-scanned directly from the original artwork to present it to the reader at the best resolution possible.
This book contains seven complete colour stories – 'Behold the Beast', 'The Big Itch', 'It’s Happening on Line 9', 'The Other Slab Tynan', 'The Big Bang Theory', 'Tarantula', 'John Brown’s Body') from the early 1980s Judge Dredd annuals, when Ezquerra was at the peak of his power, in addition to many other classic pages and cover art from stories including the epic 'The Apocalypse War'. It will also include pages from Strontium Dog in the book – if we’re going APEX, we’re not going to do things by halves!
The Judge Dredd by Carlos Ezquerra: Apex Edition will be released in 2025 both as a Standard Edition available from comic book stores via Diamond Distribution and the 2000 AD webshop; and as a webshop-exclusive edition with special slipcase.
The Apex Edition series is a deluxe, over-sized facsimile edition reproducing his original art pages at their actual size. Each page of this book has been scanned directly from Carlos’s art and presents each page as if you were looking at it in person.
Measuring a huge 19 x 14 inches, this is a landmark collection of El Maestro’s staggering career in comics, running across 128 incredible pages. Now Ezquerra finally joins the critically-acclaimed Apex lineup which also features editions from titans of the industry including Kevin O’Neill, Steve Dillon, Mick McMahon, Brian Bolland and more.
The Judge Dredd by Carlos Ezquerra: Apex Edition will be released on 26th November 2025, with pre-orders available now on the 2000 AD webshop for both the standard and the webshop-exclusive slipcase editions.
