One of the newest comic book publishers on the market, AWA Studios, is set to release one of its most important – and, in the world of comic books, one of the most unusual – collected volumes yet: COVID Chronicles.
The AWA collaboration with NBC News initially resulted in a weekly webcomic feature that ran on the news agency’s website from June to September of this year, featuring 10 real-life stories of various individuals’ interactions and struggles with the COVID-19 pandemic from all over the globe. Now, the series from Ethan Sacks and Dalibor Talajić is set to take the form of a trade paperback arriving December 2nd, 2020, clocking in at 144 pages and retailing for a suggested price of $9.99. The publisher is also adding extra material to the formerly online-only title, letting readers experience the whole story in full color thanks to artist Lee Loughridge.
These “tales of hope amidst devastation” that were originally published via NBC's website capture stories told by those on the frontlines of the outbreak in Wuhan, by a nurse working in one of the busiest hospitals in the country, by an opera singer trying to bring hope to his neighborhood during Italy's crisis, and more. The main goal, as stated by the publisher, is to take readers "where news cameras couldn't go."
Even though AWA Studios is still a nascent company, it has already fashioned for itself a Vertigo-esque approach to the comic medium, relying only sparingly on superheroics and delving instead into the realms of crime and horror (and, sometimes, both simultaneously). But COVID Chronicles is still a far cry from that admittedly eclectic output. When asked why they wanted to tackle a nonfiction title that would be serialized on a news organization’s front page, AWA's chief creative officer, Axel Alonso, gives a straightforward answer:
“When COVID-19 shut down the world, we wanted to say something about the everyday heroes on the frontlines of the battle against the pandemic. We saw an opportunity to do illustrated journalism, to go to the frontlines where cameras can’t or won’t. The heroes in our stories wear masks out of necessity, but not tights or capes. They’re normal people rising to this historic moment.”
Writer Ethan Sacks – who, in addition to his comics work for both AWA and Marvel, has been covering the spread of COVID for NBC as a journalist – picks up on this real-life heroes thread, while also giving his thoughts on the new foreword written by actress Alyssa Milano (who contracted the coronavirus earlier this year and publicly shared her struggles with the resulting illness):
“Comics is a medium that has been associated with heroes, usually sporting capes and cowls, often bulletproof or blessed with the ability to overcome challenges in the span of a 20-page story. But when COVID-19 rolled across the Earth, we learned to prize a different kind of hero – the healthcare workers who put themselves at risk to try and save others; the scientists that doggedly pursued answers; the everyday people who persevered through extraordinary circumstances. COVID Chronicles is our love letter to these real-life heroes.
“Alyssa Milano bravely shared her battle with COVID-19 earlier in the year on Instagram [which was] an inspiration to all of us trying to put a spotlight on the damaging toll of this horrific disease. She's also had a history of writing eloquent op-eds, so the actress and activist was at the top of our wish list for a foreword that could strike the appropriate tone. Thankfully, the series resonated with her, and she said yes.”
In the near-term, COVID Chronicles was designed to help get the word out, in as unambiguous a way as possible, about the coronavirus’s potential for destruction and devastation – or, as Sacks puts it, “At a time when many people in our country don't take this pandemic seriously enough, we hope these ten stories change some hearts and minds.” For the long-term, artist Dalibor Talajic – who has also provided the powerful visuals behind another AWA title, Hotell – puts it best:
“[This is] comics used as a news-transferring medium and becoming a documentary of sorts. I can only hope that there will be many more projects like this all throughout the comics [industry] – not only COVID-related, but covering all sorts of social and historical phenomena. Comics are truly all-powerful, and it’s a pity not to go into this direction.”
To illustrate just how powerful the medium can be, and to give readers a sample of what stories they're in for when COVID Chronicles arrives on December 2nd, Screen Rant can exclusively present the trade paperback’s first 10 pages, embedded below:
COVID Chronicles will arrive on December 2nd, 2020.