Warning: Contains potential spoilers for Quick Stops #1!The heroes of Kevin Smith’s View Askewniverse come together for the new Quick Stops comic anthology series from Dark Horse. Smith, a life-long comics fan, created an entire universe of hilarious characters in movies such as Clerks, Chasing Amy and Dogma, and now he is reviving these beloved icons for a new anthology series, telling new stories of the View Askewniverse. The first issue goes on sale in print and digital November 2nd.
New Jersey native Kevin Smith rocked the indie film world in the mid-1990s with a string of classic comedies such as Clerks, Mallrats, Chasing Amy and Dogma. These films take place in an interconnected universe, which has come to be called “the View Askewniverse;” the most recent entry in the series, Clerks 3 recently debuted in theaters to acclaim. In addition to his award-winning films, Smith also writes comic books, with memorable runs on both Daredevil at Marvel and Green Arrow at DC. Around the same time, he also brought the View Askewniverse to comics in a series of black and white titles from Oni Press that starred iconic stoners Jay and Silent Bob. Jay and Silent Bob are the glue that holds the View Askewniverse together, and the duo formed the basis for an in-universe comic called “Bluntman and Chronic,” created by Holden McNeil, who was played in the films by Ben Affleck. Now, Jay, Silent Bob, Holden and the rest are returning for a new anthology series from Dark Horse Comics, titled Quick Stops.
Dark Horse has provided Screen Rant with an exclusive preview of the first issue, shared below. Quick Stops will be written by View Askewniverse head Kevin Smith, illustrated by Jeremy Simser and lettered by Andrew Thomas. In the preview, readers are reintroduced to Holden McNeil (drawn here to resemble Ben Affleck), who is attending a comic book convention where he is being interviewed for the Bluntman Beyond podcast; normally, Holden interviews other creators on the podcast, but in this preview he is the one who is being interviewed. He jokes about his graphic novel Chasing Amy, which is about to be turned into a Netflix series and relates humorous stories about creating Bluntman and Chronic.
Kevin Smith's View Askewniverse Lives Again
The preview gives Kevin Smith fans a tantalizing new glimpse into the View Askewniverse, reuniting them with beloved characters such as Holden, Banky and of course, Jay and Silent Bob. As with previous View Askewniverse titles, Quick Stops benefits from Smith’s guidance; Smith writing the book ensures it will keep the hilarious stoner vibe that is a hallmark of the View Askewniverse. Judging from the preview, Smith is firing on all cylinders here, and it recalls his best work. Quick Stops promises to be an anthology with stories from across the View Askewniverse, meaning they can expect additional characters to appear–perhaps even Bluntman and Chronic will return?
Kevin Smith’s infectious love of pop culture is on full display in this preview, and fans of his films can rest assured Quick Stops will honor the vibe of the View Askewniverse. The View Askewniverse continues with the release of Quick Stops by Dark Horse Comics, which will bring together many of Kevin Smith’s most beloved characters.