In an announcement sure to turn some heads, Image Comics revealed a first glimpse at Loaded Bible: Blood of My Blood, an upcoming miniseries starring a clone of Jesus Christ facing down a huge vampiric threat. In the sequel to the Loaded Bible series, the test tube Messiah is charged with tracking down and destroying a clone version of Dracula, setting the stage for a fight that will no doubt have to be seen to be believed.
The original Loaded Bible comic began publication in 2006 and came from writer Tim Seely and artists Mike Norton, Mark Englert, and Nate Bellegarde. The story was set in the near-future where the Earth has been decimated by a nuclear Holy War and humanity's last refuge is the protected New Vatican City. After vampires attack the City, the Church has only one hero that can save them; a clone of Jesus Christ. It's been well over a decade since the last issue of Loaded Bible was released, but that's just given the creative team time to come up with an even more intriguing plot for a sequel.
In a press release from Image, Loaded Bible: Blood of my Blood was announced coming from original writer Tim Seely who is joined in this new chapter by fellow writer Steve Orlando and artist Giuseppe Cafaro. The six-issue miniseries is produced by Arancia Studios, which has also worked on Image publications such as Deep Beyond and Commanders in Crisis. Along with the release, the cover for the first issue of Loaded Bible: Blood of my Blood was revealed, showing the clone Jesus ensnared in a fight with a certain undead monster.
The release also reveals Blood of My Blood is set "decades after the events of the original cult series" and mentions the stakes for the cloned Jesus are higher than ever before now that "the church has cut a deal with the vampire nations to unite under their resurrected savior—Dracula!" While the existence of the series may be controversial to some, creator Tim Seely seems confident in the series' allegorical nature saying, "You've got a beautiful modern take on the saga of a cloned messiah and the church that bent his teachings to their will." Fellow writer Steve Orlando agrees, calling the series "a celebration of a lone protector at the end of the world, who risks his life every day to defend love, defend compassion, and crush hypocrisy and cruelty wherever it hides".
Despite the sensitive nature baked into the plot, the creative team seems excited to craft a tale that brings the two well-known figures together in an epic battle that can also serve as a commentary on the state of religion in the modern world. Loaded Bible: Blood of My Blood from Image Comics will be available for purchase most properly on Ash Wednesday, March 2, 2022.
Source: Image Comics