At the ComicsPRO comic book retailer conference in Portland, Oregon today, BOOM! Studios announced "Strange Fruit" -- a collaboration between J.G. Jones and Mark Waid that was first teased back in July 2014. CBR has the exclusive first details of the project, along with a look at Jones' fully painted art from the four-issue miniseries.
"Strange Fruit" is set to debut in July 2015 from BOOM!, though it'll be advance solicited next month, with the publisher's June offerings. It's co-written and co-created by Jones and Waid, who worked together on DC Comics' "52" -- Jones as the cover artist for all 52 issues, and Waid as one of the series' writers -- and fully painted by Jones. Last year in advance of Comic-Con International in San Diego, BOOM! announced that Jones was working on an unnamed project described by the artist as an "edgy little piece that can only be published in one place." A month later at Baltimore Comic Con, BOOM! confirmed that Waid -- returning to the company after a stint as BOOM! Studios editor-in-chief -- and Jones were working on the project together.
Based on an idea by Jones, "Strange Fruit" is a historical fiction tale that takes place in 1927 Mississippi, where the appearance of a powerful being has a major impact on the racial and social tensions of the time. It's described by the publisher as both a "challenging, provocative examination of the heroic myth" and a "deeply personal passion project." CBR has the first look at both interior art from "Strange Fruit" and the solicitation text from the first issue.
Strange Fruit #1 (of 4)
Publisher: BOOM! Studios
Authors: J.G. Jones and Mark Waid
Artist: J.G. Jones
Format: 32 pages, full color
Price: $3.99
On sale: July 2015
Synopsis: It's 1927 in the town of Chatterlee, Mississippi, drowned by heavy rains. The Mississippi River is rising, threatening to break open not only the levees, but also the racial and social divisions of this former plantation town. A fiery messenger from the skies heralds the appearance of a being, one that will rip open the tensions in Chatterlee. Savior, or threat? It depends on where you stand. All the while, the waters are still rapidly rising...
Two of the industry's most respected and prolific creators come together for the first time in a deeply personal passion project. J.G. Jones (Wanted, Y: The Last Man) and Mark Waid (Kingdom Come, Irredeemable) take on a powerful, beautifully painted story set during the Great Mississippi Flood of 1927. Strange Fruit is a challenging, provocative examination of the heroic myth confronting the themes of racism, cultural legacy, and human nature through a literary lens, drawing from Southern folklore and tradition.