Comic News: Asmus to Bring the End Times

Nobody ever figured Bram Carlson for the Rapture-worthy type. All in all, he's pretty much a total bastard. But when the Apocalypse comes, he disappears from the mortal plane along with the blessed—due to a heavenly clerical error. Heaven (somewhat) promptly sends him back. 

Now, in THE END TIMES OF BRAM AND BEN, Bram's the only person on Earth who has glimpsed Heaven, and he intends to use his experience for the good of Bramkind. It's up to his morally conflicted roommate Ben to rein in Bram's ambition, but for a guy who has never striven for anything important in his life, Bram's going after his dream like—well, like it's the end of the world. But will it be the end of a friendship as well?

In his first creator-owned series, writer James Asmus (THIEF OF THIEVES, Gambit) teams up with Jim Festante (writer/comedian, Comedy Central, MTV), and newcomer to the American comics scene, European artist Rem Broo, to tell a tale of the un-Raptured, shot through with humor and absurdity that make THE END TIMES the perfect new series for fans of CHEW to sink their teeth into.

"Despite the giant, colorful, violent elements of the Biblical apocalypse—this isn't a 'religious story," said Asmus, who was raised Catholic. "The real story Jim and I were excited to tell is one that shows a bunch of people reacting to one earth-shaking question: What do you do when you discover that reality isn't what you thought—and you're about to be punished for getting it wrong?"

Festante looks at THE END TIMES as a way of addressing the big questions as well. "Why does religion paint morality as black and white? Why does God allow bad things to happen to good people? If you're doing what Satan wants, why would he torture you for eternity?" he said. "Um, we're not sure, but End Times is a nice break from pondering deep theological thoughts."

To Broo, the END TIMES is the comic he always wanted to read—and gets to draw as well! "I think I was the first true fan of this comic," he said. "I have never asked James and Jim what's going to happened in the script of the next issue. So, for almost two years now I lived of the story as intensely as the comic characters I was drawing."

The new mini-series has also garnered praise from some of comics' top creators:

THE END TIMES OF BRAM AND BEN is a four-issue miniseries. It was announced at New York Comic Con, where Asmus and Festante spoke to Comic Book Resources.

The first issue will be in stores on January 9, 32 pages of full-color story with a cover by Jim Mahfood for only $2.99. Order it now from the November issue of Previews! And each issue of the mini-series will have a cover by a different comic book rock star — Juan Doe (Legion of Monsters), Ben Templesmith (FELL, 30 Days of Night), and fine art sensation J.A.W. Cooper (LA Weekly).