Comic
(128 pages, full colour, written in German)
Considering that there’s already several comic books or graphic novels out there that are connected to Rock and Metal bands, it’s really surprising that it took this long until IRON MAIDEN and their famous mascot “Eddie” ended up in this popular medium as well. The first series, “Legacy Of The Beast”, was originally released in 2017 / 2018 (and later also released as a paperback) via Heavy Metal Comics. It features five issues and is more or less based on the game of the same name. The series was written and scripted by Llexi Leon and Ed Edginton and pencilled by Kevin West, who has already drawn comics for Marvel, DC, Wildstorm, Image, Malibu, Acclaim, Disney and several smaller independent publishers. The German edition came out in late 2022 as a massive hardcover book (size 21,7 x 32,9 cm, which is approximately 8,54 x 12,95 inches) and offers additional golden metal corners, spot painting and an embossed logo on the front cover. It features all five issues, but unfortunately lacks the front covers for each issue. The story is not really rocket science, but since it’s first and foremost supposed to put a spotlight on good old Eddie and to entertain comic book readers, that’s perfectly fine with me. Here’s a rough description of the storyline: Eddie, who’s the embodiment of free will, had been chained to a tree for an eternity and pieces of his soul had been torn and quartered from his body and strewn across the cosmos by an evil incarnate, better known as “The Beast”, who’s Eddie’s true nemesis and most dangerous adversary. A sightless seer woman, that introduces herself as “The Clairvoyant”, helps to free himself and they both team-up to stop “The Beast”. Throughout the story they both help to free “The Prisoner” and Eddie constantly has to fight a bunch of evil creatures, among them “The Wickerman”, “Horus” and “The Axis General”. Eddie, who’s visually based on his early longhaired, leather jacket wearing version, talks even less than Groot in the Marvel Comics universe (he’s basically just grunting and growling), so he’s obviously just in it for the action, while the supporting cast carries the storyline, which ends with a cliffhanger in issue 5 (the follow up series “Legacy Of The Beast – Night City” is already available as well in the meantime). The artwork is pretty cool and the big size of this German deluxe edition compliments that even more. So, if you are from Germany, enjoy graphic novels and one of your favorite bands is IRON MAIDEN, you shouldn’t really hesitate to pick up this impressive edition. All further information and ordering details you will find at www.insektenhaus-verlag.de, https://insektenhaus.bigcartel.com or www.facebook.com/insektenhaus
Frank Stöver