Godkiller
A transmedia saga of fallen gods and human misfits.
Godkiller is a transmedia series of graphic novels, illustrated films, and novels created by filmmaker Matt Pizzolo, focusing on humans caught between warring fallen gods. The series is notable for its experimental illustrated film format, which merges sequential art with 3D CGI, motion graphics, and radio-play-style voice performances. The first illustrated film, Godkiller: Walk Among Us, was released underground by Halo 8 before being distributed wide by Warner Bros. in 2010.
Quick Facts
- Date
- 2008-present
- Publisher
- Halo 8 Comics (2008-2013); Black Mask Studios (2014-present)
- Writers
- Matt Pizzolo
- Pencillers
- Anna Muckcracker Wieszczyk
Facts from the source article.
Publication/Production history
Pizzolo stated that his goal with Godkiller was to design a new mythology for misfits, presenting heroes who act heroically not to maintain the status quo but because they are regular people trying to do their best in an unjust world. The series was devised for simultaneous production as graphic novels and films using the same sequential art, aiming for a trilogy of feature-length films. Pizzolo and Muckcracker began by serializing Godkiller: Walk Among Us into a 6-issue comic book series debuting in 2008 and a 3-episode film series debuting in 2009, before the completed feature film opened theatrically in 2010. The film was slated for limited edition bi-monthly DVDs starting September 29, 2009, followed by a theatrical run in January 2010 and a DVD/Blu-ray release in March 2010. Due to overwhelming demand, the first DVD's street date was delayed to October 6, 2009, to supply enough copies to retailers including Best Buy, Borders Books, F.Y.E., and Suncoast. Pizzolo and Muckcracker are working on the second part, Godkiller: Tomorrow's Ashes, slated for mid-2011 release, with the complete feature film expected theatrically in 2011. Pizzolo also wrote the pre-apocalyptic prequel Godkiller: Silent War, an urban fantasy novel series that debuted as episodic e-books and audiobooks on the special features of the Godkiller: Walk Among Us DVDs in October 2009. Pizzolo explained that Godkiller is split into two periods: the pre-nuke world of Silent War and the post-nuke world of Walk Among Us, with events of the prequel driving the main story and many characters appearing in both.
Plot
Joe Junior, seventeen, and his girlfriend Bee run a hidden bar in an old New York church basement, selling drugged drinks to minors and hiding draft dodgers. A populist assassin cult recruits Joe, pulling him into secret global plots, alien schemes, and a looming apocalypse. A lethal pandemic ravages the United States, while a rogue black-ops gang kidnaps children, including sixteen-year-old Bird. After an economic crash, a nuclear holy war, and an alien invasion, orphan Tommy searches for a replacement heart to save his sick sister Lucy in Godkiller: Walk Among Us, continuing his earlier journey.
Formats
Pizzolo developed the illustrated film concept with producer Brian Giberson, mixing elements of anime, radio drama, video games, and motion comics. Using original comic book artwork, the illustrated film adds motion animation, visual effects, sound design, music, and voice-acting performances. Pizzolo distinguished illustrated films from motion comics by stating that illustrated films drive storytelling pace with dramatic voice performances and sound design, allowing viewers to absorb the art like reading a comic book, while motion comics are closer to limited animation using comics as source material. He compared illustrated films to the experimental cinema of Ralph Bakshi, Chris Marker's La jetée, or Liquid Television. Pizzolo further explained that illustrated films attempt to merge comic book sequential art with cinematic storytelling, whereas motion comics repurpose comic books into cartoons. He noted that while they may look similar, the difference is akin to that between Seinfeld and Full Metal Jacket, or between comic books and graphic novels. Pizzolo stated that when deciding to make an anime adaptation of the comic book, he felt traditional animation would not do justice to Anna Muckcracker's detailed illustrations, so it made sense to adapt the medium to suit her art.
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