On March 17, 2014, Pale Raven Studios will launch a Kickstarter in support of their endeavor, The Dark Tales of The Brothers Harrow Volume I written by The Brothers Harrow. The volume is comprised of two separate stories highlighting the talents of two artists, Levente Peterffy and Alex Charleux.
Avalon – The World Within is a dark fantasy epic about a man lost amidst a quarterlife crisis. At his darkest hour, he awakens to the reality of a mysterious fantasy world that mirrors earth, Avalon. It is here where he encounters uncanny creatures and finds himself at the center of a conflict between six gods vying for the rule of Avalon. Imagine the journey of the Wizard of Oz with a Neil Gaimanesque approach to fantasy.
The Delta Descent into the Black Inferno, is the story of a selfrighteous exmilitary firefighter that awakens from a coma, twenty years after the chaos of Hurricane Katrina. New Orleans is now a dangerous postapocalyptic nightmare and the hero in search of his missing son must fight his way through the dystopian Underworld to investigate his son’s abduction only to discover that the answer lies in the darkness of his past.
According The Brothers Harrow, “Avalon (The World Within) is wider in scope where the main character delves into a world that’s massive, full of lore and history. The Delta is more intimate and we’re following the Dante’s Inferno template and seeing the world through the main character’s eyes and experiences. These stories are really parallels of each other. The two stories, Delta and Avalon, are journeys of two male characters that are both shaped by their past and both come to a selfrealization through a type of boundless fantastic journey that you usually get in really heavy literature.”
The Brothers Harrow decided to contact Levente Peterffy and Alex Charleux. Peterffy known for his work on Starcraft II: Wings of Liberty and World of Warcraft is a professional artist from London. While Charleux known for his work on the game Remember Me is from France. The Brothers Harrow, Charleux and Peterffy decided to work with concept artists as a method of pushing the medium, while adapting their tales to the world of comics.
“I was just amazed by the blend of inspirations that build the world and the story of The Delta, inspirations that are also part of my own universe actually,” said Charleux. “It makes discussion about the preproduction fluid and efficient as we share common references.”
Peterffy adds, “What really peaked my interest with this project is that we are going very cinematic with the paneling in these novels and I absolutely love cinematography. The story is quite unique and the world that is being written is just inspirational for me as an artist.”
For those that support the comic, The Kickstarter offers a number of rewards and prizes ranging from digital wallpaper, personal art from the concept artist, and a deluxe art book featuring concepts from the industry’s leading artists.
Pale Raven Studios hope to bridge the small gap that still exists between comics, film, and literature. “These stories are fun to write because it challenges us to try to create something that we have not seen before.” The Brothers Harrow explain, “Since we are trying to blend literature and graphic novels and film all together, the mind is free to truly push yourself in terms of influences, character and world creation, plot and narrative; you’re not simply pulling from one pool.”
The Brothers Harrow do not simply aspire to create a comic, but they are taking on the role of modern mythmakers. The Dark Tales stories are for comic fans that wish to immerse themselves in new worlds and seek out novel voices in a flooded medium. “These stories combine of a lot of things not seen in comics before and hopefully the reader gets a unique experience. That’s what we’re really about.”
The comic book series is available for preorder on Kickstarter.
