Pantera Are Releasing a Vulgar Display of Power Graphic Novel
Tomorrow marks the 30th anniversary of Pantera’s Vulgar Display of Power, which makes some of us feel older than God. And while Pantera’s legacy has gone through a lot since 1992, it’s undeniable that the record is a banger, and that it shaped the face of metal as we know it. Now, Z2 Comics, the company behind the graphic novels about classic albums by Dio, King Diamond, and recently Spiritbox, have announced that they’ve partnered with Pantera to release a Vulgar Display of Power graphic novel.
Z2’s Vulgar Display of Power graphic novel contains stories based on each of the songs from the band’s classic album, penned by some of metal and modern comics’ best and brightest, including:
- Life of Agony’s Alan Robert
- Testament’s Eric Peterson
- Ex-Every Time I Die frontman Keith Buckley
- Ex-Fear Factory vocalist and nautical crier Burton Seabell
- Steve Niles, who wrote 30 Days of Night
- Tony Lee, who apparently wrote Beartooth: The Journey Below
The artist list is also pretty impressive:
- Brian Ewing
- Ryan J. Downey
- Erik Rodriguez
- Ryan Kelly
- Steve Chanks
- Kevin Mellon
- John Pearson
- Danijel Zezelj
Says former Pantera frontman Phil Anselmo:
“We’re really happy and excited to have this graphic novel come out for the fans, and to be a part of something special, as it pertains to its artists and creators.”
As for the art, well, it’s pretty Pantera-aggrandizing, with images such as the band on Mount Rushmore and a Paul Booth-illustrated depiction the dude from the album cover literally having had his jaw punched off.
Says Booth:
“I’m not sure I can even express what a tremendous honor it has been to work on this project for Pantera. The first music tour I ever went out on, Pantera headlined. That was back in ‘94 with Sepultura and Biohazard. To this day, I still compare every tour I’ve been on to that one as it really was the most special for me. This project has been an awesome experience and I greatly thank everyone involved!”
Even more insane and ridiculous is that one edition of the graphic novel comes with a resin statue featuring a dude with an underbite punching another guy, forever cementing Pantera’s legacy as the band for dudes who want to sock other dudes in the face.
Check out the cover art and resin statue design below. The Vulgar Display of Power graphic novel is available for preorder.
