GRENDEL PRIMER
By Brad Collins.

It all began with Hunter Rose. The unappreciated genius of the boy known only as Eddie, burned by life and loss, to strive in two very different directions -- as Hunter Rose, the acclaimed novelist, and as Grendel, mob-boss and scourge of the underworld.

"I greatly admire Matt's creation Grendel. I found it original and invigorating long before I had the chance to contribute to it. And I think my obsessive desire to fuck with story structure is a debt most definitely owed to the influence of Matt's work on Grendel. Thanks on all fronts, Matt!"
-- Steven Seagle

"Grendel is one of the more original characters out there. Over the years, a lot of talented people have contributed a lot of strong work. The over-all series is a treasure trove of different styles and approaches to storytelling and is well worth a look."
-- Bernie Mireault

Matt Wagner's anti-hero Grendel first appeared almost 20 years ago, and has featured in a large number of series' and mini-series. Grendel has appeared in a number of incarnations, from different publishing companies, and by a great number of different writers and artists, but remains virtually unique amongst comic-book creations -- Grendel is one of the few prolific series to be completely under the control of its creator.

When you mention Grendel to people, the most common response is "Yeah, I've heard it's great, but where do I start?" Due to the very nature of the series, and its long and convoluted publishing history, there's not a single clear jumping-on point. The stories aren't numbered sequentially, and a few are almost forgotten.

This Grendel Primer is an effort to introduce wary new readers, to highlight rare stories for existing fans, and to provide a reading guide for the curious.

COMICO PRIMER #2, published by Comico (1983)

This initial Grendel story, written and drawn by a young Matt Wagner, is a sample story that leads directly into the first series. Told in black and white, the story is the beginning of the tale that would eventually become DEVIL BY THE DEED.

GRENDEL (volume one) #1-3, published by Comico (1983-1984)

The first GRENDEL series was published in black and white, and told the story of Hunter Rose. It was abandoned after three issues, by writer/artist Matt Wagner, in favour of a series of backup stories featured in his other Comico series, MAGE.

MAGE: THE HERO DISCOVERED #6-14, published by Comico (1984-1986)

After the first failed GRENDEL series, the character was brought back in a series of backup stories, collectively titled DEVIL BY THE DEED. Illustrated prose by Wagner, the story tells of a young Hunter Rose, boy genius, and his rise to championship fencer and renowned novelist. As Hunter adopts the Grendel persona to take control of the city's underground, the story examines the interplay between Rose, his adopted ward Stacy, and his arch-nemesis, the man-wolf Argent.

Comico collected these stories in 1986, with an introduction by Alan Moore. It was collected again by Dark Horse in 1993, and re-released in 1997. This story is a good jumping-on point for the new reader, and should be readily available.

GRENDEL (volume two) #1-12, published by Comico (1986-1987)

Following the MAGE backups, the Grendel story progressed to a second series from Comico. The first storyline, DEVIL'S LEGACY, tells the tale of Christine Spar, the daughter of Hunter Rose's ward, Stacy. The story follows Christine from her examination of Grendel in her Rose biography, through her adoption of the Grendel persona to find her missing son, to the showdown with the vampire-leader of a slavery ring.

The story was written by Matt Wagner, and illustrated by The Pander Brothers. There was a collection released by Comico in 1988, but it's well out of print, and very difficult to find. DEVIL'S LEGACY is currently being re-released by Dark Horse, as a digitally remastered maxi-series.

GRENDEL: DEVIL'S VAGARY, included in the slipcase with Comico Collection (1987)

By Matt Wagner and Dean Motter, this was the first Black, White, and Red Grendel story, and will be collected with the BLACK, WHITE, AND RED mini-series.

Dean Motter said "At the time, I was busy writing, designing and doing the occasional cover for my own comic, MISTER X. It was enjoying great critical acclaim at the same time as Matt's collaboration with the Pander Brothers' near-future incarnation of GRENDEL. I had been planning to do a short Black, White and Red MISTER X tale, but those plans had been repeatedly postponed. I jumped at the chance to propose the format to Matt and company when invited to illustrate a short GRENDEL feature. I didn't even need to finish the pitch. Everyone involved saw the possibilities of telling a story utilising a second accent color - not only as a basis for page design, but as a dramatic literary device as well. The grim little vignette that Matt had written concerned Hunter Rose and his rather gothic flirtation with the millionaire's daughter whom he had taken hostage. The story lent itself perfectly to the unconventional but provocative presentation. We continue to threaten to work together again one day."

GRENDEL (volume two) #13-15, published by Comico (1987)

THE DEVIL WITHIN, the second storyline in this series, tells the story of Christine Spar's lover, Brian Li Sung. The story tells of Brian's descent to madness, and the destruction continuing to be wrought by the legacy of Grendel.

The story was by Matt Wagner, with artwork by Bernie Mireault, in the first of many collaborations between the two. Comico released a collection years ago, which is long out of print.

Bernie Mireault said "GRENDEL: THE DEVIL WITHIN was a dream project. Here was a chance to work with Matt Wagner! I had big fun. In this three-issue story arc, the spirit of Grendel has come to reside in Brian Li Sung, Christine's boyfriend. Grim stuff. My favorite element was the use of diary entries to underline Brian's approaching split-personality crisis. Some nice tricks there, I think. I'm still happy with the work, I feel that it was a true collaboration and I particularly admire the strong over-all structure of the narrative. I feel the work has a unique atmosphere and flavor that offered something new to GRENDEL fans of the time. Dark Horse is currently considering the idea of reprinting it and I hope they do."

GRENDEL (volume two) #16-19, published by Comico (1988)

Marking both a break in the ongoing story and Wagner's return to illustrating the book, these interim issues told two stories of Hunter Rose, as novelised by ex-policeman Albert Wiggins. The first is a tale of Lewis Polk, a policeman who follows a trail of smuggling and deceit all the way to Grendel. The second is the story of Anson Reynold's party, from DEVIL BY THE DEED, told from a different perspective.

These two stories were later reprinted by Dark Horse as the two-issue GRENDEL CLASSICS, and the collection GRENDEL: DEVIL TALES.

GRENDEL (volume two) #20-23, published by Comico (1988)

THE INCUBATION YEARS, the next storyline in the Grendel saga, follows a largely un-Grendel world over the course of the next few years. From Captain Albert Wiggin's Hunter Rose biographies, through a nuclear war, and the rebuilding of civilisation.

Written by Wagner, the first three parts were illustrated by Hannibal King, and the fourth by Tim Sale.

GRENDEL (volume two) #24-33, published by Comico (1988-1989)

Post-WWIII, GOD AND THE DEVIL tells the story of the resurgence of Grendel, in the form of idiot/savant Eppy Thatcher, to fight the church as in acts of terrorism. Aristocrat Orion Assante, on the other hand, took up the fight against Pope Innocent XLII on a legal level.

By Matt Wagner, with artwork by John K Snyder III, Jay Geldhof, and Bernie Mireault.

SILVERBACK, 3 issues published by Comico (1989)

This mini-series tells the origin of Hunter Rose's arch-nemesis, Argent. It was plotted by Matt Wagner and Bill Messner-Loebs, scripted by Messner-Loebs, with art by Messner-Loebs and John Peck.

Bill Messner-Loebs: "SILVERBACK remains one of my most fondly remembered comicbook experiences, partly because the ideas and characters Matt created were so extreme and so real, and partly because Matt allowed me such latitude in playing with them. For those who need to have their memories jogged, SILVERBACK was the life story of Argent, the crippled rogue werewolf detective first introduced in the pages of GRENDEL. It follows him from doomed Huron youth, to Yeti-like savager of the troops during the siege of Montreal, to the final emotionally wrenching showdown with Grendel. If Matt ever wants to revive Argent, or even create something totally new, well, he has my number!"

GRENDEL (volume two) #34-40, published by Comico (1989-1990)

By Matt Wagner and Tim Sale, DEVIL'S REIGN follows Orion Assante's rise to the head of North America, through the war with Japan, and Orion's assumption of the title 'Grendel-Kahn'.

GRENDEL (volume two) #40, published by Comico (1990)

The flip side of this comic featured the short story DEVIL WORSHIP, by Steven Seagle and Ho Che Anderson, which was the story of a student's infatuation with Grendel. This story was the first of the GRENDEL TALES series, which was planned to follow shortly afterward, but was eventually delayed.

Writer Steven Seagle: "I was floored that Matt asked me to do it. I was such a huge fan of GRENDEL and Matt's that it seemed completely unreal to me. I leapt at the chance. I wrote this story while on a fishing trip (I don't like the fishing part, but I do like to row the boat) with my girlfriend's family. I had just finished teaching my first semester of University classes in a state where Klan activity is noticeable and I was wondering how a rabid young student populace would react to the "sex appeal" of Grendels. I was fascinated by the way in which aggression/hate groups magnetize some people and repulse others. I mixed in a little Kent State and the story came to be. I was pretty happy with the way it came out, though Ho Anderson (who drew it) called me a few years later and said how much he hated it which bummed me out on it a little."

A1 #4, published by Atomeka Press (1990)

This anthology of British creators featured GRENDEL: DEVIL'S WHISPER, by James Robinson and D'Israeli, a story of policeman Captain Albert Wiggins. It takes place, chronologically, between GRENDEL #15 and #16.

James Robinson: "This was for A1, a Brit anthology. It was a lark and a chance for me to work with Matt Brooker (D'Israeli) who had been the original choice for FOUR DEVILS, ONE HELL until a delay at Comico (even when they were still publishing) meant that he had to drop out. (Incidentally, there are three whole unpublished issues of FOUR DEVILS pencilled by Phillip Bond. He was then unable to return to them when Dark Horse finally decided to publish the arc.) I had fun doing the story. I recall that. However, by this point in time, I find it hard to recall much else about it."

THE HISTORY OF GRENDEL: DEVIL IN REFLECTION, 1 issue published by Comico (1992)

This promotional booklet was written by Steven Seagle, and initially included with both the GRENDEL KIT (also including a sculpted pin by Randy Bowen) and Golden Age Collectibles' GRENDEL COLLECTION.

Steven Seagle: "I wrote a give-away booklet which was called DEVIL IN REFLECTION which summarized all of the Comico arcs as a precursor to the new GRENDEL TALES series. It was then reprinted by Dark Horse (Hey! I never got paid for that!) and given away a second time in PREVIEWS."

GRENDEL: WAR CHILD, 10 issues published by Dark Horse (1992-1993)

After the death of Orion Assante, the empire fell under control of his wife, Laurel Kennedy Assante - the Dowager-Kahn. When Orion's son, Jupiter, is kidnapped by the mysterious Grendel Prime, Laurel's grip on the empire is loosened, and an empire-shaking struggle for power ensues. Grendel Prime, who appears through many of the subsequent stories, was a big, leather-clad cyborg, designed by Orion Assante to protect his son. Written by Matt Wagner with art by Pat McEown, WAR CHILD set the scene for the GRENDEL TALES series' that would debut shortly afterwards.

WAR CHILD was initially to run as GRENDEL #41-50, from Comico. However, when GRENDEL moved to Dark Horse, it was decided to begin as WAR CHILD to make it less intimidating for new readers. There is a collection, which is currently out of print.

BATMAN/GRENDEL, 2 issues published by DC Comics with Dark Horse (1993)

Written and Illustrated by Matt Wagner, this marks the first Grendel crossover, and the only character to crossover into the series. Hunter Rose comes to Gotham City, posing as The Riddler, and crosses paths with the Batman.

GRENDEL TALES: FOUR DEVILS, ONE HELL, 6 issues published by Dark Horse (1993-1994)

This first GRENDEL TALES mini-series, by James Robinson and Teddy Kristiansen, is set in New Orleans. It tells the story of several Grendels from different clans, as their paths converge. There is a collection available.

James Robinson: "FOUR DEVILS, ONE HELL was my first American work after my initial English graphic novel LONDON'S DARK. As such, under Diana Schutz's editorial instruction, I learned an immense amount about the science and art of comic writing. At this time I had the door slammed in my face repeatedly by "mature DC Comics" (later Vertigo) which was really the only venue for Brit writers at DC at that time. I certainly agree it wasn't "lyrical and haunting" -- two words I am appalled to see applied to comics, as too often this is a way of saying they lack suspense/drama. Anyway, FDOH was actually a SARGE STEEL proposal that I submitted earlier to DC. If you think about Mantovani -- a PI with a metal hand, you'll see how this led to my GRENDEL arc. Anyway, I have to say that Matt Wagner was my sponsor into legitimate mainstream comics (it was tied up at Comico, which is why it was published so much later, after other work of mine was published). Matt took a chance on an unknown, and for that I am eternally grateful."

GRENDEL TALES: THE DEVIL'S HAMMER, 3 issues published by Dark Horse (1994)

By writer/artist Rob Walton, THE DEVIL'S HAMMER is a tale of the Catholic church, within the Grendel mythos. It tells the story of Petrus Christus, a band of Grendels, a slaughtered township, and a mysterious Abbot. By this time in the story, the Church is disgraced and in shambles.

This series marked a strange step in the Grendel mythos, as Walton uses the series to exorcise some personal demons - his problems with the Catholic Church. This is fine for Walton, but could be quite offensive for a lot of readers, and doesn't make for a good starting point for new readers.

This series featured the first Grendel Prime backup story by Matt Wagner, which would run through the GRENDEL TALES series', and are collected in DEVIL QUEST.

GRENDEL TALES: THE DEVIL IN OUR MIDST, 5 issues published by Dark Horse (1994)

Steven Seagle's second GRENDEL story, this tale of an isolated group of scientists in Antarctica was illustrated by Paul Grist. There is a collection available.

Steven Seagle: "The idea came into my mind full-sprung (my projects tend to be birthed grown like this, or the exact opposite, a name and no idea where to go after that). I plotted all five issues in a day and sent Matt a proposal that I back-worked from the plots. I was very into both Antarctica and isolated group-dynamic studies at the time and the story came out of the melding of those two fields of study. James Robinson had agreed to work with Paul Grist on something that he then didn't have the time for and asked if I'd consider putting Paul forward for this project instead. Working with Paul was fantastic. He is a consummate storyteller and a nice guy all around. In the end, my only regret was that I didn't buy Matt's covers (which were done extremely small and then blown up). My only confusion was why so many people compared it to "Alien" which it really owes no debt to at all. Seriously."

GRENDEL TALES: DEVILS AND DEATHS, 2 issues published by Dark Horse (1994)

By Darko Macan and Edvin Biukovic, this is a story of a clan of Grendels in a war-torn countryside strangely reminiscent of the creators' native Croatia. There is a collection available, featuring this series and the follow-up, DEVIL'S CHOICES.

Darko Macan: "It was the summer of '93. Edvin and I have just finished an eight-month stint in animation and I wanted to find more work in comics, but the Croatian scene was pretty moribund at the time so my hopes weren't high. I wasn't even considering submitting stuff overseas, but then, there it was: Diana Schutz answered a letter in the back of a WAR CHILD issue, explaining the GRENDEL TALES concept and practically inviting unsolicited subs. It took me a month to finish the script for the first two issues, and it took another three months and a lot of arguing for Edvin and me to put together a proposal. The answer came within two weeks and, at least for me, it was a complete surprise. Good thing the script was already written 'cause I might've gone into a major block there and then. The experience of working on GRENDEL TALES was nothing but good. For one thing, I've got to work with Edvin on something long and involved, and this resulted in a very personal story. We were free to create, Diana checked every correction with us and Matt was so hands-off that we almost haven't felt his presence (he changed a "Chrissakes" into "fuck's sake" once, but that's all I can remember. And he did mention our hometown of Zagreb in one of his stories). GRENDEL TALES was the first foray into the US market for both Edvin and me, and DEVILS AND DEATHS remains, arguably, the best thing we've done. Matt Wagner's GRENDEL TALES encouraged creativity in an industry that is mostly afraid to do so, and I'm really grateful for this rare chance to be free and do comics the way we thought they should be done."

GRENDEL TALES: HOMECOMING, 3 issues published by Dark Horse (1994-1995)

This story of Susan Veraghen, Crystal's bodyguard from WAR CHILD, by Pat McEown and Dave Cooper. It tells of Susan's return to her hometown, which has fallen to decay in the meantime, and her run-in with a gang of local toughs. This is the only GRENDEL TALES series to feature a character from Wagner's stories, and the collection will be available in May.

GRENDEL TALES: DEVIL'S CHOICES, 4 issues published by Dark Horse (1995)

The follow-up to DEVILS AND DEATHS, also by Darko Macan and Edvin Biukovic, takes place ten years later. A tale of the same clan as the previous story, it's available in the DEVILS AND DEATHS collection, and features the last of the Grendel Prime backup stories.

GRENDEL CLASSICS, 2 issues published by Dark Horse (1995)

This break from the GRENDEL TALES series reprinted two stories from the main Comico series, issues 16 and 17 as the first, and 18 and 19 as the second. This is collected as DEVIL TALES.

GRENDEL CYCLE, one book published by Dark Horse (1995)

This volume, written by Wagner and illustrated by a variety of artists, was an attempt to help ease new readers into the Grendel mythos. The book featured synopses of the Comico series, an introduction to the GRENDEL TALES world, a timeline, and a cover gallery.

GRENDEL: DEVIL QUEST, one book published by Dark Horse (1995)

Reprinting the backup stories from the previous GRENDEL TALES series', DEVIL QUEST was a story-arc bridging the gap between WAR CHILD and BATMAN/GRENDEL II.

GRENDEL TALES: THE DEVIL MAY CARE, 6 issues published by Dark Horse (1995-1996)

THE DEVIL MAY CARE was written by Terry LaBan, with artwork by Peter Doherty.

Terry LaBan: "Gosh, what can I say? I'll always be grateful to Matt and the series for giving me my first writing gig, and for approving six issues of a story that probably should have been four. It's a good story though, and I'm still proud of it -- kind of a backhanded criticism of the whole ultra-violent, pain-is-the-ultimate-reality aesthetic I felt I saw as the dominating element of the series. In it the biggest, baddest Grendel and a lady doctor who regards him as the embodiment of evil basically destroy themselves by falling in love, while her son, a rebellious adolescent who starts out wanting more than anything else to be a Grendel, winds up dedicating himself to the destruction of the clan, and succeeding. I saw it as a real Greek tragedy kind of trip, people ruined by the very things they swore they'd never have anything to do with. "We're love's revenge on a world that worships pain" -- this is still one of my best lines, I think. I've been told they're going to do a paperback of it, but that was a couple years ago."

BATMAN/GRENDEL II, 2 issues published by DC Comics (1996)

Following directly from DEVIL QUEST, Grendel Prime comes to Gotham City in search of the skull of Hunter Rose. Since a giant leather-bound cyborg is more than a little threatening, this naturally brings him into conflict with the Batman. This was written and illustrated by Matt Wagner.

A DECADE OF DARK HORSE #1, published by Dark Horse (1996)

This book contained the short GRENDEL: THE DEVIL'S WEEK, written and drawn by Matt Wagner. This second Black, White, and Red story is a tale of Hunter Rose, and his mob influences.

GRENDEL TALES: THE DEVIL'S APPRENTICE, 3 issues published by Dark Horse (1997)

This last GRENDEL TALES mini-series, by Jeff Lang and Steve Lieber, looked at one of the most ignored aspects of the Grendel mythos - vampires.

Jeff Lang: "It's the story of Aaron Crow, the sole survivor of a Grendel clan wiped out by a hoard of vamps. That would be a pretty unpleasant fate right there, but we added to Aaron's misery by having Aaron's now undead father become the leader of the local vamps and also by having Aaron's blood tainted just as he was being born. His mission is to redeem the family honor by killing Dad, though no one really believes he's going to do it because he's a weird white-skinned, red-eyed hybrid who's pretty much shunned by all the other Grendels. Not a great way to grow up. I was really lucky to get to do DEVIL'S APPRENTICE and greatly appreciated the opportunity Matt and Di gave me. It was (he said praising himself) a cool idea that didn't quite come completely together in the end. There are a lot of things I really like about it, and a few that, if I could do it all over, I would try to fix."

GRENDEL: BLACK, WHITE, AND RED, 4 issues published by Dark Horse (1998-1999)

Taking the idea of two previous short stories, which were done using only three colours, Wagner scripted twenty short stories of Hunter Rose, for as many different artists to illustrate.

GRENDEL: DEVIL CHILD, 2 issues published by Dark Horse (1999)

DEVIL CHILD, the story of Hunter's adoptive ward Stacy Palumbo, was a character study by longtime GRENDEL editor Diana Schutz, illustrated by Tim Sale.

Diana Schutz: "DEVIL CHILD is the story of Hunter Rose's adopted daughter, Stacy Palumbo, and her descent into madness. Basically, I took what Matt had set up in DEVIL BY THE DEED -- basically, just a paragraph about what happened to Stacy after she set up Grendel/Hunter to die at Argent's hands -- and extrapolated that into a two-issue story, narrated by Stacy herself. It was really hard. I'm not a wannabe writer who settled for being an editor. I love editing. Writing, on the other hand, is a slow, painful process for me -- especially since, in order to write Stacy's story convincingly, I had to become Stacy for all intents and purposes. And she was one very twisted little girl!"

UPCOMING GRENDEL

GRENDEL: DEVIL'S LEGACY, 12 issues published by Dark Horse (beginning March 2000)

Dark Horse, in an attempt to bring old Grendel to new readers, is re-presenting the first storyline of the Comico series, DEVIL'S LEGACY. By Matt Wagner and The Pander Brothers, the books are being digitally recoloured for the release.

GRENDEL TALES: HOMECOMING, collection published by Dark Horse (May 2000)

The collection of GRENDEL TALES: HOMECOMING, by Pat McEown and Dave Cooper.

GRENDEL: PAST PRIME, a novel (July 2000)

Written by novelist Greg Rucka, this story of Susan Veraghen's search for Grendel Prime has spot illustrations by Matt Wagner.

Greg Rucka: "GRENDEL: PAST PRIME is a novella done in a kind of modern pulp style, full of violence and sex and heads rolling around the streets of that very bleak future that Matt has created. The story centers on Susan Veraghen (Crystal's bodyguard from GRENDEL: WAR CHILD) and her quest for personal salvation -- a quest she hopes to attain by searching for and finding the whereabouts of the mythic Grendel Prime, who, since the end of WAR CHILD, has been MIA. Basically it's a fun romp, with a plot by myself and Matt, and it's tailored to Matt's tastes -- he's a fan of the old pulps, and he asked for something like them. He's done something in the neighborhood of 60 illustrations, black-and-white, for the book and from what I've seen thus far, it's outstanding work."

GRENDEL: BLACK, WHITE, AND RED, collection published by Dark Horse (release date TBA)

This collection of short stories, from the mini-series of the same name, will also contain DEVIL'S VAGARY, which was originally published with COMICO COLLECTION.

GRENDEL: BLACK, WHITE, AND RED II, published by Dark Horse (release date TBA)

The follow-up to the successful mini-series, this will contain a further twenty short stories, to be illustrated by a variety of artists.

Brad Collins is the Features Editor at PopImage. He'd like to thanks everyone who helped fact-check and give quotes, in particular Greg McElhatton, whose comic reviews can be seen daily at icomics.com.

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