The animator and veteran comic book illustrator, who previously teamed on the ‘Edgeworld’ comic series, present the new 5-issue comic book series, which follows a young man with paranormal abilities starring on a new ghost hunting reality TV show; the first issue is now available.
Writer, producer, and animator Chuck Austen (King of the Hill, Steven Universe, The Cleveland Show) and prolific comic book illustrator Patrick Olliffe reunite for The Tormented, a new 5-issue comic book series. The seasoned duo previously teamed for Edgeworld, a comic series that’s part science-fiction, part detective series, part western.
In the series, main character Ryan Auster is the son of legendary ghost hunters Vera and Adam Austerhölle, but this is a fact he doesn’t share willingly. Unlike his father, mother, and sister, Ryan never had “the gift” to “see” the paranormal, so they’d leave him behind whenever they went out to investigate. But Ryan was hiding his abilities, terrified of the consequences of his supposed “gift,” and the parents who gave them to him. Then, one life-altering night, his entire family is brutally murdered. Instantly orphaned, Ryan was raised by various foster families—many of whom faced horrible fates of their own.
Now, as an adult, Ryan finds himself the charismatic host of a children’s online cooking show. But when that series suddenly ends, and his pushy producer discovers Ryan’s family history, Ryan is unexpectedly and unwillingly sold as the host of a brand-new ghost hunting reality TV series. Ryan desperately needs the money, but he knows that if he agrees to host “Restless Spirits,” and use his supernatural “gifts,” it will make him a beacon that draws—not only the beings that gruesomely butchered his family—but all the many horrors that hide in the darkness, marking him, and his newfound friends on the show, to suffer the same fate as his murdered family.
“Ryan Auster, our protagonist in The Tormented, sees ghosts, but kept it from his ghost-hunting family because he feared his family more than the ghosts, and because he’s been hiding it his whole life, now in his twenties, he still hasn’t quite learned how to deal with the unexpected spirits, demons, and otherworldly creatures that are constantly invading his life," said Austen. "This series has been an absolute trip to create with Pat, and I hope readers have as much fun reading the story as we’ve had making it.”
"Working with Chuck on The Tormented has been a blast!" says Olliffe. "He and I have developed a great give and take working relationship during our time creating Edgeworld so we hit the ground running with this new project. Once the concept was in place the designs for the characters came quickly, Ryan popping into my head immediately. I’ve changed my art style a bit for The Tormented to hopefully accommodate a darker story. Regardless, Lee always makes me look good! Very excited for The Tormented to enter the world and for people to see what Chuck, Lee, Jodi and I have come up with!"
The project features colors by Lee Loughridge, letters by Jodi Wynne, and edits by Greg Lockard. The Tormented made its first appearance March 19, 2024 as part of Amazon’s Comixology Originals exclusive digital content line.
Cybersecurity specialist by day, investigative journalist by night.
