#horror – #PressRelease – #horrorcomics – #StephanFranck –
The Campaign Features The First Ever Kickstarter Edition Of The Rare And Hyper-Timely Dystopian Sci-Fi Romance in The Age of The Space God
Plus: Two Brand-New Volumes of His Acclaimed Neo-Noir Series Palomino, Set In The Lost Culture of LA’s Country Music Clubs
From The Press Release:
(May 13, 2025) Acclaimed cartoonist and award-nominated animator, writer, and director Stephan Franck’s graphic novels have caught the attention of comic book creators including Elsa Charretier, Jim Lee, Jeff Lemire, Jim Mahfood, Jimmy Palmiotti, and Bill Sienkiewicz. His stylish books have been covered by The Hollywood Reporter, IGN, The Nerdist, and NPR. Now Stephan’s company Dark Planet Comics is back with two all-new books and a new printer of an impossible-to-find graphic novella, never before available on Kickstarter. The campaign will introduce new readers to ROMANCE IN THE AGE OF THE SPACE GOD — a hyper-timely dystopian sci-fi comic that Franck quietly published last year with a super limited edition 150-copy print run — as well as two brand new volumes of PALOMINO, his Ringo Award-nominated neo-noir graphic series set in the lost culture of Los Angeles’ country music clubs. ROMANCE IN THE AGE OF THE SPACE GOD and PALOMINO: Volumes 4 and 5 will both be available via Kickstarter.
“There are certain eternal themes that always seem to come back in my stories,” said Franck. “One of them is family, in all its forms. Whether it’s a father/daughter detective duo in a generational crime-mystery in PALOMINO, or two foster siblings like in ROMANCE IN THE AGE OF THE SPACE GOD, or even a ‘family by choice’ like in SILVER where a band of misfits find each other to recreate a family unit and steal from a castle full of vampires, it’s always an affirmation that — even in worlds that are amoral, cynical and transactional — there are people who will always have your back. It’s on you to find them, let them help you, and never let them go. The core idea is that we’re not alone, and I think that’s something we can all relate to.”
Born in heavy times which have not gotten any lighter, ROMANCE IN THE AGE OF THE SPACE GOD is set in a world in erosion, in which the hallowed-out trappings of civil society remain in place, merely existing as a maze for people to stumble through. And then there is the Space God. What is it? What does it want? Is it here to Judge us? To Rule us? To end us? To enlighten all of us or maybe just a select few? Or does it want nothing at all—its inescapable presence an inscrutable void for people to project their existential struggles into?
“ROMANCE IN THE AGE OF THE SPACE GOD is a strange comic for and about strange times,” said Franck. “It is cute and funny, it is sci-fi and dystopian, it has political satire and the kind of slice-of-life that I love. It introduces Nate, Lydia, Anya, all looking for their place in a difficult world, all profoundly human — even though they are adorable little mice. It started as a webcomic, but the plan was for it to be released in print, in an oversized format like a magazine. We did a very, very limited run last year just before San Diego Comic Con and it immediately sold out. The time has come to pull out all the stops and bring this comic to a much wider audience. It’s a little weird gem of a comic, and I hope you will give it a shot!”
A captivating neo-noir crime mystery, PALOMINO begins in 1981 Los Angeles with Eddie Lang, an old-school, hard-ass, hardboiled former Burbank PD detective juggling his 6-nights-a-week gig in the Palomino house band, his P.I. business, and Lisette Lang — his teenage daughter, who might be even more hard-ass and hard boiled than her dad is. But tragedy looms large over their past, and a brand new case that’s hitting a little too close to home upends their lives, sending them each down very dangerous paths. Told with action, suspense, humor, drama, and slice-of-life irony, PALOMINO, 1981 (Volumes 1-3) takes place at the Palomino club’s high watermark, with Eddie leading the investigation in the Wilcox case, while PALOMINO, 1995 (Volume 4-6) takes place in the twilight years of the club, with his now-adult daughter Liz leading the case and bringing the story to its epic conclusion.
“As PALOMINO time-jumps 14 years at the beginning of Volume 4, not only do we transition from the club’s heyday to its twilight moments, but we also pass the baton from one detective to the next,” said Franck. “The world has moved on from the unsolved Eileen Wilcox case, but Lisette — now 29 and going by Liz — hasn’t. So when a routine assignment at one of the Valley’s free weeklies reopens old wounds and Liz takes it upon herself to revisit the case her father was never able to close, she finds herself entering a world of deception and danger where the only way out is through.“
Stephan Franck has worked with some of the most popular characters of all time—including Spider-Man and the Smurfs — and has contributed to classic contemporary animation projects, including Despicable Me, The Iron Giant, and Marvel Studios’ What If…? as head of animation and director. But writing and drawing the graphic novel series PALOMINO is Franck’s passion project. “From my years playing music in clubs, to having raised two amazing and quite hard boiled daughters in Los Angeles, many of my lived experiences converged in PALOMINO with my absolute passion for noir, to create the most personal and lived-in work of my career,” added Franck. “At its core, PALOMINO is about the impermanence of all things we wrongly assume will always be there for us, as a society, as a culture, and about how the only thing that truly remains is the moral fiber of individuals, passed-down from one generation to the next.”
The Kickstarter will feature copies of all five available volumes of PALOMINO, as well as PALOMINO, 1981 box sets, slipcases, and signed book plates from the in-world fictional syndication catalog of Lamaz Television.
Here’s what folks are saying about Stephen Franck:
“Stephan Franck has the unusual gift of being a great writer and an even better artist.”—Jimmy Palmiotti, co-creator of Painkiller Jane
“Writer/artist Stephan Franck is firing on all cylinders.”— NPR
“Great.”—Jim Lee, acclaimed artist and DC Comics Publisher
“”Couldn’t put it down. Want more. Now.”— Legendary Writer Mark Waid
on ROMANCE IN THE AGE OF THE SPACE GOD
To support the project, head to Kickstarter. For updates, follow Stephan Franck on Instagram and Bluesky and Dark Planet Comics on X, Facebook, and Instagram.