Bad Karma (Hardcover)

By Alex De Campi, Ryan Howe, Dee Cunniffe. Published by Image. 

Hardcover, 312 pages, Colour, 2023. 

After finding out Aaron Carter, an innocent man, is on Death Row for a mercenary job they did 10 years ago, down-on-their luck army veterans Sully and Ethan go on a Christmas road trip to free him. Turns out nobody’s interested in Aaron’s innocence, but someone is very interested in making sure Sully and Ethan don’t live to see the New Year. They just didn't figure on one thing: Ethan's ex-wife Cheryl.

Collects the hit Panel Syndicate action/comedy series by writer Alex de Campi (Dracula, Motherf**ker!, No Mercy, Twisted Romance) and artists Ryan Howe (True War Stories; Daisy Blackwood: Pilot for Hire) and Dee Cunniffe (Indigo Children, Emissary, Joe Fixit).

Select praise for Bad Karma:

"The plot by De Campi is gleeful pulp, complete with a climactic showdown worthy of a Hollywood blockbuster, but beneath the car chases and explosions lies a deeper, darker exploration of people broken by the military-industrial complex trying to piece themselves back together. Howe has a knack for capturing the body language of old friends, and his clean, firm inks and simple yet dynamic page layouts, with bold coloring by Dee Cuniffe, move the action along at full speed. De Campi is emerging as a top-notch writer of non-superhero action comics, with a gift for collaboration. This outing will thrill fans of the genre." —Publishers Weekly

“Beautifully told and illustrated, Bad Karma surprises with humor and heart. A great story of good people trying to rigth a past wrong.” –Duncan Jones, director, Moon, Mute, World of Warcraft, Source Code

“Bad Karma perfectly illustrates how misguided decisions of the past, regrets over what went wrong, and our own pervasive traumas will always, always catch up to us, often in pyrotechnic ad painful ways. This is a story that trades in the hyper-real of now, our own fractured culture and its crumbling decorum and ideals, and it does not relent. A must-read for the unflinching story and art that forces you not to look away or ignore the truth.” –Christopher Cantwell, co-creator, Halt & Catch Fire; writer, Dr Doom, Iron Man

“Comedy, violence, socio-political commentary, Bad Karma has it all. An absolute blast to read!” –Steven S. DeKnight, showrunner, Daredevil, Spartacus; director, Pacific Rim 2

‘With a biting wit and stylishly expressive art, Bad Karma is both explosive and heartfelt – the kind of action-comedy Hollywood doesn’t make any more.” –Cliff Chiang, artist and writer, Wonder Woman, Catwoman: Lonely City

“Steeped in contemporary Americana, Bad Karma beautifully depicts the highs and lows of loyal friendship.” –Declan Shalvey, artist and writer, Time Before Time, Bog Bodies, Old Dog

“I never served in the military and I haven't even been to Boston before, but I recognize the characters in this comic. Unlike so many individuals drafted with a set of easy identifiers and characteristics, Ethan, Sully, and Cheryl walk into the first few panels of Bad Karma as fully-realized people.” –ComicBook.com

“Bad Karma wonderfully combines pain, humor, trauma, and black ops mercenary work into a story that is at times thrilling, heartbreaking, hilarious, innovative, and above all else… human.” –Joe Henderson, showrunner, Lucifer