Eisner nominee Zoe Thorogood takes long-running horror comic Hack/Slash back to school

Cassie Hack is back. — (Image credit: Image Comics)

Horror comic Hack/Slash is back with a new spinoff and a new creator in 2023 Eisner Award nominee Zoe Thorogood.

The four-issue Hack/Slash: Back to School launches in October, just in time for Halloween. Few story details are currently available, but Image's press release suggests that monster hunter Cassie Hack will be dealing with "a murderous bunny mascot, dead kids, and an entire squad of maladjusted teenage serial-killer hunters."

Thorogood said of the new series, "I love the bizarre crossroads of disturbed/sexy/gory/sentimental that Hack/Slash sits at. It's a series of endless absurd possibilities and it's been a real joy to put my spin on it (in the form of a monster hunting school for girls with mommy issues)."

The cover for Hack/Slash: Back to School #1. — (Image credit: Image Comics)

Series co-creator Tim Seeley added, "I've been a fan of Zoe's work since I first saw her comics on Instagram. The fact that she's not only an old school fan of Hack/Slash, but had some big ideas for Cassie and Vlad makes co-creator Stefano Caselli and I proud as can be. She's going to roll right out of the Eisner Awards and tell the untold tales of our sexy slasher dramedy just in time for the 20th anniversary!"

Hack/Slash was created back in 2004. The series follows Cassie and her mysterious partner in monster hunting Vlad as they deal with undead creatures known as "slashers". The series was picked up by Image in 2010 and has, over time, crossed over with other horror properties such as Army of Darkness, Vampirella and Chucky.

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Alternative covers for Hack/Slash: Back to School #1 — (Image credit: Image Comics)

It's a big few days for Zoe Thorogood, who has been nominated five times in this year's Eisner Awards, both for her work on Rain from Syzygy Publishing, and her memoir, It's Lonely at the Centre of the Earth. The award winners will be announced at San Diego Comic Con on July 21.

Thorogood was recently profiled by The Guardian where Tula Lotay was quoted as saying, "Her work is incredible and I have no doubt she’s going to walk away with all those awards."

Hack/Slash: Back to School #1 is published by Image on October 18.

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Will Salmon is the Streaming Editor for GamesRadar+. He has been writing about film, TV, comics, and music for more than 15 years, which is quite a long time if you stop and think about it. At Future he launched the scary movie magazine Horrorville, relaunched Comic Heroes, and has written for every issue of SFX magazine for well over a decade. His music writing has appeared in The Quietus, MOJO, Electronic Sound, Clash, and loads of other places too.