Spawn's surprise Killadelphia appearance promises big changes for the vampire crime comic

By Will Salmon
published

The streets of Philly are about to get a whole lot redder

Spawn
(Image credit: Image Comics)

There have been many twists and turns over the course of Rodney Barnes and Jason Shawn Alexander's supernatural crime epic, Killadelphia (remember when they revealed that several long dead US presidents are, in fact, vampires?), but arguably none quite as dramatic as the reveal at the end of this month's issue. The final page of Killadelphia #30 sees the series crossover with another franchise in a big way, as Todd McFarlane's Spawn makes a grand entrance.

The issue delves into the life of vampire magician SeeSaw, exploring the impact that an early experience of tragedy had on him. SeeSaw's dabbling with the occult, however, draws the attention of some powerful entities, leading them to dispatch Spawn to clean up his mess.

Writer and creator Rodney Barnes said of the crossover, "It's an honor to have one of the greatest characters ever created to visit our Killa-verse! I cannot thank the great Todd McFarlane for lending us his baby for a spell. We're committed to do him justice."

Spawn

(Image credit: Image Comics)

Artist Jason Shawn Alexander added: "I'm getting to draw the coolest stuff of my career. Spawn entering the Killaverse makes perfect sense as the series has taken on more ethereal and magic elements in the recent arcs. Fans are in for absolute horror insanity!"

This isn't the first time that Alexander has drawn Spawn. He has a long history with The One, having been a regular artist on Image's monthly comic.

Killadelphia began in 2019 as a seemingly straightforward crime comic about a Baltimore cop who returns home to bury his detective father. As he investigates further, however, he begins to realise that there's a supernatural evil at work here: vampires. 

Since then, the Eisner Award nominated series has - ahem - spawned a pair of spinoff titles, Johnny Gatlin and Twenty Degrees Past Rigor, which Barnes has promised will eventually crossover with the main title. For now though, the new issue looks like the start of a very exciting arc. 

The cover for Killadelphia #30

(Image credit: Image Comics)

Killadelphia #30 is out now from Image Comics.

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Will Salmon
Will Salmon
Comics Editor

Will Salmon is the Comics Editor for GamesRadar/Newsarama. He has been writing about comics, film, TV, and music for more than 15 years, which is quite a long time if you stop and think about it. At Future he has previously launched scary movie magazine Horrorville, relaunched Comic Heroes, and has written for every issue of SFX magazine for over a decade. He sometimes feels very old, like Guy Pearce in Prometheus. His music writing has appeared in The Quietus, MOJO, Electronic Sound, Clash, and loads of other places and he runs the micro-label Modern Aviation, which puts out experimental music on cassette tape.