On today’s episode of the Cryptid Creator Corner I’ve got returning guest John Harris Dunning on the show with me to chat about his new Dark Horse Comics Project, Ripperland, co-written by Steve Orlando, with artwork from Alessandro Oliveri, colors by Francesca Vivaldi, and lettering duties covered by Fabio Amelia. We touched on the project in October when John dropped in for our Horror Movie Recommendation Special that Dark Horse co-sponsored with us, but I wanted to hear the full picture, so we made time during the busy holiday season to sit down again for a bit.

Ripperland is set in a dystopian future where Victorian England has become a historical theme park for American tourists. Alan Moore’s From Hell has been an all-time favorite of mine so it was a delight to hear John’s take on the cultural implications of the Jack the Ripper mythos and the wider nuances he’s exploring about our national identities and how they interact through the detectives in the story working collaboratively to solve a murder. He also shares what the collaboration process has been like working with Steve on the project.

Ripperland is out in stores on January 22, 2025. Make sure to call your shop and have them pull you a copy in advance and check the shelves for his other Dark Horse project Summer Shadows, a steamy romance thriller set on a remote Greek Island that was a favorite of mine in 2024. If you want to hear more about it, check out our 2024 conversation here.

Ripperland

From the publisher

The year is 2188 and Jack the Ripper has returned to London. For the last century, a shattered post-Brexit England has operated as a massive Victorian theme park in exchange for American military and financial protection.

But when an American mogul’s grandson is killed in the heart of London, the delicate status quo is threatened. Is the killer a brilliant maniac? Americans taking advantage of their superior technology? Or the English Underground Resistance, wishing to throw off the yoke of American oppression and re-join the modern world? American Special Agent Jesse Holden and local British Police Detective Edwin Fogg must overcome their clashing ideologies in order to find the truth in the foggy streets of 22nd Century London.

Summer Shadows Trade paperback available April 22nd

From the publisher

By day the Greek islands are all sand, sea and fun…but by night they’re the perfect hunting ground for vampires! Nick Landry is searching for his ex on the unspoiled island of Avraxos. Anthony was the love of his life, and without knowing why he left, Nick can’t move on. But Anthony isn’t the only one to disappear on Avraxos. Coast guard officer Alekos Kourkoulos is on the trail of another young man who disappeared there. Both men had fallen in with the glamorous set onboard a jet-black superyacht moored offshore before vanishing. As the mystery deepens, Nick and Alekos discover that the brighter the sunshine, the darker the shadows…

Acclaimed writer John Harris Dunning (Tumult, Wiper, Salem Brownstone) and talented artist Ricardo Cabral (Wiper) team up again to bring you this darkly seductive horror.

PATREON

We have a new Patreon, CryptidCreatorCornerpod. If you like what we do, please consider supporting us. We got two simple tiers, $1 and $3. I’ll be uploading a story every Sunday about some of the crazy things I’ve gotten into over the years. The first one dropped last week about me relocating a drug lord’s sharks. Yes, it did happen, and the alligators didn’t even get in the way. Want to know more, you know what to do.

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