Marvel Comics has announced Black Panther: Blood Hunt — the vampire-centric Blood Hunt event’s first tie-in limited series.
The main five-issue Blood Hunt series by Jed MacKay and Pepe Larraz launches on Wednesday, May 1. Black Panther: Blood Hunt subsequently kicks off at the end of May, hailing from writer Cheryl Lynn Eaton and artist Farid Karami. In the three-issue tie-in series, T’Challa/Black Panther — one of the vampire horde’s first victims — returns home to Wakanda following his recent exile. The Marvel hero soon “finds himself caught in a soul-crushing struggle between protecting his people from his new brothers and satisfying his new overpowering thirst for blood.”
Check out Andrea Sorrentino‘s cover art for Black Panther: Blood Hunt #1 below:
What is Black Panther: Blood Hunt about?
An official synopsis for Black Panther: Blood Hunt #1 reads as follows: “T’CHALLA THE VAMPIRE! Black Panther has been transformed and tasked with carrying out a key mission, but even a dark transformation won’t keep him from his duties to Wakanda — for better or for worse…”
In its official announcement, Marvel further explained that T’Challa would “reluctantly [embark] on a quest from the vampire overlord to find an ancient power” — thus “[t]hreatening his legacy as king as well as his deep connection with the Panther God.” Along the way, he will “unearth long-buried secrets about Wakanda’s own secret history with creatures of the night as Eaton and Karami introduce new blood-sucking villains inspired by real African legend and mythology.”
“Long live the king! Literally! While T’Challa has always been the height of human excellence, steering such a legendary character as he navigates a supernatural battlefield populated with gods and monsters — all while adapting to a form and newfound powers unfamiliar to him — has been a treat,” Eaton said. “T’Challa’s royal status is not just Wakandan in nature, but vampiric as well. And I can’t wait to explore both of those bloodlines. No pun intended!”
“Once I read the script, I was delightfully surprised about where the story was going and how cool the tone and atmosphere were,” Karami added. “The Avengers: Earth’s Mightiest Heroes animated series was my introduction to most of Marvel’s super heroes, and Black Panther was my favorite character there. The chance to draw T’Challa as a vampire battling other vampires and some African mythological demons in such an epic yet dark tale has been a dream come true.”
Black Panther: Blood Hunt #1 goes on sale Wednesday, May 29 from Marvel Comics.
