Vault Comics has announced a new fantasy comedy series called Quests Aside. Set for release in April 2022, the series will be written by Brian Schirmer (Fairlady, Black Jack Ketchum), drawn by Elena Gogou (Campfire Stories, My City) colored by Rebecca Nalty (Bog Bodies, Heavy Vinyl) and designed by Tim Daniel.
“I’ve always loved stories about the thief who wants to take One Last Score, or the outlaw who needs to take One Last Ride,” said Schirmer said in a statement sent to AIPT. “Their eyes are frequently fixed on retiring thereafter. Usually, things don’t work out as they planned. We take this conceit to a fantasy realm, where a legendary adventurer has already actually succeeded in taking One Last Quest, opened a tavern, and got to retire. That’s where we begin.”
So what’s Quests Aside about?
A skeleton, an apprentice mage, and an exiled princess walk into a bar… for another shift at Quests Aside, the local watering hole run by once legendary, now retired adventurer Barrow. When the King privately explains that he plans to shut the place down, Barrow must find a way to hold onto his business and the family he’s built around it. It’s always sunny in the realms!
Schirmer added, “With a set cast of bartenders, servers, and a skeleton cook, Quests Aside — the series and the tavern itself — also features a steady flow of colorful characters heading out to slay a dragon, or returning with a treasure, a few scrapes, and tales to tell. We liken it to high fantasy Cheers or It’s Always Sunny. I wanted to write something that was about friendship and (found) family, and the lengths we’ll go in order to protect, preserve, and (sometimes) exploit those relationships. I also wanted it to be fun, funny, and occasionally absurd.”
“I love this genre of fantasy, the one that takes more traditional fantasy elements and flips them on their head. When designing the world and the characters I tried to follow the same principle. I wanted the book to look familiar to what you’ve seen before, but with a little unique touch,” Gogou said. “For that I took a lot of inspiration from Greek culture, among other things. From the character’s looks and clothes to musical instruments and table top games you’ll notice them playing in the background. I wanted to create a really rich, interesting and fun world and I can’t wait for Brian and me to share this story with you.”
Check out a preview of the first issue below.
For more on this news read the official press release below.
Missoula, MT (1/24/2022): Vault is thrilled to announce the new fantasy-comedy series, QUESTS ASIDE, written by Brian Schirmer (Fairlady, Black Jack Ketchum), drawn by Elena Gogou (Campfire Stories, My City) colored by Rebecca Nalty (Bog Bodies, Heavy Vinyl) and designed by Tim Daniel. It’s Always Sunny in The Realms!
A skeleton, an apprentice mage, and an exiled princess walk into a bar… for another shift at Quests Aside, the local watering hole run by once legendary, now retired adventurer Barrow. When the King privately explains that he plans to shut the place down, Barrow must find a way to hold onto his business and the family he’s built around it.
“I’ve always loved stories about the thief who wants to take One Last Score, or the outlaw who needs to take One Last Ride,” said Schirmer. “Their eyes are frequently fixed on retiring thereafter. Usually, things don’t work out as they planned. We take this conceit to a fantasy realm, where a legendary adventurer has already actually succeeded in taking One Last Quest, opened a tavern, and got to retire. That’s where we begin.”
“With a set cast of bartenders, servers, and a skeleton cook, QUESTS ASIDE — the series and the tavern itself — also features a steady flow of colorful characters heading out to slay a dragon, or returning with a treasure, a few scrapes, and tales to tell. We liken it to high fantasy Cheers or It’s Always Sunny. I wanted to write something that was about friendship and (found) family, and the lengths we’ll go in order to protect, preserve, and (sometimes) exploit those relationships. I also wanted it to be fun, funny, and occasionally absurd.”
“In the world of QUESTS ASIDE you can have your old-time adventures who went on epic quests in their youth, but you will also get heralds with three-neck electric guitars, orc stand-up comedians and 20-year-old mage apprentices with anxiety,” added Gogou. “There are no rules. I love this genre of fantasy, the one that takes more traditional fantasy elements and flips them on their head. When designing the world and the characters I tried to follow the same principle. I wanted the book to look familiar to what you’ve seen before, but with a little unique touch. For that I took a lot of inspiration from Greek culture, among other things. From the character’s looks and clothes to musical instruments and table top games you’ll notice them playing in the background. I wanted to create a really rich, interesting and fun world and I can’t wait for Brian and me to share this story with you.”
QUESTS ASIDE #1 hits store shelves in April, 2022. The entire series will feature a line of hilarious B-cover variants by Michael Dialynas (Wynd, The Woods, Gotham Academy).
Readers can pre-order QUESTS ASIDE issue #1 now by using Diamond order code FEB221768 and/or FEB221769.
The full synopsis for issue #1 can be read below:
A skeleton, an apprentice mage, and an exiled princess walk into a bar… for another shift at Quests Aside, the local watering hole run by once legendary, now retired adventurer Barrow.
When the King privately explains that he plans to shut the place down, Barrow must find a way to hold onto his business and the family he’s built around it.
It’s always sunny in the realms!
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