“What a strange new world, to have such creatures in it!”Forced into hiding by a global ecological cataclysm, humans emerge from their underground warrens half a millennium later to discover that the Earth has been totally transformed. All of the familiar flora and fauna are gone, replaced by a radically altered natural order populated by rampaging dinosaurs and strange new creatures. It takes guts, grim determination, ingenuity and a whole lot of old-fashioned luck just to survive, much less thrive, in this alien wilderness—all qualities that ace mechanic Jack Tenrec, lovely scientist Hannah Dundee and their friends possess in abundance.But even the worthiest of these hardy souls are hard-pressed to surmount the obstacles presented by their new homeland. And when those trials are further compounded by the underhanded and selfish actions of the cutthroat human scavengers they encounter, even the best-equipped and bravest among them might not endure.Xenozoic combines lush and richly realized ink-and-brush artwork with a pulp-fueled narrative to create an action-packed fantasy—an unrelenting adventure that also serves as a subtle cautionary fable concerning the unforeseen consequences that shortsighted present-day decisions might have upon future generations.
"History as you think you understand it does not exist, Griff. The world you think you know is actually a construct fashioned from the fears of the human race." The contours of her eyes were soft and inviting, but, if you looked straight into them, they got sharp and feral. "I don't lie, Griff. Ever. In my world, if you need to lie, it's already too late." A scientist working to develop a new source of limitless energy is dead, and the man who was hired to protect him needs to know why. The dead man's niece and a mysterious manuscript from his laboratory safe may hold all the answers, or they may lead down an endless rabbit hole ending in madness and cataclysm. Now the man named Griff must decide how far he can trust the girl--and how much he is willing to risk--as he stumbles blindly toward the powers that control our fates. Storms at Sea is Mark Schultz's new, heavily illustrated novella that explores the border between what we want to believe is true and the reality that we'd prefer to keep concealed.From a crime-fiction framework, it opens up into a breathtaking journey through cryptic history, cautionary science-fiction and a speculative vision of the deep future The story is told through 31 pages of prose and 31 full-page illustrations.
The first thing you can count on in any collection from Mark Schultz is a kind of subject matter, featuring outre situations involving daring men and women, and, often, fearsome beasts. The second thing you can count on is his allegiance to certain graphic medium--generally brush and ink, and graphite and charcoal, but sometimes watercolor too. The third thing you can count on is that, although the subject matter and media stay consistent, his design, draftsmanship and control of his presentation are always evolving and growing, Here, in Carbon 2, his work has become noticeably bolder--more viscerally engaging. Carbon 2 follows its predecessor by three years, and in those years Mark's work has become something more solid, and at times almost sculptural, as he continues to refine his attempts to put to paper the visions he sees in his head. Featuring conceptual studies as well as finishes, Carbon 2 gives us a look into that process. Of course there are plenty of lovely warrior women, including more in the Pulpette series, as well as portraits of his Xenozoic characters, Hannah Dundee and Jack Tenrec, negotiating dire straits.There is also sword and sorcery, ancient mythic tableaus, and otherworldly science fiction to satisfy the most diverse tastes. And there are preliminaries and rejected pieces from Storms at Sea, and, (spoiler alert) design work and character studies from Mark's new in-progress Xenozoic graphic novel. Qua hoon! The large-format Carbon 2 will feature over 50 of Mark's newest works across its pages.
