CBR has an exclusive preview of Kolchak Meets the Classic Monsters, an upcoming comic book series starring the cult classic horror character Carl Kolchak, aka The Night Stalker. In the new story, Kolchak comes face to face with the monstrous Konga.

Kolchak Meets the Classic Monsters brings together some of the biggest names in horror comics, including Rodney Barnes (Blacula, Killadelphia), David Dastmalchian (Count Crowley, Late Night with the Devil) and Steve Niles (30 Days of Night, Batman: Gotham After Midnight). The comic book event sees the legendary television character taking on cases with iconic monsters, including Dracula, Frankenstein, the Werewolf and now Konga. The Kickstarter campaign for the comics has already raised over $80,000, and the campaign added Kolchak vs. Konga as a bonus story when it reached its $50,000 stretch goal. Fans can support the project on Kickstarter now through Nov. 9.

In CBR’s exclusive preview of Kolchak vs. Konga, a crime scene unfolds after a man is flattened like a pancake inside a giant monstrous footprint. Carl Kolchak gets to work on the case, as the humongous Konga looms over the city of Chicago. Kolchak vs. Konga appears to be based on the 1961 monster film Konga, which tells the story of a doctor returning from Africa with a baby chimpanzee that is given a serum and turns into a ferocious beast. Kolchak vs. Konga is written by James Aquilone with art by Zack Atkinson and letters by Tom Napolitano. The cover art for the new story is by Justin Mason.

In addition to the Kolchak Meets the Classic Monsters comics, the Kickstarter campaign offers fans the chance to get their hands on exclusive and limited edition Kolchak merchandise. Add-ons for the campaign include a Kolchak trading card set, an exclusive limited-edition Challenge Coin, a Kolchak Classic Monster t-shirt and an anthology of Kolchak prose stories available in both eBook and paperback.

James Aquilone, the owner of Monstrous Books and writer of Kolchak vs Konga, spoke with CBR earlier this year about Kolchak’s influence in the world of horror and how the character has remained relevant over the years since his debut in the 1970s. “I love the idea of a writer/reporter as the hero,” Aquilone said. “It’s a very appealing idea for any writer. How can you not love a person who slays the monster and then writes up the story? Kolchak is a fighter for truth, and that’s always relevant.”

In Monstrous Books’ press release for Kolchak Meets the Classic Monsters, David Dastmalchian spoke about his experience writing Kolchak Meets the Werewolf and Count Crowley, another one of the stories featured in the collection. “One of the biggest inspirations for my character — Jerri Bartman aka Count Crowley — is Kolchak,” he said. “I love nontraditional heroes who are thrust into harrowing and thrilling circumstances because of fate. I always hoped there would be a world in which these two monster-hunting journalists could cross paths.”

Kolchak Meets the Classic Monsters is available on Kickstarter until Nov. 9.

Source: Monstrous Books, Kickstarter