''Head Lopper'' is a

comic book A comic book, also called comicbook, comic magazine or (in the United Kingdom and Ireland) simply comic, is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are of ...

series created by writer and artist Andrew MacLean, currently published by

Image Comics Image Comics is an American comic book publisher and is the third largest comic book and graphic novel publisher in the industry in both unit and market share. It was founded in 1992 by several high-profile illustrators as a venue for creator-ow ...

. The story follows the exploits of the Viking warrior Norgal (or "head lopper", as some call him) and the severed head of Agatha the Blue Witch.

Publishing history

''Head Lopper'' originally began as a self-published project by comics creator Andrew MacLean. In 2015 it was picked up for a four-issue miniseries. The character originated from a piece for Brand New Nostalgia. The theme of the week had been Vikings, and a bearded warrior with a witch's head skewered on his sword was the result.

Self-published issues

''Head Lopper'' #1 debuted at Heroes Con 2013. The first issue was a small print run and thus costly to produce. The second issue was funded via a

Kickstarter Kickstarter is an American public benefit corporation based in Brooklyn, New York, that maintains a global crowdfunding platform focused on creativity. The company's stated mission is to "help bring creative projects to life". As of July 2021, ...

campaign launched October 10, 2013.

Image Comics issues

In 2015

picked up ''Head Lopper'' as a "quarterly adventure comic". The series eschewed the industry standard 22-page monthly issues in favor of a larger issues published quarterly. In April 2016 MacLean announced on various social media channels that Image Comics had picked up ''Head Lopper'' for another miniseries in 2017.

Crossover

In October 2019, Norgal and Agatha appeared in two short stories in ''Rumble '' Vol. 2 #17. The first, "Belly of Hell", was drawn by Andrew MacLean and the second, "Deceitful Above All Things", was drawn by

James Harren James is a common English language surname and given name: *James (name), the typically masculine first name James * James (surname), various people with the last name James James or James City may also refer to: People * King James (disambiguat ...

. Both stories were written by John Arcudi. The events of these stories are in continuity and referenced in ''Head Lopper'' #16. These stories were collected in ''Rumble – Volume 6: Last Knight'' and ''Head Lopper & the Quest for Mulgrid's Stair''.

Collections

Premise

The series follows the adventures of the legendary swordsman Norgal, dubbed the Head Lopper, and his companion, the severed head of Agatha Blue Witch, as they trek across the realm to fulfill their quests, uncovering mysteries whilst encountering friends and foes along the way.

Reception

The Kickstarter for the self-published ''Head Lopper 2: The Wolves of Barra'' was funded with only 544 backers, but strong word of mouth and reviews led to the series being picked up by Image Comics. The Image Comics incarnation of ''Head Lopper'' has had strong reviews since its debut, with MacLean's artwork and sense of humor and Bellaire's coloring receiving consistently high praise.

References

External links

*
Andrew MacLean's official website
{{Authority control 2013 comics debuts Image Comics titles Fantasy comics