''Razorjack'' is an

independent comic book Alternative comics cover a range of American comics that have appeared since the 1980s, following the underground comix movement of the late 1960s and early 1970s. Alternative comics present an alternative to mainstream superhero comics which ...

created, written and illustrated by

John Higgins John Higgins, (born 18 May 1975) is a Scottish professional snooker player. He has won 31 career ranking titles, placing him in third position on the all-time list of ranking event winners, behind Ronnie O'Sullivan (39) and Stephen Hendry ( ...

, published first by Higgins' own Jack Publishing and later by

Com.X Com.x is a British comic publishing company. History 2000–2002 Com.x was founded in 2000 by Eddie Deighton, Russell Uttley and Neil Googe. Deighton later described how the group came together in 1999: The company published a number of ti ...

Publication history

Razorjack's first appearance was a fifteen-page strip entitled 'Citadel' that appeared in the first and only issue of Higgins' self-published anthology comic ''Razorjack'' ( Jack Publishing,

1999 File:1999 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The funeral procession of King Hussein of Jordan in Amman; the 1999 İzmit earthquake kills over 17,000 people in Turkey; the Columbine High School massacre, one of the first major school shootin ...

). Razorjack returned in a two-issue comic book

limited series Limited series may refer to: *Limited series, individual storylines within an anthology series *Limited series, a particular run of collectables, usually individually numbered *Limited series (comics), a comics series with a predetermined number of ...

published by

2001 The September 11 attacks against the United States by Al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror, were a defining event of 2001. The United States led a Participants in ...

. In May 2018, Higgins and writer Michael Carroll incorporated Razorjack into the

Judge Dredd Judge Joseph Dredd is a fictional character created by writer John Wagner and artist Carlos Ezquerra. He first appeared in the second issue of ''2000 AD (comics), 2000 AD'' (1977), which is a British weekly anthology Comic book, comic. He is the ...

universe in

Judge Dredd Megazine ''Judge Dredd: The Megazine'' is a monthly British comic magazine, launched in September 1990. It is a sister publication to '' 2000 AD''. Its name is a play on words, formed from "magazine" and Judge Dredd's locale Mega-City One. Content Like ...

#396.

Plot

''Razorjack'' tells the story of three college students who inadvertently create an opening into an alternate universe - known by its inhabitants as The Twist Dimension - and consequently become a target for the evil Razorjack. Police officers Ross and Frame investigate the results of Razorjack's killing spree and are drawn into what is potentially the ultimate battle between good and evil.

Collected editions

The ''Razorjack: Collected Edition'' trade paperback () was published in 2009 by Com.X and contains all of the previously published material plus a new four-page short story.21 Questions With John Higgins
Mindless Ones, March 9, 2009 Two limited-edition box-sets of ''Razorjack'' were published by Foruli (with Loco Motive Studios and Com.x) in 2009: The Signature Edition () contains a signed 96-page book in a slipcase (collecting the same material as the trade paperback), accompanied by a signed screenprint. Limited to 45 copies. The Deluxe Edition contains the above plus an original painting by John Higgins. Limited to 15 copies

Reception

Newsarama Newsarama is an American website that publishes news, interviews, and essays about the American comic book industry. It is owned by Future US. In June 2020, Newsarama was merged with the website GamesRadar+, also owned by FutureUS. History N ...

suggested it "comes off as the

Cthulhu mythos The Cthulhu Mythos is a mythopoeia and a shared fictional universe, originating in the works of American horror writer H. P. Lovecraft. The term was coined by August Derleth August William Derleth (February 24, 1909 – July 4, 1971) was an ...

mixed with a really nasty episode of ''

Law & Order ''Law & Order'' is an American police procedural and legal drama television series created by Dick Wolf and produced by Wolf Entertainment, launching the '' Law & Order'' franchise. ''Law & Order'' aired its entire run on NBC, premiering on ...

''" and that " ere are echoes here of

Clive Barker Clive Barker (born 5 October 1952) is an English novelist, playwright, author, film director, and visual artist who came to prominence in the mid-1980s with a series of short stories, the ''Books of Blood'', which established him as a leading h ...

and the aforementioned Lovecraft, but those are just part of a stream of ideas that sail along in a much different way due to the comics format," concluding that " there’s a downside to the volume, it’s that it’s over in a seemingly short period of time."

Notes

References

External links

John Higgins' official website
{{More footnotes, section, date=July 2009

Interviews

5 Questions with John Higgins
Twelve Fingers, April 20, 2009
John Higgins: Interview Part One
Wonderchroma, May 19, 2009
Good, Trashy Fun: An Interview with John Higgins

Forbidden Planet ''Forbidden Planet'' is a 1956 American science fiction film from Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, produced by Nicholas Nayfack, and directed by Fred M. Wilcox (director), Fred M. Wilcox from a script by Cyril Hume that was based on an original film story ...

blog, June 5, 2009
John Higgins’ Razorjack: comic-book villainy has never been so fun
''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...

'', July 1, 2009
On the Razor's Edge Part 1
Broken Frontier, July 20, 2009

Reviews

the X-Axis, April 1, 2001
Razorjackery
Comixology, April 1, 2009
Razorjack review
''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'', April 25, 2009
Razorjack
Eclipse Magazine, June 24, 2009
Razorjack – a taste for handmaidens in fetish gear and terrible dentistry
Forbidden Planet blog, July 24, 2009
Trading Up: Razorjack
Lowdown, Broken Frontier, July 29, 2009 2001 comics debuts