''The Pendulum'' is a 12-issue miniseries of

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 ...

s based upon the Dark Carnival universe, a mythology detailed in the music of the

Insane Clown Posse Insane Clown Posse, often abbreviated as ICP, is an American hip hop duo. Formed in Detroit in 1989 as a gangsta rap group, ICP's best known lineup consists of rappers Violent J (Joseph Bruce) and Shaggy 2 Dope (originally 2 Dope; Joseph Utsler ...

. Distributed by

Chaos! Comics Chaos! Comics was a comic book publisher that operated from 1993 until 2002, mostly focusing on horror comics. Their titles included ''Lady Death'', ''Purgatori'', ''Evil Ernie'', ''Chastity'', ''Jade'', '' Bad Kitty'', and ''Lady Demon''. Chaos! ...

, the series was published from January 2000 until December 2001. A

graphic novel A graphic novel is a long-form, fictional work of sequential art. The term ''graphic novel'' is often applied broadly, including fiction, non-fiction, and anthologized work, though this practice is highly contested by comic scholars and industry ...

containing all 12 issues was released on August 20, 2002 along with an album featuring most of the Pendulum singles. It is the group's 5th compilation album, and their 17th overall release. Prologue and Spin-Off Comics, #1 The Upz & Downz of the Wicked Clownz (1999). #2 The Amazing Jeckel Brothers (1999). #3 Raze the Desertz of Glass (1999). Hallowicked (2001). Halls of Illusion (2002).

Creation

In 1999,

signed on to publish a 12-part comic book series about Insane Clown Posse. After choosing

Jumpsteady Robert Bruce (born August 9, 1970) is an American retired rapper and professional wrestler who would go on to become a Don for Psychopathic Records. Bruce is most commonly known by his stage name Jumpsteady. He is the older brother of Violent J ...

as the writer for the series, the group decided to release new singles with each issue. However, due to other responsibilities, the duo was unable to record new material for several issues. Each 32-page issue of the comic was polybagged with a CD single in a cardboard sleeve; the reverse of all 12 sleeves could be combined to form a poster. The first issue was released with a variant cover featuring art from ''

The Amazing Jeckel Brothers ''The Amazing Jeckel Brothers'' is the fifth studio album by American hip hop group Insane Clown Posse, released on May 25, 1999, by Island Records, in association with Psychopathic Records. Recording sessions for the album took place from 1998 t ...

'', advertised as 1 in every 4 issues. On August 20, 2002, a graphic novel of all 12 issues entitled ''"The Pendulum Tome"'' was released. A prologue, special Halloween comic issue, and full-length album was released with the novel. The album featured all of the singles released with the comic book issues, with the exception of the three singles from ''The Pendulum #7'' which was replaced with a spoken word intro.

Plot summary

The miniseries details Insane Clown Posse's attempts to stop a demon named Killnor from destroying a priest named Father Jesus, who possesses miraculous healing powers. Killnor summons the undead duo

Twiztid Twiztid is an American hip hop duo from Detroit, Michigan, known for both their horror-themed lyrics and rock influenced sound. Formed in 1997, Twiztid is composed of rappers Jamie "Madrox" Spaniolo and Paul "Monoxide" Methric. Spaniolo and ...

, a crazed police

SWAT In the United States, a SWAT team (special weapons and tactics, originally special weapons assault team) is a police tactical unit that uses specialized or military equipment and tactics. Although they were first created in the 1960s to ...

team, and a host of demonic minions to stop the clowns. Insane Clown Posse call upon the assistance of the Joker's Cards to overcome the minions. An all-out showdown takes place at the demon's earthly headquarters with the fate of humanity hanging in the balance of the Pendulum.

Music and lyrics

Several songs were also featured on several other albums. The songs "The Amazing Maze" and "$50 Bucks" appeared on the 2000

compilation album A compilation album comprises Album#Tracks, tracks, which may be previously released or unreleased, usually from several separate recordings by either one or several Performing arts#Performers, performers. If by one artist, then generally the tr ...

Psychopathics from Outer Space ''Psychopathics from Outer Space'' is a compilation album featuring Insane Clown Posse, Twiztid, Blaze Ya Dead Homie, Psychopathic Rydas, Ice-T, and Myzery. Released on September 30, 1999 on Joe & Joey Records, the album is a collection of outta ...

''. ''Run'', ''Superstar'', ''Confessions'', and ''Nuttin' But A Bitch Thang'' were later featured on '' Forgotten Freshness Volume 3''. The song "Toxic Love" was also the 2000 Hallowicked single. An alternate, cleaner version of "The Great Show" was used as the entrance music for the

professional wrestling Professional wrestling is a form of theater that revolves around staged wrestling matches. The mock combat is performed in a ring similar to the kind used in boxing, and the dramatic aspects of pro wrestling may be performed both in the ring o ...

stable Oddities in the

World Wrestling Federation World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., d/b/a as WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion. A global integrated media and entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into other fields, including film, American football, and vario ...

.Bruce 2003. p. 398–413. The song was featured on the album ''

WWF The Music, Vol. 3 ''WWF The Music, Volume 3'' is a soundtrack album by WWE (then known as the World Wrestling Federation, or WWF). Released on December 29, 1998 by Koch Records, it features entrance theme music of various WWF superstars, all of which were composed a ...

''. The song "I Don't Care" was originally slated for

Dark Lotus Dark Lotus was an American hip hop group based in Detroit, Michigan, United States. Formed in 1998 as a side project of Insane Clown Posse and Twiztid, Dark Lotus was best known as a representative of the horrorcore subgenre. From 1998 to 201 ...

' debut album '' Tales from the Lotus Pod'', but instead appeared on

's ''

Cryptic Collection Vol. 2 ''Cryptic Collection 2'' is a compilation album by American hip hop dup Twiztid. Released on October 22, 2001, it is the second in the Cryptic Collection series, followed by ''Cryptic Collection Vol. 3'', each containing rare tracks not availabl ...

''. The song was later used in

Juggalo Championship Wrestling Juggalo Championship Wrestling (formerly Juggalo Championshit Wrestling) is an American independent professional wrestling promotion founded in 1999 by Violent J (Joseph Bruce) and Shaggy 2 Dope (Joseph Utsler), better known as the hip-hop duo In ...

's highlights video on ''JCW, Volume 2''. The song "Ain't Nuttin' But a Bitch Thang," originally released on Insane Clown Posse's website, is a

dis track A diss track, diss record or diss song (diss – abbr. from ''disrespect'') is a song whose primary purpose is to verbally attack someone else, usually another artist. Diss tracks are often the result of an existing, escalating feud between the ...

directed toward rapper

Eminem Marshall Bruce Mathers III (born October 17, 1972), known professionally as Eminem (; often stylized as EMINƎM), is an American rapper and record producer. He is credited with popularizing hip hop in middle America and is critically acclai ...

. The songs "What Rydas Do Fo Money," "Who Wanna Flex?," "I Don't Wanna Die" were originally intended for solo albums by each member of the group

Psychopathic Rydas Psychopathic Rydas was an American hip hop group based in Detroit, Michigan. Formed in 1999 as a side project of Insane Clown Posse and Twiztid, the group consisted of Psychopathic Records-associated rappers performing under alternate stage nam ...

, but the idea was scrapped. Those 3 songs were the only songs on The Pendulum #7 "The Rydas EP" cd.

Track listing

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Pendulum, The Chaos! Comics titles Comics based on musical groups Cultural depictions of hip hop musicians 2002 compilation albums Insane Clown Posse compilation albums