It has been a few years since The Umbrella Academy ended and Gerard Way went back to dedicating time to his music while teasing a post-apocalyptic concept for another comic. This idea ended up manifesting into My Chemical Romance's full concept album Danger Days-The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys when the band scrapped some music they were working on in favor of Way's comic idea.
With Danger Days we were introduced to Battery City, a place kept safe by Better Living Industries (B.L.I.), after a nuclear fallout hit California. We soon discover that the the “safety” is maintained by keeping the population under control with a combination of happy drugs and a strict police state. The Killjoys are a future occupy-esque gang who thrive on the outskirts of the city, seeking to fight the system and take down B.L.I.
In the videos for Na Na Na (Na Na Na Na Na Na Na) and Sing, we see the Killjoys take on the Draculas and Scarecrows armed with laser blasters in a fight to protect a little girl that both sides want to keep from the other. Why they want her is one of the mysteries to be elaborated upon in the new series Way has created with writer Shaun Simon and artist Becky Cloonan. The cinematically inspired look evokes Blade Runner and 1984 – think dystopian sci-fi meets glam rock.
Here are the videos and link to the preview issue featuring the first tales of the Killjoys before the first full installment hits comic stores.
And keep a look out for a cameo by the great Grant Morrison!
While the MCR Killjoys meet a tragic end protecting the girl, the story continues in the long awaited follow up to The Umbrella Academy. Here is a preview on a My Chemical Romance News Tumblr page.
The True Lives of The Fabulous Killjoys will debut on free comic book day May 4th with the first issue to be released in June.