EC Comics is back and ready to unleash its first series of horror twists and turns in nearly 70 years. Oni Press, in partnership with William M. Gaines Agent, Inc., is previewing the new EC titles, Epitaphs from the Abyss #1.

As Oni Press’ description states, the 40-page first issue is filled with “shocking tales of torment and tension in the immortal EC tradition.” Stories are written by Brian Azzarello, Chris Condon, J. Holtham, and Stephanie Phillips, with art by Jorge Fornes, Phil Hester, Peter Krause, and Vlad Legostaev. The first issue introduces EC’s new horror hosts.

“Due to the nature of my stories, I’ve been asked about EC Comics since I started in this industry,” Azzarello said. “Frederick Wertham and his asinine comics code knee-capped us. Thank God – or my grandmother, who didn’t throw out my father’s comics – that I was able to discover EC in an attic I was forbidden to go in. That subsequent downward spiral has led me to where I am now.”

“As a reader, I am thrilled EC Comics is returning because the present world is beyond ripe for their brand of subversive horror stories,” Phillips said. “As a writer, I could not be more excited to carry the legacy of those subversive horror stories into this terrifying world.”

Covers on the first issue are provided by Lee Bermejo, Andrea Sorrentino with Dave Stewart, Jay Stephens, Rian Hughes, and Dustin Weaver. Bermejo will create a fully painted cover for each issue as the main cover, then each issue will feature variant covers by artists that include Adam Pollina, James Stokoe, and others.

Each new EC release from Oni will come with lines of variant covers. They include a 1:10 incentive variant cover by Jay Stephens that reinterprets a classic EC cover, black and white “Artist Edition” variants by Rian Hughes, and high-end “Archive Edition” covers made on heavy duty stock with UV spot gloss elements and border art by Hughes.