| The Crow | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 The Crow #1 (February 1989). | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Publication information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Publisher | Caliber Press,Kitchen Sink Press,Image Comics,IDW Publishing,Sumerian Comics | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| First appearance | Caliber Presents #1 (Jan. 1989) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Created by | James O'Barr | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| In-story information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Alter ego | Eric | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Abilities |
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The Crow is asupernaturalsuperherocomic book series created byJames O'Barr revolving around thetitular character of the same name. The series, which was originally created by O'Barr as a means of dealing with the death of his fiancée at the hands of a drunk driver,[1] was first published byCaliber Comics in 1989. It became an underground success and was later adapted into afilm of the same name in 1994. It was followed bythree standalone sequels anda television series. Asecond adaptation was released in 2024. Numerous books and comic books have also been produced, albeit published by various different companies.
The Crow has been translated into almost a dozen languages and has sold around 750,000 copies worldwide.[2]
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The Crow first appeared on the back cover ofDeadworld #10 (November 1988); James O'Barr provided a back cover to the first comic book Caliber Press published, which contained an advertisement for the upcoming The Crow appearance inCaliber Presents #1. The ads shows The Crow standing with a smoking shotgun in one hand and a samurai sword in the other, with the statement, "For Some Things...There Is No Forgiveness". It mentionsThe Crow appearing in February 1989.
The Crow's first in-story appearance was inCaliber Presents #1 (January 1989), in the story "Inertia", which serves as a prelude to the main series. O'Barr again provided a back cover for this issue.
The character's first limited series wasThe Crow #1–4 (February–May 1989). Four issues, titled "Pain", "Fear", "Irony", and "Despair", take readers through a series of vengeance tales as The Crow cuts and shoots through Tin-Tin, Tom-Tom, Top Dollar, Funboy and T-Bird, the gang members that attacked and killed him and his lover Shelly.
InA Caliber Christmas (December 1989), Eric reflects back on happier times with Shelly in the story "Atmosphere". InThe Crow graphic novel, this story is placed between issues #2 and 3.
Caliber Presents #15 (September 1990) contained a key preview ofThe Crow #5, titled "Death" which was left unpublished. The preview was a story to conclude the original arc.
Tundra Publishing later reprinted Caliber's first four issues in two double-sized volumes and printed "Death" (also double-sized) as the third volume.
In 1993,Kitchen Sink Press collectedThe Crow into agraphic novel. A limited hardcover edition was also released by Graphitti Designs.
From 1996–98, Kitchen Sink published fivemini-series and aone-shot based on The Crow concept with a new avatar in each series.
Following the Kitchen Sink series,London Night Studios publishedThe Crow/Razor: Kill the Pain in 1998, which saw Eric Draven paired withEverette Hartsoe'sbad girl characterRazor in five numbered issues (#0–4), plus "Finale" and "The Lost Chapter" in February 1999.
In 1999,Image Comics released a newCrow comic series with yet another take on the Eric Draven story. It ran for ten issues, ending in November of that year.
In 2002,Pocket Books re-released the original Crow graphic novel after beingout-of-print for several years.
O'Barr revealed in a 2004 interview that an Author's Edition would contain at least "60 pages of new material that no one has ever seen. Half of that are pages that had to be removed for space reasons". O'Barr described the additions as including "more romance flashback scenes between Eric and Shelly", as well as sequences that would make the work "more visually interesting".[3]The Crow: Special Edition was released on July 28, 2011, published byGallery Books.[4][5]
In July 2012,IDW Publishing published a new five-issue Crow series,The Crow: Death and Rebirth, written by novelistJohn Shirley (co-writer of the original Crow film) and illustrated byKevin Colden.[6]
Six more IDWCrow series followed:The Crow: Skinning the Wolves (2013),The Crow: Curare (2013),The Crow: Pestilence (2014),The Crow: Memento Mori (2018),The Crow: Hack/Slash (2019) andThe Crow: Lethe (2020), as well as two IDW one-shot issues:The X-Files/The Crow: Conspiracy (2014) andThe Crow: Hark the Herald (2019).
In July 2024,Sumerian Comics revealed duringSan Diego Comic-Con that they would be taking over the license to reprint stories as well as publish new stories within the universe. The first reprint announced is The Crow: Dead Time #1 - 3 to be released monthly beginning in October 2024.[7]
The story revolves around an unfortunate young man named Eric. He and his fiancée, Shelly, are assaulted by a gang of street thugs after their car breaks down. Eric is shot in the head andparalyzed; he can only watch as Shelly is savagely beaten, raped, and then shot in the head. They are then left for dead on the side of the road. Eric later dies in the hospital operating room, while Shelly is dead on arrival.
He is resurrected by a crow and seeks vengeance on the murderers, methodically stalking and killing them. When not on the hunt, Eric stays in the house he shared with Shelly, spending most of his time there, lost in memories of her. Her absence is torture for him; he is in emotional pain, even engaging in self-mutilation by cutting himself.
The crow acts as both a guide and goad for Eric, giving him information that helps him in his quest, but also chastising him for dwelling on Shelly's death, seeing his pining as useless self-indulgence that distracts him from his purpose.
The Crow is ranked 37th inIGN's Top 100 Comic Book Heroes.[8]
In 1994, a film based on the comic, titledThe Crow, was released to theaters byMiramax Films. The film was both a critical and commercial success, earning $50,693,129[9] total gross during its theatrical release. A cult following, in part due to the accidental death of its starBrandon Lee on the film's set, has maintained the film's popularity, with a regular staple of movie memorabilia being found at retailers likeHot Topic. Three sequels have been made so far:The Crow: City of Angels (1996), starringVincent Perez (as The Crow),Mia Kirshner,Richard Brooks andIggy Pop;The Crow: Salvation (2000), starringEric Mabius (as The Crow),Kirsten Dunst andFred Ward; andThe Crow: Wicked Prayer (2005), starringEdward Furlong (as The Crow),David Boreanaz andTara Reid.
In the late 1990s, a sequel/reboot toThe Crow entitledThe Crow: 2037 was in the works and would have been set in the future. It was written and scheduled to be directed byRob Zombie, but was ultimately cancelled.[10][11][12][13]
Asecond film adaptation of the original 1989 comic series,[14] directed byRupert Sanders and starringBill Skarsgård as Eric, was released on August 23, 2024, byLionsgate Films.[15]
Atelevision series,The Crow: Stairway to Heaven, aired in syndication in 1998, running for one season. An adaptation of the original comic series, it starredMark Dacascos as Draven.
From 1996 to 2001, a number of novels based on the world and thematic concerns of The Crow were published, mostly byHarper. Authors of these novels included such notable names asChet Williamson (City of Angels novelization andClash By Night),David Bischoff (Quoth the Crow),Poppy Z. Brite (The Lazarus Heart),S. P. Somtow (Temple of Night),Norman Partridge (Wicked Prayer), andA. A. Attanasio (Hellbound).
In 1998, O'Barr and editorEd Kramer asked an array offiction writers, poets, and artists—includingGene Wolfe,Alan Dean Foster,Charles de Lint,Jack Dann,Jane Yolen,Henry Rollins andIggy Pop—to interpret thisGothic fiction phenomenon.The Crow: Shattered Lives and Broken Dreams[16] was released byRandom House on Halloween; and a year later, in a limited signed and numbered volume, byDonald M. Grant Publishing.
The Crow: City of Angels is a 1997 actionvideo game forSega Saturn,Sony PlayStation andMicrosoft Windows. It is loosely based on thefilm of the same name. The player assumes the role of the hero of the film, Ashe Corven. It received negative reviews.[17][18] Ojom GmbH released aj2me game called simplyThe Crow.[19]
There have been five albums of music related toThe Crow and its attendant films:
The Crow is an out-of-printcollectible card game by Heartbreaker Press andTarget Games. It is based on thecomics byJames O'Barr and depicted images from thefilm adaptation. It was released in November 1995 but initially had a release date of March 1995.[20][21] It was one of three sets released by Heartbreaker Press and Target Games in November along with James Bond 007 andKult.[20] The game did not havestarter decks, and instead it had a core set with 122 cards that included 10 foils that had artwork from the comic.[20][22] The game was sold inbooster packs of 15 cards, but no starter packs were available.[22][23] A promo card calledThe Confident Crow was available by mail through proof-of-purchase order.[22][23] An expansion titledCrow: City of Angels was announced for an October 1996 release but never materialized.[20]
Players control Angel, Devil, and Neutral Bystander cards and then send them into combat with "opposing [P]ersonalities". Action cards allow players to pump or hinder a Personality. Each Personality has an attack and defense value, as well as Virtue, which is equal to the highest value. Players play their Personality card and discard cards from their hands equal to the Virtue of the played card, and then they attack. If a player has a higher attack value than their opponent's defense value, the opponent is wounded. If a Personality would be wounded again, it is killed. A player wins by killing 25 Virtue worth of an opponent's Personalities.[20]
Andy Butcher reviewedThe Crow forArcane magazine, rating it a 6 out of 10 overall.[24] Butcher comments that "The Crow is a simple game that would serve as a good introduction to CCGs. There's just enough depth to give it some skill, and the game mechanics are elegant. Experienced players may find it limiting and lacking in lasting appeal".[24]