| Nailbiter | |
| Schedule: | Monthly |
| Ongoing: | N |
| Genre: | Horror, Crime, Psychological Thriller, Drama, Mystery, Police procedural, |
| Publisher: | Image Comics |
| Startmo: | May |
| Startyr: | 2014 |
| Endmo: | March |
| Endyr: | 2017 |
| Issues: | 30 |
| Writers: | Joshua Williamson Mike Henderson |
| Artists: | Mike Henderson |
| Letterers: | John J. Hill |
| Colorists: | Adam Guzowski |
| Editors: | Rob Levin |
| Tpb: | There Will Be Blood |
| Isbn: | 1-6321-5112-X |
| Tpb1: | Bloody Hands |
| Isbn1: | 1-6321-5232-0 |
| Tpb2: | Blood in the Water |
| Isbn2: | 1-6321-5485-4 |
| Tpb3: | Blood Lust |
| Isbn3: | 1-6321-5682-2 |
| Tpb4: | Bound by Blood |
| Isbn4: | 1-6321-5892-2 |
| Tpb5: | The Bloody Truth |
| Isbn5: | 1-5343-0155-0 |
| Tpb6: | Nailbiter Returns |
| Isbn6: | 1-5343-1690-6 |
| Tpb7: | Horror in the Sun |
| Isbn7: | 1-5343-1865-8 |
Nailbiter is a horror comic book series that was created by Joshua Williamson and Mike Henderson, with art by Henderson.[1] [2] The series is published by Image Comics and its first issue was released on May 7, 2014.[3] As of May 2017, the series has been collected into six volumes. The final monthly issue, number 30, was published in March 2017.
The series centers around the fictional town of Buckaroo, Oregon, which has produced sixteen of the United States' worst serial killers, dubbed the Buckaroo Butchers by urban culture. Its most recent creation is Edward Charles Warren, otherwise known as "Nailbiter" due to his predilection for chewing off his victim's nails and part of their flesh. By the series's start Warren has been caught by FBI agent Charles Carroll, but Carroll has since gone missing, leaving it up to his friend and NSA agent Nicholas Finch to search for him. Nicholas decides to start his search in Buckaroo, where he begins to question why the small town has produced so many murderers.
The series is primarily collected in trade paperbacks. The first twenty issues have been republished in hardcover format entitled Nailbiter: The Murder Edition, which includes extra material such as sketches and script pages.
| Trade Paperbacks | Hardcover Editions | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Title | ISBN | Release date | Collected material | Title | ISBN | Release date | Collected material | ||
| 1 | Nailbiter: There Will Be Blood | October 1, 2014 | Nailbiter #1–5. | 1 | The Murder Edition Volume 1 | July 11, 2016 | Nailbiter #1–10. | ||
| 2 | Nailbiter: Bloody Hands | March 17, 2015 | Nailbiter #6–10. | ||||||
| 3 | Nailbiter: Blood in the Water | September 15, 2015 | Nailbiter #11–15. | 2 | The Murder Edition Volume 2 | March 20, 2018 | Nailbiter #11–20. | ||
| 4 | Nailbiter: Blood Lust | April 12, 2016 | Nailbiter #16–20. | ||||||
| 5 | Nailbiter: Bound by Blood | November 8, 2016 | Nailbiter / Hack/Slash Special, Nailbiter #21–25. | 3 | The Murder Edition Volume 3 | May 7, 2019 | Nailbiter #21–30 | ||
| 6 | Nailbiter: The Bloody Truth | May 9, 2017 | Nailbiter #26–30 | ||||||
| 7 | Nailbiter: Nailbiter Returns | October 28, 2020 | Nailbiter Returns #1–5 | ||||||
| 8 | Nailbiter: Horror in the Sun | March 24, 2021 | Nailbiter Returns #6–10 | ||||||
Williamson and Henderson teamed up to produce a sequel series entitled Nailbiter Returns.[4] It begins one day after the conclusion of the original series and delves further into the mythology surrounding the Butchers of Buckaroo.[5] The first issue was released on June 3, 2020,[6] concluding with issue #10 on February 24, 2021.[7]
Critical reception for the series has been mostly positive.[8] [9] [10] [11] Newsarama called it a "masterful bit of horror".[12] Comic Book Resources panned Nailbiter
Nailbiter was awarded "Best Horror Comic" by USA Today in both 2014[19] and 2015. It was also the #1 comic on Horror Talks "Best of 2015."[20]