Boom! Studios' Zawa + The Belly of the Beast takes a tasty approach to contemporary fables

Having won over readers with his artwork with James Tynion IV on Wynd and IDW’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, it’s time for artist Michael Dialynas to spread his wings with a new series described by its publisher as a “fable about nature, greed, and good food shared with better friends” — a series that he’s writing as well as drawing. Ladies, gentlemen, and others: get ready for Zawa + The Belly of the Beast.

Let’s let the Eisner Award nominated Dialynas have the first word about this, shall we? “I've done it! I've managed to swindle BOOM! into letting me write and draw my series!” he exclaimed, adding that Zawa + The Belly of the Beast “has all my art passions, from drawing tasty foods to weird creepy monsters in a cottage-core apocalyptic seaside city! This is a story about facing your own fears and standing up for what you believe...plus it has a cute guard cat and a chill chicken. It's gonna be awesome!”

If that’s just whet your appetite — it’s difficult to stay away from the food metaphors, as much as one can try — then here’s a little more information about what to expect: the series centers around the eponymous Zawa, a guardian spirit who’s been trapped inside a mountain by industrialization of her immediate surroundings — something that’s left her with just factory run-off to eat, and a healthy paranoid and distrust of the world as a result. Everything changes when she’s discovered by two local villagers, Bandit and Thatcher, who help her escape… and discover the joys of a good meal in the process.

The series launches November 8 from Boom! Studios. Boom! Executive editor Eric Harburn says of the title, “Ever since seeing the very first doodles of Zawa in Michael’s sketchbook years ago, I’ve been hungry for more – and it’s an absolute thrill to finally watch him bring this world to life as only a master cartoonist could.” If you would like to get a glimpse of what’s to come, you’re in luck… take a look through the gallery below, which includes Dialynas’ covers and interior artwork, as well as variant covers from Jorge Corona & Sarah Stern, and Karl Kerschl.

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Boom! has also been teasing a new project from Tom King and Peter Gross, starting with a San Diego Comic-Con slide…