Viper Comics Encourages You to Use Your “Five Senses” in New Digital Comic

If he doesn’t use them, Chad Bowman will certainly lose them.

Written by Jake Black with artwork by Justin Wayne, the latest title from Viper Comics, Five Senses, is a bit of a departure from the typical superhero fare. Taking place in Seattle, the book stars Chad Bowman– an up and coming entrepreneur with dreams of hitting it big in technology and an all around selfish arse, who happens to witness the murder of a waitress he just met. The considerate person that he is Bowman lies to the police, telling them that he did not actually see the killer, just so he can make his “big presentation.” However, when Bowman decides not to come forward and the murders continue a “mysterious force” begins to systematically strip him of his five senses. It’s a pretty interesting set-up that takes the crime thriller genre and adds just a slight touch of horror by way of the Saw franchise.

In issue #0 (due out this Friday via digital distributor’s iVerse, Graphic.ly, and Comixology) we are introduced to the book’s core cast that so far includes Bowman and a as-yet unnamed detective. As mentioned above, Bowman comes across as a real self-centered prick… he’s obsessed with money and fame, rides around with high dollar hookers, and cares more about saving his own ass than having any part in being a witness to murder. I’m not sure if it’s Black’s intent to make Bowman so unlikable that his redemption is all the more worthwhile, but at this point it’s incredibly hard to get behind him as the hero of the book.

Visually, Wayne’s artwork is pretty solid throughout the book with a variety of interesting perspectives to his panels and plenty of curvaceous females for eye candy. Aside from the hairstyles, though, all of the women in the book are pretty interchangeable with the same hour glass shape – it would have been nice to see a little variety in such a big city. Bowman and the detective on the other hand are pretty diverse character designs with the former taking on a somewhat Tony Stark/Patrick Bateman sort of look and personality (sans the alcohol abuse or homicidal tendencies).

Along with the upcoming issue, Viper Comics and video editor Jaron Pitts have also released this fan made trailer made with footage from Limitless and a few other films. It’s a pretty cool bonus and, oddly enough, seeing Bradley Cooper in the role of Chad Bowman helps to define the character for me a bit. I’m definitely interested in seeing how the seed planted in this teaser issue plays out over the course of the series. Will Bowman succumb to losing all 5 senses or will he do the right thing? Who is the mysterious killer stalking the streets of Seattle and what’s the connection to the entity that’s haunting Bowman?

Five Senses is due out this Friday, September 23 via iVerse, Graphic.ly, and Comixology.