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= The Minions of Ka =

Weaving historical facts into horrifying fiction, The Minions of Ka graphic novel series represents, what many people in the industry are calling, an exciting re-imagining of the entire zombie genre. In this bold new world, many of history's greatest disasters, such as The Great Fire of London and The Black Plague, are actually attempts to cover-up attacks of the undead.

The Minions of Ka Series was created in 2007 by Dave Wilbur, Michael Furno, and Michael Ahearn, collectively Zombie Omega, Inc, and the first book was officially released in August of 2008 at DragonCon in Atlanta, GA. The first Minions project was managed by Christian Beranek, features interior art by Chris Moreno and Mario Boon, and was edited by world-renowned horror author Jack Ketchum, who also contributed The Western Dead, an original short story based on the The Minions of Ka series. The cover is a one-of-a-kind work of art created exclusively for the project by legendary artist Ken Kelly. Based on the merits of the original book, Zombie Omega, has signed a movie option with Ahmet Zappa and Christian Beranek of Monsterfoot Productions, Inc.

The company's trailer for their first offering in the series, voiced by Academy Award-nominated actor Danny Aiello, can be viewed on YouTube.

Book Two in The Minions of Ka series is presently in production and is slated for release in 2010. The second book delves even deeper into the lore of Ka and the influence his presence has had on history as we don't know it; including the source of Haitian voodoo, what happened to the Jamestown Colony, and what Madam Curie was researching when she won her second Nobel Prize.

Series Summary
What exactly is the truth behind zombies? Where did they come from?

Recorded history tells us that from the birth of civilization, human beings have searched for the secret to eternal life, but that no one has ever succeeded in finding it.

Are you sure?

While the past cannot be undone, moments in history can easily be rewritten to cover up the facts of events. World leaders, and those who follow them, can easily manipulate the masses into believing only what is presented, and not what is necessarily accurate. The reality behind the death of Cleopatra, of the Crusades, of political struggles, and of the world's wars will never be found in “approved” texts. No history book will volunteer that many of the greatest fires, plagues, and natural disasters throughout the ages were man-made. All is not what it seems.

As everything is a link in a seemingly endless chain, true history can, and must, be discovered covertly; in secret safety from those in power. Every effect must have its cause.

Zombie Omega, Inc. has combed through historical “fact,” curiously cross-checked figureheads and dates with fervor, and has, at long last, revealed the origin story of zombies, finally putting a name, and a face, to the first of their kind … Ka.

During King Narmer’s obsessive quest for eternal life in ancient Egypt, the accidental discovery of Ka let loose the world’s most ultimate power … and deadliest weapon. For thousands of years since, world leaders have fought to wield the power of eternal life-in-death for their own selfish gain; always failing to realize that the mere possession of power comes to no good without also the knowledge to control it.

Do not be fooled any longer into believing that zombies are simply the mindless victims of an unidentifiable infection. More than this, they are a tool. A means to an end. A means to our end if those who possess Ka are not controlled.

The power of Ka has compelled the course of history for centuries, affecting everything from how governments and churches were formed, to which countries rose to power, and, more disturbing, how their populations were, and perhaps still are, controlled.

Whether infected directly or indirectly … we are all The Minions of Ka.

Interviews & Articles
http://www.comicon.com/ubb/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=540004#Post540004

http://www.petesbasement.com/node/202

http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id=19855

http://roberthood.net/blog/index.php/2009/02/09/the-minions-of-ka-crawl-from-the-grave/

Foreword of Book One by Jack Ketchum
"You gotta love a zombie. Gotta love their single-mindedness. A zombie's hungry. He wants to chomp, and that's about it. No hidden agendas. No deceptions. No hiding by day and feeding by night--and no paraphernalia like crosses and holy water--like his silly vampire cousins. No power-plays. No pecking order. With a zombie, what you see is what you get. Even if what you get can be pretty nasty. A zombie's got one organ only that makes any difference to him ... The brain. Hey, that's why you gotta shoot him there, remember? And as we all know--unless you're maybe an anti-Darwinist or right-to-lifer--the brain is not only the seat of such really cool stuff like language, motor activity, sensation, breathing, cognitive function, startle response, and speech, it's also the seat of what we call the soul. Not the heart, you crazy vampire-stakers, you sentimental old tin-pan-alley songsmiths. The heart's just a nicely-designed pump. The brain. The brain's responsible for compassion. For empathy. For joy. For just about everything we do or believe that's remotely worthwhile. For soul in every sense of the word.

What's Peter Pan say to Wendy and the boys? Think lovely thoughts. And the next thing you know, they're flying.

But it's responsible for some pretty shady business, too. Not everybody's soul is all that well-developed, after all. Greed immediately comes to mind. As does the will to power. The Minions of Ka is about soul--and the lack of it. Ka's the Egyptian word for soul, of course. It's about what we do when we sell out on our souls for power and greed and the lengths we sometimes have to go to in order to put things right again. That's if they can ever be put right. These are serious concerns. But don't worry. You're not going to get whacked over the head by them. You're going to be entertained. It's zombies, after all. You gotta love 'em." - Jack Ketchum

Additional Credits
Veronia Gandini, Color; Thomas Mauer, Lettering & Book Design