Image Comics Announces Humbucker, a Crime Graphic Novel Set in New York’s Music Scene

Image Comics and James Tynion IV’s production house Tiny Onion have announced Humbucker, an original crime-thriller graphic novel marking the writing debut of veteran comics editor Eric Harburn.

The book is co-created with artist Simon Gane, whose previous work includes Ghost Tree and They’re Not Like Us. Eisner Award-winning colourist Jordie Bellaire and letterer Aditya Bidikar complete the creative team.

Announced on October 26, 2026, Humbucker is scheduled to arrive in comic book shops in April 2027.

A Record Deal That Turns Dangerous

The story follows Denny, the owner of a struggling independent record label whose ambition has left him drowning in debt. Hoping to rescue his business, Denny tracks down Connor Markes, an influential underground musician who disappeared from public view decades earlier.

Denny bets what he has left on recording Connor’s long-rumoured debut album. The session takes place in a legendary New York City recording studio associated with generations of musicians.

But Connor struggles to perform, tensions rise, and the arrival of Denny’s loan shark turns a risky recording session into a dangerous confrontation.

The premise brings together music-industry ambition, financial desperation and crime, using the recording studio as the setting for a pressure-cooker thriller.

An Editor Becomes a Graphic Novel Writer

Harburn has spent years developing comics as an editor, including projects such as Something Is Killing the Children, The Many Deaths of Laila Starr and BRZRKR. With Humbucker, he moves from guiding other creators’ stories to writing his own.

The graphic novel also reunites Gane and Bellaire, who have collaborated on previous projects.

Humbucker is scheduled for release at comic shops on April 14, 2027. Its wider bookstore release is planned for May 11, 2027, with digital editions also expected.