EC Comics is set to unveil the origin of the horror host The Tormentor in CATACOMB OF TORMENT #11, written and illustrated by Dustin Weaver, releasing on May 20th.

The press release follows:

Media Release – DISCOVER THE TANTALIZING, TERRIFYING TRUTH ABOUT THE TORMENTOR! Oni Press, the multiple Eisner and Harvey Award–winning publisher of groundbreaking comics and graphic novels since 1997, and William M. Gaines Agent, Inc. are proud to announce that the strange and sordid secret origin of the horror host known as The Tormentor will finally be revealed in all-new story by acclaimed writer/artist Dustin Weaver (Avengers, Infinity) in EC Comics’ CATACOMB OF TORMENT #11 – on sale May 20th!

Find EC CATACOMB OF TORMENT #11 on eBay!



EC’s very own Mistress of Malice, the Tormentor, finally takes center stage to reveal her hopes (“to see your bone marrow!”), dreams (“slathering you in scalding oil!”), and aspirations (“finding excruciating new ways of using the ball peen hammer!”) in this VERY SPECIAL and EXTRA BLOODY tale of who she is and how she came to be! The issue “marks” the first time that EC Comics and Oni Press have divulged the bloody backstory of one of the three new EC horror hosts – The Grave-Digger, The Tormentor, and The Grim Inquisitor – with a tale both written and drawn by modern EC Comics master Dustin Weaver, who designed and co-created EC’s all-new masters of menace. The revelation of the Tormentor’s untold origin continues a frightening EC Comics tradition; the Crypt-Keeper's origin was revealed in EC publisher and co-editor Bill Gaines, Al Feldstein (Vault of Horror) and Jack Davis’s (Two-Fisted Tales) "Lower Berth" in Tales from the Crypt #33, and the Old Witch's origin was revealed in "A Little Stranger” in The Haunt of Fear #14, written by Al Feldstein with art by Graham Ingels (Crime SuspenStories).

"I took inspiration from the resurrection of EC COMICS we have right now,” says cartoonist Dustin Weaver. “You can't kill the human desire to tell and enjoy horror stories. The Tormentor, as a horror host, revels in this hallmark of humanity. In the end, it's a storyteller, and will always be a storyteller, who'll have the last laugh."

In addition to this “all-scar” celebration of Her Royal Majesty of Pain, EC CATACOMB OF TORMENT #11 features more new tortuous tales from the depths of the Tormentor’s catacomb including “Type M for Murder,” written by Matt Bors (Toxic Avenger) and drawn by Fabiana Mascolo (Catwoman), and “Every Cut a Lie,” from writer Liam Johnson (Armitage) and artist Arjuna Susini (Lamentation).

Don't miss our most devilish ish yet—or The Tormentor will leave you for last! Catch the bizarre birth of the Catacomb’s very own hostess of horror in CATACOMB OF TORMENT #11, on sale May 20th and featuring cadaverous covers from Dustin Weaver, Jorge Fornés (Batman), Shawn McManus (Fables), and Patricia Martín (Murder Drones)!

For more updates on Oni Press, visit them on Bluesky, Facebook, and Instagram.

EC CATACOMB OF TORMENT #11
WRITTEN BY DUSTIN WEAVER, MATT BORS & LIAM JOHNSON
ART BY DUSTIN WEAVER, FABIANA MASCOLO & ARJUNA SUSINI
COVER A BY DUSTIN WEAVER
COVER B BY JORGE FORNÉS
EC HOMAGE VARIANT (1:10) BY SHAWN McMANUS
B&W ARTIST EDITION VARIANT (1:20) BY DUSTIN WEAVER
ARCHIVE EDITION (1:50) BY PATRICIA MARTÍN
ON SALE MAY 20th, 2026 | $4.99 | 32 PGS. | FC

About EC Comics

As the birthplace of Tales from the Crypt, MAD magazine, Weird Science, and more of the most influential and celebrated comic series ever published, EC Comics has cemented itself as one of the central nerves of American pop culture with a legacy that spans more than seven decades. From 1944 to 1956, EC—established as “Educational Comics” by founder M.C. Gaines and later rebranded “Entertaining Comics” under the leadership of publisher and editor William M. Gaines—led a creative renaissance for the comics industry that, for the first time, elevated the once-derided comics medium into the echelons of English literature and high art. Heralded as “one of the great explosions of vox-pop literature” by Time magazine and “fiercely honest, politically adversarial, [and] visually masterful” by The Comics Journal, EC’s line of comics books—which collectively sold more than ten million copies annually at their peak—entertained and informed in equal measure, using brilliantly crafted tales of horror, science fiction, satire, and battlefield conflict to critique and subvert America's dark impulses toward violence, racism, inequity, environmental destruction, and war.

Forcibly shuttered by the Comics Code Authority—a pro-censorship group specifically tasked with eradicating EC’s illuminating influence from the American comic book industry—in 1956, EC’s unique brand of subversive storytelling lived on through the continued success of MAD magazine, which would fuel American counterculture through the death of publisher William M. Gaines in 1992. EC’s titles and stories have been adapted in a number of media—including HBO's long-running Tales from the Crypt franchise of television series and feature films—and continue to be celebrated by multiple generations of comic creators, filmmakers, comedians, and musicians as a seminal influence.

Today, EC Comics’ canon of classic stories can continuously be found in print through new editions at Dark Horse Comics, Taschen, Fantagraphics, and IDW Publishing. In 2024, EC announced a new partnership with multiple Eisner- and Harvey Award–winning publisher Oni Press to produce the first all-new EC Comics titles in nearly seventy years.

About Oni Press

THE LOUDEST THING IN COLOR SINCE '97. For nearly 30 years, Oni Press has carved a distinctive path as one of the world's most respected and acclaimed publishers of award-winning comic books and graphic novels, including Bryan Lee O'Malley's Scott Pilgrim, Maia Kobabe's Gender Queer, Cullen Bunn & Brian Hurtt's The Sixth Gun, Brenna Thummler’s Sheets trilogy, Jay Stephens' Dwellings, Ezra Clayton Daniels' Upgrade Soul, LySandra Vuong's Covenant, and many hundreds more. In 2019, Oni Press merged with Lion Forge Comics – the Eisner Award-winning independent comic book publisher founded by Academy Award-winning producer and entrepreneur David Steward II – to create one of the largest, independent libraries of comics content anywhere in media. The Oni-Lion Forge Publishing Group now exists as a publishing subsidiary of Steward’s diversified global media company, Polarity.

The Oni-Lion Forge Publishing Group publishes more than 60 original and licensed graphic novels annually, in addition to an extensive roster of periodical comics for globally recognized properties including Adventure Time, Biker Mice from Mars, Choose Your Own Adventure, Cult of the Lamb, EC Comics, Murder Drones, Rick and Morty, and more.

PLEASE NOTE- As an eBay Partner Network Affiliate, I earn from qualifying purchases. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. The links are designed both to help you find the products, and to help support ComicList.

This is an independent ComicList post by original editor Charles LePage while GoCollect is inactive.