By Zack Quaintance — In the time between when we got this preview artwork and when we schedule the post, our next comic — The Hated #1 by writer David F. Walker, artist Sean Damien Hill, colorist Mx. Struble, and letterer Becca Carey — reached its funding goal on KickStarter! So, we’re not able to help push toward the finish line as we first intended, but that doesn’t mean this comic isn’t still worth supporting and getting a hold of.

In fact, you can now pledge and be absolutely certain that it’s going to happen, which is a very good thing because this is an excellent book. You can read all about it below, and you can also check out some preview pages (although no letters yet and the colors aren’t final).

But first — the link to the Kickstarter:

>>CLICK HERE to checkout The Hated #1<<

It is 1872, and the war between the North and South is over. Neither side won. After years of bloody conflict, both sides entered into a truce, resulting in the formation of two nations, the Union States of America, where blacks are free, and the Confederate States of America, where blacks are still enslaved. Araminta Free is a former slave turned bounty hunter. She specializes in crossing the border into the Confederacy, and liberating slaves. She also tracks down Confederate war criminals, which has made her a woman with a price on her head in the southern nation. When a group of Confederate Raiders illegally ventures deep into the Union to kidnap free blacks and sell them into slavery, the stage is set for a deadly showdown between Araminta and the men who want her dead.

Imagine if director Sergio Corbucci (DJANGO, THE GREAT SILENCE) made a western starring Pam Grier as a badass, gun-slinging bounty hunter. Now imagine the story takes place in a world where the Civil War ended differently – instead of a victory for the North, there is a truce, and what had been one country is now two. This is THE HATED.

So, there you have it! We’ll be back next week with another preview of a great small press project.

Click here for past Small Press Previews.

Zack Quaintance is a tech reporter by day and freelance writer by night/weekend. He Tweets compulsively about storytelling and comics as Comics Bookcase.