Acclaimed Zombie-Genre Author Creates Post-Apocalyptic Malaysia in The Extinction Parade

By Amanda Rozhan • 04 Jun 2018 in Design

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Some might say that the post-apocalyptic genre filled with zombies, killer rainclouds, road-warrior Australians and the lot have become a little overdone. Whether you love it or hate it, it continues to be a popular genre in literature and the entertainment industry from The Walking Dead to The Vampire Diaries, there is usually something for everyone.

Author Max Brook is considered one of the driving forces behind the zombie renaissance, with his first book The Zombie Survival Guide jump-starting the zombie apocalypse-prep subculture, and its graphic novel companion Recorded Attacks debuting at #1 on the New Times Bestseller list. Things continued to accelerate for Brook’s as the movie adaptation of his second book World War Z starring Brad Pitt turned into a 2013 major horror blockbuster.

Brooks continued publishing novels and also became a comic book writer within the zombie-genre. His graphic novels include The Zombie Survival Guide: Recorded Attacks, The Harlem Hellfighters, and The Extinction Parade–which turned some heads here in Malaysia recently.

Wow. buku apa ni. Why Malaysia? pic.twitter.com/tQ1luPLUyi

— LilMilo (@hazizi_rikimaru) June 1, 2018

The Extinction Parade particularly caught some attention on Twitter last night. In a nutshell, it tells the story of vampires preventing the extinction of the human race by battling the zombie apocalypse. What is so special about this zombie vs. vampire graphic novel to the rest? The 12-issue series is set in Malaysia.

The Extinction Parade began as a short story that was published by The Daily Beast, but it soon manifested into something more. Later adapted to a comic book series published by Avatar Press with artwork from Raulo Caceres; Brooks sets out in this graphic series exploring how vampires, considered “superior” beings, would fare in the face of a zombie epidemic that is wiping out the human race–their food source.

Brooks told PreviewsWorld in an interview that he spent a great deal of time researching for this graphic novel that now he has a “closet full of SouthEast Asian machetes.” You can see through some of the covers above that the research paid off, small details such as the featuring of the keris, parang and many more.

He also stated that he wanted to get the setting to be as geographically accurate as possible stating that he takes screencaps from Google Maps to send to his illustrator.

With characters donning Malaysian traditionalwear (including East Malaysian outfits), and cultural references to traditional weapon design and Malaysian landmarks, many are celebrating our country’s features in the comic book series.