In 2010, Chandra Free’s graphic novel The God Machine blew my mind. With beautifully painted art and an incredible story, the graphic novel was originally published with Archaia and sold out entirely. While the second volume was in the works, Archaia was purchased by BOOM! and rights issues prevented a release. Free went on the work on books like Jim Henson’s Fraggle Rock, John Carpenter’s Tales for a Halloween Night, and illustration work for SyFy and others.
Still, The God Machine was something she continued to work on in the background of a busy life, with a planned 13 volumes. 3 are already written, the rest outlined. In 2019, Chandra Free and her partner Stephen Emond created their own publishing entity, Machina Corpse. Having negotiated her rights back, it’s time to get those drafts into print.
The God Machine Kickstarter runs from March 9th to April 10th, with a focus on a complete rerelease of the first: The God Machine, Volume 1: ReVISION. The collection isn’t just revisiting, but features tons of new content, which I am really excited about.
Here’s what Chandra Free had to say:
“This isn’t a revisit,” Free says regarding the project. “This isn’t closure, or nostalgia, but rather a way to finally move forward. This is a great entry point for a new audience and gives a fresh coat of paint and new content for my existing audience. With a successful campaign, I can finally finish the second volume and build from there.”
Speaking of new content, the rerelease is titled a “Re:VISION” for a reason. “I’ve updated some of the dialogue that hasn’t aged well,” Free says, “as well as adding new scenes, redoing art in places, expanding on characters, and making the full story feel fresh.” In addition to the new text, art, and packaging, there’s a new logo and the book has been relettered in full. In addition, Kickstarter allows her to do things she could never do via traditional publishing.
“This is going to be an event,” Free says. “We’re going to have not just the new hardcover book, but we can have prints, posters, pins, all kinds of fun goodies you can get in one stop. It’ll be a whole new package of God Machine. I hope to make every volume feel special like this.”
The God Machine Kickstarter runs from Tuesday March 9 to Wednesday, April 10th. Visit www.thegodmachine.org for more information including a fun animated launch video starring voice actors James Urbaniak (The Venture Bros) and Dana Swanson (Cartoon Network’s Toonami.)
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/machinacorpse/the-god-machine-vol-1-re-vision
Check out a preview of the art below:
