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Dark Regards
SOMETIMES YOU BREAK THE INTERNET—AND SOMETIMES THE INTERNET BREAKS YOU! AT LAST—THE TRUE STORY OF THE VIRAL HOAX SO INSANE IT COULD ONLY BE TOLD AS A COMIC BOOK!
From the honestly pretty impressive mind of multi-hyphenate writer-comedian-actor-musician Dave Hill (Tasteful Nudes) and breakout artist Artyom Topilin (I Hate This Place) comes the SHOCKINGLY TRUE, TERRIFYINGLY HILARIOUS, AND ONLY MODESTLY EXAGGERATED tale of how one stand-up comedian forged a secret online identity as America’s first true black metal icon . . . and accidentally started an international incident that almost wiped Gary, Indiana, off the map!
Two decades ago, Dave Hill and his first band set out to rock their high school auditorium in a fury of heavy metal hellfire. They failed miserably. Years later, Dave has made a new life for himself as a rising star in the New York comedy scene—a career where getting laughed at on stage is the entire point and not just a tragic consequence. But when Dave’s metal ambitions are reawakened by the über self-serious “satanic” genre of Norwegian black metal, Dave creates a ridiculously hyperbolic alter ego and a band to match that, together, reignite the spark of his forgotten rock ’n’ roll fantasy. But when Dave’s internet-fueled rumors of Witch Taint—a metal band “so extreme that you must remove all sharp objects from the immediate area” when their music is played—spreads all the way to Europe, his story will spiral dangerously out of control as Norway’s most extreme black metal butchers come to reap their revenge . . . and put everything and everyone Dave holds dear in the crosshairs (of their axes, which, truth be told, don’t actually have crosshairs, but hey, it’s a metaphor).
Collects Dark Regards #1–4.
From the honestly pretty impressive mind of multi-hyphenate writer-comedian-actor-musician Dave Hill (Tasteful Nudes) and breakout artist Artyom Topilin (I Hate This Place) comes the SHOCKINGLY TRUE, TERRIFYINGLY HILARIOUS, AND ONLY MODESTLY EXAGGERATED tale of how one stand-up comedian forged a secret online identity as America’s first true black metal icon . . . and accidentally started an international incident that almost wiped Gary, Indiana, off the map!
Two decades ago, Dave Hill and his first band set out to rock their high school auditorium in a fury of heavy metal hellfire. They failed miserably. Years later, Dave has made a new life for himself as a rising star in the New York comedy scene—a career where getting laughed at on stage is the entire point and not just a tragic consequence. But when Dave’s metal ambitions are reawakened by the über self-serious “satanic” genre of Norwegian black metal, Dave creates a ridiculously hyperbolic alter ego and a band to match that, together, reignite the spark of his forgotten rock ’n’ roll fantasy. But when Dave’s internet-fueled rumors of Witch Taint—a metal band “so extreme that you must remove all sharp objects from the immediate area” when their music is played—spreads all the way to Europe, his story will spiral dangerously out of control as Norway’s most extreme black metal butchers come to reap their revenge . . . and put everything and everyone Dave holds dear in the crosshairs (of their axes, which, truth be told, don’t actually have crosshairs, but hey, it’s a metaphor).
Collects Dark Regards #1–4.
- GenresGraphic NovelsComics
112 pages, Paperback
Published March 24, 2026
About the author
Dave Hill
119 books20 followersThere are multiple authors in the Goodreads database with this name.
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
I actually love this cover and the idea behind this is hilarious. This is one of those stories where you're thinking, what if people just tried to do what seemed like a good idea at the time? And if they ran into other, similar people?
The only problem I had was that I was reading on mobile and it was pretty wordy, but it's a funny story.
Thanks to NetGalley for letting me read this
The only problem I had was that I was reading on mobile and it was pretty wordy, but it's a funny story.
Thanks to NetGalley for letting me read this
July 24, 2026
There's one joke and it's that everyone who is super into metal (extremely extreme) is actually a big softie. Skippable unless you like that one joke portrayed over and over again.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
You know the old saying “Never judge a book by it’s cover”? I absolutely did that with this one. I have been approved as an automatic reviewer for Oni Press on NetGalley so as i was browsing the options for a digital ARC This one hit me with strong “This is Spinal Tap”, “Detroit Rock City”, and “Deathgasm” vibes. Thank you to Oni Press and NetGalley for allowing me to read this for a review.
I love Heavy Metal but I’m not a big fan of Death or Black Metal. Big Black Sabbath (The Ozzy Years) fan and I enjoy some of Judas Priest and Pantera. The premise of this had me laughing reading the synopsis.
From the honestly pretty impressive mind of multi-hyphenate writer-comedian-actor-musician Dave Hill (Tasteful Nudes) and breakout artist Artyom Topilin (I Hate This Place) comes the SHOCKINGLY TRUE, TERRIFYINGLY HILARIOUS, AND ONLY MODESTLY EXAGGERATED tale of how one stand-up comedian forged a secret online identity as America’s first true black metal icon . . . and accidentally started an international incident that almost wiped Gary, Indiana, off the map!
Two decades ago, Dave Hill and his first band set out to rock their high school auditorium in a fury of heavy metal hellfire. They failed miserably. Years later, Dave has made a new life for himself as a rising star in the New York comedy scene—a career where getting laughed at on stage is the entire point and not just a tragic consequence. But when Dave’s metal ambitions are reawakened by the über self-serious “satanic” genre of Norwegian black metal, Dave creates a ridiculously hyperbolic alter ego and a band to match that, together, reignite the spark of his forgotten rock ’n’ roll fantasy. But when Dave’s internet-fueled rumors of Witch Taint—a metal band “so extreme that you must remove all sharp objects from the immediate area” when their music is played—spreads all the way to Europe, his story will spiral dangerously out of control as Norway’s most extreme black metal butchers come to reap their revenge . . . and put everything and everyone Dave holds dear in the crosshairs (of their axes, which, truth be told, don’t actually have crosshairs, but hey, it’s a metaphor).
This was just a fun adventure of a metal nerd turned slightly hero. The artwork by Artyom Topilin is just perfect for the story. The style kind of made me feel like I was reading comics from the days when I was a kid and where the panels may not have been massively detailed, every one had just the right detail to still bring me into the story and keep reading. Here are some of my favorite alternate covers that were included in this Deluxe Edition:
*(Check our brunnersbar.blog to see the full review with images)*
With this being a graphic novel and collecting issues 1-4 there is no waiting for the resolution to the story. This was very well developed and doesn’t leave us hanging at the end. Each character gets their own little panel for where are they now which I really enjoyed. This was the perfect amount of funny, and action that made it a very fast read and fun.
If you are at all curious about this it is well worth the read. this edition will be hitting bookshelves and readers on March 24. I you would like to get your pre-order in now follow this link.
Overall it was a fun read. I would add this to my collection. Solid 🥃🥃🥃🥃 read and highly recommended to my fellow metal brothers and sisters 🤘🏻🤘🏻
I love Heavy Metal but I’m not a big fan of Death or Black Metal. Big Black Sabbath (The Ozzy Years) fan and I enjoy some of Judas Priest and Pantera. The premise of this had me laughing reading the synopsis.
From the honestly pretty impressive mind of multi-hyphenate writer-comedian-actor-musician Dave Hill (Tasteful Nudes) and breakout artist Artyom Topilin (I Hate This Place) comes the SHOCKINGLY TRUE, TERRIFYINGLY HILARIOUS, AND ONLY MODESTLY EXAGGERATED tale of how one stand-up comedian forged a secret online identity as America’s first true black metal icon . . . and accidentally started an international incident that almost wiped Gary, Indiana, off the map!
Two decades ago, Dave Hill and his first band set out to rock their high school auditorium in a fury of heavy metal hellfire. They failed miserably. Years later, Dave has made a new life for himself as a rising star in the New York comedy scene—a career where getting laughed at on stage is the entire point and not just a tragic consequence. But when Dave’s metal ambitions are reawakened by the über self-serious “satanic” genre of Norwegian black metal, Dave creates a ridiculously hyperbolic alter ego and a band to match that, together, reignite the spark of his forgotten rock ’n’ roll fantasy. But when Dave’s internet-fueled rumors of Witch Taint—a metal band “so extreme that you must remove all sharp objects from the immediate area” when their music is played—spreads all the way to Europe, his story will spiral dangerously out of control as Norway’s most extreme black metal butchers come to reap their revenge . . . and put everything and everyone Dave holds dear in the crosshairs (of their axes, which, truth be told, don’t actually have crosshairs, but hey, it’s a metaphor).
This was just a fun adventure of a metal nerd turned slightly hero. The artwork by Artyom Topilin is just perfect for the story. The style kind of made me feel like I was reading comics from the days when I was a kid and where the panels may not have been massively detailed, every one had just the right detail to still bring me into the story and keep reading. Here are some of my favorite alternate covers that were included in this Deluxe Edition:
*(Check our brunnersbar.blog to see the full review with images)*
With this being a graphic novel and collecting issues 1-4 there is no waiting for the resolution to the story. This was very well developed and doesn’t leave us hanging at the end. Each character gets their own little panel for where are they now which I really enjoyed. This was the perfect amount of funny, and action that made it a very fast read and fun.
If you are at all curious about this it is well worth the read. this edition will be hitting bookshelves and readers on March 24. I you would like to get your pre-order in now follow this link.
Overall it was a fun read. I would add this to my collection. Solid 🥃🥃🥃🥃 read and highly recommended to my fellow metal brothers and sisters 🤘🏻🤘🏻
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
Many thanks to Oni Press and NetGalley for keeping it metal with Dave Hill’s hilarious and absurd Black Metal odyssey Dark Regards. I wasn’t exactly sure what I was getting into with these 4 issues that are now combined into one volume, but when I read the description about how a stand-up comedian’s attempts to promote his fictious black metal band Witch Taint by disparaging Norwegian black metal bands, I knew I had to check this out. I was glad to see that Lords of Chaos also serves as a reference point for this book, and that author Hill was able to find the humor in the book. When I first read Lords of Chaos, I couldn’t finish it. It was so bleak and dark, but I’m glad that I returned to it a few years later and was able to read through the cannibalism and Thanatos to find the humor in how extreme these Norwegians wanted to be. Ultimately, their pursuit of Mayhem (pun intended) led to violence, murder, and church burnings as a way to prove their metal/mettle. Hill focuses more on some of the absurdities of these Scandinavian scallywags like the desire to use torches for lighting in a record store. However, Hill also maintains the threats and extremes that these bands are willing to go to in order to be the bleakest, darkest, harshest sounding band around. Plus, he creates some killer band names like Rectal Heresy, Devil’s Snot, and Odin’s Pile.
The story is a little slow to start, but once Dave is turned on to Nachthammer, Viking Colon, and Misery Buffet (more realistic sounding bands) by uber-cool record store worker Tierny, he’s visited y Lord Abscess, one of the singers who died from self-cannibalism. Again, this sounds almost like something you’d read in Lords of Chaos. Just like Dave, I sometimes can go to extremes when I hear a new genre of music, especially music that’s hard and heavy. However, Dave goes even more extreme, developing a fake band and trolling real Norwegian black metal bands, which eventually brings them to the US to hunt him down. Dave eventually gathers a group of metal maniacs to form the band Witch Taint. However, with the arrival of the Nordic Warriors, Dave and Witch Taint will have to battle these true black metalheads to prove whether they are extremely extreme. This was a really fun story to read, with lots of great references to metal, not just Norwegian black metal. Also, the artwork by Artyom Topilin was great. It’s extremely colorful, and yet the artistry really captures some of the darker elements of metal. I loved the way the Norwegians are portrayed as big and hulking. Dave’s corpse paint is also well done. Sometimes with these kinds of absurd stories the art might be overdone or too comedic, but I found a nice balance between humor and horror that helps to capture these complementary tones of the story. I especially loved the alternate covers in the back of the volume that reference classic metal albums from the likes of Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, and Dio. This was just a fun read, although I wish there was more of Lord Abscess. Hopefully there are more stories in the works about this character. Dark Regards is a fun and wild ride. Highly Recommended!
The story is a little slow to start, but once Dave is turned on to Nachthammer, Viking Colon, and Misery Buffet (more realistic sounding bands) by uber-cool record store worker Tierny, he’s visited y Lord Abscess, one of the singers who died from self-cannibalism. Again, this sounds almost like something you’d read in Lords of Chaos. Just like Dave, I sometimes can go to extremes when I hear a new genre of music, especially music that’s hard and heavy. However, Dave goes even more extreme, developing a fake band and trolling real Norwegian black metal bands, which eventually brings them to the US to hunt him down. Dave eventually gathers a group of metal maniacs to form the band Witch Taint. However, with the arrival of the Nordic Warriors, Dave and Witch Taint will have to battle these true black metalheads to prove whether they are extremely extreme. This was a really fun story to read, with lots of great references to metal, not just Norwegian black metal. Also, the artwork by Artyom Topilin was great. It’s extremely colorful, and yet the artistry really captures some of the darker elements of metal. I loved the way the Norwegians are portrayed as big and hulking. Dave’s corpse paint is also well done. Sometimes with these kinds of absurd stories the art might be overdone or too comedic, but I found a nice balance between humor and horror that helps to capture these complementary tones of the story. I especially loved the alternate covers in the back of the volume that reference classic metal albums from the likes of Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, and Dio. This was just a fun read, although I wish there was more of Lord Abscess. Hopefully there are more stories in the works about this character. Dark Regards is a fun and wild ride. Highly Recommended!
April 14, 2026
My Selling Pitch:
Comedian pens graphic novel to exaggerate an already unfunny joke.
On my do not read list.
Pre-reading:
The cover reminds me of Scooby Doo and the Hex Girls.
(obviously potential spoilers from here on)
Thick of it:
This reads like a group of Reddit men got really high and made this because it's just so funny, bro!
Post-reading:
I feel like this comic is more of an inside joke rather than something meant for the masses. It’s satire but it’s the humor equivalent of an ironic t-shirt. This would do numbers with mustache finger tattoo people, but it’s just gonna earn a side eye from everyone else. It’s very Reddit, dude-bro forum coded. I love Ben Palmer’s trolling, and I thought this would have similar vibes, but it didn't work for me. I think just a book of the sent emails would've been funnier to me.
The art’s fine, but nothing I would seek out. I think you're safe to skip this one.
Who should read this:
Ironic humor fans
Ideal reading time:
Anytime
Do I want to reread this:
No
Would I buy this:
No
Similar books:
* Groupies by Helen Mullane-paranormal horror graphic novel, musicians, queer, historical
* Benjamin by Ben H. Winters-graphic novel, meta fiction, sci-fi, thriller, time travel
* Gunpowder Prophets by Justin Jordan-paranormal horror graphic novel, camp, thriller, historical, family drama
* Punk’n Heads by Dave Baker-graphic novel, contemporary, family drama, queer, autism
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Comedian pens graphic novel to exaggerate an already unfunny joke.
On my do not read list.
Pre-reading:
The cover reminds me of Scooby Doo and the Hex Girls.
(obviously potential spoilers from here on)
Thick of it:
This reads like a group of Reddit men got really high and made this because it's just so funny, bro!
Post-reading:
I feel like this comic is more of an inside joke rather than something meant for the masses. It’s satire but it’s the humor equivalent of an ironic t-shirt. This would do numbers with mustache finger tattoo people, but it’s just gonna earn a side eye from everyone else. It’s very Reddit, dude-bro forum coded. I love Ben Palmer’s trolling, and I thought this would have similar vibes, but it didn't work for me. I think just a book of the sent emails would've been funnier to me.
The art’s fine, but nothing I would seek out. I think you're safe to skip this one.
Who should read this:
Ironic humor fans
Ideal reading time:
Anytime
Do I want to reread this:
No
Would I buy this:
No
Similar books:
* Groupies by Helen Mullane-paranormal horror graphic novel, musicians, queer, historical
* Benjamin by Ben H. Winters-graphic novel, meta fiction, sci-fi, thriller, time travel
* Gunpowder Prophets by Justin Jordan-paranormal horror graphic novel, camp, thriller, historical, family drama
* Punk’n Heads by Dave Baker-graphic novel, contemporary, family drama, queer, autism
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Read
January 17, 2026That's two comics about Scandinavian black metal from Netgalley in two weeks, and I assure you it's not a topic I seek out. But where The Creeping Below had a few hints of the genre's ridiculousness as undertow in a folk horror story, Dark Regards is fully focused on the humour value of an extremely silly scene whose adherents seem to take it entirely seriously. Written by comedian Dave Hill (presumably not the one from Slade), it's the 'true' story of how he renamed himself Lance, King of Black Metal, and started contacting black metal bands and labels to tell them their output was not nearly so brutal or extreme as his as-yet-nonexistent band, Witch Taint. Now, that bit I think genuinely is true, and I find it all too easy to believe there really is a band called Rectal Heresy, but I'm pretty sure the rest of these ludicrous misadventures are invented or at least heavily augmented, and none the worse for that. I Hate This Place's Artyom Topilin provides suitably kvlt art, even if the band logos are disappointingly legible.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
This was one of those stories where you have no idea what is going on, but the story is so fun and engaging, you just sit back and enjoy the ride.
After failing to launch his high school band, Dave has found life as a comedian, until he is introduced to Norwegian Death Metal. This reignites his love and metal and desire to start a band, but that band isn't exactly welcomed by others.
This story is so off the wall, you just feel compelled to keep reading it to see what happens next. The plot never gets too out there to pull you out of the story, but rather stays just weird and silly enough to keep you hooked.
The art perfectly fits the Death Metal vibe, reminiscent of magazines like Heavy Metal and album covers for the genre.
This is only the first volume of a continuing story, but it's something I'm going to look forward to!
After failing to launch his high school band, Dave has found life as a comedian, until he is introduced to Norwegian Death Metal. This reignites his love and metal and desire to start a band, but that band isn't exactly welcomed by others.
This story is so off the wall, you just feel compelled to keep reading it to see what happens next. The plot never gets too out there to pull you out of the story, but rather stays just weird and silly enough to keep you hooked.
The art perfectly fits the Death Metal vibe, reminiscent of magazines like Heavy Metal and album covers for the genre.
This is only the first volume of a continuing story, but it's something I'm going to look forward to!
April 9, 2026
I come out slightly disappointed of Dark Regards, that has everything to appeal to me, it's comedy, it's metal, it's absurd.
Loved the art at the general story is fun and quirky and some of the moment to moment dialogue is funny, but even though it's incredibly short, it felt like it ran out of steam and the thin story they had was stretched. It gets repetitive, some of the jokes feel super redundant because they are used so much in so little time.
I might've had too much expectations. If Goodreads had allowed half stars, I might've given it 3.5.
Loved the art at the general story is fun and quirky and some of the moment to moment dialogue is funny, but even though it's incredibly short, it felt like it ran out of steam and the thin story they had was stretched. It gets repetitive, some of the jokes feel super redundant because they are used so much in so little time.
I might've had too much expectations. If Goodreads had allowed half stars, I might've given it 3.5.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
Thank you to NetGalley for the eARC of Dark Regards by Dave Hill.
This graphic novel was funny, ridiculous, and metal af.
A really fun and fast-paced story where a bunch of like-minded-metal-loving people just act on complete instinct.
This graphic novel was funny, ridiculous, and metal af.
A really fun and fast-paced story where a bunch of like-minded-metal-loving people just act on complete instinct.
April 15, 2026
This book was hilarious. Dave Hill's writing reminds me a lot of Frank Conniff's writing. I hope Dave does more comics.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews