The Territory Brings Post-Apocalyptic Survival to Image Comics in January

Image Comics is about to drop readers into a world where civilization checked out sixteen years ago and nobody left behind got the memo about playing nice. The Territory arrives January 2027, and this five-issue dystopian action-adventure from Eisner Award-winning writer Joe Pruett and French artist Philippe Xavier is bringing survival, revenge, and a surprising dose of heart into one seriously unforgiving landscape.

Forget a neat little apocalypse with convenient rules. Humanity has been shattered, strength decides who gets to survive, and the wasteland doesn’t care whether you’re ready. In the middle of that mess, a man from a decimated world and a young girl with no past wind up together. Their names are Cooper and Sara, and they’re being hunted across the Territory toward a destiny neither understands yet. A bond they don’t even recognize may be the only thing keeping them alive.

Image is pitching the series as Lone Wolf and Cub meets The Road and Mad Max. That’s one hell of a creative collision: a dangerous road trip, a broken world, and two strangers who might find family when almost everything else has been lost. The redemption-and-revenge angle gives this book more to chew on than another round of people fighting over the last can of beans.

Pruett, whose credits include Viking Moon, Kilroy Is Here, and Cable, is especially excited about getting Xavier’s artwork in front of more American readers. “If you are not familiar with the beautiful artwork that Philippe Xavier has been producing for the French market over the past two decades, then you are in for a treat!” he said in Image Comics’ announcement, pointing to Xavier’s landscapes and attention to detail.

The writer calls The Territory a tale of hope and family amid a world where only the strongest survive. At its core, he says, two people find one another in humanity’s darkest hour and discover something about themselves in the process. That’s the hook right there. You can give readers all the wasteland violence in the world, but if the people at its center don’t mean anything, what are we really doing?

Xavier, known for Tango, Conquistador, and The Serpent and the Coyote trilogy, is bringing his experience with sweeping European comics storytelling to the series. The creative partnership also has history: Pruett and Xavier first met in 1994 and began working on this project in 2024, making The Territory a celebration of thirty years of friendship.

“I had a blast bringing this post-apocalyptic Western world to life,” Xavier said. He also offered readers a warning before heading into the wasteland: “Enter the Territory at your own risk!” Cooper and Sara, apparently, are waiting.

Image isn’t playing around with the cover lineup either. Xavier draws the main Cover A, while Brandon Peterson, Joe Benitez, and Stevan Subic each deliver a variant. Two virgin-cover options round out the initial selection, giving collectors six editions to consider.

The Territory #1 cover lineup:

• Cover A: Philippe Xavier (UPC 70985305013100111)
• Cover B: Brandon Peterson (UPC 70985305013100121)
• Cover C: Joe Benitez (UPC 70985305013100131)
• Cover D: Stevan Subic (UPC 70985305013100141)
• Cover E: Virgin cover by Philippe Xavier (UPC 70985305013100151)
• Cover F: Virgin cover by Brandon Peterson (UPC 70985305013100161)

The Territory #1 hits comic book shops Wednesday, January 6, 2027. Digital readers will also be able to find the series through platforms including Kindle, Google Play, Apple Books, Barnes & Noble Nook, Everand, Kobo, OverDrive, Hoopla, Sweet, and Comics Plus.

This one’s worth keeping on the radar if you like your post-apocalyptic comics with more than just dust, blood, and bad attitudes. Pruett and Xavier are building a brutal world, but the real question is whether Cooper and Sara can hold onto something human inside it. That’s the journey I’m interested in.