Ohio Is for Serial Killers: Puremetal Comics Unleashes a New Breed of Midwest Horror
Horror thrives in places people think they already understand. Quiet towns. Empty roads. Familiar rivers that hide more than they reveal. Ohio Is for Serial Killers Vol. 1: Hatchetman on the Maumee takes that idea and twists it into something far more disturbing, marking the launch of a new horror series from Richard Jones III and published under Puremetal Comics.
This isn’t a safe introduction to horror—it’s an escalation.
At the center of this debut story is the Maumee River, a stretch of water that becomes less of a location and more of a witness to violence, folklore, and psychological decay. Hatchetman on the Maumee builds its terror from the ground up, using regional myth and grounded realism to create something that feels uncomfortably possible. The horror here doesn’t come from distant fantasy—it feels embedded in the soil, in the water, and in the history of the place itself.
Narration plays a major role in shaping the tone of the series. The story is partially told through Vlad, an eerie and unforgettable presence described as a bat eternally nailed to the wall. Vlad is not a traditional narrator—he is trapped, observing, and forced to endure the unfolding events along the river. His perspective adds a surreal, almost mythic layer to the brutality, giving the story a voice that feels both ancient and disturbed. Through Vlad, the horror becomes something watched as much as it is experienced.
Puremetal Comics brings this vision to life with a clear publishing identity: bold, uncompromising horror storytelling that doesn’t soften its edges. Ohio Is for Serial Killers fits squarely into that mission. It is grim, atmospheric, and intentionally unrelenting, leaning into themes of madness, folklore, and violence without hesitation. This is not horror designed to comfort—it is designed to linger.
The series makes its first official appearance in Stories from the Dead, but Hatchetman on the Maumee stands as its opening statement. Ohio itself becomes a central character, reshaped into a place where local legend and real-world brutality blur together. The result is a setting that feels familiar at first glance but quickly becomes alien the longer you stay in it.
For readers and collectors, the upcoming Ashcan release is where this world first becomes physically tangible.
Ohio Is for Serial Killers Ashcan Release
The official Ashcan comic for Ohio Is for Serial Killers Vol. 1: Hatchetman on the Maumee, published by Puremetal Comics, is now available for pre-order here:
https://rlj3.com/ohio-is-for-serial-killers-comic-book/
This special release is a limited 8-page Ashcan edition, offering an early preview of the upcoming 7-page story. It includes 4 preview pages, giving readers their first real glimpse into the world before the full release.
The Ashcan is scheduled for release on July 3rd, 2026, but all pre-orders will ship earlier on June 29th, 2026, ensuring collectors receive their copies ahead of launch.
Each Ashcan is hand signed and individually numbered, reinforcing its role as a collectible piece rather than a standard preview. Even more importantly, the print run is strictly limited to 100 copies total, making this a rare and finite entry point into the series. Once they are gone, they are gone permanently.
A New Kind of Ohio Horror
What makes Ohio Is for Serial Killers stand out is its refusal to treat Ohio as background scenery. Instead, it turns the landscape into mythology. The Maumee River is no longer just a place—it becomes a boundary between reality and something far older and more violent. The Hatchetman legend at the center of the story feels like it has always existed, waiting to be rediscovered rather than invented.
The horror is slow, deliberate, and deeply atmospheric. It doesn’t rely on constant shock value. Instead, it builds tension through implication, tone, and the uncomfortable sense that something is always just out of sight.
With Puremetal Comics backing the release, this series is positioned as part of a larger push toward darker, more experimental independent horror storytelling. It’s a statement piece—both in content and presentation.
The Ashcan is your first chance to step into that world. Small in size, limited in number, but heavy with intent.
The river is waiting. And it remembers everything.
Recent Comments