Screen Rant is excited to share an exclusive preview of the upcoming Oni Press graphic novel Let Me Out. This queer horror debut hits stores just in time for Halloween. A tribute to vintage LGBTQ+ cinema and exploitation films, Let Me Out is set in New Jersey in 1979, as the early strains of “Satanic panic” put a group of misfits in dire jeopardy.
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The story follows queer, trans protagonist Mitch Sahadi and his friends Terri, Jackson, and Lupe as they fight prejudice, get accused of murder, and find that the devil might be their best bet out of trouble.
Oni Press Editor-in-Chief Sierra Hahn compares it to horror revenge stories featuring outcasts like The Craft and Carrie. Check out the official preview and synopsis for Let Me Out below.
Related: Exclusive Preview: FACELESS AND THE FAMILY Introduces a Unique, Post-Apocalyptic Found Family
Writer Emmett Nahil Delivers A Promising Debut From Oni Press
The creative team behind Let Me Out begins with Emmett Nahil, a writer and game developer from Massachusetts making his graphic novel debut. His previous works often fall at the intersection of the horror genre and queer representation. His illustrator for the project, George Williams, is an English trans comic artist, who made the art for Dead End: Paranormal Park creator Hamish Steele’s Croc and Roll webcomic. Let Me Out was originally funded through Kickstarter before being picked up by indie publisher Oni Press. The series is a period piece, set on the cusp of the 1980s, and using a proto-“Satanic Panic”-type murder investigation as its inciting plot incident.
When Pastor Holley’s wife, Kelly, is found murdered, FBI agent Garrett takes on the case with local New Jersey Sheriff Mullen. Together they start drumming up a convenient satanic-flavored scapegoat to cover up their own crimes of murder and experimentation. That scapegoat comes in the form of four friends: Mitch, Terri, Lupe, and Jackson. The punks, the queers, and the outcasts. Soon the group becomes the prime suspects of Kelly’s murder. Now on the run from Garrett and Mullen, the group finds themselves in the midst of a deal with the devil themself.
Let Me Out Is Urgent Storytelling For “Punks, Queers, And Outcasts”
Writer Emmett Nahil describes Let Me Out as being about, “how marginalized people are sacrificed on the altars of power.” Preview pages released for the series depict Mitch, Jackson, and Lupe attending a punk show, where Terri’s band “the Real Deal” is playing. George Williams’ art captures the energy of an underground punk gig – and true to many DIY shows of the early punk era, a time Let Me Out is firmly situated within, the cops bust in to break things up and hassle the crowd. Terri is in tears as their instrument is stolen by the cops, and the group flees into the night to avoid arrest.
In addition to the punk rock subculture of the late ’70s, the series’ will draw on the early history of the “Satanic panic” – a social phenomenon which rose to prominence in the U.S. during the 1980s, and continues in various forms to this day, which has resulted in thousands of unsubstantiated claims of ritual abuse and murder by demon-worshipping cults. The “Satanic panic” is widely considered to have been inaugurated by the controversial book Michelle Remembers, released in 1980. Let Me Out’s setting right on the cusp of the panic seems like a deliberate storytelling choice by the author.
Let Me Out promises to take its characters, the “punks, queers, and outcasts” of 1979 New Jersey, on a wild ride, delivering a riveting, relevant tale of terror, one that places emphasis on showing the power of found family and queer friendship, in the face of the demonic arts. How the supernatural will play into the story, and what will become of the series’ protagonists, remains to be seen; what is clear is that Oni Press’ Let Me Out appears to be one of the most exciting releases left on the calendar for the year, arriving just in time for the scary season.
Preview courtesy of Oni Press.
Let Me Out will be available October 3, 2023 from Oni Press.