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![]() Jean-Michel Nicollet's cover for the first issue. | |
Editor in Chief | Tim Seeley |
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Former editors |
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Frequency | Monthly (1977–1985) |
Circulation | 250,000 (2016)[1] |
Publisher | Matty Simmons (1977–1990) Kevin Eastman (1992–c. 2020) |
Founder | Leonard Mogel |
First issue | April 1977 |
Final issue | April 2023 |
Company |
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Country | United States |
Language | English |
Website | HeavyMetal.com |
ISSN | 0885-7822 |
Heavy Metal was an American science fiction and fantasy comics magazine, published between 1977 and 2023. The magazine was known primarily for its blend of dark fantasy/science fiction, erotica, and steampunk comics.
Unlike the traditional American comic books of that time bound by the restrictive Comics Code Authority, the magazine-format Heavy Metal featured explicit nudity, sexual situations, and graphic violence. The magazine started out primarily as a licensed translation of the French science-fantasy magazine Métal hurlant, marking for many Americans their first introduction to the work of European cartoonists like Enki Bilal, Philippe Caza, Guido Crepax, Philippe Druillet, Jean-Claude Forest, Jean Giraud (a.k.a. Moebius), Chantal Montellier, and Milo Manara.