The Fade Out

The Fade Out
Cover to The Fade Out #1, art by Sean Phillips
Publication information
PublisherImage Comics
ScheduleMonthly
FormatOngoing series
Genre
Publication dateAugust 2014 – January 2016
No. of issues12
Creative team
Written byEd Brubaker
Artist(s)Sean Phillips
Colorist(s)Elizabeth Breitweiser
Collected editions
Act One (#1–4)ISBN 1632151715
Act Two (#5–8)ISBN 1632154471
Act Three (#9–12)ISBN 1632156296
HardcoverISBN 1632159112

The Fade Out is a crime comics series created by writer Ed Brubaker and artist Sean Phillips with the help of colorist Elizabeth Breitweiser and research assistant Amy Condit. Twelve issues were published by Image Comics between August 2014 and January 2016. The story has been collected into three trade paperback volumes and a single hardcover collection.

The story, partly inspired by the life of Brubaker's uncle, is set in 1948 and stars Charlie Parish, a Hollywood screenwriter suffering from posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and fronting for his blacklisted best friend, Gil. When Charlie wakes from a blackout in the same room as a murdered starlet, he and Gil set out to bring her killer to justice. As they learn more about her troubled past, they find themselves up against powerful Hollywood elites who do not want to upset the status quo.

Although Brubaker had been concerned the premise was not commercial enough to have wide appeal, The Fade Out sold better than any of the authors' previous collaborations, and early issues went through several printings. The series received positive reviews from critics.