Broken Frontier

Headlocked, the dramatic wrestling series from AAM/Markosia and Visionary Comics Studio, continues to attract top talent from not only the comic book industry but also the wrestling world. Hot off the announcement of Jerry “The King” Lawler’s involvement; comes the news that acclaimed artist Ron Wilson and TNA wrestling superstar, Shawn Daivari (Sheik Abdul Basir) will be lending their unique talents to the second issue of Headlocked: The Tryout.

Wilson, best known for his runs on The Thing and Marvel Two in One, will be contributing the cover for the second issue of this highly anticipated mini-series. “We met Ron at the Baltimore Comic Con last year and he was looking to get involved with something a little different but something that also excited him creatively”, explains VCS Creative Director C. Edward Sellner. “So we showed him the first issue of Headlocked and it was right up his alley!”

For series creator Mike Kingston, having Wilson on board also had a special significance. “Not only did I grow up reading “The Thing” but Ron Wilson was the artist on the first comic book I ever read (Marvel Two in One #39)!” And to see a guy like that excited about Headlocked and wanting to be a part of it….well, that’s just too cool for words!”

TNA wrestling superstar Shawn Daivari offers a different type of contribution to the series when he goes two dimensional to become a character in the fictional world of Headlocked. According to Kingston, he will be appearing in the series as the WFW superstar, Ayatollah Daivari. The Ayatollah is slated for a brief cameo in the second issue before making a full appearance in the final installment.

“I’ve always approached Headlocked more like a television series than a comic book and I look at Shawn Daivari as an actor making a guest appearance. He’s not playing Sheik Abdul Basir or Khosrow Daivari (his WWE character), he’s appearing as a character specific to the Headlocked world.”

For Daivari, the chance to actually be featured on the printed page was too good to pass up. “Headlocked melded my love of wrestling and comics together and I don’t think there could have been a better job combining the two. It’s a big deal to be immortalized in a comic book, especially for a comic book nerd like myself. So when the opportunity arose for me to take part in a project like this, it was kind of a dream come true for me.”

Kingston says he gets a lot of requests from wrestlers to be included in the book but he's been reluctant to until now. "The cool thing about Daivari was that he read the book and was really excited about it. He wanted to be a part of the story because at the end of the day he's a fanboy just like the rest of us."
 
Headlocked: The Tryout #2 is listed in the September issue of Previews (Diamond Order Code SEP083671) and ships this November. The first issue, featuring a painted cover by WWE’s Jerry “The King” Lawler is also still available for pre-order (Diamond Order Code: AUG083662). You can pre-order at your local comic book store or at online comic book distributors like www.mailordercomics.com.