This one is a heavy-hitting week in indie comics and pop culture. You won’t want to miss this Crowdfunding Round-Up!
10 year anniversary! klub zin #5: roots
Creators: Klub Zin
Goal: $6,233
End Date: May 1, 2026
Goodies: Get the digital copy for $10, the book for $25, the entire collection for $32, or at higher tiers, get the entire digital and physical copies for $106 and much more!
5th issue of klub zin – an independent comic and illustration magazine. This year’s topic is “roots” and features 20 artists.
klub zin #5: roots does something incredible with its project; it carries ten years of history into a single release, and you physically see it in how it’s put together. This anniversary issue brings in 20 artists, each interpreting the idea of “roots” in their own way, so the book constantly shifts in tone, style, and perspective while still staying grounded in a shared theme. It’s that range that makes it worth your time, because you’re stepping into a curated space where voices from across the indie scene come together and push against each other in interesting ways. The production matches that ambition too, with a full-color, over 100-page format and a lineup of limited rewards that feel considered rather than thrown in. With the campaign nearly funded and the clock almost out, this is the kind of project you check out now or miss entirely, and it’s worth catching while it’s still within reach.
Become a backer here.
Westside: Volume 1 – Moody small-town crime drama (52 pages)
Creators: Justin Giampaoli (Writer), Dave Law (Illustrator)
Goal: $3,750
End Date: May 21, 2026
Goodies: Get the digital copy for $10, get the physical cover A and B for $15, or the double bundle for $30, and much more!
Two deputy sheriffs investigate a series of unsolved violent crimes in California’s Central Valley.
It is not Studio 12-7’s first time on the roundup, and there’s a clear reason they keep showing up. Their newest project, Westside: Volume 1, leans into a grounded, slow-burning crime story and builds its weight from there. It pulls you deep into California’s Central Valley through a series of violent, unresolved cases that feel uncomfortably close to reality. The setup is simple on paper: two deputies, one worn down and barely holding it together, the other still believing the job means something, yet it manages to build a tension that comes from how quickly that optimism starts to crack and what’s left over in its place. With Dave Law’s black-and-white art, layered with heavy ink washes, the comic creates a stark, almost suffocating atmosphere where every scene feels loaded. There’s a clear sense this story is pulling from real places and real experiences, and that honesty carries through, making it one to lock into early if you want something that sticks.
Become a backer here.
ARKS PROXIMAN 1-2
Creators: Rory Collins (Writer), Natalie Malla (Writer), Andrew Morris (Artist)
Goal: $2,021
End Date: May 19, 2026
Goodies: Get the digital copy for $11, the physical copy for $25, the story so far bundle for $41, or at higher tiers, get the War of Light PDF bundle for $75, and much more!
A dying boy must cross 7,483 miles of radioactive wilderness to resurrect his parents… while feeding himself to his backpack.
Arks Proximan 1–2 comes in loud with a concept that sticks immediately, a dying boy crossing thousands of miles of radioactive wilderness while surviving off a living, grotesque backpack that quite literally feeds on him, and it only gets heavier the deeper you go. Set against a backdrop of real scientific theory, the story leans into this “science-faction” space where biology and technology blur together, giving everything a grounded edge even when the ideas get pretty extreme. What lands is how personal it feels underneath all that scale, with Odd’s journey framed by loss, survival, and a slow, painful understanding of what it takes to keep going. The art and world building match how intense it is, pushing into something harsh, strange, and hard to shake. With the campaign already funded and expanding, this is one of those projects that feels fully locked in on its vision and worth checking out if you want sci-fi that takes risks and commits to them.
Become a backer here.
THE FORGOTTEN FIVE
Creators: New Pain Productions
Goal: $6,500
End Date: May 11, 2026
Goodies: Get the digital copy for $12, the Danica Brine variant for $25, the newsprint nostalgia edition for $30, or at higher tiers, get the TFF tote bag for $60 and much more!
Alex Segura, Sara Century, Pat Kennedy, and Dean Kotz bring you the first 60-PAGE chapter of The Forgotten Five.
The Forgotten Five starts with a familiar shape: it follows five former “gifted” teens who were taken and experimented on, then steadily pushes it into something more personal and uneasy. The teens are left to rebuild lives that never fully settled into place until the present-day storyline doesn’t rely on nostalgia for their powers so much as it leans into what lingers after them, the fractures in identity, the strained relationships, and the way the past keeps reopening itself at the worst possible time. The dual timeline structure really brings everything together, cutting between what they were forced into and what they’ve become, so each reveal carries a kind of aftershock. Visually and narratively, it shakes things up so much that the story stays focused on clarity and character pressure, letting silence and implication do as much work as action. With a finished 60-page opening chapter and a polished creative team, the project has built its own world and offers a superhero framework that is really about consequence and what it costs to be made into something you never asked for. It’s The X-Men meets Love and Rockets, and that really is enough to sell anyone on the project.
Become a backer here.
THE CONSUMED
Creators: Juston McKee (Writer/Illustrator)
Goal: $2,500
End Date: May 25, 2026
Goodies: Get the digital copy for $5, the comic book for $15, a signed copy (with doodle) for $25, and more!
A brand-new, creator-owned, dark fantasy-inspired comic by Juston McKee (UPPERMINDINK).
There’s a darkness that leaks from the core of all things, searching for strong minds to bend to its will. That line alone was enough to lock me into Juston McKee’s new Kickstarter project, The Consumed. A dark fantasy story centered on two brothers chasing an ancient relic. However, what really sold me was McKee’s beautiful cover art, a lone knight draped in a blue cape, seated on a rock with his sword resting across his shoulder. Above him, the title hits in blood-red lettering. I couldn’t take my eyes off of it, and the best part? The story quickly frames itself as something heavier than a standard quest. This is a 36-page, full-color book that uses fantasy to get at something real: family, loss, and the strain of watching someone you love fall into addiction.
It’s deep, and from the first time you open up that project page, you can tell the love and care that was poured into this comic. It makes you want to know more, all while McKee’s art carries the same intensity as the premise. It feels like a collision of Lord of the Rings scale, Elden Ring’s dark fantasy, Andrew MacLean’s raw energy, and the grit of Crom-era fantasy, all filtered through McKee’s hand. Projects like this are why people pay attention to Kickstarter in the first place, because The Consumed comes through with a clear voice, a strong visual identity, and a story that carries real weight behind the fantasy instead of just coasting on the genre.
You can feel the intent in every part of it, from the premise to the presentation, and that kind of focus is what makes a project stick with you long after you’ve scrolled past it. If you’re a hardcore fantasy fan, or even looking for something that pairs striking art with a story that leaves an impression, this is one worth backing while there’s still time. There is always a reason we save the best for last.
Become a backer here.
For more from The Beat’s Crowdfunding Round-Up, check out our archived posts here!
Like this:
Loading…
