After the success of its IDW Dark horror imprint, IDW Publishing continues to expand with IDW Crime, a new line devoted to crime books. The imprint launches next month with its first title Seven Wives from the creative team of writer Zoe Tunnell and artists V Gagnon and Tesslyn Bergin-Dicoi.
The series follows the titular seven wives and the mysterious murder surrounding their fundamentalist Mormon husband. It’s an inverted whodunit in the sense that it’s less about the victim and the motive, but who is allowed to commit acts of violence and why. In just the first issue alone, readers are faced with questions about cults, faith, structure, liberation, and cycles of abuse. Rather than take the typical secular route about faith, Seven Wives approaches the conversation with layers and kindness.
Ahead of the release of the first issue next month, The Beat had the opportunity to chat with writer Tunnell about headlining the debut series for IDW’s Crime imprint.
E.B. Hutchins: I’ve watched documentaries Keep Sweet: Pray and Obey as well as Shiny Happy People due to my own curiosity about fundamentalism as a black ex-Evangelical. What inspired incorporating the Fundamentalist Church of Latter Day Saints (FLDS) as a backdrop for this series?
Zoe Tunnell: Well, upfront, I will say that the core concept was part of the initial contact from editor Riley Farmer and IDW, so I can’t take credit for the basic skeleton of “murder in the cult compound.” That being said, I dove into plenty of research after taking the gig. Keep Sweet was one of the first documentaries I watched, and good lord is it haunting. I think the topic is increasingly relevant as more and more hyper-regressive conservative religious movements continue to crop up in the US, if only to serve as one of the more extreme examples of how rough things can get.
Hutchins: While reading the first issue, I was reminded of the quote, “Without faith, there is no refuge” from the book The Unworthy by Agustina Bazterrica. Faith, secular or not, can be a double-edged sword. Seven Wives seems to depict faith as both salvation and damnation alike. Will we see more of these layers in future issues?
Tunnell: You will! I think it’s a fascinating thing to explore. I’m personally not a particularly religious person in my own life, but I’ve always found the peace and strength folks can find in faith–whatever form and religion it takes–something special and so uniquely human. For the cast of Seven Wives (outside of our detective leads), it is a tricky thing because they have spent their entire lives entrenched in the dogma and fervor of Matthew’s vision of faith. When you spend decades or longer in an environment like that, it’s hard to completely ditch it. So even if some of the wives may find their commitment to the Dunn gospel wavering, finding their own interpretation of the lessons they’ve had hammered into their heads and flesh might be a necessity to survive.
Hutchins: It was revealed very early on, to a certain extent, that the “victim” deserved it. Why approach a whodunit this way?
Tunnell: It’s a fun challenge, mostly. The book is never under any apprehension over whether Matthew deserved to die, and that’s very much by design. We live in a world where powerful, abusive men so rarely face consequences for their actions. So, opening with one such man, very much facing them, changes the question from “why is Matthew dead?” to “who did it…and do they deserve to be punished for it?” Which is a far meatier question to dig into, as far as my writer brain is concerned.
Hutchins: Not to get into spoilers, but there’s an undercurrent that carcerality and imprisonment can happen to anyone, regardless of their religious affiliation. Was that intentional, and if so, what was the inspiration for that?
Tunnell: It absolutely was. Frankly, I think if you’re writing a story with police protagonists in the year 2026, you should at the very least acknowledge the reality of our world and the ever-present threat of the carceral state around us. Aguilar, in particular, is a character I wanted to reckon with her role as a detective in a world that is so frequently weighed against women and, especially, women of color. While the Dunn compound has its own terrifying forms of imprisonment and punishment, I felt showing the weight of the more “mundane” forms that we’re desensitized to was equally important.
Hutchins: That was one hell of a cliffhanger at the end, but with all good mysteries, it’s only the tip of the iceberg. What can you tell us about future issues (without spoiling anything)?
Tunnell: There is far more going on than you think! That cliffhanger is something I loved pulling off, but it’s just part 1 of a 3-part story, and if you think you’ve figured out who killed Matthew Dunn…keep reading.
Hutchins: You have a stacked slate of releases this year. How do you manage it all?
Tunnell: I keep moving, like a shark, but with everything cool and scary replaced with a caffeine addiction and a laptop. If I’m being honest, I love writing. It’s absolutely still work, but it’s work I enjoy doing. Even before I was being paid for it, I was writing stories, so I ain’t gonna stop anytime soon.
Hutchins: Lastly, where can we see more of your work?
Tunnell: Well, Seven Wives kicks off a three-week string of new comics from me, which feels bonkers. So after you grab our first issue on May 20th, come back next week for my story in Wiccan and Hulkling: Raid of Ultron and the week after for my story in Monsters in Love: A Pride Special! I should also have my next miniseries announced here in the next week or two, so keep an eye out for that. And I may have another surprise or two heading your way later this year if you aren’t sick of me by then!
Seven Wives #1 will be available on May 20, with the Final Order Cutoff at your local comics retailer on April 13. Check out an exclusive preview below!
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