Diablo: Dawn of Hatred (Free Comic Book Day) Review

On May 3, 2025 — I visited my local comic book shop to get ahold of a copy of Diablo: Dawn of Hatred (Free Comic Book Day) issue #0 by Titan Comics. This preview is the intro to the upcoming ongoing Diablo comic book series. The importance of the series is that it is set after the Diablo IV: Vessel of Hatred expansion’s campaign finale.

Before going into the review, I will provide three photos I took from my copy, and separately, I’ll discuss the story depicted in its 12 pages.

Diablo: Dawn of Hatred (Free Comic Book Day) Review

SPOILER ALERT

The first page of the comic book has an introduction to the story that indicates the story is based post-Diablo IV: Vessel of Hatred. Not in the ancient past.

“Sanctuary’s days grow ever dimmer, but a beacon of Light once again shines on the world: Akarat, a long-dead ascetic whose teachings formed the Zakarum religion, has risen from the grave to bring hope to Sanctuary.

But many wish to see this would-be savior dead, calling him a false prophet. Still others come to him despite ancient misgivings, crimes perpetrated on them by the Zakarum in Akarat’s name.”

The story focuses on a young Barbarian named Derris and the prophet Akarat. This is not the ancient times Akarat, but the resurrected version after the events of the expansion’s campaign. Mephisto roams Sanctuary in possession of Akarat’s body — preserved without decay for centuries inside the Spirit Realm in Nahantu. Word has spread out that Akarat has returned from death. For weeks, Akarat has cured the ill and fed the hungry. Many travel long distances in hopes of crossing paths with Akarat for a miracle. Others wish to serve him and join as disciples.

In a nameless city, A child sits on the streets with a sad face. Food has been scarce and no one has eaten in weeks. A hand with a fruit reaches out at the child. His face shows incredulity and joy. Akarat begins to talk to the people who surround him and announces the dawn of a new age. Not everyone believes his words, however.

The scene is followed by another one in a barren landscape. Possibly, the Dry Steppes. Derris is one of the remaining barbarians of the Fox tribe. These last barbarians carry their leader Selviar on a stretcher through the desert. She heard rumors of Akarat curing the ill and wished to meet him. Ever since the destruction of Mount Arreat, her arm has not healed and disease ails her. Her final days are nigh.

The barbarians track down Akarat for days in the desert and catch up. The people surrounding Akarat are startled by the arrival but Akarat responds that he welcomes everyone who comes to him. Derris doesn’t believe this man to be Akarat, and even if he is, he holds a deep grudge against the Zakarum who killed many barbarians in the past thousands of years in the name of Akarat.

Akarat heals Selviar and she pledges her people to serve and protect him. A mysterious group of mercenaries spy from afar with orders to kill Akarat. This serves as a cliffhanger for the ongoing series.

The colorless inked sketches give the reader the visual grittiness that the Diablo franchise demands. For 12 pages, the story delivers what you would expect from a Diablo comic book but I wish each transition from scene to scene had a description of locations, non-dialogue narration, and that supportive characters had names. The city is not named. The desert is not named. Many of the barbarians that interact with Derris are not named either. Anyone who has read comic books knows that these types of small details are common standards for understanding a story and that goes an extra mile for those of us who are familiar with Sanctuary locations. It is even more of the extra mile for those who never played a Diablo game, read the Diablo comic book, and decide to play the game, then suddenly find locations in-game that were mentioned in the comic book. Those types of small details and cross-referencing them in-game make them priceless.

The back pages provided a little bit of a backstory to each of the main characters:

The last page made it crystal clear that this was not a one-shot issue for the Free Comic Book Day. This is merely the intro to an upcoming Diablo: Dawn of Hatred ongoing comic book series. Whether it is a 6-issue, 8-issue, 12-issue limited series, or a truly ongoing series is yet to be announced. This is what is found in the last page:

Diablo: Dawn of Hatred is published by Titan Comics — written by Cullen Bunn, penciled by Daniele Serra, and inked by Jovanna Plata.

Cullen Bunn

Cullen Bunn is an award-winning writer from North Carolina (USA), with previous credits including Spider-Man, Deadpool, The Sixth Gun, The Last Book You’ll Ever Read and Bone Parish. His original series Harrow County was nominated for an Eisner and Bram Stoker award. You can find multiple of his comic books here.

Daniele Serra

Daniele Serra is an Italian illustrator and three-time winner of the British Fantasy Award for Best Artist. As a comic artist, he has worked with DC, Image, BOOM! Studios, Titan Comics, as well as the illustrations for the three-volume edition of Stephen King’s Tommyknockers. Daniele lives on a Mediterranean island, in his house-studio with his wife, his cats, various exotic insects, and a vast collection of horror movies and books. You can find his works here.

AndWorld Design’s Jame

JAME lives in Monterrey, Mexico. He started hand-lettering independent comic books in the ’90s and has lettered stories with Heavy Metal Magazine for over 10 years. JAME began working for AndWorld Design in 2020, contributing to titles for Titan, DC, Vault Comics, Oni Press, and more — loving every second of it!