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''Chew'' is an
American comic book An American comic book is a thin periodical literature originating in the United States, commonly between 24 and 64 pages, containing comics. While the form originated in 1933, American comic books first gained popularity after the 1938 publ ...
series about a U.S.
Food and Drug Administration The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA or US FDA) is a List of United States federal agencies, federal agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Health and Human Services. The FDA is respo ...
(FDA) agent, Tony Chu, who solves crimes by receiving psychic impressions from whatever he consumes as food, no matter what. It is written by
John Layman John Steele Layman (born August 2, 1969) is an American comic book writer and letterer. Layman is most known for his writing published by Image Comics: ''Chew'', its spin-off/midquel series ''Chu'' ('' Saffron Chu''), the stand-alone ''Outer D ...
with art by
Rob Guillory Robert Guillory (born June 2, 1982) is an American comic book artist known for his art on ''Chew (comic), Chew'', published by Image Comics. He currently writes and draws ''Farmhand (comics), Farmhand'' published by Image Comics and writes ''Mosel ...
and published by
Image Comics Image Comics is an independent American American comic book, comic book publisher and is the third largest direct market comic book and graphic novel publisher in the industry by market share. Its best-known publications include ''Spawn (comics) ...
across the storylines '' Taster's Choice'', '' International Flavor'', '' Just Desserts'', ''
Flambé Flambé (, , ; also spelled flambe) is a cooking procedure in which Ethanol, alcohol is added to a hot pan to create a burst of flames. The word means "flamed" in French language, French. Flambéing is often associated with the tableside presen ...
'', '' Major League Chew'', '' Space Cakes'', ''
Bad Apples The bad apples metaphor originated as a warning of the corrupting influence of one corrupt or sinful person on a group: that "one bad apple can spoil the barrel". Over time the concept has been used to describe the opposite situation, where "a ...
'', '' Family Recipes'', ''
Chicken Tenders Chicken tenders (also known as chicken goujons, tendies, chicken strips, chicken fingers, or chicken fillets) are chicken meat prepared from the pectoralis minor muscles of the bird. These strips of white meat are located on either side of the ...
'', '' Blood Puddin''', '' The Last Suppers'', and ''
Sour Grapes The Fox and the Grapes is one of Aesop's Fables, numbered 15 in the Perry Index. The narration is concise and subsequent retellings have often been equally so. The story concerns a fox that tries to eat grapes from a vine but cannot reach them. ...
''. The series has won two
Eisner Award The Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards, commonly shortened to the Eisner Awards, are awards for creative achievement in American comic books. They are regarded as the most prestigious and significant awards in the comic industry and often referred ...
s and two
Harvey Award The Harvey Awards are given for achievement in comic books. Named for writer-artist Harvey Kurtzman, the Harvey Awards were founded by Gary Groth in 1988, president of the publisher Fantagraphics, to be a successor to the Kirby Awards, which were ...
s. ''Chew'' first issue was released in June 2009, and the series concluded with its 60th issue in November 2016, with a
crossover Crossover may refer to: Entertainment Music Albums * ''Cross Over'' (album), a 1987 album by Dan Peek, or the title song * ''Crossover'' (Dirty Rotten Imbeciles album), 1987 * ''Crossover'', an album by Intrigue * ''Crossover'', an album by ...
one-shot One shot may refer to: Film and television * One-shot film, a feature film shot in one long take with no edits, or manufactured to look like so * ''One Shot'' (2005 film), a Sri Lankan action film directed by Ranjan Ramanayake * ''One Shot'', a ...
, ''
I Hate Fairyland – I Hate Image ''I Hate Fairyland'', also known as ''Fuck Fairyland'', is a black comedy fantasy comic written and illustrated by Skottie Young, and published by Image Comics, which started publication in October 2015. The comic follows Gertrude "Gert", a woman ...
'', following in May 2017. In 2020, two follow-up projects were released – a three-issue crossover with ''Outer Darkness'' (another comic series written by Layman), and the beginning of a
spin-off Spin-off, Spin Off, Spin-Off, or Spinoff may refer to: Entertainment and media *Spinoff (media), a media work derived from an existing work *''The Spinoff'', a New Zealand current affairs magazine * ''Spin Off'' (Canadian game show), a 2013 Canad ...
series titled ''Chu''.


Plot summary

Set in a world where all chicken and other bird meats are illegal, after a catastrophic outbreak of the bird flu that killed 23 million Americans, ''Chew'' centers on Tony Chu, a police detective who is a cibopath (pronounced "SEE-bo-path"). Tony becomes a vice cop with the
Philadelphia Police Department The Philadelphia Police Department (PPD, Philly PD, or Philly Police) is the police agency responsible for law enforcement and investigations within the County and City of Philadelphia. The PPD is one of the oldest municipal police agencies, f ...
, and when on assignment in '' Taster's Choice'', trying to find people smuggling chicken, he enters a black market chicken restaurant on invitation from the U.S. FDA. He has a bowl of chicken soup only to find he gets a psychic impression of the cook killing people and putting them into the soup. He goes to bust the cook, only for the cook to kill himself outside the restaurant. Chu eats a bite of the cooks tongue to find out the names of the rest of the victims. He is fired from his job after the Philadelphia PD catches him eating the cook and gets hired on to the FDA by an agent named Mason Savoy, who is also a cibopath.''Chew'' #1 The first case that Tony and Savoy are assigned to is finding out what happened to a
Health Inspector An environmental health officer (EHO), also referred to as an environmental health practitioner (EHP) or public health inspector, is a person responsible for carrying out measures to protect public health, which includes the administration and en ...
named Evan Pepper, based on a finger found inside of a hamburger at a fast-food restaurant. During the investigation, Tony has a hit put out on him by a businessman named Ray Jack Montero.''Chew'' #2 It is eventually discovered that Mason Savoy killed Pepper and when confronted about it, bites off Tony's ear to use it as leverage in case Tony ever comes after him. Savoy runs off to discover what really caused the so-called Bird Flu, and banned all chicken consumption.''Chew'' #5 In '' International Flavor'', Tony takes some time off and flies with his brother to an island called Yamapalu. Chu is there to investigate a certain plant called a Gallsaberry which tastes exactly like chicken. Chu meets with a
United States Department of Agriculture The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is an executive department of the United States federal government that aims to meet the needs of commercial farming and livestock food production, promotes agricultural trade and producti ...
agent, who tells Tony that she will tell him all she knows about Gallsaberry, but unfortunately she's murdered and Tony is framed.''Chew'' #7 Tony has his FDA credentials checked and is released only to find out by biting another prisoner that another murder has taken place, over a rooster named Poyo, a
cockfight Cockfighting is a blood sport involving domesticated roosters as the combatants. The first documented use of the word gamecock, denoting use of the cock as to a "game", a sport, pastime or entertainment, was recorded in 1634, after the term ...
champion. After confiscating the rooster, Tony goes to the morgue to find out more about Gallsaberries. During this time, the chief of police steals Poyo. Tony than eats a Gallsaberry raw and finds out that it is from outer space.''Chew'' #8 Tony sneaks on the base where Gallsaberries are grown, evacuates several people that are imprisoned there only to find out that the entire crop of Gallsaberries are burning.''Chew'' #9 It turns out that Ray Jack Montero is burning the plants to remove any competition, with a little help from some residents of Yamapalu, who are rebelling due to the capture of Poyo. Tony is shot at by an employee of Montero, but is missed, and has a confrontation with a person known as The Vampire who is also a cibopath.''Chew'' #10 In '' Just Desserts'', Tony finds out that Poyo had been moved to America, so he retrieves him and shuts down a cockfighting ring.''Chew'' #12 It is revealed that Ray Jack Montero had been changing Frog DNA to make them taste (and look) more like chickens, creating a creature called Frickens, or Chogs and packaging their meat and calling it Poult-Free, a chicken substitute. It is also revealed Montero knew that the bird-flu outbreak was going to happen before it did, so Mason Savoy had his partner, Caesar, go undercover inside of Montero's company. Caesar was the one who shot at Tony in Yamapalu and intentionally missed. Montero is captured, and Savoy is surrounded by the FDA when they were watching one of Montero's buildings.''Chew'' #13 Savoy has a confrontation with John and escapes. Amelia finds a toe that was in Tony's fridge, given to him from an old girlfriend.''Chew'' #14 Savoy eats Tony's ear and learns more about him, specifically that Tony has a daughter by the name of Olive. Tony brings Amelia and John with him to his family's Thanksgiving. We meet his friendlier twin sister Toni. While giving grace, there is a 2 car pile-up outside and alien writing in the sky.''Chew'' #15 A week later, in ''
Flambé Flambé (, , ; also spelled flambe) is a cooking procedure in which Ethanol, alcohol is added to a hot pan to create a burst of flames. The word means "flamed" in French language, French. Flambéing is often associated with the tableside presen ...
'', the FDA is making the writing in the sky a priority over the chicken ban. Tony teams up with Mason's old partner Caesar to look for a former FDA agent named Migdalo Daniel who is a Voresoph, Migdalo attacked the agents and accidentally killed himself. A
Kentucky Fried Chicken KFC Corporation, doing business as KFC (an abbreviation of Kentucky Fried Chicken), is an American fast food restaurant chain specializing in fried chicken and chicken sandwiches. Headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky, it is the world's s ...
imitation restaurant called Mother Clucker's reopens selling chicken.''Chew'' #16 Tony and Colby investigate a
food fight A food fight is a form of chaotic collective behavior, in which foodstuffs are thrown at others in the manner of projectiles. These projectiles are not made nor meant to harm others, but to simply ignite a fight filled with spontaneous food th ...
that resulted in several students killing each other at Francis Bacon High School. It turns out that a student named Peter Pilaf has a new food related power. After detaining him, Tony finds out that Pilaf had sent a recipe to astronauts on the Fisher-Okroshka International Space Station which exploded shortly afterwards. It turns out that a servant of The Vampire on the Space Station caused the station to explode and escaped with some computer files and a Gallsaberry.''Chew'' #17 While on a mission with the USDA in North Korea, Tony and Colby find out that the FDA are using Poyo as a secret weapon.''Chew'' #18 Tony is transferred to
NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the federal government of the United States, US federal government responsible for the United States ...
for the day to work with his sister, Toni. They go to
Area 51 Area 51 is the common name of a highly classified United States Air Force (USAF) facility within the Nevada Test and Training Range in southern Nevada, north-northwest of Las Vegas. A remote detachment administered by Edwards Air Force B ...
, Area 51 has pieces of the Space Station including the body of an astronaut. Tony bites the astronaut and discovers The Vampire's involvement.''Chew'' #19 Mason drinks Migdalo's blood, and tells Caesar that there is a connection between people with abilities and the writing in the sky. Caesar then informs Mason that the writing disappeared four days ago. Mason decides to kidnap Olive. Tony and Colby are sent to investigate an egg worshiping cult that predicted the disappearance of the sky writing to the minute. They go undercover and sneak inside the church, and while trying to steal their holy book, the other members of the church drink poisoned
Kool-Aid Kool-Aid is an American brand of flavored drink mix owned by Kraft Heinz based in Chicago, Illinois. The powder form was created by Edwin Perkins in 1927 based upon a liquid concentrate named Fruit Smack. History Kool-Aid was invented by E ...
to absolve their sin of eating chicken. The cult's book is not written in English and Tony and Colby are fired from the FDA.''Chew'' #20 In '' Major League Chew'', Tony is transferred to the Municipal Traffic Division. His new boss seems very excited to have him there. Tony then helps to arrest a gang of bank robbers.''Chew'' #21


''Chew'' #27

''Note: After ''Chew'' #18, the story then leaps to ''Chew'' #27 showing the reader events taking place a year later. It then returns to issue 19.'' Tony is in the hospital after being injured in some way. Toni goes to visit him and after chatting with Caesar who came to wish him well, heads back to work. An old friend of Toni's shows up, he had gotten his hands on some Chogs (AKA Frickens) that had been bred with some psychoactive frogs he had. He tries to sell them, but D-Bear shows up and steals all of them. Toni and her supervisor, Paneer, go to D-Bear's restaurant to confiscate the Chogs. D-Bear tries to escape but Toni, who had a gun already in her hands, jumps and bites him in the shoulder. She then lets him leave, D-Bear is then hit by a truck and is taken to the hospital. Later, Tony has a mysterious visitor. ''Chew'' #27 went on sale May 11, 2011. A second printing, subtitled "2nd Helping Edition", went on sale June 20, 2012 between the release of issue 26 and issue 28, and included a bonus short story titled "A View to a Pill" which had previously only been published in the ''Hero Comics 2011'' anthology from
IDW Publishing IDW Publishing is an American publisher of comic books, graphic novels, art books, and comic strip collections. It was founded in 1999 as the publishing division of Idea and Design Works, LLC (IDW) and is recognized as the fifth-largest comic ...
. "A View to a Pill" was not included in the trade paperback releases of the series.


Characters

''(By order of appearance)''


Tony Chu

The protagonist. Tony is a cibopath. Oddly enough, beets are the only things he can eat that don't trigger his cibopathy. Tony originally worked for the Philadelphia PD, and then for the FDA. He's been called a "By-the-book square that never met a department regulation ecouldn't love." He's a great detective, but he's not so great around women. Not much of Tony's backstory has been revealed yet, but he has a large family. Back when he was a beat cop, he proposed to his girlfriend, Min "Mindy" Tso, but she went insane and wanted Tony to eat one of her toes. It turns out that Tony still has the toe. Later we find out that Tony had a daughter with Min, whose name is Olive. During his time in the FDA, he falls for Amelia Mintz. When Tony is fired from the FDA, he is transferred to the Municipal Traffic Division. In ''Chew'' #27, Tony is in the hospital after being injured in some way, he keeps saying the names of other characters while in a seemingly comatose state.


John Colby

John was Tony's partner in the Philadelphia PD. When Tony gets a psychic sensation from his chicken soup and goes to arrest the chef, John is incapacitated by a butcher's knife to the face. After Mason runs, John joins the FDA, with cybernetic implants where his face was injured.''Chew'' #6 John becomes Tony's new partner. John is often seen eating illegal chicken products whenever he can, and is apparently gay after sleeping with his boss to keep him from pestering Tony. John was turned into a cyborg after Mason Savoy suggested it. He was informed about this after Mason attempted to get John on his side and attacked. After alien writing appears in the sky John begins drinking heavily. Forcing Tony to team up with Mason's former partner Caesar. Later, Colby has sobered up enough to work with Tony again. He can control electronic devices with the computers in his head, even though he doesn't understand how. Colby is transferred out of the FDA to a position in the USDA. There he is partnered with a cyborg lion named Buttercup. It is revealed he has sex with the director of the USDA in order to get a new partner, a newly rebuilt Poyo.


Chow Chu

Chow is Tony's older brother. He is a former Chicken chef and used to host a TV show called In The Kitchen With Chow Chu. After chicken was banned he freaked out on air and his show was put on permanent hiatus. He began buying illegal chicken He found out about Montero's business and informed Tony. He was tracked down and sealed inside a vault. Chow moves to Yamapalu, where chicken is not illegal and he opens a restaurant there. However he finds out that Yamapalu does not serve chicken but Gallsaberries instead. Tony saves Chow from the island but has to break his jaw to get him to leave. For Thanksgiving Chow cooks his family an illegal turkey, and because of his broken jaw he cannot give grace so Tony has to do it. Chow eventually gets back on TV, and in an alternate future was shot in the head by a member of E.G.G.


D-Bear

Also known as Deshawn Berry, D-Bear sells Black Market Chicken. He informs to the FDA so they let him continue. He may have killed at least 5 people. He leads Tony and John into a black market chicken restaurant which results in John getting his face cut and Tony getting outed as a cibopath. John confronts D-Bear, beats him up and extorts him for a month. D-Bear partners with Tony to shut down an illegal cockfighting ring and free Poyo. D-Bear sells a huge shipment of black market chicken to Mother Clucker's. In ''Chew'' #27, D-Bear steals some Psychoactive Chogs from one of Toni's friends, he uses them in his restaurant to get customers high and then steal from them. Toni bites him in the shoulder, he's hit by a truck and is sent to the hospital.


Mason Savoy

Savoy was Tony's first partner at the FDA. He's a towering man who fights with a pair of sai. He is also a cibopath and has worked with the FDA for a very long time. He is very interested in what actually happened on the day of the bird-flu incident, and a flashback showed him holding a dying woman in his arms on that day. It is revealed that Savoy is the one who killed Evan Pepper, but his motive is never touched on. When Mason is found out by the FDA, he kills most of the agents and wounds John Colby. Apparently, Mason is the one who got Colby turned into a cyborg. Mason now has a vial of blood from the Voresophic Daniel Migdalo, which, if he drank it, would give him Migdalo's incredible intelligence—and his insanity. Savoy is currently a fugitive but is still continuing his investigation, with the aid of Agent Cesar and Olive Chu.


Mike Applebee

Applebee is Tony's boss at the FDA. He has it out for Tony from the start, and tries to make his job as difficult as can be. When he was informed of a hit that was put on Tony, he only decided to inform Tony after realizing that a dead Tony would mean more paperwork for himself. Applebee picked Colby to be Tony's new partner, mainly because Colby pretended to blame Tony for getting injured. To get Applebee to leave Tony alone, Colby has sex with him. Afterwards, Applebee tries to be more friendly towards Tony but this is clearly very hard for him. Later, Applebee decides to partner Tony up with D-Bear. When Tony decides to do surveillance on Montero, Applebee tries to make sure that Tony is the one doing surveillance all the time, but Colby decides to do it instead. When Colby confronts Mason, Applebee tells Tony that if Colby is hurt he'll demote him to meter maid. Applebee invites Colby over for Thanksgiving, but Colby never shows up. Soon after, Applebee begins sending Colby and Tony on progressively more dangerous and suicidal missions. John Layman, the author of Chew, has revealed that Applebee will survive until the end of the series.


Amelia Mintz

Amelia is a food critic at a newspaper. She is a saboscrivner. Tony knows her only from her articles—until he's assigned to get her fired. Why? Lately, she's gotten bored with her job and has begun writing exclusively about the most disgusting food she can find. These recent articles are so intensely unappetizing that they induce vomiting in anyone who reads or listens to them. Tony, however, seems to be immune to this nauseating effect, possibly due to his previous experience with disgusting food. When Tony goes to her office, she helps him defuse a situation with some terrorists from the group E.G.G.. She goes with the governor of Yamapalu.''Chew'' #3 After finding out that he's imprisoning people, she is also captured. She is one of the people Tony saves from Yamapalu, and soon after they start dating.''Chew'' #11 She starts writing about food for him, so he can experience taste without triggering psychic sensations.


The Vampire

The Vampire (Real name unknown, also known as Collector) is a cibopath from Serbia. Not much is known about him. He pretends to be a vampire to inspire fear, and drinks the blood of his victims to learn about them through cibopathy. He also eats the flesh of powerful people in order to "collect" their abilities. He sent agents to the Gardner-Kvashennaya International Telescope,''Chew'' #4 he murdered the
USDA The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is an United States federal executive departments, executive department of the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government that aims to meet the needs of commerc ...
agent Lin Sae Woo and her specially trained cyborg Rat Jellybean, invaded a compound on Yamapalu, and saved the Cibolocuter Fantanyeros only to kill him and feed on him. His minion sabotages a space station, escapes and brings The Vampire some computer files and a Gallsaberry. He speaks Russian and English. His Russian-speaking minions address him as Upyr, which is a Slavic folklore undead monster similar to a vampire.


Poyo

Poyo is a rooster from Yamapalu, who started out as a cockfighting champion. He was kept in a secret safe house by the gambling ring, until his location was discovered by Tony Chu and chief of police Raymond Kulolo.''Chew'' #8 He later became a secret weapon of the FDA, considered to be a weapon of mass destruction, and then an agent of USDA. Poyo is the star of three spin-off one-shot comics - Chew: Secret Agent Poyo, Chew: Warrior Chicken Poyo and Chew: Demon Chicken Poyo.


Toni Chu

Toni (short for Antonelle) is Tony and Chow's sister. She works for NASA. Toni worked for a long time at the Farmington-Kapusta International Telescope in the
Amazon Amazon most often refers to: * Amazon River, in South America * Amazon rainforest, a rainforest covering most of the Amazon basin * Amazon (company), an American multinational technology company * Amazons, a tribe of female warriors in Greek myth ...
.''Chew'' #27 She was supposed to be transferred to the Gardner-Kvashennaya International Telescope but she stays in the States after alien writing shows up in the sky. She teams up with Tony at Area 51 and foils an E.G.G. plot to kill the
President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president directs the Federal government of the United States#Executive branch, executive branch of the Federal government of t ...
, the
Queen of the United Kingdom The monarchy of the United Kingdom, commonly referred to as the British monarchy, is the form of government used by the United Kingdom by which a hereditary monarch reigns as the head of state, with their powers regulated by the British cons ...
,
The Pope The pope is the bishop of Rome and the visible head of the worldwide Catholic Church. He is also known as the supreme pontiff, Roman pontiff, or sovereign pontiff. From the 8th century until 1870, the pope was the sovereign or head of sta ...
and her brother Chow. Toni also stops D-Bear from selling psychedelic at his black market chicken restaurant. It is revealed that Toni has a food-related power in issue #19. Unlike Tony, Toni's power only works on living tissues, so she doesn't receive psychic readings from eating cooked food. It is later revealed that she had a drunken, sexual experience with Caesar, though she doesn't want him to remember it, possibly out of shame. Toni is eventually kidnapped by the Vampire. After telling him she's already helped being about his downfall at the hands of his brother, he kills her. But, having foreseen her death, Toni ate a diet of beets beforehand so that the Vampire could not gain her abilities by eating her flesh. Toni had foreseen the death of at least four major characters, including her own.


Olive Chu

Olive is Tony's daughter. After her mother's death she was raised by her aunt Rosemary, and has a strained relationship with her father. Like the other members of Chu family, Olive has special food-related abilities. As a cibopath, Olive is potentially more powerful than both Savoy and her father. When kidnapped by a desperate Savoy who required a cibopathic partner, Olive resists his attempts to subdue her, and only agreed to work with Savoy on her own terms.''Chew'' #20


Locations


Gardner-Kvashennaya International Telescope

The Gardner-Kvashennaya International
Telescope A telescope is a device used to observe distant objects by their emission, Absorption (electromagnetic radiation), absorption, or Reflection (physics), reflection of electromagnetic radiation. Originally, it was an optical instrument using len ...
is one of the three most powerful telescopes in the world. The operating budget is 34 million dollars per year. It spent 2 years focused on the planet Altilis-738. Mason and Tony head there to find out about the mysterious death of Senator Hamantaschen. When they got there they found out that the telescope only needed 3 million to operate and they used the rest of the money on
prostitutes Prostitution is a type of sex work that involves engaging in sexual activity in exchange for payment. The definition of "sexual activity" varies, and is often defined as an activity requiring physical contact (e.g., sexual intercourse, non-p ...
,
drugs A drug is any chemical substance other than a nutrient or an essential dietary ingredient, which, when administered to a living organism, produces a biological effect. Consumption of drugs can be via inhalation, injection, smoking, ingestio ...
and a
llama The llama (; or ) (''Lama glama'') is a domesticated South American camelid, widely used as a List of meat animals, meat and pack animal by Inca empire, Andean cultures since the pre-Columbian era. Llamas are social animals and live with ...
. It turns out the prostitutes worked for The Vampire and the telescope station was mostly destroyed. The telescope was eventually repaired and made operational and Tony's twin sister Toni is going to be working there. Later, Toni tells Tony that she will not be transferred to the station.


Yamapalu

Yamapalu is one of the smallest populated islands in the Western Pacific Ocean. The governor of the island has been recruiting and kidnapping some of the top chefs and food critics in the world to cook a plant called a Gallsaberry which tastes like chicken when cooked that only grows on Yamapalu. The island is eventually attacked by Montero and most of the Gallsaberries are destroyed. The governor shoots himself after a meeting with The Vampire.


Altilis-738

Altilis-738 is the third planet in a small solar system more than 24
light years A light-year, alternatively spelled light year (ly or lyr), is a unit of length used to express astronomical distances and is equal to exactly , which is approximately 9.46 trillion km or 5.88 trillion mi. As defined by the International Astro ...
away. It is populated by a species of purple people. 24 years ago strange writing appeared in the sky causing panic and then 24 years later, when the light reaches Earth, it is revealed the planet exploded. The same writing appeared above the Earth.


Mother Clucker's

Mother Clucker's is a Kentucky Fried Chicken imitator that opened 35 years ago. After the Chicken ban it was closed down. The owner of the restaurant is bitter towards the FDA and still hangs around the closed restaurant. After alien writing appears in the sky he decides to buy black market chicken and reopen his restaurant to the public.


Francis Bacon High School

Francis Bacon High School is a high school attended by Peter Pilaf and also Tony's daughter Olive. Their school's team name is the Shakin' Bacons. Several students there were killed in a food fight.


Food-Related Powers

The Chew Universe is filled with a variety of characters who exhibit supernatural powers relating to food and their interpretation thereof.


Cibopath

A Cibopath can take a bite from anything and get a psychic sensation of what has happened to that object. The only thing it does not work on is beets. Tony Chu, Olive Chu, Mason Savoy, and The Vampire are Cibopaths. During the 'Major League Chew' arc, it is revealed that Tony, and possibly all Cibopaths, can absorb the skills of who he eats. The Vampire, Tony Chu, and Olive Chu are also capable of absorbing abilities although most prominently, The Vampire and Olive.


Saboscrivner

A Saboscrivner can write about food so accurately that people get the sensation of taste when they read about the food. Amelia Mintz is a Saboscrivner.


Cibolocutor

A Cibolocutor is able to communicate through food, and can also translate written works like plays, poems and operas into their food. Fantanyeros is a Cibolocutor.


Voresoph

A Voresoph becomes smarter the more he eats. Daniel Migdalo is a Voresoph.


Special Agent Vorhees's power

Seen through the series eating and mumbling, Special Agent Vorhees appears to have the ability to taste and identify every ingredient in whatever he's eating. At this point, this power has not been formally introduced. Also, he may be immune to the powers of the other characters, as The Barista's foam message had no effect on him (Though Caesar claims this is because Vorhees is illiterate).


Effervenductor

An Effervenductor has the capability of creating mind-controlling messages in foams. The Barista is an Effervenductor.


Peter Pilaf's power

This so far unnamed power lets the user control people through food. Peter Pilaf has this power.


Xocoscalpere

A Xocoscalpere has the ability to sculpt chocolate—and only chocolate-- 'with such accuracy and verisimilitude' that it can mimic its real-life counterpart exactly. Hershel Brown was a xocoscalpere, having created many chocolate weapon sculptures with all the deadly capability of the original. Olive Chu, having eaten part of Hershel Brown, has acquired the ability of xocoscalpery.


Cibovoyant

A Cibovoyant can see the future of any living thing that he or she eats. This power does not work on the dead or on inanimate objects. So far, Toni Chu is the only Cibovoyant at this point, and uses this power to see the future of potential lovers as well as her injured brother.


Tortaespadero

Able to cut tortillas into sharp objects.


Cipropanthropatic

Able to see the memories of anyone nearby eating the same thing. Sage Chu, Toni's sister, has this power.


Sabopictor

A Sabopictor is able to paint a picture that tastes deliciously what it looks like. Quindim Buongiovanni is one of three living Sabopictors, though he is last seen being attacked and likely killed by The Vampire.


Ciboinvalescor

Able to become stronger the more he eats. Dominic Partridge is a Ciboinvalescor.


Coquerafthartos

A Coquerafthartos is granted an extraordinarily long life after cooking a single special dish. Jeremiah Cumberland was a Coquerafthartos for close to 600 years before he was collected by The Vampire.


Lubodeipnosophistes

Able to seduce anyone they dine with.


Cibocelerent

Able to cook fast.


Mnemocoquus

Able to cook memories into their dishes.


Cibolinguist

Able to speak the language of whatever nationality of dish they were cooking.


Lagamousikian

Able to string guitars with pasta noodles.


Mixosecerner

Able to create drinks that compel you to tell secrets.


Bromaformutare

Able to take on the form of whatever he's last eaten.


Mnemcibarian

Able to create meals you could never forget.


Hortamagnatroph

A hortamagnatroph has skills in the garden which allow them to grow fruits and vegetables of enormous sizes.


Eroscibopictaros

A literal food pornographer. Able to take pictures of food that "inspire erotic feelings in the viewer". Ken Keebler is an eroscibopictaros.


Molluhomicuquus

Able to cook poisonous clam chowder. Marsala Kaczorowski is a molluhomicuquus.


Pederexplodier

Able to produce explosive flatulence. Brann Jerwar is a Pederexplodier.


Punicacuratio

Able to eat pomegranates and experience a preternatural restorative effect alongside some other assorted anomalous benefits.


Viresarantheacist

Able to get stronger by eating spinach. The featured Viresarantheacist is unnamed but is referred to as a "sailor man," a reference to
Popeye Popeye the Sailor Man is a fictional cartoon character created by E. C. Segar, Elzie Crisler Segar.trade paperbacks A paperback (softcover, softback) book is one with a thick paper or paperboard cover, also known as wrappers, and often held together with glue rather than stitches or staples. In contrast, hardback (hardcover) books are bound with cardboar ...
:


Hardcovers

There are also large hardcover editions which each collect two consecutive trade paperbacks: * ''Chew Omnivore Edition, Volume 1'' (collects ''Chew'' #1–10, 264 pages, August 2010, ) * ''Chew Omnivore Edition, Volume 2'' (collects ''Chew'' #11–20, 264 pages, December 2011, ) * ''Chew Omnivore Edition, Volume 3'' (collects ''Chew'' #21–30 and the ''Chew: Secret Agent Poyo'' one-shot, 288 pages, March 2013, ) * ''Chew Omnivore Edition, Volume 4'' (collects ''Chew'' #31–40, 272 pages, July 2014, ) * ''Chew Omnivore Edition, Volume 5'' (collects ''Chew'' #41–50 and ''Chew: Warrior Chicken Poyo'' one-shot, 304 pages, December 2015, ) * ''Chew Omnivore Edition, Volume 6'' (collects ''Chew'' #51–60, ''Demon Chicken Poyo'' one-shot and ''Chew/ Revival'' one-shots, 344 pages, April 2017, ) As well as the omnivore editions, there are even larger hardcover editions called the
Smörgåsbord Smorgasbord or Smörgåsbord (, ) is a buffet-style meal of Swedish origin. It is served with various hot and mainly cold dishes. It assumed its present form in the 19th century, following old traditions. Smörgåsbord became known in the US ...
editions, named after the large Swedish buffets, collecting 20 issues each: * ''CHEW Smorgasbord Edition Volume 1'' (collects ''Chew'' #1–20, 576 pages, November 2013, ) * ''CHEW Smorgasbord Edition Volume 2'' (collects ''Chew'' #21–40 and the ''Chew: Secret Agent Poyo'' one-shot, 576 pages, July 2015, ) * ''CHEW Smorgasbord Edition Volume 3'' (collects ''Chew'' #41–60 and the ''Chew: Warrior Chicken Poyo'' one-shot, ''Chew: Demon Chicken Poyo'' one-shot, and the dual crossover event, ''Chew/ Revival'', 640 pages, July 2017, )


Other releases

Tony Chu additionally appears in ''
I Hate Fairyland – I Hate Image ''I Hate Fairyland'', also known as ''Fuck Fairyland'', is a black comedy fantasy comic written and illustrated by Skottie Young, and published by Image Comics, which started publication in October 2015. The comic follows Gertrude "Gert", a woman ...
'', a special '' I Hate Fairyland'' issue which crosses over ''I Hate Fairyland'' with many other Image Comics properties. This issue has been published as a
Free Comic Book Day Free Comic Book Day (FCBD) is an annual promotional effort by the North American comic book industry to attract new readers to independent comic book stores. It usually takes place on the first Saturday of May and has historically been cross ...
release, as a "Special Edition," and as a component of the ''I Hate Fairyland: Book Two'' hardcover release.


Reception

The first three issues of ''Chew'' have all sold out multiple printings with the first issue receiving four printings as well as being reprinted in
black and white Black-and-white (B&W or B/W) images combine black and white to produce a range of achromatic brightnesses of grey. It is also known as greyscale in technical settings. Media The history of various visual media began with black and white, ...
in '' The Walking Dead'' #63. The first issue was so popular that it was called one of Image's most acclaimed titles, and was reprinted again in the first wave of the Image First line.
IGN ''IGN'' is an American video gaming and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa district and is headed by its former e ...
gave the first issue a 9.5 out of 10 ''Chew'' Vol. 1: ''Taster's Choice'' and ''Chew'' Vol. 2: ''International Flavor'' have both been on the New York Times Bestsellers List. ''Chew'' ended up on several Best of 2009 lists, including
IGN ''IGN'' is an American video gaming and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa district and is headed by its former e ...
's Best Indie Series of 2009, and MTV Splashpage's Best New Series of 2009. ''Chew'' was also #4 on ComicBookResources.com's Best 100 Comics of 2009 list. On July 23, 2010, ''Chew'' won the
Eisner Award The Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards, commonly shortened to the Eisner Awards, are awards for creative achievement in American comic books. They are regarded as the most prestigious and significant awards in the comic industry and often referred ...
for Best New Series. On July 27, 2011 ''Chew'' won the Eisner Award for Best Continuing Series. ''Chew'' also won two 2010
Harvey Awards The Harvey Awards are given for achievement in comic books. Named for writer-artist Harvey Kurtzman, the Harvey Awards were founded by Gary Groth in 1988, president of the publisher Fantagraphics, to be a successor to the Kirby Awards, which wer ...
(Best New Series and Best New Talent) and was nominated for, but did not win, two 2010
Eagle Awards The Eagle Awards were a series of British awards for comic book titles and creators. They were awarded by UK fans voting for work produced during the previous year. Named after the UK's seminal boys' comic ''Eagle'', the awards were launched in ...
(Favourite New Comicbook and Favourite American Colour Comicbook).


In other media


Television series

In July 2010 it was announced that production company Circle of Confusion, the same company that produces the '' Walking Dead'' television series, was planning to adapt ''Chew''. In March 2011
Showtime Showtime or Show Time may refer to: Film * ''Showtime'' (film), a 2002 American action/comedy film * ''Showtime'' (video), a 1995 live concert video by Blur Television Networks and channels * Showtime Networks, a division of Paramount Global w ...
announced it was developing ''Chew'' into a half-hour comedy series, based on a script by Terri Hughes Burton and Ron Milbauer. ''Chew'' was mentioned in ''
Hart of Dixie ''Hart of Dixie'' is an American comedy-drama television series that aired on The CW from September 26, 2011, to March 27, 2015. The series, created by Leila Gerstein, stars Rachel Bilson as Dr. Zoe Hart, a New Yorker who, after her dreams of ...
''. On February 1, 2013, John Layman wrote on Facebook, "''Chew'' Showtime TV show not happening."


Animated feature

In April 2014, it was announced ''Chew'' would be getting an animated feature. This project would be produced by Jeff Krelitz and David Boxenbaum via their multimedia company Heavy Metal. Jeff Krelitz would also be directing and
John Layman John Steele Layman (born August 2, 1969) is an American comic book writer and letterer. Layman is most known for his writing published by Image Comics: ''Chew'', its spin-off/midquel series ''Chu'' ('' Saffron Chu''), the stand-alone ''Outer D ...
would write. The executive producers would be John Layman,
Rob Guillory Robert Guillory (born June 2, 1982) is an American comic book artist known for his art on ''Chew (comic), Chew'', published by Image Comics. He currently writes and draws ''Farmhand (comics), Farmhand'' published by Image Comics and writes ''Mosel ...
and Scott Boxenbaum.
Steven Yeun Sang-yeop Yeun (; born December 21, 1983), known professionally as Steven Yeun ( ), is an American actor. His accolades include two Primetime Emmy Awards and two Golden Globe Awards, in addition to nominations for an Academy Award and a Br ...
of '' The Walking Dead'' fame would voice the main character Tony Chu and
Felicia Day Kathryn Felicia Day (born June 28, 1979) is an American actress, singer, writer, and web series creator. She is the creator and star of the web series '' The Guild'' (2007–2013), a show loosely based on her life as a gamer. She also wrote and ...
would voice his love interest Amelia Mintz. On April 21, 2017, it was revealed in an interview with Rob Guillory that the animated film project was completely dead, Guillory stating that "it just didn't happen because Hollywood can be weird sometimes…we do have some movement on the live action show, though."


Tabletop game

On May 19, 2014, IDW Games announced a tabletop game. The game will feature multiple ways to play including board, card and dice games. IDW Games will be working with
John Layman John Steele Layman (born August 2, 1969) is an American comic book writer and letterer. Layman is most known for his writing published by Image Comics: ''Chew'', its spin-off/midquel series ''Chu'' ('' Saffron Chu''), the stand-alone ''Outer D ...
and
Rob Guillory Robert Guillory (born June 2, 1982) is an American comic book artist known for his art on ''Chew (comic), Chew'', published by Image Comics. He currently writes and draws ''Farmhand (comics), Farmhand'' published by Image Comics and writes ''Mosel ...
to create the game which was initially due to be released early 2015. After multiple delays, it was eventually released on July 15, 2015.


Tabletop role playing game

On October 5, 2021, publisher Imagining Games launched a
Kickstarter Kickstarter, PBC is an American Benefit corporation, public benefit corporation based in Brooklyn, New York City, that maintains a global crowdfunding platform focused on creativity. The company's stated mission is to "help bring creative project ...
for a ''Chew''
tabletop role-playing game A tabletop role-playing game (TTRPG or TRPG), also known as a pen-and-paper role-playing game, is a kind of role-playing game (RPG) in which the participants describe their characters' actions through speech and sometimes movements. Participants d ...
. The campaign realised nearly $53,000 from a goal of a little under $7,000. On the day of the campaign launch, Hyper RPG aired an actual play demo on their Twitch channel featuring
Kaiji Tang Kaiji Tang (; born January 25, 1984), also known as Kaiji Von Tang, is a Chinese-born voice actor who is based in Los Angeles, California. Biography Tang graduated from the University of California, Riverside with a degree in theatre. He com ...
as the GM,
Jimmy Wong James Franklin Wong (born March 28, 1987) is an American actor and musician. He is best known for his 2011 music video, "Ching Chong: Asians in the Library Song" and for his role as Ted in the web series '' Video Game High School''. In 2017, he ...
as Tony Chu, Elyse Willems as Amelia Mintz, Malika Lim Eubank as Toni Chu, and Zac Eubank as John Colby. ''CHEW The Roleplaying Game'' is a "Forged in the Dark" game with rules adapted from ''
Blades in the Dark ''Blades in the Dark'' is a fantasy tabletop role-playing game by John Harper, set in a fictional city of Doskvol, inspired by Victorian London and Gothic fiction. The game was crowdfunded on Kickstarter in 2015 and published at the start of 2017 ...
''. It was designed and written by Pete Petrusha, Justin Forest, Justin Ford, Steve Dee and Joseph Weaver. It was released in 2024 and won a Judge's Spotlight Award at the 2024
ENNIE Awards The ENNIE Awards (previously stylized as ENnie Awards) are awards for role-playing game (RPG) products (including game-related accessories, publications, and art) and their creators. The awards were created in 2001 by Russ Morrissey of EN World ...
.


See also

*
Cannibalism Cannibalism is the act of consuming another individual of the same species as food. Cannibalism is a common ecological interaction in the animal kingdom and has been recorded in more than 1,500 species. Human cannibalism is also well document ...


References


External links


Official blog
* *

at th
ComicsDune
{{Image Comics Eisner Award winners for Best New Series Harvey Award winners for Best New Series Harvey Award winners for Best New Talent Fiction about cannibalism Fictional Serbian people Fictional Chinese people Fictional American people in comics Image Comics titles Speculative crime and thriller fiction