Besides performing for All Elite Wrestling (AEW) and World Wrestling Foundation/Entertainment (WWF/WWE,) eight-time wrestling world champion Chris Jericho is the singer for the Gold Record band Fozzy, the author of multiple New York Times bestselling books, an actor, a film producer, podcaster and more.

Now he's entering the world of comics with The Painmaker, a graphic series written in partnership with David Shapiro of Semkhor Productions, with art by John Gaertner. The Painmaker marks Jericho’s first foray into comic book writing, and he's hosting a meet-in-greet in Sarasota this week to celebrate the launch of the first issue in the four-issue miniseries.

Jericho’s fans may already be familiar with The Painmaker persona, which he debuted in New Japan Pro Wrestling in 2019. There, he says, the culture allows you to be a little “more wild” and “take the less-beaten path.” The Painmaker shows off Jericho's darker side, complete with a lethal spiked jacket and “sloppy makeup to show how weird, psychotic and unbalanced he is," Jericho explains.

The character is based on what a serial killer would look like as a pro wrestler, Jericho says. "He’s a former serial killer who has transformed and now travels the galaxy to kill other serial killers on other planets—but he’s still flawed and has a need to kill innocents sometimes,” he explains. “He’s an intergalactic anti-hero.” 

How did he approach the creation of The Painmaker?

“It’s easier to make people hate you than like you in the wrestling world, but when they start hating you, they also start liking you," Jericho says. "Characters start out villainous, but they turn into good guys in some ways, too. Take Freddy Kruger, Hannibal Lecter, the Terminator—the best are the ones who have the deepest character traits and commitment to being evil." 

"The Joker is probably the greatest villain ever because he’s a clown," he continues. "It’s ridiculous at first, but when you dig deep and see [the character's] psychotic tendencies, that makes it interesting. To have a great dragon slayer you need a great dragon. You need a great bad guy to have a great good guy." 

Beyond having a cool celebrity in their midst, Jericho’s meet-and-greet at Booker High intends to introduce students to the behind-the-scenes production processes and allow them to participate in digital media production. The concept is thanks to a collaboration with The Creative Empowerment Project (CEP).

"We're hiring the [Booker] kids to help animate The Painmaker as part of the CEP program," says Semkhor's Shapiro. "We have two who are going to help and hope to make that four. Students also helped create the set for the meet and greet." Semkhor's view is that art training is best done through apprenticeship. 

“Chris will share his creative process, and we'll expose the kids to hands-on opportunities and show them the tools you need to do something like this,” he says.

Ahead of the event, fans can purchase a digital collectible (NFT) online for $8, which allows access to a digital version of the comic that includes frame animations, a blockchain game and access to a community that will continue to expand the Painmaker universe as content grows over time. The collectible also provides access to an online version of the graphic novel in which some panels are already animated, with more to come.

“It's a new distribution model for independent comic writers,” says Shapiro.

For Jericho, it's also an opportunity to "hang out with the fans and get excited about the character. It’s fun to take it to the streets and get live feedback and reactions. When you have something you're excited about it’s contagious. We want to continue to spread the Painmaker disease," he says, in true Wrestlemania fashion.

 Most importantly, though does The Painmaker bring pain? 

“Oh, yeah, he does,” says Jericho.

The Painmaker meet and greet is at Booker High School, 3201 N. Orange Ave., Sarasota, on April 13, from 2 to 4 p.m. For tickets, click here. For more information or limited special rate tickets, email [email protected]