“Sex, Violence, and Bees”: New Thriller THE HIVE To Put An Insect Spin on Mind Control (Exclusive)

An exciting new tale that merges gripping action, sensuality, and the hierarchy of bees in a dystopian setting is on the horizon from Image Comics. Screen Rant has an exclusive first look at The Hive, a wild story about people trying to survive in a world where humanity is influenced as easily as worker bees.

Preview pages provided to Screen Rant show off this intriguing new world and begins with a pair of truckers approached by motorcyclists with cartoonish bee masks. However, the truckers immediately fall under the mind control powers of bikers with just a few words and veer wildly off course.

The bikers, Ash and Noa, force the truck to turn off of a bridge, causing it to crash into an open field. Waiting for the bikers near the crash site is their partner, Benji. Benji implores his partners to hurry with their plans while Noa and Ash share a kiss.

The Hive Merges Sensuality and Violence with Hivemind Behavior

The Hive Takes Neo-Noir Crime Dramas to a New Level

The Hive comes from writer A.J. Lieberman (Batman: Gotham Knights, Harley Quinn, The Silver Six) and artist Mike Henderson (Cable, Dead Man Logan, and Daredevil). In this world, there are those known as ‘hivers’ who possess mind control powers. The Hive follows a group of hunted hivers who are on the run from their former queen bee, who is determined to take back control of her hive, no matter the cost.

Lieberman and Henderson released a joint statement discussing their new series saying “The Hive is nothing you’d expect but exactly what you’d want in a dirty, neo-noir story set against a world where some people can connect and control others in a hivemind—like bees in a hive.“. They discussed their fascination with bees and how such a hierarchy would look like applied to humans and expressed excitement for fans to see how the story expands “in the most unexpected way.“.

The Hive Brings Several Big Ideas to Create an Interesting Story

Dystopian Worlds, Hive Mentality, and Sensuality are Bold Ingredients

The Hive isn’t the first story to be set in a not-too-distant future, nor is it the first to feature people on the run trying to survive. But adding in the hive mentality of bees and seeing how this would affect humans is certainly an interesting choice. After all, as demonstrated in The Hive’s preview pages, this is different from drugging or hypnotism. It’s a biological imperative that completely strips one’s autonomy at the behest of a queen. That’s a damn intriguing hook for a futuristic crime drama.

Who knows what lies ahead for Noa, Ash, Benji, or other characters set to be featured in The Hive? But Lieberman and Henderson have combined a lot of unique, quality elements here that are undoubtedly going to go in directions readers won’t see coming as the story progresses. Those who are looking for a new twist on crime stories might want to make a beeline for the comic book store when Image Comics’ The Hive hits the shelves.

The Hive #1 will be available on February 12, 2025 from Image Comics.