- "The Call of Duty®: Zombies miniseries delves into these characters’ backstories, providing a crucial piece of the Zombies puzzle. See what happens between the maps as the Tranzit crew fights to escape Maxis’s apocalyptic wasteland."
- — Official description.
Call of Duty: Zombies[1] is a comic book series published by Dark Horse Comics. The series is co-written by Justin Jordan, game director Jason Blundell and Treyarch's Lead Writer, Craig Houston. The series is illustrated by artist Jonathan Wayshak and colorist Dan Jackson. The cover art is handled by artist Simon Bisley.
Issue #1[]
- "On his quest to secure an ancient artifact known as The Kronorium, Doctor Edward Richtofen enlists the help of The Tranzit Crew, a rag tag group of survivors last seen in the Black Ops II Zombies installment Buried. On a deeply unstable and fractured future Earth, Stuhlinger, Misty, Russman, and Marlton battle for survival against the undead horde, as they slowly uncover the truth behind Richtofen’s mysterious reappearance."
- — Official plot
The issue was released on October 26, 2016.
Summary[]
The issue begins with a narration by Primis Richtofen about the state of the universe, and a reintroduction of the Tranzit crew: Russman, Stuhlinger, Marlton, and Misty. The story switches to Misty, who was running on a patrol. She narrowly escapes a horde of zombies with the help of Marlton, who provided distraction with a drone. Upon returning to their hideout, Misty discusses the situation with Marlton, but then notices Russman on a security camera. Russman, who was out looking for food, also runs into a few zombies, but is saved by Stuhlinger, who set up a trap for the horde. The two eventually end up outside on the streets and fend off the zombies with salvaged weapons, though they eventually run out of ammo. Misty then provides sniper support, allowing the two to run to her and Marlton's hideout. Misty spots a zombie wearing a Nazi outfit and attempts to shoot it, but the zombie somehow manages to dodge it and commands the other zombies to storm the crew's hideout. Stuhlinger attempts to convince the others to listen to the voice in his head and says that he has a plan for them, but fails. Stuhlinger cries out for help, and is replied by a portal, allowing the four to escape just as the zombies pour in. The Nazi zombie looks at the portal, while grinning.[2]
Issue #2[]
- "On the hunt for Element 115, the Tranzit crew winds up at the headquarters of Russman’s old organization: Broken Arrow. Trapped between a never-ending horde of zombies outside and lab-grown monstrosities inside, Stuhlinger, Misty, Marlton, and Russman learn that they’ll have to work together if they want to make it out alive."
- — Official plot
The issue was released on January 11, 2017.
Summary[]
The Tranzit crew arrive on the other side of the portal, and learn from Russman that the location is a research facility of Broken Arrow, Russman's former organization. The zombies then come out from the portal and continue chasing down the crew, who manage to override a door and lock out the zombies. Stuhlinger informs the others that their purpose here is to "find the element", prompting him to question Russman of his knowledge. Russman angrily threatens Stuhlinger, as he begins to have flashbacks of his time working here as one of Broken Arrow's agents. He begins to remember about the experiments they did to the animal subjects here, using a large shard of Element 115 that the organization recovered from Division 9, mutating the animals into what Russman refers to as "bios". As the crew recovers, they discover various mangled zombie corpses. The bios then begin to escape the lab and head toward the crew, just as the zombies break in. Russman then relives his flashbacks of the initial bio outbreak as he runs further inside the facility. Misty, Marlton and Stuhlinger follow after him, leaving the zombies and bios to battle each other. As they catch up to him, Russman grabs a gun and begins to open fire on Misty, seemingly mistaking her for a bio in his flashback. As Misty gets pinned down by a bio, Russman saves her in time, claiming that he still remembers her. Russman leads the crew inside and find the Element 115 shard, which he claims to be responsible for keeping the bios active and unkillable. The zombies, however, finally overpower the bios, and close in on the crew, as Stuhlinger once again cries out for Richtofen to help them. [3]
Issue #3[]
- "When an AI security system tries to destroy the Tranzit crew, Marlton must use his tech skills to outwit the digital defenses. Misty reminds him that he can’t survive on his own: it’s going to take more than know-how and smarts to get everyone out alive. The group decide to take a chance on escaping from the zombie-infested apocalyptic wasteland, not knowing if their desperate attempt will work or where it could take them."
- — Official plot
The issue was released on March 1, 2017.
Summary[]
As the crew tries to hold off against the oncoming zombie horde, Misty notices the intelligence of the zombies as they all try to defend the Nazi zombie who is leading them. A portal finally opens, allowing them to escape the Broken Arrow facility. The crew end up in another research facility, where Marlton attempts to tinker with the security system, only to trigger a hologram of a sphere-shaped robot A.I. speaking in a female German accent, demanding authorization. After failure to provide such item, security laser barriers appear, trapping the crew minus Marlton in between, but fortunately also preventing the zombies from reaching them. The barriers however begin to close in, forcing them to open a door in the middle to escape. Marlton attempts to disable one of the barriers to join them, but instead disable all barriers, forcing them to run without him. Marlton then fends off against various zombies on his own, while Misty, Stuhlinger and Russman attempt to run away as the German A.I. guides the zombies toward them. The three find a room containing various artifacts and junks, including a robotic bus driver and a rocket shield, but Russman nearly falls to his death by a trap on the floor. Marlton attempts to escape by the air vent system, but the A.I. attempts to flush him out using chloride gas. He ends up inside the control room, where the A.I. attempts to negotiate with him, but Marlton decides to use his axe to destroy the system instead. He then guides the other three to his location, where he uses the Element 115 shard for a contraption requiring the activation of 4 individuals. The contraption extracts their blood, with Stuhlinger explaining Richtofen's words that it is supposed to help recognize them and differentiate them from zombies. A flash occurs, and the four find the view of the once barren forest before them now changes to a lush forest at nightime, leaving Misty wondering whethey they have "fixed the world".[4]
Issue #4[]
- "Marlton, Misty, Russman, and Stuhlinger think they’ve found a moment’s peace, but the approaching horde of zombies is about to destroy that. Faced with the decision of fight or flight, the crew argues and splits up. When Maxis’s emergency security measures are activated, will it be every man for himself?"
- — Official plot
The issue was released on April 19, 2017.
Summary[]
As Stuhlinger looks on the outside view in awe, Misty reminds the crew of the oncoming zombie horde, and breaks the glasses between them and the forest, against Marlton's objections of potential atmospheric hazards. The crew then eventually find a large facility, and each of them find a cottage to hide in, waiting to ambush the zombies. As the zombies approach the facility, the four open fire and kill various zombies, forcing the Nazi zombie to lead the horde and retreat. Later, Misty keeps watch while Marlton figures out the power system in the area, and Russman cooks a meal for all. Stuhlinger, however, wanders off and talks to Richtofen of the situation. He then discovers objects that he touches turn to ashes, as Richtofen reveals that they are within a tangent timeline, without human life prior to the arrival of Dr. Maxis, who set up the base here; the appearance of the crew accelerates the collapsing of the timeline. Richtofen points Stuhlinger toward a door at the base, saying that this is what they are here for, but immediately stops him as he attempts to enter, saying that he must convince the others. Stuhlinger returns to find the others, who are happily enjoying their meals, and attempts to convince them of the nature of this dimension, but he fails. He freaks out as Misty tries to comfort him, prompting Marlton to hold him at gunpoint. Russman also attempts to protect Stuhlinger by pointing a gun at Marlton, while Misty tries to calm everyone. Zombies then attack out of nowhere, despite Marlton's claim of the security alarm system having been fixed. Stuhlinger ignores Richtofen's request and heads off to the room alone, where he finds the zombies making way for him to enter, rather than stopping him. Stuhlinger breaks into the room and breaks the glass compartment containing the Kronorium, but then finds that he has triggered the security system in place, releasing various zombies with cybernetic enhancements.[5]
Issue #5[]
- "The Tranzit crew find themselves in an unfamiliar location, scattered and disoriented. And as they face a new type of enemy, it becomes clearer than ever that they need each other to survive. Stuhlinger and Russman aren’t used to having teammates, but Misty and Marlton will have to convince them to band together if they all want to make it."
- — Official plot
The issue was released on June 21, 2017.
Issue #6[]
- "Misty, Russman, and Marlton have risked life and limb in order to follow the insane directives of the voice in Stuhlinger's head. They were promised escape, and all of the scars and bruises will be worth it if they end up somewhere thats not full of vicious zombies. But they don't know whos really been giving the orders . . . Can they be trusted?"
- — Official plot
The issue was released on August 23, 2017.
