Marvel will continue its ongoing celebration of Sabretooth, in what series creator Frank Tieri describes as "Gangs of New York, but with Sabretooth." Set in the early 1900s, Sabretooth: The Dead Don't Talk will be the latest in the villain's infamous of bloodlettings over the centuries.

In the Wolverine's Krakoan Era storyline to a breathtaking conclusion; with the villain having been killed off at the War's end, this new series takes the character back a century.

The Dead Don't Talk also serves as a sequel to Tieri's earlier series, Ruins of Ravencroft: Sabretooth, a must-read for fans of the feud between Wolverine and Sabretooth.

Marvel Announces "Sabretooth: The Dead Don't Talk" Will Cap Off Wolverine's 50th Anniversary

Sabretooth: The Dead Don't Talk – Written By Frank Tieri; Available In December From Marvel Comics

Speaking with AIPT, author Frank Tieri discussed the genesis of Sabretooth: The Dead Don't Talk and its 20th-century setting. As he explained, the series serves as a follow-up to his previous Ruins of Ravencroft: Sabretooth; the opportunity to revisit Sabretooth in this setting arose as a result of the fact that the character had just been killed off once more in the "present-day" of the Marvel Universe. As Tieri explained:

Hey, it’s Wolverine’s 50th anniversary, you had to figure I was going to be involved in some way, ya know? [Laughs] And really, that “some way” was editor Mark Paniccia more than anything. Mark always liked how I’ve handled Sabretooth as a character and wanted to do something badass with him together. The problem was of course… SPOILER ALERT… Sabretooth was set to die. Which meant the story had to be an untold tale of his set in the past when, ya know, that whole dead thing wasn’t going to get in the way.

As he revealed more details about The Dead Don't Talk, Tieri exponentially increased the level of hype fans will feel for this series.

Tieri noted that the previous series featured Sabretooth working for Mr. Sinister, while the sequel will depict what happens when the amoral antithesis to Wolverine "ends up smack dab in the middle of the criminal underworld in Five Points NYC." That is, Tieri's reference to Gangs of New York is more than just a reference point for the temporal setting of his story – it serves as the basis of the series' plotline, as the author set out to deliver on "what a Marvel version of Gangs of New York looks like."

Author Frank Tieri Will Mix Real History & Comic Book Action In "The Dead Don't Talk"

The Gangs Of Marvel's New York

Not unlike Marvel's Gang War crossover event, Frank Tieri's Sabretooth: The Dead Don't Talk will deliver a similar, early 1900s version of disparate criminal groups battling for supremacy in New York City. As much as his series is an homage to Scorcese, and the real history behind it, Tieri was upfront about the fact that he won't leave any opportunity for comic book magic and madness on the table. The author gave a tantalizing insight into the world of his book, noting:

One of the most fun parts of using a setting like this is seeing what a Marvel version of Gangs of New York looks like. So you have a mix of normal gangs… and then some not so normal gangs. A gang that use steampunk tech, a gang that have modeled themselves after the American Revolution’s Captain America… even a “Frankengang” that were stitched together by one of the good doctors ancestors. So you can guess when we drop Sabretooth in the middle of something like this it’s like dropping a ton of TNT into a forest fire, the explosion doesn’t only affect the criminal underworld but the entirety of 1900s NYC itself.

Amid all of this, Sabretooth will rise to prominence in New York's underworld.

The how and why of that rise will be the question at the heart of the story, as Sabretooth: The Dead Don't Talk will also proceed like a mystery. According to Tieri, the story will be framed by Wolverine's discovery in the present day of his enemy's role in the history of New York City crime. Tieri told AIPT:

We actually start with Wolverine, so as the events of Sabretooth: The Dead Don’t Talk unfold, we’re learning about what happened alongside him. We kick off with him in a bar — Satan’s Circus, the oldest bar in the Big Apple — having a drink after Sabes’ funeral when he notices some old pics of Five Points gang on the wall… and Sabretooth is one of them! How the hell is this possible? From here Logan — and we — begin to learn this secret, violent history of his greatest foe as the gangster “Mad Dog” Murphy and we’re off to the proverbial races.

The thrill of the series will be discovering the life exploits of "Mad Dog" Murphy as Wolverine does, perhaps even putting his enemy, and their perennial battles, into a new perspective in the process.

"The Dead Don't Talk" Is The Next Great Chapter In Sabretooth And Wolverine's History

Essential Pre-The Dead Don't Talk Reading: Ruins Of Ravencroft: Sabretooth – Written By Frank Tieri; Art By Angel Unzueta

Frank Tieri is no strange to writing the character of Sabretooth; as he noted to AIPT, fans eager to get their hands on The Dead Don't Talk should bide their time by reading Ruins of Ravencroft: Sabretooth, the events of which the series spin directly out of. The teaser images released by Marvel for the new book suggest that it will recap the events of the prior story, but it is worth returning to for more than just the plot, but to get a sense of how the author handles Wolverine and Sabretooth.

[Readers] can be confident that Wolverine's fiftieth anniversary year will draw to a close with an exciting, and of course, bloody new chapter in the history of his greatest opponent, Sabretooth.

In short, he has a strong sense of their dynamic, and both respective characters' voices. If anyone can meet the Sabretooth War and its incredible conclusion, Frank Tieri is likely to be among the best candidates. Readers will have to wait for more details about the series to emerge, but for now they can be confident that Wolverine's fiftieth anniversary year will draw to a close with an exciting, and of course, bloody new chapter in the history of his greatest opponent, Sabretooth.

Source: AIPT's X-Men Monday