Before Matt Reeves' War for the Planet of the Apes swings into theaters on July 14, fans will be able to prime themselves for the big simian vs. human rumble with a new 4-part prequel comic from Boom!

Written by David F. Walker -- whose Tarzan on the Planet of the Apes project with Tim Seeley for Dark Horse was one of my go-to reads last year -- and matched with art by Jonas Scharf (Sons of Anarchy), this bridging release is similar to Lucasfilm's Journey to the Force Awakens comics and novel tie-in that added depth and complexity to the film franchise. Boom!'s backstory buildup to the Apes battle strikes comic shops on July 12, and hopes to educate audiences on all the monkey business leading up to the big-screen story.

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Here's the official press release, and preview covers above and below:

BOOM! Studios and Twentieth Century Fox Consumer Products announce WAR FOR THE PLANET OF THE APES comic book series that serves as a prequel story to the upcoming blockbuster film. Written by David F. Walker (Power Man and Iron Fist) and illustrated by Jonas Scharf (Warlords of Appalachia), War for the Planet of the Apes comic series debuts July 12, 2017 as a four-issue monthly limited series. The highly anticipated 20th Century Fox film opens two days later on July 14.



“I'm a huge fan of the original Planet of the Apes films, and I really love what they've done with the new series,” says Walker. “Working on War for the Planet of the Apes not only means that I get to play around in my favorite film franchise, it means I get to contribute to what may ultimately be the best Apes film since the first one in 1968.”



“It's going to be both fun and challenging to work on such a well-established franchise. Rise of the Planet of the Apes and Dawn of the Planet of the Apes were both fantastic movies that had some really beautiful visuals and great character development,” adds Scharf. “Playing around with more realistic likenesses and locations from the movies and a more stylized approach in the context of the medium of comics is also going to be interesting. And let's be honest here, drawing apes is also just a ton of fun.”



Picking up where the Dawn of the Planet of the Apes film left off, the War for the Planet of the Apes comic series will serve as a bridge to the upcoming new movie. Spanning the course of a year, this limited series focuses on various groups of characters throughout the United States, giving readers a look into this mysterious world.



“The story I've written for War for the Planet of the Apes takes place between the Dawn and War films, as Caesar prepares the apes for the threat he knows they are about to face from the human military,” explains Walker. “At the same time, we explore what is happening in other parts of the country, and how apes and humans struggle for dominance in the aftermath of the Simian Virus.”

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(Via THR)