When it comes to heavy metal, Dio’s contribution to the genre cannot be understated. Considered one of the most influential heavy metal artists of all time, frontman Ronnie James Dio (who sadly passed away in 2010 after his battle with cancer) is responsible for creating such rock & roll staples as the sign of the horns (said to have been a gesture taught to him by his Italian grandmother) as well as helping popularize medieval fantasy themes within their cover art and song lyrics. Infusing Arthurian storytelling with 80s goth aesthetics, Dio’s albums were often as dramatic as they were bold–and no album was more controversial or mysterious than that of Holy Diver, which will soon be making an encore appearance in graphic novel form.
Drawn by artist Randy Berrett (with the initial rendering by Gene Hunter), Holy Diver depicts the band’s demonic-looking mascot Murray looming ominously over what appears to be a chained up priest drowning in a torrential ocean. The fire-eyed creature throws out Dio’s signature sign of the horns as he whips a long metal chain in the air, which seems to have broken loose from the priest’s bonds. It’s a startling image to say the least, and many practicing Catholics in 1983 weren’t happy with the seemingly blasphemous imagery. The album art stirred rumors that Dio was a satanist, though the frontman has repeatedly suggested that looks can be deceiving.
Dio’s refusal to elaborate on the the “true meaning” of Holy Diver‘s album cover ended up creating a mystery that metalheads have debated for the last 37 years. At times, the band has suggested that the artwork doesn’t actually depict a monster drowning a priest, but a priest drowning a monster. Many have interpreted this as Dio saying the priest is the evil one in this scenario, possibly guilty of corruption, or worse, an abuser of children (painting Murray as a figure of vengeance, as much as the monster many have assumed him to be). Thankfully, headbangers will finally get an official answer to this mystery in an upcoming graphic novel adaption of the classic album.
The Dio Estate has teamed up with Z2 Comics to bring the world of Holy Diver to life in comic book form. Titled Dio – Holy Diver, this 120 page graphic novel will be entirely centered around the backstory of the iconic album cover. Why is the priest being drowned at sea? Which is the evil character in this scenario? Famed horror writer Steve Niles (30 Days of Night) plans to answer all these questions and more along with artist Scott Hampton (Batman: Gotham County Line). Ronnie’s widow and longtime manager Wendy Dio stated in a press release that Holy Diver is “a story about how you can’t judge a picture by the way it appears, which is what Ronnie wrote many times in his songs; that you have to see inside the person and not judge them by the way they look or by what they wear.” Wendy added that she knows Ronnie would have given his “stamp of approval” on what she promises to be a great graphic novel.
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