Via his weekly newsletter Orbital Operations, comics writer, novelist, and screenwriter Warren Ellis teases two apparent new comic strips titled “Bookhouse” (with artist Mia Wolff) and “Departures” (with artist Troy Nixey). Details about these projects are currently limited, although the two strips will likely be distributed in installments of Orbital Operations, similar to the one-panel comic strip Collide (produced by Ellis and artist Jerome Eyquem) that launched earlier this year and continues to be serialized in the newsletter.

In the newsletter, Ellis provides a teaser image for Bookhouse, with the text “Coming soon.” Ellis provides two teaser images (one a title panel, the other a sketch of two conjoined individuals — “Enoch and Enos” — “holding hands”) for Departures.

Celebrated for his comics work (The Authority, Planetary, Transmetropolitan, among others), novels (Crooked Little Vein and Gun Machine), and screenwriting (Castlevania, Justice League Unlimited, G.I. Joe: Resolute), Ellis hinted in his September 27, 2026 newsletter (titled “Coming Soon”) that new material would soon appear in Orbital Operations; Bookhouse and Departures seem to be part of this promised new content.

In addition to the forthcoming Bookhouse, Wolff’s past comics projects include Lost & Found, Bread & Wine: An Erotic Tale of New York, The Empty Lot, and Above & Below: The Voyages of Virgilio. Ellis has previously showcased Wolff’s work in his online digital writer’s notebook Warren Ellis LTD (October 9, 2026).

Departures artist Nixey is described by Ellis as “an artist, writer and award-winning film director.” Nixey’s past comics work includes his creator-owned series Trout, as well as — in collaboration with acclaimed Hellboy creator Mike Mignola — Batman: The Doom That Came to Gotham and Jenny Finn.

Ellis does not provide details regarding these strips’ publication schedule and format, but if these projects follow the current Collide format that runs in Orbital Operations, the strips may be single-panel installments that appear in the weekly newsletter.

Ellis has previously mused on the potential of one-panel comic strips in newsletters. In a July 3, 2022 Orbital Operations post, Ellis recalls his collaboration with artist Jason Howard on the digitally serialized one-panel comic strip Scatterlands: “Some kind of variant on that would be an interesting thing for newsletter broadcast. Like, if there are going to be newsletter comics, maybe some more experiments in seeing how they fit the delivery medium would be fun.”

NOTES AND FURTHER READING:

Orbital Operations (Warren Ellis; October 18, 2026)

Warren Ellis LTD (Warren Ellis; October 9, 2026)

Orbital Operations (Warren Ellis; September 27, 2026)

“Warren Ellis teases new comic ‘Collide’ with artist Jerome Eyquem” (Reed Beebe; medium.com/meanwhile, April 26, 2026)

Orbital Operations (Warren Ellis; April 26, 2026)

Orbital Operations (Warren Ellis; February 15, 2026)

Orbital Operations (Warren Ellis; July 3, 2022)

Attention, all Secret Dictionary Club members — use Code Sixteen to decipher the following message: EKH QHCO EV WYQDJ QDTHEYTI YI QBCEIJ SECFBUJU.

POST-CREDITS SCENE:

THE BLACK TERROR WILL RETURN…

The text and images above are the property of their respective owner(s), and are presented here for not-for-profit, educational, and/or review purposes only, under the fair use doctrine of the copyright laws of the United States of America.

Warren Ellis teases new comic projects ‘Bookhouse’ and ‘Departures’ was originally published in MEANWHILE on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Via his weekly newsletter Orbital Operations, comics writer, novelist, and screenwriter Warren Ellis teases an apparent new comic strip titled “Collide.” Details about this project are currently limited, although Collide appears to be a comics collaboration between Ellis and artist Jerome Eyquem that will be distributed through Orbital Operations.

In the newsletter, Ellis provides a teaser image and writes, “Coming to Orbital Operations soon”; he also links to Eyquem’s GlobalComix page.

Acclaimed for his comics work (The Authority, Planetary, Transmetropolitan, among others), novels (Crooked Little Vein and Gun Machine), and screenwriting (Castlevania, Justice League Unlimited, G.I. Joe: Resolute), Ellis has previously spotlighted Eyquem’s work, specifically the comic Conscious Stream in a February 15, 2026 Orbital Operations post.

Eyquem’s other comics projects include the comic book series Knowledge and contributions to the anthology publications Heavy Metal and 100% Biodegradable. Collide appears to be the first creative collaboration between Ellis and Eyquem.

Ellis does not provide details regarding the strip’s publication schedule and format, but Ellis has previously mused about distributing comics via newsletter. In a July 3, 2022 Orbital Operations post, Ellis recalls his collaboration with artist Jason Howard on the digitally serialized one-panel comic strip Scatterlands: “Some kind of variant on that would be an interesting thing for newsletter broadcast. Like, if there are going to be newsletter comics, maybe some more experiments in seeing how they fit the delivery medium would be fun.”

NOTES AND FURTHER READING:

Orbital Operations (Warren Ellis; April 26, 2026)

Orbital Operations (Warren Ellis; February 15, 2026)

Orbital Operations (Warren Ellis; July 3, 2022)

GlobalComix (Jerome Eyquem page)

Comic Vine (Jerome Eyquem comics project credits)

Attention, all Secret Dictionary Club members — use Code Fifteen to decipher the following message: DJG HRXTCIXHIH LTGT PQAT ID RGTPIT P LDGBWDAT ID P EAPCTI XC PCDIWTG VPAPMN.

BONUS COMIC STRIP:

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Warren Ellis teases new comic ‘Collide’ with artist Jerome Eyquem was originally published in MEANWHILE on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

In issue 14 of the Image Comics series Redcoat, the roguish protagonist Simon Pure helps the historical figure Dolley Madison save a portrait of George Washington from destruction by an invading British army. The story is a gripping fantasy adventure that utilizes the mythology of First Lady Dolley Madison to comment on the power of art and myth to shape a nation.

Written by Geoff Johns and illustrated by Bryan Hitch, issue 14 is set in the year 1814, in Washington, DC; Pure, the titular “Redcoat” of the series, is a former British solider that served in the American Revolution, during which he became immortal after accidentally interrupting a ritual being conducted by The Founding Fathers, an occult group consisting of George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, and other prominent American leaders. Now magically bonded to America, Pure has a long life of adventures, encountering various historical figures like Benedict Arnold, a young Albert Einstein, and Annie Oakley, among others.

Pure is enjoying a meal and a friendly game of cards among the servants at the White House when British soldiers arrive and set fire to the building. Fleeing, Pure encounters Madison running into the flames; Pure attempts to rescue her and is soon assisting the First Lady in her mission to save Washington’s portrait.

A thrilling adventure ensues. Hitch’s artwork, complemented by inker Andrew Currie and colorist Brad Anderson, makes you feel the fire’s heat as Pure and Madison evade hostile soldiers while carrying a large, framed portrait of America’s first president through a doomed building.

The comic’s tale is inspired by the well-known historical legend of Madison saving Washington’s portrait, and the narrative presents the popular vision of Madison taking direct action to do so. However, the myth of Madison personally saving the portrait is factually incorrect.

While Madison ordered that the painting — artist Gilbert Stuart’s Lansdowne Portrait — be saved, she did not personally run into a burning building to remove the art, or keep the eight-foot-tall canvas in its frame, as depicted in Redcoat. Madison’s letter to her sister in August 1814 recounts the removal process, which included breaking the frame to remove the canvas:

Our kind friend, Mr. Carroll, has come to hasten my departure, and is in a very bad humor with me because I insist on waiting until the large picture of Gen. Washington is secured, and it requires to be unscrewed from the wall. This process was found to be too tedious for the perilous moments; I have ordered the frame to be broken, and the canvas taken out it is done, and the precious portrait placed in the hands of two gentlemen of New York for safe keeping.

In his memoir A Colored Man’s Reminiscences of James Madison, Paul Jennings, a former slave of President James Madison, notes the legend regarding Dolley Madison’s actions, and describes the process and servants involved in removing the portrait:

It has often been stated in print, that when Mrs. Madison escaped from the White House, she cut out from the frame the large portrait of Washington (now in one of the parlors there), and carried it off. This is totally false. She had no time for doing it. It would have required a ladder to get it down. All she carried off was the silver in her reticule, as the British were thought to be but a few squares off, and were expected every moment. John Susé (a Frenchman, then door-keeper, and still living) and Magraw, the President’s gardener, took it down and sent it off on a wagon, with some large silver urns and such other valuables as could be hastily got hold of. When the British did arrive, they ate up the very dinner, and drank the wines, &c., that I had prepared for the President’s party.

Redcoat is an ahistorical fantasy series, with no obligation to present historically accurate events, and its action-oriented portrayal of Madison fits with America’s mythic remembrance of the First Lady’s efforts. Also, it should be noted that Madison’s heroism in staying at the White House to direct the portrait’s preservation — while enemy soldiers were nearby — is not diminished by the facts. And the comic arguably conveys the historical Madison’s regard for the role of myth and art in shaping national identity.

For context, the Stuart portrait, painted in the final year of Washington’s presidency, presents the former general in civilian clothes, holding a sword to highlight his past military service; the image is a tribute to a leader who nurtured a new form of democratic government and the creation of a new nation. (Unknown to the First Lady, the portrait she saved was not the original, but a copy.) The painting is an iconic, creative celebration of both Washington’s thoughtful political stewardship and America’s promising future.

In Redcoat, Pure questions Madison’s motives for running into a fire to save a painting; Pure wonders if she was trying to save “a tribute to the past,” but the First Lady corrects him: “No. A compass for the future we swore we’d create because of him.”

When Pure incredulously asks “So, you risked your life for a story?” Madison responds: “I risked it for a better ending.”

While Redcoat’s depiction of Dolley Madison’s past actions is factually inaccurate, the comic provides a strong commentary on the power and importance of art and stories in shaping a nation’s future, a significance apparently recognized by the historical First Lady in 1814 when she directed the challenging removal of an eight-foot-tall canvas in order to save it from destruction.

NOTES AND FURTHER READING:

Redcoat #14 (Geoff Johns, Bryan Hitch, et al.; Image Comics, September 2025)

Redcoat Vol. 1 (Geoff Johns, Bryan Hitch, et al.; Image Comics, 2025)

Redcoat Vol. 2 (Geoff Johns, Bryan Hitch, et al.; Image Comics, 2025)

“Dolley Madison Rescues George Washington” (www.mountvernon.org)

A Colored Man’s Reminiscences of James Madison (Paul Jennings; George C. Beadle, 1865)

Attention, all Secret Dictionary Club Members — use Code Five to decipher the following message: TZW XHNJSYNXYX BJWJ FGQJ YT XZHHJXXKZQQD HQTSJ YMTRFX OJKKJWXTS.

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Geoff Johns and Bryan Hitch celebrate Dolley Madison in ‘Redcoat’ was originally published in MEANWHILE on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

To celebrate the publication of its 2000th issue, the weekly comics-focused newspaper Comic Shop News (CSN) is launching the new strip Team America Racing from writer Matthew L. Price, artist Josh Hood, and colorist Lorenzo Scaramella. Based on the 1980s Team America toyline from Ideal Toy Company, the comic will debut with a cover provided by acclaimed artist Howard Chaykin.

Founded in 1987, CSN is distributed free to customers among hundreds of retail comic shops. In issue 1989, CSN announced that Team America Racing would appear in its 2000th issue. This new feature would mark the Team America franchise’s return to comics; in 1982, Marvel Comics published a 12-issue Team America comic inspired by the toyline.

Via email, Price answered questions about the upcoming strip, revealing details about the comic’s characters, premise, and publication schedule.

Matt, tell us about yourself. Besides Team America Racing, what are some of your other current or past creative projects?

I’m a longtime comics retailer, journalist and blogger. I’ve enjoyed interviewing celebrities like Stan Lee, Robert Downey, Jr. and Will Ferrell during my career. The creative project that is probably the best-known of mine is the film “The Posthuman Project,” which I wrote along with Sterling Gates, who wrote Supergirl and the Flash, for both comics and television. We also wrote a comic-book prequel to the film. The film itself, about five teens getting superpowers while on a camping trip, can still be found on Amazon Prime and other streaming services. I also worked on a short film with my character “The Grave,” who has appeared in a handful of comics as well. He’s a reporter-turned-masked vigilante fighting for the little guy during gangster-infested 1920s Oklahoma City. The film screened at Comic-Con International in 2018 and won several awards on the festival circuit. The film’s leading man, Rett Terrell, and I are working on continuing the adventures of reporter Walter Crim and his alter ego, possibly in audio adventures and more comic books, I hope.

In addition to being a writer, you also own a comic shop (Speeding Bullet Comics in Norman, Oklahoma). What comics are you enjoying right now?

There are a lot of great comics out there right now! The “Ghost Machine” line is filled with high-quality comics. I’m similarly enjoying the “Energon Universe” stuff from Skybound, and of course the Absolute line from DC Comics has been tearing it up. As a longtime James Robinson fan, I encourage people to seek out “Los Monstrous,” by James Robinson and Jesus Merino, about a hardboiled detective in a city of monsters.

How did you get involved with writing Team America Racing? CSN has offered its readers serialized comics before, such as The Amazing Spider-Man newspaper strips or more recently debuting Brian Azzarello and Eduardo Risso’s The Blood Brothers Mother, but Team America Racing is the first original strip commissioned directly by CSN. How much input has the CSN editorial team had in shaping Team America Racing?

Dave Witting, the publisher of CSN and the owner of the Team America Racing property, has been instrumental in the entire process. I’ve been working for Dave as a contributing editor for CSN for a while now, and as part of the process of discussing what would be an exciting prospect to really make issue #2000 a fun, collectible extravaganza, I suggested launching some original comics content into the issue. With some discussion with Dave, we settled on reviving the “Team America” 1980s property into “Team America Racing,” an all-new 2020s take on the classic property. We considered bringing in other writers, but it turned out Dave really liked my take, and we went from there!

In announcing Team America Racing, CSN did not provide a lot of details about the strip. What can you tell readers about the comic’s premise, and its characters?

Our series is set in a fictionalized high-stakes world of motocross racing. Team America Racing, a talented group of young riders, faces danger and intrigue both on and off the track. As mysterious events threaten their lives and livelihoods, a masked vigilante known as the Highwayman steps in to protect them and uncover the truth behind the sinister plot.

As the series begins, the Team America Racing riders are Nicki “Ghost” Randall, Kevin “Buzz” Martinez, and Ram Halder.

Ghost is a talented and passionate second-generation motocross rider feeling the weight of her father’s legacy and the pressure to live up to his name.

Buzz is the team captain, thrust into responsibilities he never prepared for, and hoping his desire to push the limits won’t put his team in danger.

Ram is the youngest and smartest of the team, analyzing every track, every bike and every option for pathways to the team’s success.

Team America is a licensed intellectual property, a now-defunct toyline from the 1980s. Some comics fans may remember the franchise from the unsuccessful 12-issue Team America series published by Marvel Comics beginning in 1982. How did you approach developing a modern take on the property for Team America Racing?

I wanted to take my experiences with how young people interact with competition and camaraderie in 2025 and contrast that with the experience of previous generations, but do so in a way that made for a fast-paced, action-packed adventure story.

I don’t know that I’d describe the 1980s series as necessarily “unsuccessful.” I was a fan of the comic as a kid, and there’s even record of Stan Lee sending Jim Shooter a note calling the first issue “terrific.” However, as CSN Press has the license to the toy line, and not the characters from the Marvel Comics, I specifically didn’t reread those in preparation for this series, but instead looked at the various toys and explored how one might tell stories suggested by those toys in the modern era.

How many installments of Team America Racing in CSN are currently planned?

The current plan is for six installments. I’ve been looking at the five-pager in issue #2000 as a “Zero Issue” introducing the team, and then issues #2001–2005 will contain a five-part “issue #1.” But I’ve done my best to make all of them read well independently of the others, while containing a continuing story.

What about the format? For example, will Team America Racing be a four-page strip featured each week, or some other number of pages?

We will launch in issue #2000 with five pages, then follow with a four-page story each week for the next five weeks. It’s six weeks of content in total.

Team America Racing features art from Josh Hood, with colors by Lorenzo Scaramella. What is your collaborative process like with those artists?

I had finished my scripts before these guys came on, but in the process of getting ready for publication I’ve been able to give notes here and there. But mostly my collaborative process has involved being wowed at their talents! Josh Hood has you feeling the grease beneath your fingers as the motorcycles get tuned up to ride — and Lorenzo Scaramella has me feeling the desert heat and smelling the sagebrush as his colors bring our riders and their locations to life! I couldn’t be happier with the creative team Dave put together for Team America Racing, and I think fans are going to agree with me!

How does it feel to have the legendary Howard Chaykin provide a cover for your first installment of Team America Racing? When did you learn Chaykin would be providing the debut cover?

I knew Dave had reached out to Chaykin as “American Flagg!” had been featured on the first-ever issue of “Comic Shop News” way back in the 1980s, and Dave thought it would be neat to have Chaykin involved in some way with #2000. When he was able to work out the Chaykin cover — I was floored!

Last question: A customer comes into Speeding Bullet Comics, curious about Team America Racing. What is your one-sentence sales pitch for the series?

Check out this high-action, fast-paced series about young motocross racers and the conspiracy that threatens to overtake them!

NOTES AND FURTHER READING:

DISCLOSURE: CSN has previously published an article (“Which comics editor turned creator inspired the height & weight of Batman villain KGBeast?,” Comic Shop News #1909) written by the author of this post. There are no current publishing or financial arrangements between CSN and the author.

“‘Comic Shop News’ to feature new Team America comic” (Reed Beebe; medium.com/meanwhile, October 5, 2025)

“Team America Racing Is Coming!!” (Comic Shop News #1989; October 1, 2025)

Attention, all Secret Dictionary Club members — use Code Eighteen to decipher the following message: GMJ SJUZWSGDGYAKLK ZSNW MFWSJLZWV SF SFUAWFL ESJLASF UGDGFQ KALW AF GCDSZGES.

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Writer Matthew L. Price reveals more details about new CSN comic ‘Team America Racing’ was originally published in MEANWHILE on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Per its announcement in issue 1989, Comic Shop News (CSN) will feature a new Team America comic, beginning in its 2000th issue. The last Team America comic series was released in 1982, as a collaboration between Marvel Comics and Ideal Toys. This Team America series was unsuccessful and cancelled after 12 issues, but CSN will introduce a new series, titled “Team America Racing,” based on Ideal’s original Team America toyline.

CSN summarizes Marvel’s history with Team America:

The original comic was a joint venture between Marvel and Ideal Toys, featuring a rag tag team of motorcycle enthusiasts getting together to right some wrongs. Along the way they meet Iron Man, Captain America, Ghost Rider, and even the Thing became a member of the team for one page of his own series. Team America was not a smash hit, the Marvel and Ideal Toys partnership ended, and Marvel kept the rights to the existing characters, rebranding them the Thunderiders and eventually having Professor X explain how they were mutants all along.

Written primarily by Jim Shooter and Bill Mantlo, Marvel’s Team America struggled to provide a cohesive narrative. As noted by The Slings & Arrows Comic Guide, Shooter’s stories “concentrate on racing and character interaction” while Mantlo provided “weary stories of espionage and environmental disasters.” A changing roster of artists — among them Mike Vosberg, Luke McDonnell, Alan Kupperberg, Don Perlin, Mark Bright, and Dave Simons, over the course of 12 issues — was unhelpful in establishing a consistent visual aesthetic.

And yet, The Slings & Arrows Comic Guide points out Shooter’s claim, via an editorial in the series’ last issue, that Team America was more commercially successful than the first year of creator Frank Miller’s celebrated run on Marvel’s Daredevil series.

CSN has the rights to various vintage toy brands, including Team America. These rights include the Team America “name, logo, toy molds and packaging art,” and CSN is bringing Team America back to comics:

We got to thinking, wouldn’t it be cool to relaunch the comic book series in CSN? What would Team America look like today? Could we do something that was more Stranger Things meets X-Games? Could we create something brand new built off the original toys?

Founded in 1987, CSN is a weekly newspaper distributed free to customers among hundreds of retail comic shops. Although it primarily highlights upcoming comic titles, CSN has also provided comics for its readers, such as Spider-Man newspaper strips, the first comic strips featuring characters from the creator-owned Powers superhero series by writer Brian Michael Bendis and artist Michael Avon Oeming, and more recently debuting the Western series The Blood Brothers Mother by writer Brian Azzarello and artist Eduardo Risso.

CSN has not yet revealed the creative team that will be crafting the new Team America Racing strip, or how long the series is planned to run. However, CSN’s reference to “Stranger Things meets X-Games” suggests sports action and supernatural adventures. Also, CSN’s announcement includes artwork that features five unidentified characters, indicating a five-person team.

With its past publication history at Marvel, Team America is an intriguing property to develop into a comic series, and it will be interesting to see how Team America Racing progresses at CSN.

NOTES AND FURTHER READING:

DISCLOSURE: CSN has previously published an article (“Which comics editor turned creator inspired the height & weight of Batman villain KGBeast?,” Comic Shop News #1909) written by the author of this post. There are no current publishing or financial arrangements between CSN and the author.

“Team America Racing Is Coming!!” (Comic Shop News #1989; October 1, 2025)

The Slings & Arrows Comic Guide, Second Edition (Edited by Frank Plowright; Slings & Arrows Ltd., 2003)

Attention, all Secret Dictionary Club members — use Code Ten to decipher the following message: YEB CMSOXDSCDC RKFO VKEXMRON K BYMUOD DY SXDOBMOZD DRO KVSOX CZKMOMBKPD.

POST-CREDITS SCENE:

THE BLACK TERROR WILL RETURN…

The text and images above are the property of their respective owner(s), and are presented here for not-for-profit, educational, and/or review purposes only, under the fair use doctrine of the copyright laws of the United States of America.

‘Comic Shop News’ to feature new Team America comic was originally published in MEANWHILE on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

In the miniseries C.O.R.T.: Children of the Round Table, publisher DC Comics once again utilizes Arthurian legend in an adventure comic. King Arthur and his knights have appeared in various DC titles over the years, most notably starring in the 1980s maxiseries Camelot 3000. But unlike this earlier adult-themed comic, C.O.R.T. is intended for an all-ages readership.

King Arthur is no stranger to DC Comics; the mythic character has appeared in many of the publisher’s titles throughout the decades. King Arthur’s first DC appearance (in New Comics #3, dated February 1936) predates the publisher’s iconic superhero characters Superman and Batman by several years. The Arthurian mythos has inspired DC heroes such as the Shining Knight (1941), the Silent Knight (1955), and The Demon (created by the acclaimed Jack Kirby in 1972), as well as the sci-fi defenders featured in Camelot 3000 (1982). C.O.R.T. is the latest DC comic based on Arthurian legend.

Written by Tom Taylor and illustrated by artist Daniele Di Nicuolo (with colorist Rain Beredo and letterer Wes Abbott), C.O.R.T. opens with an eruption: a huge stone bursts forth from an underground facility in Cornwall, England; one of its surprised guardians notes wistfully that it is “Time for a new generation.”

In a Los Angeles park, a group of seven kids observe the stone’s destructive landing: the athletic Fel (and her dog Cabal); Fel’s sullen rival Connor; the aloof Ash; the imaginative Randall; the supportive Kelly; the humorous Kevin; and the cautious Hanan.

Fel pulls the sword from the stone, causing the stone to explosively discharge various medieval weapons to the other kids. Fel’s sword is possessed by the spirt of King Arthur, who reveals that the sword is the legendary Excalibur. The other weapons are similarly possessed by the Knights of the Round Table, such as Lancelot, Gawain, and Palamedes.

C.O.R.T. features many characters; not all of them are fully developed in the first issue (Fel, Connor, and Ash are the primary focus), but Di Nicuolo provides a distinctive look for each kid. The artwork is dynamic and expressive, stylistically similar to Japanese shōnen manga. And Beredo’s color palette is lush and vibrant.

The story is fast-paced; the first issue is intended to establish the characters and premise, and the creative team does this effectively. King Arthur warns the kids of a coming threat from the agents of Mordred (a classic antagonist from Arthurian myth) and promises that he and the knights will train them to face this menace.

Currently set to run for six issues, C.O.R.T. is an all-ages fantasy comic, a rarity among DC’s other titles, most of which are intended for older readers. C.O.R.T. is also unconnected to DC’s primary narrative continuity, the superhero-focused “DC Universe.” With its utilization of Arthurian myth and its narrative standalone status, C.O.R.T. is reminiscent of an earlier DC series, Camelot 3000.

In the 1950s, with comics distributed by newsstands and primarily read by kids, publishers established an industry-wide self-censoring Comics Code Authority to prohibit content that might offend parents. This restrictive censorship inhibited creators from presenting more adult themes and topics. However, by the 1980s, comics were increasingly sold to specialty comic book stores, establishing a direct market that catered to older readers.

In 1982, DC began publishing Camelot 3000 for exclusive distribution in the direct market, with no Code restrictions. Written by Mike W. Barr and illustrated by Brian Bolland, who provides gorgeously rendered clean-line artwork, Camelot 3000 benefited from this creative freedom, allowing the series to explore themes previously unaddressed by mainstream comic books.

Camelot 3000 ran for twelve-issues, telling a complete narrative with a beginning, middle, and end, unlike other contemporary DC titles that were meant for ongoing serialization. The comic features the return of King Arthur in the far future, along with Merlin and the reincarnated Knights of the Round Table, as they battle alien invaders led by the evil Arthurian villainess Morgan Le Fay in the year 3000.

In their introductory essay to the 1988 trade collection of Camelot 3000, authors Don and Maggie Thompson note the reasons for the series’ “milestone” status, such as it being the first DC book printed on high-quality paper, its freedom from the Comics Code Authority, and its distinction as DC’s first series to be solely distributed through the direct market, demonstrating a commitment from DC to engage mature readers.

In American Comics: A History, author Jeremy Dauber highlights the title’s cultural significance:

DC direct sales readers had come to appreciate the change with Camelot 3000, DC’s first book for “mature readers” — that is, outside the Code. True, much of the series was classic DC fare, with some Mallory thrown in: Arthur awakens to defend a Britain under alien invasion in the year 3000; his Round Table has been reincarnated, souls reborn into other bodies. But Tristan’s reincarnation into a woman’s body, and the resulting identity conflicts, particularly after encountering mythic love Isolde, herself reincarnated as a woman, broke new ground. Tristan’s journey from denial to acceptance was not only narratively significant, it led to the first same-sex kiss in mainstream comics, several years before network television allowed it; and Tristan’s acceptance of her body and her love for Isolde yielded discreet but definite evidence of same-sex sexual activity in the series’ last pages, genuinely unheard of in mid-‘80s mainstream comics.

While Camelot 3000 broke new ground in presenting adult themes and helped establish a direct market that now caters primarily to older readers, C.O.R.T. is notable for trying to engage readers of all ages in a modern market. Both titles utilize Arthurian legend to craft engaging stories, and both represent an effort by DC Comics to expand its readership.

NOTES AND FURTHER READING:

DISCLOSURE: As this article references characters published by DC Comics, it should be disclosed that the article’s author is a former DC Comics contributor. There are no current financial arrangements between the author and DC Comics.

C.O.R.T.: Children of the Round Table #1 (Tom Taylor, Daniele Di Nicuolo, Rain Beredo, et al.; DC Comics, November 2025)

Camelot 3000 (Mike W. Barr, Brian Bolland, et al.; DC Comics, 1988)

American Comics: A History (Jeremy Dauber; W.W. Norton & Company, 2022 — Dauber’s quote in the above article can be found on page 274)

“Announcing ‘C.O.R.T.: Children of the Round Table’ by Tom Taylor and Daniele Di Nicuolo!” (www.dc.com; June 19, 2025)

New Comics #3 synopsis (dc.fandom.com)

Attention, all Secret Dictionary Club members — use Code Five to decipher the following message: TZW FLJSYX MFAJ IJXYWTDJI FQQ YMJ AFRUNWJX NS XFQY QFPJ HNYD.

BONUS COMIC STRIP:

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King Arthur returns to DC Comics in ‘C.O.R.T.: Children of the Round Table’ was originally published in MEANWHILE on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

On November 5, 2024, the Johnson County, Kansas Election Office released the ballot results of its Kids VOTE JoCo program; the program provided kids who accompanied their parents to polling locations with an educational activity booklet on the voting process, along with a ballot asking them to vote for their favorite sports team, favorite food, and favorite superhero. Iconic superhero characters Batman, Iron Man, Spider-Man, and Wonder Woman were listed as choices in the “Favorite Super Hero” category. Election officials collected and tabulated these ballots; on Election Day, Wonder Woman garnered 3,009 votes, a winning plurality of the 8,061 total votes cast.

Spider-Man received approximately 33% of the vote share, a respectable second-place finish, with Iron Man and Batman earning a more distant third and fourth-place vote share, respectively.

There is no demographic data (such as the number of boys and girls who voted, or their various ages) accompanying the listed voting results, so it is unclear how these demographics may have impacted the vote totals.

For context, according to the Kids VOTE JoCo Activity Booklet, Johnson County has over 470,000 registered voters living across 19 cities and seven townships, with about 140 polling sites. Per the current unofficial 2024 presidential election results shared by the Election Office, Harris/Walz received 154,446 votes in the county, compared to 126,925 votes cast for Trump/Vance.

Wonder Woman was created in 1941 by psychologist and writer William Moulton Marston (with artist H. G. Peter) for publisher DC Comics. Marston envisioned the character as a feminist exemplar of virtue and strength. Wonder Woman was immediately popular with both boy and girl readers, and arguably remains the world’s most iconic female superhero.

In 1972, at the direction of Gloria Steinem, Wonder Woman appeared on the debut issue cover of the feminist magazine Ms. with a banner that proclaimed “WONDER WOMAN FOR PRESIDENT.” The character has been featured on the cover of Ms. on multiple occasions, and Wonder Woman retains a strong symbolic association with feminist causes.

Wonder Woman is an enduring female superhero in a genre dominated by male heroes, and the Johnson County Kids Vote results provide official governmental documentation that Wonder Woman is a beloved character.

NOTES AND FURTHER READING:

DISCLOSURE: As this article references characters published by DC Comics, it should be disclosed that the article’s author is a former DC Comics contributor. There are no current financial arrangements between the author and DC Comics.

Johnson County, Kansas Election Office — Kids Vote Results (November 5, 2024)

Kids VOTE JoCo Activity Booklet (Johnson County, Kansas Election Office, 2024)

Johnson County, Kansas November 5, 2024 General Election Results

Sensational Wonder Woman #4 (written by Corinna Bechko; art by Dani; colors by Mike Spicer, et al.; DC Comics, August 2021)

Supergods: What Masked Vigilantes, Miraculous Mutants, and a Sun God from Smallville Can Teach Us About Being Human (Grant Morrison; Spiegle & Grau, 2011)

“Smithsonian’s ‘Sidedoor’ Podcast Examines How Ms. Made Wonder Woman a Feminist Icon” (Katie Fleischer and Aviva Dove-Viebahn; msmagazine.com, January 30, 2021)

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Wonder Woman wins “Favorite Super Hero” ballot in Kansas county’s official kids vote was originally published in MEANWHILE on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

In issue two of the horror anthology comic series Hello Darkness from publisher BOOM! Studios, editor Bryce Carlson reveals the identity and development history of the series’ cover mascot, Darcía. While comic book cover mascots are uncommon, Darcía is preceded by a rich history of magazine mascots.

Carlson, who developed Hello Darkness and curates its content, outlines the rationale for having a cover mascot:

Early on developing HELLO DARKNESS, I was convinced we needed to establish a visual identity for the series. But there’s an inherent challenge attempting to do that with a brand-new anthology because you don’t have recurring characters or a shared world to play with. So what we did was start with an absolutely killer logo and trade dress design from Tom Muller that is so good that I can’t imagine the series without it. Then we just had to figure out what the hell to put on the rest of the cover.

Carlson worked with celebrated artist Paolo Rivera to develop a cover mascot:

We chatted about a mysterious woman who could be our visual icon. Someone you’d recognize on the cover every month but wouldn’t appear inside. Kind of like a dark, horror version of Alfred E. Neuman. She would have a “darkness” about her and be very playful in how she interacts with the macabre. Attitude mixed with youthful mischievousness. A siren of sorts, calling and beckoning people to pick up the mag and see what’s inside...

Carlson and Rivera named the mascot character Darcía, which means “dark.” Rivera designed Darcía, giving her two distinctive features: a marking around her left eye, and red streaks in her dark hair.

Carlson compares Darcía to Alfred E. Neuman, the iconic cover mascot for the humor magazine MAD. Although iterations of the Neuman character were featured in the periphery of previous issues, Neuman’s appearance on the cover of MAD #30 (as rendered by artist Norman Mingo in 1956) is arguably the character’s defining debut. Neuman has appeared on almost every MAD cover since then, becoming a key part of the magazine’s visual identity.

In commissioning Mingo to create a cover mascot, MAD editor Al Feldstein sought a visual icon to represent the magazine. In a 2007 interview with The A.V. Club, Feldstein cited corporate mascots like the Jolly Green Giant and RCA’s “dog barking at the gramophone” logo as inspirations.

However, Feldstein’s desire for a mascot may also have been influenced by other contemporary magazine mascots. Several esteemed magazines utilized mascots.

The New Yorker featured Eustace Tilley.

A comically pop-eyed Esky appeared on Esquire covers.

And Playboy put an anthropomorphic Bunny on its covers.

But while Neuman is an enduring icon, these other magazine mascots have disappeared, and mascots are not a common feature of American comic books. The use of Darcía as the cover mascot for Hello Darkness is therefore a unique stylistic approach that should be of interest to comics readers.

NOTES AND FURTHER READING:

“Darcía” (Bryce Carlson; Hello Darkness #2; BOOM! Studios, August 2024) [This backmatter editorial reveals details regarding the creation of the Darcía mascot character.]

“A Boy with No Birthday Turns 60” (Sam Sweet; The Paris Review, March 3, 2016) [This is a great article on the history of the Alfred E. Neuman mascot.]

“Al Feldstein” (interview by Jason Heller; The A.V. Club, March 29, 2007)

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Horror comic ‘Hello Darkness’ features an intriguing cover mascot was originally published in MEANWHILE on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

On July 24, 2024, two horror anthology comics debuted: Epitaphs from the Abyss (from publisher Oni Press) and Hello Darkness (published by BOOM! Studios). The respective first issue of each series features engaging, thought-provoking horror strips crafted by talented comics creators. Both comics deftly explore current societal fears via stories that will please horror fans.

Epitaphs from the Abyss embraces the creative legacy of EC Comics. Founded in 1944, EC garnered acclaim and notoriety in the 1950s by publishing groundbreaking horror (Tales from the Crypt, The Haunt of Fear, The Vault of Horror), crime (Shock SuspenStories, Crime SuspenStories), and science fiction (Weird Science, Weird Fantasy) comics, under the direction of publisher William Gaines. Today, EC’s comics are remembered for their artistic quality, as well as their deft commentary on contemporary anxieties.

In an editorial for Epitaphs from the Abyss, publisher Hunter Gorinson recounts his first experience reading EC’s comics:

For the first time, inside those pages, I discovered stories — lovingly rendered in their gruesome brutality by the incomparable Johnny Craig — that brought horror home. These weren’t tales about intangible ghosts plaguing an ancient castle half a world away. Instead, they were trips down the street, behind our neighbors’ picket fences, where a spouse or best friend or trusted local milkman might be waiting to shatter an otherwise perfect life with a precisely placed hatchet blow or ironically timed bear trap… visceral to the maximum, with a dry sense of existential dread that was often as funny as it was relentlessly confrontational. As William M. Gaines himself said, inside these pages, “virtue doesn’t always have to triumph.”

EC generated controversy and public outcry over concerns that its comics — along with the horror and crime comics of other publishers — were corrupting America’s youth. In 1954, Gaines testified before the U. S. Senate Subcommittee on Juvenile Delinquency; this testimony did not allay public concerns, and that year comics publishers adopted a self-censoring Comics Code Authority organization to review and approve comics, in order to assure parents and retailers that the approved comics were suitable for children. Many retailers refused to sell comics that did not have Comics Code approval; EC struggled commercially in this new sales environment, and by 1956 cancelled all of its titles except for the now-iconic humor magazine Mad.

Epitaphs from the Abyss carries the EC Comics logo, and its content is an homage to the former publisher’s 1950s output. The comic’s horror host — the Grave-Digger — welcomes new readers to the magazine; the character is inspired by EC’s past comics hosts, such as the Crypt-Keeper, the Vault-Keeper, and the Old Witch. The comic features four separate, stand-alone horror strips, similar to EC’s original comics anthology format.

But while Epitaphs from the Abyss is inspired by EC’s past, the comic is focused on modern fears, and utilizes the talent of today’s best creators. Gorinson declares that Epitaphs is not a mere pastiche:

Instead, we’ve challenged ourselves to imagine a world where the Comics Code never unceremoniously amputated EC’s publishing line at the end of 1955 and, through that lens, what kinds of series and stories EC Comics would be producing for a new generation of readers eager to disturb and discover in the year 2024. Naturally, inside Epitaphs from the Abyss you’ll find a predominant strain of the supernatural horror that inspired Tales from the Crypt and Haunt of Fear, but also stories that come informed by the cold nihilism of man’s inhumanity as chronicled in Shock and Crime SuspenStories… not to mention the many thousands of anxieties that the new millennium has presented us to feast upon night after night in our nightmares.

Epitaphs from the Abyss #1 features several strips that explore the dread caused by current societal issues: in “Senator, Senator,” writer Chris Condon and artist Peter Krause (with colorist Michelle Madsen) offer a chilling explanation as to why so many politicians seem to abandon long-held political principles; writer Brian Azzarello and artist Vlad Legostaev (with colorist Brittany Peer) use monsters as a metaphor to illustrate how the practice of demonizing our neighbors can lead to violence, in “Us vs. Us”; and writer Stephanie Phillips, artist Phil Hester, inker Travis Hymel, and colorist Marissa Louise explore a father’s hard choice, in arguably the issue’s most terrifying strip, “Family Values.”

The strips in Epitaphs from the Abyss #1 range from six to ten pages, with consistent lettering (reminiscent of EC’s past letters style) provided by Richard Starkings and Comicraft’s Tyler Smith. The strips are well-illustrated, standalone horror stories that leave readers with a sense of dread, along with troubling thoughts regarding our current society.

Like Epitaphs from the Abyss, Hello Darkness utilizes the anthology format; also, like Epitaphs, Hello Darkness strives to be more than a pastiche of past horror comics, using acclaimed modern creators to tell stories that reflect current fears. In issue one, editor Bryce Carlson lays out the comic’s goals:

Every month, comic book creators around the world are going to give you everything they got. Some are going to share their deepest, darkest fears with you. Some are going to paint dark futures that feel all too real. Some are going to make you laugh, make you squirm, and make you gasp. Some might even offend you.

In Hello Darkness #1, several standalone strips deliver on this promise:

“Contagious” — a strange epidemic compels children to murder their parents; written by Jude Ellison S. Doyle and illustrated by Letizia Cadonici (with colors by Alessandro Santoro and letters by Becca Carey), the story suggests that the murders may be needed to prevent a more horrific outcome.

“Stay in Your Lane” — written by Dave Cook, with eye-catching renderings by artist David Cousens and colorist Angel De Santiago, and letters by Nathan Kempf, this strip explores the feelings of rage that come from lost opportunities, while creating some sympathy for the story’s antagonist.

“The Siren” by Sarah Andersen presents the tale of a lighthouse keeper resisting the alluring songs of a mythic siren; the strip has gorgeous artwork, and an interesting twist that leaves readers pondering what happens next.

“The Foster” (by writer Steve Orlando, illustrator A.L. Kaplan, colorist Marissa Louise, and letterer Jodie Troutman) features an insecure man doing a noble thing for selfish reasons, until his selfish instincts lead to a horrible outcome.

“I Can't Take You Anywhere” by Robert Hack is a humorous, masterfully illustrated one-pager presenting several macabre gag cartoons.

In addition to these standalone features, the comic offers two serialized strips, The War and Something Is Killing The Children:

“Something Is Killing The Children: A Monster Hunter Walks Into A Bar, Part One” (by writer James Tynion IV, artist Werther Dell’Edera, colorist Miquel Muerto, and letters by Andworld Design) is the first installment of a new adventure from the celebrated Something Is Killing The Children comics series. Monster slayer Erica Slaughter waits out a storm in a small town’s pub, while her bartender recounts stories regarding the town’s recently murdered kids. While little action occurs in this installment, the dialogue is sharp and clever, and the artwork deftly conveys an atmosphere of suspicion and fear.

Arguably the most political — and disturbing — strip in Hello Darkness is “The War, Part One”; the first installment mostly features a group of friends in New York City debating the ongoing real-world Russian invasion of Ukraine. Written by Garth Ennis, illustrated by Becky Cloonan, with colors by Tamra Bonvillain and letters by Pat Brosseau, the strip’s horror comes from the realism of its characters, along with the reader’s current existential dread regarding the war in Ukraine and its potential to trigger a larger conflict.

Both Epitaphs from the Abyss and Hello Darkness provide ambitious modern horror tales that will leave you feeling anxious long after you finish reading them.

NOTES AND FURTHER READING:

Epitaphs from the Abyss #1 (Brian Azzarello, Chris Condon, et al.; Oni Press, July 2024)

Hello Darkness #1 (Sarah Andersen, Letizia Cadonici, et al.; BOOM! Studios, July 2024)

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The hard-hitting comics horror of ‘Epitaphs from the Abyss’ and ‘Hello Darkness’ was originally published in MEANWHILE on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

In the two-issue story arc “Newcastle Calling,” writer Jason Aaron and artist Sean Murphy present John Constantine, the protagonist of the DC Comics series Hellblazer, returning to the British city of Newcastle; there, decades earlier, Constantine and his friends attempted to stop a horrific creature, with disastrous results. “Newcastle Calling” examines this supernatural tragedy via the context of Constantine’s unrealized punk music career.

“Newcastle Calling” (Hellblazer issues 245 and 246) opens in modern times, with a five-person documentary film crew visiting the ruins of the Casanova Club; in 1977, Constantine’s punk band Mucous Membrane debuted at this venue. The crew’s footage recounts the band’s origins; Constantine served as vocalist and his friend Gary Lester played guitar, with other musicians providing bass and drums. The footage also provides commentary from fans regarding the band’s talent.

The filmmakers are also keen to note the band’s involvement in the mysterious murders that occurred at the club in 1978; six dismembered corpses were found in the basement, along with the arm of a little girl. The rest of the girl’s body was never found.

Longtime Hellblazer readers are familiar with the events behind this tragedy. In Hellblazer #11 (published November 1988, entitled “Newcastle: A Taste of Things to Come,” written by Jamie Delano and rendered by artists Richard Piers Rayner and Mark Buckingham), Constantine and Lester, along with five other friends, investigate their suspicion that the club might be the cause of weird occurrences in the Newcastle area. The club’s owner is an occultist, and Constantine’s crew discover the eviscerated owner and his fellow cult members, along with the owner’s surviving daughter, Astra.

Learning that a supernatural “terror elemental” is responsible, Constantine conjures a demon to destroy this creature. But Constantine soon realizes that he has made an error: he cannot control the demon, and Astra consequently suffers a dreadful fate.

Constantine’s failure in Newcastle has a significant impact on his life: he spends several years in a mental institution; his music career effectively ends; his friends suffer emotional and physical trauma that haunts them for the rest of their lives; and he becomes a more cynical occult practitioner. He also encounters the Newcastle demon and Astra again in future adventures.

The film crew is unaware of the supernatural cause of the Newcastle tragedy, and they are unprepared for the coming terrors that their visit has triggered.

Although “Newcastle Calling” and “Newcastle: A Taste of Things to Come” both explore Constantine’s regret of past mistakes, the two tales utilize different techniques to generate horror. Whereas Delano and his artists present visceral demonic horror tropes at a rapid pace in a single issue, Aaron and Murphy use two issues to build a steady mood of dread; the crew experience hallucinations that creep in slowly, and some horror happens off-panel, leaving readers to imagine what terrible incidents have occurred.

Murphy (aided by Lee Loughridge’s dark color palette) creates an atmospheric gloom that is perfect for the story. Each character is distinctive and well-rendered; readers empathize with their despair and regret. The isolated setting is a visually interesting wasteland, and the eye-catching gore, while sparingly used, is unsettling.

Constantine is mostly absent from the first installment of “Newcastle Calling”; aware of the danger unleashed by the crew’s presence, he returns to Newcastle at the story’s end. The second installment begins with a narrative parade of horrible events, as Constantine details the grim psychic effects that are now being experienced by Newcastle’s residents. As Constantine deals with the occult menace, readers learn that the events depicted in Delano’s story were not fully resolved, and that Constantine bears some culpability for the recent supernatural threats.

Aaron and Murphy examine Newcastle’s impact on Constantine’s life from the perspective of an unrealized music career. The Constantine mythos offers ample examples of Mucous Membrane’s potential, such as a 1978 hit single, “Venus of the Hardsell” (Hellblazer Annual #1) and a NME magazine interview with the band (Hellblazer #62); yet, until “Newcastle Calling,” the emotional impact of Constantine’s lost music career had not been explored in such a poignant fashion.

In his forward to Punk Rock: An Oral History, novelist Michael Bracewell notes the significance of punk to its fans:

Naturally, punk sought to booby trap its own history by making a rhetorical fetish of the slogan “No Future.” And, equally naturally, many of punk’s founding participants are deeply uneasy of enshrining punk’s core years (between 1976 and 1978) in any form of sentimental nostalgia for a somehow better time. What is remarkable therefore is the way in which, despite such denials, punk is still revealed to have had a deep, irreversible effect on many of the people whom it touched.

“Newcastle Calling” is a celebration of punk music; the film crew discuss their favorite punk songs, the narrative presents Mucous Membrane’s rowdy performances via Constantine’s regretful recollections, and the story’s title is a reference to the acclaimed Clash album London Calling. While Constantine is modest in describing Mucous Membrane’s brief success to one of the film crew (“We were shite, kid. We were bloody awful. But then again, no worse than a lot of others back then.”), the narrative makes it clear that he is wistful for his vanished punk past.

NOTES AND FURTHER READING:

DISCLOSURE: As works published by DC Comics are referenced in the above article, it should be disclosed that the article’s author is a former DC Comics contributor. There are no current financial arrangements between the author and DC Comics.

Hellblazer #245 (Jason Aaron [writer], Sean Murphy [artist], Lee Loughridge [colors], Jared K. Fletcher [letters]; DC Comics, August 2008)

Hellblazer #246 (Jason Aaron [writer], Sean Murphy [artist], Lee Loughridge [colors], Jared K. Fletcher [letters]; DC Comics, September 2008)

John Constantine, Hellblazer: The Devil You Know (Jamie Delano , et al.; DC Comics, 2007) [This collection includes Hellblazer #11 (“Newcastle: A Taste of Things to Come”) from Jamie Delano (writer), Richard Piers Rayner and Mark Buckingham (art), Lovern Kindzierski (coloring), and Todd Klein (lettering).]

John Constantine, Hellblazer: 30th Anniversary Celebration (Various; DC Comics, 2018) [This volume includes a chronological timeline of John Constantine’s adventures, provided by author Rich Handley.]

Punk Rock: An Oral History (John Robb; PM Press, 2012)

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Jason Aaron and Sean Murphy explore John Constantine’s punk past in “Newcastle Calling” was originally published in MEANWHILE on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.