Dark Horse announced today that they would be teaming up with Nickelodeon to produce a brand-new comic based on Avatar: The Last Airbender. To whet fans’ appetite for the new series, Dark Horse will kick things off with a special Free Comic Book Day issue, followed by a short-story anthology in July 2011 and “all-new” Airbender stories in early 2012.
Dark Horse isn’t the first American company to create a comic book tie-in with the popular franchise. From 2006 to 2008, Tokyopop published eight “cine-manga” that faithfully reproduced the TV show’s best-loved episodes, while Del Rey released two stand-alone graphic novels — The Airbender Prequel: Zuko’s Story and The Last Airbender — in conjunction with the 2010 movie. The jury is still out on whether Avatar needs another graphic novel treatment, but the new Dark Horse project sounds promising: not only will it involve creative talent from the original show, it will also extend the story beyond the scope of the original series, something that the Tokyopop and Del Rey tie-ins didn’t really do.
Full press release and cover art below.
Dark Horse and Nickelodeon to Bring Avatar: The Last Airbender to Comics
MILWAUKIE, OR – Feb. 8, 2011 – Following the breakout success of last year’s Avatar: The Last Airbender—The Art of the Animated Series, Dark Horse is proud to collaborate with Nickelodeon on a comprehensive publishing program built around this beloved and exciting Emmy-winning animated series!
The first installment of this new series will be released on Free Comic Book Day, May 7, with two introductory short stories—the unpublished tale “Relics” and the iconic “Dirty Is Only Skin Deep.” This free comic will be packaged with Lucasfilm’s Star Wars: The Clone Wars in a special flip-book comic, available only at your local comic book shop.
Avatar: The Last Airbender—The Lost Adventures will be released on July 13. This all-new 240-page comic book contains over 70 pages of never-before-seen material in addition to long-out-of-print comics previously published in Nickelodeon Magazine. With 26 stories set in Airbender continuity and created by a host of top-notch talent, many of whom worked on the original animated series, this is an essential addition to any fan’s bookshelf.
Additionally, Dark Horse will create all-new Airbender stories that will be published as digest-style original graphic novels—conveniently sized paperback collections—in early 2012. Picking up where the season three finale left off, this new series will follow the further adventures of Aang and his friends, as they help to rebuild a world torn apart by 100 years of war.
“We had a great experience collaborating with Dark Horse on Avatar: The Last Airbender — The Art of the Animated Series,” series co-creator Michael Dante DiMartino said. “We are excited to work closely with them once again to bring the further adventures of Avatar Aang and his friends to the comic world.”
Oooh, neat! I might just read this! As long as M. Night isn’t allowed anywhere near it….
I got the Art of Avatar book, it is quite nice I must agree.
I actually think the movie’s general suckiness may help in this case; I could imagine that some folks will turn to the comics as a palate cleanser. I also think the fanbase for the franchise is still quite strong; it’s one of those rare kids’ shows that’s smart enough to hold an adult’s interest, which I think bodes well for sales.
I am very, very excited about this. I still had questions at the end of the animated series that went unanswered, so I’m hoping this will answer some of them. It will also help tide me over until the new cartoon begins.
Is Nickelodeon planning a follow-up show as well? I didn’t realize that. One of the perils of not having a TV set, I guess!
Yeah, i think it comes out this year. It’s 70 years after the last show, and the new Avatar is learning Airbending from Aang’s son. =D