Doom Is Confirmed! Invader Zim Returns As Comic Series - Update

[Fanghawk]

Doom Is Confirmed! Invader Zim Returns As Comic Series - Update

Invader Zim will be resurrected as an Oni Press comic book under the collaboration of Nickelodeon and creator Jhonen Vasquez.

Update: <a href=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sTU3GkWIQuU>Prepare your bladder for imminent release: Oni Press has confirmed production of an official Invader Zim comic book. Issue 1 will arrive this July and is being created through a collaboration between Nickelodeon and creator Jhonen Vasquez.

"I'm always confused when people say how much they miss Invader Zim because the show never stopped running in my head, and then I remember everyone else isn't in my head," Vasquez said in a press statement. "I try to imagine the world for all those people who don't know what Zim's been up to since the show went off the air and it makes me shudder. How can people live that way? Hopefully this comic helps make the world a better place."

The exact creative team hasn't been confirmed, but series veterans Aaron Alexovich, Eric Trueheart, and Rikki Simons are all named in the press release. Invader Zim will reach bookshelves on July 1st.

Original Story: The phrase "Doom is coming" might not seem like much at first. But if you spotted the stylized text in Oni Press' Twitter feed and got very excited, it's easy to guess why: It teases the long-awaited return of Invader Zim. Originally airing on <a href=http://www.escapistmagazine.com/tag/view/nickelodeon>Nickelodeon from 2001 to 2002, Invader Zim was an award-winning animated series cancelled just prior to producing its finale. It remains a fondly remembered cult classic, but now it might be making a comic book comeback - a theory helped in no small part by <a href=https://twitter.com/JhonenV>creator Jhonen Vasquez reposting the image.

Invader Zim follows an alien attacker and his adorably malfunctioning robot, GIR, as they infiltrate and conquer Earth to impress their homeworld's overlords. Unfortunately, his plans are often dashed by Dib, an elementary school student and paranormal investigator who is able to see through the disguise. Invader Zim earned an Emmy and two animation awards, among other nominations, before being cancelled in 2002 due to high production costs. The series was originally meant to culminate in a full-length TV movie called "Invader Dib".

Long after its cancellation, Invader Zim remains a highly-quotable cult classic thanks to DVD and digital storefront re-releases. Many attempts have been made to resurrect the series, but now it seems Invader Zim <a href=http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/128150-Serenity-Soars-Like-A-Leaf-Into-Comic-Book-Sequel>will take the Firefly route of continuing in comic book form. Oni Press has said to "stay tuned for more" this Friday, when hopefully details will be unveiled.

You can sing the doom song now.


Source: Comic Book Resources

Permalink

 

[Devin Barker]

Ive actually met and spoke with J.V. (at Comic Con) a few times about Zim. I would be surprised if he came back to write the comic (he gave up all of his rights on the cartoon just to leave his contract) but if him and the powers that be at Viacom have come to some sort of agreement on rights and he will be involved directly, I am a happy man.

 

[Johnny Novgorod]

That'd be nice but a lot of the charm would be lost without the spastic animation.

 

[Lunar Templar]

Hehehe, so, assuming this is real, they're gonna let JV take the gloves off with this series? *pictures the reaction from Zim fans unfamiliar with the rest of JVs work, and giggles*

 

[RaikuFA]

Hehehe, so, assuming this is real, they're gonna let JV take the gloves off with this series? *pictures the reaction from Zim fans unfamiliar with the rest of JVs work, and giggles*

I'm giggling as well.

 

[Veldel]

Hehehe, so, assuming this is real, they're gonna let JV take the gloves off with this series? *pictures the reaction from Zim fans unfamiliar with the rest of JVs work, and giggles*

I'm giggling as well.

Oh the laughs at people's reactions. I'm giggling thinking of there faces.

 

[Armadox]

Hehehe, so, assuming this is real, they're gonna let JV take the gloves off with this series? *pictures the reaction from Zim fans unfamiliar with the rest of JVs work, and giggles*

I'm giggling as well.

Oh the laughs at people's reactions. I'm giggling thinking of there faces.

You can stop giggling now. Oni Press isn't really known for hardcore gore and angst. Sadly this series wasn't given to Avatar Press, as they'd be the ones to give Invader Zim (and Jhonen) full horrible reign..

With Oni best your going to get is more of the show, and that's good enough.

 

[flying_whimsy]

I honestly don't expect JV to be involved with this since nickelodeon owns the rights and will probably not be willing to let him off the chain.

Well, that and the man has had the worst writer's block in history ever since the show ended.

 

[ccggenius12]

Wait, Zim was dropped for budgetary reasons? This is the first I'm hearing of that. I'd been told (frequently) that it's because Vasquez was incredibly difficult to work with (i.e. a raging dickhole).
In either case, I'll just file this under "nifty".

 

[Baresark]

Man, I hope so. Jhonen Vasquez needs to actually be involved though.

 

[Davroth]

Unless JV is the driving force in this, I'm not interested in it, really.

The man, if nothing else, believes in his artistic vision and will fight tooth and nail to see it come to life.

 

[Scrythe]

I propose an alternate headline for this:

[HEADING=3]Jhonen Vasquez running low on cash[/HEADING]
After realizing that the vast majority of his fans have long ago graduated high school, Jhonen Vasquez has decided to jump on the "capitalizing on nostalgia" bandwagon.

 

[Zydrate]

Wait, Zim was dropped for budgetary reasons? This is the first I'm hearing of that. I'd been told (frequently) that it's because Vasquez was incredibly difficult to work with (i.e. a raging dickhole).
In either case, I'll just file this under "nifty".

I heard the opposite. That he couldn't deal with Nickalodeon's high demand executives.
Could be both sides of the same coin, though. Could be truth in both cases.

 

[Armadox]

Wait, Zim was dropped for budgetary reasons? This is the first I'm hearing of that. I'd been told (frequently) that it's because Vasquez was incredibly difficult to work with (i.e. a raging dickhole).
In either case, I'll just file this under "nifty".

I heard the opposite. That he couldn't deal with Nickalodeon's high demand executives.
Could be both sides of the same coin, though. Could be truth in both cases.

Yah, I as well have heard that Nick kept turning down and editing scripts provided over and over again, and pushed him at a churn and burn pace to the point that cashing out was well worth the effort to break free from it. I can kinda see it, Nick wasn't exactly friendly to all it's talent and didn't have faith in ZIM from the get go.

Hell, Korra didn't get much better. It's not like Nick has changed their ways all that much..

Edit: Well, there's already blood in the water for this..
http://www.bleedingcool.com/2015/02/19/skottie-young-will-quit-every-comic-hes-working-on-to-do-invader-zim/

Let's see what artists start to circle.

 

[Twerksaver]

Please, please don't be bullshit.

 

[Shoggoth2588]

Hehehe, so, assuming this is real, they're gonna let JV take the gloves off with this series? *pictures the reaction from Zim fans unfamiliar with the rest of JVs work, and giggles*

Z?

---

I went ahead and pre-ordered mine yesterday while I was out. Some of the upcoming Convergence stuff looks interesting to me but I specifically told my guy, "All variants please!" Gotta have my Zim fix, especially now that J.V. is continuing the series as a comic.

 

[Saltyk]

Okay, that bit about the series continuing to run in his head made me smile and worry for his sanity. That probable insanity is probably what made the show stand out and all, but still. Zim and Dib running around in your head all the time, can't be good. Just remember what Dib's head is like.

 

[faefrost]

I'm happy for more, just not sure how well it will translate to comic form. Invader Zim was all about the voices, mainly screaming at each other. Much of its humor and impact came from subtle and not so subtle audible and animated stuff. I am not sure how well you can capture that on the printed page?

 

[Imperioratorex Caprae]

That'd be nice but a lot of the charm would be lost without the spastic animation.

I think since JV is on board, he could totally make the comic work. Squee and JTHM were great comics that used the same humor but in panel format and ZiM translated all of that into a cartoon without missing a beat. So I'd say the reverse is most definitely possible. But I will miss the music.

 

[CrazyGirl17]

That's good to know, hopefully Jhonen can finally tell stories the way he wants to and not worry about censorship...