Invincible is one of the most successful comic-book animations ever. Besides being a great story with incredible action and a fun cast of characters, it improves on the original comic book material. With the end of Invincible Season 3 and still a while to go until Season 4, it’s time we look to the future — meaning your next obsession. You’ll be glad to know Image Comics, the publisher of Invincible, has many other comics that also deserve an animated adaptation.
From other superhero stories to tales of horror, Image Comics has something for everyone. Many of these books have unique art styles that would bedazzle anyone watching. So consider this an open letter to Image Comics, hoping we see these books soon on our favorite streaming services. One can always dream!
1. Radiant Black
Writer: Kyle Higgins
Artist: Marcelo Costa
Nathan is at a dead end.Nothing he does seems to work. But he suddenly receives cosmic powers that change everything — it’s a Power Ranger-esque adult coming-of-age story! You can already have a taste of how awesome an adaptation would be with Radiant Black‘s animated short available on YouTube.
2. Descender
Writer: Jeff Lemire
Artist: Dustin Nguyen
In a perfect world, we’d get an animated series with watercolors as beautiful and carefully crafted as the ones from Nguyen. He and Lemire bring us a futuristic sci-fi tale with a gripping and impactful story. If you like world-building, then this will be perfect for you.
3. Monstress
Writer: Marjorie Liu
Artist: Sana Takeda
Image publishes all kinds of stories, so let’s shift gears and check out one of the best high fantasy stories you’ll ever read. The plot runs away from what we expect of the genre and creates its own rich lore about a girl surviving a war in an alternate 1900s Asia.
4. Ice Cream Man
Writer: W. Maxwell Prince
Artist: Martin Morazzo
Ice Cream Man is being made into a movie, but it has even more potential as an animated TV series. With shows like Secret Level and Love, Death & Robots on the rise, Prince and Morazzo’s anthology is a perfect fit for that model. Every episode could take you for a different and even weirder ride. It’s never afraid of taking risks.
5. East of West
Writer: Jonathan Hickman
Artist: Nick Dragotta
Hickman is incredible at writing complex stories that flow easily and don’t tire you out; that’s exactly what East of West is. The sci-fi western features The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse as our only hope for the future. And like with the best stories, this world that is so different from ours also feels scarily close at times.
6. Saga
Writer: Brian K. Vaughan
Artist: Fiona Staples
Saga has a simple concept: imagine Romeo and Juliet, but they are aliens at war. It might not even need introductions, as comic fans are always ready to say it’s one of the best comics ever. And they are right! With such character depth and relatable narrative, it’d be crazy if it never gets adapted.
7. Murder Falcon
Writer: Daniel Warren Johnson
Artist: Daniel Warren Johnson
We can’t live in a world where we don’t see Murder Falcon coming to screens. Just imagine what an incredible soundtrack it would have. DWJ’s incredible art mixed with exhilarating metal while a jacked falcon destroys monsters? Perfection.
8. Bitch Planet
Writer: Kelly Sue DeConnick
Artist: Valentine De Landro
With the popularity of Orange Is the New Black, it seems almost impossible for an adaptation of Bitch Planet not to succeed as well (Bitch Planet is set in a space prison). Here, DeConnick goes even deeper than OitNB, writing genius and fun critique that will blow you away. It’s easily one of her best works.
9. Chew
Writer: John Layman
Artist: Rob Guillory
To think we almost got an animation for this, with Steven Yeun of all people (the same voice actor for Mark in Invincible), but it didn’t work out. The series follows Tony Chu, a detective who gets psychic impressions from everything he eats. If you think that’s a unique power, rest assured, it isn’t even the start of it.
10. I Hate Fairyland
Writer: Skottie Young
Artist: Skottie Young
This feels like such a treat for fans of adult animation like Rick and Morty and Disenchantment. Young creates a satirical and wacky world about a girl stuck in Fairyland for decades. The vibrant colors by Jean-François Beaulieu are a perfect fit that pop even harder with the excessive and comedic violence.
11. Home Sick Pilots
Writer: Dan Watters
Artist: Caspar Wijngaard
Caspar Wijngaard has one of the best uses of color ever. He dyes every page differently and beautifully while always one-upping himself. Still, if that wasn’t enough, this is an incredible and dramatic story about a haunted house that becomes a megazord. So, is there any more reason this shouldn’t receive an adaptation right now?
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