CREDIT: JHONEN VASQUEZ, AARON ALEXOVICH, MEGAN LAWTON,SIMON HUTT TROUSSELLIER (ONI PRESS), CANDIS BROSS (PHOTO)
Long-time fans of the very strange show Invader Zim are in for a treat with the return of the show in comic form.

“Welcome home, son!”

If you grew up watching Nickelodeon, you may be familiar with a very strange show called Invader Zim. This was a show about a well-disguised alien named Zim, his robot partner Gir and the human determined to catch him, Dib.

The show had some very distinct artwork and tended to have some pointed social commentary in each episode. Generally considered to be a bit ahead of its time, Invader Zim was canceled after only two seasons. However, it gained a huge cult following, with a ton of merchandise, gifs and fan art. Sadly, despite this following, Invader Zim won’t be featured on Nick’s new programming block for ’90s kids (called The Splat).

Luckily for the show’s many fans, Invader Zim writer Jhonen Vasquez has brought everyone’s favourite alien back, this time in comic form. Thanks to Vasquez’s experience with comics as the writer of Johnny, the Homicidal Maniac and SQUEE!, the transition feels very natural.

The comics pick up an undisclosed amount of time after the show ends, with everyone having been in almost a kind of stasis for the last 10 or so years. With Zim and Gir missing, Dib has spent the intervening time waiting and obsessing as only Dib can.

Perhaps the best thing about picking up like this is that the characters’ personalities haven’t changed at all. Reading the pages, one can almost hear the original voice actors saying the lines.

All the characters that you know and love are represented in some way. Everyone from Dib’s sarcastic sister Gaz to the Almighty Tallest are given some time to shine. Gir remains just as insane as always, doing delightfully random things while wearing his adorable puppy outfit – or not. As usual, the very clever disguises seem to be worn almost randomly, whether on earth or not.

The social commentary is missing from the first three issues, but that’s likely just so new readers can get their bearings before things take a turn for the extremely cynical. The introductory pages also help with this by giving a bit of a rundown of what’s happened up to this point in a way that’s pretty entertaining. If you’ve forgotten some of the key points of the show, or even if you haven’t, make sure to read Recap Kid’s brief rundown.

As this is a comic, the artwork is especially important. The style is similar to that seen in the original show, with a few treats hidden in the background for long-time fans. The art team has done a great job capturing the feel and atmosphere of the show. The letter work, done by Warren Wucinich, is especially notable, changing slightly to suit the voice of each character perfectly.

Overall, with amazing artwork, characters and writing, Vasquez and his team have done an amazing job of bringing an old favourite new life. Old fans will appreciate the familiar humour and feel, while new ones may fall in love with these wacky characters for the first time. Hopefully the adventure continues far longer than the show did.