8 ADAPTATIONS FROM OTHER MEDIA
set prior, during, and after the events of the fi lm 28 Days Later. In 2009, IDW created
best-selling prequels to both the new Star Trek and Terminator fi lms, as well as creating
a comic version of the never adapted 1982 fi lm Star Trek II: Th e Wrath of Khan. Th ere
are also many comic based sequels to fi lms, though these will be discussed more in the
next section.
Television programs tend to be directly adapted much less often than fi lms. Usually
this happens in the case of a special episode such as a fi rst, last, or very popular episode
and often it is a program that is based on a comic book or already has a comic book
based on it. Th is includes an adaptation of the television-movie Archie : To Riverdale
and Back, the last episode of Star Trek: Th e Next Generation , and several episodes of
Angel. Besides comic book series that feature the continued adventures of the char-
acters, there are in-continuity comic stories that wrap up loose ends from television
shows that were cancelled before their storylines could be resolved. After Fox’s Alien
Nation ended on an unresolved cliff hanger, the comic Dark Horizon was created to
tell the rest of the story (though a few years later, Dark Horizon was fi nally made into
a TV movie). Th e creators of the recent television programs Pushing Daisies and Th e
Middleman (the latter of which was based on a comic) also wrapped up their sto-
ries in comic book form. In other cases, the comic books Buff y Th e Vampire Slayer
Season Eight and Angel: After the Fall provided new and ongoing in-continuity stories
that were not only approved by creator Joss Whedon , but partly written by him as
well. Even sitcoms have become comics, including I Love Lucy , Ozzie and Harriet , and
Welcome Back Kotter.
One of the largest adaptors of television stories in recent years has been
Tokyopop’s Cine-Manga series, which employs the fumetti technique of using pho-
tos taken from the program. Made for young children, the Cine-manga titles adapt
both live-action and animated children’s programs including Spongebob Squarepants ,
Th at’s So Raven , Th e Fairly Odd Parents , Lizzie McGuire , and Totally Spies as well
as movies such as Finding Nemo , and Th e Incredibles. Actual graphic novels of some
of these titles have also been created by other publishers, including Papercutz and
Dark Horse. Another popular manga publisher, Viz, has put out “Ani-Manga”
which does the same thing for several anime series and fi lms including the fi lms of
Japan’s Studio Ghibli.
Since the 1930s, characters that made their debut in literature, movies, or on televi-
sion have had new adventures portrayed in comic books. Given their nature, cartoon
characters have been especially popular in such adaptations, with Mickey Mouse,
Donald Duck, Bugs Bunny, and Daff y Duck featured in comics almost as long they
have been portrayed in movies. Some comic books have been based on real people, put-
ting them into fi ctional activities. Th ese range from Western stars such as Roy Rogers
and Gene Autry (with even their horses getting their own titles) to comedians like Jerry
Lewis.
Certain literary characters have found their way into comics as well, especially
those from the horror genre. When the Comics Code was revised in 1971, one major
