ADAPTATIONS FROM OTHER MEDIA 9
change was that certain horror characters were allowed in a code-approved title as
long as they were “handled in the classic tradition such as Frankenstein, Dracula, and
other high caliber literary works written by Edgar Allan Poe, Saki, Conan Doyle and
other respected authors whose works are read in schools around the world” (Comics
Code, http://www.reocities.com/Athens/8580/cca2.html). Besides full adaptations,
Dracula and Frankenstein’s Monster have appeared in various places, including hav-
ing their own titles from Marvel Comics and interacting with superheroes such as the
X-Men and Spider-Man. One author who has made the most of literary characters
(mostly those in the public domain) is Alan Moore. In Th e League of Extraordinary
Gentlemen , Moore features such characters as Captain Nemo, Mr. Hyde, Th e Invis-
ible Man and other 19th- and early 20th-century characters. In Lost Girls Moore
features the erotic adventures of Lewis Carroll’s Alice, L. Frank Baum’s Dorothy, and
J. M. Barrie’s Wendy.
One of the most notable franchises of licensed properties is Star Trek , which has
appeared almost continuously in comic book form for over 40 years. Th is phenomenon
began with comics from Gold Key, which were known for such bloopers in their early
issues as the African Lt. Uhura being drawn as Caucasian and rocket exhaust com-
ing out the engines of the Enterprise. Beginning with an adaptation of the fi rst Star
Tre k fi lm, Marvel took over the franchise, continuing the new adventures. Beginning
in 1983 and continuing until the early 1990s, DC had comics with both the original
characters (set after the events of the second fi lm) and the new Next Generation spin-
off. In the early 1990s, rights to the franchise split when another publisher, Malibu,
began to publish new stories based on the second spin-off , Deep Space Nine. Th e various
DC and Malibu stories ran independently of each other, though there was a multi-part
intercompany crossover.
Marvel took possession of the rights to Star Trek in the mid-1990s and created a
new series based on the third spin-off , Vo y a g e r , as well as new titles based on minor
characters, including Star Trek: Starfl eet Academy and Star Trek: Th e Early Years which
covered the adventures of Captain Kirk’s predecessor Captain Pike. Marvel even put out
two one-shots in which both the original and next generation crews met the X-Men.
Th e Next Generation /X-Men comic even concluded in the form of a paperback novel.
When Marvel lost the rights to Star Trek in 1998, the various titles were caught off
guard and several titles ended with unresolved storylines. DC’s Wildstorm imprint was
next to get the license, and while they did not have any ongoing series, they had several
limited series and one-shots including one that was based on the original line of New
Frontier novels by Peter David (who also did the comic).
Moving into the 21st century, there was no original Star Trek work being produced
in comics, though comic publishers Checker and Titan reprinted some of the Gold
Key and DC stories. Beginning in 2006, Tokyopop began publishing several original
short stories in a manga format for both the original series and the Next Generation.
Writers included Wil Wheaton, who played the role of Wesley Crusher in the second
series. Starting in 2007, IDW has created a limited series based on characters from
