Murderbot: The Graphic Novel!
Martha Wells' All Systems Red is getting another adaptation
First we got the adventures of Murderbot in book form (novellas and then novels). Then we got some snazzy, full-cast audio adaptations. Then a TV series (with a second season on the way!) Now, we're getting a graphic novel adaptation of Murderbot thanks to the folks at Cosmic Lighthouse, which is launching a Kickstarter for the project earlier this week.
This graphic novel will adapt the first book in the series, All Systems Red. In an email, Wells explained to me that this particular project came after another project fell through "due to some unavoidable circumstances." This time around, "author Paul Cornell had asked me about doing a Murderbot graphic novel through his company Cosmic Lighthouse Comics. I was still hoping to get one done, so we (me and my agent Jennifer Jackson) started talking about it with Paul and editor Lee Harris."
Wells also noted that writing for graphic novels "is a whole different skill set which I don’t have!" Instead, she's turned to Erica Schultz (who's worked on comics like Daredevil, Moon Knight, and Rogue) to adapt the novella. Art for the project is being done by by Gary Erskine (Dan Dare, JSA Strange Adventures, and Hellblazer), cover art by Jaime Jones, colors by Yel Zamor, and lettering by Simon Bowland. The book will also come with a brand new Murderbot short story, as well as an introduction by comic writer and actor David Dastmalchian (who plays Gurathin in Apple's adaptation).
Andrew Liptak
The project launched earlier this week and has already blown away its original funding goal of $87,000: it's currently at just over $152,000 at the moment, and will end on November 15th. Backers can get a PDF copy for just £9 (~$12), a trade paperback edition for £20 (~$27), and a hardcover edition for £30 (~$40).
If you're looking for something a little fancier, there are also a bunch of other tiers with some variant covers:
- An Enhanced Hardcover edition with a dust jacket, an illustration to accompany the short story, and some additional pages, which cost £75 (~$100)
- A Deluxe Hardcover edition of the book with a cover by artist Tommy Arnold (signed by Schultz and Erskine), which'll run you £250 (~$334)
- A Premium Limited Numbered Edition with cover art by John Picacio (signed by Schultz, Erskine, Picacio, and Wells) for £600 (~$800)
- A Premium Limited Lettered Edition with cover art by Francesa Myman (and signed by Erskine, Zamore, Bowland, Cornell, Myman, and Wells) for £2,000 (~$2,666)
The project is expected to begin filling orders in November 2027. As always with crowdfunding projects, there's the possibility that those dates and deliverables can shift.
This looks like a fun project: I'll be interested in seeing how it turns out.