On and off over the past four decades, British comic magazine 2000 AD has released regular summer anthologies featuring a collection of scifi tales from across its roster of comic book heroes. But this year will mark a big change for the publisher: It’s the first time they’re printing a summer special created entirely by women.
As revealed by The Hollywood Reporter today, this year’s 48-page Sci-Fi Special (which has once again become a yearly tradition for the publisher, having restarted the annual series in 2014 after a decade-plus absence) will exclusively feature the work of women, including Alex De Campi, Katy Rex, and Tillie Walden. The covers for the special will also be drawn by female artists—including Tula Lotay and newcomer Emily Zeinner.
It’s an interesting way to shake up an anthology that’s been around, intermittently, for the best part of 40 years—and for many of the women involved, it’ll be the first time they’ve gotten to work on 2000 AD’s stable of characters, with stories in the special covering everyone from Judge Dredd to Rogue. Sometimes, a new perspective like that can lead to some interesting stories for some of British comics’ most famous heroes. The 2018 Sci-Fi Special hits shelves June 20.