"The Illustrated Al" from Z2 comics

All right, I know that I talk about "Weird Al" Yankovic on this blog a lot. You all know that I'm a big fan and as such, I have tried to make and pitch a few Weird Al comics in the past. I mean, there's one tagged at the top of the page here. You get the point. Anyway, it was only a matter of time until someone published a bonafide authorized Weird Al comic, and, through various steps of good fortune, I am going to be contributing to it. Wow!

The Illustrated Al will be published by Z2 Comics in the fall of 2022, and it's going to be produced by some dang comic book luminaries, such as Mike & Laura Allred, Bill Plympton, Peter Bagge, Ryan Dunlavey...and a few of my friends like Craig Rousseau and Kelly Phillips!

There will be a few different versions of the book, including a softcover, a hardcover slipcase, and a super deluxe version with a bunch of extra stuff included, like trading cards and a mini accordion! All of the versions are currently up for pre-order on Z2's website, which you can get to here!

All of the entries will be adaptations of some of Al's songs, hand-picked by the man himself. For my part, I'll be working on the song "Good Old Days," which is absolutely one of my favorite songs of all time. It's a James Taylor-sounding original and it goes to some dark places. Joining me on this story is my friend and frequent collaborator Jeff McComsey.

To say that I'm excited about this project is quite an understatement. In a lot of ways, I feel like this is the biggest project that I've ever been involved with, and I'm really excited to see it move forward. I can't wait to hold it in my hands. Can I share any artwork from my story yet? I don't know! Maybe? Heck, let's throw caution to the wind:

That'll have to suffice for now. I'll post about this again when the book comes out. If you'd like to hear me blab on about this further, I did an interview with Dave & Ethan's 2000" Weird Al Podcast, and you can get some more info there!