Fireball XL5 Comic Anthology: the 2022 editions

From the archive: 17 October 2022. This was the edition announcement for the Fireball XL5 60th Anniversary Comic Anthology. Its preorder opened on 18 October 2022; the original prices, delivery estimates and launch offer are not current purchasing terms.

What the anthology collected

The 336-page hardback celebrated Fireball XL5’s full-colour life in TV Century 21. It gathered the series’ comic-strip stories, including material from TV21 specials and the later Countdown comic.

Contributing artists included Graham Coton, Frank Hampson and Don Lawrence, with Mike Noble particularly associated with Fireball XL5’s most dynamic adventures. A previously unpublished piece of Noble’s XL5 artwork was used on the cover.

When the Anderson worlds met

The stories included giant animals, zombie snowmen, Piil and Truen’s schemes, time travel and the hijacking of Electrode 909. One of the most memorable sequences began with the assassination of the Astran Kaplan, before connecting the Fireball XL5 strip with the Stingray and Lady Penelope strips.

These crossovers helped make TV21 feel like a shared universe. The anthology retained those appearances and added seventeen pages of new linking material written and produced by Lee Sullivan.

Sullivan’s material was placed between the original strips and brought in characters and vehicles from Thunderbirds, Stingray and Captain Scarlet. Although the central adventure remained an XL5 story, International Rescue, Spectrum and the WASP joined the World Space Patrol, with friction between the organisations contributing to the danger.

The original editions

The 2022 launch offered a standard edition and a limited edition of 250 numbered copies. The limited version was signed by Lee Sullivan and Jamie Anderson and included a matching numbered Fireball Junior print created and signed by Lee. The book’s main contents were the same in both versions.

Preorders began at 6.30pm UK time on 18 October 2022, ahead of the series’ anniversary on 28 October. These details describe the original release and do not indicate that either edition is currently available.

Lee Sullivan on the new material

The original launch discussion remains an opportunity to hear how the new linking story approached the classic characters. Any offers mentioned in the recording belong to the 2022 launch.

Explore the Fireball XL5 hub for the television world and current store routes, or follow the connections into Stingray, Thunderbirds and Captain Scarlet.