Image Comics Unveils Spy Seal Series

05/23/2017 04:16 pm EDT

Most fans of the comic book genre have tried their hand at creating their own over the years, but few have had those creations stand the test of time, let alone survive intact. For Rich Tommaso, those 13-year-old creations are now part of an ongoing series starring the infamous Spy Seal.

Fans liked the character so much last time around that Image has given the character his own series, and the first issue hits later this year. "It's wonderful and surreal to be working with material that I created as a 13-year-old kid," said Tommaso. "I'm enjoying doing a spy story too—it's a genre I've never explored in my adult career as a cartoonist." Spy Seal represents the best parts of a child's imagination with the structure of an adult storyteller, presenting essentially the best of both worlds.

Spy Seal has a readily apparent inspiration, one that Tommaso purposefully tried to represent on the page. "The approach I've decided to take is to illustrate, write, and design everything in the style of those mid-20th-century Franco-Belgian comics—mainly Hergé's Tintin, which I've really admired for years," added Tommaso. "I'm going for the cozy feel I get from reading those old adventure comics, sending Spy Seal around the world to see as many corners of it as he can, while flying high in amphibious planes, driving retro-modern cars, exploring secret, underground hideouts, and meeting foreign contacts in mysterious locations. Basically, run him through the gamut of obstacles Alfred Hitchcock would run his heroes and heroines through."

You can find the official description for the upcoming series below., and the issue's cover can be found in the gallery.

Critically-acclaimed cartoonist Rich Tommaso (SHE WOLF) will launch an all-new series centered on his beloved character of the same name—SPY SEAL—this August from Image Comics.

Originally created by Tommaso in his teens, SPY SEAL made a big splash when it became instantly viral last fall, generating fan enthusiasm, cosplay, and Hollywood interest before being snapped up for an ongoing series. The series' first chapter, The Corten-Steel Phoenix, finds Spy Seal, Britain's newest covert agent, up to his neck in saboteurs, snipers, assassins, and double agents.

SPY SEAL #1 lands in comic book stores Wednesday, August 16th.

MORE COMICS: Classic X-Men Villain To Return In X-Men Gold / Valiant Releases Preview Of Secret Weapons #2 / 5 Comics You Should Read This Week / Marvel Solicitations August 2017 Highlights: Generations, Secret Empire, And Ultimates 100

Disclosure: ComicBook is owned by CBS Interactive, a division of Paramount. Sign up for Paramount+ by clicking here.