Superhero entertainment is a big deal these days. The Marvel Cinematic Universe remains a massive box office draw with upcoming releases Spider-Man: Brand New Day and Avengers: Doomsday some of the most anticipated films of 2026, and heroes are a big deal on the small screen as well. Shows like DC’s upcoming Lanterns series have fans hyped as well. But while superheroes are wildly popular now, they’ve long been a fixture in entertainment and now, more than four decades after its cancellation, a beloved cult tv series is finally back with a new release—just maybe not quite how you’d expect.
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From Amp Comics and coming to Kickstarter is The Greatest American Hero 45th Anniversary Graphic Novel. The campaign is part of a 45th anniversary celebration of the beloved series and will offer backers an exclusive, hardcover edition of the graphic novel from writer/producer Don Handfield from a story he created with Tawnia McKiernan, daughter of series creator Stephen J. Cannell. Joshua Malkin co-writes with art by Alper Geçgel. Original series star William Katt is also involved as executive producer.
The Greatest American Hero Is Already a Comics Hit
The announcement of the Kickstarter comes in the wake of massive success for Amp Comics’ Free Comic Book Day edition of The Greatest American Hero #1. That book sold out at both distributor and retail level with approximately 4000 units on backorder. The issue will get an expanded retail release in July as it’s clear there is demand for The Greatest American Hero.
“Fans have made it absolutely clear that they want more of The Greatest American Hero,” Amp Comics CEO Don Handfiled said in a statement. “We are thrilled to honor this milestone anniversary by giving them exactly that.”
In addition to the exclusive hardcover edition of the graphic novel, the Kickstarter campaign will feature various limited-edition merchandise, including t-shirts, belt buckles and more. Rare items signed by Katt himself will also be available.
The Greatest American Hero Is a Cult Classic
While The Greatest American hero wasn’t necessarily a massive hit, it’s become a beloved favorite over the years. The series first debuted on ABC in 1981 and tells the story of Ralph Hinkley (Katt), a Los Angeles high school teacher who has an encounter with a group of aliens while on a school field trip. They give him a suit that grants him superpowers along with the instructions to fight crime. It prompts Ralph to become the Greatest American Hero and start protecting the world with the help of FBI Special Agent Bill Maxwell. There is a catch, however. The suit comes with an instruction manual that Ralph lost. That means he’s building the plane while flying it, metaphorically speaking, and has to learn what his suit can do while he’s using it.
The series ran for three total seasons, ending its run in 1983. However, while there were 50 total episodes of the series produced, only 45 were ever aired. The series was also not without controversy during its run. DC Comics sued the series at one point because Ralph’s powers were so similar to those of Superman. That suit was ultimately dismissed. There were also concerns about the character’s name, which was changed after the assassination attempt on President Ronald Reagan by John Hinkley Jr. on March 30, 1981. The character was renamed to “Hanley” for two episodes of Season 1 and then was referred to by his first name or simply “Mr. H” before the “Hinkley” name was restored in Season 2.
Even with the controversies, The Greatest American Hero remained a beloved part of popular culture and in 2014, it was announced that Fox had ordered a pilot for a reboot to be produced by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller. That reboot fell-through. Then, in 2017, an Indian American female-led reboot was reported to be in the works with Rachna Fruchbom and Nahnatchka Khan producing, but ABC passed on the project in 2018. Now, while various television reboots have yet to manifest, The Greatest American Hero is back on the pages of comics, finally continuing the story.
You can check out The Greatest American Hero campaign on Kickstarter.
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Forum Conversation: What Classic TV Show Do You Want to See Rebooted — Even If Only In Comics?
Go to ForumI would love to see a new farscape series or comic
Spider-Man 98.
The Greatest American Hero is getting a new story on the pages of comics and it got me to thinking, what other classic television show would you like to see come back to life, even if only in comics form?