Mad Cave Studios Announces FLASH GORDON: TWO WORLDS – VOL. 1

AUG. 21, 2026 (PORTLAND, OR) — Mad Cave Studios, in partnership with King Features Syndicate, is proud to announce FLASH GORDON: TWO WORLDS – VOL. 1, the first installment of a two-part, original graphic novel by award-winning cartoonist and 2026 Ringo nominee Scott Chantler (Two Generals, Northwest Passage, Three Thieves), with colors by Eisner-nominated Kike J. Díaz (The Rocketeer: The Island, Los Monstruos, Queen of Swords).

Twenty-five years and sixteen books into his career, Chantler is taking on a major licensed character for the first time with a two-volume, standalone story that returns Flash Gordon to the mid-century visual language and pulp adventure of Alex Raymond’s original comic strip and movie serials. Entirely separate from Mad Cave Studios’ other Flash Gordon series, Two Worlds looks backward to move the character forward, pairing classic heroics and adventure with an existential take on Flash Gordon and the world around him.

In a world where Flash Gordon never flew to space to stop him, Ming the Merciless rules over a conquered and devastated Earth. There, a nameless laborer looks to the sky and dreams of the hero he might have been.

On Mongo, the Emperor’s tormented bride, Dale Arden, cannot shake the memory of a man she saw briefly on an airplane years ago. Who was he? And why does it feel like they were meant to have met?

Scott Chantler reflected on taking on a classic character for the first time:

“Despite a 25-year career in comics, and fifteen books under my belt, something I’d never really done is put my stamp on a classic character. So I picked the most classic one I could think of. My late friend Darwyn Cooke had a real knack for this kind of material: he could tap into all the history, nostalgia, and playfulness of the characters while still finding something new, tough, and sophisticated to say with them. I’ve tried my best to do the same.”

Chantler is the creator of Two Generals, nominated for two Eisner Awards, selected for Best American Comics 2012, and named by CBC’s Canada Reads among the 40 best Canadian nonfiction books. His work also includes Northwest Passage, nominated for Eisner and Harvey Awards, and the Three Thieves series, winner of the Joe Shuster Award for Best Comic for Kids and a YALSA Great Graphic Novel for Teens. In 2015, he became the University of Windsor’s first Cartoonist-in-Residence.

Embracing the history, romance, heroics, and visual language that made the character an icon, Flash Gordon: Two Worlds – Vol. 1 finds something new within them. Rooted firmly in the Flash Gordon of the 1930s comic strip and movie serials, the standalone graphic novel is built for longtime fans while remaining accessible to readers discovering Mongo for the first time.

Flash Gordon: Two Worlds – Vol. 1 goes on sale November 10, 2026, in paperback (ISBN: 9781545834206 | $19.99) and hardcover (ISBN: 9781545834190 | $24.99) formats. Preorder through your local comic shop, bookstore, or from Mad Cave directly.