publisher
Publishing is the activity of making information, literature, music, software and other content available to the public for sale or for free. Traditionally, the term refers to the creation and distribution of printed works, such as books, newsp ...
which published three series between 1998 and 1999: ''Virtex'', ''The Wonderlanders'' and ''Wisp''. All three series were created by Casey Lau and Jeff Kwan with scripting assistance from such comic professionals as
Mike Baron
Mike Baron (born July 1, 1949) is an American comic book writer. He is the creator of ''Badger'' and the co-creator of ''Nexus'' with Steve Rude.
Biography
Mike Baron entered the comics industry with an illustrated text piece in ''Weird Trips ...
,
Pat Mills
Patrick Eamon Mills (born 1949) is an English comics writer and editor who, along with John Wagner, revitalised British boys comics in the 1970s, and has remained a leading light in British comics ever since. He has been called "the godfather ...
The first book to be released was the 12-page ''Virtex'' #0 and the company's final releases were ''Virtex'' #3, ''The Wonderlanders'' #2 and ''Wisp'' #1.
*''Virtex'' was the story of a cybernetic cowboy that chased outlaws through a time-amalgamated wasteland. An interesting gimmick was played out in the 3rd issue of the 3-part story "Divine Intervention" where the issue shipped with 3 versions: #3A, #3B, #3C, each with a different ending.
*''The Wonderlanders'' proclaimed "What Happens When Fairy Tales Grow Up?" Merging the worlds of
C. S. Lewis
Clive Staples Lewis (29 November 1898 – 22 November 1963) was a British writer and Anglican lay theologian. He held academic positions in English literature at both Oxford University (Magdalen College, 1925–1954) and Cambridge Univers ...
,
L. Frank Baum
Lyman Frank Baum (; May 15, 1856 – May 6, 1919) was an American author best known for his children's books, particularly ''The Wonderful Wizard of Oz'' and its sequels. He wrote 14 novels in the ''Oz'' series, plus 41 other novels (not includ ...
and
Lewis Carroll
Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (; 27 January 1832 – 14 January 1898), better known by his pen name Lewis Carroll, was an English author, poet and mathematician. His most notable works are '' Alice's Adventures in Wonderland'' (1865) and its sequ ...
with Capcom and Saturday Morning cartoons. King Layoran and his team of Wonderlanders come to Earth to stop the evil Fenris and his team of evil Wonderlanders. The first story arc has gone uncompleted.
*''Wisp'' was Oktomica's "horror" book - a team of specialists protect our reality from a rip in dimensions that has allowed an evil race into our world. Wisp leads the team against villains that enter our bodies physically through our mouths. Wisp only had one issue release but #1 had a variant cover by Kevin Nowlan.
Creators
Oktomica is notable for its high-production values in coloring, printing, and graphic design. All 3 artists went on to bigger projects.
*
Kano
Kano may refer to:
Places
*Kano State, a state in Northern Nigeria
* Kano (city), a city in Nigeria, and the capital of Kano State
**Kingdom of Kano, a Hausa kingdom between the 10th and 14th centuries
**Sultanate of Kano, a Hausa kingdom between ...
, artist on ''Virtex'', worked for
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. (doing business as DC) is an American comic book publisher and the flagship unit of DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery.
DC Comics is one of the largest and oldest American comic book companies, with thei ...
drawing ''
Action Comics
''Action Comics'' is an American comic book/ magazine series that introduced Superman, one of the first major superhero characters. The publisher was originally known as National Allied Publications, and later as National Comics Publications ...
Kaare Andrews
Kaare Andrews is a comic book writer, artist and filmmaker from Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. His work includes '' Spider-Man'', '' Iron Fist'', '' Renato Jones'', and '' Incredible Hulk''. Andrews has a diverse drawing style, which ranges from hyper ...
, artist on ''The Wonderlanders'', wrote and drew '' Spider-Man: Reign'' for
Marvel Comics
Marvel Comics is an American comic book publishing, publisher and the flagship property of Marvel Entertainment, a divsion of The Walt Disney Company since September 1, 2009. Evolving from Timely Comics in 1939, ''Magazine Management/Atlas Co ...
, among other projects.
*Ruben Martinez, artist on ''Wisp'', went to Stan Lee Media where he drew '' Backstreet Project'', a comic chronicling the adventures of the
Backstreet Boys
Backstreet Boys (often abbreviated as BSB) are an American vocal group consisting of Nick Carter, Howie Dorough, AJ McLean, and cousins Brian Littrell and Kevin Richardson. Lou Pearlman formed the group in 1993 in Orlando, Florida.
The ...
as cyber-crusaders. He has also worked at Mattel Toys designing the art for Batman action figures.
After Oktomica
''Virtex'' evolved into a flash-animated series at also now defunct An action figure was planned as well. It has since been reappeared in ''