Adventure Time 2013 Spoooktacular #1
Adventure Time: 2013 Spoooktacular #1 holds a unique place in the history of Cartoon Network's comics output because it contains the very first comic-book appearance of Steven Universe — a character who would go on to anchor one of the most culturally significant animated series of the 2010s. The preview, scripted by Steven Universe creator Rebecca Sugar herself just as she was departing Adventure Time to launch her own show, positioned the issue as an unexpected bridge between two beloved Cartoon Network properties. That a spooky Halloween anthology one-shot — not a dedicated Steven Universe debut issue — ended up holding this first appearance makes it one of the more surprising key issues in the KaBOOM!/BOOM! Studios library. The issue also established what would become an annual Halloween tradition for the Adventure Time comic line, demonstrating that the BOOM! Studios imprint was willing to use its anthology specials as launchpads for entirely new Cartoon Network properties.
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The issue was shepherded editorially by Bryce Carlson, BOOM! Studios' Managing Editor, who had risen through the company from the mail room and served as one of the principal stewards of the Adventure Time comics line. The Steven Universe preview segment was written by Rebecca Sugar during the transitional period when she was simultaneously finishing her work on the Adventure Time animated series and preparing the launch of her own show — making this a rare artifact of that creative handoff. The anthology format, gathering short stories from a rotating stable of independent cartoonists and illustrators, was a format BOOM! had already proved out in the main Adventure Time backup pages and the Sugary Shorts collected editions, and the Spoooktacular applied it to a holiday-themed standalone package.
Trivia · 8 facts
- First comic-book appearance of Steven Universe, published as a four-page bonus preview at the back of the issue.
- The Steven Universe preview story was written by Rebecca Sugar — creator of the Steven Universe animated series — with pencils by Lamar Abrams, inks by Danny Hynes, and colors/letters by Jeremy Sorese.
- Published October 30, 2013 by KaBOOM! (BOOM! Studios' all-ages imprint), under Diamond order code AUG131116.
- The issue appeared between the Steven Universe animated pilot (May 2013) and the show's full series premiere on Cartoon Network (November 4, 2013).
- The main Adventure Time anthology content includes four Halloween short stories: 'Costume Party,' 'Secret 'Stache,' 'Halloween Horticulture,' and 'Bad Girl Gone Good,' contributed by Jones Wiedle, Bryce Carlson, Jay Hosler, Kevin Church, Frazer Irving, Jen Vaughn, and others.
- Cover art on the standard edition is by Becky Dreistadt; retailer incentive variant covers exist by Ming Doyle (1:15) and Jones Wiedle (1:25).
- All Adventure Time short stories from this issue were later reprinted in Adventure Time: Sugary Shorts Vol. 2 (KaBOOM!).
- Rebecca Sugar had been a writer and storyboard artist on Adventure Time before departing to create Steven Universe, making her authorship of the preview a direct creative continuation of her ties to the BOOM! Studios Adventure Time universe.
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