A New "Weird Al" Yankovic Graphic Novel Is Coming

Dylan Kelly
·2 min read

"Weird Al" Yankovic has partnered with Z2 Comics to produce an all-new graphic novel, titled The Illustrated Al: The Songs of "Weird Al" Yankovic.

The book, which was written by Yankovic himself, spotlights more than 20 tracks from the parody artist's decades-long career with accompanying illustrations from a multitude of cartoonists. While Z2 did not disclose which songs will be included in the bound copy, the publisher did disclose that the featured cartoonists include Drew Friedman, Mike & Laura Allred, Bill Plympton, Aaron Augenblick, Peter Bagge, Sam Viviano, Steve Chanks, Danny Hellman, Felipe Sobreiro, Gideon Kendall, Michael Kupperman, Wes Hargis, Ruben Bolling and Fred Harper.

“It’s such an incredible honor to see my song lyrics brought to life by some of my all-time favorite cartoonists and illustrators,” Yankovic said in a statement. “I’ve actually been playing the long game—the only reason I spent four decades in the music business is so that one day I could have my very own graphic novel.”

Z2 Comics' Josh Bernstein added, “I don’t remember a time in my life before ‘Weird Al’ Yankovic and, frankly, I don’t want to. His music, lyrics, artistry, and humor have been a constant influence in my career. Having Z2 assemble this all-star roster of the greatest living cartoonists to collaborate with Weird Al has been a dream come true. I hope both new and long-time Al-fanatics appreciate the love, care, and insane art that is going into this project. As always, we dare to be stupid.”

The Illustrated Al: The Songs of "Weird Al" Yankovic will hit stores in November of this year. Alongside standard softcover and hardcover copies, the book will also receive both Deluxe Edition and Super Deluxe Edition hardcovers, with additional items including art prints, drink coasters, vinyl slipmats and a mini accordion.

Meanwhile, Weird Al is set to be the subject of an upcoming biopic from Roku TV titled WEIRD: The Al Yankovic Story, starring Daniel Radcliffe as the titular comedian and musician.

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