Cult 1980s Superhero Show Returns With a New Release 43 Years After Cancellation

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Superheroes are incredibly popular right now, dominating both movie theaters and television. The Marvel Cinematic Universe continues to be a huge success, with films like Spider-Man: Brand New Day and Avengers: Doomsday eagerly awaited in 2026, and shows like the upcoming DC series Lanterns are also generating excitement. However, superheroes have been a part of entertainment for decades, and now, after more than forty years, a classic, much-loved TV show is making a comeback – though perhaps not in the way fans might expect.

Amp Comics is launching a Kickstarter campaign for a special graphic novel celebrating the 45th anniversary of The Greatest American Hero. This exclusive, hardcover edition is written by Don Handfield, who worked on the original series, and Tawnia McKiernan, the daughter of the show’s creator, Stephen J. Cannell. Joshua Malkin is a co-writer, with artwork by Alper Geçgel, and original star William Katt is executive producing.

The Greatest American Hero Is Already a Comics Hit

This Kickstarter launch follows the huge success of Amp Comics’ The Greatest American Hero #1 for Free Comic Book Day. The book quickly sold out everywhere, and there are still around 4,000 copies on backorder. Because of this strong demand, Amp Comics will release an expanded version of the issue to retailers in July.

As a lifelong fan of The Greatest American Hero, I was so excited to hear the news! Don Handfield, the CEO of Amp Comics, basically said that fans have been clamoring for more, and they’re finally delivering! It’s awesome they’re celebrating the show’s anniversary by giving us exactly what we’ve been asking for.

Besides the special hardcover version of the graphic novel, the Kickstarter campaign will offer a range of limited-edition items like t-shirts and belt buckles. You’ll also be able to get rare merchandise signed by the creator, Katt.

The Greatest American Hero Is a Cult Classic

Though it wasn’t a huge success when it first aired, The Greatest American Hero has become a much-loved classic. The show premiered on ABC in 1981 and centers around Ralph Hinkley, a high school teacher in Los Angeles who gains superpowers after an encounter with aliens on a field trip. They give him a special suit and task him with fighting crime, leading him to become the Greatest American Hero, aided by FBI agent Bill Maxwell. There’s a problem, though: Ralph loses the suit’s instruction manual. This means he has to figure out how his powers work as he goes, essentially learning to fly the plane while he’s already in the air.

The show lasted three seasons, concluding in 1983. Although 50 episodes were made, only 45 actually aired on television. The series also faced some issues during its run. DC Comics filed a lawsuit, claiming a character’s abilities were too similar to Superman’s, but the case was eventually dropped. There were also concerns about the character’s name following the 1981 assassination attempt on President Ronald Reagan by John Hinkley Jr. For two episodes, the character was called “Hanley,” and then referred to as just his first name or “Mr. H” before the original last name was used again in Season 2.

Despite some past issues, The Greatest American Hero has stayed popular over the years. In 2014, Fox considered a new version produced by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, but it didn’t move forward. A few years later, in 2017, another reboot – this time starring an Indian American woman – was developed with Rachna Fruchbom and Nahnatchka Khan, but ABC decided not to pursue it in 2018. Although those TV revivals haven’t happened, the story of The Greatest American Hero is continuing now in a new comic book series.

You can check out The Greatest American Hero campaign on Kickstarter.

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2026-05-16 00:41