Speed Racer: Mega 64’s Derrick Acosta Talks Helping to Build a New Anime Universe (Exclusive)

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Anime is incredibly popular, and its influence is expanding beyond traditional formats like TV shows and manga. We’re now seeing North American comic books embrace anime-style storytelling, creating new worlds based on beloved characters. Mad Cave Comics is doing just that with its new Speed Racer series, building a fresh universe for the iconic hero. We recently spoke with Derrick Acosta, co-creator of Mega64, about his upcoming work on Speed Racer: Tales From The Road and his role in developing this new anime-inspired comic world.

The comic book series Speed Racer: Tales From The Road delves into the untold stories surrounding Speed and the characters within the expanded universe created by Mad Cave. Writer Acosta explained that Mad Cave approached him with the idea of both a Speed Racer series and an anthology to flesh out the world, giving him creative freedom. He revisited the original Speed Racer and the current comics to become familiar with the characters and identify those who hadn’t been featured prominently. He was encouraged to focus on lesser-known characters, as stories about Speed or Racer X were already well-covered. Ultimately, Acosta chose to tell a story from the perspective of a villain.

Acosta wanted to delve into the life of Dante Ferno, a key villain from the comics, showing what he gets up to when he’s not racing against Speed. The story focuses on how Dante spends his downtime – what does a supervillain do to relax and have fun? It turns out his hobbies are still pretty villainous! We also meet Dante’s friends, including a new character Acosta created who occasionally hangs out with him.

The Horror of Speed

The creator of Mega64 has experience with comic books, having previously contributed to the anthology special Fobia. When he first approached Mad Cave with ideas, he was particularly drawn to a spooky story from the original Speed Racer anime. It involved a ghost car terrorizing the city, and Speed had to solve the mystery behind it. The story had a surprising, human explanation – almost like a Scooby-Doo episode within Speed Racer. Acosta felt this concept, drawing on American folklore about haunted roads and phantom vehicles, would fit well within the Speed Racer universe, and he hopes to revisit it in the future.

Derrick hopes to continue creating new stories for Speed Racer. When asked about future projects, he expressed a strong interest in supernatural anime, specifically Vampire Hunter D and its 2001 sequel. He’s aware of the existing novels and manga and would be thrilled to work on that series. He’s also eager to contribute to any project with a spooky, gothic, or dark atmosphere.

Acosta is eager to work with classic North American superheroes, and specifically mentions Space Ghost as a dream project. He grew up watching Space Ghost: Coast to Coast and initially saw the character as purely comedic. However, he later discovered a series of more serious Space Ghost comics that he really enjoyed, rekindling his appreciation for the character and finding it surprisingly impressive.

The second issue of Speed Racer: Tales From The Road comes out January 21st, 2026. You can pre-order it from Mad Cave Studios and find more about Mega64 by following the links provided.

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2025-12-06 00:41