Benjamin: Preview Oni Press' Mind-Bending Series Inspired by Philip K. Dick

What if legendary sci-fi writer Philip K. Dick were resurrected successful the 21st Century? That's fundamentally the premise down Benjamin, a mind-bending caller sci-fi enigma bid from Oni Press. This caller three-issue prestige format comic revolves astir an writer named Benjamin J. Carp who dies successful 1982, lone to awaken successful 2025 with nary thought of however helium returned.

IGN tin exclusively debut a caller preview of Benjamin #1. Get a person look successful the slideshow assemblage below, but beware of immoderate NSFW connection ahead:

Benjamin marks the full-length comic penning debut of Ben H. Winters, writer of the Last Policeman Trilogy and creator of the CBS bid Tracker. The bid is illustrated by Leomacs (EC’s Epitaphs from the Abyss, Basketful of Heads), with screen creation by Leomacs, Christian Ward, and Malachi Ward.

Here's Oni's authoritative statement of Benjamin:

More than conscionable a writer, much than conscionable a science-fiction icon, Benjamin J. Carp was a taste revolutionary. Over the people of 44 novels and hundreds of abbreviated stories — including the counterculture classical The Man They Couldn’t Erase — Carp pushed the boundaries of literate respectability for the sci-fi genre and his readers’ cognition of world itself . . . until decades of amphetamine maltreatment and Southern California excess yet ended a mind-bending vocation that ever conscionable escaped mainstream success. He died successful 1982.

Until 2025 . . . erstwhile Benjamin J. Carp awakens, alive, successful a burned-out motel connected the fringes of Los Angeles. He remembers dying. He knows helium shouldn’t exist. Is helium a dream? A robot? A ghost? A clone? A simulation? In his ain time, Carp pondered each of these scenarios done his fiction—and, now, arsenic helium treks from Studio City to Venice Beach and onward into the paranoid sprawl of 21st-century Los Angeles, helium volition beryllium called to analyse his top enigma yet: himself.

"So, archetypal of all, conscionable due to the fact that Benjamin is astir a feline named Benjamin and it's written by a feline named Benjamin, does not mean it's autobiographical! Just due to the fact that the leader is simply a cranky middle-aged science-fiction writer trying desperately to fig retired life's intent portion helium wanders astir Los Angeles, and I'm—oh, wait. S***," Winters tells IGN. "The joyousness of penning Benjamin was successful uncovering ways to instrumentality the astir superior imaginable subject—you know, decease and the information that we each dice and each that amusive stuff—and marque it into a joyous, goofy adventure, astir a middle-aged dude who died and present is back, and is trying to fig retired why. And how. And what to bash now."

Winters continues, "I've ever loved stories that person a spot of a wink to them, a spot of apical spin. So a communicative astir a sci-fi writer who whitethorn oregon whitethorn not beryllium trapped wrong 1 of his ain stories—and by the mode written by ANOTHER sci-fi writer—and trying to fig retired however to get out...it's a precise amusive and crafty communicative that astatine the aforesaid clip is pushing astatine the large questions that specify our lives. Also there's a canine successful it! A cute, loving canine named Strawman. Honestly, I don't cognize what other you could want."

Benjamin #1 volition beryllium released connected June 18, 2025. You tin besides cheque retired an animated trailer for Benjamin.

In different comic publication news, DC Comics and Ghost Machine are having their archetypal crossover (sort of), and the 2025 Eisner Award nominees person been revealed.

Jesse is simply a mild-mannered unit writer for IGN. Allow him to lend a machete to your intelligence thicket by following @jschedeen connected BlueSky.