#mod moe

Hi there! You are simultaneously lucky and unlucky in this regard.

Your good luck: there aren’t ten years worth of comics! Apocalypse Suite came out in 2007-08, and Dallas came out in 2009. Then there was a 10~ year hiatus of ZERO comics before Hotel Oblivion came out in 2018. Additionally, Apoc Suite and Dallas are six issues each, and Hotel Oblivion will end with seven issues. So that’s only 19 issues of the main series that exist, plus the three bonus issues. All in all, you only have to read 22 issues to be fully caught up with the comic series. You could do that in one night!

Your bad luck: Ben is BARELY in any of them. I will break down Ben’s involvement by arc and oneshot, chronologically, for worried newcomer Ben-stans.

Mon Dieu! (one shot): No Ben.

But The Past Ain’t Through With You (prequel one-shot): SO MUCH BEN. He’s an adult in this one shot, has a couple speaking lines, and is generally adorable in the background when he doesn’t. However, this is one singular issue.

Safe and Sound (one-shot): No Ben.

Apocalypse Suite: Ben appears in the beginning as a child in a flashback in issue #1. He has two lines, bonds with Klaus, and is cute. In issue #2, we see his statue and learn that he’s dead. He only shows up as a statue in the background for the rest of the entire arc.

Anywhere But Here (prequel one-shot): No Ben.

Dallas: Shows up in the beginning in another short flashback as a child, is still apparently BFFs with Klaus, has one very cute line. His statue shows up once. That’s it.

Hotel Oblivion: GENUINELY UNSURE. In issue #5, there’s another short flashback where he see him as a teenager. He has one line. Also, we see what is likely one of his tentacle monsters in it’s natural dimension. Beyond that... it’s very possible that he’s made an appearance, and the show’s Ben-related developments bolsters this possibility, but we’re not quite sure as there are still two issues yet to come out in HotObv.

HOWEVER, I will say this! As a Ben-stan for all those 10+ years, being a Ben-stan is about begging for scraps and savoring the few appearances he has. Being a Ben-stan is patience. And pain. And longing. And pining. My show-only Ben-stan children, you hath been spoilt even with the small role he does have in the show. Show Ben is a veritable bounty of Bens, comparatively. A FEAST of sweet sweet tentacle boys.

So I think you SHOULD pursue and read the comics, if only to keep yourself humble. Look at this panel of comic Ben and go forth.

At the request of an anon. Things I excluded: covers, promo art, cover art, and bumper flavor text. Interior art only! Includes all the one-shot issues, all appearances of his statue, and every mention of him from anybody else. This goes up to Hotel Oblivion #6.

Under that criteria, out of 22 extant issues I took 69 screencaps. Nice.

Yep! In the comics, the pink masked one is Hazel, and the blue masked one is Cha-Cha! They also genderbent pink mask (which I think might be the motivation behind the name swap) since tuatv’s MO seems to just be turning various male characters into beautiful women for some blessed reason.

In the comics, Diego’s ONLY power is not needing to breathe! His knife-throwing is literally just a hobby he developed to compensate. (Which I honestly think is much more fun and more exemplary of his character.)

And I think it’s well known that Klaus casually has very powerful telekinesis in the comics and floats everywhere- I don’t know if that’s going to make an appearance in the show, or if they changed it to make Vanya’s soundwave powers seem more powerful, since in the comics Klaus can do literally almost everything Vanya did in the show. 

Also! I think the show glosses over the explanation of Ben’s powers. Ben’s superpower ISN’T that he turns into a tentacle monster. RATHER, his superpower is that his body serves as an interdimensional portal. The tentacles and other monstrous things that come out of him are actually completely separate entities from another dimension that are reaching THROUGH him and more-or-less obeying his commands for some reason. (This is why, in the show, he’s shown as not having a lot of control over them- because they are NOT him. He’s just opening the door.) Feasibly, his gateway-body could be used for a lot of things. (And probably has been, in the comics.)

Sure! Here’s a list, including the main arcs so you know when they came out.

Mon Dieu! (2 page online release)

But The Past Ain’t Through With You (free comic book day prequel issue)

Safe and Sound (dark horse presents issue)

Apocalypse Suite

Anywhere But Here (dark horse presents prequel issue)

Dallas

Hotel Oblivion

It’s actually never outright stated! Since the comics are slightly less character-focused, Klaus is never shown being in a relationship and his past relationships are never mentioned.

However, I do believe that we are supposed to infer that Klaus is not straight based on some subtext and off-hand comments. (I’m not counting his often effeminate behavior, interest in interpretive dance, or oblique references to his extensive shoe collection here, but you can if you want since that’s more or less also present in his TV version and at least goes towards his being gender non-conforming.)

(yes, Klaus obtains a baby in Vietnam in the comics instead of a boyfriend! I personally don’t believe it’s his biological baby for a couple reasons, but even if it was it obviously doesn’t discredit his being pansexual.)