Come on, Barbie, get in your dressed up pink Hot Wheels car and let’s go party tokyo pop!
Mattel Teaming up with TOKYOPOP to bring these two childhood idols into a new world of storytelling through a series of Western comic graphic novels. These graphic novels are suitable for children ages 8 to 12, but that doesn’t mean adults can’t go down the nostalgic route. The first titles will be published for the first time in 2026 and include original stories and artwork, a Hot Wheels-inspired graphic novel series, and new stories featuring Barbie characters.
Both Ryan Fergusonglobal head of publishing at Mattel, and Mark VisnickTOKYOPOP’s chief operating officer and publisher expressed excitement about the partnership. “We look forward to sharing these legendary brands and bold new adventures with readers around the world,” said Visnick.
This isn’t the first time these Mattel brands have been redesigned in a graphic print format. Dell Comics Published barbie and ken 1962 comic series, published less than 30 years later by Marvel Barbie and barbie fashion 1991, highlighting Barbie’s various careers, including fashion designer, musician, and actress. Papercutz also released a series of Barbie graphic novels in 2016. Barbie series, although these are “movie comics” storybooks that contain screenshots from various television and film animations.
In comparison, Hot Wheels doesn’t have that big of a graphic novel adaptation. DC Comics released a six-issue series in 1970.
The first Barbie doll was released in March 1959, wearing a black and white striped swimsuit, and despite initial criticism, 350,000 were sold in the first year. Since then, it has become a household name. Barbie has starred in several animated television and film productions, and most recently had a live-action adaptation in July 2023, which became the highest-grossing film of the year.
inventor Elliot HandlerHot Wheels debuted in May 1967 with “The Original Sweet 16” series and posed a huge threat to Matchbox starting in 1968. Since the rights were transferred from Columbia Pictures to Warner Bros., the studio has been relatively quiet on this front.
Source: TOKYOPOP and Mattel
