Toxic Avenger Returns, Teams Up with Jesus Christ

In 2024, AHOY Comics made a splash by bringing back the cult favorite, The Toxic Crusader, in comic book form. This year, they're set to celebrate "Toxic Mess Summer," featuring Toxie teaming up with the heroes of the AHOY Universe, including none other than Jesus Christ.

Toxic Mess Summer kicks off in May with the release of The Toxic Avenger Pinup Special, showcasing various artists' unique interpretations of Toxie and his crew. Following this, AHOY will launch the miniseries Toxie Team-Up, where Toxie collaborates with an eclectic mix of characters: Project: Cryptid's Jersey Devil, My Bad's Acid Chimp, The Wrong Earth's Dragonflyman and Stinger, Justice Warriors' Swamp Cop and Schitt, and, intriguingly, Second Coming's Jesus Christ.

For those unfamiliar with the satirical superhero series, Second Coming follows Jesus as he returns to Earth and becomes roommates with a superhero named Sunstar. The series has garnered both acclaim and controversy, and the upcoming collaboration with Toxie is likely to stir further discussion.

Toxie Team-Up #1 is crafted by the creative duo behind Second Coming, Mark Russell and Richard Pace.

“Toxic Avenger and Jesus Christ is the team-up that everybody has been clamoring for and I am not one to stand in the way,” said Russell in AHOY's press release. “Just as in Second Coming, Christ shows that there are more tools in the box than just violence and that Tromaville, as strange as it is, is still a place that someone who grew up bullied by the jocks in the Roman Empire would recognize.”

“Having already spawned five films, a cartoon, action figures, a musical, and a Marvel comic book series, the Toxic Avenger is a pop culture icon,” remarked AHOY Comics Editor-in-Chief Tom Peyer. “The only question is: why doesn’t he have a church of his own?”

The Toxic Avenger Pinup Special is slated for release on May 14, with Toxie Team-Up #1 following on June 11. Additionally, Matt Bors and Fred Harper's The Toxic Avenger miniseries will be available in a trade paperback edition on April 1, which you can preorder on Amazon.

Looking ahead to 2025, Toxie is set to return to the big screen. In IGN's review of The Toxic Avenger, Amelia Emberwing noted, "Troma and Legendary’s partnership on The Toxic Avenger’s 2023 'not remake' delivers a mixed bag. Director Macon Blair and the rest of the creative team may have more money to play with than Michael Herz and Lloyd Kaufman’s 1984 original, but it struggles to deliver on the schlocky goodness of Troma’s stronger films. Still, what it lacks in so-bad-it’s-good silliness it makes up for with its heart and mostly practical slaughterfests. Kevin Bacon and Peter Dinklage having an absolute blast in their roles doesn’t hurt, either."