'I really liked how it would be fun for a while and they'd be having their kid conversations and doing kids', but then the stakes would get turned up really high and they'd have to make more adult decisions. ' Animorphs was written in a way that respected the fact that kids are more than capable of handling some larger issues, whether that's relationship-wise or dealing with the potential alien invasion,' he says of the series' approach to its central themes, which don't shy away from the potential horrors of war and its prolonged effect on those fighting in one, while still acknowledging the more normal, mundane facets of being a teen. Grine knew right away that he'd have to nail that aspect, as it's what's stuck with fans even all these years later. One of the things that has really resonated with readers since the series first debuted was its very real treatment of what teenagers Jake, Rachel, Cassie, Marco, and Tobias were going through as they fought back against the Yeerks, an evil slug-like species of alien that took control of human hosts (aka 'controllers') while also balancing homework, family, and friendship. So I wanted to keep it true to what the fans remember and love.”

“You really don’t want to see it get changed for reasons that just don’t make sense.

Especially when you’re such a big fan of the source material,” Grine tells SYFY WIRE. So when Eisner Award-nominated cartoonist Chris Grine ( Time Shifters) was tasked with adapting the first installment in the 54-book series - fittingly titled The Invasion - into a graphic novel for Scholastic Graphix, he knew he had to get it right. It’s been 24 years since Animorphs first kicked off the saga of five teenagers gifted with the alien power to “morph” (aka transform) into any animal they wish in order to fight back against a secret alien invasion. But since the first book was published, fans have only grown more devoted to the beloved series by authors K.A.

Animorphs the change