Published Jul 1, 2026, 8:00 AM EDT
Jason is an award-winning journalist whose writing career dates back to when he developed the ability to use a crayon. He, most notably, worked previously as a "professional fan," as he likes to call it, at CinemaBlend, for which he wrote about anything and everything under the pop culture umbrella... especially Batman. His passion for the art of cinema began even earlier, stemming from repeat viewings of The Wizard of Oz.
This initially led him to pursue a career in filmmaking -- and even work briefly in the industry as an extra in the straight-to-video family film, Alice Upside Down -- before deciding that his talents would be better served discussing and showing appreciation for the various forms of entertainment he is passionate about.
No one could have predicted the astonishing influence that Dungeons & Dragons would have on pop culture. The popular tabletop fantasy role-playing game has not only been adapted for various forms of media, but has also served as a direct influence on other original properties, such as The Adventure Zone.
What started as a podcast has also evolved into a beloved fantasy comic that fans of the genre's most immersive qualities have cherished for years. However, it appears that the series is about to release its final graphic novel.
The Adventure Zone: Story and Song Concludes The Fantasy Franchise
The #1 New York Times bestselling, meta-fictional Dungeons & Dragons-inspired epic is experiencing its final curtain call with the seventh and final graphic novel in the series, The Adventure Zone: Story and Song. A first look at the highly anticipated conclusion from Macmillan Publishers was shared exclusively by ScreenRant.
The six pages included with the preview see wizard Barry Bluejeans begging his brother-in-law, elf wizard Taako, to cheer up his sister, Lub, with the "best day ever." His plan of action includes breakfast in bed, complete with eggs, bacon, and stacks of both toast and pancakes, and taking her to an abandoned alternate reality, in which she has free rein to literally burn an entire town to the ground.
Image via Macmillan PublishersThe story of The Adventure Zone is one that was bred from the same origins as hit fantasy properties like Critical Role, Dimension 20, The Legend of Vox Machina, and the Dungeon Crawler Carl comic book series. The franchise began as a podcast, spun-off from hosts Justin, Travis, and Griffin McElroy's My Brother, My Brother and Me, that follows them as they play through their Dungeons & Dragons campaign with their father, Clint.
The podcast, which first launched in 2014, would later be adapted into a series of graphic novels, starting with 2018's The Adventure Zone: Here There Be Gerblins, following the mystical and maniacal journeys of a quirky band of former bodyguards turned artifact hunters, including the aforementioned Taako the elf wizard, Merle the dwarf cleric, and Magnus the human warrior. The McElroy Brothers and Clint pen the comics, which are brought to life by artist Carey Pietsch, who is also known for her work on the Lumberjanes series and the 2015 limited series, Adventure Time: Marceline Gone Adrift, based on the hit Cartoon Network animated series.
Griffin has expressed what an emotional experience it has been to bid farewell to a property that has meant so much to his family and to so many others around the world.
When we recorded the last episode of TAZ Balance nearly nine years ago, the four of us ended the Skype call in a big, weepy heap — it was a kind of personal catharsis I’d never experienced before doing something creative. Now that the final graphic novel adaptation, Story and Song, is almost here, that feeling’s been welling up in waves all over again, matched by the pride I feel toward Carey’s immaculate work bringing the story to life. I think I can safely speak for all of us in saying we cannot wait for folks to read this book, and to spend a little more time in a world we built with our whole hearts nearly a decade ago.
The Adventure Zone: Story & Song Gets A Special Launch Event
Image via Macmillan PublishingThe 416-page final chapter of the Adventure Zone saga, which will be available in both trade paperback and hardcover editions, is a monstrous occasion, not only for fans of the franchise itself, but those who cannot get enough of fantasy role-play culture in general. Therefore, its creators have taken the necessary steps to make sure the series goes out with a bang.
Griffin, Clint, Justin, and Travis McElroy are hosting a special event to launch The Adventure Zone: Story & Song. They will also be joined by Carey Pietsch and the comic's editor, Benjamin Wilgus, who got his start in animation as a writer for Cartoon Network's Codename: Kids Next Door before transitioning into comics and creating the sci-fi samurai duology, Chronin.
The launch event occurs on July 16 at 7 p.m. at the Chevalier Theatre in Medford, Massachusetts. Tickets are available through the venue's official website and each purchase comes with a paperback copy of The Adventure Zone: Story & Song signed by one of the McElroys, some of which also include a signature by Pietsch.
The Adventure Zone: Story and Song hits the shelves on July 14, 2026!
English (US) · 