Although Neopets attended Los Angeles Comic Con (LACC) 2023 as an exhibitor, their presence this year was only as part of a panel hosted by their merch partner Andrews McMeel Publishing.
The artwork for this announcement image is original art by Rachel Cash, co-illustrator of the upcoming official colouring book!
Panel Overview
In lieu of a booth, Neopets held a panel discussion on Saturday, October 5, for a small but enthusiastic crowd. They revealed hitherto unreleased sample artwork from three upcoming Neopets books, officially announced a significant canonical development for inclusive representation in Neopia, promoted special 25th-anniversary sets for Upper Deck's new trading card game, and fielded questions, all while wondering whether their personal pronunciation of "Lupe" or "Zafara" would elicit stares of disbelief.
The panel was entitled "Neopets 25th Anniversary Celebration! Live AMA and Graphic Novel Teaser" and the panel description was as follows:
Neopets is an iconic y2k computer game celebrating its 25th anniversary in 2024! Along with moderator voice actor Jenny Yokobori (Genshin Impact/The Simpsons/Pokemon/Rainbow High/many more), join TNT Aesop from The Neopets Team for an “ask me anything” style-panel, featuring Bobby Coovert (Neopets TCG Product Manager), Erinn Pascal (Senior Editor at Andrews McMeel Publishing and co-author of Neopets: The Official Cookbook), and Rachel Cash (co-illustrator of Neopets: The Official Colouring Book, out in March 2025). You'll also get an exclusive teaser for Neopets: The Omelette Faerie, the upcoming graphic novel coming out on October 22 this year, and a chance to win a copy of the book before anyone else! You won't want to miss this.
Panelists
The panel was moderated by voice actor Jenny Yokobori, who was sporting her Neopets print dress from Cakeworthy. The panel featured:
Aside from Aesop, none of the panelists were TNT staff members, but they all made clear they are longtime Neopets players and fans. Jenny cited her love of Destruct-O-Match. Rachel described herself as a "Flash games kid" who played Toybox Escape, Faerie Bubbles, and Freaky Factory; she sported a headpiece with cosplay Aisha ears that matched her beloved McDonalds Aisha plushie. The artwork of Neopets Art Director Anthony Conley a.k.a. Tiger Catcher drew Bobby into Neopets as a child. Aesop's childhood passion for dragons brought him to Neopets, where he immersed himself in the Neopedia's lore. Aesop still sees the diversity of genres in Neopia, from sci-fi to sword & sorcery to steampunk, as a rich sandbox, with the new Neopets books an opportunity for worldbuilding.
Presentation Slides
A set of presentation slides was shown alongside different sections of the panel. You can peruse them below!
Note that Rebecca misspeaks at the end; the second graphic novel will actually be coming out in summer 2025!
Neopets: The Omelette Faerie Graphic Novel
SPOILER WARNING! This section of the panel recap contains some minor spoilers for the plot of Neopets: The Omelette Faerie.
Neopets's first graphic novel, Neopets: The Omelette Faerie, written by New York Times best-selling author Rebecca Mix with art by Heather Burns, goes on sale October 22. It will include a virtual code for an all-new Battledome item. One lucky attendee received an early copy, by finding a note under her seat that read "Winner Winner Blumaroo Steak Dinner." This early copy was a personal copy donated by Erinn Pascal, Senior Editor at Andrews McMeel, publisher of the Neopets books.
According to Erinn, it tells the story of how Neopia almost lost the Giant Omelette forever. The book has been in the works for around three years, having been part of the original contract between Neopets and Andrews McMeel for the Cookbook. With minor exceptions, Neopets has never before published any physical comics. Erinn reached out to Rebecca, whose pitch for the omelette story was approved by Aesop. Aesop added that Neopets players have a wide variety of interests, from the Battledome to customisation to restocking, and TNT wants these graphic novels to include a balance of stories for these different audiences. Dailies like the Giant Omelette are a good choice for story hooks because all players can enjoy and relate to them without necessarily knowing Neopia's complex lore. (Rachel interjected that she is relying on omelettes for her Faerie Festival donations; Erinn assured us that the timing of the omelette book's release during the omelette-heavy Faerie Festival was just a happy coincidence.)
Neopets: The Omelette Faerie introduces the first faerie specific to Tyrannia. In previously unreleased art, it also presents the first unambiguously LGBT characters ever seen in Neopia, with Marina and the future Omelette Faerie portrayed as a couple, which the panel first teased as "the art speaks for itself" but which Aesop then officially confirmed as a canonically queer relationship. Following the expansion of disability-related and pride-themed items, and the introduction of Seshatia's mobility assistance, this continues TNT's trend towards fuller representation and inclusion. Whether this openness to queer representation relates to events in the current The Void Within plot was left unclear. There are no immediate plans to integrate the Omelette Faerie into the main website, but it is an idea being floated.
The Battledome TCG 25th Anniversary Celebration Set
Bobby presented the new TCG expansion, celebrating the 25th anniversary of Neopets. It will feature new asymmetric Lab Ray mechanics that he designed as well as exclusive new all-foil and borderless cards, with paint colours such as Sponge, Chocolate, and Silver (for the silver anniversary) represented. The set will include a new playmat, custom resin dice, a damage dial, twelve booster packs with five foil cards per pack, and textured card sleeves. All of the artists are fans of Neopets, including Shamine Athena King, Gobo Ziller, Erin Tudball, and Kyra Kuretsky; Bobby singled out Sophie Scruggs, who was in attendance. The set should be available in the next couple of months, and should be available for pre-order at local gaming stores.
The Colouring Book
Neopets: The Official Colouring Book is slated for release in March 2025. Erinn confirmed that she had sent the final version of the book to the printer the previous Friday, but printing and distribution takes time. The 96-page book includes a foreword by Aesop and a sheet of Petpet stickers. The artwork is a mix of old and new art, with new patterns and a classic style guide. Each page of art is single-sided and perforated. Erinn fought to keep the proper Neopian spellings of words like "colouring," despite the North American release, knowing the Neopets fan base would have strong opinions.
Erinn noted that one of the best features of Neopets is its humor, reminiscing about the drop-down Key Quest menu. Just as she made a point of incorporating humor into the Cookbook, we can look forward to humor sprinkled throughout the Colouring Book. Rachel specifically mentioned a focus on featuring things less frequently used in Neopets artwork, such as Eyries and Grarrl Keno. (Erinn interjected that she kept a spreadsheet of every species on every page to make sure that everyone's favourite species is represented.) Some Easter eggs in the artwork include a Dehydration Potion and a Chia Chia Pet. Rachel concluded by saying how affirming it was to have her lifelong passion for Neopets art received so well by TNT and the editors.
Neopets: The Discarded Magical Blue Grundo Plushie of Prosperity Graphic Novel
The second graphic novel continues to draw inspiration from the dailies, in this case the Discarded Magical Blue Grundo Plushie of Prosperity. The cover art is not yet finalized, as it will not be released until August 2025, with the exception of an early release at San Diego Comic-Con.
The tight panel schedule at LACC meant there had been no time to test Rebecca Mix's pre-recorded video, but luckily it ran without a hitch. Becca reminded us of the mysterious unwanted plushie who certainly wouldn't answer any questions, being just a toy. No one knows where the plushie came from, not even himself, seemingly appearing out of nowhere one day in Faerieland. There it rests, day after day, unmoving and silent, until one day...it falls.
The ensuing story addresses themes of family, good versus evil, and the existential question of what it means to be real. The artwork includes some Easter eggs for longtime Neopets players, such as Lord Kass's sword Trithduril tucked in a corner. The books are being categorized as "Young Adult" in order to market them to school libraries.
Q&A Session
The session ended with questions from the moderator and then from the audience.
What would you do if you woke up and found yourself in Neopia?
Aesop: visit the Fruit Machine, and then give a gift like a hat or scarf to the Money Tree who always gives but never receives gifts themself.
Erinn: fan meetups in towns, with a focus on community.
Rachel: the reappearance of some of her favourite characters.
Bobby: things he's not at liberty to say...and sick new card sets including The Void Within represented in the TCG.
What sets the Neopets fandom apart?
Bobby: a community of good, accepting people from diverse backgrounds.
Rachel: fun, helpful people, like her friend Prism who gave her Neopoints and coached her how to play Food Club, and how passionate the people who work for Neopets are about their work.
Erinn: TNT are not just administrators, they are players who are part of the community; and the sense that the fans "get" her work.
Aesop: there is something for everyone; Neopia captures a snapshot of a wide, diverse, unexplored world with lots of unresolved threads.
Jenny: the fandom is fiercely loyal, with a persevering love for Neopets.
Who would you be as a Neopet, and what would be your catchphrase?
Bobby: A Gelert. "It's time to take back Krawk Island!"
Rachel: An Aisha or something silly like a Peach Chia. "I'm too drunk to eat this chicken!"
Erinn: A Christmas Kougra dressed in Royalgirl garb. "May Neopets live forever in prosperity."
Aesop: A Shoyru (because, out of all of the dragon-type Neopets, it's the most adept at flying) who works at the Neopian Times. "Time to fly!"
Jenny: A Faerie Acara. "I'm very hungry, please let's eat!"
Aesop: Ruffle has already converted about 50 Flash games, and he would like to see more, and would make a note of the request for Hannah.
What about changing our usernames or pet names?
Aesop: There are programming hurdles involved, and layers of spaghetti logic made by different teams over time, but he is sympathetic to grown adults stuck with awkward names from their childhood.
Are there plans for new plushies?
Aesop: At SDCC there were samples, including a Void Faellie and Void Aisha.
Erinn: Hopefully we will see more diversity of species.
What is the correct pronunciation of the Library Faerie's name?
Aesop: TNT has been using "seh-SHAH-tee-ah."
Panel Handouts
Several items were handed out at the panel.
An LACC-exclusive sample colouring page was handed out alongside a set of crayons:
Click the image for a full-size printable version!
The Void Within plot is taking a break! All point gathering activities are on hold until "early 2025" according to TNT. Stay tuned to JN, we'll announce when a more firm return date is provided.
