Fresh from the successful publication of TheHalo Graphic Novel in 2006, a bestselling anthology of stories based on Bungie Studio’s wildly popular video game, Marvel Comics has returned with a new monthly Halo comic book series that launched last week. Halo: Uprising #1 by all-star Marvel creators Brian Michael Bendis, writer, and Alex Maleev, artist, sold out its first issue and Marvel is going back to press.

Ruwan Jayatilleke, Marvel v-p of development, described the new work as “a series of four-part miniseries.” The 40-page comic sells for $3.99. Jayatilleke said that Bendis and Maleev “both play the game and Alex is really a big fan.” The idea to continue the comics series was hatched at a Marvel creative retreat, said Jayatilleke. “Bendis was very interested, and they both went off to Bungie Studios in Washington State and pitched the story,” he went on. “It was all pretty organic.” The series will be collected into a book, but Jayatilleke said it was too early to provide details.

Halo is one of the most popular video games ever released, and its two versions have sold more than 15 million copies. The Halo Graphic Novel, produced by Bungie Studios and delivered to Marvel for distribution, marketing and promotion, has sold well over 100,000 copies. The latest and much anticipated installment of the videogame, Halo 3, is set for release in September and Jayatilleke said the story of Halo: Uprising “connects games two and three. Game two leaves off with Master Chief, the super-soldier protagonist of the earlier games, boarding an enemy alien spacecraft” as it prepares to invade Earth. “The story is also told from the perspective of two people on Earth as it is being invaded, and both stories are intertwined,” Jayatilleke explained.

Halo: Uprising “explores the Halo franchise,” said Jayatilleke about Marvel’s new series, “and there are payoffs for longtime fans, but a new reader unfamiliar with the story can pick it up and know exactly what’s happening. It’s not just focused on the first two games. And on top of all that, it’s a great-looking book.”