We sat down to chat about Gremlins with the folks who know the most around Dark Horse: Gremlins book editor, Rob Simpson, Return of the Gremlins comic editor Dave Land, and the VP of our product division, the venerable David Scroggy.

Pony Express: So this book hasn't been published since 1943? Any reason why? Seems odd considering that Roald Dahl is considered the Dr. Seuss of the UK . . .

Rob: One of the most fun aspects of working on the restoration of Roald Dahl's The Gremlins has been discovering all the stories behind its creation and its original publication. But as to why it's been out of print for so long, there's no real solid answer. For the fans of Dahl's work the book's existence has always been known, but the stars never aligned in just the right way before to allow it to be republished before. I'm glad that we were able to get it back in front of readers who may have only heard about it before but had never seen a copy.

PE: Are these Gremlins at all related to the great 1980s movie, Gremlins?

Rob: No, these Gremlins are totally different than the ones that were in Gremlins in 1984 and 1990?s Gremlins 2: The New Batch.

PE: So what can we expect from Gremlins? The usual Dahl themes of child rebels and tomfoolery?

Rob: I don't think it would be a Roald Dahl story if there weren't instances of rebellion and authority being challenged, but this book comes with a twist in that the main human characters are all adults. The Gremlins, as readers will see from the very first page, include adult as well as child Gremlins, called widgets, who are just as sneaky and full of surprises as the grown-up Gremlins.

PE: Is this intended for kids?

Rob: As with a lot of Dahl's work, this book will appeal to many different audiences. While the story is set in World War II, there is very little real violence in the tale. I think kids and adults will each find the story a lot of fun.

PE: And from what I hear, it sounds like Dark Horse is doing an all-new comic, based on the book? Is that right? How exciting!

Dave: Yes, we're doing a three-issue series written by Mike Richardson and illustrated by Dean Yeagle.

PE: And with the release of the book and comic, there's a whole line of toys coming out, too. I hear that there's an interesting story behind all of that?

Scroggy: Well, a picture is worth a thousand words! Check out these pictures of our upcoming products, in the process of coming to life!