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Who Remembers Strange Attractors, a slice of 1990s SF comic craziness?

By John Freeman on January 9, 2026 • ( 0 )

Italy-based American comic creator Michael Cohen is currently republishing Strange Attractors on Substack, the fun SF strip he self-published with the late Mark Sherman in the 1990s.

Strange Attractor's by Michael Cohen and Mark Sherman

If you remember the strip, or even if you’re new to it, it’s well worth checking out. Like many independent strips of the time it earned deserved critical praise but didn’t, sadly, quite become the breakout success of other independent series such as Love and Rockets or Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles it deserved, for all its creative energy and inventive storytelling.

*The opening page of Strange Attractors, first published back in 1992. “I must admit I had no idea what I was doing,” Michael recalls, but the strip still resonates today*

In Strange Attractors, Sophie, the introverted curator of the Museum of Lost Things, finds a mysterious amulet, and her life is suddenly changed forever. First she is caught up in a romance with the mysterious stranger, Meson, who later abandons her when he falls under the influence of the magical amulet. Her life spins even more out of control when Sophie discovers Meson plans to marry her childhood friend, Widow, heiress to the largest fortune in the solar system.

But when Meson assassinates Widow’s father, Sophie sets out on a desperate attempt to help Widow. She is joined by her faithful robot, Roshi, and the legendary adventurer, Pirate Peg. They soon discover that there is more to the strange happenings than just murder, as they are all swept up in a timeless struggle between the forces of science and sorcery…

Strange Attractors #16 Page 1 by Michael Cohen and Mark Sherman — *The opening pages of the recently republished Strange Attractors #16 by Michael Cohen and Mark Sherman*

Strange Attractors #16 Page 2 by Michael Cohen and Mark Sherman — *The opening pages of the recently republished Strange Attractors #16 by Michael Cohen and Mark Sherman*

Michael Cohen and Mark Sherman collaborated on numerous projects since the mid 1970s: bands (The Mighty Chameleons, Buffalo Bop) and computer games (ThiefQuest). In 1993, they decided to have a go at self-publishing a comic, encouraged by the success of Dave Sim’s Cerebus. As a starting point, they turned to an unfinished project that Michael had begun a few years earlier, his goofy SF story Strange Attractors.

As Michael outlines on his website, expanding from the original premise (his version was mostly a loving tribute to the early issues of Love and Rockets), they came up with an expansive plot that would encompass many of the themes they found running through their favorite movies, comics and novels.

Strange Attractors #1 appeared in May 1993 and began building a very loyal audience. There are currently 15 issues in print, a trade paperback which collects issues #1-7, and the first two parts of a four part Caliber mini-series called Moon Fever.

*Strange Attractors #1 Cover A by Michael Cohen (It’s Alive, 2021)*

The series began to be reprinted by It’s Alive in 2021 but was unfortunately cancelled after #5 due to the death of the publisher, Drew Ford.

Sadly, Mark Sherman also passed in early 2025, but it’s great to see this memorable strip living on through Michael’s online publication – or you can support his work by buying the Strange Attractors Omnibus digital edition on Amazon or AmazonUK (Affiliate Link).

Strange Attractors Omnibus by Michael Cohen and Mark Sherman

Michael Cohen is an American cartoonist, composer and lyricist, living in Italy, who self-published various comics in the 1990’s.

Alongside a variety of creative projects in various fields, his most recent graphic novel project is Tangled River, an all-ages SF tale (also available as a collection), written under the pseudonym snowshadow. It tells the story of Tanya, a young teenager growing up on an island outpost on a distant planet called Mehra. Tanya is the offspring of space pioneers who traveled from Earth decades ago to found Earth’s first interstellar colony. The settlers attempted to create a new society, only to have all their technology mysteriously fail shortly after their arrival.

Over the course of the book, Tanya learns the story behind the event that forced the settlers to live a primitive lifestyle.

He’s also published A Gathering of Spells, a fantasy graphic novel, and Off The Map, a collection of his short fantasy and science fiction stories, with collaborations with Drew Hayes, Dave Sim, Thomas Yeates, and Michael O’Connell.

You may also remember him as editor and publisher of Mythography, a fantasy anthology which ran for eight issues in 1995-1997. He also did the covers and wrote and drew an ongoing fantasy story, “Empyrean Tales”.

He was also the editor of Forbidden Book from Renaissance Press, an anthology of short stories about magic, which ran for two issues in 2001-2002. He created the cover art and wrote and drew several stories.

He is also one of the hosts of the podcast, Unpacking Peanuts, a fan podcast unaffiliated with Peanuts Worldwide.

• Subscribe to Strange Attractors Omnibus on Substack | Read it from the start

• Read Michael Cohen’s introduction to the history of Strange Attractors

• Read Mark Sherman’s memoir about the creation of Strange Attractors

• Buy the Strange Attractors Omnibus digital edition on Amazon or AmazonUK (Affiliate Link)

• Check out Michael Cohen’s work on his official website at michaelcohenart.com

About the Author
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John Freeman

John is the founder of downthetubes, launched in 1998. He is a comics and magazine editor, writer, and Press Officer for the Lakes International Comic Art Festival. He also runs Crucible Comic Press.

Working in British comics publishing since the 1980s, his credits include editor of titles such as Doctor Who Magazine and Overkill for Marvel UK, Babylon 5 Magazine, Star Trek Magazine, and its successor, Star Trek Explorer, and more. He also edited the comics anthology STRIP Magazine and edited several audio comics for ROK Comics; and has edited several comic collections and graphic novels, including volumes of “Charley’s War” and “Dan Dare”, and Hancock: The Lad Himself, by Stephen Walsh and Keith Page.

He’s the writer of comics such as Pilgrim: Secrets and Lies for B7 Comics; “Crucible”, a creator-owned project with 2000AD artist Smuzz; and “Death Duty” and “Skow Dogs”, with Dave Hailwood.