Stardate, a new self-published comic from writer Eran Aviram and artist Aviv Or, is scheduled to debut at Thought Bubble 2026 in Harrogate, England. The full-colour, 20-page A5 one-shot will be available at Redshirt Hall, table B5, during the convention weekend of November 14-15.
The premise points its antenna directly at dating frustration and reality-television absurdity. Tracy, an Earth woman worn down by her local dating scene, is taken aboard the Situationship, a spaceship hosting an intergalactic dating programme. There, she is expected to meet strange alien candidates, with the show framing one of them as a potential perfect match.
It is a compact idea, but a useful fit for a one-shot: a familiar modern social ritual is put under a science-fiction lens, then exaggerated through the impersonal machinery of a televised competition and an alien cast. The title itself joins two genre signals—“star date” and “date”—while the spaceship’s name plays on the contemporary term for a romantic arrangement that lacks clear commitment or definition.
Stardate is listed for release in November 2026. The creators have indicated it is intended to become available beyond its Thought Bubble debut, though no specific post-show retailer, format, or date has been detailed.
A human contestant in an alien format
Tracy is the story’s human entrant, but the setup makes the larger target clear: the way dating shows package intimate choices as entertainment. A reality dating show conventionally turns courtship into a structured contest, with producers, elimination formats, carefully arranged encounters, and an audience-facing promise that romance can be distilled into a decisive outcome. Stardate transfers that idea into space.
That shift matters because science fiction can make an ordinary pressure feel newly strange. A person having trouble finding a relationship is recognizable; a person selected by extraterrestrials who have apparently been monitoring her and then transported to a dating-show spacecraft is deliberately excessive. The premise turns the invasive side of surveillance, casting, and romantic “compatibility” into a literal abduction-and-broadcast scenario.
The supplied description also suggests that the comic is satire rather than a straight romance adventure. Satire uses exaggeration, contrast, and comedy to examine a subject. In this case, the contrast is between an intensely personal concern—Tracy’s disappointing love life—and the show’s broad, consumer-ready promise that it can find her “one and only” among a collection of bizarre suitors.
There is no indication that the book’s structure is built around action scenes or a large-scale space conflict. Instead, the focus appears to be the social scenario: Tracy, the programme around her, the ship, and the personalities presented as possible dates. For readers, that sets reasonable expectations for a short comic built around character comedy and an escalating premise rather than an extended action plot.
The creators’ tabletop and comics backgrounds
Aviram brings experience in writing and editing roleplaying games, including work as chief editor for Son of Oak. That publisher’s catalogue includes City of Mist, Queerz!, :Otherscape, and Legend in the Mist. Roleplaying games are collaborative storytelling games in which players inhabit characters and make choices within a setting, often with rules that shape uncertainty and outcomes. While a comic is a fixed, creator-led narrative rather than a game at the table, RPG work can demand efficient worldbuilding: presenting places, moods, conflicts, and personalities clearly enough that others can imagine inhabiting them.
That background appears naturally suited to a premise such as Stardate. A reality-show spaceship needs only a few sharp details to establish its rules and tone: an imposing environment, an artificial courtship process, and contestants with legible personalities. A 20-page one-shot has limited room to explain every corner of its universe, so the clarity and economy of a well-defined scenario are especially valuable.
Or’s previous comics credits include Critical Role: Tales of Exandria—Artagan for Dark Horse Comics and Ghostbusters: Dead Man’s Chest for IDW. Aviram and Or also worked on Crystal Heart, an Ennie-nominated webcomic that was later collected by Dark Horse. The Ennies are awards associated with tabletop roleplaying games, another point of connection between the creators’ work across comics and RPG spaces.
The visual approach described for Stardate emphasizes expressive character work, varied page layouts, and colour contrast. In comics, a layout is the arrangement of panels, dialogue, and visual information on the page. It controls pacing: a page of small, tightly packed panels can speed up exchanges or pile on jokes, while larger panels can give a character reaction or a setting more space to land. For a comic centered on awkward encounters and alien personalities, layouts can carry a great deal of the timing.
Colour also has a narrative job beyond decoration. The book has been characterized as contrasting a cold, impersonal spacecraft setting with colourful alien figures and equally colourful personalities. That is an immediately readable visual tension. The setting can feel regulated and clinical, while the potential dates disrupt it with their appearance and behavior. It reinforces the premise that a supposedly controlled process—finding the ideal romantic match—may become chaotic the moment actual individuals enter the frame.
Why Thought Bubble is a fitting debut venue
Thought Bubble’s 20th show takes place at Harrogate Convention Centre as the culmination of a week of comics, illustration, animation, and related events across Yorkshire. The festival’s comic convention is notably focused on creators, including writers and artists, and on small-press work. That makes it an appropriate first venue for a self-published one-shot such as Stardate, which is being sold directly from the creators’ table rather than introduced through a large publisher’s wider rollout.
Self-publishing means creators take responsibility for bringing a work to readers outside the conventional publishing route. The supplied details identify Stardate as self-published but do not specify its print run, distribution method, price, or any later editions. What is certain is that its Thought Bubble presence gives readers attending the show a precise place to find it: Redshirt Hall, table B5.
Thought Bubble began in 2007, founded by Yorkshire artist Lisa Wood, better known as Tula Lotay, as part of the Leeds International Film Festival. Its first event was held in the basement of Leeds Town Hall and drew a few hundred attendees. The convention later moved to Harrogate in 2019 because more space was needed and amid issues involving Leeds City Council. Its evolution from a small initial event into a major UK comics gathering helps explain why a creator-owned, short-form project can stand alongside far broader comics activity there.
For people following the festival’s small-press releases, Stardate is also part of a wider run of new work reaching readers at the event. Another comic debut tied to the show is covered in this look at Eva Elizabeth’s folk-horror comic Bella Sheephead.
What the format means for readers
The stated physical format is A5, a paper size measuring 148 by 210 millimetres. It is smaller than A4 and makes for a compact comic object, while still allowing space for legible dialogue and detailed art. Combined with the 20-page count, that suggests a focused standalone reading experience rather than the opening chapter of a long serial—although no information has been provided about plans for a sequel or series.
A one-shot is a complete comic story released as a single issue or publication. That label matters for potential readers who prefer a self-contained premise: Stardate is presented as one complete comic rather than as an installment requiring prior issues. The available information does not establish precisely how Tracy’s story resolves, whether the dating-show format has a winner, or whether the comic ends with a romantic answer at all. Those are appropriately left as story discoveries rather than assumptions.
The project’s combination of compact length, self-published presentation, and an immediately understandable high concept suits a convention discovery. Readers can identify the hook quickly—human dater, alien television show, oddball suitors—while the creators’ prior work offers context for the kinds of storytelling and visual expression involved. Still, the key facts remain straightforward: it is a 20-page, full-colour comic; it launches at Thought Bubble; it stars Tracy; and it places her in a spaceborne romance spectacle aboard the Situationship.
Stardate at a glance
- Title: Stardate
- Creators: Eran Aviram and Aviv Or
- Format: Full-colour, 20-page A5 one-shot
- Publisher: Self-published
- Premise: Tracy is transported from Earth to an intergalactic reality dating show aboard the Situationship.
- Debut location: Thought Bubble 2026, Redshirt Hall, table B5
- Convention dates: November 14-15, 2026, at Harrogate Convention Centre
- Later availability: Planned beyond the festival, with specifics yet to be announced.
