Welcome to The Beat’s crowdfunding round-up: a collection of some of our favorite campaigns from the week including one-shots, on-goings, anthologies and everything in-between. This week, we’re checking out the surreal, reality bending debut of Butterfly Transition, a charming fantasy series called Unicorn: Vampire Hunter, and more.

Let’s get started!


Butterfly Transition: A comic of dreams and nightmares!

butterfly transition

Creators: Lin Squiggly (writer), Mikael Hankonen (illustrator)
Goal: $2,745
End date: April 27, 2021
Goodies: Grab the PDF for $5, or check out higher tiers for variants, and to help support this ongoing series. 

Butterfly Transition; An original digital comic set upon the line between dreams and nightmares! 

Butterfly Transition is a comic for anyone interested in dreams and the question of what defines reality. It follows Oscar as he trudges through the nightmare world of corpse-like flying monsters, and a strained relationship with his friend Nyla, then – occasionally – into the very ordinary world of the dream, where Nyla greets him happily. This debut is 22-pages, fully-colored, and available for preview on the campaign page.

Become a backer here.

Unicorn: Vampire Hunter #1-2

unicorn vampire hunter

Creators: Caleb Palquist (writer), Daryl Toh (artist), Dave Lentz (letterer)
Goal: $6,000
End date: April 29, 2021
Goodies: Grab the PDF for $5, get the physical version for $9, or check out higher tiers for back issues, prints, and more.

A whimsical fantasy adventure about a unicorn who hunts vampires (with his horn, duh).

With a tagline like this one (see above) it’s hard to resist Unicorn: Vampire Hunter. Aside from the vampire-slaying unicorn, the cast also includes a curious young woman and a wise wizard. Together, they embark on various adventures, deepen their friendship, and overcome complicated villains and tragedies. Filled with charming fantasy art and wit to match, this series is great for fans of Dragon Prince and Gravity Falls.

Become a backer here.

INFERNO GIRL RED by Mat Groom and Erica D’Urso

inferno girl red

Creators: Mat Groom (writer), Erica D’Urso (artist), Igor Monti (colorist), Kyle Higgins (editor)
Goal: $31,968
End date: May 6, 2021
Goodies: Grab the digital version for $13, get the hardcover for $40, or look into higher tiers for behind-the-scenes content, prints, and more.

An all new graphic novel that combines superhero drama, teen angst, and tokusatsu action.

Cássia Costa and her mom have finally settled into a new city. She’s making friends at boarding school, she’s digging her classes, she even has a cool new bracelet. A magical one, actually, that thrusts her into a strange war and a rad set of armor to defend her home with. That’s just the set-up for Inferno Girl Red, the vibrant new tokusatsu graphic novel. At 100+ pages, this is a full, stand-alone story.

Become a backer here, and check out our interview with Groom about the project.

The Greatest Hits: A Comics Mixtape

greatest hits anthology

Creators: Level Ground Comics
Goal: $7,000
End date: April 30, 2021
Goodies: Pledge $5 for the PDF, $10 for the softcover, or check out higher tiers for additional anthologies, stickers, and more.

A comic anthology that’s all about music.

Level Ground Comics is bringing together 16 artists to create an anthology all about music. Each story will be black-and-white, run about 4 pages, and feature one of 10 up-and-coming editors, with narratives giving their own spin on the Greatest Hits theme in settings ranging from the fantastical to the everyday and – yes – the high school band. For previews and a list of creators, head over to  the campaign page.

Become a backer here.

Muhammad Ali: The Greatest Comics Biography of All Time

muhammad ali

Creators: Ryan Alexander-Tanner (author)
Membership Levels: Get a digital subscription to each chapter as it releases for $3 a month, or pay $5 a month to add on an exclusive printed edition.

A Comics Biography about Muhammad Ali.

Over 12 chapters and 400 pages, the story of Muhammad Ali is being retold in graphic novel form. This Patreon campaign’s goal is to produce that graphic novel, with each individual chapter being made available on a regular basis for anyone who supports the project at the $3. The comic is black-and-white, is fully scripted, and just needs your help to keep going.

Become a backer here.


Here are a few funded projects we love:

And don’t forget to check out last week’s projects: