German Queer Coming of Age Tale “Pink Monsters” Gets US Debut May 2026

Oni Press will be releasing Pink Monsters in the US come May 2026. The graphic novel is by German comics creator Claus Daniel Herrmann. The narrative explores a story about casting aside negativity and accepting oneself as a queer person.

With a release date ahead of Pride Month next year, Pink Monsters will take readers along on Frank’s emotional journey. The lead character is a 14-year-old in the midst of puberty who is slowly realizing that he’s gay. Even though he’s a shy teenager, Frank’s quite popular at school due to his skills as an artist. The “cool boys” want a picture of his drawn monsters to hang in their rooms. While things seem to be good at school, at home is a different matter. Frank’s father is suffering from depression. His condition worsens to the extent that Frank’s mother gives up on traditional medicine and reaches out to an “esoteric healer” named Thea.

Thea seems to be the right person to turn things around for Frank’s household. His parents become hopeful while Frank finds a sense of security in Thea’s “secret knowledge.” However, things darken when Thea blames Frank’s drawings for his father’s condition. Not only that, but Thea goes on to make Frank feel guilty about his sexuality. Frank’s left with no option other than to possibly jeopardize his relationship with his parents to truly be himself.

I feel for Frank already!

A whole bunch of queer kids around the world have to experience something similar, where adults, usually those in positions of authority, try to manipulate queer kids into feeling guilty about who they are under the guise of “knowing better” and such.

Having read the preview, I’m already so annoyed by Thea, especially knowing how she is going to direct her attention at Frank’s art and then his being. I do like the visual style. It’s quite simple and yet more than capable of portraying the emotional weight accompanying the characters. Calling it Pink Monsters makes sense with how the color pink has been used.

I’m assuming here, so I could be wrong, but I think Frank’s going to realize that the pink “positive” energy being emitted by Thea isn’t real. He’s seeing said energy because of his initial interaction with her. The narrative is likely going to have Frank realize that he had positive energy inside of himself all along and that he doesn’t have to look to someone like Thea to find it.

“Access to one’s own feelings and the ability to think critically are key to self-determination—especially in a world where fellow human beings advocate for unverifiable beliefs and use them to recklessly tear down personal boundaries. I hope my readers, whether they are young adults themselves or already responsible for younger ones, will find an impressive example of this in my story,” shared creator Claus Daniel Herrmann.

A finalist for the Berthold Leibinger Comic Book Prize because of Pink Monsters, Herrmann is a freelance designer, animator, illustrator, photographer, and comic artist. His comic story In Our Garden was published by Jaja Verlag.

Are you looking forward to reading Pink Monsters?

Let us know.

You can learn more about Oni Press here.

And you can read more of our comic book coverage here.

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(via Press Release)

Author: Farid-ul-Haq

Farid has a Double Masters in Psychology and Biotechnology as well as an M.Phil in Molecular Genetics. He is the author of numerous books including Missing in Somerville, and The Game Master of Somerville. He gives us insight into comics, books, TV shows, anime/manga, video games, and movies.

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