Updated: April 14, 2025

The comic book Battlestar Galactica, based on the ABC television series of the same name, was published monthly by Marvel Comics from March 1979 through January 1981, and lasted 23 issues.

Although Roger McKenzie was most often the writer, and Walt Simonson the most regular artist, the book also had a high rotation of guest writers and artists.

Marvel Comics began its adaptation of Battlestar Galactica with Marvel Super Special #8, a magazine format comic written by Roger McKenzie and drawn by Ernie Colón which was released as a tie-in to the start of the series. Based on an early script of the three hour series premiere "Saga of a Star World", this adaptation was also released in a tabloid format and then later as a paperback as well. The tabloid version was also printed by Whitman Comics. Its success led Marvel to print a regular monthly comic.

When the regular run of Marvel's Battlestar Galactica comic book began some months later, the Super Special adaptation was expanded by several pages, and provided the material for the first three issues of the comic.

The direct adaptation of the series continued in issues #4 and #5 which chronicled the adventures depicted in the two part television episode, "Lost Planet of the Gods". Roger McKenzie continued as scripter, with Walter Simonson now providing the art.

By issue #6 the TV adaptations ceased, and Marvel's team began to create new stories about the characters of the Battlestar Galactica universe, picking up from where issue #5 left off. From this point, both in terms of story content and the narrative arc, Marvel's Battlestar Galactica deviates from the televised adventures. Marvel's contract with Universal Studios specifically did not allow them to use anything from the television series that followed "Lost Planet of the Gods". This adaption more closely followed the novelization of the two-hour movie, Saga of a Star World, than the ABC television series.

Although the run of the Battlestar Galactica comic coincided with the broadcast of the short-lived Galactica sequel series, Galactica 1980 on ABC, the newer program was never referred to in the pages of the comic, apart from the letters page.

Notably, the writers of the Galactica comic were quite willing to remove key characters from the dramatic mix for periods of time. From issues #6 to #12, Commander Adama is placed within a machine to help him remember the ancient writings he briefly saw on Kobol and, although we do spend some time in his dreams, he is effectively removed from commanding the Galactica for several issues.

Another character who leaves the series for a while is Starbuck. In this plotline, the fleet comes across Scavenger World, and the female space pirate Eurayle, who makes a deal to spare the Colonials if Starbuck remains with her. Starbuck does so, and the fleet moves on without him, setting up his return in issues #19 and #20.

Unlike both television series, the Galactica comic had a planned ending, with a series of plot devices being wound up in the final two part story of issues #22 and #23. In the course of solving a mystery, Lieutenant Jolly finds adventure and romance and helps in figuring out the long sought coordinates for Earth. This adventure drawn and scripted by Walt Simonson provided a natural conclusion for the storyline.