Saturnalia was a science fiction comic, made by Nina Matsumoto, also known as “space coyote“. It won Outstanding Science Fiction Comic in the 2004 Web Cartoonists’ Choice Awards.

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The story was put on indefinite hiatus while Matsumoto worked on her other series, Yōkaiden, and other projects.

Matsumoto has taken down the webcomic, citing in the FAQ: “I’ve decided to remove it because it no longer reflects me as an artist or person. Sorry to my fans, and thanks for reading!”,^[1] It is no longer available as of 2014.

Saturnalia is set in the year 2999 CE in the city of Ampersand, on a planet (not Earth) that was colonized by humans approximately three hundred years previously. Ampersand is a city in the Web kingdom which is ruled over by King Hal, and includes the cities of Sumdumgoi, Samarkan, Terminal, Watertank, and Playbill.

Saturnalia talks about humans colonizing other planets and creating realistic androids. Society is divided: some advocate for android rights, while others see them as threats, leading to underground conflicts.

Ellipsis, after fending off a mugger, gets involved with Sysreq, a PACER agent. They uncover a plot by HASL members to sabotage androids. As they investigate further, they find mutilated androids and confront a woman who believes creating androids is sinful. Sysreq is torn between sympathizing with HASL’s beliefs and his duty as a PACER. Meanwhile, he struggles with personal issues, including his love life, which the PACERs promise to help with. The story also touches on political changes, with King Hal announcing his retirement.