Welcome to 12 Panel Pitch’s final performance. My co-editor, Sasha Steinberg, and I had a tough time selecting a reader script to wrap up this feature. After selecting the five most promising submissions, we sent them along to the incomparable Jim Rugg to make the final choice.

Congrats to Paul Karasik, whose winning script is presented below. Paul is an accomplished cartoonist in his own right, and we’re thrilled he took the 12 Panel Pitch challenge. Special shout-out to the runners-up who all deserve a development deal:

Monster Highway by Tom Mervenne
In this post-apocalyptic thriller, a death-row prisoner is promised a reprieve if he crosses the Mississippi in search of survivors. Survivors are few, but GIANT MONSTERS are plenty!

Wolf Women in Cages by Denis St. John
A campy prison-monster mashup—think Orange Is the New Black but with female werewolf inmates, shot in the ’70s, and directed by Russ Meyer.

The Last Thunderbird by Laura Garrison
Opposites attract in this romantic adventure pitch, set in the Depression era. A wildlife photographer is offered a pretty sum to photograph the elusive and magical Alaskan Thunderbird but has to team up with a nerdy (and handsome) professor to get her shot!

This Is How You Save the World by Emily Greene-Colozzi
When insurgents brutalize a village in Mali, a mysterious superhero saves the day. The legend of the superhero spreads throughout the country, giving people hope and faith.

Sasha and I had a blast editing this feature. Special thanks to all the cartoonists and writers who “pitched” in.

Click here to read all 12 Panel Pitches.