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Thomas Edgar Hinchliffe and Donald Jeremy Greger met on Newgrounds in 2008, a social platform for sharing user-generated content like art, Flash games, and animations. Over the years, they continued collaborating and, in 2011, started a YouTube channel called Flashgitz. Their shared interests in edgy internet memes and pop culture commentary show up in their work. The same can be said of their shared love for “Warhammer 40,000.”
What began as a spinoff from a successful fantasy tabletop game, “Warhammer 40,000” is a sci-fi universe set in a ‘grimdark’ setting. Humanity is represented as a rotting galactic empire embroiled in a never-ending conflict against alien and demonic threats. “Warhammer 40,000” has become an example of transmedia storytelling.
The franchise includes hundreds of novels and source books. It has produced successful video game releases such as “Space Marine 2” and the “Dawn of War” series. Actor Henry Cavill, a prominent fan of the franchise, has confirmed he will serve as the lead role for a live-action series in development at Amazon; Cavill is also to serve as executive producer for the live-action and animated series alongside Games Workshop and Blur Studios.1
There is no doubt “Warhammer 40,000” has reached the mainstream. However, questions have arisen about the convoluted lore and questionable themes. Games Workshop has made it clear that there are no ‘goodies’ to idolize.2
“The Imperium of Man stands as a cautionary tale of what could happen should the very worst of humanity’s lust for power and extreme, unyielding xenophobia set in. Like so many aspects of Warhammer 40,000, the Imperium of Man is satirical.”
On November 30, 2023, Flashgitz released “Furry Bait-n-Switch,” a continuation of its collection of animations known as “FURRY CRUSADES.” It is a parody of the Black Templars, a Space Marine chapter known for its eternal crusade to exterminate anything that isn’t human or holy. Their foe? An army representing an overtly sexualized version of the furry subculture.
The Templars are storming a facility, searching for a golden disc. The furries overwhelm their strike, leaving the Templars cornered. Fortunately, they find the disc, and the Templar holding the computer, voiced by Hinchliffe, looks over its contents.
“Brother, it’s a trailer for an original Flashgitz series. Which our lawyers told us to tell you that it has nothing to do with Warhammer, I swear, enjoy.”
Space King Builds Its Own Grimdark Universe
“Space King” is an independent animated adult web series whose pilot first aired on YouTube on March 2, 2024. Set in the future, the series depicts a vast and hostile human regime. Its armies have conquered alien worlds and exterminated their inhabitants. The war effort is driven by blind obedience and extreme xenophobia. Who is leading the charge? The psycho warriors. They are as fanatical as they are childish. Their legions bring absolute destruction — all in the name of their deity, Space King, whom they believe will one day return.
The series follows the misadventures of the ‘worst’ reclaimer squad in the galaxy.3 Think of these squads as exchange programs for the legions in the form of three-to-four-man strike teams.4 This particular reclaimer squad is stationed with the Star Defenders Legion, led by Captain.
He is a psychotic, yet equally immature leader. His squad consists of Hatemonger from the Beholders. His hatred of aliens is embedded in his very being. He makes sure his brothers don’t stray from the ways of Space King, much like a chaplain. Bryce hails from the Flame of Space King and serves as an ‘Imaginator,’ a unique designation within any legion.
His tasks include making gadgets and serving as the team’s general problem solver, although he’s not very good at it. Lastly, we have Chestnut. His profession leads his squadmates to bully him, but it remains the team’s most important role. He is a ‘Medicae,’ responsible for making sure the globules are protected. If a psycho warrior dies in combat but his globules remain undamaged, they can be extracted for future revival.
What are globules? They are what make them psycho warriors. They are the source of their strength. Not much is known about how they are made, but what is known is that they contain the genetic makeup of whoever they belong to. Without it, they are truly gone.
In the spirit of adult animation, globules are genetically modified testicles. To revive a psycho warrior, those globules must be placed into a boy. If it’s a new psycho warrior, they are immediately brainwashed and sent to battle.
Throughout the series, our main cast keeps boys on hand in case they need to be revived, essentially giving them extra lives. There are entire legions that dedicate themselves to snatching boys from human planets to serve as their vessels, often referring to these efforts as “recruitment” drives, which can be seen in the first few seconds of the pilot episode.
“Space King” presents a complex system of super soldiers organized in factions with unique colors, symbols, and traditions. Who worships a deity and creates more of themselves through outlandish science and the taking of children? It all sounds familiar.
The “Warhammer 40,000” Space Marines Behind The Inspiration
“Warhammer 40,000” spitting image is the Adeptus Astartes, commonly known as Space Marines. The Adeptus Astartes are a faction of genetically modified soldiers created by the God Emperor of Man, who perfected this elite fighting force to reunite a scattered humanity. There were once twenty original legions, nearly half turned traitor, falling for the Chaos Gods’ corruption.
This galaxy-wide civil war had reduced the Imperium of Man to a theocratic nightmare. The God Emperor, terribly wounded in stopping the madness, now sits on his golden throne, turned life support system. To prevent such widespread destruction, the remaining legions were divided into smaller chapters, each with roughly a thousand troops.
Their numbers are now too small to constitute the main fighting force. They operate as small but mobile strike teams, backing up the general fighting force, the Astra Militarum, also known as the Imperial Guard. Over the years, chapters throughout every founding would continue to phase in and out of existence.5 This is made possible through gene-seed.
Gene-seed is the foundation of the Space Marines. Before the legions were divided, the God-Emperor worked on its leaders, his sons, the Primarchs. With their genetic code, he created a means to cultivate nineteen distinct organs. Alongside developing the features and flaws of their Primarch, Space Marines are granted augmented invulnerability, higher cognitive abilities, and an increased body mass that comes with supernatural strength and mobility. Compared to the average human, they are ‘angels of death.’
The process of making a new Space Marine starts with how a chapter recruits. They either have a home planet or are fleet-based, meaning their base of operations is on a ship, and recruits come from various worlds. The harsher the planet or the more volatile the candidate, the better. If initial testing gives the green light, they are labeled as a ‘neophyte’.
From there, they undergo the chapter’s trials and, if they survive, move forward toward becoming a Space Marine. They undergo a multitude of tests, painful implantation of the organs, and conditioning that is essentially brainwashing.6
Why Space King Mixes Childish Humor With Grimdark Violence
“Warhammer 40,000” has been expanding its story since 1987. Like everything else in its universe, the process of creating its super soldiers is both elaborate and well-established, while “Space King” just turned two years old in March. The lore continues to expand with every new episode or piece of promotional material released. They drew inspiration from the “Warhammer 40,000” franchise for the series’ universe and its Psycho Warriors.
Instead, they created their own legally distinct franchise. Hinchliffe and Greger discuss this on the Tom and Don channel, Flashgitz’s second channel. They make it clear that current information can be retconned as the series progresses. They do, however, have concrete themes they intend to follow.7
“This show is just little boys playing with action figures, the fact that we get to make the voices too…” said Hitchliffe.
Throughout the released content, there have been multiple instances in which the main cast of psycho warriors displays childlike mannerisms. “SPACE KING 3 – The Imaginator” is an example of this. It shows Captain, voiced by Greger, asking their high command if they can take Terry, another Imaginator, on their next mission. Captain adds that Terry’s high command was okay with it.8
This is reminiscent of asking your parents if your cousins could stay over. Letting them know that their parents were okay with it usually worked. “SPACE KING 2 – B-Positive” shows dozens of Legions scrambling at the sound of their alarms. They drop everything, allowing civilians and even their own brothers to die without protest. They arrive at a planet and surround it as the scene cuts to an Imaginator who has created the impossible: a female psycho warrior. Captain grabs a mic and yells one of the series’ most infamous lines: “No girls allowed!”
The ship’s cannons fire at the planet, decimating it. The series also uses elements of nostalgia. In the same episode and those that follow, the series includes ad breaks that mimic old Saturday morning cartoon advertisements. This includes cereal commercials, lunch boxes, and even board games.
This provides a creative way for Flashgitz to promote merchandise while staying true to their series’ theme. The psycho warriors’ appearance, most notably their armor, is toy-like on purpose. Hinchliffe and Greger were inspired by characters like Zerg from the “Toy Story” franchise and Juggernaut from the “X-Men.9”
Same goes for their designs for their weapons, specifically the swords, axes, and knives. They have a colorful and translucent appearance which is to pay homage to plastic toys such as water guns or toys with fire or energy details10. All of this seems like innocent fun, but eventually, it becomes clear that the psycho warriors never got to grow up.
The more you closely look at it, the more apparent it becomes that Flashgitz balances childish humor and over-the-top violence with a darker tone. The series has alluded to a human empire that is openly theocratic and xenophobic. Genetically altered children now fight for the survival of their species, willing or unwilling. The battlefield is their playground and lasers replace foam darts.
Nursery rhymes become prayers and hymns. Stranger danger becomes us or them. Rather than being a parody or adaptation of Warhammer 40,000, Space King is better understood as a heavily inspired, legally distinct entry in the ‘grimdark,’ genre.
Why Fans Are Demanding More Space King
Space King is an entirely crowd-funded project supported through various platforms. On YouTube, released content has millions of views on average. There is also direct support through Patreon memberships, which come with perks such as behind-the-scenes content and more.
Limited merchandise drops have included hoodies, T-shirts, and, at one point, a “No Girls Allowed’ lunch box containing a cup, a small Space King figure, a lighter case, and a letter from Space King himself.
It even contained an unusable, prepackaged condom for some reason. All of these items have since sold out. However, the best example of demand is Flashgitz’s Kickstarter campaign for an official Space King board game 10. Launched on August 30, 2026, the campaign set a goal of $50,000. Within twenty-four hours, it had raised $2 million. As of September 25, 2026, the campaign has ended. It has raised roughly $9.6 million from 26,206 backers and counting.
“If this keeps doing what it’s doing, we are going to have more funds to make more episodes quicker. But also we can make expansions, more stuff with the stretch goals like more info to the lore book. The more it’s supported, the more the IP is fleshed out.” said Hinchliffe in the ‘MAKING OF: SPACE KING 5 – War World.’
Footnotes:
- Otterson, Joe “Warhammer 40,000 Animated Series In Development At Amazon, Henry Cavill to Produce(Exclusive).” Variety, 3 Aug, 2026. ↩︎
- “The Imperium is Driven by Hate. Warhammer is Not.” Warhammer Community. 19 Nov, 2021. ↩︎
- “SPACE KING 1 – Pilot” Flashgitz, 24 Mar, 2024. ↩︎
- “SPACE KING Creators Answer YOUR Questions | Tom and Don.” Tom and Don, 26 Sept. 2025. ↩︎
- “Space Marines.” Warhammer 40k-Lexicanum. ↩︎
- “Gene seed.” Warhammer 40k-Lexicanum. ↩︎
- “What’s next for Space King | Tom and Don.” Tom and Don. 24 Mar, 2024. ↩︎
- “SPACE KING 3 – The Imaginator.” Flashgitz, 27 Sept. 2025. ↩︎
- How We Created SPACE KING’S Psycho Armour | Tom and Don.” Tom and Don. 13 Sept. 2026 ↩︎
- “MAKING OF: SPACE KING 3 – The Imaginator.” Tom and Don. 3 Oct. 2025. ↩︎