A woman named Amber regains the memories and personality of Sir Tristan and is repulsed by the fact that he now has a “weak” female form. Barr and featuring art by Brian Bolland, featured people in the future realizing that they were reincarnations of the Knights of the Round Table. The same year that Andy returned to Doonesbury as a gay rights activist, DC Comics published the direct market mini-series Camelot 3000 as a “mature readers” story that didn’t carry the Comics Code Authority stamp. The series Gay Comix started in 1980 and was followed by more and more independent comics that delved into LGBT content and featured LGBT news.

It would become a cult hit and often featured open ideas on sexuality and love. In the underground scene, Fantasy Quarterly started featuring the series ElfQuest in 1978. Despite being fictional, Andy Lippincott was given a panel on the AIDS quilt. The story earned Doonesbury another Pulitzer Prize nomination. A few newspapers wouldn’t run the storyline, saying it was in bad taste, but others praised it for educating many on AIDS issues.

The next year followed his fight to enhance AIDS awareness followed by his final days and his funeral. In 1989 Andy reappeared in Doonesbury again, revealing that he had been diagnosed with AIDS.