North Falls Graphic Novel Series
Mental Health California and the Sacramento County Department of Health Services, Division of Behavioral Health Services through the voter approved Proposition 63, Mental Health Services Act (MHSA), presents the North Falls Graphic Novel Series, a teen spy-thriller about a tech-savvy high school senior and his two best friends trying to outsmart an AI operative. The trio are members of the North Falls High School Technology Club, and have formed a team to compete in the AI Codebreaker Challenge. As the three friends pull their weight for the top prize, they discover a secret operation—The Organization—has infiltrated their neighborhood under the cover of goodwill. They learn its CEO will stop at nothing to become a global AI leader. She’s masterful at staging chaos, and shakes down one of the friends for their advanced hacking skills in her quest for world AI domination.
Set in the community of North Falls—an underserved area on the far side of town—the series explores challenges neighborhoods, families, and youth can face when they are vulnerable and overlooked by the larger society. The narrative also weaves social factors, mental pressure, behavioral health challenges, trauma, substance use, and racial stress into a gripping series in a multicultural neighborhood setting.
As the story unfolds, the relentless pressure for the trio to keep themselves and their community intact threatens to shatter them, as their once-steady hope of making a difference is battered from every side, leaving them struggling to hold on to the belief they can still prevail. Each episode is story-driven, visually rich, and built for classroom and community use, with companion tools that support discussion, behavioral health education, and reflection. This project is administered by the California Mental Health Services Authority (CalMHSA).
Partner with us! the pod@7 is open to all youth ages 18 to 26.
We’re collaborating with community-based organizations, schools, youth-serving programs, and parent and caregiver networks, and encourage you to empower youth to thrive by partnering with us on our monthly youth wellness webinar series. At no cost, partners can use the sessions to integrate discussions on mental health and substance use prevention into their health initiatives. Learn more by clicking the link below.