Willy Vandersteen created one last new series in 1985: "De Geuzen", a historical, humoristic comic set in Flanders in the sixteenth century. Similar in theme to the thirty years older "Tijl Uilenspiegel", the comic combined many of Vandersteen's passions, including the art of Pieter Brueghel the Elder. It contained his most mature, developed characters, compared to the often one-dimensional characters of his earlier series, and reached a graphical level that approached his work for "Kuifje". The comics were not prepublished and were mostly created by Vandersteen alone, which ensured the quality but also decreased the publication rhythm. Only ten albums appeared, and the series ended with the death of Vandersteen.