Vertigo grew out of DC's mature readers' line of the 1980s, which began after DC stopped submitting "The Saga of the Swamp Thing" for approval by the Comics Code Authority. Following the success of two adult-oriented 1986 limited series, ' and "Watchmen", DC's output of mature readers titles, edited by Berger, grew. By 1992, DC's mature readers' line was editorially separate from its main line and Berger was given permission to start her own imprint. Vertigo was launched in January 1993, with a mix of existing DC ongoing series and new series. The first original Vertigo series was ', a "Sandman" spin-off featuring the character Death.