In the field of
comic books, a
limited series is a comics series with a predetermined number of issues. A limited series differs from an
ongoing series in that the number of issues is determined before production, and it differs from a
one shot in that it is composed of multiple issues. The term is often used interchangeably with
miniseries (
mini-series) and
maxiseries (
maxi-series), usually depending on the length and number of issues. In
Dark Horse Comics' definition of a limited series, "This term primarily applies to a connected series of individual comic books. A limited series refers to a comic book series with a clear beginning, middle and end." Dark Horse Comics and
DC Comics refer to limited series of two to eleven issues as miniseries and series of twelve issues or more as maxiseries, but other publishers alternate terms.