Space Precinct #3

05 Dec 1995. Cover price £1.25.
36 pages. Full colour.
Manga Publishing Ltd.

Edited by Cefn Ridout.

Cover by John Higgins.

Contents:

 2 Fanderson - the Official Gerry Anderson Appreciation Society (half page) advertisement. / Breaking the Barriers - Subscribe... And Survive! (half page) subscription information.

 3 Gerry Anderson's Space Precinct 2040 introduction by Cefn Ridout. / Contents / Indicia

 4 Case Review Arcadia recap.

 5 Arcadia, part two, w:/a: David Hine, lettering by Elitta Fell.

11 Double the Pages! Double the Action! in-house advertisement for Mortal Kombat Tournament Edition.

12 The Anderson Tapes, part two, Gerry Anderson interview by Peter J. Evans; photographs (uncredited).

15 The Anderson Tapes The Anderson Series, part two, outline of Gerry Anderson television series'.

30 Roll Call Police Officer Jane Castle fact file by Lee Brimmicombe Wood.

31 Space Precinct Mugs to be Won! competition.

18 Space Suburb cutaway by Graham Bleathman.

20 Case Review The Last Warrior recap.

21 The Last Warrior, part three, w: Ian Carney; a: John Erasmus, art assist by Ronit Bergman, Jon Davis & Madeleine Wurzburger, lettering by Annie Parkhouse.

33 Book Guide Demon Wing recap by Jim Swallow.

34 Episode Guide Enforcer recap by Peter J. Evans.

35 In the Next Issue of Space Precinct

36 Fromm the Hidden Files of the FBI in-house advertisement for The X-Files: Firebird and The X-Files Special Edition.

A very psychedelic cover immediately dates the issue - although it is a fine image, it is a much overused look for comics and magazines of the mid-nineties. There was a while when every other comic had some sort of swirling, garishly-hued image adorning the cover, and very few have weathered the years well.

Arcadia, determined to throw as many familiar plot points as possible into one story, falls back on the hokiest of them all. Captain Podly decides to set aside thirty-six years of following regulations in order to hand over evidence Bagaan in return for his niece, Ranna, prompting Romek and Orrin to chase after him. Once Bagaan's men open fire on their police cruiser they call in back-up, despite not being there for the criminal.

The overly-familiar elements aren't necessarily a bad thing, allowing for some interesting character observations. Arcadia is a far batter story than it sounds, though the final panel over-eggs the humour. Part of the problem the television series suffered was a desperate lack of grounding, and that sense of 'looking in on a sit-com' rather than 'following along with a real police unit' (as with NYPD Blue) is replicated on the page.

There's room for more intelligent stories set within this universe, tackling subjects which the series couldn't have touched. That a reticence to address such material was present through the title was a slight, though not insurmountable, problem. At least there were no attempt at canon-welding the continuity of the other series into the franchise.

Gerry Anderson's reserved statement regarding the future of the show, in the wake of Grove TV's demise, is optimistic, with notions to increase the realism of the series should it have been picked up. I wish we could have seen such a direction, as it would have filled a gap in the market for intelligent SF on the small screen.

It's hard to say which assaults the senses more.

The deafening rattle of utility pipes serving Downtown Demeter...

Or the stench of the city's unrecyclable waste water...

Or the all-surrounding darkness which hints at the oblivion of death!

The Last Warrior is more like the show Space Precinct should have been, with a style and mood which hints at the possibilities of the series if it had continued. Wonderfully-strange aliens fill the scenes, placing both Brogan and Haldane in full action hero mode for the duration.

#2

Space Precinct

#4