64 pages. Full colour contents.
Grandreams Ltd.
Based on the animated BBC television series.
Cover by UNKNOWN (uncredited).
ISBN-10: 0862273870.
Contents:
5 Contents Page
6 Meet The Gang character bios.
8 The Chief Takes Off w: Peter Maddocks; a: Peter Maddocks & Clive Dawson, colouring by Lorraine Smith.
14 Make Your Own Jimbo cut-out feature by Barry Macey.
16 Re-Fuel Jimbo maze by Barry Macey.
17 Spot the Difference by Barry Macey.
18 Jimbo and the UFO text story by Peter Maddocks.
24 Fly Jimbo to Australia 'snakes & ladders' board game.
26 Jimbo and the Whale text story by Peter Maddocks.
32 Nutty Aircraft illustrated feature by Barry Macey.
34 The Great Air Race w: Peter Maddocks; a: Peter Maddocks & Clive Dawson, colouring Lorraine Smith.
41 Henry Helicopter's Information Page fact page by Peter Maddocks.
42 Colouring Pages
44 Dot-To-Dot
45 Who Goes Where? maze by Barry Macey.
46 Copy the Picture a: UNKNOWN (uncredited)
48 Love is in the Air w: Peter Maddocks; a: Peter Maddocks & Clive Dawson, colouring by Lorraine Smith.
55 Colouring Page map puzzle by Barry Macey.
56 Which Goes Where?
58 Jimbo's Puzzle Page by Barry Macey.
59 Find the 'Plane color-in puzzle by Barry Macey.
60 Answer Pages
Contributions from Clive Dawson, Peter Maddocks, Lorraine Smith & Barry Macey.
Despite not having been aware of the show upon which this annual is based, it turns out to be quite an interesting read. The strips are bright and attractive, and should be entertaining enough for their intended audience. While the stories are simple enough to keep younger readers amused, there are themes and elements that appeal to me, so should hold a wide audience. The lack of specific credits is a really annoying slip, given that so much is done right, but it is a minor niggle given that numerous similar publications neglect attribution entirely.
The single, entirely subjective, issue which keeps this from being truly outstanding is the repetition of feature elements. With two mazes and two coloring features (plus a color-in puzzle), this could so easily feel less like an introduction to - or expansion of - the television series, and more like an afterthought tie-in. The annual largely avoids this through the extensive fiction elements which intersperse the features, adding a great deal of charm to proceedings.
It is surprising how much I love this, given the lack of prior exposure to the franchise. I can't say it is quite enough to convince me to hunt down episodes of the television series, though if the standard of writing is on a par with the tales presented here I certainly won't be changing channels if it comes on.
A superb, albeit extremely unusual, annual.
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