Apr 1993 - Oct 1993 (7 issues)
Marvel Comics UK, Ltd.
01 (Apr 1993; cover price $1.75 US)
02 (May 1993)
03 (Jun 1993)
04 (Jul 1993)
05 (Aug 1993)
06 (Sep 1993)
07 (Oct 1993)
Note: Cancelled before the completion of the storyline begun in issue five.
Monday, November 26, 2018
Doctor Who Weekly #2
24 Oct 1979. Cover price 12p.
28 pages. Colour & B&W.
Marvel Comics Ltd.
Edited by Dez Skinn.
Photo cover (uncredited).
Free transfers.
Contents:
K-9, looking remarkably spiffy, shares a cover with Tom Baker, and there is no hint of any animosity which Baker felt for the useless tin can. Although designed with television in mind it is a photogenic prop, although red blinds over its eyes still makes little to no sense.
Alternate realities may be fine for the Marvel superheroes, but... The answer as to the origin of the robots is a bit of a cop-out. It fits perfectly with what we have seen, yet feels as if it hasn't been given enough consideration given the multitude of strange events already seen in the series - it doesn't stretch the parameters of the character to fit the medium, as much as it pastes conventions of comics to the format of the series. The end of this installment is, however, a perfect note to conclude on, though ending every single strip on a physical threat, rather than a puzzle or revelation, might get old if overused.
The Cybermen does a fairly good job of untangling the (at times confusing) continuity of the characters, though stops short of providing a background to their creation for the show. There have subsequently been a number of publications which have provided more comprehensive information, giving the episode's air-dates and cast, though I'm sure readers were glad to have their memories jogged by such a tight recap of essential details.
Although obviously aimed at younger readers, Monster Mix is a wordsearch which has me thinking - have writers, needing appropriately alien names, used the jumble of letters to form the basis of alien names, species, or worlds? I actually started looking for various names (Saxon isn't present, sadly), but I couldn't remember enough without a reference book handy.
Patrick Troughton remains an enigma, despite the Photo-File's admirable attempt to cover his career, admitting in a disclaimer that the man was so shy he never participated in the usual publicity rigmarole which has become part and parcel of the role. He rarely seems to be properly credited for increasing the scope of the series in a substantial manner, and numerous questions linger regarding his acceptance into the series.
Return of the Daleks opens with Hok Nepo, star of the hologram-movie escaping from the Daleks, who are under the impression that he is their enemy Nor-Din. As the Daleks begin attacking the studio, Glax and Hok manage to escape to a police station, where they inform the officers of events. The police are soon overwhelmed, and decide the situation is best left to the military. Glax, seeing his studio destroyed, decides to head to the Desert of Vash to learn how the Daleks were originally defeated, taking Hok along with him. Kuay, the Daleks' faithful servant, follows them...
You don't need any knowledge of Doctor Who, or the spin-off material, to enjoy the story, which is a great benefit to the story's entertainment value as it increases in scale - still a self-contained piece of storytelling, with no overt call-backs to the Dalek strips of old, there's real tension created by using characters and a setting which haven't been seen before. While we know London isn't going to get destroyed, this hitherto-unseen planet doesn't have the same protection hanging over it.
28 pages. Colour & B&W.
Marvel Comics Ltd.
Edited by Dez Skinn.
Photo cover (uncredited).
Free transfers.
Contents:
2 SEACON '79 Photographs from the 1979 World Science Fiction convention; photographs by Joyce A. Agee.
3 Doctor Who and the Iron Legion, part two, w: Pat Mills & John Wagner; a: Dave Gibbons.
7 A Letter from the Doctor text feature by Dez Skinn (uncredited).
8 The Cybermen text feature by Gordon Blows; photographs (uncredited).
11 Monster Mix wordsearch; illustration by UNKNOWN (uncredited).
12 Tales from the TARDIS War of the Worlds, part two, w: Chris Claremont, based on the novel by H.G. Wells; p: Yong Montano; i: Dino Castrillo, lettering by Pat Condoy.
r: Marvel Classic Comics (Marvel) #14 (1976).
17 An Unearthly Child text feature compiled by Jeremy Bentham.
21 Crazy Caption 2 competition; photograph (uncredited).
22 Doctor Who Photo-File Patrick Troughton fact-file (uncredited); photograph (uncredited).
23 The Return of the Daleks, part two, w: Steve Moore; p: Paul Neary, i: David Lloyd.
27 Doctor Who and the Turgids advertisement for Doctor Who Radio from Shortman Trading Company Ltd. w: UNKNOWN (uncredited); a: UNKNOWN (uncredited).
28 Have Fun With the Amazing Mr. Bellamy advertisement for liquorice novelties.
K-9, looking remarkably spiffy, shares a cover with Tom Baker, and there is no hint of any animosity which Baker felt for the useless tin can. Although designed with television in mind it is a photogenic prop, although red blinds over its eyes still makes little to no sense.
The Doctor has fallen foul of the Iron Legion - strange war robots, led by the sinister General Ironicus. He makes a dash for the TARDIS as one of the Legions tanks opens fire!Caught in a dimensional disturbance, the TARDIS isn't happy at being thrown around. He eventually manages to arrive at the Rome Hyp-Arena, where Maximus Bilious is commentating on events for viewers watching elsewhere. Seized by the Emperor's guards, the Doctor comes to the realisation that he is witnessing events from an alternate Earth where Rome never fell, instead developing a sophisticated technology with which to conquer the entire galaxy.
At the very second the shell explodes, the Doctor has thrown the TARDIS out of dimension!
Alternate realities may be fine for the Marvel superheroes, but... The answer as to the origin of the robots is a bit of a cop-out. It fits perfectly with what we have seen, yet feels as if it hasn't been given enough consideration given the multitude of strange events already seen in the series - it doesn't stretch the parameters of the character to fit the medium, as much as it pastes conventions of comics to the format of the series. The end of this installment is, however, a perfect note to conclude on, though ending every single strip on a physical threat, rather than a puzzle or revelation, might get old if overused.
Not wanting to trust the pigeon post from Ganymede again, I'm sending this letter via Beam-a-Zeat. I did notice they were also sending a batch of smoked klim-bait (a local delicacy) in the same container, so sincerest apologies if this letter pongs a bit.The Doctor was hanging out with Ace Rimmer back in 1979? This is news which could only be improved if we were to get the revelation he also borrowed Arthur Dent's towel to flick at a Dalek.
The Cybermen does a fairly good job of untangling the (at times confusing) continuity of the characters, though stops short of providing a background to their creation for the show. There have subsequently been a number of publications which have provided more comprehensive information, giving the episode's air-dates and cast, though I'm sure readers were glad to have their memories jogged by such a tight recap of essential details.
Although obviously aimed at younger readers, Monster Mix is a wordsearch which has me thinking - have writers, needing appropriately alien names, used the jumble of letters to form the basis of alien names, species, or worlds? I actually started looking for various names (Saxon isn't present, sadly), but I couldn't remember enough without a reference book handy.
London, November 1963. Under a blanket of thick, swirling fog a policeman pounds his solitary beat amid the high brick walls of the inner metropolis.The first four episodes of the series are covered by Jeremy Bentham, though there's nothing to indicate a separate pilot was shot prior to broadcast. While the brief recaps are very well written, the lack of detail about the shooting, or other circumstances surrounding the broadcast, leaves this feeling somehow incomplete as an account of the early days of the series. While we are informed that the shooting budget was a mere £2000 per episode, we get no indication of how this was allocated, nor if it was achieved without rewrites. A note on the series reception hints at the praise, though there's no reproduction of the reviews, which would have been a fantastic glimpse into the audience's immediate reactions.
Casting a pale yellow beam, the light of his torch falls upon the large wooden gates of a junkyard, bearing the words: "I.M. FOREMAN, 76 TOTTERS LANE".
As the policeman walks into the darkness, he fails to notice one of the gates swing open.
Had he noticed it, he would have been most puzzled by what was inside.
For, among the debris of the scrapyard was the then-familiar blue shape of a London Police Public Call Box.
Yet this police box was not what it seemed. For, unlike every other one in the city, this police box hid an awesome secret.
Just audible to human hearing, it was emitting a humming sound along with a faint vibration coming from within...
Patrick Troughton remains an enigma, despite the Photo-File's admirable attempt to cover his career, admitting in a disclaimer that the man was so shy he never participated in the usual publicity rigmarole which has become part and parcel of the role. He rarely seems to be properly credited for increasing the scope of the series in a substantial manner, and numerous questions linger regarding his acceptance into the series.
Return of the Daleks opens with Hok Nepo, star of the hologram-movie escaping from the Daleks, who are under the impression that he is their enemy Nor-Din. As the Daleks begin attacking the studio, Glax and Hok manage to escape to a police station, where they inform the officers of events. The police are soon overwhelmed, and decide the situation is best left to the military. Glax, seeing his studio destroyed, decides to head to the Desert of Vash to learn how the Daleks were originally defeated, taking Hok along with him. Kuay, the Daleks' faithful servant, follows them...
You don't need any knowledge of Doctor Who, or the spin-off material, to enjoy the story, which is a great benefit to the story's entertainment value as it increases in scale - still a self-contained piece of storytelling, with no overt call-backs to the Dalek strips of old, there's real tension created by using characters and a setting which haven't been seen before. While we know London isn't going to get destroyed, this hitherto-unseen planet doesn't have the same protection hanging over it.
#01
Doctor Who Weekly
#03
Street Fighter II #7
Mar 1995. Cover price 95p.
40 pages. Full colour.
Manga Publishing Ltd.
Edited by Cefn Ridout.
Cover by Masaomi Kanzaki, finished art by Lea Hernandez, colouring by Koto Color.
r: UNKNOWN.
Contents:
Chun-Li withdraws from the championship, despite winning the second match, due to her extensive injuries, leaving either Ken or Sagat to face the greatest fighter in the world - M. Bison. The cage is removed for Ken and Sagat's fight, and Ken sets out to get revenge for Ryu and Master Gouken. It is a close fight, but Ken succeeds in progressing through to the final fight, destroying the ring in the process.
Recovering from her injuries in hospital, Chun-Li's life is threatened, but Ryu steps in to save her.
Ken approaches Bison, demanding a fight immediately, even though their scheduled fight is for the next day. Ryu steps in to stop Ken, telling him that the master wouldn't approve of taking a life. M. Bison gets Ken to fight Ryu in order to determine who will be the more worthy combatant. Ryu desperately attempts to get Ken to snap out of his altered mental state, but Bison's strength of control has Ken completely at his will.
Ken concedes the fight by punching a wall and damaging his hand, leaving Ryu to face Bison.
We finally get an answer as to why such a seemingly destructive drug is being peddled on the streets of Shad - its secret isn't that Doll can control a person's mind after an overdose, they can be ordered to follow commands by someone with enormous psychic powers, with only M. Bison able to weild such power. Having used his followers and soldiers to experiment on, M. Bison hopes to create the world's largest organisation of assassins in order to conquer the world from its underside.
While the villainous plot may not hold up to scrutiny, at least there's an internal logic at play. It is interesting to see some, if not all, of the threads begin to come together for a climactic battle, though this still feels as if it is a very flimsy read. Despite running to forty pages, this is a remarkably quick read, with a great deal of space given over to reprinting the small fact files.
40 pages. Full colour.
Manga Publishing Ltd.
Edited by Cefn Ridout.
Cover by Masaomi Kanzaki, finished art by Lea Hernandez, colouring by Koto Color.
r: UNKNOWN.
Contents:
2 A New Breed of Heroes for the Nineties! in-house advertisement for Appleseed.
3 Street Fighter II Battle 09 w: Masaomi Kanzaki, translated by William Flanagan; a: Masaomi Kanzaki, lettering and finished art by Lea Hernandez, colouring by Koto Color. / Indicia
r: UNKNOWN.
4 Ryu (one fifth page) fact file.
6 Ken (one fifth page) fact file.
8 Guile (one fifth page) fact file.
10 Zangief (one fifth page) fact file.
12 Dhalsim (one fifth page) fact file.
14 Blanka (one fifth page) fact file.
16 E. Honda (one fifth page) fact file.
18 Chun-Li (one fifth page) fact file.
20 Street Fighter II poster 7 (of 8); a: Masaomi Kanzaki, finished art by Lea Hernandez, colouring by Koto Color.
r: UNKNOWN.
23 Street Fighter II Battle 10: Final w: Masaomi Kanzaki, translated by William Flanagan; a: Masaomi Kanzaki, lettering and finished art by Lea Hernandez, colouring by Koto Color. / Indicia
r: UNKNOWN.
24 Balrog (one fifth page) fact file.
26 Vega (one fifth page) fact file.
28 Sagat (one fifth page) fact file.
30 M. Bison (one fifth page) fact file.
32 Po-Lin (one fifth page) fact file.
34 Wong-Mei (one fifth page) fact file.
36 Gouken (one fifth page) fact file.
38 Get ready for the next issue of Street Fighter II!! (one fifth page)
39 Street Fighter Hits the Big Screen competition to win one of 25 pairs of tickets for a Street Fighter preview screening.
40 New Strip - Silent Mobius in-house advertisement for Manga Mania #20.
Chun-Li withdraws from the championship, despite winning the second match, due to her extensive injuries, leaving either Ken or Sagat to face the greatest fighter in the world - M. Bison. The cage is removed for Ken and Sagat's fight, and Ken sets out to get revenge for Ryu and Master Gouken. It is a close fight, but Ken succeeds in progressing through to the final fight, destroying the ring in the process.
Recovering from her injuries in hospital, Chun-Li's life is threatened, but Ryu steps in to save her.
Ken approaches Bison, demanding a fight immediately, even though their scheduled fight is for the next day. Ryu steps in to stop Ken, telling him that the master wouldn't approve of taking a life. M. Bison gets Ken to fight Ryu in order to determine who will be the more worthy combatant. Ryu desperately attempts to get Ken to snap out of his altered mental state, but Bison's strength of control has Ken completely at his will.
Ken concedes the fight by punching a wall and damaging his hand, leaving Ryu to face Bison.
We finally get an answer as to why such a seemingly destructive drug is being peddled on the streets of Shad - its secret isn't that Doll can control a person's mind after an overdose, they can be ordered to follow commands by someone with enormous psychic powers, with only M. Bison able to weild such power. Having used his followers and soldiers to experiment on, M. Bison hopes to create the world's largest organisation of assassins in order to conquer the world from its underside.
While the villainous plot may not hold up to scrutiny, at least there's an internal logic at play. It is interesting to see some, if not all, of the threads begin to come together for a climactic battle, though this still feels as if it is a very flimsy read. Despite running to forty pages, this is a remarkably quick read, with a great deal of space given over to reprinting the small fact files.
#06
Street Fighter II
#08
Street Fighter II #6
Feb 1995. Cover price 95p.
40 pages. Full colour.
Manga Publishing Ltd.
Edited by Cefn Ridout.
Cover by Masaomi Kanzaki, finished art by Lea Hernandez, colouring by Koto Color.
r: UNKNOWN.
Contents:
M. Bison, not content with being the Chief of Police, announces his intention of making Shad his own independent kingdom. Guile reveals to Chun-Li that M. Bison was using Doll to do experiments on humans, when he was a military commander, and a group of his guinea pigs just happened to be Guile's unit:
Chun-Li finds herself battling Vega, the man she believes killed her father, while Guile takes on Sagat. The fight with Sagat is complicated when Guile realises that his legs haven't healed since his fight with Zangief, and it appears that he has been outmatched in the ensuing battle. Sagat ponders how Guile could have learned so much about the Doll supply chain, telling Guile that he won't live to tell anyone about it.
Calling out Vega's claw attacks as cheap and cowardly, after being on the receiving end of their tips, Chun-Li attempts to even her chances against Vega. The decisive moment is when Vega tells her that he has fought a man who uses the same techniques as her, and all that is left of the man is a stain on his claws. By throwing everything she has into the fight, Chun-Li defeats Vega, but is completely exhausted in the process.
Ken, whose memory has returned, stops Sagat killing Guile, challenging him.
There have been large pauses in movement, as small events are drawn out, but when the story gets into motion (as here) it really barrels along. The extreme issues with pacing aren't specifically a manga problem, but the perception has been emphasised by some of the material chosen for reprinting - and, in complete fairness, Street Fighter II is far from the worst when it comes to such issues.
This issue delivers magnificently in both action and story.
If only every issue was this satisfying.
40 pages. Full colour.
Manga Publishing Ltd.
Edited by Cefn Ridout.
Cover by Masaomi Kanzaki, finished art by Lea Hernandez, colouring by Koto Color.
r: UNKNOWN.
Contents:
2 A New Breed of Heroes for the Nineties! in-house advertisement for Appleseed.
3 Street Fighter II Battle 08: Warrior w: Masaomi Kanzaki, translated by William Flanagan; a: Masaomi Kanzaki, lettering and finished art by Lea Hernandez, colouring by Koto Color. / Indicia
r: UNKNOWN.
4 Ryu (one fifth page) fact file.
6 Ken (one fifth page) fact file.
8 Guile (one fifth page) fact file.
10 Zangief (one fifth page) fact file.
12 Dhalsim (one fifth page) fact file.
14 Blanka (one fifth page) fact file.
16 E. Honda (one fifth page) fact file.
18 Chun-Li (one fifth page) fact file.
20 Street Fighter II poster 6 (of 8); a: Masaomi Kanzaki, finished art by Lea Hernandez, colouring by Koto Color.
r: UNKNOWN.
23 Street Fighter II Battle 07: King of Kings w: Masaomi Kanzaki, translated by William Flanagan; a: Masaomi Kanzaki, lettering and finished art by Lea Hernandez, colouring by Koto Color. / Indicia
r: UNKNOWN.
24 Balrog (one fifth page) fact file.
26 Vega (one fifth page) fact file.
28 Sagat (one fifth page) fact file.
30 M. Bison (one fifth page) fact file.
32 Po-Lin (one fifth page) fact file.
34 Wong-Mei (one fifth page) fact file.
36 Gouken (one fifth page) fact file.
38 After her long search, Chun-Li finally gets revenge for her father by defeating Vega (one fifth page)
39 Pack Up Your Troubles! competition to win Street Fighter II back pack.
40 Crying Freeman - the Last Two Chapters in the Series on 1 Video in-house advertisement for videocassette release.
M. Bison, not content with being the Chief of Police, announces his intention of making Shad his own independent kingdom. Guile reveals to Chun-Li that M. Bison was using Doll to do experiments on humans, when he was a military commander, and a group of his guinea pigs just happened to be Guile's unit:
There was a day when I was the only soldier in my unit who didn't eat my c-rations.Ryu is disqualified for missing his appointed fight, as an iron cage match is announced...
I wasn't sure what was happening at first, but everybody acted like they were hopped-up on something then they started killing each other.
Before I knew it, I had to kill my best friend, Charlie!
Chun-Li finds herself battling Vega, the man she believes killed her father, while Guile takes on Sagat. The fight with Sagat is complicated when Guile realises that his legs haven't healed since his fight with Zangief, and it appears that he has been outmatched in the ensuing battle. Sagat ponders how Guile could have learned so much about the Doll supply chain, telling Guile that he won't live to tell anyone about it.
Calling out Vega's claw attacks as cheap and cowardly, after being on the receiving end of their tips, Chun-Li attempts to even her chances against Vega. The decisive moment is when Vega tells her that he has fought a man who uses the same techniques as her, and all that is left of the man is a stain on his claws. By throwing everything she has into the fight, Chun-Li defeats Vega, but is completely exhausted in the process.
Ken, whose memory has returned, stops Sagat killing Guile, challenging him.
There have been large pauses in movement, as small events are drawn out, but when the story gets into motion (as here) it really barrels along. The extreme issues with pacing aren't specifically a manga problem, but the perception has been emphasised by some of the material chosen for reprinting - and, in complete fairness, Street Fighter II is far from the worst when it comes to such issues.
This issue delivers magnificently in both action and story.
If only every issue was this satisfying.
#05
Street Fighter II
#07
On This Day: 26 Nov
Warlord - Peter Flint Special (D.C. Thomson & Co., Ltd.) nn [1976].
Rammie (Comic Football) #01 (2009).
EuroTemps Edited by Alex Stewart & Neil Gaiman. (Penguin; 1992)
First Appearances:
The Urnaks are Coming! in The Victor (D.C. Thomson & Co., Ltd.) #93 (01 Dec 1962).
Births:
Angus McGill (1927)
Deaths:
Harold Sidney Harmsworth, 1st Viscount Rothermere (1940)
Notable Events:
London première of The Better 'Ole took place in 1926, starring Syd Chaplin as Old Bill.
Malcolm Muggeridge was a castaway on Desert Island Discs, on BBC Radio 4, in 1956.
Crash magazine ran a sixteen-page feature on the Judge Death computer game, including reprints of the Dredd strip the game was based on, plus a Judge Anderson pin-up by Brett Ewins, in 1987.
Clare in the Community radio series, based on the newspaper strip, began on BBC Radio 4 in 2004.
Borders (UK) Limited announced that they had gone into administration in 2009.
Bryan and Mary Talbot attended a signing event at Forbidden Planet, London, in 2014.
Sheffield Comic & Film Fair began in The Showroom, Paternoster Row, Sheffield, in 2016.
Rammie (Comic Football) #01 (2009).
EuroTemps Edited by Alex Stewart & Neil Gaiman. (Penguin; 1992)
First Appearances:
The Urnaks are Coming! in The Victor (D.C. Thomson & Co., Ltd.) #93 (01 Dec 1962).
Births:
Angus McGill (1927)
Deaths:
Harold Sidney Harmsworth, 1st Viscount Rothermere (1940)
Notable Events:
London première of The Better 'Ole took place in 1926, starring Syd Chaplin as Old Bill.
Malcolm Muggeridge was a castaway on Desert Island Discs, on BBC Radio 4, in 1956.
Crash magazine ran a sixteen-page feature on the Judge Death computer game, including reprints of the Dredd strip the game was based on, plus a Judge Anderson pin-up by Brett Ewins, in 1987.
Clare in the Community radio series, based on the newspaper strip, began on BBC Radio 4 in 2004.
Borders (UK) Limited announced that they had gone into administration in 2009.
Bryan and Mary Talbot attended a signing event at Forbidden Planet, London, in 2014.
Sheffield Comic & Film Fair began in The Showroom, Paternoster Row, Sheffield, in 2016.
Sunday, November 25, 2018
Tornado #1
[24 Mar 1979]. Cover price 10p.
32 pages. Colour & B&W contents.
IPC Magazines Ltd.
Edited by Roy Preston.
Cover by UNKNOWN (uncredited).
Contents:
The launch of a title is an opportunity to show the readers something they haven't seen before. An opportunity to break free of tradition and stretch out into concepts and designs which haven't been attempted. Launch issues are, in short, the perfect place to show off. No matter the budgetary restraints, editorial constraints, or possible audience complaints, there is no reason to hold back on great ideas or artwork.
By 1979 IPC already had a solid run of successful launches (along with a few troublesome titles), so it would make sense that creative personnel had studied those achievements, taking away all the lessons available. It would have been natural to emulate massively popular characters, to grow under-appreciated ideas into thrilling strips, and show up the rest of IPC's output with top-notch strips. A newly-launched title ought to take every advantage available in order to succeed.
Which is why this issue is such an infuriating read.
The cover is, admittedly, not as bad as some contemporary launches, yet it doesn't scream quality. The mass of conflicting lettering is an eye strain, and dainty stars sprinkled over the left side of the cover bring to mind a style more commonly associated with girls comics - at least the space beneath the free gift hasn't been wasted, though it is still important space casually wasted. The most intriguing aspect of the launch straddles the bottom of the cover, where we are promised "the U.K.'s First Real Live Superhero!"
Many attempts at bringing superheroes to British comics had already been attempted, though this was something different. Unlike Marvelman or Captain Britain, Big E (who should have been dusted off in the nineties for the acid house crowd) was a real superhero, as seen in photographs throughout the title's run - though his credibility is diminished firstly by looking like a young Jim Belushi, and secondly by having an a ridiculously poor costume. It is, of course, Dave Gibbons in the ill-fitting superhero garb rather than a professional model, which shows how little thought had gone into the depiction.
It is surprising, looking back, that no touching up had been attempted on the photographs. Numerous talented airbrush artists were working in London during the late seventies, any one of whom could have taken rough photographs and transformed them into spectacular - and extremely life-like - depictions of a fantastic nature. Of course, that would have shown up the ugly Tharg mask for the piece of tat it was, and undermined the authority of the esteemed editor of 2000 A.D..
Opening with a relaunched version of a vintage character might have worked for 2000 A.D., but Sexton Blake (under an assumed name here) isn't Dan Dare, and - worse - the time period is preserved for this outing. Unlike the BBC series Sherlock, there's no sense of untapped possibilities being exposed and expanded. There's little point in bringing a character back to print if things aren't altered, and this is, sadly, simply too old-fashioned to capture an audience led into the title by Tharg's recommendation.
I'm not sure I've ever got to the end of a Sexton Blake novel, and I can't imagine the character's appeal was significantly greater during the time of this issue's launch.
Fearing that he will be turned into a human guinea pig, Wolfie goes on the run.
With his each of his name containing a first letter reading ESP (though jumbled), this maintains IPC's tradition of handing its characters meaningful names, and the set-up, while containing more than a few well-worn scenes, is visually arresting and well-paced. Not quite SF enough to justify Tharg's presence in the title, but an interesting take on some themes which were strongly represented in fiction during the late seventies.
Getting into a fight with the Earthmen on his property, Matthew chases them away - but when he checks his computer finds his water supply has been cut off.
If The Angry Planet was an attempt to channel Heinlein's vision of man's future, then it lacks a certain believability. Yes, corporations are inherently against individuals (the bottom line always comes first), though the degree to which the persecution of an individual is handled in a cartoonish and patently unbelievable manner. Stopping a person's water supply on a planet where such a resource is unavailable elsewhere is pretty much a death sentence, and something which ought to be handled through a robust legal system - which is entirely absent in the narrative.
There's much potential in telling the story of Martian colonisation, yet all of the interesting possibilities are brushed over in favour of a simplistic revenge story.
Wagner's Walk is a post-WWII tale of Major Kurt Wagner, and his discovery of an atlas which gives him the notion to walk to freedom, out of Siberia. It isn't a story which I'm particularly fond of. Captain Klep is, likewise, a very difficult strip to like, being a parody of Superman, in particular, and superhero conventions in general. It isn't as funny or as biting as it could have been, and pales when compared to Marvel's own satires.
This is a comic without a clear personality. Or, rather, it is in possession of more than one distinct personality, preventing a quick and simple identification of what a Tornado strip ought to be. With Misty, Battle Picture Weekly, or 2000 A.D., the strips fit the title's personality perfectly, and it is possible to identify recurring elements linking those strips. Here... anything goes.
A very poor launch issue.
32 pages. Colour & B&W contents.
IPC Magazines Ltd.
Edited by Roy Preston.
Cover by UNKNOWN (uncredited).
Contents:
2 Welcome to the World of Heroes! 2000 A.D. Productions Present - Tornado introduction by Tharg; photographs (uncredited). / Introduction by Big E. / Enjoy Your Turbo-Flyer Safely! Free gift instructions; illustration (uncredited).
3 Victor Drago The Terror of Troll Island!, part one, w: Bill Henry [Chris Lowder]; a: Mike Dorey.
9 The Mind of Wolfie Smith UNTITLED [Departure from Mason Street], part one, w: Tom Tully; a: Vanyo.
15 The Angry Planet UNTITLED [No Water for Markham], part one, w: Alan Hebden; a: Massimo Belardinelli.
21 Tornado's True Tales The Tale of Benkei, part one, w: Steve Moore; a: Xavier Musquera.
26 Wagner's Walk UNTITLED [A Child's Atlas], part one, w: R.E. Wright [Pat Mills]; a: Lozano.
31 Next Week - Your Chance to Join Team Tornado preview. / Indicia
32 Captain Klep UNTITLED [Strangest Visitor from Another World] w: Dave Angus & Nick Landau; a: Kevin O'Neill.
The launch of a title is an opportunity to show the readers something they haven't seen before. An opportunity to break free of tradition and stretch out into concepts and designs which haven't been attempted. Launch issues are, in short, the perfect place to show off. No matter the budgetary restraints, editorial constraints, or possible audience complaints, there is no reason to hold back on great ideas or artwork.
By 1979 IPC already had a solid run of successful launches (along with a few troublesome titles), so it would make sense that creative personnel had studied those achievements, taking away all the lessons available. It would have been natural to emulate massively popular characters, to grow under-appreciated ideas into thrilling strips, and show up the rest of IPC's output with top-notch strips. A newly-launched title ought to take every advantage available in order to succeed.
Which is why this issue is such an infuriating read.
The cover is, admittedly, not as bad as some contemporary launches, yet it doesn't scream quality. The mass of conflicting lettering is an eye strain, and dainty stars sprinkled over the left side of the cover bring to mind a style more commonly associated with girls comics - at least the space beneath the free gift hasn't been wasted, though it is still important space casually wasted. The most intriguing aspect of the launch straddles the bottom of the cover, where we are promised "the U.K.'s First Real Live Superhero!"
Many attempts at bringing superheroes to British comics had already been attempted, though this was something different. Unlike Marvelman or Captain Britain, Big E (who should have been dusted off in the nineties for the acid house crowd) was a real superhero, as seen in photographs throughout the title's run - though his credibility is diminished firstly by looking like a young Jim Belushi, and secondly by having an a ridiculously poor costume. It is, of course, Dave Gibbons in the ill-fitting superhero garb rather than a professional model, which shows how little thought had gone into the depiction.
It is surprising, looking back, that no touching up had been attempted on the photographs. Numerous talented airbrush artists were working in London during the late seventies, any one of whom could have taken rough photographs and transformed them into spectacular - and extremely life-like - depictions of a fantastic nature. Of course, that would have shown up the ugly Tharg mask for the piece of tat it was, and undermined the authority of the esteemed editor of 2000 A.D..
London - February, 1929!From out of the darkness steps a formidable figure, a pipe set firmly in his mouth - Vincent Drago.
A bitter wind sweeps over the chill waters of the river Thames, hurling a white fury of snowflakes before it in savage gusts!
On such a night as this, there's no honest profit to be made out of doors!
On the other hand - for those who seek a dishonest profit...
...Such a night has many advantages!
A name that struck terror into the most hardened of evil-doers - from the slums of London's East End to the teeming waterfront of Shanghai, Drago was the private detective who never gave up a case - often succeeding where the toughest policemen failed!His associate Spencer, and his dog Brutus, soon have the majority of the ne'er-do-wells under control, and Drago himself deals with the remaining two, before the authorities arrive to cart away their prey. Leaving the police to wrap things up, Drago heads home, finding his 'phone ringing upon arrival - Philip Moffat, of Troll Island (off the North Cornwall coast) requests assistance, but the call is cut off before he can relate more. Drago and Spencer race through the night in his car, the Silver Lady, hoping to arrive in time...
Opening with a relaunched version of a vintage character might have worked for 2000 A.D., but Sexton Blake (under an assumed name here) isn't Dan Dare, and - worse - the time period is preserved for this outing. Unlike the BBC series Sherlock, there's no sense of untapped possibilities being exposed and expanded. There's little point in bringing a character back to print if things aren't altered, and this is, sadly, simply too old-fashioned to capture an audience led into the title by Tharg's recommendation.
I'm not sure I've ever got to the end of a Sexton Blake novel, and I can't imagine the character's appeal was significantly greater during the time of this issue's launch.
Colossal brain-power is not exclusive to adults. Even as a child, Leonardo da Vinci... the legendary Italian scientist and painter... had a profound knowledge of mathematics...Able to remember facts by reading them only once, able to move objects with his mind, and possessing the ability to know the contents of a bag without opening it, "Wolfie" Smith checks his local library to see what is happening to him, and reading about psychic abilities, he learns he has E.S.P. - Extra Sensory Perception. When he arrives home, ready to tell his parents what he has learned, he finds Mr. Venner has accused him of cheating on a test, and that his class photograph has been ruined by what others consider a trick - which Wolfie knows is caused by his psychic aura.
At the tender age of 7, the Austrian composer, Mozart, went on a musical tour, playing minuets that he had written himself...
And by the time he was nine years old, Ernest Patrick Smith, of No.11, Mason Street, Humberton, could make a pepper-pot move, ust by thinking about it!
Fearing that he will be turned into a human guinea pig, Wolfie goes on the run.
With his each of his name containing a first letter reading ESP (though jumbled), this maintains IPC's tradition of handing its characters meaningful names, and the set-up, while containing more than a few well-worn scenes, is visually arresting and well-paced. Not quite SF enough to justify Tharg's presence in the title, but an interesting take on some themes which were strongly represented in fiction during the late seventies.
Mars... the fourth planet of the solar system, with an average surface temperature that was colder than an Antarctic winter... An atmosphere of deadly carbon dioxide... and no surface water!Matthew Markham, the first Martian-born human, now with a family of his own to care for, awaits a water delivery, though discovers the price has increased for the third time in six months, doubling its cost in under a year. As Mars Inc. has a monopoly on the planet there is no choice but to pay up, though with decreasing payments for his farm's produce the prospects of continuing to exist as they are look bleak. Matthew learns neighbouring farmers are abandoning their homes in search of work elsewhere, and when he returns home finds Mars Inc. prospecting for copper deposits on his land.
An unprotected man would be dead in seconds!
When the first manned missions discovered vast mineral deposits, the great multi-national companies of energy-starved Earth formed Mars Incorporated to mine it and ship it back home.
Then, in the first years of the 21st century, as Mars Inc. was drilling for oil in the desert-like Arcadian region...
The drills struck something... and it wasn't oil!
It was oxygen... PURE OXYGEN!
For the next 25 years the planet's surface was "oxygenated" so that by the middle of the century, Mars could support life.
When their contracts expired many of the Mars Inc. employees elected to stay on their adopted planet and settle it... or die in the attempt.
Many died... But more lived. In 2062 the first human child was born on Mars.
Narrow-boned, because of the weak gravity and large-lunged, because of the thin air, he was the first of a new generation that could never live on Earth... The first Martian.
Getting into a fight with the Earthmen on his property, Matthew chases them away - but when he checks his computer finds his water supply has been cut off.
If The Angry Planet was an attempt to channel Heinlein's vision of man's future, then it lacks a certain believability. Yes, corporations are inherently against individuals (the bottom line always comes first), though the degree to which the persecution of an individual is handled in a cartoonish and patently unbelievable manner. Stopping a person's water supply on a planet where such a resource is unavailable elsewhere is pretty much a death sentence, and something which ought to be handled through a robust legal system - which is entirely absent in the narrative.
There's much potential in telling the story of Martian colonisation, yet all of the interesting possibilities are brushed over in favour of a simplistic revenge story.
And now, welcome to our 'Triple T' spot, that's Tornado's True Tales... a series of sagas about unusual Heroes in amazing feats of Heroism that ACTUALLY HAPPENED! The first saga occurred a long time ago, in a world very different from our own. It tells...There's a warm place in my heart for this strip, but once more the title looks to the past rather than exploiting Tharg's presence in promoting the comic. Telling the story of the warrior monk Saitō Musashibō Benkei, and it is a fairly standard version which is repeated here. While it would have been more attractive without the border, the art is superb, and it performs its role as an educational element well.
The Tale of Benkei
Japan, 1179 A.D.: Few travellers crossed the Gojo bridge at night... and none crossed it sword in hand...
Wagner's Walk is a post-WWII tale of Major Kurt Wagner, and his discovery of an atlas which gives him the notion to walk to freedom, out of Siberia. It isn't a story which I'm particularly fond of. Captain Klep is, likewise, a very difficult strip to like, being a parody of Superman, in particular, and superhero conventions in general. It isn't as funny or as biting as it could have been, and pales when compared to Marvel's own satires.
This is a comic without a clear personality. Or, rather, it is in possession of more than one distinct personality, preventing a quick and simple identification of what a Tornado strip ought to be. With Misty, Battle Picture Weekly, or 2000 A.D., the strips fit the title's personality perfectly, and it is possible to identify recurring elements linking those strips. Here... anything goes.
A very poor launch issue.
Tornado
#02
Strip #2
...The Comic Grows Up!
03 Mar 1990. Cover price 95p.
40 pages. Colour contents.
Marvel Comics, Ltd.
Edited by Dan Abnett.
Cover by Don Lawrence.
Free pull-out Marshal Law poster.
r: Cover from Strip #01
Contents:
A hefty second issue, thanks to the large poster bound in its centre pages, and with a fabulous Don Lawrence cover, there is much to be excited about in this issue. While there isn't an introduction, this issue's contents page displays how to present the material properly - where other titles often merely list the strips with a page number, there is enough information about what is happening in the strips to inform readers of what to expect. It is only by going back and forth through the series looking for specific stories that this becomes noticeable, and it is a detail which is appreciated.
At the bottom of the page is a rather nice note regarding the fold-out poster contained in the middle of the issue. As if the poster could possibly be missed... Gloriously large, it is the perfect free gift with which to showcase the character, relishing in Marshal Law's madness.
In Marshal Law it is possible to see Pat Mills' thoughts about the medium's most persistent hybrid-genre given life. Augmented by Kevin O'Neill's art, which continues to resist any pigeon-holing. Battling a group of former superheroes, Marshal Law in overpowered, his weapon taken from him in the fight, and his hunt for the killer known as Sleepman seems no closer than before. There are more details filling in the history of the war, with some telling details sprinkled through extensive text boxes. While I'm not particularly fond of this method of storytelling, it is an effective use of space.
Far more chilling, and a counterpoint to generally-bloodless superhero romps from the Big Two, is an account of an earthquake:
While the character designs are impressive (Ian Gibson is on top form here), at two pages of story every two weeks, this isn't going anywhere fast. There's a difference between developing back-story and showing one's work, and this feels (rightly or wrongly) as if it is a discarded Dungeons & Dragons proposal, dusted off and changed just enough so that nobody is going to raise an objection. I want to like this, as there are minor glimmers of what could be a rattlingly good story, but it is so slight in this form as to discourage interest.
It is impossible to pay too many compliments to Storm.
Mr. Crust Acean is placed in a coffin, and Mr. C. Urchin investigates his death - despite him being very much alive, and trapped inside the casket. It's the kind of story which you either instantly fall in love with, or which remains tantalisingly out of reach. I doubt I'm ever going to understand the intricacies, or have a strong interest in the series.
Liking two out of four strips in an anthology is, surely, not enough reason to consider the title a success, though others might disagree as to the value of The Chronicles of Genghis Grimtoad and The Man from Cancer.
03 Mar 1990. Cover price 95p.
40 pages. Colour contents.
Marvel Comics, Ltd.
Edited by Dan Abnett.
Cover by Don Lawrence.
Free pull-out Marshal Law poster.
r: Cover from Strip #01
Contents:
2 Marvel Graphic Novels in-house advertisement.
3 Contents illustration by Don Lawrence. / Indicia
4 Marshal Law Stars and Strippers part two, w: Pat Mills; a: Kevin O'Neill, lettering by Phil Felix.
18 The Chronicles of Genghis Grimtoad part two, w: Alan Grant & John Wagner; a: Ian Gibson, lettering by Bambos Georgiou.
20 Storm The Pirates of Pandarve title page; illustration by Don Lawrence. / Credits
21 Storm The Pirates of Pandarve w: Martin Lodewuk; a: Don Lawrence, lettering by Helen Stone.
29 Davros Says Don't Buy It. (half page) in-house advertisement for Doctor Who Magazine. / Subscribe! (half page)
30 Before Excalibur There Was... Captain Britain in-house advertisement for Captain Britain trade paperback.
31 The Man from Cancer, part two, w: Glenn Dakin; a: Phil Elliott, lettering by Phil Elliott, colouring by Euan Peters.
39 Next Issue illustrations by Gary Erskine & Kevin O'Neill.
40 Get Doctor Who Magazine Now in-house advertisement.
A hefty second issue, thanks to the large poster bound in its centre pages, and with a fabulous Don Lawrence cover, there is much to be excited about in this issue. While there isn't an introduction, this issue's contents page displays how to present the material properly - where other titles often merely list the strips with a page number, there is enough information about what is happening in the strips to inform readers of what to expect. It is only by going back and forth through the series looking for specific stories that this becomes noticeable, and it is a detail which is appreciated.
At the bottom of the page is a rather nice note regarding the fold-out poster contained in the middle of the issue. As if the poster could possibly be missed... Gloriously large, it is the perfect free gift with which to showcase the character, relishing in Marshal Law's madness.
In Marshal Law it is possible to see Pat Mills' thoughts about the medium's most persistent hybrid-genre given life. Augmented by Kevin O'Neill's art, which continues to resist any pigeon-holing. Battling a group of former superheroes, Marshal Law in overpowered, his weapon taken from him in the fight, and his hunt for the killer known as Sleepman seems no closer than before. There are more details filling in the history of the war, with some telling details sprinkled through extensive text boxes. While I'm not particularly fond of this method of storytelling, it is an effective use of space.
From the Panama Canal Zone to the Amazon Jungle, it was known simply as "The Zone."The war, as described, certainly sounds as it it sprawled over an impressive area, and given the abilities of those involved must have been more brutal than any conflict up to that point. While immense battles featuring numerous superheroes had, by the early nineties, already developed something of a reputation, this is unlike many depictions from the other side of the Atlantic.
Far more chilling, and a counterpoint to generally-bloodless superhero romps from the Big Two, is an account of an earthquake:
The official explanation for The Big One - the megaquake that took out San Francisco - was the Jupiter effect - the tidal pull of the planets on the San Andreas fault.The Chronicles of Ghengis Grimtoad continues to pose storytelling problems by introducing yet more characters, while refusing to propel the narrative forward more than absolutely necessary.
60,000 buildings were destroyed and 8 square miles of the city. The quake measured 9 on the Richter Scale, hitting the city with a force 300,000 times that of the Hiroshima bomb.
The tidal wave that followed hurled ships inland, leaving the U.S. aircraft carrier John Paul Jones straddling the freeways, then came the fire... and the death cloud from Diablo Canyon nuclear plant...
You couldn't measure the human misery...
And the door of the great hall did open and the ladies of the court did avert their eyes. For therein towered the awesome figure of Quanah-And who, unfortunately, appears to be made of pink bubblegum.
He, of the painted tribes of Torbeck - savages, untamed men who lived and died by the blade!
While the character designs are impressive (Ian Gibson is on top form here), at two pages of story every two weeks, this isn't going anywhere fast. There's a difference between developing back-story and showing one's work, and this feels (rightly or wrongly) as if it is a discarded Dungeons & Dragons proposal, dusted off and changed just enough so that nobody is going to raise an objection. I want to like this, as there are minor glimmers of what could be a rattlingly good story, but it is so slight in this form as to discourage interest.
The universe is infinitely more vast than the human mind can ever comprehend. Merely writing the light-years that separate Earth from the planet Pandarve would take a lifetime... But no matter how vast the distance may be, it is not unbridgeable...Affixing the Egg of Pandarve in place, a beam is shot across the galaxy to the planet Earth, millions of years in the future.
...and it is Marduk, the theocrat of Pandarve, who intends to span the distance between his planet and Earth...
The tissue of space and time is disturbed by the sudden glare from Pandarve's Egg as it finds its way through bare and lifeless solar systems...Hmm. A mysterious, powerful red orb capable of miraculous events? Did J.J. Abrams read this story at some point? The depictions of the beam hitting Storm, and Ember's attempt to rescue him, are wonderful, as is the pair's arrival at Pandarve. Or, I should state, above the planet. Realising that their situation is relatively safe for a while, the possibility of burning up with friction as they descend occurs to Storm. Encountering a flying whale, Storm and Ember are separated.
It passes dark planets. Spreading fear and awe among the followers of mysterious religions. Priests predict death and calamity, witnessing the dreadful omen in the sky...
Until the fateful moment when the beam from Pandarve reaches its goal... The anomaly!
It is impossible to pay too many compliments to Storm.
Mr. Crust Acean is placed in a coffin, and Mr. C. Urchin investigates his death - despite him being very much alive, and trapped inside the casket. It's the kind of story which you either instantly fall in love with, or which remains tantalisingly out of reach. I doubt I'm ever going to understand the intricacies, or have a strong interest in the series.
Liking two out of four strips in an anthology is, surely, not enough reason to consider the title a success, though others might disagree as to the value of The Chronicles of Genghis Grimtoad and The Man from Cancer.
#01
Strip
#03
Robert Louis Stevenson's Kidnapped - the Graphic Novel
2007. Cover price £8.99.
68 pages. Full colour contents.
Waverley Books Ltd.
Painted cover by Cam Kennedy.
ISBN-13: 978-1-902407-38-8
Contents:
What input, if any, these groups had into fashioning the title is undocumented within the book itself. Small oversights, perhaps, but the creation of a title is often as interesting as the end result, and especially when a classic work is being refashioned for a modern audience.
A dark, in tone and visualisation, sequence, in which David is sent to his death up a crumbling staircase, is slightly too green to convince as being naturally lit, though the art, on the whole, is very impressive.
While I freely admit to not caring much for the original novel, this is a very condensed version of the story - events rush past, scenes tumbling over one another, though always with an eye to clarity. It is remarkable that Alan Grant's script is able to convey so much in the page-count available, and there are no glaring omissions which affect the storytelling. This is a very accomplished telling of the story, and part of its appeal lies with the plot points which Grant and Kennedy bring to light.
By being so ruthless with the story, eliminating anything which would be considered padding, this shines. I'm still largely ambivalent regarding the original story, but it is possible, in this retelling, to see where how longevity of Stevenson's tale has come about.
68 pages. Full colour contents.
Waverley Books Ltd.
Painted cover by Cam Kennedy.
ISBN-13: 978-1-902407-38-8
Contents:
2 Indicia
3 Title Page illustrated by Cam Kennedy.
4 Kidnapped w: Alan Grant, based on the novel by Robert Louis Stevenson; a: Cam Kennedy, lettering by Jamie Grant.
67 Robert Louis Stevenson biography by UNKNOWN (uncredited); a: UNKNOWN (uncredited).
illustration r: from Illustrated London News.
It is 1751, Scotland has suffered a time of uncertainty and rebellion, and young David Balfour is alone and penniless in the world.Edinburgh's UNESCO City of Literature Trust chose Kidnapped as their 'One Book - One Edinburgh' reading project. The background to the title's existence is only briefly explained on the back, and while it is understandable that the work itself be the main focus, a brief two-page outline of what, precisely, the Trust entailed would have been greatly appreciated. An impressive number of groups had a hand in this, as evident by the numerous logos sharing back-cover space: Scottish Arts Council, the City of Edinburgh Council, Third Eye Design, and the University of Edinburgh.
He doesn't realise a letter from his dead father is about to launch him on the most frightening, exciting and incredible adventure of his life.
As he sets out to find an uncle he didn't know existed, David has no idea that he will narrowly escape being murdered - that a fortune is rightfully his - that he will be kidnapped and thrown from one escapade to another in the company of the dynamic master-swordsman and fugitive Alan Breck. Together they must make a dramatic and extraordinary journey across Scotland so that David can claim his rightful inheritance.
An epic story of adventure, friendship, murder and revenge!
What input, if any, these groups had into fashioning the title is undocumented within the book itself. Small oversights, perhaps, but the creation of a title is often as interesting as the end result, and especially when a classic work is being refashioned for a modern audience.
On a certain morning in the month of June 1751, I took the key for the last time out of the door of my father's house...A bold image of a striding David Balfour opens the story, and Kennedy's attention to detail in both setting and clothes is something of a relief. A few pages later, and Ebeneezer Balfour's home is the first of several outstanding images, capturing the crumbling, formerly impressive structure. The depiction of Ebeneezer himself, however, has something of the fantastic about him - as if a trace of some other work was straining to break through. His pointed ears and long face has a slight Vulcan tinge, though this is anything but a logical character.
and set out to find my fortune in the wide world.
A dark, in tone and visualisation, sequence, in which David is sent to his death up a crumbling staircase, is slightly too green to convince as being naturally lit, though the art, on the whole, is very impressive.
While I freely admit to not caring much for the original novel, this is a very condensed version of the story - events rush past, scenes tumbling over one another, though always with an eye to clarity. It is remarkable that Alan Grant's script is able to convey so much in the page-count available, and there are no glaring omissions which affect the storytelling. This is a very accomplished telling of the story, and part of its appeal lies with the plot points which Grant and Kennedy bring to light.
By being so ruthless with the story, eliminating anything which would be considered padding, this shines. I'm still largely ambivalent regarding the original story, but it is possible, in this retelling, to see where how longevity of Stevenson's tale has come about.
Waverley Graphic Novels
Robert Louis Stevenson's Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde - the Graphic Novel
On This Day: 25 Nov
Spider-Man and the Titans (Marvel) #199 (1976).
Births:
Henry Mayhew (1812); Chris Claremont (1950); Michael Bennent (Michael Wiessmuller; 1965)
Deaths:
Sydney J. Bounds (2006); Hugh Burnett (2011)
Notable Events:
Tich newspaper strip ended in 1933.
The short film Jimmy's End, written by Alan Moore, released in 2012.
The Reading Comic Con began, at Rivermead Leisure Complex, in 2018.
Births:
Henry Mayhew (1812); Chris Claremont (1950); Michael Bennent (Michael Wiessmuller; 1965)
Deaths:
Sydney J. Bounds (2006); Hugh Burnett (2011)
Notable Events:
Tich newspaper strip ended in 1933.
The short film Jimmy's End, written by Alan Moore, released in 2012.
The Reading Comic Con began, at Rivermead Leisure Complex, in 2018.
Saturday, November 24, 2018
Pellephant Annual No1
1973. Price 65p.
80 pages. Colour & tone.
Brown Watson Ltd.
Cover by Rune Andréasson.
Contents:
Note: All the material is (presumably) reprinted from European comics, though specific titles and issues are unknown.
The image of the bright blue elephant is lively and suitably seasonal, though the poor placement of the title box, with the hanging blue rectangle obscuring a portion of the image, isn't the classiest move. On the inside covers are attractive picture puzzles, which any child ought to be able to solve without difficulty, which is only muted by the fact there is no indication of who this work is by.
Professor Fly reads about a boy who has eaten the world's largest ice cream, and who got the world's worst tummy ache. Calling Flax, his parrot, he reads the story out - while disinterested in the story, Flax sees a picture of a bullfighter. Fly and Flax ponder how to save the bulls, coming to the conclusion that the Balloon might be able to carry the bulls away to safety.
There's something about parrots which make them unlikeable. Maybe it is their eyes, but I've never liked parrots. You may have guessed that this isn't my favourite series of stories to read, and you would be right - although the tale is told well, and blessed with a few attractive illustrations which should pacify younger, and impatient, readers.
This is really rather good, for what is essentially a story aimed at the youngest of readers, maintaining a decidedly odd view of the world. The mix of myths and fables which are part of the stories' makeup isn't apparent in this installment, but there's enough to suggest that the seres has some very strange ideas. It is refreshing to read a strip which isn't caught up in elaborate world-building, happy to tumble from one incident to the next.
Flix and Flax are in the balloon at the beginning of their next story, and they can see an enormous hat from their vantage point. It is the home of a hatmaker who has designed a hat which covers him right down to the knees when it is raining, and another - which he calls his 'polite hat' - which lifts itself up and says hello.
While I doubt it is intentional, or even noticed by many, there is a distinct tone to the stories which recalls the Mr. Men stories. Seemingly bizarre events are passed off as everyday happenings, and the maddest twist can reveal a surprise for the attentive reader. It is, in truth, a fairly simple and slightly juvenile tale, and only the obvious enthusiasm of its creators keeps things from being too annoying.
That it takes seventeen pages to reach the star attraction is simply poor layout, though when Pellephant eventually turns up he does so in style - charging along at the front of a line of toys, an axe gripped in his trunk, determined to chop down a tree for Christmas. There's no "don't try this at home" warning, nor any adult characters to warn of the dangers, which is both refreshing and slightly disturbing - I wonder how many children, upon reading this, decided that it might have been a good idea to chop down a tree of their own.
Anyway, he falls off the tree, at which point a bear asks "is he dead?" Yeah, try explaining this story to a five-year old. Pellephant is carted away in an ambulance, before returning (clad in bandages) to discover that the Liquorice Goblin has chopped the tree up for firewood. Pellephant then tricks the Goblin into chopping a treetop for his Christmas tree.
Concluding with the Goblin desperately chopping trees into the night, in order to find gold which Pellephant has described, the story takes one dark turn after another. The next Pellephant story has a title dripping with possibility - a runaway bus? This is an annual for small children not easily frightened.
The Liquorice Goblin steals a school bus, and is unable to control it due to his size. Pellephant attempts to help, though accelerates rather than braking, and the bus flies off a cliff - at which point Pellephant uses the Goblin's tail as an anchor to hold the bus up, saving the picnic food. Never mind the bus, or the Goblin, as all the children care about are their stomachs.
At least the story gets children's priorities right.
Susie's next strip finds a mass of dough causing the inhabitants of Gnome Land to flee for their lives. It isn't quite The Blob, but one can't help making the association. In the surrounding woods Susie meets a giant, who offers to eat up all the dough. What isn't stated, though which hangs over the account, is that he now knows where they live, and should he be hungry again the citizens are the perfect size for a snack...
Pellephant attends school, even though he claims to know everything already. He's soon thrown out for causing trouble, though when the school's funds for a trip have been stolen Pellephant claims he can catch the thief. Of course, there is no thief, and it is all Pellephant's fault in the first place.
Winter has come to Gnome Land, and...
Y'know, with Twinkle able to magic away any problem - as she does here - there really isn't any problem which requires solving through other means. When she doesn't lend assistance, it is because she can't be bothered. This makes Twinkle the villain of the piece through inaction in every tale where there is something to be fixed. It is slightly too cheerful a series to read this much into the characterisation, though her menace does seem evident.
Fun With a Fancy Dress begins with more magic, this time from Pellephant.
Once more the dark undertones are present, with Pellephant willing to torture his enemies for six months.
Everyone in Gnome Land has mysteriously fallen asleep in the middle of the day. You might think this is bad enough, but the introduction of the Chimney People are far, far more terrifying a prospect than some people having a nap. Slipping out of chimneys to wash their clothes (thankfully not in the blood of the inhabitants of Gnome Land), one has even stolen Twinkle's wand.
How did children sleep in the early seventies, if this is what they were reading?
80 pages. Colour & tone.
Brown Watson Ltd.
Cover by Rune Andréasson.
Contents:
2 UNTITLED [The gang love carol singing - and they love playing hunt the thimble, too.] picture puzzle; a: (uncredited). / Indicia
4 Fly, Flax and the Balloon Saving the Bus text story by UNKNOWN (uncredited); illustrated by GIL [Eigil Johansen] (uncredited).
6 Susie UNTITLED [Flying to Gnome Land in a Kettle] w: UNKNOWN (uncredited); a: Mainow [Jaime Mainou] (uncredited).
13 Tommy Teaser's Testing Time picture puzzles.
15 Fly, Flax and the Balloon The Wonderful Hatmaker text story by UNKNOWN (uncredited); illustrated by GIL [Eigil Johansen] (uncredited).
17 Pellephant Trouble in the Treetops w: UNKNOWN (uncredited); a: Georges Bess (? uncredited).
25 Pellephant Pellephant and the Runaway Bus w: UNKNOWN (uncredited); a: Georges Bess (? uncredited).
33 Susie UNTITLED [Susie and Twinkle Arrive in Gnome Land] w: UNKNOWN (uncredited); a: Mainow [Jaime Mainou] (uncredited).
40 Pellephant Pellephant Goes to School w: UNKNOWN (uncredited); a: UNKNOWN (uncredited).
48 Susie UNTITLED [Winter in Gnome Land] w: UNKNOWN (uncredited); a: Mainow [Jaime Mainou] (uncredited).
55 Pellephant Fun With a Fancy Dress w: UNKNOWN (uncredited); a: UNKNOWN (uncredited).
61 Susie UNTITLED [Gnome Land Asleep] w: UNKNOWN (uncredited); a: Mainow [Jaime Mainou] (uncredited).
68 Fly, Flax and the Balloon To the Rescue! text story by UNKNOWN (uncredited); illustrated by GIL [Eigil Johansen] (uncredited).
70 Pengy Gets a New Scarf text story by UNKNOWN (uncredited); illustrated by UNKNOWN (uncredited).
73 Berta Beak's Dream Comes True text story by UNKNOWN (uncredited); illustrated by UNKNOWN (uncredited).
76 Fly, Flax and the Balloon The Professor Becomes Invisible text story by UNKNOWN (uncredited); illustrated by GIL [Eigil Johansen] (uncredited).
78 UNTITLED [The Gang have decided to try and earn some extra pocket-money by window-cleaning] picture puzzle; a: (uncredited).
Note: All the material is (presumably) reprinted from European comics, though specific titles and issues are unknown.
The image of the bright blue elephant is lively and suitably seasonal, though the poor placement of the title box, with the hanging blue rectangle obscuring a portion of the image, isn't the classiest move. On the inside covers are attractive picture puzzles, which any child ought to be able to solve without difficulty, which is only muted by the fact there is no indication of who this work is by.
Professor Fly reads about a boy who has eaten the world's largest ice cream, and who got the world's worst tummy ache. Calling Flax, his parrot, he reads the story out - while disinterested in the story, Flax sees a picture of a bullfighter. Fly and Flax ponder how to save the bulls, coming to the conclusion that the Balloon might be able to carry the bulls away to safety.
There's something about parrots which make them unlikeable. Maybe it is their eyes, but I've never liked parrots. You may have guessed that this isn't my favourite series of stories to read, and you would be right - although the tale is told well, and blessed with a few attractive illustrations which should pacify younger, and impatient, readers.
Susie and her fairy doll, Twinkle, are on their way to see their friends in Gnome Land, but the weather is bad for flying...Susie takes the kettle up above the storm, though the thin air causes her - and Twinkle - to fall asleep, yet the kettle continues until it reaches the kingdom of the weather gods. Mr. Nice introduces himself, as provider of nice weather on Earth, and asks for help with the grouchy Mr. Sour, whose storm had such an effect on Susie's journey. Twinkle is forced to frighten Mr. Sour into stopping his bad weather, upon which they are free to continue on to Gnome Land.
This is really rather good, for what is essentially a story aimed at the youngest of readers, maintaining a decidedly odd view of the world. The mix of myths and fables which are part of the stories' makeup isn't apparent in this installment, but there's enough to suggest that the seres has some very strange ideas. It is refreshing to read a strip which isn't caught up in elaborate world-building, happy to tumble from one incident to the next.
Flix and Flax are in the balloon at the beginning of their next story, and they can see an enormous hat from their vantage point. It is the home of a hatmaker who has designed a hat which covers him right down to the knees when it is raining, and another - which he calls his 'polite hat' - which lifts itself up and says hello.
While I doubt it is intentional, or even noticed by many, there is a distinct tone to the stories which recalls the Mr. Men stories. Seemingly bizarre events are passed off as everyday happenings, and the maddest twist can reveal a surprise for the attentive reader. It is, in truth, a fairly simple and slightly juvenile tale, and only the obvious enthusiasm of its creators keeps things from being too annoying.
That it takes seventeen pages to reach the star attraction is simply poor layout, though when Pellephant eventually turns up he does so in style - charging along at the front of a line of toys, an axe gripped in his trunk, determined to chop down a tree for Christmas. There's no "don't try this at home" warning, nor any adult characters to warn of the dangers, which is both refreshing and slightly disturbing - I wonder how many children, upon reading this, decided that it might have been a good idea to chop down a tree of their own.
Anyway, he falls off the tree, at which point a bear asks "is he dead?" Yeah, try explaining this story to a five-year old. Pellephant is carted away in an ambulance, before returning (clad in bandages) to discover that the Liquorice Goblin has chopped the tree up for firewood. Pellephant then tricks the Goblin into chopping a treetop for his Christmas tree.
Concluding with the Goblin desperately chopping trees into the night, in order to find gold which Pellephant has described, the story takes one dark turn after another. The next Pellephant story has a title dripping with possibility - a runaway bus? This is an annual for small children not easily frightened.
The Liquorice Goblin steals a school bus, and is unable to control it due to his size. Pellephant attempts to help, though accelerates rather than braking, and the bus flies off a cliff - at which point Pellephant uses the Goblin's tail as an anchor to hold the bus up, saving the picnic food. Never mind the bus, or the Goblin, as all the children care about are their stomachs.
At least the story gets children's priorities right.
Susie's next strip finds a mass of dough causing the inhabitants of Gnome Land to flee for their lives. It isn't quite The Blob, but one can't help making the association. In the surrounding woods Susie meets a giant, who offers to eat up all the dough. What isn't stated, though which hangs over the account, is that he now knows where they live, and should he be hungry again the citizens are the perfect size for a snack...
Pellephant attends school, even though he claims to know everything already. He's soon thrown out for causing trouble, though when the school's funds for a trip have been stolen Pellephant claims he can catch the thief. Of course, there is no thief, and it is all Pellephant's fault in the first place.
Winter has come to Gnome Land, and...
Y'know, with Twinkle able to magic away any problem - as she does here - there really isn't any problem which requires solving through other means. When she doesn't lend assistance, it is because she can't be bothered. This makes Twinkle the villain of the piece through inaction in every tale where there is something to be fixed. It is slightly too cheerful a series to read this much into the characterisation, though her menace does seem evident.
Fun With a Fancy Dress begins with more magic, this time from Pellephant.
To teach Slyboots a lesson Pellephant once turned him into a tree stump...Wishing Slyboots a happy new year he begs Pellephant to turn him back as it is so cold being a tree stump in winter. With a wave of his wand, Pellephant relents. Angered at being a tree stump for six months, Slyboots paces in his castle working out suitable revenge plans. A fancy dress ball sees the elephant pick out an Indian headdress, though Slyboots is there as well - dressed as a clown.
Once more the dark undertones are present, with Pellephant willing to torture his enemies for six months.
Everyone in Gnome Land has mysteriously fallen asleep in the middle of the day. You might think this is bad enough, but the introduction of the Chimney People are far, far more terrifying a prospect than some people having a nap. Slipping out of chimneys to wash their clothes (thankfully not in the blood of the inhabitants of Gnome Land), one has even stolen Twinkle's wand.
How did children sleep in the early seventies, if this is what they were reading?
Pellephant Annual
#Pellephant and his
Friends Annual
Space Precinct
31 Oct 1995 - 30 Jan 1996 (6 issues)
Manga Publishing, Ltd.
Based on the BBC television series starring Ted Shackelford and Rob Youngblood.
Edited by Cefn Ridout.
External Links:
Official Website
Facebook [Space Precinct]
Fanderson [Official Gerry Anderson Appreciation Society]
Manga Entertainment UK
Manga Publishing, Ltd.
Based on the BBC television series starring Ted Shackelford and Rob Youngblood.
Edited by Cefn Ridout.
01 (31 Oct 1995; cover price £1.25) Free Space Precinct sticker album and stickers. Comic strips and articles begin. Policing the Final Frontier text feature on the series' background, and The Imagineers text feature on Space Precinct merchandise. Roll Call: Lieutenant Patrick Brogan and Episode Guide: Double Duty. The Station House cutaway. Painted cover by Kev Walker.
02 (21 Nov 1995) The Anderson Tapes part one, interview with Gerry Anderson. Roll Call: Officer Jack Haldane, By the Book feature on the first Space Precinct novel, and Episode Guide: Serve and Protect. Police Cruiser cutaway. Painted cover by John Erasmus.
03 (05 Dec 1995) The Anderson Tapes part two, interview with Gerry Anderson. Roll Call: Officer Castle, review of second novel, and Episode Guide: Enforcer. Space Suburb cutaway. Cover by David Hine.
04 (19 Dec 1995) The Illusionists, Part One: Cities, Worlds and Starships feature on special effects. Star Laws feature on the original Space Police pilot. Roll Call: Captain Rexton Podly and Episode Guide: Flash. Slomo, robotic secretarial assistant cutaway. Painted cover by Mick Austin.
05 (15 Jan 1996) Mind Over Matter interview with Mary Woodvine, and Soundbite interview with Simone Bendix. Blast from the Past, Part One: Twizzle to Supercar text feature. Roll Call: Officer Aurelia Took and Episode Guide: The Snake. Space Hopper cutaway. Cover by Tony Luke.
06 (30 Jan 1996) The Illusionists, Part Two: Breeding Aliens feature by J. Swallow. Captains Courageous Ralph Titterton interviews Jerome Willis and Christine Glanville. Roll Call: Sally Brogan, Roll Call: Matthew Brogan, Roll Call: Elizabeth Brogan and Episode Guide: Body and Soul. Demeter City Hospital cutaway. Painted cover by Colin MacNeil.
External Links:
Official Website
Facebook [Space Precinct]
Fanderson [Official Gerry Anderson Appreciation Society]
Manga Entertainment UK
Star Wars Comic Vol.1 #3
08 Aug 1999. Cover price £1.25.
28 pages. Full colour.
Titan Magazines.
Edited by John Freeman.
Cover photograph (uncredited).
Contents:
Scratch what I said about photographs not being effective. This is a dramatic cover, with the yellow background allowing the photograph of Darth Maul to really pop from the cover. Visual interest is maintained on the contents page with the wonderful "naked" C-3PO design looking appropriately futuristic and retro at the same time. This is an issue filled with wonderful images, and not exclusively throughout the strips.
The poster in this issue - Darth Maul once more - is a magnificent example of using promotional material inventively. Sure, the photographic element has appeared in a bunch of places, but rarely as impressively as here.
A step up in style, though it is difficult to generate suspense or thrills with the main story, having been driven into the ground with so much supplementary material during the release of the film.
28 pages. Full colour.
Titan Magazines.
Edited by John Freeman.
Cover photograph (uncredited).
Contents:
2 Meet C-3PO text introduction (uncredited). / Contents / Indicia
3 Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace, part three, w: Henry Gilroy, based on the story by George Lucas; p: Rodolfo Damaggio, i: Al Williamson, lettering by Steve Dutro, colouring by Dave Nestelle.
r: Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace (Dark Horse) #01 (May 1999).
14 UNTITLED poster; photograph (uncredited).
19 Forbidden Planet advertisement.
20 Use the Force advertisement for Lego Star Wars sets.
21 Star Wars: Episode I - Anakin Skywalker, part three, w: Timothy Truman; p: Steve Crespo, i: George Freeman, lettering by Vickie Williams, colouring by Dave Nestelle.
r: Star Wars: Episode I - Anakin Skywalker Dark Horse) nn (May 1999).
25 No Time to Lose! competition to win a Star Wars clock.
26 Coming Next Issue
27 Subscribe & Save
28 See and Read the Film advertisement for graphic novel.
Scratch what I said about photographs not being effective. This is a dramatic cover, with the yellow background allowing the photograph of Darth Maul to really pop from the cover. Visual interest is maintained on the contents page with the wonderful "naked" C-3PO design looking appropriately futuristic and retro at the same time. This is an issue filled with wonderful images, and not exclusively throughout the strips.
The poster in this issue - Darth Maul once more - is a magnificent example of using promotional material inventively. Sure, the photographic element has appeared in a bunch of places, but rarely as impressively as here.
A step up in style, though it is difficult to generate suspense or thrills with the main story, having been driven into the ground with so much supplementary material during the release of the film.
#02
Star Wars Comic
#03
On This Day: 24 Nov
Hammer Horror Collector's Special (Marvel Comics UK Ltd.) #01 (1994).
The Flash: Rebirth (Titan) #01 (2016).
Births:
Dudley Pout (1908); Walter Goetz (1911); Horacio Altuna (1941); Vic Neill (1941); Ian Botham (1955)
Notable Events:
The Bystander magazine published Bruce Bairnsfather's original "Better 'Ole" cartoon in 1915.
Richard Ingrams married his first wife, Mary Morgan, in 1962.
A Michael Cummings cartoon attacking trade unions, published in The Daily Express in 1971, brought a complaint from the printing union.
Barry Humphries was a castaway on Desert Island Discs, on BBC Radio 4, in 1973.
The Flash: Rebirth (Titan) #01 (2016).
Births:
Dudley Pout (1908); Walter Goetz (1911); Horacio Altuna (1941); Vic Neill (1941); Ian Botham (1955)
Notable Events:
The Bystander magazine published Bruce Bairnsfather's original "Better 'Ole" cartoon in 1915.
Richard Ingrams married his first wife, Mary Morgan, in 1962.
A Michael Cummings cartoon attacking trade unions, published in The Daily Express in 1971, brought a complaint from the printing union.
Barry Humphries was a castaway on Desert Island Discs, on BBC Radio 4, in 1973.
Friday, November 23, 2018
The Tom & Jerry Selection
1992. Cover price £2.99.
68 pages. Full colour.
Ravette Books Limited.
ISBN-10: 1 85304 274 9.
Cover by UNKNOWN (uncredited).
r: UNKNOWN.
Contents:
Jerry gets a wooden spoon thrown at him for his troubles, though Tom is still not returned indoors. Tom has turned blue, and his tail is frozen stiff, so Jerry is forced to increase his torment of Mammy - bouncing on her remote control to change channels, and swimming in her soup. She fetches a broom to deal with the mouse on her own, though Jerry throws compact discs at her when she tracks him down. Finally relenting, Mammy brings Tom back indoors, warming him up with a hairdryer, before setting him on Jerry.
Realising what has occurred, Tom plays along - just long enough to share in Jerry's spoils.
A lively strip, without much of the usual problems in storytelling, this is a remarkably warm and non-violent outing for the pair, with a much more interesting dynamic for the characters than the more often seen antagonistic interplay. The artwork is less polished than other depictions, though it has a livelier spring to it - this is a strip with heart.
Sound Effects tells its story without the usual plethora of words - Tom catches Jerry eating by the sound of his munching, then Tuffy jumps on a cassette player's button to create the sound of a dog. Having ensured that there isn't actually a dog present, Tom settles down to watch television, whereupon the sound effects are employed once more. The trick fails a third time, as the batteries are running low, and Tom turns the tables on the mice by playing a song they dislike.
The experimentation is handled well, with a few amusing twists and turns along the way, and is pleasantly drawn, yet I can't help feeling that more variation in the often simplistic lettering could have raised the overall impression of the strip. The Kylie Minogue reference, while very funny, dates the strip badly, as does the cassette tapes.
Tom reads through a "Sunny Holidays" catalogue, and gets the notion to take a break from the mice. Hammering planks in front of their mousehole, he sets off to the beach - unaware that Jerry and Tuffy have stowed away in his bag. All is well until Tom unrolls his blanket, uncovering the mice, and he immediately sets about catching them. In the process he manages to destroy Tyke's sandcastle.
A story which seems tailor-made for a summer special, it is odd having it appear so close to a story set in winter, but odd decisions in Ravette's collections know no bounds. Once more a largely silent tale, though without an in or out-of-universe explanation as to why this should be so. The pacing is slightly off in the opening few pages, but when it gets into its stride the strip captures the beach scenes well.
On a speedboat, Tom finds Jerry helping himself to a sandwich, narrowly avoiding crashing into a rock jutting from the sea in an attempt to stop the mouse's pilfering ways. Landing on an island, they explore the sands, though when it feels as if there will be rain Tom hurries to construct a shelter. Once the tropical downpour has abated, Tom makes a raft to escape from both the island and Jerry, though the mouse has other plans...
There's sloppy printing, and there's simply not caring. Transposing two pages of the strip in this story makes following events more difficult that they ought to be. It is a nice, well-constructed story, and these errors are very detrimental to the appeal of the story - one concluding with a (in this instance) well-deserved defeat, with Tom placed firmly in his place.
The final story here, Mechanical Menace, finds Jerry and Tuffy playing with a remote control cheese van in the garden, and when Tom races out to chase them (after falling foul of a flour-based booby-trap) Tuffy uses it to trip him up. Deciding that it is time to bring mouse traps into the 90s, Tom gets to work on his computer. The next day, after much banging from the shed, Tom unveils his creation - a robot he calls the Compu-Cat.
Tom concludes that it will be an easy life for him now, with the ultimate mouse trap doing all the work. Jerry races indoors to escape its snapping claws, and - after some consideration from the mice - Jerry is seemingly caught. Tom discovers that the robot actually caught a dummy before it was destroyed by the cheese van, although gets extra supper when found with the dummy.
Some of the pin-ups are painfully 'hip' - in a manner which indicates that the images were originally intended for a younger readership during the late eighties or early nineties. As a collection this is only really appealing for the full-page illustrations which, on the whole, are the best-looking representations of the character published in a long time.
Not perfect, but a long shot, but likely an amusing read for fans of the characters.
68 pages. Full colour.
Ravette Books Limited.
ISBN-10: 1 85304 274 9.
Cover by UNKNOWN (uncredited).
r: UNKNOWN.
Contents:
3 The Tom & Jerry Selection title page.
5 The Tom & Jerry Selection title page.
6 Indicia
7 UNTITLED [Tom & Jerry With Their Towels] pin-up; a: UNKNOWN (uncredited).
r: UNKNOWN.
8 UNTITLED [Fun at the Beach] poster; a: UNKNOWN (uncredited).
r: UNKNOWN.
10 The Fast Food Feud... w: UNKNOWN (uncredited); a: signed BD (uncredited).
r: UNKNOWN.
18 UNTITLED [Sunglasses] poster; a: UNKNOWN (uncredited).
r: UNKNOWN.
20 UNTITLED [A Bike Trip] poster; a: signed BD (uncredited).
r: UNKNOWN.
22 Sound Effects w: UNKNOWN (uncredited); a: UNKNOWN (uncredited).
r: UNKNOWN.
30 UNTITLED [All at Sea] poster; a: signed BD (uncredited).
r: UNKNOWN.
32 UNTITLED [Art Attack] pin-up; a: UNKNOWN (uncredited).
r: UNKNOWN.
33 UNTITLED [Like Father Like Son] pin-up; a: UNKNOWN (uncredited).
r: UNKNOWN.
34 Sandcastle Kings w: UNKNOWN (uncredited); a: UNKNOWN (uncredited).
r: UNKNOWN.
42 UNTITLED [Sun Fun] poster; a: UNKNOWN (uncredited).
r: UNKNOWN.
44 Memories pin-up; a: signed BD (uncredited).
r: UNKNOWN.
45 UNTITLED [Movie Stars] pin-up; a: UNKNOWN (uncredited).
r: UNKNOWN.
46 Pests in Paradise w: UNKNOWN (uncredited); a: UNKNOWN (uncredited).
r: UNKNOWN.
54 UNTITLED [Tuffy in a Kite] pin-up; a: UNKNOWN (uncredited).
r: UNKNOWN.
55 UNTITLED [PURRR Tracksuit] pin-up; a: UNKNOWN (uncredited).
r: UNKNOWN.
56 UNTITLED [Tuffy's Bop] pin-up; a: UNKNOWN (uncredited).
r: UNKNOWN.
57 Mechanical Menace w: UNKNOWN (uncredited); a: UNKNOWN (uncredited).
r: UNKNOWN.
65 The End
64 pages of hilarious cartoon strips and posters, featuring the world's favourite Cat and MouseThomas is snuggled up in his basket as a snowstorm hits, and Jerry takes advantage of the napping cat's blissful sleep to help himself to some cheeseburgers. Fashioning a means of reaching the table with thread and a safety pin, he makes it to his prize and frames Tom for his crime. Thrown out into the freezing cold, Tom wonders why he is being punished, and Jerry is soon aware of the repercussions of his action - feeling guilty, and realizing that it is too cold outdoors for cats, the mouse makes himself known to Mammy in order to encourage her to bring Tom in from the cold.
Jerry gets a wooden spoon thrown at him for his troubles, though Tom is still not returned indoors. Tom has turned blue, and his tail is frozen stiff, so Jerry is forced to increase his torment of Mammy - bouncing on her remote control to change channels, and swimming in her soup. She fetches a broom to deal with the mouse on her own, though Jerry throws compact discs at her when she tracks him down. Finally relenting, Mammy brings Tom back indoors, warming him up with a hairdryer, before setting him on Jerry.
Realising what has occurred, Tom plays along - just long enough to share in Jerry's spoils.
A lively strip, without much of the usual problems in storytelling, this is a remarkably warm and non-violent outing for the pair, with a much more interesting dynamic for the characters than the more often seen antagonistic interplay. The artwork is less polished than other depictions, though it has a livelier spring to it - this is a strip with heart.
Sound Effects tells its story without the usual plethora of words - Tom catches Jerry eating by the sound of his munching, then Tuffy jumps on a cassette player's button to create the sound of a dog. Having ensured that there isn't actually a dog present, Tom settles down to watch television, whereupon the sound effects are employed once more. The trick fails a third time, as the batteries are running low, and Tom turns the tables on the mice by playing a song they dislike.
The experimentation is handled well, with a few amusing twists and turns along the way, and is pleasantly drawn, yet I can't help feeling that more variation in the often simplistic lettering could have raised the overall impression of the strip. The Kylie Minogue reference, while very funny, dates the strip badly, as does the cassette tapes.
Tom reads through a "Sunny Holidays" catalogue, and gets the notion to take a break from the mice. Hammering planks in front of their mousehole, he sets off to the beach - unaware that Jerry and Tuffy have stowed away in his bag. All is well until Tom unrolls his blanket, uncovering the mice, and he immediately sets about catching them. In the process he manages to destroy Tyke's sandcastle.
A story which seems tailor-made for a summer special, it is odd having it appear so close to a story set in winter, but odd decisions in Ravette's collections know no bounds. Once more a largely silent tale, though without an in or out-of-universe explanation as to why this should be so. The pacing is slightly off in the opening few pages, but when it gets into its stride the strip captures the beach scenes well.
On a speedboat, Tom finds Jerry helping himself to a sandwich, narrowly avoiding crashing into a rock jutting from the sea in an attempt to stop the mouse's pilfering ways. Landing on an island, they explore the sands, though when it feels as if there will be rain Tom hurries to construct a shelter. Once the tropical downpour has abated, Tom makes a raft to escape from both the island and Jerry, though the mouse has other plans...
There's sloppy printing, and there's simply not caring. Transposing two pages of the strip in this story makes following events more difficult that they ought to be. It is a nice, well-constructed story, and these errors are very detrimental to the appeal of the story - one concluding with a (in this instance) well-deserved defeat, with Tom placed firmly in his place.
The final story here, Mechanical Menace, finds Jerry and Tuffy playing with a remote control cheese van in the garden, and when Tom races out to chase them (after falling foul of a flour-based booby-trap) Tuffy uses it to trip him up. Deciding that it is time to bring mouse traps into the 90s, Tom gets to work on his computer. The next day, after much banging from the shed, Tom unveils his creation - a robot he calls the Compu-Cat.
Tom concludes that it will be an easy life for him now, with the ultimate mouse trap doing all the work. Jerry races indoors to escape its snapping claws, and - after some consideration from the mice - Jerry is seemingly caught. Tom discovers that the robot actually caught a dummy before it was destroyed by the cheese van, although gets extra supper when found with the dummy.
Some of the pin-ups are painfully 'hip' - in a manner which indicates that the images were originally intended for a younger readership during the late eighties or early nineties. As a collection this is only really appealing for the full-page illustrations which, on the whole, are the best-looking representations of the character published in a long time.
Not perfect, but a long shot, but likely an amusing read for fans of the characters.
Aliens Vol.1 #3
Apr 1991. Cover price £1.50.
52 pages. Colour & B&W.
Trident Comics, Ltd.
Edited by Martin Skidmore.
Painted cover by Denis Beauvais.
r: Endpaper from Aliens: Book Two.
Contents:
When a cover appears to depict an alien which has lit its fart on fire, there's a problem.
Attempting to present the characters here with the same intensity as the cinematic versions is compromised when the first impression is so ridiculous, however well intentioned, and it is an image so strong that everything which follows is tainted by association. Though it is meant to be dramatic, the framing is such that the comedic value presents instantly and refuses to dissipate. Which is unfortunate, as the strips are very good indeed.
The Queen understands what is happening. She watches as her offspring are burned by the General. She waits.
Attempting to wrest control of the facility before Spears' return, Hicks rounds up the soldiers loyal to the General, though things soon go wrong. An alien is freed from captivity, Hicks and Newt running for the Docking Bay. Spears arrives in the nick of time, his flamethrower bringing the aliens under control - and orders traitors executed and transports readied for a return journey to Earth.
The cynicism which runs through this title is refreshingly overt, though the running theme of untrustworthy officials is becoming tired. Should a genuinely concerned figure of authority be presented, it would be a twist on the formula. As it is, the General is a twisted, unhinged parallel to Apocalypse Now's military figure exposed to the darkness and unable to return to civilisation. His plan, to fight aliens with more aliens, is at once completely mad and yet, in a way, entirely logical.
As much as I want to see the return to Earth prevented, I'm also intrigued by the notion of a battle between two factions of aliens in the middle of a city.
A confrontation with his captain convinces Schaefer that he won't get answers through any official channels, and may even spend time in jail if he keeps pushing his investigation. Returning to Colombia, where he once worked narcotics, and where his brother disappeared, to see if the killings in his city are connected. A guide leads him through the jungle, and he is astonished to find a giant crater - where locals say the sun appeared at midnight.
Tying things closer to the film, three years on, we don't get an answer as to why a Predator is hinting in a new location. Such an alteration to tradition is something which warrants a passing mention, at the very least, and it is something I hope isn't brushed over.
The interaction between Schaefer and Rasche is rather underplayed, though the camaraderie between the men is evident here in small touches - splitting them up so soon seems to be dictated more by the plot than their personalities, and Schaefer's departure comes across as a random connection instead of deductive reasoning. That they are so different, and their reaction to what is happening so downplayed, that there seems to be a build-up to Rasche uncovering what is actually happening.
The Aliens and Predators haven't actually met yet in the back-up Aliens Vs Predator series, and the plot is so slow to move forward that I'm reluctant to pass judgement.
For a title which is named after the Alien franchise, it is unfortunate that the highlight is a follow-up to Predator.
52 pages. Colour & B&W.
Trident Comics, Ltd.
Edited by Martin Skidmore.
Painted cover by Denis Beauvais.
r: Endpaper from Aliens: Book Two.
Contents:
2 Planet-X advertisement.
3 Contents / Title Credits / Indicia
4 Credits / Story So Far text introduction (uncredited).
5 Aliens Untitled, part three, w: Mark Verheiden; a: Denis Beauvaus, lettering by Bob Pinaha.
r: Aliens (Dark Horse) #02 (Dec 1989).
29 Credits / Story So Far text introduction (uncredited).
30 Predator The Heat, part three, w: Mark Verheiden; a: Chris Warner, lettering by Jim Massara, colouring by Chris Chalenor.
r: Predator #01 (Jun 1989).
43 Credits / Story So Far text introduction (uncredited).
44 Aliens Vs Predator Untitled, part three, w: Randy Stradley; p: Phil Norwood, i: Karl Story, lettering by Pat Brosseau.
r: Aliens Vs Predator (Dark Horse) #01 (Jun 1990).
48 Here are a selection of pages from Toxic! the all new weekly comic. ON SALE NOW! preview section.
r: page four of Marshal Law strip from Toxic! (Apocalypse Ltd.) #01 (28 Mar 1991). / page five of Accident Man strip from Toxic! (Apocalypse Ltd.) #01 (28 Mar 1991). / page three of Mutomaniac strip from Toxic! (Apocalypse Ltd.) #01 (28 Mar 1991).
51 Editorial Editor Vacancy (quarter page) / O.U.T.L.A.N.D. Mail Order Comics (uarter page) advertisement. / Crime Doesn't Stand a Chance (half page) advertisement for Uncanny Comics.
52 Do Your Friends Have Mad Comic Disease? advertisement for Toxic! #01 (28 Mar 1991).
When a cover appears to depict an alien which has lit its fart on fire, there's a problem.
Attempting to present the characters here with the same intensity as the cinematic versions is compromised when the first impression is so ridiculous, however well intentioned, and it is an image so strong that everything which follows is tainted by association. Though it is meant to be dramatic, the framing is such that the comedic value presents instantly and refuses to dissipate. Which is unfortunate, as the strips are very good indeed.
When I joined the Marines, I was proud to serve my country. They want that - they want you to think you're doing something right and noble.Powell reveals to Hicks that the General has transformed the civilian terraforming base into a breeding station, killing everyone living there, and intends to utilise the aliens as living weapons. Being in the military compound is no guarantee of safety, as it has been wired - staff monitoring senior officers round the clock. When the General is angered by the behaviour of his men, as he is every few days, they soon disappear. Being told about the experiment and seeing it are two different things, and Hicks is soon confronted with incontrovertible evidence of the insane techniques with which the general has managed to bring his creatures under control.
Sometimes you believe it. Sometimes it's even true.
Powell was second-in-command, reporting directly to General Spears. He had followed me into the lower decks of my stranded cargo ship because he needed me.
Spears believed, and the purity of his belief was terrifying
The Queen understands what is happening. She watches as her offspring are burned by the General. She waits.
Attempting to wrest control of the facility before Spears' return, Hicks rounds up the soldiers loyal to the General, though things soon go wrong. An alien is freed from captivity, Hicks and Newt running for the Docking Bay. Spears arrives in the nick of time, his flamethrower bringing the aliens under control - and orders traitors executed and transports readied for a return journey to Earth.
The cynicism which runs through this title is refreshingly overt, though the running theme of untrustworthy officials is becoming tired. Should a genuinely concerned figure of authority be presented, it would be a twist on the formula. As it is, the General is a twisted, unhinged parallel to Apocalypse Now's military figure exposed to the darkness and unable to return to civilisation. His plan, to fight aliens with more aliens, is at once completely mad and yet, in a way, entirely logical.
As much as I want to see the return to Earth prevented, I'm also intrigued by the notion of a battle between two factions of aliens in the middle of a city.
Cops in New York tend to get used to things.Schaefer, after coming face-to-face with the Predator, is thrown from the fifth floor of the building. His fall broken by clothes lines and trash, Schaefer alive, he is seriously injured, though the experience allowed him close enough to steal something from his assailant - its mask. The Predator also managed to give him something - a tag on his neck which the officer decides must be a tracking device of some kind. Discharging himself from hospital against doctor's orders, he travels to Rasche's home to convalesce.
Like the time some livewire tied a cow to the chairman of "Federal Beef" and pitched 'em both off the Chrysler building.
It was supposed to be some sort of protest against chemically treated meat, but when that Jersey pancaked into Lexington Avenue, all Hell broke loose.
City sanitation must have gone through a dozen mops cleaning up the mess, but they didn't care - free steaks for Christmas.
The point is, that's the job. You learn to deal with it.
A confrontation with his captain convinces Schaefer that he won't get answers through any official channels, and may even spend time in jail if he keeps pushing his investigation. Returning to Colombia, where he once worked narcotics, and where his brother disappeared, to see if the killings in his city are connected. A guide leads him through the jungle, and he is astonished to find a giant crater - where locals say the sun appeared at midnight.
Tying things closer to the film, three years on, we don't get an answer as to why a Predator is hinting in a new location. Such an alteration to tradition is something which warrants a passing mention, at the very least, and it is something I hope isn't brushed over.
The interaction between Schaefer and Rasche is rather underplayed, though the camaraderie between the men is evident here in small touches - splitting them up so soon seems to be dictated more by the plot than their personalities, and Schaefer's departure comes across as a random connection instead of deductive reasoning. That they are so different, and their reaction to what is happening so downplayed, that there seems to be a build-up to Rasche uncovering what is actually happening.
The Aliens and Predators haven't actually met yet in the back-up Aliens Vs Predator series, and the plot is so slow to move forward that I'm reluctant to pass judgement.
For a title which is named after the Alien franchise, it is unfortunate that the highlight is a follow-up to Predator.
#02
Aliens Vol.1
#04
Doctor Who Weekly #1
17 Oct 1979. Cover price 12p.
28 pages. Colour & B&W.
Marvel Comics Ltd.
Edited by Dez Skinn.
Photo cover (uncredited).
Free transfers.
Contents:
There's a fair few conventions of cover design which, in principal, are entirely justifiable, but are nevertheless completely inexplicable. The free gift (here transfers) is almost always prioritised over the cover art (or, in this case, photograph), despite the likelihood that most copies will be deprived of their items soon after sale. What this means, in terms of aesthetics, is that first issues can tend to be rather unappealing. There is a large blank box upon which the transfers would be affixed, had they been present, though there's no real need to cover the photograph so.
Is the Dalek shy? Is it hiding a spot of rust? Is it trying to disguise itself as a piece of cheese?
The panoramas, on the inside covers, are interesting, though add nothing to the universe of the Doctor. Had they been tied in to stories appearing in the title, or acted as a bridge between television episodes and the comic, then there would be a real incentive to study them for details. On their own, and without any continuation of the narratives, they are simply pretty pictures with some justifying text.
Robots and Roman legionnaires. Two staples of British television brought to the printed page in glorious, mad, and rather brilliant fashion. There have been a multitude of stories placing the Doctor in small villages which are tormented by extraterrestrial dangers, and this follows most of the conventions save for the immediate death of what appears to be the sole surviving inhabitant. Without companions, and the man killed immediately, the opportunity for his prodigious running commentary on events, and asides, is limited, though with such speedy pacing this ought not to be a critical problem.
Getting through so much in such a brief page count does mean we have no sense of how long the robots have been prowling the streets. For a character so tied to time, the nebulous time-frame in which an organised invasion (however contained) could be mounted is a niggle which eats at enjoyment of what ought to be a riotous celebration of the character finally earning his own title.
The letter from the Doctor helpfully suggests that the reader look out for #879 ("It really was a beauty"), which suggests that, when it appears, it had better pull out all the stops. A double length issue with a plethora of free gifts, and a complete comic strip... If your copy of #879 isn't an epic tour de force, then you need to immediately return the issue to Panini with a strongly-worded letter of outrage, demanding they immediately send you the highlight of the series.
Now, where was I? Oh, yes.
Day of the Daleks, which recounts both the inspiration for the appearance of the race, and briefly recounts their first appearance, is the kind of light, breezy feature which doesn't push forward the history of the series to any great degree. There are plenty of facts present, though with only three pages to include the entire history of the Daleks it is understandable that the omissions outweigh inclusions.
The Story of Dr Who is a puff-piece which isn't far removed from the kind of features seen in general SF magazines, suggesting caution hanging over the issue - not brave enough to really dig into intricacies of script development or continuity, though attempting to centre attention on the series regardless. A Photo-File of William Hartnell (to whom the first issue is dedicated) is so light on biographical information that it doesn't cover his life away from the screen at all, which is, in these days of round-the-clock reality television inanity, rather incomprehensible. He's someone who exuded charm and charisma, and really deserved more than this.
The Return of the Daleks centres on Anhaut, once the scene of a Dalek invasion.
A slight, though amusing, story of the real deal being mistaken for props, which is a slightly worn set-up, the story nevertheless holds enough charm to excuse its plot. These are characters who are deserving of more added to their story. Even if all we get is a cutaway scene of the Doctor watching one of the hologram-movies between bouts of running through corridors, there's something about the story which always appealed.
If this type of launch, with short comic strips and insignificant text features, had appeared as little as ten years later it would have been laughed off the shelves, but nobody had really exploited a live-action television series to this degree before. As a launch of its era it is very impressive. It isn't perfect, but it is very British.
Read it with a bag of jelly babies to hand, and enjoy the fleeting moments of genius.
28 pages. Colour & B&W.
Marvel Comics Ltd.
Edited by Dez Skinn.
Photo cover (uncredited).
Free transfers.
Contents:
2 "Things looked bad for me after the TARDIS materialised on board a Vorgan space platform." Panorama; a: Dave Gibbons.
3 Doctor Who and the Iron Legion, part one, w: Pat Mills & John Wagner; a: Dave Gibbons.
8 A Letter from the Doctor text feature by Dez Skinn (uncredited).
9 Day of the Daleks text feature by B. Aldrich [Dez Skinn] & G. Blows; photographs (uncredited).
12 Tales from the TARDIS War of the Worlds w: Chris Claremont, based on the novel by H.G. Wells; p: Yong Montano; i: Dino Castrillo, lettering by Pat Condoy.
r: Marvel Classic Comics (Marvel) #14 ().
16 Two More S-F Winners from Mighty Marvel (half page) in-house advertisement for Star Wars Weekly and Starburst.
17 "Hello again, all." text feature by Dez Skinn (uncredited).
18 The Story of Doctor Who text feature (uncredited).
20 Crazy Caption 1 competition; photograph (uncredited).
21 Chew the Gum (half page) advertisement for Bazooka Joe. / 111 Stamps (All Different) FREE (half page) advertisement for Bridgnorth Stamp Co. Ltd.
22 Doctor Who Photo-File William Hartnell fact-file (uncredited); photograph (uncredited).
23 The Return of the Daleks w: Steve Moore; p: Paul Neary, i: David Lloyd.
27 I'd only landed on Magnon 5 to stretch my legs, but a malfunction of the TARDIS caused it to disappear, leaving me stranded!" Panorama; a: Dave Gibbons.
28 Have Fun With the Amazing Mr. Bellamy advertisement for liquorice novelties.
There's a fair few conventions of cover design which, in principal, are entirely justifiable, but are nevertheless completely inexplicable. The free gift (here transfers) is almost always prioritised over the cover art (or, in this case, photograph), despite the likelihood that most copies will be deprived of their items soon after sale. What this means, in terms of aesthetics, is that first issues can tend to be rather unappealing. There is a large blank box upon which the transfers would be affixed, had they been present, though there's no real need to cover the photograph so.
Is the Dalek shy? Is it hiding a spot of rust? Is it trying to disguise itself as a piece of cheese?
The panoramas, on the inside covers, are interesting, though add nothing to the universe of the Doctor. Had they been tied in to stories appearing in the title, or acted as a bridge between television episodes and the comic, then there would be a real incentive to study them for details. On their own, and without any continuation of the narratives, they are simply pretty pictures with some justifying text.
They fought their way across a thousand planets - robot veterans of the eternal war - destroying, with ruthless discipline, all who stood in their way!The Doctor lands the TARDIS in a small village, immediately heading for the nearest store to stock up on provisions. The owner is distracted, however, and cryptically utters "They're coming!" before explaining himself - the town is surrounded, and he returned to the store as he didn't know what else to do. At that moment a robot smashes into the building and demands that the inhabitants remain where they are. Killing the man, it soon becomes confused at the Doctor's odd biology, which the Doctor uses to his advantage, learning the robot is First Cohort of the Ninth Legion.
And now, the peaceful tranquility of the English countryside is rudely shattered as they appear - as if from nowhere - brutally dragging people out and razing their houses to the ground!
And yet... for all the robots' strangeness, there is something... grimly familiar about them!
Robots and Roman legionnaires. Two staples of British television brought to the printed page in glorious, mad, and rather brilliant fashion. There have been a multitude of stories placing the Doctor in small villages which are tormented by extraterrestrial dangers, and this follows most of the conventions save for the immediate death of what appears to be the sole surviving inhabitant. Without companions, and the man killed immediately, the opportunity for his prodigious running commentary on events, and asides, is limited, though with such speedy pacing this ought not to be a critical problem.
Getting through so much in such a brief page count does mean we have no sense of how long the robots have been prowling the streets. For a character so tied to time, the nebulous time-frame in which an organised invasion (however contained) could be mounted is a niggle which eats at enjoyment of what ought to be a riotous celebration of the character finally earning his own title.
The letter from the Doctor helpfully suggests that the reader look out for #879 ("It really was a beauty"), which suggests that, when it appears, it had better pull out all the stops. A double length issue with a plethora of free gifts, and a complete comic strip... If your copy of #879 isn't an epic tour de force, then you need to immediately return the issue to Panini with a strongly-worded letter of outrage, demanding they immediately send you the highlight of the series.
Now, where was I? Oh, yes.
Day of the Daleks, which recounts both the inspiration for the appearance of the race, and briefly recounts their first appearance, is the kind of light, breezy feature which doesn't push forward the history of the series to any great degree. There are plenty of facts present, though with only three pages to include the entire history of the Daleks it is understandable that the omissions outweigh inclusions.
No one would have believed in last years of the nineteenth century that this world was being watched keenly and closely by intelligences greater than man's and yet as mortal as his own...Though the adaptation only reaches the discovery of the cylinder on Horsell Common, the telling - both script and art - are slightly above average for the form. While it isn't visually daring, there are nice touches, such as the horse-drawn carriage on the first page. The appearance of the tripod isn't, it has to be said, the most exciting or logical solution to the book's description.
With infinite complacency, men went to and fro over this globe about their little affairs. Serene in their assurance of their empire over matter.
No one gave a thought to the older worlds of space as sources of human danger, or thought of them only to dismiss the idea of life upon them as impossible or improbable.
The Story of Dr Who is a puff-piece which isn't far removed from the kind of features seen in general SF magazines, suggesting caution hanging over the issue - not brave enough to really dig into intricacies of script development or continuity, though attempting to centre attention on the series regardless. A Photo-File of William Hartnell (to whom the first issue is dedicated) is so light on biographical information that it doesn't cover his life away from the screen at all, which is, in these days of round-the-clock reality television inanity, rather incomprehensible. He's someone who exuded charm and charisma, and really deserved more than this.
The Return of the Daleks centres on Anhaut, once the scene of a Dalek invasion.
Today, Anhaut is a thriving peaceful world... at least, it's thriving unless you listen to our friend here... His name's Glax... and he's the owner of Galactic Glax Picture Corporation...Concerned about declining returns on his hologram-movie releases, Glax overhears a mother chide her child for bad behaviour, warning him a Dalek will get him if he doesn't behave. Pondering this as a possible plot, Glax wanders off deep in thought. Hunting in the archives for information, he finds a view-film from eight hundred years earlier. Describing how a Dalek scout landed one night, the footage shows how a band of 23 Daleks rampaged across the planet, slaughtering and destroying. Although the end of the story is tantalisingly vague, Glax is determined to commit the story to film. Unbeknown to Glax, the real Daleks are freed from their prison, and roaming the set.
A slight, though amusing, story of the real deal being mistaken for props, which is a slightly worn set-up, the story nevertheless holds enough charm to excuse its plot. These are characters who are deserving of more added to their story. Even if all we get is a cutaway scene of the Doctor watching one of the hologram-movies between bouts of running through corridors, there's something about the story which always appealed.
If this type of launch, with short comic strips and insignificant text features, had appeared as little as ten years later it would have been laughed off the shelves, but nobody had really exploited a live-action television series to this degree before. As a launch of its era it is very impressive. It isn't perfect, but it is very British.
Read it with a bag of jelly babies to hand, and enjoy the fleeting moments of genius.
Doctor Who Weekly
#02
Street Fighter II #5
Jan 1995. Cover price 95p.
40 pages. Full colour.
Manga Publishing Ltd.
Edited by Cefn Ridout.
Cover by Masaomi Kanzaki, finished art by Lea Hernandez, colouring by Koto Color.
r: UNKNOWN.
Free cover-mounted Ryu postcard.
Contents:
With a very nice postcard adorning the cover, this issue seems to be designed to attract back lapsed readers, and usher in latecomers, with some especially attractive art. The splash page is as good an image of Ryu and Ken as I have seen, and although what follows is an extended flashback of a pivotal fight in Ryu's past, it is handled well enough to overcome any sense of further padding.
With so many plots carrying over from earlier installments it might have been nice for events thus far to have been provided in a brief opening paragraph, as introduction to the continuing story.
Battle 07: King of Kings steps up an already impressive display of style, with page 24 and 25's scenes from the stadium recalling the brief scenes of activity surrounding the fight scenes in numerous boxing movies.
Chun-Li continues her investigation into the disappearance of her father, discovering a link between the drug Doll, the Grand Fight, and Shadowlaw. Ken approaches Ryu before his fight, and M. Bison finally steps to the fore. There's a flurry of activity, for sure, but the plot progression has been erratic at best, and downright glacial in places. With things appearing to be reaching decisive turning points for several of the hanging plot threads, this is hardly an entry-level issue.
Given the furore over Newsfield's inclusion of bared breasts in a computer game magazine a few years earlier, it is remarkably brave of Manga to include just such an image here, almost taunting conservative retailers with their lack of a mature readers warning on the cover.
40 pages. Full colour.
Manga Publishing Ltd.
Edited by Cefn Ridout.
Cover by Masaomi Kanzaki, finished art by Lea Hernandez, colouring by Koto Color.
r: UNKNOWN.
Free cover-mounted Ryu postcard.
Contents:
2 Announcing... A New Breed of Heroes for the Nineties! in-house advertisement for Timecop.
3 Street Fighter II Battle 06: Karma w: Masaomi Kanzaki, translated by William Flanagan; a: Masaomi Kanzaki, lettering and finished art by Lea Hernandez, colouring by Koto Color. / Indicia
r: UNKNOWN.
4 Ryu (one fifth page) fact file.
6 Ken (one fifth page) fact file.
8 Guile (one fifth page) fact file.
10 Zangief (one fifth page) fact file.
12 Dhalsim (one fifth page) fact file.
14 Blanka (one fifth page) fact file.
16 E. Honda (one fifth page) fact file.
18 Chun-Li (one fifth page) fact file.
20 Street Fighter II poster 5 (of 8); a: Masaomi Kanzaki, finished art by Lea Hernandez, colouring by Koto Color.
r: UNKNOWN.
23 Street Fighter II Battle 07: King of Kings w: Masaomi Kanzaki, translated by William Flanagan; a: Masaomi Kanzaki, lettering and finished art by Lea Hernandez, colouring by Koto Color. / Indicia
r: UNKNOWN.
24 Balrog (one fifth page) fact file.
26 Vega (one fifth page) fact file.
28 Sagat (one fifth page) fact file.
30 M. Bison (one fifth page) fact file.
32 Po-Lin (one fifth page) fact file.
34 Wong-Mei (one fifth page) fact file.
36 Gouken (one fifth page) fact file.
38 The cloak of mystery surrounding M. Bison begins to unfold as Ryu, Chun-Li, and Guile reveal the stories of their pasts. (one fifth page)
39 Street Fighter II Survey!
40 More Cyber-Suited Psychic Action in the Cyberpunk Collection in-house advertisement for AD Police and Geno Cyber videocassettes.
With a very nice postcard adorning the cover, this issue seems to be designed to attract back lapsed readers, and usher in latecomers, with some especially attractive art. The splash page is as good an image of Ryu and Ken as I have seen, and although what follows is an extended flashback of a pivotal fight in Ryu's past, it is handled well enough to overcome any sense of further padding.
With so many plots carrying over from earlier installments it might have been nice for events thus far to have been provided in a brief opening paragraph, as introduction to the continuing story.
Battle 07: King of Kings steps up an already impressive display of style, with page 24 and 25's scenes from the stadium recalling the brief scenes of activity surrounding the fight scenes in numerous boxing movies.
Chun-Li continues her investigation into the disappearance of her father, discovering a link between the drug Doll, the Grand Fight, and Shadowlaw. Ken approaches Ryu before his fight, and M. Bison finally steps to the fore. There's a flurry of activity, for sure, but the plot progression has been erratic at best, and downright glacial in places. With things appearing to be reaching decisive turning points for several of the hanging plot threads, this is hardly an entry-level issue.
Given the furore over Newsfield's inclusion of bared breasts in a computer game magazine a few years earlier, it is remarkably brave of Manga to include just such an image here, almost taunting conservative retailers with their lack of a mature readers warning on the cover.
#04
Street Fighter II
#06
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