Births:
David Nixon (1919); E.W. Hildick (1925); Dave McKean (1963)
Deaths:
Don Lawrence (2003); Robert A. Monkhouse (2003); Tony Greig (2012); Jim Baikie (2017)
Notable Events:
Dan Doofer newspaper strip began in The Daily Mirror in 1945.
BBC Radio 4 broadcast a 30-minute program featuring Dan Dare and Judge Dredd in 1991. Garth Ennis, Rian Hughes and John Wagner added their thoughts.
The Bogie Man television movie, based on the comic by Alan Grant, John Wagner & Robin Smith, was broadcast in 1992.
J.H. Batchelor awarded M.B.E. for "services to Illustration" as part of the Queen's New Year Honours list in 2012.
Showing posts with label John Wagner. Show all posts
Showing posts with label John Wagner. Show all posts
Saturday, December 29, 2018
Friday, December 7, 2018
On This Day: 07 Dec
Births:
Freddie Adkins (1894); Barry Kitson (1957); Lee Brimmicombe-Wood (1963)
Notable Events:
The first issue of Viz was collected from the printers in 1979.
Willie Rushton hosted the ninth episode of Friday Night, Saturday Morning, on BBC 2, in 1979.
John Wagner, Alan Grant and Simon Bisley attended a Judge Dredd/Batman: Judgement on Gotham signing at Virgin Megastore, Marble Arch, London, in 1991.
Future Shock! The Story of 2000AD released on DVD in 2015.
Freddie Adkins (1894); Barry Kitson (1957); Lee Brimmicombe-Wood (1963)
Notable Events:
The first issue of Viz was collected from the printers in 1979.
Willie Rushton hosted the ninth episode of Friday Night, Saturday Morning, on BBC 2, in 1979.
John Wagner, Alan Grant and Simon Bisley attended a Judge Dredd/Batman: Judgement on Gotham signing at Virgin Megastore, Marble Arch, London, in 1991.
Future Shock! The Story of 2000AD released on DVD in 2015.
Tuesday, December 4, 2018
Doctor Who Weekly #4
07 Nov 1979. Cover price 12p.
28 pages. B&W contents.
Marvel Comics Ltd.
Edited by Dez Skinn.
Photo cover (uncredited).
Free transfers.
Contents:
The Doctor's letter reminds readers not to play with fireworks, noting that they are still explosives despite their packaging and public perception. It is a message which can't be repeated enough, as even all these years later there are still horror stories of needless accidents being reported - such public safety notices have largely fallen out of favour, and these remnants from a time before social media are really evocative.
The Imperial Air-Galley enters the Temple of the Gods, an alien space-ship, and the Doctor convinces Morris to help his escape - which Morris is more than happy to do, given that he hasn't made an escape attempt for a couple of weeks. The Alien Guard, protectors of the temple, rush to prevent the escape of the prisoners. Managing to avoid recapture, the Doctor meets Vesuvius, the oldest robot in Rome. After performing minor repairs on Vesuvius, the Doctor asks where he can find the Gods - and realises that the Romans have been worshiping the Malevilus, most terrible of alien races.
Aliens who take the form of statues? Shades of the Weeping Angels raise this beyond any quibbles regarding the other-dimensional nature of the Romans. Morris is a great character, who really lightens the strip, as well as being oddly likable.
Although interesting, the Yeti aren't quite as memorable - or terrifying - as the Great Intelligence, who really should have formed the focus of the feature. As a history of the robots, however, it is a fine example of the recaps making the threats seem more credible than the episodes managed. The main drawback to the Yeti is their resemblance to Wombles, which is a complete drama-killer. How are the furry, rotund litter-pickers meant to scare when they are so damn cute?
I wouldn't say no to a pet Yeti.
I'll name him George. And I'll hug him, and pet him, and squeeze him...
War of the Worlds is one of the main foundation stones of alien invasions in popular culture, with some of the most dramatic scenes of devastation to focus on such an unlikely location. It should be told as the epic it is, and have at least one or two compelling, memorable images on every page. It should matter. While the adaptation is fine, it isn't exceptional. If there's one word which encapsulates the strip, that word would be "adequate".
The designs of the tripods owe much to the film adaptation, which overwhelms any positive artistic choices. Such a disappointment.
Continuing the recap of The Dead Planet, the same handful of images which always get published are, quelle surprise, dusted off and printed onece more. Are the choices of photographic record for the first doctor so limited that we never get new (or at least unpublished) material? Surely someone was a bit snap-happy on set, and there remains, somewhere, a few pieces we haven't seen dozens of times. Which isn't a complaint aimed at Doctor Who Weekly in specific, but all coverage of the first Doctor.
As endings go, Return of the Daleks pulls out all the stops.
While I'm going to miss Glax, his transformation from amoral exploitation producer to (albeit reluctant) hero has been a great way to expand the confines of the series. The history of the Daleks outside of strict continuity had already produced a few brilliant stories, and if they were to break free of the series, to invade television screens on their own, this strip would have to be considered as an inspiration.
28 pages. B&W contents.
Marvel Comics Ltd.
Edited by Dez Skinn.
Photo cover (uncredited).
Free transfers.
Contents:
2 A Letter from the Doctor text feature by Dez Skinn (uncredited).
3 Doctor Who and the Iron Legion, part four, w: Pat Mills & John Wagner; a: Dave Gibbons.
7 Crazy Caption 4 competition; photograph (uncredited).
8 Starting Next Week in Issue Five of... Doctor Who Weekly preview of Throwback strip; a: Paul Neary.
9 The Monsters of Doctor Who The Yeti - Robot Pawns Controlled from Space text feature by Gordon Blows (uncredited); photographs (uncredited).
12 Planet Puzzle Answer (quarter page) / Another S-F Winner from Marvel in-house advertisement for Star Wars Weekly.
13 Tales from the TARDIS War of the Worlds, part four, 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).
18 The Dead Planet text feature compiled by Jeremy Bentham; photographs (uncredited).
22 Doctor Who Photo-File Tom Baker fact-file (uncredited); photograph (uncredited).
23 The Return of the Daleks, part four, 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 UNTITLED Tom Baker pin-up; photograph (uncredited).
The Doctor's letter reminds readers not to play with fireworks, noting that they are still explosives despite their packaging and public perception. It is a message which can't be repeated enough, as even all these years later there are still horror stories of needless accidents being reported - such public safety notices have largely fallen out of favour, and these remnants from a time before social media are really evocative.
The Imperial Air-Galley enters the Temple of the Gods, an alien space-ship, and the Doctor convinces Morris to help his escape - which Morris is more than happy to do, given that he hasn't made an escape attempt for a couple of weeks. The Alien Guard, protectors of the temple, rush to prevent the escape of the prisoners. Managing to avoid recapture, the Doctor meets Vesuvius, the oldest robot in Rome. After performing minor repairs on Vesuvius, the Doctor asks where he can find the Gods - and realises that the Romans have been worshiping the Malevilus, most terrible of alien races.
Aliens who take the form of statues? Shades of the Weeping Angels raise this beyond any quibbles regarding the other-dimensional nature of the Romans. Morris is a great character, who really lightens the strip, as well as being oddly likable.
Although interesting, the Yeti aren't quite as memorable - or terrifying - as the Great Intelligence, who really should have formed the focus of the feature. As a history of the robots, however, it is a fine example of the recaps making the threats seem more credible than the episodes managed. The main drawback to the Yeti is their resemblance to Wombles, which is a complete drama-killer. How are the furry, rotund litter-pickers meant to scare when they are so damn cute?
I wouldn't say no to a pet Yeti.
I'll name him George. And I'll hug him, and pet him, and squeeze him...
War of the Worlds is one of the main foundation stones of alien invasions in popular culture, with some of the most dramatic scenes of devastation to focus on such an unlikely location. It should be told as the epic it is, and have at least one or two compelling, memorable images on every page. It should matter. While the adaptation is fine, it isn't exceptional. If there's one word which encapsulates the strip, that word would be "adequate".
The designs of the tripods owe much to the film adaptation, which overwhelms any positive artistic choices. Such a disappointment.
Continuing the recap of The Dead Planet, the same handful of images which always get published are, quelle surprise, dusted off and printed onece more. Are the choices of photographic record for the first doctor so limited that we never get new (or at least unpublished) material? Surely someone was a bit snap-happy on set, and there remains, somewhere, a few pieces we haven't seen dozens of times. Which isn't a complaint aimed at Doctor Who Weekly in specific, but all coverage of the first Doctor.
After 800 years, the Daleks have returned to the planet Anhaut, seeking revenge for their former defeat. Movie producer Glax and his star, Hok Nepo, have found the weapon chamber of the ancient General Nor-Din... Only to have its contents destroyed by the Dalek agent, Kuay, before they could learn its secret...Prepared to kill everyone, and destroy everything, in their path, the Daleks approach the pyramid. Seemingly trapped, and destined to die in the pyramid, Kuay tells Glax that the Daleks' hold on her ended when she touched a crystal helmet - a device which rapidly ages the user. Hok takes the helmet from Kuay, though he cannot get it to work. Knowing her Dalek implants will enable use of the device, Kuay prepares to sacrifice herself to end the menace once and for all.
As endings go, Return of the Daleks pulls out all the stops.
While I'm going to miss Glax, his transformation from amoral exploitation producer to (albeit reluctant) hero has been a great way to expand the confines of the series. The history of the Daleks outside of strict continuity had already produced a few brilliant stories, and if they were to break free of the series, to invade television screens on their own, this strip would have to be considered as an inspiration.
#03
Doctor Who Weekly
#05
Friday, November 30, 2018
Eagle [Vol.21] #2
03 Apr 1982. Cover price 20p.
32 pages. Colour & B&W contents.
IPC Magazines Ltd.
Edited by David Hunt.
Photo cover by Gary Compton.
Free Golden Eagle badge.
Contents:
Eagle says a special thank you to the following for their help this issue... The Magna Carta School, Staines. Epic Records.
There's still an educational element to Eagle's remit, with surprising success. One such fact is that penguins can catch colds, as the Antarctic is so cold it is germ free, thus penguins have no immunity to the sniffles. Non-fiction highlight of the issue, and I can't get the image of penguins sneezing out of my head - smiling each time I imagine them wiping their beaks on their wings, grumbling away. This is the Eagle of old shining through the new paint job. Barely visible, but still there.
Alan Grant is a great writer, but here panders to a degree of clichéd writing which doesn't feel real. In only two installments of the story, Harvey has lost all credibility as a reporter. Tailing the police officer, Harvey loses him at a train station, though sees a vaguely-familiar man get on the train - a closer look reveals that he is wearing the same distinctive alien ring. Arriving at King's Cross Station, he finally remembers the man's name, Sir Matthew Hodges, Cranbridge's member of Parliament.
While the photographic standards are, admittedly, better than average, there is still no discernible advantage to presenting Doomlord in such a manner. Artistic quibbles aside, it is to the strip's credit that the casual murder of bystanders isn't shied away from - with one such unfortunate shown to be disintegrated when the alien's disguise begins to falter.
The Adventures of Fred is a precursor to Mr. Bean, or Matt Lucas' Pompidou, perhaps. Utilising signs to tell its story, with the Inspector Clouseau-like character oblivious to their warnings, the single-page introduction is, however, merely adequate. Comedy is difficult, and when there is the added complication of creating scripts achievable through photography, it makes necessary exaggeration almost impossible. It is impossible to capture crazy antics in photo strips with the same anarchy present in drawn strips.
Pell's next hit is Tony Lombardo, a man who spends his free time on the shooting range. Deciding on an appropriate method with which to dispose of Lombardo, Pell breaks into the man's office and sets up a pistol to fire the next time someone speaks into the 'phone. Having seemingly set up the perfect murder, he is interrupted by an opportunistic thief who sees the office door open. Tied to the chair, in line with the pistol, Pell is forced to wait on Lombardo returning to his office to release him, hoping that nobody uses the 'phone...
A taut story, with a clever set-up, handled in a clunky manner through the photo strip format. The character of Pell would be revisited in Accident Man, proving that no good idea goes to waste, though here the conceit is badly squandered. With Lombardo's pistol so prominent in the photographs, it is likely he would move it back to its proper location before going anywhere near his 'phone.
The Unexplained!, a text feature which covers supernatural dogs, is suitably placed at the end of The Collector, though is far from an in-depth account of such beasts. Such a small feature was never going to be satisfying, or include the best (i.e. downright creepiest) stories, yet the complete absence of credible (and documented) reports make this a brief note that, yes, such things might exist. Maybe. Possibly. If you squint hard, and don't try to rationalise away such things. More gravity would have helped, but the main problem is with the length.
As the nature of the articles are not usually of interest, I normally give Daley's Diary a brief glance, note the contents, then move on. But this issue's contents has an intriguing comment regarding the fate of the Grand National.
The Kármán line, sixty-two miles above Earth, is generally accepted as the point at which Earth's atmosphere gives way to outer space, which itself is far higher than the flying ship is portrayed as being. It is a curious statement to make - one hundred miles places the parliament in space, though far, far too low to be in a stable orbit. Comic-book science, however, cocks a snook at such details.
At only two pages it is difficult to imagine how this is going to play out without an increase in space for the strip, though the art more than makes up for such brevity. While robots masquerading as humans is an overplayed device, the final panel is a surprising reversal of conventional depictions of the security of Earth space.
An extremely stiffly posed shot in the first panel of Sgt. Streetwise is enough to turn me off reading the strip immediately, and I honestly don't care what happens. Already, two issues in, the photo strips have outstayed their welcome.
Lord Spencer's men arrive via train, and is told he will be ruler of the Tower of London within the hour. Mick Tempest, the Tower King, has other ideas, and charges into the battle, though must retreat due to overwhelming forces. At Tower Bridge a small group of Tempest's men prepare to hold off the invaders until the bridge can be raised.
Beautiful, engaging, and utterly compelling, The Tower King continues to impress.
The Money Page, for which read "readers' mail" (with additional quirks), poses two problems, the first of which is the more troublesome - Glamorous Teacher, which praises attractive teachers, and showers gifts upon them, is annoying. Summing up a person's career with a statement of how good they look? Not cool. It would have been more appropriate to reward teachers who provided real, solid life-changing classes. The kind of teachers who are remembered long after their pupils have left school. They may not be the most photogenic, but their value to society is incalculable.
The second issue with the letters page is the poor formatting, wasting much of the page. When readers have spent time writing to a publication their comments should be presented in a respectful manner, and with enough variation in content that the page isn't fragmented snippets. As a new title the number of suitable letters might have been low, though this is where thoughtful, and erudite, responses come into play. By padding the page with an ugly border, then boxing off each section, there's so little presented that the title might as well have not bothered including it.
32 pages. Colour & B&W contents.
IPC Magazines Ltd.
Edited by David Hunt.
Photo cover by Gary Compton.
Free Golden Eagle badge.
Contents:
2 Eagle Hotline The Eagle Has Really Landed! text introduction by David Hunt. / Your Free Gift / Get Ready For... Roar film preview / Eagle Book of Records reader feedback requested. / New This Week introduction to The Money Page and The Adventures of Fred. / Odd Spot photograph (uncredited). / Happy Birthday / Last Minute Department reader feedback requested.
3 Doomlord UNTITLED [No Trace of the Spaceship], part two, w: Alan Grant; photography by Gary Compton.
7 Wellie of the Week Terry Wogan photograph (uncredited). / Eagle Sweet Talk Scarey Sticks / Things that Go Chomp in the Night! / Rocky Horror! / Caught by the Camera Boeing 727 photograph by Hans Wendt. / Ernie UNTITLED [Being a Star Comes Naturally] w:/a: Dave Follows.
8 Squadron Leaders advertisement for Humbrol 1/48 and 1/72 scale models.
9 Eagle Data File Sea King Har 3 fact file; illustration (uncredited).
10 The Adventures of Fred UNTITLED [Read the Signs] w: UNKNOWN (uncredited); photographs (uncredited).
11 The Collector Assassin w: Brian Burrell; a: Pat Wright, photography by Sven Arnstein.
14 The Unexplained! Demon Guard (one third page) text feature by UNKNOWN (uncredited); a: UNKNOWN (uncredited). / The Symbol of Excellence (one sixth page) newsagent order form.
26 Daley's Diary It's Best by Boat! / Forgotten Losers / Lauda's Crown? / The Dutch Master / The Last National? text features by Daley Thompson.
16 Dan Dare Return of the Mekon, part two, w: John Wagner & Pat Mills; a: Gerry Embleton.
18 Sgt. Streetwise UNTITLED [The Thames Gang], part two, w: Gerry Finley-Day; photographs by Dave Watts.
21 The Tower King UNTITLED [Lord Spencer's Arrival], part two, w: Alan Hebden; a: Jose Ortiz.
24 Free with Battle in-house advertisement for Battle and Strike Force sticker album; a: UNKNOWN (uncredited).
25 Eagle Interview Bob Champion (three fifths of page) interview by UNKNOWN (uncredited); photograph by UNKNOWN (uncredited). / Kids are Tough! Michael Goes on Parade (two fifths of page) text feature about Michael Webb by UNKNOWN (uncredited); photograph (uncredited).
26 The Money Page: Glamorous Teacher Miss Palmer, Magna Carta School, Staines; photograph (uncredited). / Big Mouth Belt Up, Jim! / School Uniform readers' mail. / Superdad! Nick and Matt Oakley photograph (uncredited). / Brothers & Sisters Get it Taped! / Super Sis readers' mail.
27 Thunderbolt and Smokey! UNTITLED [West Against North], part two, w: Tom Tully; photographs by John Powell.
31 Read Mike Read UNTITLED [The big mistake that I've always made with any sport I've participated in...] (half page) text feature by Mike Read; photographs (uncredited); illustration (uncredited). / Shopwatch It's Looking Good for Spring [Wrangler; Palitoy Pocketeers games] shopping feature (uncredited). / Next Week
9 Personality Plus Clare Grogan pin-up and mini-bio (uncredited). / 10 'Happy Birthday' LP's Up for Grabs! competition.
Eagle says a special thank you to the following for their help this issue... The Magna Carta School, Staines. Epic Records.
There's still an educational element to Eagle's remit, with surprising success. One such fact is that penguins can catch colds, as the Antarctic is so cold it is germ free, thus penguins have no immunity to the sniffles. Non-fiction highlight of the issue, and I can't get the image of penguins sneezing out of my head - smiling each time I imagine them wiping their beaks on their wings, grumbling away. This is the Eagle of old shining through the new paint job. Barely visible, but still there.
At the offices of the Cranberry Argus, reporter Howard Harvey - the only witness to Doomlord's arrival on Earth - tried to convince his editor that his story was true.If you are even minimally aware of series such as The Invaders you will know that attempting to convince superiors, or authorities, of alien activity is likely to end in failure. Worse, it might be seen as an eccentricity which points to instability, losing the character their safety nets of regular income and credibility. It is never a good sign when a character jumps straight to his "They're coming... They're coming..." act, rather than patiently investigating and collecting evidence.
Alan Grant is a great writer, but here panders to a degree of clichéd writing which doesn't feel real. In only two installments of the story, Harvey has lost all credibility as a reporter. Tailing the police officer, Harvey loses him at a train station, though sees a vaguely-familiar man get on the train - a closer look reveals that he is wearing the same distinctive alien ring. Arriving at King's Cross Station, he finally remembers the man's name, Sir Matthew Hodges, Cranbridge's member of Parliament.
While the photographic standards are, admittedly, better than average, there is still no discernible advantage to presenting Doomlord in such a manner. Artistic quibbles aside, it is to the strip's credit that the casual murder of bystanders isn't shied away from - with one such unfortunate shown to be disintegrated when the alien's disguise begins to falter.
The Adventures of Fred is a precursor to Mr. Bean, or Matt Lucas' Pompidou, perhaps. Utilising signs to tell its story, with the Inspector Clouseau-like character oblivious to their warnings, the single-page introduction is, however, merely adequate. Comedy is difficult, and when there is the added complication of creating scripts achievable through photography, it makes necessary exaggeration almost impossible. It is impossible to capture crazy antics in photo strips with the same anarchy present in drawn strips.
"Welcome. I see you have returned to sample another weird and bizarre tale from my museum of extraordinary exhibits.Rivalries in London's gangland sees numerous unlikely and odd "accidents" claim the lives of various people. Edward Rogan, a food connoisseur is poisoned at his own dinner table, the Gray brothers - driving enthusiasts - were involved in a fatal smash when their brakes failed, and Charley "Birdy" Burdett, fell from an office block while birdwatching. Accidents they are not, for they are the work of an assassin whose modus operandi has earned him the moniker "Heartless" Harvey Pell.
The story behind this charm bracelet is unusual. A romance, perhaps? Alas, no, let me tell you about the person who used to wear this... Harvey Pell, the man who had no heart!
Pell's next hit is Tony Lombardo, a man who spends his free time on the shooting range. Deciding on an appropriate method with which to dispose of Lombardo, Pell breaks into the man's office and sets up a pistol to fire the next time someone speaks into the 'phone. Having seemingly set up the perfect murder, he is interrupted by an opportunistic thief who sees the office door open. Tied to the chair, in line with the pistol, Pell is forced to wait on Lombardo returning to his office to release him, hoping that nobody uses the 'phone...
A taut story, with a clever set-up, handled in a clunky manner through the photo strip format. The character of Pell would be revisited in Accident Man, proving that no good idea goes to waste, though here the conceit is badly squandered. With Lombardo's pistol so prominent in the photographs, it is likely he would move it back to its proper location before going anywhere near his 'phone.
The Unexplained!, a text feature which covers supernatural dogs, is suitably placed at the end of The Collector, though is far from an in-depth account of such beasts. Such a small feature was never going to be satisfying, or include the best (i.e. downright creepiest) stories, yet the complete absence of credible (and documented) reports make this a brief note that, yes, such things might exist. Maybe. Possibly. If you squint hard, and don't try to rationalise away such things. More gravity would have helped, but the main problem is with the length.
As the nature of the articles are not usually of interest, I normally give Daley's Diary a brief glance, note the contents, then move on. But this issue's contents has an intriguing comment regarding the fate of the Grand National.
I shall be very sorry, like all lovers of sport, if this year's Grand National is the last to be run. It's become part of the British way of life.While various attempts, over the years, to have the race brought to an end due to animal welfare concerns, there has never really been a sense that such concerns might actually come to anything. What was different in the early eighties? I kinda want to know how close the race came to ending, but I'm not interested - or invested - enough to go looking. Context in the reporting of current events is appreciated, especially when texts are analysed at such a remove. Approaching the commentary now, without immediate access to material of the period covering the event in detail, makes for a frustrating and tantalising read.
The year was 2210, one mile above the Earth, in the parliament of the Terran Federation, delegates sit in emergency session. . . .Dan Dare begins strong, with an armada of eight thousand ships approaching Earth. The president reveals that he is a robot, exploding with enough force to destroy the satellite upon which the parliament are aboard. Luna Base, HQ of the Terran Defence Fleet, launch a force to repel the invasion, though possibly not in time.
The Kármán line, sixty-two miles above Earth, is generally accepted as the point at which Earth's atmosphere gives way to outer space, which itself is far higher than the flying ship is portrayed as being. It is a curious statement to make - one hundred miles places the parliament in space, though far, far too low to be in a stable orbit. Comic-book science, however, cocks a snook at such details.
At only two pages it is difficult to imagine how this is going to play out without an increase in space for the strip, though the art more than makes up for such brevity. While robots masquerading as humans is an overplayed device, the final panel is a surprising reversal of conventional depictions of the security of Earth space.
An extremely stiffly posed shot in the first panel of Sgt. Streetwise is enough to turn me off reading the strip immediately, and I honestly don't care what happens. Already, two issues in, the photo strips have outstayed their welcome.
Lord Spencer's men arrive via train, and is told he will be ruler of the Tower of London within the hour. Mick Tempest, the Tower King, has other ideas, and charges into the battle, though must retreat due to overwhelming forces. At Tower Bridge a small group of Tempest's men prepare to hold off the invaders until the bridge can be raised.
Beautiful, engaging, and utterly compelling, The Tower King continues to impress.
The Money Page, for which read "readers' mail" (with additional quirks), poses two problems, the first of which is the more troublesome - Glamorous Teacher, which praises attractive teachers, and showers gifts upon them, is annoying. Summing up a person's career with a statement of how good they look? Not cool. It would have been more appropriate to reward teachers who provided real, solid life-changing classes. The kind of teachers who are remembered long after their pupils have left school. They may not be the most photogenic, but their value to society is incalculable.
The second issue with the letters page is the poor formatting, wasting much of the page. When readers have spent time writing to a publication their comments should be presented in a respectful manner, and with enough variation in content that the page isn't fragmented snippets. As a new title the number of suitable letters might have been low, though this is where thoughtful, and erudite, responses come into play. By padding the page with an ugly border, then boxing off each section, there's so little presented that the title might as well have not bothered including it.
Eagle [Vol.21]
#03
Doctor Who Weekly #3
31 Oct 1979. Cover price 12p.
28 pages. B&W contents.
Marvel Comics Ltd.
Edited by Dez Skinn.
Photo cover (uncredited).
Free transfers.
Contents:
Albert and Elsie Olthwaite should be revived for the new series, just so this issue's letter from the Doctor can be regarded as canon. An exceptionaly strange manner in which to begin the issue, though the sense of whimsy evoked by such a communication from the Doctor is reminiscent of the Tom Baker era as a whole. Slighty mad, yes, but with insights which pierce through 'common sense' to deliver profound statements.
Which likely makes the show sound a bit pretentious.
The Doctor faces the Ectoslime, which stuns its victims with its odour before liquefying them and drinking them. Searching his memory to recall if he had ever faced one before, he recalls the fact they have a highly developed sense of humour to make up for their appearance - so tells it a joke:
Having saved himself from a gruesome death, he is dragged from the arena and placed as a slave in an Imperial Air Galley by General Ironicus. A fellow captive aboard the ship is surprised that the Doctor isn't afraid of him due to his appearance, though the Doctor explains that, compared to the Ectoslime, he is almost handsome. Catching a glimpse of Caesar's mother, the Doctor thinks he has discovered the secret of the Galactic Roman Empire...
Has anyone attempted to translate the joke? I'm hoping it is presented in a code, and not merely a jumble of symbols, as such small details add a certain something to the character - even if I'm too lazy to find a suitable solution. The design sensibilities of the Roman-inspired world are rich in detail, with a few exceptional panels. The image of Caesar's mother is one of the few times we get to really see the world as the Doctor does.
And there's almost that Bugs Bunny line, for those amused at such things.
Whatever amusement could be gained from the Crazy Caption images is rather muted by the poor choice of images for this purpose. Screen captures of actors in the middle of unlikely and improbable events, with appropriately weird expressions, are much more suited to captioning. Before anyone points out how difficult such images were to get in 1979, such systems were available.
The Ice Warrior is an odd choice for Doctor Who's "monster of the week" feature, as they never really felt like top-tier enemies until later development, though the article is very informative. Behind-the-scenes images of Bernard Bresslaw getting prepared for his role as Varga are wonderful glimpses into the process of bringing the character to the screen, and worth the cover price alone. The paper quality doesn't do the images justice, though any opportunity to get a peek at the workings of Doctor Who's special effects are welcome.
Recapping The Dead Planet, the entrance of Daleks to the series is captured well, yet its importance in solidifying the series' popularity isn't addressed. It should have at least had a few newspaper reviews, or even snippets of Radio Times publicity material, which would have really sold the time period in which the episode was broadcast to readers.
Jon Pertwee's mini-bio highlights the inadequacy of the short overviews - despite being in line with previous entries, there's much more to his career than is presented here. Neither pin-up nor biography, the photo-files are a weird hybrid which serves neither function. While later incarnations of the title would handle the balance better, I find myself frustrated with the self-imposed limitations the title has created for itself.
Return of the Daleks, remaining a beautiful isolated glimmer of gold in the Doctor's universe, finds Glax and Hok knocked from their steeds by a whirling sandstorm. Within the winds, which they struggle through, they find a pyramid which is topped with a strange light. A door opens as they approach it, granting them access to a recording revealing the secret to the Daleks' defeat. Before Glax can learn what they must do, Kuay blasts the device and summons her Dalek masters.
The strips and television series information continues to make this a title which is well worth seeking out, though its lightweight features are beginning to grate.
28 pages. B&W contents.
Marvel Comics Ltd.
Edited by Dez Skinn.
Photo cover (uncredited).
Free transfers.
Contents:
2 A Letter from the Doctor text feature by Dez Skinn (uncredited).
3 Doctor Who and the Iron Legion, part three, w: Pat Mills & John Wagner; a: Dave Gibbons.
7 Crazy Caption 3 competition; photograph (uncredited).
8 The Monsters of Doctor Who The Ice Warriors text feature by Gordon Blows (uncredited); photographs (uncredited).
10 Monster Mix Answers (quarter page) / Another S-F Winner from Marvel in-house advertisement for Starburst.
11 Planet Puzzle illustrated by UNKNOWN (uncredited).
12 Tales from the TARDIS War of the Worlds, part three, 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 The Dead Planet text feature compiled by Jeremy Bentham; photographs (uncredited).
22 Doctor Who Photo-File Jon Pertwee fact-file (uncredited); photograph (uncredited).
23 The Return of the Daleks, part three, 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.
Albert and Elsie Olthwaite should be revived for the new series, just so this issue's letter from the Doctor can be regarded as canon. An exceptionaly strange manner in which to begin the issue, though the sense of whimsy evoked by such a communication from the Doctor is reminiscent of the Tom Baker era as a whole. Slighty mad, yes, but with insights which pierce through 'common sense' to deliver profound statements.
Which likely makes the show sound a bit pretentious.
The Doctor faces the Ectoslime, which stuns its victims with its odour before liquefying them and drinking them. Searching his memory to recall if he had ever faced one before, he recalls the fact they have a highly developed sense of humour to make up for their appearance - so tells it a joke:
Having saved himself from a gruesome death, he is dragged from the arena and placed as a slave in an Imperial Air Galley by General Ironicus. A fellow captive aboard the ship is surprised that the Doctor isn't afraid of him due to his appearance, though the Doctor explains that, compared to the Ectoslime, he is almost handsome. Catching a glimpse of Caesar's mother, the Doctor thinks he has discovered the secret of the Galactic Roman Empire...
Has anyone attempted to translate the joke? I'm hoping it is presented in a code, and not merely a jumble of symbols, as such small details add a certain something to the character - even if I'm too lazy to find a suitable solution. The design sensibilities of the Roman-inspired world are rich in detail, with a few exceptional panels. The image of Caesar's mother is one of the few times we get to really see the world as the Doctor does.
And there's almost that Bugs Bunny line, for those amused at such things.
Whatever amusement could be gained from the Crazy Caption images is rather muted by the poor choice of images for this purpose. Screen captures of actors in the middle of unlikely and improbable events, with appropriately weird expressions, are much more suited to captioning. Before anyone points out how difficult such images were to get in 1979, such systems were available.
The Ice Warrior is an odd choice for Doctor Who's "monster of the week" feature, as they never really felt like top-tier enemies until later development, though the article is very informative. Behind-the-scenes images of Bernard Bresslaw getting prepared for his role as Varga are wonderful glimpses into the process of bringing the character to the screen, and worth the cover price alone. The paper quality doesn't do the images justice, though any opportunity to get a peek at the workings of Doctor Who's special effects are welcome.
Recapping The Dead Planet, the entrance of Daleks to the series is captured well, yet its importance in solidifying the series' popularity isn't addressed. It should have at least had a few newspaper reviews, or even snippets of Radio Times publicity material, which would have really sold the time period in which the episode was broadcast to readers.
Jon Pertwee's mini-bio highlights the inadequacy of the short overviews - despite being in line with previous entries, there's much more to his career than is presented here. Neither pin-up nor biography, the photo-files are a weird hybrid which serves neither function. While later incarnations of the title would handle the balance better, I find myself frustrated with the self-imposed limitations the title has created for itself.
Return of the Daleks, remaining a beautiful isolated glimmer of gold in the Doctor's universe, finds Glax and Hok knocked from their steeds by a whirling sandstorm. Within the winds, which they struggle through, they find a pyramid which is topped with a strange light. A door opens as they approach it, granting them access to a recording revealing the secret to the Daleks' defeat. Before Glax can learn what they must do, Kuay blasts the device and summons her Dalek masters.
The strips and television series information continues to make this a title which is well worth seeking out, though its lightweight features are beginning to grate.
#02
Doctor Who Weekly
#04
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
Sunday, November 25, 2018
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
Friday, November 23, 2018
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
Tuesday, November 20, 2018
Strip #1
...The Comic Grows Up!
17 Feb 1990. Cover price 95p.
40 pages. Colour contents.
Marvel Comics, Ltd.
Edited by Dan Abnett.
Cover by Kevin O'Neill.
Free cover-mounted badge.
Contents:
.2 Get Doctor Who Magazine Now in-house advertisement.
.3 Contents / Indicia
39 Next Issue
40 Marvel Graphic Novels in-house advertisement.
The proclamation may be "the comic grow up", but this still has a cover gift, shies away from more mature elements, and has (however tenuous) roots in superheroes with the presence of Marshal Law. If anything, this can be seen as a tame precursor to CLiNT, but there's still enough skewed weirdness to keep things interesting for those of us perpetually bored by the antics of costumed characters punching each other in the face - although there is that as well, and superbly done.
Without its claim beneath the title this would be an excellent first issue, but with that hanging over everything, a reminder of what could have been, this is merely a good title. Can merely defining itself as a mature title be so damaging? You might disagree, but such claims ought to be backed up with strenuous efforts to advance the form. The badge, surprisingly, doesn't refer to the comic at all, with the slogan "Bare Faced Chic" instead, as if advertising a women's fashion magazine. It isn't a bad statement, in and of itself, but not one which brings to mind comics.
What would be the perfect badge to sell a mature line? I'm not sure. It would have to be both amusing, as well as speaking to a sensibility that is interested in matters beyond spandex. Being so vague with (what is essentially) free advertising is a misstep - how are people to equate the random slogan with the title?
How good a first issue is this? The trade dress, stylish though understated distressing, is a very eighties look, and slightly disappointing. More critical is a lack of introduction, laying out the intended purpose of the title. Very large contents type makes this appear to be aimed at younger readers, and utilising the space better could have allowed for some communication from Abnett. A discourse with readers is one of the fundamental strengths of comics, and by ignoring this tool the title distances itself needlessly.
Marshal Law uses visual references to The Shadow, Bulletman, along with other classic characters, superbly, establishing the setting well. Employing a muted palette to emphasise the art, rather than drown it, further deepens the mood. A beautiful grotesquerie masquerading as a superhero story, with decay and squalor sitting beside gaudy Vegas-style illuminations to heighten the oddity of the city - somewhere between Furst's Gotham, Mega City One, and a Jean-Pierre Jeunet cityscape.
We don't get nearly enough of the background details to fully comprehend how everyday things manage to operate in such a place, but it is assumed that there are still-functioning utilities, and that people aren't slowly being driven crazy merely by proximity to such a place.
Reading like a pitch for an adult cartoon series The Man from Cancer isn't as clear in presentation as a first installment of a series really ought to be, with numerous imaginary elements (in the same style as the rest of the strip) crowding the events, this isn't as clear as a first installment of a continuing story ought to be.
Ian Gibson's artwork on The Chronicles of Genghis Grimtoad is simply amazing, though great art alone is no incentive to keep reading.
At only two pages, of which a great deal is presented with text boxes, so little happens that it is difficult to get a sense of this setting as a real location, with attendant problems, unique culture, and character personalities shining through. Far too much is made of matters which aren't directly related to the title character. It is a strip which takes time to get into, which is a terrible handicap when given such a brief appearance.
The complete story, Incognito, follows Gloria Grant, a famous film actress, as she encounters a man and seemingly builds a brief friendship thanks to him not recognising her. It is a strip which draws on old crime comics, such as published by EC, with a satisfying twist in the tail. Although finely drawn, and with a definite style to the telling, there isn't quite enough to justify eight pages.
The most entertaining element is the three-page text piece by Kevin O'Neill, where he points out that Pat Mills hates superheroes. Hmm. There's a reason I like Mills' comics. Replete with numerous sketches, showing the development of Marshal Law, this is a piece which brings a little of the personal touch I appreciate so much.
It isn't the best start, but a much better opening salvo than most new titles.
17 Feb 1990. Cover price 95p.
40 pages. Colour contents.
Marvel Comics, Ltd.
Edited by Dan Abnett.
Cover by Kevin O'Neill.
Free cover-mounted badge.
Contents:
.2 Get Doctor Who Magazine Now in-house advertisement.
.3 Contents / Indicia
.4 Marshal Law Stars And Strippers part one, w: Pat Mills; a: Kevin O'Neill, lettering by Phil Felix.
18 The Man from Cancer part one, w: Glenn Dakin; a: Phil Elliott, lettering by Phil Elliott, colouring by Steve White.
26 The Chronicles of Genghis Grimtoad part one, w: Alan Grant & John Wagner; a: Ian Gibson, lettering by Bambos Georgiou.
28 Incognito w: Paul Buck; a: Art Wetherell, lettering by Stuart Bartlett, colouring by Euan Peters.
36 Upholding The Law text feature by Kevin O'Neill; illustrations.39 Next Issue
40 Marvel Graphic Novels in-house advertisement.
The proclamation may be "the comic grow up", but this still has a cover gift, shies away from more mature elements, and has (however tenuous) roots in superheroes with the presence of Marshal Law. If anything, this can be seen as a tame precursor to CLiNT, but there's still enough skewed weirdness to keep things interesting for those of us perpetually bored by the antics of costumed characters punching each other in the face - although there is that as well, and superbly done.
Without its claim beneath the title this would be an excellent first issue, but with that hanging over everything, a reminder of what could have been, this is merely a good title. Can merely defining itself as a mature title be so damaging? You might disagree, but such claims ought to be backed up with strenuous efforts to advance the form. The badge, surprisingly, doesn't refer to the comic at all, with the slogan "Bare Faced Chic" instead, as if advertising a women's fashion magazine. It isn't a bad statement, in and of itself, but not one which brings to mind comics.
What would be the perfect badge to sell a mature line? I'm not sure. It would have to be both amusing, as well as speaking to a sensibility that is interested in matters beyond spandex. Being so vague with (what is essentially) free advertising is a misstep - how are people to equate the random slogan with the title?
How good a first issue is this? The trade dress, stylish though understated distressing, is a very eighties look, and slightly disappointing. More critical is a lack of introduction, laying out the intended purpose of the title. Very large contents type makes this appear to be aimed at younger readers, and utilising the space better could have allowed for some communication from Abnett. A discourse with readers is one of the fundamental strengths of comics, and by ignoring this tool the title distances itself needlessly.
After the Big One destroyed San Francisco... After the war in the Zone ended in stalemate... After the superheroes came home...A strippergram, dressed as the heroine Celeste, walks home through dark Downtown streets, fearing for her safety as a masked man follows her. Asking a stranger the location of the nearest police station, he answers that it is a secret, and when requested for the number is told that it is unlisted. As he leaves her, she runs in an attempt to lose her stalker. The masked man eventually corners her, dragging her to a rooftop where he drops her off the side, saying that "all super heroes should fly."
Marshal Law uses visual references to The Shadow, Bulletman, along with other classic characters, superbly, establishing the setting well. Employing a muted palette to emphasise the art, rather than drown it, further deepens the mood. A beautiful grotesquerie masquerading as a superhero story, with decay and squalor sitting beside gaudy Vegas-style illuminations to heighten the oddity of the city - somewhere between Furst's Gotham, Mega City One, and a Jean-Pierre Jeunet cityscape.
We don't get nearly enough of the background details to fully comprehend how everyday things manage to operate in such a place, but it is assumed that there are still-functioning utilities, and that people aren't slowly being driven crazy merely by proximity to such a place.
Reading like a pitch for an adult cartoon series The Man from Cancer isn't as clear in presentation as a first installment of a series really ought to be, with numerous imaginary elements (in the same style as the rest of the strip) crowding the events, this isn't as clear as a first installment of a continuing story ought to be.
Ian Gibson's artwork on The Chronicles of Genghis Grimtoad is simply amazing, though great art alone is no incentive to keep reading.
On the world known as Shadow-Earth, it came to pass that in the seventeenth year of the reign of Ranald the Protector, the savage hordes of Kang did storm the walls of Haven, and the blood of the brave ran red on the ramparts...It reads like an awkward and unconvincing mix of every cheap fantasy paperback from the seventies smooshed together in a sticky pulp. Firstly, they called their world Shadow-Earth? My problem here (which I also have with DC Comics' Earth 2) is that is it difficult to imagine a civilisation referring to itself as being the alternative to the "real" Earth, in however diminished a capacity. A completely original name would have worked far better, as would a non-punny name for Karbunkle Grimtoad's given name. Would you call your child Carbuncle? Honestly?
And the hideous image of Toadthrax the sorcerer did darken the skies, and his demons poured forth their fury upon the defenders...
In Inner-Haven, Karbunkle Grimtoad, sorcerer to King Ranald, cast the portents...
At only two pages, of which a great deal is presented with text boxes, so little happens that it is difficult to get a sense of this setting as a real location, with attendant problems, unique culture, and character personalities shining through. Far too much is made of matters which aren't directly related to the title character. It is a strip which takes time to get into, which is a terrible handicap when given such a brief appearance.
The complete story, Incognito, follows Gloria Grant, a famous film actress, as she encounters a man and seemingly builds a brief friendship thanks to him not recognising her. It is a strip which draws on old crime comics, such as published by EC, with a satisfying twist in the tail. Although finely drawn, and with a definite style to the telling, there isn't quite enough to justify eight pages.
The most entertaining element is the three-page text piece by Kevin O'Neill, where he points out that Pat Mills hates superheroes. Hmm. There's a reason I like Mills' comics. Replete with numerous sketches, showing the development of Marshal Law, this is a piece which brings a little of the personal touch I appreciate so much.
It isn't the best start, but a much better opening salvo than most new titles.
Strip
#02
Thursday, November 1, 2018
Scream! #1
24 Mar 1984; Cover price 22p.
32 pages. Colour & B&W.
IPC Magazines Ltd.
Edited by Ian Rimmer.
Cover by UNKNOWN.
Free Dracula fangs.
Contents:
I vividly remember running around with Dracula fangs in my mouth when I first read Scream!, and the strange taste which they left in my mouth for a while after. Memories of this title appearing on the shelves of newsagents is still fresh in my mind all these years later, and coming to it after so long is... Well, it is weird. Separating the quality of contents from the memory of stories is an interesting experience, though mostly it holds up under scrutiny.
Although bringing the Count into a modern era had been done several times before (most memorably in Dracula A.D. 1972), The Dracula File manages to retain visual aesthetics of more traditional interpretations while staying conscious of the political landscape of mainland Europe since WWII. The strip's weak spot is a thoroughly uninspiring logo, which doesn't capture the cold war spirit to any degree.
Taking a uniform from an East German military base near the border, a defector disguises himself in order to make a run for the barbed wire on the western side. Guards fire at him as he flees, and, as mines explode around him, he stumbles to safe harbour. Taken to a British military hospital in Western Germany, the officers in charge determine that he is Rumanian, and ponder whether he might be a valuable defector. It is an opening which could have been inserted into a contemporary James Bond film without changing much.
The jacket he wore during his escape is checked, and the British see a row of bullet holes - he man should have died from his injuries. Computer analysis of medical reports show his body is of indefinable age, but before information can be passed along a fire breaks out. Thinking that they are in a Len Deighton novel, the British consider the possibility that K.G.B. agents might have attempted to kill the defector, not realising that danger is closer than they think.
There are a few places where the story attempts to make leaps it can't quite reach, and the final panel is a touch too on-the-nose, but there's more to like than dislike in the manner Gerry Finley Day brings Dracula back to Britain. There was one aspect of the story which seemed far-fetched at the time of publication, but which have been proven correct in intervening years - bats can cross the Channel. It was something that bothered me, but since it ha been verified I'll refrain from pointing out how unlikely they are to show up on radar.
With an audacious sense of black humour, Alan Moore opens Monster with twelve-year-old Kenneth Corman burying his father's corpse in his back garden is nothing compared to how he closes out this installment - the boy walking slowly up the stairs to a locked door. There's so little event, yet so much detail. While we don't get introduced to the inhabitant of the room, we get enough background to know that there is a secret here which been maintained for a very long time. There is real emotions at play, and a solidity of setting which is a step above expectation.
Three years before Robert Maxwell bought IPC, there was Maxwell Tower...
Max, the digital protagonist of The Thirteenth Floor, is Scream!'s star attraction. It is difficult to justify an in-universe reason for a screen representing the software, but the visual adds so much to Max's character - a crackling screen of static and electricity with a mind of its own. Jerry, his controller, isn't as well defined, but there is obviously a close rapport in the scenes they share.
Jerry permits Max to take care of new tenants moving in, Mrs. Henderson and her son. As they settle in to their new home, Mr. Kemp (an unpleasant debt collector) arrives to harangue the recently-widowed woman about money she owes him. Max, naturally, is less than pleased at this state of affairs, and decides to teach him a lesson. Despite being built without a thirteenth floor, the traditional image of death (a skeletal figure in robes carrying a scythe) greets Kemp there.
Now that Rebellion own the character, there exists the (remote) possibility that we might get a personal assistant based on Max. So much more interesting than Siri, who would never dare suggest that someone annoying be disposed of in a gruesome-yet-appropriate manner.
Horror anthologies need good hosts. Dry wits capable of lightening the tone between tales, stepping in and out of the narrative to address the reader with offhand commentary on the events. Unfortunately, despite the best of intentions, The Leper isn't a good host. Yes, he looks appropriately hideous, but his schtick is decidedly one-note. How many ways can a leprous grave-digger be worked into a story? That Scream! already had Ghastly McNasty able to perform a similar role, The Leper is doubly redundant.
The grave in preparation is for Joshuah Sleeth, the undertaker, was a thoroughly unpleasant individual, not above assisting people to the other side in his quest for money. There is a great sense of atmosphere in the telling, and even the slightly cartoony touch which Watson brings to the strip works well. That the story feels very familiar might be down to having read the issue on publication, but I'm certain that there is more to it than that.
A Ghastly Tale! brings to mind Future Shocks in 2000 A.D., bring a sequence which blazes through a slight premise in a single page, never explaining more than it has to. So brief is the strip's presence that we don't find out the names of either of the main characters, nor why, precisely, they are reduced to appearing in a sideshow. An interesting experiment in storytelling, though one which is likely to become frustrating in the long term.
Good reprints - and specifically ones which are well-chosen for appropriateness in a title - are always welcome, and Fiends and Neighbours is a classic.
At Death's Door feels like a cop-out thanks to the "it was all just a dream" ending, but the visual of the ghost with a stick is fabulous. Yes, the story is derivative and hokey, but horror stories don't necessarily need to operate on logical foundations, and the telling is entertaining. It would have been better with more background to the family situation (and why the parents seem so stiff), but it is a continuing story.
What is the deal with cats? Cats. Are. Not. Scary.
Was someone at IPC bitten by a cat as a child? I'm not sure why both Misty and Scream! were launched with stories about cats, but as figures of dread they are lacking. Rats can be terrifying (ask James Herbert), dogs can - when handled well - hold a few scares, but domestic cats are far too unimposing to present a credible threat.
Terror of the Cats is based on the conceit that cats have turned on people, attacking randomly. There's not much more going on, and at no point in the story is there a sense that the story is being taken seriously. To end on such a low point is unfortunate.
32 pages. Colour & B&W.
IPC Magazines Ltd.
Edited by Ian Rimmer.
Cover by UNKNOWN.
Free Dracula fangs.
Contents:
.2 From the Depths... text introduction (uncredited).
.3 The Dracula File UNTITLED, part one, w: Gerry Finley Day; a: Eric Bradbury, lettering by John Aldrich.
.8 Monster What was the Terrifying Secret of the Locked Room?, part one, w: Alan Moore; a: Heinzl, lettering by Paul Bensberg.
12 The Thirteenth Floor The Thirteenth Floor Didn't Exist... Yet it was There..., part one, w: Ian Holland (Alan Grant & John Wagner); a: Jose Ortiz, lettering by Mike Peters.
16 Tales from the Grave "The Undertaker", part one, w: Tom Tully; a: Jim Watson, lettering by Tim Skomski.
19 A Ghastly Tale! w: UNKNOWN; a: UNKNOWN.
20 Fiends and Neighbours UNTITLED w: UNKNOWN; a: Graham Allen (uncredited).
r: Cor!! (IPC Magazines Ltd.) #[182] (24 Nov 1973).
22 Library of Death At Death's Door... w: Barrie Tomlinson; a: Cam Kennedy, lettering by Mike Peters.
27 The Terror of the Cats "No Harm...", part one, w: John Agee; a: Gonzalez, lettering by Peter Knight.
31 Dare You Read Scream! Next Week? (one third page) next issue information. / Advertisements (two thirds page)
32 Presented With Scream! illustration by UNKNOWN.
I vividly remember running around with Dracula fangs in my mouth when I first read Scream!, and the strange taste which they left in my mouth for a while after. Memories of this title appearing on the shelves of newsagents is still fresh in my mind all these years later, and coming to it after so long is... Well, it is weird. Separating the quality of contents from the memory of stories is an interesting experience, though mostly it holds up under scrutiny.
Although bringing the Count into a modern era had been done several times before (most memorably in Dracula A.D. 1972), The Dracula File manages to retain visual aesthetics of more traditional interpretations while staying conscious of the political landscape of mainland Europe since WWII. The strip's weak spot is a thoroughly uninspiring logo, which doesn't capture the cold war spirit to any degree.
Taking a uniform from an East German military base near the border, a defector disguises himself in order to make a run for the barbed wire on the western side. Guards fire at him as he flees, and, as mines explode around him, he stumbles to safe harbour. Taken to a British military hospital in Western Germany, the officers in charge determine that he is Rumanian, and ponder whether he might be a valuable defector. It is an opening which could have been inserted into a contemporary James Bond film without changing much.
The jacket he wore during his escape is checked, and the British see a row of bullet holes - he man should have died from his injuries. Computer analysis of medical reports show his body is of indefinable age, but before information can be passed along a fire breaks out. Thinking that they are in a Len Deighton novel, the British consider the possibility that K.G.B. agents might have attempted to kill the defector, not realising that danger is closer than they think.
There are a few places where the story attempts to make leaps it can't quite reach, and the final panel is a touch too on-the-nose, but there's more to like than dislike in the manner Gerry Finley Day brings Dracula back to Britain. There was one aspect of the story which seemed far-fetched at the time of publication, but which have been proven correct in intervening years - bats can cross the Channel. It was something that bothered me, but since it ha been verified I'll refrain from pointing out how unlikely they are to show up on radar.
With an audacious sense of black humour, Alan Moore opens Monster with twelve-year-old Kenneth Corman burying his father's corpse in his back garden is nothing compared to how he closes out this installment - the boy walking slowly up the stairs to a locked door. There's so little event, yet so much detail. While we don't get introduced to the inhabitant of the room, we get enough background to know that there is a secret here which been maintained for a very long time. There is real emotions at play, and a solidity of setting which is a step above expectation.
Three years before Robert Maxwell bought IPC, there was Maxwell Tower...
Max, the digital protagonist of The Thirteenth Floor, is Scream!'s star attraction. It is difficult to justify an in-universe reason for a screen representing the software, but the visual adds so much to Max's character - a crackling screen of static and electricity with a mind of its own. Jerry, his controller, isn't as well defined, but there is obviously a close rapport in the scenes they share.
Jerry permits Max to take care of new tenants moving in, Mrs. Henderson and her son. As they settle in to their new home, Mr. Kemp (an unpleasant debt collector) arrives to harangue the recently-widowed woman about money she owes him. Max, naturally, is less than pleased at this state of affairs, and decides to teach him a lesson. Despite being built without a thirteenth floor, the traditional image of death (a skeletal figure in robes carrying a scythe) greets Kemp there.
Now that Rebellion own the character, there exists the (remote) possibility that we might get a personal assistant based on Max. So much more interesting than Siri, who would never dare suggest that someone annoying be disposed of in a gruesome-yet-appropriate manner.
Horror anthologies need good hosts. Dry wits capable of lightening the tone between tales, stepping in and out of the narrative to address the reader with offhand commentary on the events. Unfortunately, despite the best of intentions, The Leper isn't a good host. Yes, he looks appropriately hideous, but his schtick is decidedly one-note. How many ways can a leprous grave-digger be worked into a story? That Scream! already had Ghastly McNasty able to perform a similar role, The Leper is doubly redundant.
The grave in preparation is for Joshuah Sleeth, the undertaker, was a thoroughly unpleasant individual, not above assisting people to the other side in his quest for money. There is a great sense of atmosphere in the telling, and even the slightly cartoony touch which Watson brings to the strip works well. That the story feels very familiar might be down to having read the issue on publication, but I'm certain that there is more to it than that.
A Ghastly Tale! brings to mind Future Shocks in 2000 A.D., bring a sequence which blazes through a slight premise in a single page, never explaining more than it has to. So brief is the strip's presence that we don't find out the names of either of the main characters, nor why, precisely, they are reduced to appearing in a sideshow. An interesting experiment in storytelling, though one which is likely to become frustrating in the long term.
Good reprints - and specifically ones which are well-chosen for appropriateness in a title - are always welcome, and Fiends and Neighbours is a classic.
At Death's Door feels like a cop-out thanks to the "it was all just a dream" ending, but the visual of the ghost with a stick is fabulous. Yes, the story is derivative and hokey, but horror stories don't necessarily need to operate on logical foundations, and the telling is entertaining. It would have been better with more background to the family situation (and why the parents seem so stiff), but it is a continuing story.
What is the deal with cats? Cats. Are. Not. Scary.
Was someone at IPC bitten by a cat as a child? I'm not sure why both Misty and Scream! were launched with stories about cats, but as figures of dread they are lacking. Rats can be terrifying (ask James Herbert), dogs can - when handled well - hold a few scares, but domestic cats are far too unimposing to present a credible threat.
Terror of the Cats is based on the conceit that cats have turned on people, attacking randomly. There's not much more going on, and at no point in the story is there a sense that the story is being taken seriously. To end on such a low point is unfortunate.
Saturday, October 27, 2018
Judge Dredd Mega-Special #1
1988. Cover price 75p.
48 pages. Colour & B&W.
Fleetway Publications.
Edited by Richard Burton.
Cover by Brian Bolland.
Contents:
The first Mega-Special is much like Dredd's appearances in 2000 A.D., but with greater room to maneuver. Under an impressive cover by Brian Bolland (who hasn't drawn a bad Dredd yet), there is a superb Fabry illustration. The contents pages allow artists to show off a little, and this is no exception - Dredd's Lawmaster really looks like a real piece of technology, though colouring is perhaps a touch too bright for Mega-City One.
The Blob begins on Pier 17 at Mega-City One's docks, where a jelly-like tentacle grabs the leg of Eric, a crane operator who is in the process of unloading cargo. The crate breaks open while dangling above his co-workers, showering them with its' contents - knives imported from New Sheffield. Dredd is dispatched to investigate, and discovers Eric's body, along with several others, in the lumber stacks. The blob-creature has made its escape, however, making its way to safety.
Forensics examine the crime scene while Dredd trails it, and they come to the conclusion that it is mutated slime-mould, most likely a Black Atlantic mutation which grabbed a lift from a passing ship in order to get into Mega-City One. The forensics team warn Dredd that it is extremely carnivorous, dosing its victims with acid, before absorbing the resulting sludge through its pores. Dredd confronts the blob, despite obvious dangers, but discovers his bullets have no effect. Worse, it begins eating through his uniform.
Firing an incendiary at the blob, Dredd orders fire teams and a med-squad to Steve McQueen Block, before seeking medical attention for his wounds. From the briefest touch, it managed to eat through Dredd's leg nearly to the bone. You can tell that everyone is having a lot of fun with the story, and some of the dialogue is solid gold:
Where The Blob excels at setting and tone through largely understated moments, The Blockers is less restrained. It is the kind of story which, if it appeared anywhere else, would be black comedy, but is - unfortunately for citizens of Mega-City One - more of a day-in-the-life strand. The focus of events is Adolf Hitler Block - 400 floors, containing 18,000 housing units, schools, shopping centres, and a hospital. 64,301 citizens crammed in like sardines, slowly going mad...
Frank Dolby, of apartment 39F, prepares for a Citi-Def combat exercise, while his wife knits a book. As Citi-Def organiser for the floor, Frank makes his way to 39G, where Carlton Einstein (a television addict) has barely left his chair for twelve years. Edith Einstein, his wife, and a compulsive shopper, is doing the family accounts as Willis, Edith and Frank's son, makes a prank call to Ed De Bono Citi-Def to warn them of Hitler Block's aggressive maneuvers against them.
Three floors above, in 42X, Rudyard Quincy decides to kill himself before he goes insane, hoping to take out the rest of the block in the process with a home-made nuclear weapon. The De Bono block cuts down Frank's unit with firearms, thanks to Willis' intervention, as the wayward youth watches on in amusement, hanging out his window. Rudyard's nuke fails, and he throws it away in disgust - landing on Willis' head as it falls.
Overjoyed at a nuke - almost literally - falling into her lap, Edith sees a way to make some money in order to feed her family. Frank returns from the unsuccessful raid, and asks if Edith knows where he can lay his hands on a nuke... Despite not getting a lot of background to the story of the block, we don't need extraneous detail. These are people instantly familiar from Mega-City One, the unfotunates who have been abandoned to their fate in a towering, impersonal, chaotic city.
While it is always nice to get newspaper strips reprinted on better paper, Weirdies! isn't a classic slice of Dredd history. A return for Citizen J. Snork, he of the rather large schnoz, in a celebration of the odd, the strange, and the downright weird. There's a nice conclusion, yet this story is lacking a certain urgency. Ian Gibson's great artwork is reproduced sharply and without feeling too crammed in. It shouldn't need to be pointed out (again) that Gibson's style is refreshingly light and breezy.
New in the Cubes covers Liam Sharp, Barry Kitson, John Higgins, and Will Simpson, though the half-page format of biographical information pieces doesn't allow for a great deal of personality to shine through - these small glimpses into the creators' lives are a long-running 2000 A.D. tradition, and is something which always appealed to me. Such features are much better use of pages than recaps of stories, such as... Well, Chopper's Odyssey.
The Pie-in-the-Sky mid-air restaurant makes a welcome return, where Don Pesci is celebrating his hundredth birthday in the Mississippi Mud Suite. Don Pesci's celebration is abruptly interrupted when a Judge emerges from his birthday cake, only to be immediately shot to death by Pesci. His men assure him that it was a singing telegram, and the body is removed by the easiest means available - being thrown out the building. Which is where things start to escalate...
An early evening Batglider, soaring in the thermal updrafts, is the first to be hit by the corpse. The Norrin Radd Block skysurf club, practising their close-formation pyramid move, are next to have a very close encounter, which leads to a very large mess for the real Judges to clean up. Discovering a business card for Party Poppers, Dredd talks to the owner of the company. and - finding that the dead man was paid to appear at Pie-in-the-Sky - arranges transport to the restaurant.
Pesci and his associates have long since departed, and (despite a sincere attempt at stalling from robot staff) Dredd finds that, as a birthday present the Don, his men have arranged a heist for his participation. With time running out, Dredd rushes to meet the location of the robbery. Stunning artwork, a great, twisty story (with all kinds of little nods and homages), and a ticking clock plot - this is prime Dredd material, served up expertly.
An extremely strong start for the series.
48 pages. Colour & B&W.
Fleetway Publications.
Edited by Richard Burton.
Cover by Brian Bolland.
Contents:
2 Contents; illustrated by Glenn Fabry.
3 Judge Dredd The Blob w: Alan Grant; a: John Higgins, lettering by Tom Frame.
11 Judge Dredd The Blockers w: John Wagner; a: Jose Casanovas, lettering by Jack Potter.
16 Odyssey 7 (quarter page) advertisement. / Dredd Siting in Leicester (eighth of page) advertisement for Another World. / Please Mention Judge Dredd Holiday Special When Replying to Advertisements (eighth of page). / Having Trouble Getting Your Comics? Try a Virgin Comic Shop (half page) advertisement; illustrated by Kev Hopgood.
17 Dredd by Day text introduction (uncredited).
18 Judge Dredd Weirdies! [130-154] w: John Wagner & Alan Grant; a: Ian Gibson.
r: The Daily Star (Northern & Shell Media) #???? (07 Jul 1986) - #???? (07 Aug 1986).
23 Dredd's World illustrated feature; a: Brendan McCarthy.
24 Dredd's World poster; a: Brendan McCarthy.
26 Say Gidday to the Good Life mock advertisement for Oz Judges; a: UNKNOWN.
27 Judge Dredd Weirdies! [155-194] w: John Wagner & Alan Grant; a: Ian Gibson.
r: The Daily Star (Northern & Shell Media) #???? (08 Aug 1986) - #???? (03 Oct 1986).
35 New in the Cubes creator fact files (uncredited).
36 Chopper's Odyssey illustrated feature by Mike Butcher; illustrated by .
r: panels from Oz in 2000 A.D. (Fleetway Publications) #545 (24 Oct 1987) - #570 (16 Apr 1988).
39 Judge Dredd The Fall Guy w: Alan Grant; a: Will Simpson, lettering by Tom Frame.
47 Catch Judge Dredd... in-house advertisement for 2000 A.D., Best of 2000 A.D., 2000 A.D. Sci-Fi Special, Judge Dredd Annual and 2000 A.D. Annual; illustrated by Steve Dillon.
48 Judge Dredd and 2000 A.D. Merchandise advertisement for Forbidden Planet.
The first Mega-Special is much like Dredd's appearances in 2000 A.D., but with greater room to maneuver. Under an impressive cover by Brian Bolland (who hasn't drawn a bad Dredd yet), there is a superb Fabry illustration. The contents pages allow artists to show off a little, and this is no exception - Dredd's Lawmaster really looks like a real piece of technology, though colouring is perhaps a touch too bright for Mega-City One.
The Blob begins on Pier 17 at Mega-City One's docks, where a jelly-like tentacle grabs the leg of Eric, a crane operator who is in the process of unloading cargo. The crate breaks open while dangling above his co-workers, showering them with its' contents - knives imported from New Sheffield. Dredd is dispatched to investigate, and discovers Eric's body, along with several others, in the lumber stacks. The blob-creature has made its escape, however, making its way to safety.
Forensics examine the crime scene while Dredd trails it, and they come to the conclusion that it is mutated slime-mould, most likely a Black Atlantic mutation which grabbed a lift from a passing ship in order to get into Mega-City One. The forensics team warn Dredd that it is extremely carnivorous, dosing its victims with acid, before absorbing the resulting sludge through its pores. Dredd confronts the blob, despite obvious dangers, but discovers his bullets have no effect. Worse, it begins eating through his uniform.
Firing an incendiary at the blob, Dredd orders fire teams and a med-squad to Steve McQueen Block, before seeking medical attention for his wounds. From the briefest touch, it managed to eat through Dredd's leg nearly to the bone. You can tell that everyone is having a lot of fun with the story, and some of the dialogue is solid gold:
...and now, on the Early Late Horror Show, we have a real rave from the Grave. Sylvester Stallone is the Blob of Notre Dame in Alan Moore's Oscar-winning remake!Alan Grant's script is, if you hadn't guessed, a joy to read, despite (or because of) being a retread of The Blob. John Higgins' artwork really shines in black and white, looking suitably grimy and tarnished. One has to wonder if this was among the material sent to Stallone in preparation for his role of Dredd.
Where The Blob excels at setting and tone through largely understated moments, The Blockers is less restrained. It is the kind of story which, if it appeared anywhere else, would be black comedy, but is - unfortunately for citizens of Mega-City One - more of a day-in-the-life strand. The focus of events is Adolf Hitler Block - 400 floors, containing 18,000 housing units, schools, shopping centres, and a hospital. 64,301 citizens crammed in like sardines, slowly going mad...
Frank Dolby, of apartment 39F, prepares for a Citi-Def combat exercise, while his wife knits a book. As Citi-Def organiser for the floor, Frank makes his way to 39G, where Carlton Einstein (a television addict) has barely left his chair for twelve years. Edith Einstein, his wife, and a compulsive shopper, is doing the family accounts as Willis, Edith and Frank's son, makes a prank call to Ed De Bono Citi-Def to warn them of Hitler Block's aggressive maneuvers against them.
Three floors above, in 42X, Rudyard Quincy decides to kill himself before he goes insane, hoping to take out the rest of the block in the process with a home-made nuclear weapon. The De Bono block cuts down Frank's unit with firearms, thanks to Willis' intervention, as the wayward youth watches on in amusement, hanging out his window. Rudyard's nuke fails, and he throws it away in disgust - landing on Willis' head as it falls.
Overjoyed at a nuke - almost literally - falling into her lap, Edith sees a way to make some money in order to feed her family. Frank returns from the unsuccessful raid, and asks if Edith knows where he can lay his hands on a nuke... Despite not getting a lot of background to the story of the block, we don't need extraneous detail. These are people instantly familiar from Mega-City One, the unfotunates who have been abandoned to their fate in a towering, impersonal, chaotic city.
While it is always nice to get newspaper strips reprinted on better paper, Weirdies! isn't a classic slice of Dredd history. A return for Citizen J. Snork, he of the rather large schnoz, in a celebration of the odd, the strange, and the downright weird. There's a nice conclusion, yet this story is lacking a certain urgency. Ian Gibson's great artwork is reproduced sharply and without feeling too crammed in. It shouldn't need to be pointed out (again) that Gibson's style is refreshingly light and breezy.
New in the Cubes covers Liam Sharp, Barry Kitson, John Higgins, and Will Simpson, though the half-page format of biographical information pieces doesn't allow for a great deal of personality to shine through - these small glimpses into the creators' lives are a long-running 2000 A.D. tradition, and is something which always appealed to me. Such features are much better use of pages than recaps of stories, such as... Well, Chopper's Odyssey.
The Pie-in-the-Sky mid-air restaurant makes a welcome return, where Don Pesci is celebrating his hundredth birthday in the Mississippi Mud Suite. Don Pesci's celebration is abruptly interrupted when a Judge emerges from his birthday cake, only to be immediately shot to death by Pesci. His men assure him that it was a singing telegram, and the body is removed by the easiest means available - being thrown out the building. Which is where things start to escalate...
An early evening Batglider, soaring in the thermal updrafts, is the first to be hit by the corpse. The Norrin Radd Block skysurf club, practising their close-formation pyramid move, are next to have a very close encounter, which leads to a very large mess for the real Judges to clean up. Discovering a business card for Party Poppers, Dredd talks to the owner of the company. and - finding that the dead man was paid to appear at Pie-in-the-Sky - arranges transport to the restaurant.
Pesci and his associates have long since departed, and (despite a sincere attempt at stalling from robot staff) Dredd finds that, as a birthday present the Don, his men have arranged a heist for his participation. With time running out, Dredd rushes to meet the location of the robbery. Stunning artwork, a great, twisty story (with all kinds of little nods and homages), and a ticking clock plot - this is prime Dredd material, served up expertly.
An extremely strong start for the series.
Wednesday, October 17, 2018
Action #1
14 Feb 1976; Cover price 7p.
32 pages. B&W contents.
IPC Magazines Ltd.
Edited by Pat Mills.
Cover by UNKNOWN.
Free "The Red Arrow" plane.
Contents:
Once again I'm missing the free gift, for reasons that should be obvious. The absence of these items usually doesn't bother me, but this plane - with handy catapult to sent it flying at speed - looks like a perfect way to waste an afternoon. It's frustrating that so many ridiculously fun items are missing, yet more mundane gifts - postcards, posters, badges, trading cards - are routinely present and correct.
But I'm meant to be dealing with contents, so without further ado:
Beneath an average cover, despite not really playing to Action's strengths, there is a lot to like. At publication the most enticing editorial content must have been The Money Man's Throwing ££££'s Away - every Saturday Money Man would turn up in a different town to give money to readers. On Saturday the 14th, between 11am and 12 noon, he made an appearance at Whitgift Centre, Croydon, and if challenged with "You are the Money Man of Action," he would hand over five pounds. Only for the first reader to do so, mind you, though an additional five readers would receive £1.
Absolutely a product of the seventies, Dredger is often described as the title's Dirty Harry. Presaging The Professionals prominent use of an agency designation (D16 in the case of the strip, CI5 in the case of the series), Dredger also used a tough, no-nonsense figure who refused to bow to regulations when they interfered with his agenda. After serving five years in the Royal Marine Commandos, Dredger had been discharged for brutality, thereafter becoming a mercenary, then joining DI6. It is a fascinating back-story, yet isn't elaboated upon.
In 1973, Hasan Gadazi, Prime Minister of Kuran, is returning home after signing an oil deal with Britain. Targeted by Arab assassins, he is wounded by gunfire when boarding his flight at Heathrow - despite being guarded by Agent Breed of DI6. Dredger manages to stop the shooter by ramming the man's car with a forklift. Dredger accompanies Breed to ensure there are no more attempts on Gadazi's life, but once in the air terrorists armed with sub-machine guns take passengers hostage, threatening to execute Gadazi. Dredger leaps into action, takes out the terrorists, and learns that the pilot is also involved.
Too late to save the co-pilot and flight engineer, Dredger is forced to take control of the plane. Talked down by air traffic control, the flight ends with destroyed tyres and the under-carriage caved in, although the passengers are saved. Breed acknowledges that Dredger, in spite of his rough edges, managed to get results. A very topical story for the era, when standing orders for pilots were to cooperate with terrorists hijacking their flights. For a comic, especially even one aimed at young readers, it concludes slightly too neat and clean to be believable.
Dredger is a fascinating character, even here. Completely at ease in even the most pressing circumstances, he shows little regard for accepted protocols and displays the kind of action hero behaviour which would dominate films a decade later. There is a tension with the more reserved Breed, continuing through the dramatic rescue, which promises to deliver future disagreements. There is a slight hint of ITC's formula here, and this would make for a highly entertaining adventure series - just in case any television producers are reading this.
Published a year before the release of Cross of Iron, Gerry Finley-Day's Hellman of Hammer Force opens on the first of May, as Germany's blitzkrieg on the West begins, with panzer commander Major Kurt Hellman leading the Hammer Force's charge across the Belgian border. He differs from stereotypical representations of German officers in British comics, stating that he kills tanks but not men if it can be helped. The progress of the advance is halted until Reichscommissar Gauleiter Kastner can join the unit to witness their effectiveness firsthand.
Hellman considers the Nazi officer a slimy toad, and his thoughts on the man don't improve when told to murder British soldiers. Instead of obeying orders, he sends his men in to capture the British instead. Stating that he considers himself a soldier and not a butcher, Hellman insists that there be honour in battle. Kastner, disapproving the lack of respect from his subordinate, prepares to send a report to SS headquarters in Berlin. It's surprising how quickly the strip gets into a rhythm, with Hellman trying his hardest to keep the fighting as clean as he can. It is a very impressive beginning, with the characters' personalities are clearly depicted from the start.
The first sports story stars Jack Barron, a young up-and-coming heavyweight known in the ring as Blackjack. The fourth round of his seventh fight in the World Championship finds him seemingly coasting to an assured victory against "Irish" Tom Tully, but just before the bell rings Barron takes a hit to the face. Yank Kraski, Jack's American trainer, seals the cut on his brow, and he concludes the fight with a resounding victory. A few weeks later Jack gets himself checked out, as he's been having trouble with his sight ever since the fight.
A Harley Street doctor informs Jack that a fragment of bone is affecting the optic nerve, and if he keeps fighting he will go blind within one year. Wandering the streets, attempting to process the prognosis, Jack encounters a group of young men attacking kids and wades into the fight. After ensuring their safety Jack hands them tickets to the fight, deciding that he is going to be world champion even if it blinds him. A great set-up, with a likable lead facing a massive disadvantage should he continue on his path. Intelligently handled, with enough edge to fit alongside the more aggressive material.
Play Till You Drop!, the ubiquitous football strip, follows Alec Shaw, striker for Rampton City. After a dirty tackle Alec is taken to the treatment room where he encounters Vernon Grice, a newspaper reporter for the Daily Comet. The reporter tells him that proof has been uncovered that Alec's father, City player of note Tom Shaw, accepted a bribe to throw a match. Outraged, Alec refuses to accept the allegation - until he sees a photograph of his father with bookmaker Bernie Wallace. Grice demands payment in order to keep the information out of print, and Alec agrees in order to preserve his late father's reputation.
A simple enough start, with a mystery to be solved (circumstances of the photograph), an injury to overcome, and a crooked reporter to take down. It feels as if the strip is working on plotting-by-numbers at this point, and not much characterization is present, but the strip works on its own level.
Hook Jaw is the star of Action, a great white shark roaming the sea looking for fresh meat. At an oil drilling platform it bites a diver's leg off and slashes the air hose of another. Chief diver Rick Mason is powerless to intervene when Bannion, struggling for air, drops his weight belt. When Bannion hits the surface he explodes thanks to nitrogen narcosis. Mason, furious with the Red McNally, the rig boss, for drilling in a shark's nursery, accuses the man of putting profit before safety.
Taking to the air, McNally fires at Hook aw, injuring the shark enough to turn the other sharks against the maneater. The amassed sharks aren't enough to stop Hook Jaw, and he escapes to fight another day. Simple, brutal, and with a very dark sense of humour, Hook Jaw functions less as an adventure strip and more as horror. There is an aspect of the plotting - concerning an implacable killer which cannot be stopped - that anticipates slasher films, The colour printing makes the strip all the more visceral - red ink has rarely been used to such effect.
Dan Walker, the protagonist of Sport's Not For Losers, is an athlete with Barncastle Harriers, who, during the 110 metre hurdles, gets hit in the face. With a seriously damaged Achilles tendon, he is told by a doctor that his running days are over for at least a year - if he attempts to run, he might be crippled for life. After witnessing his brother running from a gang, and hurdling over a wall to escape, Dan gets the notion to transform Len into a top athlete - but first must convince him to give up cigarettes.
There's a few lines which feel almost as if this has been sponsored by one of the regular health initiatives which ran in comics over the years, yet the sense of (then-)contemporary social awareness is palpable. Dan's attempt to turn his brother Len's life around is, while not spectacularly original, at least presented in a realistic manner, with enough obstacles preventing this goal to provide a fair amount of antagonism. Sport's Not For Losers wasn't a strip I was looking forward to tackling, but it isn't as bad as the name suggests.
The Mediterranean, 1941. The periscope of British submarine H.M.S. Conquest spots two Italian destroyers approaching. Lieutenant Commander Mark Kane orders a torpedo strike against one of the vessels, but the second destroyer turns to engage the sub with depth charges. Five men are killed in the explosions, and Kane orders their bodies to be placed in the torpedo tubes along with some wreckage to convince the Italians that they have succeeded in destroying the boat. Having survived the encounter, Kane is dismayed to learn that the sub is filling with chlorine gas, and they are powerless to surface.
A leak shorts the electrical equipment, and an explosion rips through the submarine - the force of which assists Kane in opening the escape hatch, the outrush of air propelling him to the surface. Happily, this isn't Hook Jaw, so he doesn't explode when he reaches the surface, but he is the sole survivor of the incident. Kane considers himself a deserter, that he should have gone down with his ship. The submarine, having sunk in shallow water off the coast of North Africa, is soon recovered, and Kane is cleared of all blame by an inquiry.
Given command of his former ship, the Conquest, the crew are less than happy at the prospect of serving under him. Unnerved, Kane's crew view him as Captain of a sub brought back from the dead, and that they are now sailing in The Coffin Sub. Which is the coolest name imaginable for a series set on a submarine. Whatever problems I have with the miraculous survival of the main character, he's a wonderfully different protagonist. A very impressive beginning. It's a shame that the rush of air which pushed him to the surface didn't raise the corpses of his crew, for extra nightmarish imagery, but the extremely evocative artwork is good enough without ghoulish garnishing.
The Running Man starts in a bar on Seventh Avenue, New York. Vito Scarlatti is in the midst of a hold-up when a passing police officer enters the bar. He's shot and killed, and as Vito makes his escape another officer is killed. Young Vito has killed five policemen in the space of twelve weeks, and a manhunt is on for him. Carter, a runner in New York to take part in the 5,000 metres at Yankee Stadium, is blown up with a rigged champagne bottle, Awakening in what he presumes to be hospital, Carter discovers that he has been given plastic surgery. Removing his bandages, he finds himself with the face of another man.
Leaving his room, Carter finds himself on the docks rather than in a hospital. Relief at seeing a police car turns to fright when they open fire on him, believing him to be Vito Scarlatti. Forced to run like never before, a race for his very life, Carter must find out what has happened and why.
In many ways the weakest strip - an incendiary bomb which doesn't kill at such close range, easy plastic surgery, and a hospital set built in such an unlikely location - there's a fairly complex plot, helped by having The Godfather influencing the portrayal of the antagonists. Even by the era's standards, the behaviour of police - opening fire on an unarmed man - seems a little over the top, but it makes for an interesting predicament for Carter to deal with.
Much more entertaining than the cover suggests, Action may not be firing on all cylinders straight from the first issue, but there's more than enough to keep my hopes up for future issues.
32 pages. B&W contents.
IPC Magazines Ltd.
Edited by Pat Mills.
Cover by UNKNOWN.
Free "The Red Arrow" plane.
Contents:
.2 Look Out! Action is Deadly! introduction. / Win Prizes rewards for letters, jokes, and drawings. On offer is Skimmer Disc, £1 Postal Order, Action Tee Shirt, Tiger Tank (Hasegawa 1/72 scale), and Thunder Chief plane (Monogram 1/72 scale) / The Red Arrow free gift flying instructions. / The Money Man's Throwing ££££'s Away
.3 Dredger UNTITLED [Hasan Gadazi] w: UNKNOWN; a: UNKNOWN.
.6 Hellman of Hammer Force UNTITLED [First Across the Frontier] w: Gerry Finley-Day; a: Mike Dorey.
.9 Blackjack UNTITLED [A Left Jab to the Head] w: John Wagner; a: Trigo.
12 Knowall readers' questions feature. / Guess What? picture puzzle. / Action Mouse UNTITLED [Box Your Shadow] w: UNKNOWN; a: Joe Collins.
13 Play Till You Drop! UNTITLED [First Game of the Season] w: UNKNOWN; a: Barry Mitchell.
16 Hookjaw UNTITLED [The Killer Still Has the Hook in its Jaw] w: Ken Armstrong; a: Ramon Sola.
20 Sports Stars of the Future Les Collins (half page). / Soccer Session with the Boss The Throw-In / Twit of the Week reader feature. / Vote in Action
21 Sport's Not For Losers! UNTITLED [Crippled] w: Steve MacManus; a: Dudley Wynn.
24 The Coffin Sub UNTITLED [The Mediterranean, 1941] w: UNKNOWN; a: Angelo Todaro.
27 Action Packed! Next Week (half page) / UNTITLED [Hi. The name's Steve... Steve McManus].
28 The Running Man UNTITLED [Manhunt for Cop Killer as Fifth Policeman Dies] w: Steve MacManus; a: Horacio Lalia.
32 In Action Next Week!
Once again I'm missing the free gift, for reasons that should be obvious. The absence of these items usually doesn't bother me, but this plane - with handy catapult to sent it flying at speed - looks like a perfect way to waste an afternoon. It's frustrating that so many ridiculously fun items are missing, yet more mundane gifts - postcards, posters, badges, trading cards - are routinely present and correct.
But I'm meant to be dealing with contents, so without further ado:
Beneath an average cover, despite not really playing to Action's strengths, there is a lot to like. At publication the most enticing editorial content must have been The Money Man's Throwing ££££'s Away - every Saturday Money Man would turn up in a different town to give money to readers. On Saturday the 14th, between 11am and 12 noon, he made an appearance at Whitgift Centre, Croydon, and if challenged with "You are the Money Man of Action," he would hand over five pounds. Only for the first reader to do so, mind you, though an additional five readers would receive £1.
Absolutely a product of the seventies, Dredger is often described as the title's Dirty Harry. Presaging The Professionals prominent use of an agency designation (D16 in the case of the strip, CI5 in the case of the series), Dredger also used a tough, no-nonsense figure who refused to bow to regulations when they interfered with his agenda. After serving five years in the Royal Marine Commandos, Dredger had been discharged for brutality, thereafter becoming a mercenary, then joining DI6. It is a fascinating back-story, yet isn't elaboated upon.
In 1973, Hasan Gadazi, Prime Minister of Kuran, is returning home after signing an oil deal with Britain. Targeted by Arab assassins, he is wounded by gunfire when boarding his flight at Heathrow - despite being guarded by Agent Breed of DI6. Dredger manages to stop the shooter by ramming the man's car with a forklift. Dredger accompanies Breed to ensure there are no more attempts on Gadazi's life, but once in the air terrorists armed with sub-machine guns take passengers hostage, threatening to execute Gadazi. Dredger leaps into action, takes out the terrorists, and learns that the pilot is also involved.
Too late to save the co-pilot and flight engineer, Dredger is forced to take control of the plane. Talked down by air traffic control, the flight ends with destroyed tyres and the under-carriage caved in, although the passengers are saved. Breed acknowledges that Dredger, in spite of his rough edges, managed to get results. A very topical story for the era, when standing orders for pilots were to cooperate with terrorists hijacking their flights. For a comic, especially even one aimed at young readers, it concludes slightly too neat and clean to be believable.
Dredger is a fascinating character, even here. Completely at ease in even the most pressing circumstances, he shows little regard for accepted protocols and displays the kind of action hero behaviour which would dominate films a decade later. There is a tension with the more reserved Breed, continuing through the dramatic rescue, which promises to deliver future disagreements. There is a slight hint of ITC's formula here, and this would make for a highly entertaining adventure series - just in case any television producers are reading this.
Published a year before the release of Cross of Iron, Gerry Finley-Day's Hellman of Hammer Force opens on the first of May, as Germany's blitzkrieg on the West begins, with panzer commander Major Kurt Hellman leading the Hammer Force's charge across the Belgian border. He differs from stereotypical representations of German officers in British comics, stating that he kills tanks but not men if it can be helped. The progress of the advance is halted until Reichscommissar Gauleiter Kastner can join the unit to witness their effectiveness firsthand.
Hellman considers the Nazi officer a slimy toad, and his thoughts on the man don't improve when told to murder British soldiers. Instead of obeying orders, he sends his men in to capture the British instead. Stating that he considers himself a soldier and not a butcher, Hellman insists that there be honour in battle. Kastner, disapproving the lack of respect from his subordinate, prepares to send a report to SS headquarters in Berlin. It's surprising how quickly the strip gets into a rhythm, with Hellman trying his hardest to keep the fighting as clean as he can. It is a very impressive beginning, with the characters' personalities are clearly depicted from the start.
The first sports story stars Jack Barron, a young up-and-coming heavyweight known in the ring as Blackjack. The fourth round of his seventh fight in the World Championship finds him seemingly coasting to an assured victory against "Irish" Tom Tully, but just before the bell rings Barron takes a hit to the face. Yank Kraski, Jack's American trainer, seals the cut on his brow, and he concludes the fight with a resounding victory. A few weeks later Jack gets himself checked out, as he's been having trouble with his sight ever since the fight.
A Harley Street doctor informs Jack that a fragment of bone is affecting the optic nerve, and if he keeps fighting he will go blind within one year. Wandering the streets, attempting to process the prognosis, Jack encounters a group of young men attacking kids and wades into the fight. After ensuring their safety Jack hands them tickets to the fight, deciding that he is going to be world champion even if it blinds him. A great set-up, with a likable lead facing a massive disadvantage should he continue on his path. Intelligently handled, with enough edge to fit alongside the more aggressive material.
Play Till You Drop!, the ubiquitous football strip, follows Alec Shaw, striker for Rampton City. After a dirty tackle Alec is taken to the treatment room where he encounters Vernon Grice, a newspaper reporter for the Daily Comet. The reporter tells him that proof has been uncovered that Alec's father, City player of note Tom Shaw, accepted a bribe to throw a match. Outraged, Alec refuses to accept the allegation - until he sees a photograph of his father with bookmaker Bernie Wallace. Grice demands payment in order to keep the information out of print, and Alec agrees in order to preserve his late father's reputation.
A simple enough start, with a mystery to be solved (circumstances of the photograph), an injury to overcome, and a crooked reporter to take down. It feels as if the strip is working on plotting-by-numbers at this point, and not much characterization is present, but the strip works on its own level.
Hook Jaw is the star of Action, a great white shark roaming the sea looking for fresh meat. At an oil drilling platform it bites a diver's leg off and slashes the air hose of another. Chief diver Rick Mason is powerless to intervene when Bannion, struggling for air, drops his weight belt. When Bannion hits the surface he explodes thanks to nitrogen narcosis. Mason, furious with the Red McNally, the rig boss, for drilling in a shark's nursery, accuses the man of putting profit before safety.
Taking to the air, McNally fires at Hook aw, injuring the shark enough to turn the other sharks against the maneater. The amassed sharks aren't enough to stop Hook Jaw, and he escapes to fight another day. Simple, brutal, and with a very dark sense of humour, Hook Jaw functions less as an adventure strip and more as horror. There is an aspect of the plotting - concerning an implacable killer which cannot be stopped - that anticipates slasher films, The colour printing makes the strip all the more visceral - red ink has rarely been used to such effect.
Dan Walker, the protagonist of Sport's Not For Losers, is an athlete with Barncastle Harriers, who, during the 110 metre hurdles, gets hit in the face. With a seriously damaged Achilles tendon, he is told by a doctor that his running days are over for at least a year - if he attempts to run, he might be crippled for life. After witnessing his brother running from a gang, and hurdling over a wall to escape, Dan gets the notion to transform Len into a top athlete - but first must convince him to give up cigarettes.
There's a few lines which feel almost as if this has been sponsored by one of the regular health initiatives which ran in comics over the years, yet the sense of (then-)contemporary social awareness is palpable. Dan's attempt to turn his brother Len's life around is, while not spectacularly original, at least presented in a realistic manner, with enough obstacles preventing this goal to provide a fair amount of antagonism. Sport's Not For Losers wasn't a strip I was looking forward to tackling, but it isn't as bad as the name suggests.
The Mediterranean, 1941. The periscope of British submarine H.M.S. Conquest spots two Italian destroyers approaching. Lieutenant Commander Mark Kane orders a torpedo strike against one of the vessels, but the second destroyer turns to engage the sub with depth charges. Five men are killed in the explosions, and Kane orders their bodies to be placed in the torpedo tubes along with some wreckage to convince the Italians that they have succeeded in destroying the boat. Having survived the encounter, Kane is dismayed to learn that the sub is filling with chlorine gas, and they are powerless to surface.
A leak shorts the electrical equipment, and an explosion rips through the submarine - the force of which assists Kane in opening the escape hatch, the outrush of air propelling him to the surface. Happily, this isn't Hook Jaw, so he doesn't explode when he reaches the surface, but he is the sole survivor of the incident. Kane considers himself a deserter, that he should have gone down with his ship. The submarine, having sunk in shallow water off the coast of North Africa, is soon recovered, and Kane is cleared of all blame by an inquiry.
Given command of his former ship, the Conquest, the crew are less than happy at the prospect of serving under him. Unnerved, Kane's crew view him as Captain of a sub brought back from the dead, and that they are now sailing in The Coffin Sub. Which is the coolest name imaginable for a series set on a submarine. Whatever problems I have with the miraculous survival of the main character, he's a wonderfully different protagonist. A very impressive beginning. It's a shame that the rush of air which pushed him to the surface didn't raise the corpses of his crew, for extra nightmarish imagery, but the extremely evocative artwork is good enough without ghoulish garnishing.
The Running Man starts in a bar on Seventh Avenue, New York. Vito Scarlatti is in the midst of a hold-up when a passing police officer enters the bar. He's shot and killed, and as Vito makes his escape another officer is killed. Young Vito has killed five policemen in the space of twelve weeks, and a manhunt is on for him. Carter, a runner in New York to take part in the 5,000 metres at Yankee Stadium, is blown up with a rigged champagne bottle, Awakening in what he presumes to be hospital, Carter discovers that he has been given plastic surgery. Removing his bandages, he finds himself with the face of another man.
Leaving his room, Carter finds himself on the docks rather than in a hospital. Relief at seeing a police car turns to fright when they open fire on him, believing him to be Vito Scarlatti. Forced to run like never before, a race for his very life, Carter must find out what has happened and why.
In many ways the weakest strip - an incendiary bomb which doesn't kill at such close range, easy plastic surgery, and a hospital set built in such an unlikely location - there's a fairly complex plot, helped by having The Godfather influencing the portrayal of the antagonists. Even by the era's standards, the behaviour of police - opening fire on an unarmed man - seems a little over the top, but it makes for an interesting predicament for Carter to deal with.
Much more entertaining than the cover suggests, Action may not be firing on all cylinders straight from the first issue, but there's more than enough to keep my hopes up for future issues.
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