Aliens Vol.1 #8

Sep 1991. Cover price £1.50.
52 pages. Colour & B&W.
Trident Comics, Ltd.

Edited by Martin Skidmore.

Cover by Denis Beauvaus.
r: UNKNOWN.

Free poster; illustrated by Dave Dorman (signed).
r: Aliens Vs Predator (Dark Horse)

Contents:

 2 Contents / Title Credits / Indicia

 3 Credits / Story So Far text introduction (uncredited).

 4 Aliens Earth War, part two, w: Mark Verheiden; a: Sam Keith, lettering by Pat Brosseau, colouring by Monika Livingstone.

r: Aliens: Earth War (Dark Horse) #01 (Jun 1990).

15 Humanity's Last Hope Has Returned in 1991 in a Last Ditch Attempt to Save Their Future in-house advertisement for The Terminator Vol.1 #02; illustrated by Chris Warner.

16 Credits / Story So Far text introduction (uncredited).

17 Predator Big Game, part one, w: John Arcudi; p: Evan Dorkin, i: Armando Gil, lettering by Kurt Hathaway, colouring by Julia Lacquement.

r: Predator: Big Game (Dark Horse) #01 (Mar 1991).

32 Aliens in-house advertisement for graphic novels and t-shirts.

33 Credits / Story So Far text introduction (uncredited).

34 Aliens Vs Predator Untitled, part eight, w: Randy Stradley; p: Phil Norwood, i: Karl Story, lettering by Pat Brosseau, colouring by Monika Livingston.

r: Aliens Vs Predator (Dark Horse) #01 (Jun 1990).

49 Model Kits in-house advertisement.

50 Next Issue! (half page) / Subscriptions (half page)

51 Terminator T-Shirt Offer in-house advertisement.

52 Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis in-house advertisement.

While the grey semi-border makes the cover appear slightly drab, and the title of the comic difficult to easily discern at first glance, the image of the Predator is superb. It is an extremely powerful and immediate image, an effortlessly encourages speculation on the contents. The boast of a poster is, for some reason, in a rather stark white jagged balloon rather than being coloured, lessening the overall effect of its news, and the positioning is awkward in the extreme. Poor layout consideration also applies to the Predator side-box, which uses poorly-cropped art featuring lettering.

I don't expect perfection, merely adequate presentation. The amount of times I have had to stop and look closer at something in a Trident title to see what is going on is unbelievable. Time after time the look is spoiled by some minor, easily-fixable element, and the end product suffers from appearing so (dare I say it) amateurish. To have made this cover far more impressive would have taken ten minutes of light editing.

Earth War continues in stylish fashion, and footage from Earth serves to remind Newt of her childhood is a slightly heavy-handed manner, though is none the poorer for the echo. Keith's artwork ranges from extremely stylised to very real in rapid pace, and although there is definitely a 'look' to the series, I wish he had been more experimental with the layout, pushing the nightmarish elements to the forefront - this is, after all, the end of humanity we are witnessing, and yet there isn't an overriding sense of the futility of defence against the aliens.

A far better Terminator advert, sans low-resolution artwork, manages to make the series (finally) look appealing. Unfortunately it is another B&W ad, which calls into question just what was going on at Trident. Were the colour plates not available, or was this merely a theme the publisher was extending through all their promotions?

Most of Cibola County in New Mexico still looks like a Frederic Remington landscape.

The terrain is wide open and rugged, with very few people around to spoil the view.

Occasionally, however, there are things that disrupt the serene community.

Grants Airport is not too far north from here, so overhead traffic is not uncommon.

Frightened though they are, the locals venture out into the open after only a few minutes -

- and within the hour, things are have returned to normal.

That is, as normal as things will ever be again.

Predator: Big Game can be looked at as a compendium of settings dragged from blockbuster movies: the army base, the small-town diner, vast empty landscapes, all threatened by the arrival of The Outsider. In stories The Outsider is a position taken by invading armies, various kinds of aliens, technological monstrosities, relentless serial killers, or any other force which upsets the regular existence of a populace. Having already established the modus operandi of the Predator, no long introduction is required to explain back-story, getting straight to the drive of the story.

If you think disassembling the story in this manner is a simplification of what is presented, don't worry - this is, against a background of similarly-themed stories, a perfect little machine which ticks along with elegance. It is the Bugatti of story engines, which is why Arcudi's use of it here, with a wonderfully light touch, is so appreciated. While accusations of a generic feel might be warranted in places, he sets up events in such a precise manner that not even the most cynical of readers will fail to appreciate how much craft there is in the telling.

Turned down for a three-day pass, Enoch Nakai goes on anti-aircraft duty with his unit in the wilds of New Mexico.

The many smells of the prairie are like words to Enoch Nakai. Each smell has its own meaning.

As the fragrance of loam means fertile soil, and the scent of a hare means food -

An unfamiliar smell almost always means danger.

Stopping the tank upon which he is travelling, Enoch points to a tree which he claims is host to something unfamiliar. Investigating, his colleague is immediately killed by the hidden Predator, and only Enoch's fast reflexes save his skin. Running for assistance he encounters a passing jeep, which takes him to Sergeant Coates and Colonel Athelry, who are in command of transporting the alien ship away from its landing point, and he informs them of the occupant's actions.

Stock story elements are not a bad thing. Using familiar storytelling techniques draws the reader in to a tale of a rogue Predator hunting a military unit down one by one, and the art - using enough recognisable detail to sell the realism of the location - is able to convincingly locate the story in a time and place. I really do love this story, and, although there are pieces of its story which feel slightly out of position due to the truncated reprint format, it works magnificently.

Machiko flees as the Predator and aliens go after one another, and manages to get back to the secured area to warn the others.

#07

Aliens Vol.1

#09

Aliens Vol.1 #7

Aug 1991. Cover price £1.50.
52 pages. Colour & B&W.
Trident Comics, Ltd.

Edited by Martin Skidmore.

Cover by Denis Beauvaus.
r: Aliens (Dark Horse) #01 (Aug 1989)

Contents:

 2 Contents / Title Credits / Indicia

 3 Credits / Story So Far text introduction (uncredited).

 4 Aliens Earth War, part one, w: Mark Verheiden; a: Sam Keith, lettering by Jim Massara, colouring by Monika Livingstone.

r: Aliens: Earth War (Dark Horse) #01 (Jun 1990).

28 Credits / Story So Far text introduction (uncredited).

29 Predator The Heat, part seven, w: Mark Verheiden; a: Chris Warner, lettering by David Jackson, colouring by Chris Chalenor.

r: Predator #02 (Jun 1989).

39 Credits / Story So Far text introduction (uncredited).

40 Aliens Vs Predator Untitled, part seven, w: Randy Stradley; p: Phil Norwood, i: Karl Story, lettering by Pat Brosseau.

r: Aliens Vs Predator (Dark Horse) #01 (Jun 1990).

49 Subscriptions (half page) / The Sheffield Space Centre (quarter page) advertisement. / Model Aerodrome Limited Presents (quarter page) advertisement for Halcyon Aliens figure.

50 The Terminator in-house advertisement for #01.

51 Cheap Mail Order advertisement for Planet X.

52 Aliens in-house advertisement for graphic novels and t-shirts.

Another wonderful cover marred by a poor notice placed over the art, this time promoting Earth War. While the title has every reason to bring attention to the story, the manner in which they do so lacks a style and flourish which the strip deserves. A visually stunning piece of horror fantasy which relishes its darkness, Sam Keith really pushes layouts and form to create a feast for the eyes.

Planet LV-426 - Acheron Terraforming Colony.

When I was young, I knew a little girl named Rebecca, Her friends called her Newt.

She had a doll named Casey. The two would stare for hours as manmade storms battered their tiny settlement.

The adult colonists found their new environment cruel and unrelenting, but the little girl had known nothing else. To her, the planet was home.

She only wanted what all children want -

- the warmth and security of family -

- the human connectedness that comes from belonging.

What she got was a nightmare without end.

As anyone who has seen Aliens can attest, Newt is tough. She survived in the alien-infested colony on her own, so that gives credence to her strength of character. Highlighting the fact that she would treat the colony as her home, accepting the harsh conditions there, is a clever way of preparing the reader for what is to come. What is more surprising, though understandable, is the hatred which she holds against Ripley for abandoning her. The addition to the film's conclusion, with Ripley being woken after three days in cryo by Captain Hankerson - who has been travelling in a second ship - is a rather clever way of getting more mileage out of LV-426.

Ripley is shocked when told footage from Kane's helmet still exists:

"The inboard suit recorders logged everything. The Nostromo's android dumped the data into the escape pod's computer long before you slagged him and blew the main ship."

Interested in the navigator, or pilot, which Kane discovered in the destroyed ship, Hankerson wants Ripley to accompany him to the planet to act as a guide, and to provide reliable first-hand information. Threatening to wake up Hicks or Newt if she declines, Ripley is forced to return to the LV-426 with another team of marines.

Keith's style takes some getting used to, especially when he uses more abstract techniques. Beautiful, mad, and quite amusing in places, he breathes life into the story, providing a visual counterpoint to the script's leaps of logic.

The Predators are not happy. Which might be an understatement, as they start firing on people gathered on the streets. It is only when Schaefer targets the fire hydrants that he is able to level the playing field.

Schaefer has no love for the city, his job, or even the people - so why the hell did he do it?

When it was all over, would anyone even care? Or would they turn bac to their televisions, pleased that their reception had finally cleared up -

Then I remembered what he'd said about the beast - the beast in all of us.

"Maybe the hunt is their way of keeping the beast alive"

- maybe this war was Schaefer's way of doing the same.

Mirroring protagonists with their antagonists is an old trick, though Verheiden's script is more explicit in showing the similarities than most would be comfortable with. Having previously set up the hunting background, with flashbacks, the scene doesn't jump out as being out of place, but it certainly makes the reader take notice. This hero of ours, we see, is far from heroic.

Which, given the enemy he is going up against, is probably for the best.

The Sheldon boy crashes his vehicle into a wall, bringing assistance from those investigating the unconscious Predator. The boy explains that his mother and father were killed by monsters, and when he sees the captive alien identifies it as the same species. A meeting is called after the Sheldon ranch is checked, and preparations are made for what is being considered an invasion.

Few of the ranchers had weapons or their own, and the corporate armory consisted of fifteen scatter-guns - primarily for use against fire-crawlers and briar-wolves - and ten pistols earmarked for a police force the town had never needed.

Prosperity Wells was never intended to be a fortress, but the ranchers, under Hiroki's direction, set up an admirable line of defense.

The final three pages are a masterclass in creating tension, with the aliens and Predators stepping up their sport, with Machiko stuck in the middle. The stacking of containers is reminiscent of old westerns, where the wagons are dragged into a circle, further elaborating on themes which have run through the story. As happy that I am about the threat aboard the Lector finally paying off, I do have to wonder - what have the aliens been up to all this time?

On second thoughts, I probably don't want to know...

The Terminator advert at the back of the issue is incredibly pixelated, and so stylised that it doesn't represent the eventual cover repro at all. Adverts this bad should be dropped, rather than negatively influence potential readers.

#06

Aliens Vol.1

#08

Aliens Vol.1 #6

Jul 1991. Cover price £1.50.
52 pages. Colour & B&W.
Trident Comics, Ltd.

Edited by Martin Skidmore.

Cover by Denis Beauvaus.
r:

Contents:

 2 Contents / Title Credits / Indicia

 3 Credits / Story So Far text introduction (uncredited).

 4 Aliens Untitled, part six, w: Mark Verheiden; a: Denis Beauvaus, lettering by Bob Pinaha.

r: Aliens (Dark Horse) #02 (Dec 1989).

12 Credits / Story So Far text introduction (uncredited).

13 Predator The Heat, part six, w: Mark Verheiden; a: Chris Warner, lettering by Jim Massara, colouring by Chris Chalenor.

r: Predator #02 (Jun 1989).

29 Credits / Story So Far text introduction (uncredited).

30 Aliens Vs Predator Untitled, part six, w: Randy Stradley; p: Phil Norwood, i: Karl Story, lettering by Pat Brosseau.

r: Aliens Vs Predator (Dark Horse) #01 (Jun 1990).

47 Letters Page readers' mail.

49 Aliens - the Graphic Novel, the Portfolio, the t-shirts, the Hardback in-house advertisement.

50 The Terminator in-house advertisement for #01.

51 Subscriptions (half page) / The Sheffield Space Centre (quarter page) advertisement. / Fantasy World (quarter page) advertisement for June opening of Another World.

52 Toxic! in-house advertisement for #15.

One of the best covers so far, with its light blue and black trade dress playing well against Beauvaus' image. The jagged balloon containing the announcement that the aliens have reached Earth is, however, an eyesore - Trident, despite being good at picking out suitable material for reprinting, and with extremely talented creators providing new strips, always seemed to be less adventurous when it came to lettering. In appearance it is the kind of thing I expect to see printed on own-brand boxes of fish fingers rather than a comic cover.

The - the alien is the only one I can trust. Their loyalty transcends human treachery.

Together, we will form a new world. I will lead man and alien alike toward a new glory, a new beginning -

- A better tomorrow!

Spears quickly learns just how intelligent - and duplicitous - the aliens can be, and pays for his arrogance with his life. Meanwhile, at Gateway Station, the ship carrying Newt and Hicks docks, and they discover what has become of the handful of survivors aboard. A report from planetside has news of a nest which the aliens have built, spralwing across the city, and down into the underground. All seems lost for those remaining on the surface, but an old friend is at hand to take the battle to the aliens.

With her final-page appearance, Ripley is, once more, an essential part of the Alien saga. Although her appearance brings a smile - in the same manner as seeing Arnold reprise his Terminator role in Terminator Genisys - though, like Terminator, Aliens needs to find a voice, and characters, away from what is familiar. As interesting as her position in the films has been, there really should be more to the universe than her adventures.

Rasche reunites with Schaefer atop the Pan Am building, and, once Philips' men are put in their place, head to a U-Rent space on the Lower East Side. Filled with enough police impound to take on every cracked-out psycho in Manhattan, Schaefer watches Kartoon Kastle to prepare himself for the coming battle. Realising that the odds are too great, Schaefer sets out to recruit some back-up. The Predators are tracking his movements, and it takes the death of another Predator to convince Carr that< Schaefer is on the level.

Once the recruited army of criminals is properly armed, Rasche points out that they can hardly be expected to fight when the Predators are still in their ships. Forcing them to descend from their ships by the destruction of one of the vessels, Schaefer finds himself stuck between a police force wanting his hide and aliens wanting his head.

The ships aren't greatly impressive, which is highlighted in the panels which present them in close-ups. They remind me of the ugly spaceships which proliferated throughout DC's titles in the 80s, with the same simplistic design sensibilities. It is nice to see unconventional forces stepping up to take part in the forthcoming battle, and reactions to Schaefer's proclamation about alien forces invading is exactly what one would expect.

Searching for the doc, an unconscious Predator, along with the destroyed ship, is discovered in Iwa Gorge. It is brought to the Med Centre, where investigations into its physiology are begun. With all of the excitement it takes a while before anyone notices that the Lector still hasn't taken off.

A chance encounter with intelligent XTs was considered so remote that the company's off-planet manual contained only one line on the subject:

"Avoid direct contact until specially trained personnel arrive on the scene."

We were about to write a whole new chapter.

Aliens Vs Predator is still a fascinating story, though its inspirations are beginning to be noticeable. There's a definite manga sensibility to some of the images, which is both amusing ans appropriate.

#05

Aliens Vol.1

#07

Aliens Vol.1 #5

Jun 1991. Cover price £1.50.
52 pages. Colour & B&W.
Trident Comics, Ltd.

Edited by Martin Skidmore.

Cover by Chris Warner.
r:

Contents:

 2 Contents / Title Credits / Indicia

 3 Credits / Story So Far text introduction (uncredited).

 4 Aliens Untitled, part five, w: Mark Verheiden; a: Denis Beauvaus, lettering by Bob Pinaha.

r: Aliens (Dark Horse) #02 (Dec 1989).

12 Credits / Story So Far text introduction (uncredited).

13 Predator The Heat, part five, w: Mark Verheiden; a: Chris Warner, lettering by Jim Massara, colouring by Chris Chalenor.

r: Predator #02 (Jun 1989).

28 Credits / Story So Far text introduction (uncredited).

29 Aliens Vs Predator Untitled, part five, w: Randy Stradley; p: Phil Norwood, i: Karl Story, lettering by Pat Brosseau.

r: Aliens Vs Predator (Dark Horse) #01 (Jun 1990).

50 Subscriptions (half page) / Model Aerodrome (quarter page) advertisement for Aliens models. / Fantasy World (quarter page) advertisement for June opening of Another World.

51 Letters Page readers' mail.

52 Aliens - the Graphic Novel, the Portfolio, the Hardback in-house advertisement.

Spears launches, and heads for Earth with his 'trained' aliens, abandoning his men. Newt and Hicks manage to stow away on his ship, though are unable to prevent the mad scheme when Spears locks himself in the cockpit. as Butler - alone with the aliens, the general's men either dead or hiding - transmits a final message to Newt. Gateway Earth Station responds to the arrival of the ship, asking for identification, and stating that there are no landing coordinates. Earth has been considered lost to the aliens. Hicks and Newt realise the only way to get off before Spears lands on Earth is with the emergency escape pod, and in their rush to get away can't check for signs of sabotage.

As satisfying as it is to see Newt escape certain death once more, the situation Earthside is intriguing. With the officials aboard the space-station regarding Earth a hopeless cause, we have to consider the possibilities this offers up - giraffe aliens, manatee aliens, hippo aliens... If, as so often depicted, they are resilient enough to adapt to any circumstance, does this mean they have made in Antarctica a suitable nest? WHich brings up, of course, the question of a Thing crossover.

Or better, Aliens Vs the Thing Vs Predators Vs Terminators.

Throw in a few ED-209's and it will be more entertaining than the human mind can cope with.

Schaefer is woken with a bucket of water in his face, discovering ust how committed Eschevera is to providing him with a painful, protracted death. Managing to escape, he heads for the jungle, hoping to disappear. As he runs, Predators begin to clear out his adversaries.

From the sound of the screams, I figured those things were starting to enjoy themselves.

It was only a matter of time before they turned their attention towards me.

Picked up by his own people, Schaefer is told that the Predators' only interest is in him.

Rasche realises that the authorities intend to hand Schaefer over - using his anger to his advantage, he takes out his federal babysitters, exiting with the helmet in his possession once more, heading for the meeting which has been arranged...

The final panel sets up a stand-off between humans and Predators atop the Pan-Am building, which is both slightly anachronistic and very amusing reading the story now. While the tropical segments of the strip have never quite felt as sticky and uncomfortably hot as they should, the New York sequences are better depicted. Unfortunately the colouring isn't quite up to the task of conveying the feel of the city, with swathes of bright colours limiting the effect to a degree.

Sickly Rhynth are discovered, yet the lethargic behaviour isn't treated as a serous ailment. Shigeru Chigusa, son of the company's head, announces that is en route, as alien face-hugger corpses are discovered on Ryushi, although Dr. Revna isn't sure precisely what he is looking at. Deciding to investigate Iwa Gorge, he discovers Predators rather than the aliens he was looking for, and is soon discovered. In a race for his life, his vehicle smashes into the Predator vessel causing an immense explosion.

There are a few extremely amusing incidental scenes, as well as some very attractive art, yet five issues in and we're still to see the two aliens go at each other. This isn't a complaint, as the plot is growing into a maze of conflicts and puzzles, which seems to be working for the strip. Machiko Noguchi is beginning to get some really good scenes, and her interactions with employees - Scott, in particular - makes the slow pace worthwhile.

Spaceship names are hard to get right. Sometimes the names are a bit soft and unconvincing, as if the visual component was more important than the name, though here a rather strong name causes problems - the Lector may or may not be a direct reference to The Silence of the Lambs, but it distracts from what has, so far, been a carefully constructed world.

If readers were getting impatient, the aliens finally make their presence known.

#04

Aliens Vol.1

#06

Aliens Vol.1 #4

May 1991. Cover price £1.50.
52 pages. Colour & B&W.
Trident Comics, Ltd.

Edited by Martin Skidmore.

Cover by Dave Dorman.
r:

Contents:

 2 Letters Page readers' mail.

 3 Contents / Title Credits / Indicia

 4 Credits / Story So Far text introduction (uncredited).

 5 Aliens Untitled, part four, w: Mark Verheiden; a: Denis Beauvaus, lettering by Bob Pinaha.

r: Aliens (Dark Horse) #02 (Dec 1989).

13 Credits / Story So Far text introduction (uncredited).

14 Predator The Heat, part four, w: Mark Verheiden; a: Chris Warner, lettering by Jim Massara, colouring by Chris Chalenor.

r: Predator #02 (Jun 1989).

34 Credits / Story So Far text introduction (uncredited).

35 Aliens Vs Predator Untitled, part four, w: Randy Stradley; p: Phil Norwood, i: Karl Story, lettering by Pat Brosseau.

r: Aliens Vs Predator (Dark Horse) #01 (Jun 1990).

50 Next Month (half page) / Subscriptions (half page)

51 Letters Page readers' mail, cont.

52 Makabre - Coming Soon in Toxic! advertisement.

The arrival of readers letters allows Aliens to feel more connected to the readership, and Martin Skidmore's responses are appropriately optimistic regarding the continued success of Trident, suggesting that original covers might be forthcoming, hinting at new titles, and being a great cheerleader for British comics in general. While there are still problems with the title - that expanse of wasted black space on the contents page remains - it is a positive step towards a more balanced presentation of material.

Butler drags himself to a computer terminal in order to watch events on the monitors. Seeing Spears order Newt to be taken to the breeding centre - and certain death - he moves through corridors filled with aliens, and past the screaming humans remaining, to reach a functional control panel. As the aliens approach Newt, he activates an emergency pressure seal to block their access to her.

Not much happens in this issue, though the art - as always - is great. Butler has some real character development here, with an extended insight into how he sees the world around him, and the problems his programming creates.

That night I rested - and remembered, when Dutch and I were kids, we would hunt in the woods behind our father's cabin.

It wasn't the sport we liked as much as the challenge of the hunt - being on our own, testing ourselves against nature.

Opening day of deer season, we came across a bunch of local boys shooting up the woods. They'd been drinking since daybreak and they had that weird look in their eyes.

Guess they were trying to impress each other.

They'd cornered a buck and took turns pumping slugs into it, watching it bleed into the cool October air.

These boys weren't that different from me and Dutch, except they needed to see the blood.

That's when I learned that there's a world of difference between killing because you have to - and killing because it's fun.

Filling in the blanks regarding Dutch's past, the explanation for his tenacity and resilience in his battle with the Predator becoming less fantastic thanks to his upbringing. Sharing Dutch's sense of certainty when facing such an unusual enemy, Schaefer is hunting now. The tracker in his neck provides him advance warning of the alien presence, and he readies his automatic shotgun.

The Predator duly appears, and Schaefer unloads his weapon before charging headfirst into the depths of the jungle eager to end the battle quickly, though the Predator is prepared for his advance. Seeing the wound he has inflicted on it, Schaefer draws his knife and stabs the Predator, but merely enrages it. Running from the Predator, he comes to a cliff edge, and (through luck as much as skill) manages to send it tumbling to its death below. Returning to his camp, Schaefer discovers that his guide knows more than he has let on.

Rasche tries on the Predator helmet, seeing dozens of ships hanging in the air above New York. Taking the news to McComb, he is told that he faces a full departmental review for withholding evidence, so storms out of the department - only to be stopped by federal agents. Due to manpower shortages, the IRS have been called in to assist...

Dual story threads raise the threat posed to the city by several levels, with a dead Predator in South America and ships hanging in the air over New York, there's enough of material for several stories here. The death of a Predator ought to be more dramatic than falling off a cliff, and it seems rather too easy for Schaefer to defeat a member of the species so off-handedly.

Which is a good a place as any to suggest... Abbott and Costello meet the Predator. I'm serious. I would pay for a fully-painted, photo-realistic series crossing the franchises without a moments hesitation.

The dialogue following this scene is, however, worth the conceit, and indicates that there is a long and troubled history between Predators and humanity. This is more interesting than merely having the species pop up every so often for a murderous rampage, and hints at a conspiracy tacitly approved by those in a position of power. Conspiracy stories, especially when wrapped in the blanket of SF, can make for the very best narratives - had this been developed in the second film, the franchise would probably not have stuttered to an abrupt halt for so long.

Aliens Vs Predator has dragged along at a snail's pace since the first issue, so it is something of a surprise to have a proper story unfolding now.

The planet Ryushi,
at the edge of the Chigusa Corporation's holdings in the Beta Cygni system.

Only human populace: 'Prosperity Wells.'
Population: 115 primary freelance ranchers and their families, plus a token staff of corporate overseers.

Despite the opening sequence seemingly promising dinosaur-type alien hybrids, this appears to be present for the sole purpose of showcasing formidable Predator techniques. As intriguing as dinosaurs and Predators mixing it up would be, there's a genre shit to the "space western" in both appearance and text, which is a slightly larger leap than was probably intended.

The 'terror' came from the stars.

It wasn't indigenous. Even if the survey teams had missed it four years ago, we would have encountered it before the trouble began.

No, it came from somewhere else - some Hell-world beyond Ryushi.

Where? I don't know - and I hope we never find out.

But I know when it came...

The 'Terror' arrived at high noon.

In the searing heat of Ryushi's nineteen-hour daylight period, nothing stirs of its own volition - not even the armored fire crawlers.

With every living creature burrowed in, restivating, or otherwise sheltered against the heat, it's not surprising there were no witnesses to its arrival.

The personal lives of the characters add to the story's believability, though it is all too... cosy. It isn't a world which is seething on the brink of cultural or societal transformation, even without the addition of external pressures, and - without a mirror to the larger threat - the sense of things about to quickly head south isn't as pronounced. Taking motifs of the western (the frontier town, an enemy riding in at high noon) without addressing the core of western literature - that the problem was present all along, and merely needed the arrival of an outside force to finally shatter fragile cohabitation - it loses a degree of tension.

There's some fine artwork, and a great introduction to the means by which the Predators infest a location with Alien seeds for their hunt. It may have been a slow build-up to the point where the two species can be put together, but it is a strip which is improving massively.

#03

Aliens Vol.1

#05

Saviour #2

Feb 1990. Cover price £1.
28 pages. B&W contents.
Trident Comics.

Edited by Martin Skidmore.

Cover by Daniel Vallely.

Contents:

 2 Britain's Bounciest Letters readers' mail; illustration by Nigel Kitching. / Credits / Indicia

 3 Saviour Shakespeare's Sister w: Mark Millar; a: Nigel Kitching.

27 Britain's Bounciest Letters cont..

Another fine cover, with a wonderfully apocalyptic tone to the artwork. The title's logo is, sadly, stretched and difficult to read clearly against the red background, sitting ill at ease in the overall design. On the bright side, it is a joy to find a letters column in this issue, even if it is awkwardly positioned in the inside cover, necessitating flipping past the pages to continue reading. Any interaction with a title's audience is to be commended, so minor quibbles about formatting can be put aside.

The question hanging over this issue is whether Saviour can bear losing Vallely as artist.

Annoyingly, despite giving over room for letters, there is no explanation of the artistic switch. These types of alterations to creative personnel are important in an ongoing title with only one feature - it speaks to creative intent and continuity of ideas. Are we to accept, however ridiculous the notion, that the appearance and layout would largely have remained the same had Vallely remained? Regardless of occurrences behind the scenes, the continuing narrative of Saviour and the assorted cast are handled magnificently, if not as precisely.

Jesus' hands itch, though he notes that they are not due to bleed until the next day. Attending a church, he hijacks the sermon to call people to his cause, although the priest is quick to summon the authorities to have him removed. His mood is further darkened when see sees a news report that Saviour has been awarded the United Nations' Peace Prize. Saviour, meanwhile, is determined to get his hands on the Apostle of Azrael

The change to Kitching is noticeable, though not an unpleasant change - different rather than inferior. While it would have been more beneficial for the title to retain a single artist throughout at least one complete story arc, the switch is as smooth a transition as is possible.

Millar peppers his script with religious references, which tend towards slightly heavy-handedness, and this issue is the first to present plotting oddities - there's a distinct break with the first issue, focusing almost entirely on Jesus' odd, and later drunken, behaviour. He isn't a particularly likable character, and it is puzzling to see so much space expended on him. I'm guessing that this series will make more sense to the strongly religious.

#01

Saviour

#03

Aliens Vol.1 #3

Apr 1991. Cover price £1.50.
52 pages. Colour & B&W.
Trident Comics, Ltd.

Edited by Martin Skidmore.

Painted cover by Denis Beauvais.
r: Endpaper from Aliens: Book Two.

Contents:

 2 Planet-X advertisement.

 3 Contents / Title Credits / Indicia

 4 Credits / Story So Far text introduction (uncredited).

 5 Aliens Untitled, part three, w: Mark Verheiden; a: Denis Beauvaus, lettering by Bob Pinaha.

r: Aliens (Dark Horse) #02 (Dec 1989).

29 Credits / Story So Far text introduction (uncredited).

30 Predator The Heat, part three, w: Mark Verheiden; a: Chris Warner, lettering by Jim Massara, colouring by Chris Chalenor.

r: Predator #01 (Jun 1989).

43 Credits / Story So Far text introduction (uncredited).

44 Aliens Vs Predator Untitled, part three, w: Randy Stradley; p: Phil Norwood, i: Karl Story, lettering by Pat Brosseau.

r: Aliens Vs Predator (Dark Horse) #01 (Jun 1990).

48 Here are a selection of pages from Toxic! the all new weekly comic. ON SALE NOW! preview section.

r: page four of Marshal Law strip from Toxic! (Apocalypse Ltd.) #01 (28 Mar 1991). / page five of Accident Man strip from Toxic! (Apocalypse Ltd.) #01 (28 Mar 1991). / page three of Mutomaniac strip from Toxic! (Apocalypse Ltd.) #01 (28 Mar 1991).

51 Editorial Editor Vacancy (quarter page) / O.U.T.L.A.N.D. Mail Order Comics (uarter page) advertisement. / Crime Doesn't Stand a Chance (half page) advertisement for Uncanny Comics.

52 Do Your Friends Have Mad Comic Disease? advertisement for Toxic! #01 (28 Mar 1991).

When a cover appears to depict an alien which has lit its fart on fire, there's a problem.

Attempting to present the characters here with the same intensity as the cinematic versions is compromised when the first impression is so ridiculous, however well intentioned, and it is an image so strong that everything which follows is tainted by association. Though it is meant to be dramatic, the framing is such that the comedic value presents instantly and refuses to dissipate. Which is unfortunate, as the strips are very good indeed.

When I joined the Marines, I was proud to serve my country. They want that - they want you to think you're doing something right and noble.

Sometimes you believe it. Sometimes it's even true.

Powell was second-in-command, reporting directly to General Spears. He had followed me into the lower decks of my stranded cargo ship because he needed me.

Spears believed, and the purity of his belief was terrifying

Powell reveals to Hicks that the General has transformed the civilian terraforming base into a breeding station, killing everyone living there, and intends to utilise the aliens as living weapons. Being in the military compound is no guarantee of safety, as it has been wired - staff monitoring senior officers round the clock. When the General is angered by the behaviour of his men, as he is every few days, they soon disappear. Being told about the experiment and seeing it are two different things, and Hicks is soon confronted with incontrovertible evidence of the insane techniques with which the general has managed to bring his creatures under control.

The Queen understands what is happening. She watches as her offspring are burned by the General. She waits.

Attempting to wrest control of the facility before Spears' return, Hicks rounds up the soldiers loyal to the General, though things soon go wrong. An alien is freed from captivity, Hicks and Newt running for the Docking Bay. Spears arrives in the nick of time, his flamethrower bringing the aliens under control - and orders traitors executed and transports readied for a return journey to Earth.

The cynicism which runs through this title is refreshingly overt, though the running theme of untrustworthy officials is becoming tired. Should a genuinely concerned figure of authority be presented, it would be a twist on the formula. As it is, the General is a twisted, unhinged parallel to Apocalypse Now's military figure exposed to the darkness and unable to return to civilisation. His plan, to fight aliens with more aliens, is at once completely mad and yet, in a way, entirely logical.

As much as I want to see the return to Earth prevented, I'm also intrigued by the notion of a battle between two factions of aliens in the middle of a city.

Cops in New York tend to get used to things.

Like the time some livewire tied a cow to the chairman of "Federal Beef" and pitched 'em both off the Chrysler building.

It was supposed to be some sort of protest against chemically treated meat, but when that Jersey pancaked into Lexington Avenue, all Hell broke loose.

City sanitation must have gone through a dozen mops cleaning up the mess, but they didn't care - free steaks for Christmas.

The point is, that's the job. You learn to deal with it.

Schaefer, after coming face-to-face with the Predator, is thrown from the fifth floor of the building. His fall broken by clothes lines and trash, Schaefer alive, he is seriously injured, though the experience allowed him close enough to steal something from his assailant - its mask. The Predator also managed to give him something - a tag on his neck which the officer decides must be a tracking device of some kind. Discharging himself from hospital against doctor's orders, he travels to Rasche's home to convalesce.

A confrontation with his captain convinces Schaefer that he won't get answers through any official channels, and may even spend time in jail if he keeps pushing his investigation. Returning to Colombia, where he once worked narcotics, and where his brother disappeared, to see if the killings in his city are connected. A guide leads him through the jungle, and he is astonished to find a giant crater - where locals say the sun appeared at midnight.

Tying things closer to the film, three years on, we don't get an answer as to why a Predator is hinting in a new location. Such an alteration to tradition is something which warrants a passing mention, at the very least, and it is something I hope isn't brushed over.

The interaction between Schaefer and Rasche is rather underplayed, though the camaraderie between the men is evident here in small touches - splitting them up so soon seems to be dictated more by the plot than their personalities, and Schaefer's departure comes across as a random connection instead of deductive reasoning. That they are so different, and their reaction to what is happening so downplayed, that there seems to be a build-up to Rasche uncovering what is actually happening.

The Aliens and Predators haven't actually met yet in the back-up Aliens Vs Predator series, and the plot is so slow to move forward that I'm reluctant to pass judgement.

For a title which is named after the Alien franchise, it is unfortunate that the highlight is a follow-up to Predator.

#02

Aliens Vol.1

#04

Saviour #1

[Dec 1989]. Cover price £1.
28 pages. B&W contents.
Trident Comics.

Edited by Martin Skidmore.

Cover by Daniel Vallely.

Contents:

 2 UNTITLED credits; illustration by Daniel Vallely.

 3 Saviour Suffer Little Children w: Mark Millar; a: Daniel Vallely, additional design by Sue Morris.

27 This Was the Original Cover... illustration by Daniel Vallely.

A dramatic and muted cover, extremely stylish in design - quite befitting the opening installment of Trident's twist on the superhero genre courtesy of Mark Millar. The credits page, with a panel from the fourth page of the strip blown up (and slightly modified), isn't the most encouraging first glimpse at the title, and the complete lack of any personal touches is worrisome. The lack of publisher information is also notable, as if the title had been assembled in a rush, the usual elements of a comic being an afterthought.

The Saviour, title character and protagonist (or antagonist, if you want to be accurate) of the series appears first as an interviewee on a talk show. Some of the references (Mizz, the Fat Boys, Dallas) are dated, but the tone and presentation of the type of discussion should be familiar to anyone who has braved the evening schedules of BBC1 or ITV - topics which are as flimsy as possibly, stretched out with cringe-worthy 'humour' - and which Millar captures perfectly.

The interview is interspersed with footage of Saviour's heroics, and adverts which... Actually, I would be up for purchasing a wallet made from the dissected skin of a dead television personality, would some forward-thinking company be up for marketing such a product. It is, of course, a spin on the fake adverts in RoboCop, or the television segments in The Dark Knight Returns, but with enough originality in the telling.

There are clear hints, so early in the story, that Saviour isn't the man he has professed to be. A young man serves as a counterpoint to the shallow excess of the main character (modelled after Jonathan Ross, at the time headlining The Last Resort), and it is this figure who presents the most sympathetic character in the narrative.

Two thousand years ago I tried to warn them of the direction their lives were taking.

The dark, tortuous path that led only to despair and chaos.
They tortured me then, and hung me upon a cross to die in the blistering sun.

And I still love them. I still came back.

To save them from themselves.

He's really got them fooled this time. They fight over his every dropping.

A sub-plot surrounding child-killings - in order to slaughter The Beast - feels like a lift from a bad Omen knock-off, and the murder of a priest is too briefly presented, though is handled in a manner which side-steps any accusations of gratuitous sensationalism. A remarkably assured and well-paced debut, with several lines of dialogue which shine, ably brought to life with Daniel Vallely's artwork, which is incredibly detailed in places.

With echoes of Steve Yeowell's art in places, Vallely brings a wonderful energy to the story. Momentary respite from the panel-to-panel storytelling (presumably Sue Morris' contribution) comes with a page of newspaper headlines. Visual exuberance is also present in surprising ways, with a final-panel shot of Saviour flying through the air enhanced with a photograph of dark clouds.

Lucifer #2

Aug 1990. Cover price £1.10.
28 pages. B&W contents.
Trident Comics.

Edited by Martin Skidmore.

Cover by Paul Grist.

Contents:

 2 Credits; illustration by Paul Grist. / Indicia

 3 Lucifer, part two, Book Two w: Eddie Campbell; a: Paul Grist.

27 A Different Kind of Antichrist... in-house advertisement for The Saviour; illustration by Nigel Kitching.

See with what heat these dogs of Hell advance to waste and havoc yonder world.

John Milton, PARADISE LOST, 1667.

Lucifer, now firmly ensconced as the new King of Hell, takes stock of his minions. Refusing sausage and mash from the chef, he requests caviar and French fries, champagne in his coffee, and custard in his flambe banana. A parade before the assembled crowds of Hell seems to go well enough, but then his mother calls him out - first asking him why he wasn't present when she and Lucifer's brothers were shot by police, then calling him a no-good bum.

If there's one thing you don't do, it is call the ruler of Hell a no-good bum.

Lucifer isn't a man to be trifled with. With his mother dealt with, Lucifer finds complete control over Hell to be boring, pointing out the world of men, and stating that it is the goal... Hell's prize. Charon, once introduced to the "new boss" of course, rows Lucifer across the River Styx, where the he learns that entrance to Hell over the river used to cost one obol. Which gives him an idea how to raise funds...

There's a nice fourth-wall shaking moment when the wall between Hell and Earth is torn asunder, and it momentarily appears that Lucifer is looking at the reader. He isn't, of course, arriving on a street where scientists and the military have arrived to investigate strange readings from their equipment. Television news cameras capture their arrival, describing the denizens of Hell as aliens, and warning the populace to remain in their homes.

Finding a room to rent, Lucifer starts to plan his conquest of the world. As you do.

There are moments when I am taken aback at the foresight of writers working in comics. You wouldn't imagine that a great many predictions would prove correct, but there is a television program included here which is named Pop-o-Tunities (basically Opportunity Knocks with a musical angle), over a decade before Pop Idol and Popstars. Eddie Campbell has seen the future, and he is ready to skewer it.

Madam, a pop singer who appears on the show gives Lucifer an idea. Obtaining her address from Channel 10's reception, he approaches the young woman with promises of success, riches, adulation, and celebrity, though her reaction is less than enthusiastic. Seeing the error of his approach, Lucifer changes the deal, requesting that she spend a week with her aunt in Michigan when she is at the height of her popularity, so that he can inform the press she has been kidnapped. Did Fairlie Arrow read this?

With the plan in motion, Lucifer sets about rigging the charts - if it is good enough for Stock Aitken Waterman...

When Madam is sufficiently famous, and the plan is about to be put into action, everything seems to go wrong - Steve, her husband, arrives and assaults the press. The resultant storm of newspaper headlines plays into Lucifer's plans, so he rolls with the punches. First claiming that she has been kidnapped, then that he is responsible, on behalf of the moral majority of America.

As the city goes straight to... Well, you-know-where, Lucifer sends his troops out.

This is me. Lucifer. In my triumph.

Before me the way is cleared by the beast with three heads.

- and before the beast, the four bicyclists of the Apocalypse.

Some nice cameos (including Swamp Thing and Rorschach) enliven the artwork, though neither creator need tricks to make the comic entertaining - there's a heart to this title. Although the title character is, by any definition, not a particularly nice individual, he's amusing, rather petty, and ultimately very real. It is difficult enough making regular characters believable, but making a conqueror of the underworld believable is an extraordinary achievement.

There's a brutally (apparently) simplistic image of Lucifer carried aloft over the city, rendered as white squares against a black background, which is oddly beautiful. Indeed, there's a great deal of wondrous imagery throughout, playing with layout, space, and time in an confident chiaroscuro style. While there are hints of influences here and there (a touch of Hugo Pratt, a dash of Mike McMahon), Grist owns the pages of Lucifer with a remarkable assuredness.

#01

Lucifer

#03

Strand #1

Nov 1990. Cover price £1.25.
36 pages. B&W contents.
Trident Comics, Ltd.

Edited by Martin Skidmore.

Cover by UNNOWN.

Contents:

2 Strand contents page. / Credits / Indicia
3 Strand, part one, w: John Kaiine; a: Gary Caldwell, lettering by Ben Dilworth.
15 Where Angels Fear to Tread w:/a: Daniel Vallely.
23 Under the Bed w: Eleanor Hughes; a: Simon Fraser.
27 Tulpa, part one, w:/a: Richard Elson.
34 The Ultimate Confrontation - Saviour in-house advertisement for trade paperback collection.
35 Legions of Hell in-house advertisement.

Anthology comics, especially horror ones, are always a welcome sight, and Trident's offering - while not as polished or immediately enticing as some - is actually quite good.

Eternity smells of hot water bottles.

...warm and rubbery.

The smell of eternity makes you want to cough.

Infinity is coloured yellow.

The nicotine-stained fingers that have held a life of woodbines.

And its texture is that of dried spit in a tobacco tin.

The titular serial which initiates the title begins in a bar, where a patron reads a newspaper which reports killings in the Strand. One of the men who frequents this particular establishment is not like the others - he is immortal. Elsewhere, a man performs an occult ritual in order to attain demoniac power.

Much occurs, and is referenced, in the first installment, though how much of this is pertinent to the murders is questionable. A woman is reported to have given birth to a pig (shades of Mary Toft), and a priest has choked to death on his own crucifix. There is much Forteana here, though little progression to a solid threat which might establish itself. While one can piece together elements familiar from other works - secret organisations investigating supernatural occurrences is a solid concept - there are minor oddities here.

The main drawback is the lettering, which takes a little shine off the strip. A finely drawn, if narratively unremarkable, strip, with no sense of urgency to proceedings. It might work better when read in full, but there's simply not enough here to make any determinations.

The first complete piece, Where Angels Fear to Tread, is less a story than it is a sequence of events connected by a narrative. Not wholly effective, the artwork is mostly satisfactory, but there isn't enough development to make revisiting it worthwhile. It feels, more than anything, like a sequence of illustrations pulled together with a perfunctory textual connecting thread.

Under the Bed is an intriguing, and extremely accomplished, tale of isolation, fear (real or imagined), and an overabundance of imagination. While it is only tangentially a horror story, it is a beautifully constructed examination of the psyche of the protagonist, containing a few remarkably acute observations which elevates it above the standard monster-of-the-week threat.

Tulpa, begins slowly, and with a real sense of who each of the characters are - during a night of drinking and talking, they discover a strange pamphlet which refuses to burn. Finding an English translation, they begin reciting the words... This is a very promising start. Plenty of questions are left for the reader to ponder, and the artwork is strong. Some very attractive lettering, with inventive balloons, is the icing on the cake.

There's a lot of things which marred Trident (the lack of series logos in their advertisements, the wasted back pages), but when creators were on form they could provide real surprises - this isn't a wholly positive introduction to the title, but there are enough good points to mae it worth a second glance.

Indiana Jones Vol.2 #1

Oct 1991. Cover price £1.00.
36 pages. Colour & B&W contents.
Trident Comics.

Edited by Martin Skidmore.

Painted cover by Dave Dorman.
r: Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis (Dark Horse) #01 (Mar 1991).

Contents:

2 Indiana Jones credits. / The Story So Far... / Indicia

3 Indiana Jones The Fate of Atlantis w: William Messner-Loebs & Dan Barry (uncredited), based on a story by Hal Barwood, Noah Falstein & Lucasfilm Games; p: Dan Barry, i: Karl Kesel, lettering by Gail Beckett, colouring by Lurene Haines.

r: Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis (Dark Horse) #01 (Mar 1991).

29 In Space, No-One Can Hear You Scream in-house advertisement for Aliens #09 (Oct 1991).

30 Apocalypse Presents Makabre in-house advertisement.

31 Next Month

32 Terminator T-Shirt Offer in-house advertisement.

33 Trident Comics Mail Order in-house advertisement.

34 Competition with five copies of Indiana Jones Explores Ancient Egypt to win.

35 Toxic! Bite off more than you can chew... in-house advertisement.

36 Terminator - A Gripping Comic in-house advertisement.

While there isn't an introduction to the title, at least there's a text primer for those arriving to the character late. This is primarily a title aimed at fans of the films, of course, so a proper introduction should have appeared inside the front cover - there's plenty of room left over, with the cover image re-used in light blue, the text inexplicably placed directly over Indy's face. Foregoing a free gift is slightly odd, especially as the (stunning) cover being a perfect depiction of the adventurer, and worthy of reproducing in a larger format.

Normally, Indiana Jones is a Professor of Archeology at Barnet College, in New York State. But he's no ordinary archaeologist. He's had extraordinary adventures all over the world. He's recovered the Ark of the Covenant, containing the tablets Moses received with the Ten Commandments engraved upon them. He restored some magical eggs, which bestow immortality, to the village which takes care of them. He even recovered the Holy Grail, the chalice from which Jesus Christ drank at the Last Supper.

But there's one place even Indiana Jones doesn't believe in. A place considered legendary by everyone. And now, discoveries made on Indy's first dig a decade ago are coming back to haunt him. and Indy must set out on a quest to discover...

THE FATE OF ATLANTIS

Addressing the storytelling issues which plagued the back-ups in Marvel's launch issue, the strip opens in the middle of an adventure. This is how the character should be seen at the opening of a new story, and it is a gloriously mad sequence with the self-proclaimed god Tenochtitlan preparing to throw him to crocodiles. It is, unfortunately, a dream sequence, but it is an important glimpse into his psyche.

The sixth of May, 1939.

One of the things which bothered me about the various Indiana Jones printed material throughout the nineties was the lack of direct inspiration from the films, and the manner in which we are given the date (not to mention the prior text introduction) is how pedestrian and unimaginative it is.

There was a wonderful conceit in his bulging diary, which was never - to the best of my knowledge - picked up on. Had there been a page of the diary, with attached photographs, sketches of artifacts, a fragment of a crumpled rubbing, or other elements which might he might have carried with him, then the immersion could have been so much greater.

Small details, building into something greater with each page revealed.

Samuel Corn, a man of many skills, arrives at the class Dr. Jones is teaching, with an ancient key which he finally identifies as containing similar markings to items discovered during the Jastro expedition in Iceland. Indiana Jones' first dig, a decade earlier, had unearthed an object of similar design - which happens to be the item to which the key belongs. Corn takes the contents from Indy at gunpoint before escaping, though without his ID - which reveals that his real name is Klaus Kerner, and that he is a colonel in the S.S.

Alongside Kerner's ID is a newspaper clipping referencing Sophia Hapgood, another member of the expedition. Indy decides to pay her a visit, and finds her living in New York, promoting ancient Atlantean culture, calling herself Madame Sophia. Sophia isn't pleased at his arrival in her life again, although she permits him to spend the night - which he fills by indexing her collection of irreplaceable relics. Kerner breaks into Sophia's apartment, and while the German gets his hands on the artifacts, Dr. Jones is able to save his friend's life.

An above-average beginning, reprinting a fine story, and with a competition which fits perfectly. There are, perhaps, a few too many adverts (the Terminator one is certainly effective), and a certain reserved caution in presentation - one would have imagined such a high-profile franchise to have been a feather in Trident's cap, yet there isn't any celebratory punch here. This is where introductions are so important, as they can say to the reader that there will be great things forthcoming, or to highlight how much the comic will develop over forthcoming issues with proper support.

Encouraging readers to write in with their opinions on the title is the main reason to include a brief message at the front of a new title. How many people, on picking this up, would have sent in missives regardless? By throwing suggestions on the naming of a letter column (The Snake Pit would have been perfect) readers are challenged to one-up the title's offerings.

It is early days for the title, and despite rough edges it feels promising.

Aliens Vol.1 #2

Mar 1991. Cover price £1.50.
52 pages. Colour & B&W.
Trident Comics Ltd.

Edited by Martin Skidmore.

Cover by Denis Beauvais.
r: cover from Aliens (Dark Horse) #4 (May 1989).

Contents:

 2 Marshal Law Takes Manhattan in-house advertisement; illustration by Kevin O'Neill.

 3 Contents / Title Credits / Indicia

 4 Credits / Story So Far text introduction (uncredited).

 5 Aliens Untitled, part two, w: Mark Verheiden; a: Denis Beauvaus, lettering by Bob Pinaha.

r: Aliens (Dark Horse) #02 (Dec 1989).

30 Credits / Story So Far text introduction (uncredited).

31 Predator The Heat, part two, w: Mark Verheiden; a: Chris Warner, lettering by Jim Massara, colouring by Chris Chalenor.

r: Predator (Dark Horse) #01 (Jun 1989).

45 Credits / Story So Far text introduction (uncredited).

46 Aliens Vs Predator Untitled, part two, w: Randy Stradley; p: Phil Norwood, i: Karl Story, lettering by Pat Brosseau.

r: Aliens Vs Predator (Dark Horse) #01 (Jun 1990).

51 Aliens Next Issue (quarter page) in-house advertisement. / Comic Marts '91 (quarter page) advertisement. / Meanwhile... (quarter page) advertisement; illustrated by UNKNOWN (uncredited). / Fantasy World - Another World (quarter page) advertisement.

52 Toxic! A Major New Weekly Magazine in-house advertisement.

While it might have been more useful for fans had Trident reprinted every Alien appearance from the start, by picking and choosing pieces to package in bite-size chunks we are presented with fantastic artwork such as the Beauvais cover. Effective as the format is, the lack of supplementary material continues to bug me. It would have been relatively easy (in 1991, at least) to list all the Alien strips on a page, allowing those interested to hunt down whatever is unlikely to be reprinted.

There's no editorial, leaving a gaping black space on the third page, which makes the issue look rushed and incomplete. Small details, so important to building confidence in the title, which linger in the mind. One such detail stands out on the introduction to the first story, where the first letter of Story So Far is printed in red, while the rest are white. Against a black background it reads as "Tory So Far" at a glance. Not the best impression to give.

Picking up with Newt telling Commander Spears that they were lucky to survive, to which he responds that it wasn't luck but sedition - he orders Newt and Hicks taken to isolation, in order that they can be analysed, and as they pass through the station they discover that transmissions from Earth are still being received - civilians, desperate for assistance, being all but ignored.

A group of dissatisfied military personnel plan their escape from Spears' command, stealing a tractor to traverse the wasteland outside. Lt. Powell is made aware of Hicks and Newt's history, and informs Spear of records which have come to light. Spear, who has seen an Alien Queen up close, and come away from the experience a changed man, tells them that the Aliens may have the strength and power of true soldiers, but lack leadership. He hopes to provide that for those in his custody.

Hicks investigates the ship on which he arrived, locating a cut communications bundle. Powell, Spears' second-in-command, tells Hicks that the General is insane, while the absconded soldiers discover the colony to be less of a refuge than they anticipated.

Creepy rather than horrific, there is a lot to like in the continuation of Newt's story. Some of the artwork is slightly rougher, but the story is building up a head of steam. Some of the darker artwork hasn't been reproduced well, and a few pieces look too soft and out of focus, but overall captures the world of the characters well.

Carr has survived the Predator's assault, and - in the belief that police had orchestrated the murders - begins firing on Schaefer. The gunman escapes, running into the night.

In the aftermath of another subway attack, Schaefer and Rasche take it upon themselves to attend the scene, drawing ire from McComb, who threatens to have them suspended. They get a hint to keep away from matters from an associate of Dutch's, though Schaefer returns to Lamb's headquarters to try and piece together what he can from the crime scene. Encountering the creature responsible, Dutch attempts to apprehend the killer.

The Heat is stylish and - in places - extremely effective at selling the notion of a Predator hunting in the city. There's a great shot of the Predator standing over Schaefer, and a nice close-up which shows the Predator in all his glory, though the colouring is rather poor in places, taking away from the effectiveness of the art. Subtler tones and more blending of hues would have elevated what is a good strip into a great one.

The final strip, Aliens Vs Predator continues slowly, building tension while highlighting the workings of the Predator preparations. With only five pages to play with, it doesn't move far enough along to offer much in the way of narrative development, but the art is pretty. This is going to get frustrating if developments aren't forthcoming...

#01

Aliens Vol.1

#03

Lucifer #1

Jul 1990. Cover price £1.10.
28 pages. B&W contents.
Trident Comics.

Edited by Martin Skidmore.

Cover by Paul Grist.

Contents:

 2 Credits; illustrated by Paul Grist (reproduction in B&W of cover). / Indicia

 3 Hi, I'm Lucifer w: Eddie Campbell; a: Phil Elliott.

27 Phil Elliott and Eddie Cambell are also featured in Trident 7 in-house advertisement.

Lucifer, the fallen angel of Biblical fame, wearing his suit of feathers symbolic of former glories... telling his life story from a padded cell. There are few comics which open with such an audacious premise, but Lucifer is special. Under an attractive Grist cover, which establishes Lucifer as being a bit off, allowed to transverse the space normally held between character and reader, It may be due to him being completely round the bend, but maybe (just maybe) he's telling the truth.

The story begins with Lucifer being hit by a car while crossing the road, and in hospital encounters a man who states that his nose contains the other place... The inferno... Hell. How, one wonders, do all the damned get into it? They will be reduced microscopic on Judgement Day, else there wouldn't be any room on the planet if every man, woman, and child who ever lived came back at their original size. Seeing the chance of a lifetime, Lucifer sneaks into the operating theatre and steals the growth. For two weeks he attempts conjurations to enter the dimension.

As the carbuncle grows, Lucifer finds himself at the gates of Hell where he is refused entry. Entering with the assistance of four demons (returning from a meeting of the Maidstone coven) by using the name Mucusface, he discovers that the bridge to Hell is constructed of every politician who achieved their selfish ends on the backs of the people. The road to hell is, literally, paved with politicians.

Lucifer's journey through the layers of Hell is illuminating to the young man, though after encountering soccer hooligans finds himself rather thirsty - which is solved by a trip to Hell's bar, where those who never purchase a round are forced to watch on, sucking on corks for all eternity, as demons quench their thirst. Eventually meeting Satan, Lucifer stabs him in the chest and takes his place as master of Hell.

While not deliberately setting out to note prior publications, there are many small touches which make the title an appealing prospect for those willing to look beyond what is presented. Bellygrunt is reminiscent of Oojah or Shake, and Puepizza's heads are strangely familiar. Clever (and not so clever) wordplay peppers the script, although this is less to show off than it is to highlight character quirks, perfectly capturing a childish, impulsive personality who may or may not be the actual Lucfer.

Gloriously silly, endlessly amusing, and with a great central character.

Trident's lack of proofreading their own adverts is painfully noticeable here. A blemish, however slight, on the overall package.

Aliens Vol.1 #1

Feb 1991. £1.50
52 pages. Color & B&W.
Trident Comics, Ltd.

Edited by Martin Skidmore.

Cover by Denis Beauvais. r: cover from Aliens: Book Two collection (Dark Horse; 1989).

Contents:

.2 Contents / Title Credits / Indicia

.3 Credits / Story So Far text introduction (uncredited).

.4 Aliens Untitled, part one, w: Mark Verheiden; a: Denis Beauvais, lettering by Bob Pinaha.

r: Aliens (Dark Horse) vol.2 #1 (Aug 1989).

28 Credits / Story So Far text introduction (uncredited).

29 Predator The Heat, part one, w: Mark Verheiden; a: Chris Warner, lettering by Jim Massara, colouring Chris Chalenor.

r: Predator (Dark Horse) #1 (Jun 1989).

40 Credits / Story So Far text introduction (uncredited).

41 Aliens Vs Predator Untitled, part one, w: Randy Stradley; p: Phil Norwood, i: Karl Story, lettering by Pat Brosseau.

r:

51 He's Back, and He's on the Case of his Career... advertisement for Bogie Man: The Manhattan Project.

52 Muto Maniac advertisement.

Despite the cover, this isn't the first appearance of a Xenomorph basketball team, although given scenes in Alien Resurrection...

Rebecca 'Newt' Jorden and Corporal Hicks were two of the few survivors when the Aliens wiped out a colony in the movie Aliens.

Years later, Earth too has fallen to the Aliens. We'll tell you how all that happened some time soon. It's an extraordinary story.

In the course of it, Newt met Butler, and found love for the first time in her tormented life. Then she discovered Butler's secret - something he hadn't even known himself. And that changed everything.

Newt, Butler and Hicks only just managed to get off Earth in time when the Aliens took over, by stowing away on a cargo ship.

Now it's two weeks later. Their only remaining problems are that they haven't the slightest idea where the ship's navigational computers are taking them, nor what cargo might have been important enough to take off-planet in an emergency...

Newt and Hicks are alive and well. So far, anyway, as there are aliens aboard their ship. Hicks manages to kill one, leaving two aliens to deal with, but with only four rounds for his blaster the situation isn't exactly optimistic. Worse still, when dealing with the alien, Hicks was exposed to open space and is suffering from the bends. Locating the remaining aliens with the ship's cameras, aft dock doors are opened, sucking them out into space. Newt isn't satisfied with this, putting on a spacesuit to go see for herself. An alien surprises her, forcing her to use the blaster, which is how she comes to lose it.

Attempting to retrieve her blaster from inside the rear thrusters, she discovers a second alien waiting. Listening to events unfolding outside, Butler - an android who is missing his legs - fires up the thrusters to kill the alien. With imminent threat seemingly over, they continue to their destination. Reaching the ship's preprogrammed coordinates they are told that the cargo they were hauling are the very thing they have been so scared of for so long.

Despite being at odds with Alien³, the main Aliens strip isn't at all bad, though there is a sense of trying to one-up horrors which have appeared in the films. Events unfold in a manner which suggests that, despite the difficulty in doing so without things getting silly, there will be an increase in unfolding anarchy. Butler is interesting, though is barely used in this opening part of the story, while Newt is far more competent and mature than when she appeared in Aliens. It isn't clear how they managed to move around on the ship for two weeks without discovering the nature of the cargo, but hopefully that will be explained.

It was supposedly a mission to rescue a senator held hostage by terrorists in the jungles of Latin America. It turned out Dutch and his crack commando squad had been conned by the CIA into doing their dirty work, but, in the end, that didn't matter - they dealt with the 'terrorists' easily. Then the trouble started.

America's toughest team of fighters was being picked off, apparently at will, by an invisible hunter. Soon, only Dutch is left, unarmed, in a face-to-face confrontation with a monstrous alien hunter. Miraculously, he survives, and the alien destroys itself after suffering defeat.

The people of the jungle had legends about these hunters. They appeared only when the weather was at its hottest.

Schaefer, Dutch's big brother, is a homicide cop in New York, trying to cope with rising tensions as the Summer heats up - but the mounting gang wars will be the least of his worries.

Because it's the hottest New York's ever been. As hot as the jungle. And even alien hunters like a change of scenery occasionally...

A man shooting his wife to death because she watched a Green Acres marathon is just the start of Schaefer's problems, and multiple gunshots take him to a run-down building where he is told to wait on the captain arriving. A body falling from the roof onto a police car forces his hand, and he enters the building - only to discover the Suits and the Muchachos (two competing gangs) massacred by a third party.

The Predator story, encumbered with rather stilted artwork, and garishly coloured, is nevertheless a rather good set-up for an inner-city battle reminiscent of Predator 2. It is difficult to imagine any fresh ground being broken with such a similar opening, yet it manages to introduce a few interesting characters.

The race called the Aliens are the most deadly natural predators in the known universe. They're incredibly vicious and virtually unstoppable. The only sure defence against them is to be on a different planet.

The Race called the Predators may have less fearsome natural assets, but they make up for it with sophisticated weaponry, intelligence and hunting skill. They may be the universe's most formidable hunters.

Now they're after the toughest prey of all: the Aliens.

It's the greatest confrontation of all time - and guess whose planet they're holding it on?

Not a lot happens in Aliens Vs Predator save for a Predator ship moving through space with Aliens aboard. You might suppose this to be a weakness, but the art is so sharp that there isn't much problem with this lack of narrative progression - things are going to get very violent, very quickly (the story is about Aliens and Predators), so enjoying the journey to that point is the point.

There is a great difference between the strips which goes beyond pacing, tone, and presentation, and despite the best intentions of everyone involved in repackaging the material, it isn't a wholly successful package. The painfully obvious lack of features, when so much could have been done to fill readers in on the backgrounds of the franchises involved, means that the success or failure of the issue lies with the strips. It is unfortunate that they aren't the best stories for a first issue.

By asking readers to commit to a series of ongoing narratives (of indeterminate length), without throwing them a bone or two, is simply asking too much. Short complete stories are essential in teasing readers into a world which is this complex, and allow for that warm "value for money" feeling which publishers desperately want us to feel. And really, no free gifts? The least this issue should have had was a poster.