Comic Clippings - 27 April

I'm pleased to announce that the latest two Storm books published by Don Lawrence Collection are out and, to prove it, here are scans of the covers. Storm: The Collection Volume 6 contains 'The Labyrinth of Death' and 'The Seven of Aromater', the second and third storylines from the Chronicles of Pandarve; Volume 7 contains 'The Slayer of Eriban' and 'The Hounds of Marduk', stories four and five.

The books look fantastic -- large (at 13 ½" x 9 ½"), limited edition deluxe hardcovers with dustjackets -- and the print quality is second to none. The books are all digitally remastered and, for the most part, appearing in English for the first time (one of the stories was published in the US Heavy Metal, although the version here has been newly translated).

The stories in the Storm series were getting better and better during this period as Storm -- and author Martin Lodewijk -- got to explore more of the fantastic worlds of Pandarve, a place on the edge of the universe where physics and the natural laws we take for granted are not always constant. The cover to Volume 6 offers a clue, as Storm, Nomad and their friend Rann are abandoned in space on a tiny asteroid. Over these books, Storm begins to learn about the Pandarve, why he has been taken there and the powers he, an anomaly in the system, now seems to possess.

The books are expensive, I won't deny it, but the cost is all in the quality of production. You can order copies of the books from the publisher via their website, The Worlds of Don Lawrence, or from the Book Palace.

A quick update on other things. The Karl introductions are progressing slowly -- I think I've written around 8,000 words so far with a long way still to go. I'll be cracking on with some more this evening and tomorrow before heading off to the ABC comics show at the Royal National Hotel on Sunday.

We now have almost 16,000 images up on the Look and Learn website and a growing collection of blog entries and downloadable copies of the Children's Newspaper. If you've not had a chance to visit before, make yourself a cup of tea and take a half-hour off... you won't regret it. The collection has some of the finest artwork ever produced.

I was interviewed by Sean Blair for a piece he's written for the BBC Online Magazine. 'Gott in Himmel!' celebrates the publishing of the 4,000th issue of Commando Library, interviewing George Low, collector Vic Whittle and I get a few seconds shaved off of my fifteen minutes of fame towards the end. Look and Learn gets a mention, too.

If it sounds like all work and no play that's not quite the case. I went to see Lucy Porter last weekend and just haven't gotten around to writing it up. This was part of her 'Good Life' tour which she has been touring for some time (it was first performed at the Edinburgh Fringe in 2006. We've seen her live before so I knew what to expect. She's petite, delightful, warm and filthy.

And quite why she's dressed as a carrot at the beginning of the show... you'll just have to go see her and find out for yourself.

And in the news...

• According to the Forbidden Planet International blog, NBM are to publish The Art of Bryan Talbot this autumn.

Er... that's it.