Comic Cuts — 18 October 2024

The big event this week was the Colchester Comic Swap Meet that took place on Saturday. I had been preparing for this for some while, but there were still some last minute bumps in the road to deal with.

The first was solved by Swap Meet organiser Karl Kennedy, who, knowing of the over-stretched tendons in my shoulder, offered to pick up a couple of boxes of books from Wivenhoe and drop them off at the venue, the Baptist Chuch in Eld Lane, in Colchester. I packed up most of the copies that I carry as stock... which is where the second bump occurred. Karl picked up the books on Thursday evening, and on Friday morning, I had three book orders which immediately cleared me out of three titles.

I'd tried to avoid shutting down my shops, but there was no option but to pause both Amazon and eBay sales until after the show.

There was a second question as to whether I would have enough copies of THE PHANTOM PATROL to hand as I had two orders in with the printer and the first had only just arrived. It looked like the second might not turn up until Monday, but, thankfully, it turned up on Friday. Rather than lug twenty copies in on the bus, it was agreed that Mel would bring them in later as she was getting a lift into town by car.

Saturday started with me hopping on the bus and arriving in the city (yes, Colchester is a city!) just as the shops were opening up. First port of call was a shoe shop to buy some new shoes, which I wore out of the shop, carrying the other pair to Timpson's in the hope that they could be sole and heeled—at the very least made waterproof so that they could be used as "gardening shoes", which is the fate of two earlier pairs of shoes.

Things were already busy at the venue when I walked in. I was to have one of the tables nearest the door and I could see the three boxes I'd packed up two days earlier. It didn't take long to lay out the books in a sensible order, with the new books and other comic strips as a first row nearest the customer, then indexes as a second row and then everything else. I'd taken a few examples of other things I've produced, including THE TRIALS OF HANK JANSON, so that people could see the range.

I think I had over twenty books available, but the comic strip reprints were the ones I expected to sell on the day, and THE PHANTOM PATROL especially. Which proved true. Almost immediately, I sold two, three, and then four copies. Over the next half hour a handful of others were sold, and I was on the phone to Mel asking whether it would be possible for her to bring ALL of the copies we had in the house.

Like last year, it's a fairly quiet, but steady show, but people are there to buy. I sold more books this time than last, but it's almost impossible to predict what people will want. I sold out of one book last year so I made sure I had copies to hand this time... didn't sell a single one. But that was made up for by sales of other books that I almost hadn't brought because there seemed to be no interest last time.

I ended the day £480 better off.  OK, that might not be all profit, because of the cost of printing and getting the books to me, but it was a very satisfying amount, and more than paid for my new shoes, which was my target for the day. I celebrated quietly with myself by buying a book and a sausage bap.

The book—a copy of DAN DARE ON MARS in a nice dust jacket—was one I'd only ever seen in the collection of John Allen-Clark, my late Eagle-collecting pal, who had most of the Eagle novels and from whom I bought a collection of the girls' titles (Susan of St. Bride's, etc.) thirty years ago. I've always wanted to read Basil Dawson's novel, although I gather it's not the greatest SF novel of the era (1956). It is, however, one of the few Dan Dare stories I've never read, so the chance to pick it up at what I thought a very reasonable price was too good to miss.

The art show by Stuart and Ed was a highlight, as was getting to meet Keith Burns, Commando and Johnny Red artist extraordinaire. I also met Andy Sawyers, an exceptional artist from The 77. Stephen Hume, who writes for Commando, was also selling comics, as was my swap meet neighbour, Vic Whittle, who runs the British Picture Libraries website. It was good to chat to people I met at the last Meet, such as James Bacon and Andy Yates; although it was a steady day rather than frenetic, there was still never enough time to chat to everyone at length.

I spent Sunday doing a stock take, reordering books, catching up on sleep, lazing around and moaning about how my new shoes had torn my heels up. That's new shoes for you.

Monday: good day of work on the new book, which is called DREAMING OF UTOPIA; Tuesday, was spent writing one of the last two essays for the book and cleaning up artwork to illustrate it; unfortunately, Wednesday was a write-off as large parts of the day were taken up shopping and attending an eye test at an inconvenient clinic two miles from the bus route. For that I put on an old pair of shoes that I knew would be more comfortable than the new ones. Thursday has also been a write-off as I spent the morning shuffling files around various external drives to create some space on my laptop and the afternoon... well, I'm writing this and sorting out pictures for you as we're heading out this evening to see Kiri Pritchard-McLean at the local Arts Centre.

Hopefully I can get back onto the book tomorrow...

• 15 Oct. Dave Gibbons is interviewed about 'For The Man Who Has Everything', the Alan Moore-scripted Superman story. “We sort of brought our own British sensibility towards the American material. So although we loved the notion of this distant Babylon that was New York City where you could make comic books, we rather liked being the people outside the city throwing rocks at it.”
  
• 6 Oct. Bleeding Cool reports that Mark Millar is planning to start a film studio once his deal with Netflix ends. Miller's deal means that he would lose control of certain characters. "I would be starting from scratch. I wouldn't be able to write those characters because they're owned by another company but there's something exciting about starting over doing something else. I maybe do something outside of comics too, you know maybe do a smaller batch of comics, start a film production company, which I'll probably do at some point. I'm joining the board of a big theatre here as well, so I'm going to be involved in theatre and everything too. A book publisher has asked me to do some stuff there . When you're a writer, there's lots of different things you can do."
  
• 4 Oct. Andrew Sumner's Forbidden Planet TV interviewed Sean Phillips at  the recent Lakes International Comic Art Festival. "Andrew Sumner talks to best-selling British artist Sean Phillips about the evolution of his award-winning career - and Sean's wildly-successful twenty-five year creative partnership with Ed Brubaker - before examining his [REDACTED] observations, experiences & reactions to the evolution of CRIMINAL as an Amazon Prime Video series debuting in 2025 - and to the planned filming of ED & Sean's Eisner award-winning graphic novel PULP (for which they are executive producers)." (video, 36m)
  
• 4 Oct. Forbes magazine takes a look at Rebellion. "Kingsley said the [acquisition of Fleetway] represented a long term strategy of ensuring high quality throughout the media development process. 'When you work on licensed IP, it’s limiting because it’s other people’s property, but when you create your own licenses like Sniper Elite, Rogue Warrior or Zombie Army, you build.'"
  
• 28 Sep. Kevin Hall has posted interviews with and Arthur Wyatt and Nick Percival on his Facebook page. Hall runs the 2000AD Review Page, and often has mini interviews relating to the latest issues of 2000AD and the Judge Dredd Megazine.
  
• 27 Sep. Dave Elliott (ex-Atomeka, Penthouse Comix, etc.) returns to comics as publisher and editor-in-chief of Mechanical Cake, which counts Ridley Scott as CEO along with Jesse Negron, and involves artists Bill Sienkiewicz, Dan Panosian and Chris Weston, working on three graphic novels.
  
• 27 Sep. Garth Ennis is joined by Torunn Grønbekk, Chris Burnham, Rob Williams, Keith Burns and Brian K. Vaughan, on the latst episode from Forbidden Planet TV. "This dirty half-dozen of world-class comic-book creators join Andrew Sumner to celebrate Rebellion's ten-part third volume of legendary UK war/action title Battle Action, featuring Garth & Keith on Johnny Red, Brian & Chris on Kids Rule OK, Torunn on Nina Petrova (with Patrick Goddard) and Rob on Major Eazy (with PJ Holden) and El Mestizo (with Henry Flint)." (video, 44m)
  
• 26 Sep. A new horror publisher—Ninth Circle, to be published via Image—has been set up by Garth Ennis. Ram V and others. The first release will be Freddie the Fix by Ennis and Mike Perkins, the story of a Hollywood fixer who cleans up the messes left behind by Tinseltown’s vampires, werewolves, and other supernatural denizens."
• 26 Sep. John Wagner returned to Judge Dredd with 'Machine Rule' this summer and to 'HMS Nightshade' in Battle Action #2. "I was probably in my umpteenth attempt at retiring," he says of previously revealing it would end the storyline begun with 'Machine Law' in 2019. "[I]t would be unwise to think that the story had concluded. In fact, I'm currently pumping myself up to work on the sequel."
  
• 24 Sep. Paul Slade has collected together and published eight essays about comics, with the lead essay taking up nearly half the book and giving it its title: The Redemption of Andy Capp. The essay reasses the famous Daily Mirror strip which was a huge global success and its artist, Reg Smythe. ”When Homer Simpson called Andy a ‘wife beating drunk’ in a 1993 episode of The Simpsons, it convinced a whole generation there was no more to Smythe’s work than crude misogynist jokes. I wanted to show people that simply wasn’t true.”
• 17 Sep. The Bookseller's graphic novel spotlight issue (13 Sept.) has been used to announce the launch in January 2025 of The Phoenix Comic Books, a new imprint from David Fickling Books, which ties their book line to their comic The Phoenix. John Freeman has more details.
  
• 16 Sep. Philip Boyce pays tribute to Mark Rodgers, the co-creator of Oink! comic, on what would have been his birthday. "To say Mark was a prolific comics writer is probably the largest understatement I could make. Working across a multitude of titles for the likes of IPC/Fleetway, he’d often write up to a dozen scripts a week."
  
• 14 Sep. Down the Tubes has details of the Alan Grant Memorial Scholarship at the Tallaght Academy of Sequential Art, Dublin, which will cover the tuition fees of one lucky scholar.
  
• 13 Sep. The latest report from the US website Deadline on Neil Gaiman's various screen adaptations says that production on the third and final season of Good Omens has been paused by Netflix.
• 9 Sep. Mark Millar's Millar Time features an interview with John McCrea. (video 1h 20m)
  
• 6 Sep. Alan Moore has a new novel due out on 1st October, a historical fantasy. "The Great When departs from Moore’s beloved Northampton—the “obvious centre of the universe”—and settles in London in 1949, when the city and its populace are physically and psychologically “in pieces”. This precarity provides a fertile backdrop for the misadventures of the novel’s protagonist, the hapless Dennis Knuckleyard, a motherless 18-year-old living and working with the profoundly grotesque bookshop owner, Coffin Ada."
• 6 Sep. Given the shitstorm that is currently surrounding Neil Gaiman, it's no surprise that decisions are being made about various properties connected to him. Warner Bros., for instance, have announced that Dead Boy Detectives (Netflix) won't be getting a second season; a movie adaptation of The Graveyard Book is on hold at Disney; but Good Omens 3 is moving ahead, although this report reveals that with filming not due to start until next year, it will be 2026 at the earliest before we see the results.
  

Rebellion Releases — 18 October 2024

This December, if you hear the sound of tiny feet pattering across your roof, then cower in fear: the Thrill-Suckers are predicted to be out in force this Christmas! The only known way to blast them away and ensure you keep your Thrill-Power levels at the accepted hyper-dangerous level required to keep the festive spirit blazing?

The 2000 AD Christmas Mega-Spectacular, out on the 18th December and featuring over 100 pages of the finest comics excitement imaginable!

The Galaxy’s Greatest Comic marks the end of another year with the traditional festive blowout – featuring the start of several new ongoing stories for the Prog, alongside a hearty host of special surprises! Tharg’s Thrills for this year’s special include:

    Judge Dredd: Life Lessons by Ken Niemand and David Roach
    Fiends of the Western Front: Wilde West by Ian Edginton and Tiernen Trevallion
    Portals and Black Goo: A Quorum of Fiends by John Tomlinson and Eoin Coveney
    Hawk the Slayer: The Last of Her Kind by Alec Worley and Simon Coleby
    The Out: Book Four by Dan Abnett and Mark Harrison

But that’s not all! In addition to these all-new Thrills, the Christmas Mega-Special will also include some one-off surprises and familiar faces, including:

    Azimuth: Santa’s Little Helpers by Dan Abnett and Tazio Bettin
    Rogue Trooper: The Hot Zone by Karl Stock and Ilias Kyriazis
    Thistlebone: The Eel of Harrowvale Pond by T.C. Eglington and Simon Davis
    Tharg’s Future Shocks: Tis The Season for Taking by Rob Williams and Pye Parr
    Strontium Dog: Doghouse Roses by Garth Ennis and Henry Flint

A stacked sampling of the most stupendous stories imaginable, we’re sure you agree!

All this, and the glowing emerald visage of The Mighty One himself welcoming readers old and new to the issue, thanks to a festive cover from Andy Clarke?

Grud bless us, every one!

The 2000 AD Christmas Mega-Spectacular will be out on the 18th December – pre-order yours now to save yourself the sleigh ride and have it delivered straight to your door! If you already have a 2000 AD subscription, you will receive this issue automatically with no additional charge – blessings be!

And now, this week's releases...

2000AD Prog 2404
Cover: Dan Cornwell / Dylan Teague (cols)

In this issue:
JUDGE DREDD // HATER by Ken Niemand (w) Silvia Califano (a) Giulia Brusco (c) Annie Parkhouse (l)
THE OUT // BOOK FOUR by Dan Abnett (w) Mark Harrison (a) Simon Bowland (l)
NIGHTMARE NEW YORK by Kek-W (w) John Burns (a) Annie Parkhouse (l)
BRINK // CONSUMED by Dan Abnett (w) INJ Culbard (a) Simon Bowland (l)
ROGUE TROOPER // WHEN A G.I. DIES by Garth Ennis (w) Patrick Goddard (a) Rob Steen (l)

Judge Dredd Megazine #473
Cover: Cliff Robinson / Dylan Teague (cols)

In this issue:
JUDGE DREDD // LAWMEN OF THE FUTURE by Ken Niemand (w) Dan Cornwell (a) Matt Soffe (c) Annie Parkhouse (l)
DEATH CAP // FRONTIER JUSTICE by T.C. Eglington (w) Boo Cook (c) Simon Bowland (l)
FARGO & MCBANE // NEW YORK'S FINEST by Ken Niemand (w) Anna Readman (a) Quinton Winter (c) Annie Parkhouse (l)
DEVLIN WAUGH // TWO MONTHS OFF by Alex Kot (w) PJ Holden (a) Jack Davies (c) Jim Campbell (l)
JUDGE DREDD: FALSE WITNESS by Brandon Easton (w) Kei Zama (a) Eva De La Cruz (c) Shawn Lee (l)
PANDORA PERFECT: PERFECT SOUNDS by Roger Langridge (w) Gary Welsh (a) John Charles (c) Simon Bowland (l)
CADET RICO // THE CYCLE by Liam Johnson (w) Rob Richardson (a) Jim Campbell (l)
LAWLESS // A TOWN CALLED BADROCK by Dan Abnett (w) Phil Winslade (a) Simon Bowland (l)

Comic Cuts — 11 October 2024

It was a dark and stormy night—or Tuesday as we call it here in Wivenhoe. We were meant to be catching the 6.57 bus that evening and for the previous 20 minutes it had been bucketing down, the rain accompanied by long rumbles of thunder.

We were off to see Rhys Nicholson, Aussie comedian we know from various panel shows, The Week and the new Australian Taskmaster series. It looked like we were going to arrive wet and uncomfortable, but the rain eased and, apart from a couple of startling lightening flashes—counting between the flash and the growls in the clouds showed that the storm was moving further away—we stood waiting for the bus in a light drizzle and stepped off the bus in Colchester where it was wet underfoot but no longer raining.

I mention "wet underfoot" because I'd discovered that the sole of my shoe had a worn patch, and the underside of my sock was starting to feel damp. Thankfully that was the worst of our soggy trip up to the Arts Centre and it was a shame the rain put off so many because Nicholson deserved more than the slim audience who braved the storm.

Nicholson packed more words into an hour and a half than any other comedian we've see; frenetic but precise, they deliver funny line after funny line about their life, their marriage, their attitude to having children, all of which veer off into sidetracks and wanders down alleyways at the drop of a hat with ADHD.

Fast and occasionally furious, sardonic and sometimes sarcastic, they had us in stitches.

Wednesday I went to visit the physio again about my shoulder tendon. After being prodded a couple of times and then doing some avant garde ballet ("lift up your arm like this... now bend it back like this... any pain? Now hold your arm like this...") the physio confirmed that it was a rotator cuff problem, which we knew; I discussed the exercises I had been doing for the past month which have had no positive effect, so I was told to keep doing them and if any of them hurt, stop doing that one. It'll take time.

Well, it's already been seven months, and I'm not sure if mixed messages like "Give your arm plenty of rest, but keep it moving and keep up the exercises" helps.

On a happier note, I've started designing the next book. Haven't got very far yet, and it's way too early to start showing things off yet, but I have a front cover and a title page and an opening spread. And hopefully, but the time you read this, I'll have a few more pages done.

The header teases a couple of cover illustrations by the remarkable H.W. Perl that I'll be using in the book.

Commando 4791-4794

As we charge once again into Halloween territory, we find ourselves faced with some spooktacular new stories over our next couple of sets! Issues 5791-5794 go on sale from today, 10th October, 2024!

5791: The Mummy’s Tomb

Four British soldiers stood on ground untouched for centuries. While the battle for North Africa raged above them, their greedy eyes fixed on the treasure of the ancient Egyptian tomb. Each man took a prize to cash in once the war had ended — canopic jars containing the mummy’s organs.  
Four men, four jars…each doomed to suffer the mummy’s curse.
    From acclaimed writer of Commandos Vs Zombies, Georgia Standen Battle, comes a creepy tale of murder, betrayal and ancient curses that’ll leave you asking for your mummy. With terrific hieroglyphics from Jaume Forns and Marco Bianchini, there’s plenty to get wrapped up in!

Story: Georgia Standen Battle
Art: Jaume Forns
Cover: Marco Bianchini

5792: Ghost Pilot

Piloting a lurching bomb‑loaded Lancaster through the flame‑lit, shell‑torn night skies of Germany needed nerves of steel. Bomber pilots were a tough, cheery bunch. They had to be.
Then into a squadron came the strange, young pilot with pure white hair and burning, bitter eyes, and raids began to go wrong. Bombs were wasted on grass fields. Nazi Ack‑Ack guns and fighters were ready and waiting for our bombers, even on surprise raids. Plane after vulnerable plane was lost without trace.
The time came when questions had to be asked — and the answers given by the white-haired pilot started up the whisper of “Traitor!”
    The first classic reprint this week is a hair-raising story by Gardener. Last published in 1972, the artwork by Peter Ford is a cut above the rest, and the wig-nificent Ken Barr cover is so scary good, it’ll turn your hair white!

Story: Gardener
Art: Peter Ford
Cover: Ken Barr
First published as No 117

5793: The Demon of Selva Oscura

July 1943. As war rages across Europe, the Italian village of Selva Oscura has grown eerily quiet. Troubled SOE captain, Simon Peters, has been tasked with securing the strategic territory. Unbeknownst to him, the sadistic Oberst Faustmann rules over Selva Oscura with a strange power. Why can none of the villagers escape through the surrounding forests? What was it that the Nazis uncovered in the catacombs beneath the ancient church?
    Our next ghoulish offering features both a truly demonic cover and unholy artwork by the prince of darkness himself, Carlos Pino. Alongside a delightfully hellish script by Kate Dewar, this is one Commando worth selling your soul for.

Story: Kate Dewar
Art: Carlos Pino
Cover: Carlos Pino

5793: River of Death

They took Jim Chalmers off Hurricanes because they reckoned he’d lost his nerve, fought too many dogfights with Zeroes. They gave him a lumbering Dakota on a routine job ferrying supplies from one base to another. Jim didn’t like this at all, but he needn’t have worried. There were wilder days coming, days when he would have no plane at all, when he’d be up against the Japanese and jungle on the…RIVER OF DEATH
    We’re off to the jungle for our final reprint of the week, this time from 1971. With yet another iconic cover from the legendary Ian Kennedy, oar-some art by Gonzalez and a script by Fitzsimmons with more twists and turns than the mighty Rio Grande, this is one that’s sure to make a splash!

Story: Fitzsimmons
Art: Gonzalez
Cover: Ian Kennedy
First published as No. 582

Rebellion Releases — 9 October 2024

Christmas just got Thrill-powered again – Rebellion is proud to announce the return of the 2000 AD Annual!

After an absence of three decades, the first 2000 AD Annual of the 21st Century arrives in November – in plenty of time to make it under the tree – from all good comic book stores, as well as the 2000 AD webshop!

This gorgeous hardcover collection will feature a mix of brand new and classic stories from top creators – but what’s actually inside the Annual? Let’s take a look under the cover:

JUDGE DREDD: CHIMPSURRECTION by Chris Condon (w), Fernando Blanco (a), Edward Teach (c), Jonathan Stevenson (l)
STRONTIUM DOG by Simon Spurrier (w), Hayden Sherman (a), Jonathan Stevenson (l)
ROGUE TROOPER by Alex Paknadel (w), Jake Lynch (a), Dylan Teague (c), Jonathan Stevenson (l)
LAWLESS by Dan Abnett (w), Phil Winslade (a)
ANDERSON: SPA DAY by Maura McHugh (a), Emma Vieceli (a), Barbara Nosenzo (c), Ellie De Ville (l) reprinted from 2000AD Sci-Fi Special 2018
TALES FROM THE BLACK MUSEUM: CULT STATUS by Rory McConville (w), Staz Johnson (a), Simon Bowlalnd (l) reprinted from Judge Dredd Megazine 381, 2017
MEAN MACHINE: JUDGEMENT ON GOSHAM by John Wagner (w), Mike McMahon (a), Gordon Robson (l) reprinted from Judge Dredd Yearbook 1994
ROGUE TROOPER by Gerry Finley-Day (a), Dave Gibbons (a/l) reprinted from 2000AD Prog 228, 1981
JUDGE DREDD: HEARTBEAT by John Wagner & Alan Grant (w), Ian Gibson (a) reprinted from Daily Star, 1989

And now, this week's releases...

2000AD Prog 2403
Cover: Andy Clarke.

JUDGE DREDD // HATER by Ken Niemand (w) Silvia Califano (a) Giulia Brusco (c) Annie Parkhouse (l)
THE OUT // BOOK FOUR by Dan Abnett (w) Mark Harrison (a) Simon Bowland (l)
NIGHTMARE NEW YORK by Kek-W (w) John Burns (a) Annie Parkhouse (l)
BRINK // CONSUMED by Dan Abnett (w) INJ Culbard (a) Simon Bowland (l)
ROGUE TROOPER // WHEN A G.I. DIES by Garth Ennis (w) Patrick Goddard (a) Rob Steen (l)

Fiends of the Eastern Front Volume 2 by Ian Edginton & Tiernen Trevallion
Rebellion ISBN 978-183786258-0, 8 October 2024, 176pp, £19.99. Available via Amazon.

In 1970, Lieutenant Tim Wilson is haunted by the memories of war – not just the bloodshed of the battlefield, but the horrors witnessed at the hand of Captain Constanta, who rescued him after a gruesome encounter with the King-Bats of Maximilian Von Klorr – the Black Max himself! Years later, Lt. Wilson sets out on a journey to hunt down Constanta in his native Romania, and uncovers his origins among beasts and creatures of magic.
    Collecting the work of Ian Edginton and Tiernen Trevallion, the second omnibus of Fiends of the Eastern Front follows Constanta’s bloody trail across history, and brings monstrous terror from the skies of wartime France to the streets of 1960s London.

Comic Cuts — 4 October 2024

Not much in the way of news this week that hasn't already been made public. THE PHANTOM PATROL is OUT NOW!!! Only fifteen years late, but what's that between friends.

My main selling platform these days is eBay, where you can buy all of my books, and those nice folks who own the company have reduced their charges, so I earn a little more for every book they sell. I appreciate that some prefer Amazon, but wherever you order from it's precisely the same process: I receive the order, I package it, I print the label and, yes, it's me who has to trudge down to the post box to post it.

I don't mind that last bit as it's the only exercise I get. I've mentioned previously that I'm trying to lose a bit of weight, but it's going slowly. I've lost a few pounds since July, but not yet reached half a stone. Not helping has been two meals out and three large cakes due to Mel's recent birthday. We still have about an eighth of one and two-thirds of another to get through, so my diet has been officially put on hold for another week.

I encourage you all to buy my books, so I get out of the house. I'll leave it to you, dear readers, to plan how you'll get together and work out a schedule so you're not all ordering at once. I'll just be pleased with the steady trickle of orders.

I had my jabs today (I'm writing on Thursday evening), so I'm hoping for a flu and COVID-free winter. Handy as we're going out to a couple of gigs this month—Rhys Nicholson, a flamboyant, spiky Aussie we first saw on Patriot Brains a few years ago and who is currently appearing on Taskmaster Australia, and Kiri Pritchard-McLean, who has been on most British TV and radio panel shows.

Mel and I have seen a lot of comedians over the years, and started a list of those we hadn't seen who we wanted to see, and Kiri Pritchard-McLean was at the top of the list. We also decided that we'd see any Australian or New Zealander who came over as we'd probably not get the chance again, hence out last comedy gig was Urzila Carlson and the next Rhys Nicholson.

I very nearly finished the Tom Tully piece, but had to put it on hold if I'm to have a hope in hell of getting this Utopian book out. I'm in the middle of writing the last of the shorter pieces, so there are two long essays (The Men Who Built Utopia, and a piece on Norman Firth called The Prince of Pulp Pedlars) and three short ones on artist Reina Bull and two writers, R. C. Finney and E. Burton Childs. I'm close to finishing the latter.

Next week I will get my nose down to the grindstone and turn on the PC where I have a copy of InDesign. I have a lot of illustrations already cleaned up, but I'll still have a lot of cleaning up of images to do. I'm avoiding saying "touching up" because Utopian published a great many "art studies". But that's only part of the story, which stretches from bicycling around Sunderland selling religious tracts to studying paranormal activity in Wiltshire.

I'm trying to stock up some Bear Alley books for the Comic Swap Mart on Saturday week—12th October—at the Baptist Church in Colchester. I should now be able to bring along some additional titles as my books have been offered a lift to and from the venue. Notice I say my books... I'm still going to be travelling in by bus!

This isn't as daft as it sounds: I'm still having problems with my shoulder and lugging a weighted-down shopping trolley on and off of buses isn't the ideal way to recover. I've another appointment with a physio next week, so we shall see what further moves they'll make now that we've discovered that the exercises haven't made much difference (and, yes, I did keep them up for the full month!).

More news next week...

Rebellion Releases — 2 October 2024

Due to popular demand, the Treasury of British Comics Annual is back!

Last year’s sold out hardcover returns this November with three brand new stories from industry superstars, including Simon Furman (Transformers) and Mike Collins (Doctor Who) on Kelly’s Eye, Alec Worley (Hook-Jaw) and Anna Morozova (Lowborn High) on Black Beth, and Paul Grist (Jack Staff) and Simon Williams (The HOFF: Heroes of Fearless Freedom) on Robot Archie.

This gorgeous hardcover collection will feature a mix of brand new and classic stories from top creators – but what’s actually inside the Annual? Let’s take a look under the cover!

ROBOT ARCHIE vs THE SLUDGE by Paul Grist (w), Simon Williams (a), Jason Cardy (c), Leila Jess (l)
MAJOR EAZY by Carlos Ezquerra (a) (rpts Battle Annual 1979)
NEW NEIGHBOURS by Ian Rimmer (w), Mike Western (a) (rpts Scream! Holiday Special 1985)
3000AD THE TRAVELLER by Mike McMahon (a) (rpts Dan Dare Annual 1980)
EAGLE EYE. JUNIOR SPY by Leo Baxendale (rpts Wham!, 27 Feb 1965)
STRYKER by Tom Tully (w), Ian Kennedy (rpts Valiant 21 Aug-16 Oct 1976)
DOCTOR SIN by John Smith (w). John Burns (a) (rpts 2000AD Presents Action!)
KELLY'S EYE vs THE WHITE EYES by Simon Furman (w), Mike Collins (a), SquakeZz (l)
GORILLA ISLAND by Frank Langford (a) (rpts Tiger, 13 Feb-8 May 1965)
ADAM ETERNO by Ian Kennedy (a) (rpts Valiant Annual 1976)
FLAME O' THE FOREST by Donne Avenell (w), Massimo Belardinelli (a) (rpts Lion Annual 1972)
BLACK BETH by Alec Worley (w), Anna Morozova (a), Ozwald (l)
THE KNIGHT FROM NOWHERE by Steve Moore (w), Eric Bradbury (a) (rpts Buster Book of Spooky Stories 1975)

And now, this week's releases...

2000AD Prog 2402
Cover: Trevor Hairsine.

JUDGE DREDD // SILENCE by Rob Williams (w) Jake Lynch (a) Jim Boswell (c) Annie Parkhouse (l)
THE OUT // BOOK FOUR by Dan Abnett (w) Mark Harrison (a) Simon Bowland (l)
NIGHTMARE NEW YORK by Kek-W (w) John Burns (a) Annie Parkhouse (l)
BRINK // CONSUMED by Dan Abnett (w) INJ Culbard (a) Simon Bowland (l)
ROGUE TROOPER // WHEN A G.I. DIES by Garth Ennis (w) Patrick Goddard (a) Rob Steen (l)

Battle Action Volume 3 #2
Cover: Dan Cornwell.

JOHNNY RED // A COUPLE OF HEROES by Garth Ennis (w) Keith Burns (a) Jason Wordie (c) Rob Steen (l)
HMS NIGHTSHADE by John Wagner (w) Dan Cornwell (a) Matt Soffe (c) Rob Steen (l)