In January the comic book club met to discuss a reissue of Misty, a British girl’s horror anthology which ran from the late 70s through to the early 80s. It was launched specifically as a girl’s equivalent to 2000 AD, employing some of the sci-fi comic’s best creatives including Pat Mills who provides one of … Continue reading
Ed Vere is back with a new series of picture books about a scrap of a black kitten called Max. The second book, Max at Night, was published this month in which the kitten turns superhero, fearlessly prowling the city at night. Ed’s picture books draw on classic comic book action and have bold graphic design elements, so I was interested to find out about the books that shaped him as an author. Continue reading
As he workedt on his Luther Arkwright epic, Bryan Talbot wasn’t the only one conducting comic book experiments with steampunk. Over at 2000 AD (home of Judge Dredd) the daddy of modern British comics Pat Mills had begun a strip called Nemesis the Warlock, a collaboration with artist Kev O’Neill. It was an experiment in … Continue reading
It all started in 1986. Having finally outgrown the Beano, tired of game books and read all the scant titles available for teenagers, my eye was caught by something remarkable at the newsagents. ‘Zip it creep,’ said a woman who looked like Debbie Harry surrounded by hell’s own army, with her gun aimed right at … Continue reading
Christmas and comic book sci-fi don’t always go together that well. It’s there at the kitschier ends of the genre – ‘Happy Christmas Superdog. And thank you Wonder Woman, you’ve done a neat job turning my Fortress of Solitude into a winter wonderland.’ Or ‘Holy immaculate conception Batman.’ That sort of thing. There’s one notable … Continue reading
Before Watchmen came The Ballad of Halo Jones, Alan Moore’s earlier attempt at subverting the comic book action template. It contained everything that was unlikely to appeal to the average reader of its home 2000AD. It was about girls, shopping, isolation and mourning, but worst of all featured virtually no violence. Halo is not an … Continue reading
