30-Day Comic Challenge Week 1

Hot on the heels ( as they say ) ( and why do they say that? ) of my 30-day song challenge, here comes another challenge for these slightly-less-locked-down-but-still-socially-distancing days.
Yes, it's another subject close to my cold, black heart  -  comics!

Day 1  -  Your favourite comic
Conan The Barbarian no. 24 ( March 1973 )

It's almost an impossible task to choose a favourite comic but I'll go with this one because it has a very special place in my heart. As I've banged on about before, my copy ( yep, the one above ) was bought for me by my parents in the legendary Dark They Were & Golden Eyed in ( I think ) 1978 on my first visit to that there London. Many, many years later I was lucky enough to have it signed by the even-more-legendary Roy ( The Boy ) Thomas himself. On top of all that, it's just one of THE greatest comics of the Bronze Age, skilfully scripted by Roy and boasting some beautiful, impossibly detailed artwork from Barry Windsor-Smith at the very height of his powers.

Day 2  -  A comic you recommend to everybody
The Hunt ( 2016 ) by Colin Lorimer

The Hunt is a spine-tingling, creepy slice of Irish folk horror by multi-talented artist, writer, storyboard-creator and friend of TGW-S, Colin Lorimer.

Here's the beautiful cover to issue 3 and above that is a signed print of some stunning interior artwork which Colin very kindly sent to me, all the way from Canada. Not only is he a very, very talented comics creator, he's also a great guy.

Day 3  -  A great adaptation of another work
Amazing Adventures Featuring Killraven  -  Warrior Of The Worlds

Roy Thomas ( it's that man again! ) and Don McGregor project HG Wells' War Of The Worlds into the future of a barbaric, dystopian Earth ( 2019 )  -  with the help, of course, of such awesome artists as Neal Adams, Herb Trimpe, Gene Colan and ( especially ) P Craig Russell. This series was one of the highlights of Marvel's 1970s output, a savage but philosophical examination of a world crushed under the heel tentacle of Martian invaders, and of the conflicted band of freedom fighters struggling to overcome their slimy conquerors. Here's my copy of issue 29, signed by Dauntless Don himself.

Day 4  -  First comic series you seriously pursued
Of course, it's The Mighty World Of Marvel  -  Nuff Said!

For many British comic fans of my generation, MWOM ( as it's affectionately called ) was our gateway into the world of far-out fantasy. An anthology comic that began by reprinting the early years of the Marvel Age ( starting with the debuts of The Hulk, The Fantastic Four and Spider-Man ), MWOM lasted through many incarnations over the decades, and kicked off the relatively short-lived but often glorious Marvel UK line. It really was Ground Zero for me and I soon went on to collect Spider-Man Comics Weekly, The Avengers, Planet Of The Apes, Dracula Lives, The Superheroes, The Titans, Captain Britain... the list goes on...

Day 5  -   A great love story
Swamp Thing and Abigail Cable

Only Alan Moore in his prime could craft the story of a love affair between the daughter of a super villain and a walking compost-heap and make it one of the most beautiful and sensitive romances in comics.
"My vegetable love should grow / Vaster than empires and more slow"  -  Andrew Marvell
( Pretentious? Moi? )

Day 6  -  A comic that is underrated
Starman ( 1994 - 2001 )

With its intricately-designed Opal City, huge cast of characters and deep dive into DC mythology, James Robinson & Tony Harris' Starman is, at heart, a very human story about the bonds of family

Day 7  -  Your comfort comic
Fantastic Four no. 51 ( June 1966 )

Possibly the single greatest work of the Lee / Kirby team ( with Joe Sinnott! )  -  a poignant but inspiring story of how even the worst of us can find heroism.And then there's THAT iconic cover! You can read more of my thoughts ( should you want to, of course, it's not mandatory ) on this classic comic here

So, yeah, week one done. Phew! If anyone would like to join in with the challenge please leave a comment. What are your favourites?

40 Years of DWM!

Forty years ago this week saw the publication of the debut issue of Doctor Who Weekly, the first ongoing magazine devoted solely to everyone's favourite Time Lord. As the Fourth Doctor, the mighty Tom Baker, was fully embedded in the public's consciousness at this point, with Tom having played the character for five years, it was clearly an ideal time to launch this new magazine.
The 12-year old me was certainly very excited to read this "Fantastic First Issue"  -  I'd been a Doctor Who fan for 7 or 8 of those years and had just recently watched what would turn out to be my all-time fave Who story, the Paris-set beauty that was City Of Death. ( The current serial at the time was the overly-camp Creature From The Pit which was 2 or 3 episodes in at this point. )
Doctor Who Weekly combined two of my great passions, Doctor Who and comic strips, so I was as happy as a Dalek with a planet-full of pitiful humans to exterminate. And it was a Marvel comic too
( master-minded by comic book impresario Dez Skinn ) so that ticked another box for me. A Marvel comic with a secret ingredient... the cream of 2000 AD!

Yes, the lead comic strip in the first issue featured some absolutely stellar work by 2000 AD mainstays Pat Mills, John Wagner and Dave Gibbons, bringing us eager young fans the kind of budget-busting science fiction spectacle that the Beeb could only dream about. The issue was rounded out by some entry-level articles about the show and another couple of short comic strips. I was instantly hooked and became an avid follower of the magazine. After a year or so of publication its name was changed to Doctor Who Monthly as it began to be published ( you guessed it! ) once a month. Now known as Doctor Who Magazine ( or DWM for short ) it has managed an incredible run of 40 years of continuous publication. In an age when print media seems to be dying this is really impressive.
DWM has unsurprisingly had many ups and downs over the years but for the most part has been a wonderfully entertaining and informative mag, devoted to the Doctor and the various spin-offs from the show  -  from the New Adventures novels, to TV off-shoots like Torchwood, to the long-running Big Finish audio stories.

( The above issue has a special place in my cold, unfeeling heart as it contains the first fan letter I ever had published. I'll have to dig it out sometime and scan it for this 'ere blog. )

So, many congratulations to all the talented people who have kept DWM going for all these years, even through the "dark times" when the show was off the air. Happy times and places!