CRIVENS! COMICS & STUFF!

A cascading cornucopia of cool comics, crazy cartoons & classic collectables - plus other completely captivating & occasionally controversial content! With nostalgic notions, sentimental sighings, wistful wonderings, rueful reflections, remorseful ruminations, melancholy musings, poignant ponderings & yearnings for yesteryear! (To say nothing of a few profound perplexities & puzzling paradoxes thrown in for good measure.) Plus a bevy of beautiful, bedazzling, buxom Babes!

Sunday 3 January 2021

THE LAND OF HAPPY ENDINGS...

A Doctor Who Comic Strip Classic...

Remember the Doctor's grandchildren, John and Gillian, who accompanied him on his adventures in the pages of TV Comic? This was because the publishers had only acquired the rights to use William Hartnell's likeness as the Doctor, not any of his TV companions.

However, they couldn't have the Doctor talking to himself all the time in order to explain the plot to readers, so two new companions were created for his comic strip tales. Whether or not we were meant to assume that they were siblings of Susan or perhaps the offspring of another child of the Doctor (after all, how many does he have?) was never actually specified - as far as I know.

Anyway, back in 2003, it was the show's 40th Anniversary, and writer Scott Gray tackled the 'mystery' of John and Gillian in Doctor Who Magazine #337. I think it's a belter of a tale, and hope nobody minds me sharing it with you here. Enjoy. (Click on images to enlarge, then click again for optimum size.)

4 comments:

Dave S said...: Beautiful little story- I remember reading this before, presumably I'd bought the DWM issue it appeared in, but it's lovely to see it again. Thanks, Kid.; 3 January 2021 at 18:38
Kid said...: Little-known fact, DS - I lettered Scott Gray's very first Dr. Who story for Marvel UK. Wasn't this one though, obviously.; 3 January 2021 at 20:08
Anonymous said...: First comic story I ever sobbed at; 30 October 2023 at 02:52
Kid said...: Sometimes they hit you right there, don't they?; 30 October 2023 at 07:57

About the artist:

From 1985 to 2000 A.D. (little joke there), I contributed to a variety of high profile comics and magazines for various companies.

For IPC/FLEETWAY/EGMONT, I freelanced as a lettering and logo artist on various weekly comics and monthly magazines, and also as a resize comic artist and spot illustrator on pocket books, summer specials and annuals.

For MARVEL U.K., BLACK LIBRARY, REDAN and USBORNE BOOKS, I again freelanced as a lettering artist, also working as a restoration artist for MARVEL U.S., restoring and re-creating certain pages of JACK KIRBY art for their MARVEL MASTERWORKS editions.

I also lettered the MARVELMAN sample pages submitted to MARVEL U.S. when they were considering acquiring the character, which - as we all now know - they DID.

Supplied comic strips, cartoons and illustrated advertisements for local business campaigns and newspaper publication on a professional basis since the age of 16. Did my first paid art job for publication at 14 or 15 for Lanarkshire Education Board.

Have also made TV appearances as a collector of memorabilia.

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Just some of the titles I worked on are:

2000 A.D. * JUDGE DREDD MEGAZINE * DICEMAN * SONIC The COMIC * JUDGE DREDD, LAWMAN Of The FUTURE * CRISIS * REVOLVER * EAGLE * TIGER * BATTLE ACTION-FORCE * BUSTER * WHIZZER & CHIPS * WHOOPEE * NIPPER * SCHOOL FUN * ACE VENTURA, PET DETECTIVE * The REAL GHOSTBUSTERS * DOCTOR WHO MAGAZINE * COUNT DUCKULA * RUGRATS * The TRANSFORMERS * DEATH'S HEAD * THUNDERCATS * GALAXY RANGERS * DRAGON'S CLAWS * SINDY * MARVEL MASTERWORKS * The TROLLS * LOADED * INFERNO * WARHAMMER * ROSE BLACK.

Copyright Notice:

Images remain the property of their respective copyright owners and are used here only for the purpose of review, promotion, and nostalgia.

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In the case of images culled from my own collection where copyright of an item isn't mine, I impose no copying restrictions on fellow bloggers.

(Although, if you don't allow copying on your own site, then you really shouldn't be copying from others, should you?)

And while you can credit this blog if you like, it's not mandatory. Who has time to make notes of every casually visited site during an idle browse of the internet?

In the case of anyone copying images of my own artwork and calligraphy, I affirm my right to be identified as the creator, and any such copying should not be for the purpose of monetary or material gain. (Unless it's mine.)

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Please also note that this blog is not sponsored by, affiliated with, or connected to, any organisation, business, or group, and is wholly independent.