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| Image copyright D.C. THOMSON & Co., Ltd |
So, the word on the street, Huggy, is that Dundee publisher D.C. THOMSON is considering The DANDY's future and may well even close the world's longest-running weekly comic. DCT, however, have a habit of making announcements merely to generate interest and sales, so I wouldn't count out The BEANO's stablemate just yet.
Contrary to what some people are claiming, the last two years in particular have been anything but "an absolute triumph for British comics", and the only "phenomenal" aspect to the whole sad and sorry debacle of the 2010 relaunch was just how quickly circulation plummeted. Readers voted with their feet, and though it's true to say that something needed to be done to kick-start sales, handing sections of the comic over to would-be cartoonists with little or no experience in the world of sequential storytelling was an experiment too far.
Overnight, the comic took on an amateurish, 'fanzine' appearance (albeit a professionally printed one), with poorly executed logos and diabolical, near-illegible lettering fonts. Making a comic look like it was produced by children is hardly the way to sell it to children - of whatever age, and the editor responsible should have been sacked before his nightmare vision ever saw the light of day. (Although, thankfully, there were still some strips by seasoned professionals.)
I haven't looked at The Dandy in some time, so perhaps it may have improved in recent months and my comments are out of date. The comic is a national institution, so let's hope it's got plenty more years of life in it yet. Personally, I won't believe it's dead until I see the lid nailed down - and that's not something I particularly want to witness.
It is a shame when things don't last forever.
ReplyDeleteIndeed, Chris, but I wouldn't count it out just yet.
ReplyDeleteI saw a quick 2 minute news article on the Dandys sales this morning (Tuesday 14 Aug) on the "regional" section of the AM news in Scotland hinting that there were problems with the Dandy's future - Have to say its starting to look link a lingering death for the old girl very sad indeed the revamps I feel have not been well thought out BUT had some good ideas but maybe not all as well executed as they could have been - not sure where they go from here if sales are dropping even further - still think they could have asdded some childrens adventure type strips to the comic (a la Brassneck etc) maybe moved it to a slightley older age group but heres hoping it still has a future - McScotty
ReplyDeletePart of the problem in my opinion, McScotty, was that it seemed to be written for toddlers, whereas, in its heyday, it was aimed at a wider age group. And with the exception of a handful of artists, a lot of the art was just plain bad. (Or, at the very least, underwhelming.)
ReplyDeleteI totally agree re aiming the Dandy at the younger kids, I would have thought this would have been the a comic to aim at an older child for them to pick up once the got too old for the Beano (a chance misssed) - I'm not a fan of a lot of the new artwork although I have to admit I do like Jamie Smart (I know your not a fan) but perhaps this isn't his forte - McScotty
ReplyDeleteWhat I mean 'though, McScotty, is that - as in olden days - the comic should be written in such a way as to appeal to ALL ages. (So should The Beano.) Some of the early Dennis strips in The Beano could be enjoyed by kids AND adults, such was the skill with which they were written. The skill to be able to write on various levels seems to be a thing of the past.
ReplyDeleteSorry that’s actually what I meant Kid - pity it wasn't what I wrote duh!!!! (as you say writing is a skill) that’s what I get for rattling of messages during my work breaks - I actually forgot how good the Dandy used to be in the late 60s - I recently re-read the 5 copies I have - it really was a great wee comic (better than the Beano imho) – can't imagine it going bust, I mean what’s next in this crazy world, an “old firm” football team going out of business !– McScotty
ReplyDeleteOld Firm football team going out of business? Nah! That could never happen.
ReplyDeleteThere was a fairly lengthy piece on the Dandy on the STV news from Aberdeen yesterday at teatime.
ReplyDeleteThe academic who teaches comics at Stirling (IIRC)was brought on to give the usual spiel about competition for children's interest, which isn't an excuse, in my book, for losing the ability to address your audience. The piece closed with an Iphone image which I thought was the whole point: a bit of publicity for a relaunch as a phone app? Am I being cynical?
What amazes me, Dougie, is that certain contributors are bleating on about how proud they are to have worked on the comic, yet without an ounce of shame or embarrassment over hastening it's apparent impending demise. They tried something different and it didn't work - time to 'fess up and take their share of the blame, instead of attributing it solely to 'other factors'.
ReplyDeleteI offered to lend them a hand, they weren't interested. F*** 'em!
ReplyDeleteNews just in
ReplyDeletehttp://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-tayside-central-19284222
Thanks, was just typing out a link to the Down the Tubes site when your comment came in. I imagine it's the same news.
ReplyDelete