BABE Of The DAY - RANDI BROOKS...

RANDI BROOKS is angry 'cos

she sent me to buy her a fish supper,

and by the time I got back I'd finished

half the fish, most of the chips, and worst

of all - I'd scoffed her pickled onion (no,

that's not a euphemism).  She's none

 too pleased, but ain't she cute?

RETELLING REPOST: From The PAST To The PRESENT - An UNTOLD 'TALE' Of DOCTOR WHO...

DOCTOR WHO & TARDIS copyright BBC TV

Way back at the start of the '80s (wow, more than 30 years ago) I purchased two brush pens with which I hoped to practise my inking.  I'd had them for a while before I got around to using them, and when I did, it was on a DOCTOR WHO drawing of the original and best Doctor, WILLIAM HARTNELL.

I pencilled the figure and TARDIS and then inked them in, rather too thickly in places, due to my unfamiliarity with the pens, which, unlike most brush pens of today, had flexible, rubber-tip 'points' to them.  In the end, I abandoned the drawing because, although I was happy with the likeness, the pose was a little too rigid and not quite natural enough to my eyes.

Part of the problem was that I had done the drawing A4 size, which was far too small to allow for a finely-detailed finish, so I put it away, resolving to draw a larger version at some time in the future and give it the loving attention it deserved.

Well, the future came and went, and I never did get around to redrawing my Bill Hartnell 'masterpiece'.  However, a few months back, I discovered an old, actual-sized photocopy of my initial drawing (dunno now what happened to the original) and decided to finish it.  I'd already added a logo back in 1983 (photocopied from a 1979 ish of DWW), so all I had to do was complete the background, which I did over the course of a few days when time, inclination, and energy levels allowed.

I still possess my original brush pens after all this time (STAEDTLER MARS GRAPHIC 3000) and, amazingly, they both still work, although the ink in one of them is no longer quite as black as it once was.  (A bit purple in fact.)  However, I didn't want to compromise their nigh-pristine condition by subjecting them to the rigours of artistic application, so I used an actual brush and a combination of different markers.

What you see above is the finished result.  Now, perhaps I'm biased, but I'd say it's not too bad for a 30-odd year old drawing.  Maybe one day, I'll enlarge it to A3 size, tidy it up a bit and add some colour.  Or who knows?  I may even start from scratch and do the thing properly.

And, just in case you're interested, below can be seen my original brush pens from the early '80s.

  

******

Should anyone with the requisite skills feel like colouring  the illustration, go ahead - as long as I get to see the result. 

FIFTY YEAR FLASHBACK - THIS COMIC WAS A TWO-TIME SMASH!...

Copyright relevant owner

I reckon it was around March 8th, in 1969, that the 'new' SMASH! made its debut on newsagents' counters.  ('Cos comics were usually cover-dated a week ahead.)  It was sad to see the last of the MARVEL reprints come to an end in the final issue of the title's prior incarnation the previous week, but the revamped comic was not totally without its charm.  The relaunched version only lasted a couple of years (with a few week's break in publication due to a printers' strike) and was eventually merged into VALIANT in 1971.

So in tribute to a once-great comic, lift a glass of fizzy pop in memory of this friend from childhood (if you're as ancient as me), and once again relive - if only for a moment - the heady days of your youth.

And look - I've even included the free gift for you to drool over, plus its very own envelope.  Got a printer?  Then you need no prompting from me.     

ARE YOU READY FOR YOUR CLOSE-UP, COMMANDER ZERO...?

Copyright relevant owner

Recently obtained this THUNDERBIRDS Annual for 1967 (released near the end of '66, and with a cover by FRANK BELLAMY by the looks of it), and was pleasantly surprised to see throwaway cameo appearances by COLONEL STEVE ZODIAC, COMMANDER ZERO, and COMMANDER SHORE (who, strangely, looks like he's standing up and not in his hover-chair).  Only Zero is mentioned by name, but it's obvious (if you're a fan) who the others are.  The cameos are completely unnecessary to the plot and could easily have been three unknowns, but it was nice little touches like this that gave gave the stories that little something 'extra' which readers so enjoyed.

Of course, the GERRY ANDERSON TV shows didn't really share the same time-line or continuity, but the TV CENTURY 21 comic strips set in the future did, thanks to editor ALAN FENNELL realising the storytelling potential of a 'shared universe' and such crossover appearances.  In fact, some of the comic strip plots contradicted events in the TV shows, but it probably went over the readers and viewers heads at the time.  I seem to remember reading somewhere that the Annuals were edited by someone other than Alan Fennell, which, if so, might perhaps explain why the art, though good, wasn't of quite the same high standard as of that in the weekly TV21, but maybe it simply had a higher budget than the books - anyone know for sure?