 |
| Copyright REBELLION |
Got this great book today, which I'm looking forward to working my way through when I can find the time to apply myself. The cover is slightly misleading though, because the cover attributes the strip to THUNDER, and the stories within were actually first published in the combined LION & Thunder. (The correct credit is given inside.) However, that's a somewhat minor niggle as it contains some terrific artwork by CARLOS CRUZ, illustrating great stories written by DONNE AVENELL. Definitely one to add to your collection if you're a fan of classic British adventure strips. Dr. MESMER'S REVENGE - rush right out and get yours now! (No, silly - the book, not your revenge!) Priced £14.99.
I Was going to say, on first glance..i don't remember that in thunder, Looks good, I've read most of it in my Lion & Thunders but it will be nice to have it in book form, i need to get the Janus Stark & Black Max ones too, I'd really love some TV21 Reprints in book form, i mean Exactly as the weekly Comic appeared, not Just endless 'Frank Bellamy' reprints, as great as they are, A bit like those best of Look in books they did a few years back, or the Best of Eagle book, a countdown or TV21 version would be Ace.
ReplyDeleteReynolds & Hearn/Signum Books did around 5 volumes of reprints from TV21, RD (though not complete issues), which included some stories from Countdown as well. Some pages were reproduced from the original art and looked even better than when they first appeared in TV21. They had Fireball XL5, Captain Scarlet, Stingray, etc., and are well worth hunting down.
ReplyDeleteYes I Think I have a couple of those..its complete issues I'd love to see, that would be Ace.
ReplyDeleteYeah, I'd love to see a four volume set of the first 104 issues (with The Daleks), reproduced actual size on good quality paper. Doubt it will ever happen, but I can dream. The complete first issue is on the blog by the way - just type TV21 into the search box.
ReplyDeleteOK will Do..Yes the First 104 issues..WOW!..that would be great,even if they reduced the size..i wonder why 'Treasury of British comics' hasn't done that?
ReplyDeleteBecause they don't own the copyright on any of the Gerry Anderson TV21 strips, RD. If you mean why haven't they done that with any of the IPC comics, it's because there would probably be less interest in them. The way they do the reprint strips just now, they can choose what they think would have a more commercial appeal to general readers, not just collectors.
ReplyDeleteI Thought here would be More interest in Gerry Anderson Based Comic Strips & Shows Known across the world, Than Say 'Dr Mesmer' which seems really Niche.as much as i like it!
ReplyDeleteYou'd think so, but there doesn't seem to be so in the absence of the shows enjoying a revived success on TV, like Thunderbirds did in the early '90s. When Stingray and Captain Scarlet were repeated around the same time, they didn't cause as much excitement amongst young viewers and, consequently, the new comics (with TV21 reprints) based on the shows didn't last long.
ReplyDeleteHowever, don't forget that the TV21 strips have been pretty regularly reprinted over the years. First in Countdown in the '70s, then in Action 21 in the '80s, then in Thunderbirds the Comic in the '90s, then in the 5 Reynolds & Hearn/Signum books in the '00s, plus a few others, amongst them a couple of volumes by Egmont around 6 or 7 years back. They've never really gone away.
As for Rebellion, I'd imagine that it was less expensive to buy IPC's back catalogue from a company that had no plans to exploit it, than it would be to acquire permission to reprint Gerry Anderson strips from the '60s & '70s. Rebellion at best probably breaks even on the IPC reprints (though I hope they make money on them), but they'd probably lose money on TV21 strips, simply because of the expense in licensing the characters and shows.
Yes i see what you Mean..Maybe one day, if the shows get another Revival
ReplyDeleteIt would probably need to be new shows to inspire the required level of excitement amongst viewers for a company to invest in any kind of merchandise (comics & toys), RD, because the original shows are now all available on DVD. That makes them a more personal, individual experience as opposed to a shared nationwide one, meaning that the numbers might not be enough to attract the required amount of buyers necessary to sustain a toy range or comics line.
ReplyDelete