2000 A.D. COVER (& IMAGE) GALLERY - PART THREE...

Images copyright REBELLION

Ready for part three?  Well, ready or not, here it comes.  The final lot of 2000 A.D. covers from 1979, bought back in the day by my good self.  Think I'll have to sit down and read them all again one day, when I have time.  Funny that the first one of this run I bought (Prog 119) had JAMES BOND on the cover, and the last one (127) also gives him a mention.  It's possible I bought some of the following issues after the merger with TORNADO, but if I did, I never kept them.  (I just didn't like the comic's return to cheaper printing.)

Hey, is this another great post or what?!  Gimme some feedback in the comments section - and don't forget to tick one of those little boxes under each post, Criv-ite chums.  Your vote counts.

Below, is this the greatest JUDGE DREDD story ever written?   It's certainly got to be one of them, right up near the top.  Hopefully, REBELLION won't mind me posting the full story, but it's one with a powerful message that everyone should read. Click on the images to enlarge, then click again for optimum size.  Have your hankies at the ready - this one will really move you!

Did you spot that great bit of visual humour?  "A heavy guard on the door", with a clearly overweight judge filling the role.  I can't help but wonder if this was indicated in JOHN HOWARD's script, or was it JOHN COOPER's idea?  Nicely done though.

  

The above-mentioned 'SHAKY' KANE would eventually draw for IPC

2000 A.D. COVER (& IMAGE) GALLERY - PART TWO...

Images copyright REBELLION

As promised, here's the second part of a gallery of 2000 A.D. covers from way back in 1979.  I've included the JUDGE DREDD 'splash' pages because they're drawn by BRIAN BOLLAND and therefore worth a look.  DAVE GIBBONS' DAN DARE pages are also worth a look, but I've got to set limits somewhere or we'd never get on to the next post.  Anyway, better get started if we want to see the next lot of covers and images - coming soon.

Like what you see here?  Then don't be shy - leave a comment.

  

I assume that the above-mentioned KEVIN SUTHERLAND is the very same one
 who would later draw for The BEANO and 2000 A.D. itself.  Can anyone confirm?

2000 A.D. COVER (& IMAGE) GALLERY - PART ONE...

Images copyright REBELLION

In a previous post on 2000 A.D., I mentioned that I collected a short run of the comic back in 1979.  Having now checked, it was a mere 9 issues in total, from Prog 119 to 127, which happened to be the first merged issue with TORNADO.  So I thought I'd give you a look at the first of those 9 issues, followed in an upcoming post of the remainder of the 9 ish run.  Interested?  Good!

I bought this issue in R.S. McColl's in my local Town Centre, and looking at this cover now, I'm instantly returned in memory to the interior of a shop that vacated the premises only 2 or three years later.  It was ROGER MOORE's appearance as BOND in the soon to be released MOONRAKER that attracted my attention, and if not for him, it's unlikely I'd have given the comic a second glance.

It's funny how our decisions are influenced on such seemingly inconsequential things.  Back then, the weekly was still unashamedly a comic for boys, and looking at the contents now, it's actually not a bad little package.  It's just a shame that it was eventually hijacked by a far older readership, and transformed into a glossy magazine for 'adults'.  There's no equivalent of 2000 A.D. for kids today, and that's quite a sad situation when you think about it.

Ah, 1979.  To me, it seems like only a few short years ago, not the nigh-40 year gulf that it actually is.  Of course, if you weren't even born then, it must seem like prehistoric times.

  

1990 was 11 years in the future in 1979 - now it's 27 years in the past

And here's the booklet pages the 'right way up' to enable you to read them properly without having to turn your computer screen on its side.  Click to enlarge, then click again for optimum size.

BABE Of The DAY - EMILY PROCTER...

Dunno who told EMILY PROCTER

her gloves match her outfit, but she's been

misinformed.  I was going to say her top fits

like a glove, but you'd maybe think I was

suggesting she's got five nipples.

RECOMMENDED READING: JUSTICE INC. COLLECTED EDITION...

Images copyright DYNAMITE ENTERTAINMENT

This image is getting to be a familiar sight on CRIVENS!, but hey - what a belter, right?  I only bought the first ish of the regular 2015 DYNAMITE comic because of ALEX ROSS's 'homage' to JOE KUBERT's original 1975 DC COMICS cover, but I recently acquired the collected edition of the six-part series and it was a nice little read.  I felt I'd just picked up from where I'd left off back in the '70s when I was a teenager.

There's a couple of instances where the letterer has skipped a word, which requires re-reading to catch the meaning, and the art has some minor problems where cars (very nicely rendered) and people aren't always proportionate size-wise, but all-in-all, if you're a fan of pulp heroes in general and The AVENGER in particular, then you'll enjoy this softcover volume.

Check out your local comicbook store, where you're sure to find a copy of this book sitting on the shelves.  Remember to pay for it before you leave though, as it's always embarrassing being rugby-tackled on your way out the door when you've forgotten to hand over your cash. I wonder how long it'll be 'til HOLLYWOOD sees the potential in this property for a big-budget movie?  We'll just have to wait and see.

Incidentally, I'd put a clear protective cover on the book not long before scanning, which slightly reflects the scanner's light.  Hopefully, it doesn't impair your visual enjoyment, but I wasn't going to risk damaging the book by taking it off and putting it on again.  (I knew you'd understand.)

KLASSIC KIRBY KOMIC KOVERS: STRANGE TALES #183 (Or #130 - TAKE YOUR PICK)...

Images copyright MARVEL COMICS

As you can see, the cover of STRANGE TALES #183 is an enlarged segment from #130.  I first saw JACK KIRBY's art for this on the cover of its latter printing, not its original, though I'd read the story contained therein in an issue of TERRIFIC back in the '60s.  Because I'm a generous guy, I thought I'd show you both versions, so don't say I never spoil you - because I do!  Which version do you prefer, frantic ones?  Share, share, share!

PART SEVEN Of KEN REID'S DARE-A-DAY DAVY From POW!...

Copyright REBELLION

From the pulsating pages of POW! #8 (March 11th 1967), comes KEN REID at his brain-blasting best with DARE-A-DAY DAVY.  Were readers' dares genuine?  Well, I wouldn't bet DONALD TRUMP's hair on it (mainly because there's some doubt about that too), but who cared?  This was comic strip mayhem at its lunatic finest, and whether you've read Davy before or not, you're sure to find something in this page to enjoy or my name isn't FRED FLINTSTONE.  (What's that you say?  My name isn't Fred Flintstone?  Well, whatddya know?!)  Trust me anyway - you'll still enjoy this palpitating page.

ANOTHER BABE Of The DAY - RHIAN SUGDEN...

I just love the colour red - how

could I not when it looks this good?

Of course, RHIAN SUGDEN may

 have something to do with that.

REMINISCING REPOST: THE END OF THE WORLD! (REVISED)...

Images copyright REBELLION

As it's currently 2000 A.D.'s 40th Anniversary, I thought I'd celebrate a little Anniversary of my own.  Namely, the 32nd Anniversary (as near as dammit) of the appearance of the first strip I ever lettered for the mag.  It seems like only yesterday in memory, but I was still a young man around my mid-20s when I lettered this tale in the Walsingham Guest House in Southsea, sometime in January 1985.  (Though I may have started it in the Wansbeck Hotel in London the day before.)  Ah, happy days.  So - "Extra!  Extra!  Read all about it!" below.

(Actually, it's 32 years to the day since the above issue went on sale.  It's dated March 2nd, which means it appeared in newsagents' shops on February 23rd.  I didn't realise that when I decided to re-post the piece, it's simply an amazing coincidence.  Wow!)

  

******   

Not counting paid jobs I'd done since still at school, my very first 'big-time' professional freelance lettering job was for IPC MAGAZINES in 2000 A.D. - a strip called 'EXTRA! EXTRA!', which appeared in Prog 407, cover-dated March 2nd, 1985.  (It wasn't my first published IPC job however - that was a CAPTAIN KID - The PINT-SIZED PIRATE page in WHIZZER & CHIPS, which I lettered one night in the 2000 A.D. office before going home to my bedsit in Fratton, Portsmouth.)

The story was written by PETE MILLIGAN and the art drawn by the late JOSE CASANOVAS, who sadly died in 2009.  To be honest, I'm surprised it turned out as well as it did.  I didn't have the right 'patch-paper' so the lettering came out a little scratchy-looking and was also a tad too large.  I remember STEVE MacMANUS being quite pleased with it though, especially the newspaper headlines.

And thus began my full-time, fifteen year career working for the 'big boys' - not only IPC but also MARVEL COMICS (the British and American divisions).  Anyway, I thought that some of you might enjoy seeing where it all began.  (Is it just me, or does anyone else think that Casanovas' art is slightly reminiscent of RON TURNER's?)

   

I'd like to think that I improved over the coming months once I 'found' my style, but, all in all, it wasn't too bad a beginning for someone starting out in the world of comics.  Technology can be a wonderful thing, but I can't help but feel that some of the art has gone from lettering now that anyone with a keyboard and access to computer fonts can do what once used to lie only within the province of calligraphic artists.

     

The original scans were a bit 'ropey' (pun intended), so I've now replaced them with far clearer ones.  The pages don't look pixelated now and are a lot easier to read.

THANK HEAVENS For CRIVENS!...

One thing I pride myself on with this blog is that it's honest.  When I 'review' a comic or book, I'll tell you what I think about it with no fear or favour.  Looking at a couple of other blogs which on occasion cover some of the same stuff that I do, I'm struck by the fact that they never say anything even remotely negative about any of it, instead just trotting out the publishers' supplied spiel about their product.  Why's that do you think?  I'll tell you.

The couple of blogs I'm thinking of are by people connected to the comic companies in some way, either by doing freelance work from them in order to make a living, or relying on their 'patronage' by way of being given advance publicity and images on upcoming or recent products.  They're essentially in those companies' pockets, and won't risk incurring their disfavour by giving you an honest, unbiased view on any of the stuff they're featuring.

So if you want to read mere advertising, these other blogs fit the bill.  If, however, you want to read an honest opinion about any of the stuff publicised on this blog, then congratulations on your taste and discernment.  You might not agree with my review of a mag or book, but at least it wasn't written merely to sook up to any publishers.

So come to CRIVENS! - the honest blog!  And remember, I'm not trying to get you to put money in my wallet - unlike some second-string individuals constantly trying to promote either themselves or their work on Blogger, Twitter and Facebook.  

******

(This, of course, is an unabashed plug for my blog, and is therefore completely biased in its favour.  But hey - it's an honest bias and not one I deny - so there!)

BABE Of The DAY - JERI RYAN...

Here's a cute babe to start the

day - JERI RYAN.  Now, what's the

name of that book I asked her to fetch

down for me?  Forget it.  Who wants

to read at a time like this?!