This week's issue (w/c Feb 22)

[kevf]

Am I right in detecting a slight change back in the look of Dennis? He seems to have his mouth emerging from the sides of his eyeballs again, which is something the kids in my classes have bemoaned the passing of (they like the TV cartoons but prefer his previous comic strip face).

This, if it's true, is the plus side of this week's Beano. The minus side would be the 6 pages of reprint. Seven if you count the front cover, which is just a panel from the Dennis strip blown up. (The artist, and forgive me I don't know who it is this week, must be working in Illustrator? So pictures can be blown up to any scale without losing detail? Or am I wrong on that too?)

Is 6 pages of reprint exceptional, often done or what?

Kev F

[Lew Stringer]

Am I right in detecting a slight change back in the look of Dennis? He seems to have his mouth emerging from the sides of his eyeballs again, which is something the kids in my classes have bemoaned the passing of (they like the TV cartoons but prefer his previous comic strip face).

This, if it's true, is the plus side of this week's Beano. The minus side would be the 6 pages of reprint. Seven if you count the front cover, which is just a panel from the Dennis strip blown up. (The artist, and forgive me I don't know who it is this week, must be working in Illustrator? So pictures can be blown up to any scale without losing detail? Or am I wrong on that too?)

Is 6 pages of reprint exceptional, often done or what?

Kev F

It's usually four pages of reprint (plus the cover, as you noticed). Minnie is usually new, so perhaps there was a delay with the artwork.

The Dennis artist this week was Jimmy Hansen.

Lew

[Digifiend]

I assumed last week's Minnie reprint was because Ken Harrison drew one for the current issue of Beanomax, and he didn't have time to do both. But if she's reprinted for the second week running, your guess is as good as mine. *shrug*

[Jonny Whizz]

Six reprint pages is unusual. Four is more common (2 pages of Ivy, with one page each of Calamity James and Les Pretend), and there's sometimes less than that, though usually that means there's less comic content overall, so four's normal.

As for Dennis, I can see what you mean Kev by looking at this week's strip. I'm not alone in preferring his old face - the teeth on the new version do make him look goofy.

[Digifiend]

And less menacing.

[David Gerstein]

I followed the Beano on a semi-regular basis from 1984-1989, then had a subscription until about 1996.

I remember when Dennis was forcibly "youthened" in the mid-1990s—even with master David Sutherland in charge, a new animated cartoon had to be obeyed (there seems to be some kind of superficial coolness factor involved—Thomson seemingly never asks animation writers/artists to be true to the comics, but demands that its comics people be true to the latest cartoon).
I guess you can see where I'm going with this... Dennis' mouth being behind his eyes and above his nose was something that started with that mid-1990s revamp. I didn't care for it then and I'm disappointed to learn it's back.

On the other hand, I'm not for the teeth the way they're used in the present cartoon and comics, either. Something about the style suggests a deliberate attempt to mimic the Wallace and Gromit look.

Does anyone know why Rasher was replaced by Harley in the new cartoon? As I don't have regular access to the current Beano, has Harley made any comics appearances? (Could the point possibly have been that the name Rasher suggested pigs as food—and someone was afraid of offending those who don't eat pork?)

[Lew Stringer]

I guess you can see where I'm going with this... Dennis' mouth being behind his eyes and above his nose was something that started with that mid-1990s revamp. I didn't care for it then and I'm disappointed to learn it's back.

Yes, it's curious that people think of that version as the "old" Dennis. It's an age thing I suppose. To me everything after 1980 still feels recent.

Does anyone know why Rasher was replaced by Harley in the new cartoon? As I don't have regular access to the current Beano, has Harley made any comics appearances? (Could the point possibly have been that the name Rasher suggested pigs as food—and someone was afraid of offending those who don't eat pork?)

I hadn't thought about it before but I would guess that it's not so much about offending non-pork eaters but more to do with it being a bit of a sick joke to call a pet by its food name. It'd be like having a tv show called 'Dogfood the Wonder Horse'.

Actually that might work....

Lew