A new British adventure weekly.... Could it ever happen?

[geoff42]

it could be a risky venture but why not jettison any thoughts of attracting pre-teen interest; aim a publication to the male audience between the ages of 20's to 40's and beyond. 2000 ad and Judge Dredd Megazine already has such a readership. No free gifts required, just mature comic strips (no tits and ass as a compulsory feature either). I'm sure there's a mature audience ready for a new innovative publication. A weekly publication could be too ambitious; a fortnightly edition may be just the cup of tea we need. A monthly publication could still work, but it would need to be delivered consistently on time. And it would need to transcend a subscription only basis... so, then the likes of W H Smith and Tesco would require a serious talking to. It's difficult, but not impossible.

[felneymike]

The fact there's already two (three when Clint was still going) publications already aimed at that market surely rules out another one? They haven't got unlimited money!

Also it would probably be filled with sci-fi, superheroes and "intellectual" stories about caeltic faery earthe magyk and living in harmony with gaia and hating the English, because "that's what sells to that market" (in all two of it's comics).

If they could aim something at non-comics readers in that age group, though, that would be something else entirely. Maybe something like Striker but distributed properly (both to the shops, and inside them!).

[Michael Anden]

The fact there's already two (three when Clint was still going) publications already aimed at that market surely rules out another one? They haven't got unlimited money!

Also it would probably be filled with sci-fi, superheroes and "intellectual" stories about caeltic faery earthe magyk and living in harmony with gaia and hating the English, because "that's what sells to that market" (in all two of it's comics).

If they could aim something at non-comics readers in that age group, though, that would be something else entirely. Maybe something like Striker but distributed properly (both to the shops, and inside them!).

Are you referring to 2000AD and the Megazine as being the 'other two'? Much as I still enjoy both, I've always largely seem them as basically the same title.

Interesting idea about a 'non-genre' Striker-like title being given a proper crack at the market. I wouldn't personally be interested in a strip solely about football unless it had some killer art or revolutionary writing, but others might be open to it- football fever isn't going away any time soon. Or maybe a comic about games less-well documented in the medium- athletics, 'extreme' sports, minor-interest games? I'm sure some good drama could be elicited from any of these.

Personally, I would be excited most about a title that would feature on a varying basis a real variety bonanza- yes, superheroes and sci fi, but also crime, humour, western, historical, war, thriller; horror- 'even' romance and 'literary fiction' strips (The important thing is that it's done well- really well.

[felneymike]

Hmm, well the most popular comic stories in Japan at the moment (you can tell because there's rubbish merchandise from them in all the grab machines) are about Volleyball and Basketball. But they seem to like sports more "evenly" over there. The female and male national football teams get more or less equal publicity, for instance. Our women's team would need to win the world cup to get on the back of the papers, on the other hand the men's team do it every time Roy Hodgson farts.

Anyway, anything can be exciting as comic strip if it's done really well! Maybe they could try to give it the same atmosphere as the lurid paperbacks of the 60's to 80's - like Edge Westerns!

[Michael Anden]

If money, time, the grave (or whatever) was no object, which artists would you get for the hypothetical adventure weekly? It could be base purely own your own personal tastes, who you think might help give the title the best chance of success, or combo of both.

I would go for:

Frank Hampson (The Man from Nowhere years)
Joe Madureira (sans on-the-nose facial expressions)
Ryan Church
Travis Charest
James Cameron (the director - 80s era)
Simon Bisley (the Slaine years- his stuff this century leaves me kind of cold)
Vanyo
Frank Quitely
Ralph McQuarrie
Ian Kennedy

[Gary Northfield]

Just so you know, The Phoenix really does go from strength to strength with a great retention on subs as well as good sales in shops. It's not only Waitrose and comic stores (including some Forbidden Planets), but plenty of high street bookshops, with many branches of Waterstones on board. Can't find it in your local shop? Then ask! Or get in touch with The Phoenix and demand you want it in your local bookshop. They'll try their bloody hardest to get it in there.

You'll also find it pushed in libraries and schools up and down the country, as part of major literary schemes and invariably running workshops at the biggest festivals (music AND book) across the land.

This is all done on a skeleton staff of about 7 very passionate people too, as opposed to a big corporation of hundreds, like DC Thomson or the BBC.

And subscriptions being a poor model for making money? Tell that to Eaglemoss and their range of magazines selling millions. All subscription based.

All the while the comic community of this country decry the dearth of weekly comic fodder for their kids, there's one right under their noses, printing original, top quality British adventure and humour strips, week in and week out, for over two and a half years! How good is the material? Good enough to make number 2 on Time Magazine's top 10 Comics and Graphic novels list last year.

http://entertainment.time.com/2013/12/0 ... ic-novels/

This is all British creator-owned material too.

And let's not forget the upcoming NINE books, reprinting material from the weekly for those who missed it, with the first two, Jamie Smart's Bunny Vs Monkey and Lorenzo Ethrington's Von Doogan, already out.

http://www.thephoenixcomic.co.uk/shop/

The world has changed, markets have moved on, they have to, or we'd all end up in the tar pit with all the other dinosaurs.

[Billythecat]

Just so you know, The Phoenix really does go from strength to strength with a great retention on subs as well as good sales in shops. It's not only Waitrose and comic stores (including some Forbidden Planets), but plenty of high street bookshops, with many branches of Waterstones on board. Can't find it in your local shop? Then ask! Or get in touch with The Phoenix and demand you want it in your local bookshop. They'll try their bloody hardest to get it in there.

You'll also find it pushed in libraries and schools up and down the country, as part of major literary schemes and invariably running workshops at the biggest festivals (music AND book) across the land.

This is all done on a skeleton staff of about 7 very passionate people too, as opposed to a big corporation of hundreds, like DC Thomson or the BBC.

And subscriptions being a poor model for making money? Tell that to Eaglemoss and their range of magazines selling millions. All subscription based.

All the while the comic community of this country decry the dearth of weekly comic fodder for their kids, there's one right under their noses, printing original, top quality British adventure and humour strips, week in and week out, for over two and a half years! How good is the material? Good enough to make number 2 on Time Magazine's top 10 Comics and Graphic novels list last year.

http://entertainment.time.com/2013/12/0 ... ic-novels/

This is all British creator-owned material too.

And let's not forget the upcoming NINE books, reprinting material from the weekly for those who missed it, with the first two, Jamie Smart's Bunny Vs Monkey and Lorenzo Ethrington's Von Doogan, already out.

http://www.thephoenixcomic.co.uk/shop/

The world has changed, markets have moved on, they have to, or we'd all end up in the tar pit with all the other dinosaurs.

Rousing post Gary and one I enjoyed reading.

PS Did Mezolith 2 ever get published?

[nottinghamian]

I got my nephew a trial subscription to The Phoenix at Christmas. He liked it, and now has a full subscription.

[felneymike]

Not a fan of The Phoenix at the moment, Mega Robo Bros is terrible! But as it's an anthology, no doubt the dinosaurs with pirate ships on them will come back around in time.

[Michael Anden]

Pheonix certainly strikes me as very genteel compared to action comics of the 70s and 80s, though is no worse for it. Hopefully it will long continue and retain its high production values- but it would be nice to see edgier fare coming from these shores- there's a lot that's happened to the world since the like of the original Toxic! Crisis and the last incarnation Eagle, and it would be nice to also see works that reflected that. Very grateful that 2000AD is still going for now though.

[starscape]

I guess the question is really will there be a new British adventure mag like the ones from our childhood years.

Probably not.

I did try to get some of the better small press creators together for one but it was doomed to failure. Everyone wanted their own little comic, rather than one widespread one. I also tried to resurrect a Valiant or Vulcan annual, with old and new strips but IPC moved to DC Comics, who blanked emails (not just from me), which I thought was quite disgraceful.

[Michael Anden]

Well aren't you just a ray of sunshine.

[daveycandlish]

I guess the question is really will there be a new British adventure mag like the ones from our childhood years.

Probably not.

I did try to get some of the better small press creators together for one but...

And yet...

http://paragoncomic.blogspot.co.uk/2014 ... eview.html

PARAGON is an anthology comic featuring some fantastic work, including Captain Winston Bulldog which has been going, on and off, for thirty years. It's not a weekly and it's not available in WHSmiths but it's still worth a look.
(Declaration of interest - I publish/edit it)

[colcool007]

Well aren't you just a ray of sunshine.

Actually, Chris and Paul Scott both put their money where their mouths were and self-published comics. While they were well received at the Expos and comic events, they did not have enough appeal to break through to the mainstream.

And to be honest, I doubt that many comics can still appeal to all and sundry. All paper comics are struggling with sales dangerously close to the break even mark. And as soon as they begin to lose money, the publisher will pull the plug on it. I think (please note that this is speculation only) that DCT may have just kept the Dandy going long enough to hit the 75th Anniversary despite low sales and possible losses.

Some comics are still trying to break out of the ghetto. Aces Weekly, Paragon (thanks Dave) and Wasted are three that come to mind, but they are nothing like the comics of my youth. In fact, I doubt if 30-somethings would consider them to be even close to the comics of their youth.

[geoff42]

so, how does 2000 ad still keep going? I know it has a subscription base, but it still manages to get the issues out on a commercial basis. Ok, not to the extent that it used to command. My local WH Smiths rarely stock it even though a couple of newsagents around it do so on a weekly basis. Is it the name and its history that keeps it going? Is it the fanbase, the likes of myself in our mid-forties, that habitually buy it on a weekly basis that helps? Is it Dredd that keeps it going? The likes of Roy of the Rovers, Tiger, Victor, Buster, and Eagle were unceremoniously buried and, yet, 2000 ad always seems to persevere. Panini comics still churn out their marvel reprints but the cost must be minimal compared to 2000 ad when you consider there's no original output. And there's also Judge Dredd Megazine, which has somehow managed to survive to my surprise. As the situation stands now, I still can't decide whether or not the longest weekly publication - Beano will finally defeat 2000 ad, its closest competitor for so long. Dandy has gone - who would have believed that several years ago! For some reason, I can't define, 2000 ad just keeps slugging away... it's gotta be Dredd. Seriously, 2000 ad should have folded by the mid-nineties when you consider the UK comic situation. Thankfully, it just keeps coming. But then, how many Dandy fans said the same of their fav. comic?