What comics did you buy today?

[paw broon]

I visited a friend today and he sold me 15 issues of Cowboy Picture Library and a couple of other things, incl. an issue of Top Three - #115, Tabok the Great. I've never seen this but I know Top Three had a considerable variation in content but I have almost no info on this Famepress publication, apart from it containing Italian reprints of which at least 1 issue featured a Hugo Pratt story. Can anyone help with contents of this series?

[ISPYSHHHGUY]

BEING for the BENEFIT of fellow member Abacus;


---as promised, Abbers old fruit, here is more gen on my thoughts on HEAVY METAL MAGAZINE. I am warming to this publication: the nearest UK equivalent I would say is the JUDGE DREDD MEGAZIINE.

It has to be said that this publication contains some very strong sexual imagery--- and the violence quota is probably on par with modern 2000 ad.

Some of the artwork is too overdone and overtly stylized truly to attract the reader in, but there are definite gems in there to cherry-pick----there is a lot in this mag, some editions spanning well over 100 pages. It lacks the quirkiness we all prefer in the UK publications, but this one is great for 'dipping into' when I tire of endless Korky the Cat, depending on the mood of the reader.

Some great adverts in in too, selling some truly bizarre , specialized adult publications I have never heard of.


Despite it's title, there is very little reference to Music anywhere in this mag---other than issue 43, a 'Rock' special with a great Elvis cover which sadly I cannot add on here for reasons of decency.


No real complaints from me overall though, I welcome this type of diversity.


Well over 75 per cent of page imagery from HEAVY METAL is not suitable for me to show on this forum---this mag is by far the most explicit 'mainstream' publication I have yet encountered, it is definitely an 18-certificate-----but I have carefully selected a couple of pages that are OK to add on here to give a flavour:

[abacus]

Comics are comics ISPYHHHGUY and I can understand how your tastes can range from Korky the Kat to Heavy Metal..With Heavy Metal being a compilation of various artists there will be some excellent stuff for a variety of readers.I have no problem with the more mature comics they are either entertaining or rubblsh depending on your likes or dislikes, each comic judged separately on its own merits.
Tastes vary I prefered the Biffo the bear covers to Dennis the menace(Sorry Beano fans :
Korky the Kat covers to the Desperate Dan covers
Deed a day danny covers to Smiley(I think that was the name)covers On Knockout comics
Some of the more mature comics can be funny like the one page jokes or Viz
I didn't read Playboy magazine but the (little Annie F.comic strips that appear on some blogs from this magazine are both well drawn and entertaining and not too explicit to be in bad taste,more in keeping with the british seaside comic postcard.

[Kashgar]

Hi abacus. The Knockout cover character you are thinking of was 'Mike' drawn by Eric Roberts. He would become 'Smiler' when reprinted in The Big One/Buster in the 1960's.

[abacus]

Hi abacus. The Knockout cover character you are thinking of was 'Mike' drawn by Eric Roberts. He would become 'Smiler' when reprinted in The Big One/Buster in the 1960's.

Thanks ,I added it in the middle of my post and was unable to make a reference check

[stevezodiac]

My Christmas Skipper still hasn't appeared in the gallery. Is Sir still sunning himself at Clacton On Sea?

[ISPYSHHHGUY]

Comics are comics ISPYHHHGUY and I can understand how your tastes can range from Korky the Kat to Heavy Metal..With Heavy Metal being a compilation of various artists there will be some excellent stuff for a variety of readers.I have no problem with the more mature comics they are either entertaining or rubblsh depending on your likes or dislikes, each comic judged separately on its own merits.
Tastes vary I prefered the Biffo the bear covers to Dennis the menace(Sorry Beano fans :
Korky the Kat covers to the Desperate Dan covers
Deed a day danny covers to Smiley(I think that was the name)covers On Knockout comics
Some of the more mature comics can be funny like the one page jokes or Viz
I didn't read Playboy magazine but the (little Annie F.comic strips that appear on some blogs from this magazine are both well drawn and entertaining and not too explicit to be in bad taste,more in keeping with the british seaside comic postcard.

Yes Abacus that Little Annie F strip in Playboy was sensational---I loved it as a kid [!]


The artwork by MAD Magazines' Bill Elder [?] was top-notch---this collected works is on my hit-list---there are 2 volumes of this out there apparantly.

[davidandrewsimpson]

To Paw Broon, re "...I visited a friend today and he sold me 15 issues of Cowboy Picture Library and a couple of other things, incl. an issue of Top Three - #115, Tabok the Great. I've never seen this but I know Top Three had a considerable variation in content but I have almost no info on this Famepress publication, apart from it containing Italian reprints of which at least 1 issue featured a Hugo Pratt story. Can anyone help with contents of this series?"

According to the Grand Comics Database, issue 36 contained a Hugo Pratt story, starring Captain Moko (known in France as Capitaine Cormorant). Sadly, GCD has only indexed three issues of Top Three.

I have several issues of Top Three stowed away somewhere, and many of them contain more Captain Moko stories, but these are drawn by Stelio Fenzo in a style very similar to Pratt's.
It's all good fun, straightforward period adventure stories in a South Seas setting.

I'll see if I can dig out my small Top Three collection and pass on more information, but don't hold your breath waiting.

[TwoHeadedBoy]

Yes Abacus that Little Annie F strip in Playboy was sensational---I loved it as a kid [!]


The artwork by MAD Magazines' Bill Elder [?] was top-notch---this collected works is on my hit-list---there are 2 volumes of this out there apparantly.

Are you familiar with Oh, Wicked Wanda!, drawn/painted by Ron Embleton of all people? A "stronger", more satirical pastiche of Annie Fanny, featuring caricatures a-plenty. There's a collection of it available, but it's out of print and unaffordable to most - there's a torrent floating around containing the whole lot of them, mind.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wicked_Wanda

[philcom55]

What were you doing reading Playboy as a kid Rab??? I'm shocked!!!

[ISPYSHHHGUY]

A school chum found a load of these mags abandoned under a bush near the school [primary school, no less!] Phil---and they were passed around the playground, as kids do!

A very strong childhood memory, that one, and one I never divulged to Mater, even today!

Did it do me any harm?-----not especially, it just accelerated my view on the facts of life a bit--- but I shudder to think what kids are looking at on screens in the playground these days.


abacus:

yes, the name Wicked Wanda in 'strip form' -----groan!] rings a bell: I will look it up, I am already pursuing Little Annie F, I recognized it as superior painting even back then.

Ron Embelton was a top-notch artist by any standards and I am sure it was a quality concern [artistically].

[abacus]

abacus:

yes, the name Wicked Wanda in 'strip form' -----groan!] rings a bell: I will look it up, I am already pursuing Little Annie F, I recognized it as superior painting even back then.

Ron Embelton was a top-notch artist by any standards and I am sure it was a quality concern [artistically].

Sorry to be pedantic ISPYHHHGUY but the question was put by TWOHEADEDBOY not me.

After my post discovered that there was life out there in the comic universe I happily decided to go back to sleep.

[stevezodiac]

I have a couple of Penthouse magazines with Wicked Wanda but didn't scan them on here for fear of breaking some morality rules and out of respect for the site's creators.

[paw broon]

davidandrewsimpson, thank you very much, and I would be grateful if you could come up with a bit more information
Didn't know about Captain Moko or the artist, so my curiosity has been well and truly tweaked

[TwoHeadedBoy]

Just back from the Golden Orbit comic fair thing... Haven't been to it in years and the two dealers I used to rely on for good stuff weren't there today, just endless boxes of Marvel and DC boringness...

Didn't want to leave empty-handed, seeing as I made the effort to get there, so persevered and got six issues of Marshal Law, something called "Arrgh!" which looks like Marvel having a go at doing their own MAD Magazine, and something else called "Mbleh!" - no idea what it is, but I like the title and it was 35p.

Yesterday morning, the post brought a "Best of 94-95" of Spit! Comic.