Comics UK

Hello all !
Let me tell you a little bit about myself ( I`ll try not to bore you! ) I`m 55, a grand father to four with another due next week! I`ve got the eldest reading the Beano and Roald Dahl and I`m introducing my grandson to Transformer comics to whet his appetite, the other two make do with looking at the pictures for now!
I used to read American comics about 20 years ago but thought the writers were more interested in showing us how clever they are than in entertaining us.
I`m a regular user of eBay for football stuff but spotted some Lone Ranger and Zorro comics from Dynamite Publishers and bought them. I`m hooked again, all I want is a beginning, middle and end to a story with no variant covers!
I especially like the Steel Claw, V for Vengeance and Garth and similar ilk.
that`s it for now, if anyone`s interested I`ll tell you about my trip to Birmingham`s comic shops the other day.
Thanks for your indulgence!

Then get yourself a copy of this month's issue of Classics From The Comics pronto! V for Vengence is in it!

hiya, nost.....I enjoyed GARTH in the MIRROR in the early 70s........the 'revamp' from this period was the definitive version, I thought. Some of the artwork was early-70s-sexist, to be sure, but the alien, otherwordly atmosphere of the artist from this period [was it MARTIN ATSBURY?---probably not.] was a cool achievement in the sphere of sci-fi fantasy.

just checked.....it was FRANK BELLAMY, of course, who initiated the GARTH revamp.

Digifiend wrote:Then get yourself a copy of this month's issue of Classics From The Comics pronto! V for Vengence is in it!

Which version of V? Was it the Hornet version or the Hotspur one?

Personally I always preferred the pre-Bellamy Garth but I'm probably the exception to the rule.

Lew

Martin Asbury did draw Garth, I remember being interviewed at IPC (trying to get into comic art) and mentioned Garth, the fellow interviewing me said he was Martin's brother!
Hello Nostalgicdon, I collect late 60s early 70s football stuff as well. There was a bit more integrity in those days. Loved Shoot and Goal from that era. Also a newspaper called Inside Football which is very hard to come by on ebay. I too found US comic creators a bit too "serious". Would rather read a whacky 60s Jimmy Olsen or Lois Lane than a Starlin Warlock. But loved the artwork by Starlin, Gulacy, Gene Day etc. Luckily I bought comics for the artwork rather than the stories.

colcool007 wrote:

Digifiend wrote:Then get yourself a copy of this month's issue of Classics From The Comics pronto! V for Vengence is in it!

Which version of V? Was it the Hornet version or the Hotspur one?

Hornet, 1968

Thank you for your responses to my first posting, much appreciated. It was the Hornet where I read V for Vengeance, I had the Hornet every week with the Victor, Valiant,Hotspur where pocket money would allow!
Thanks for the tip about V for Vengeance being in the current issue of Classics from the Comics, however, after visiting half a dozen local newsagents, including WH Smith, I have been unable to find a stockist. Any ideas?
It was the Frank Bellamy Garth strip in my Dad`s Daily Mirror and The Phantom in our local Saturday Express & Star that helped me to appreciate adventure stories.
I have just discovered Crikey magazine which has been a great memory jogger of all the various characters I used to enjoy as a youngster.
Thanks again for your input!

WHSmith is where I get it from. Try ordering it from DC Thomson itself - http://www.dcthomson.co.uk/ I can't seem to find a Back Issues link , so subscribe stating June 2009, and hope it means issue 158, and not 159 which comes out on June 25th.

Dear Digifriend,
Many thanks for your help, I`m going to head for the site now. however, I am reluctant to take out a subscription without trying the comic first. By this I mean I am more a fan of adventure stories than funnies, and I don`t know which way the comic is slanted.

cheers!

Don

Two thirds comic strip I'm afraid. There are also a few puzzles/features, which are different each issue and are the only brand new material bar the front cover and next issue advert. The following adventure strips are in the current issue:
Billy the Cat, 2 pages, Beano 1967
V For Vengeance, 4 pages, Hornet 1968.

There's usually more stories than that, it's not the best issue for your tastes. Sorry.

Last month's issue, 157, had more:
Billy the Cat, 2 pages, Beano 1967
Bouncing Briggs, 5 pages, Hornet 1963
Danny's Tranny, 1 page, Topper 1974
The Destroyer From Under The Sea, 2 pages, Victor 1961

I managed to get a copy of Classics from the Comics issue #158 from a larger WH Smith than the one I tried earlier.
I could`nt believe, when I was reading the V for Vengeance story, just how adult and serious the content was.
The introduction explained the ruthlessness of Nazi Germany and the horrors of the Concentration camps. I probably first read this story as a 14 year old and the message was probably lost on me as I just saw it as a wartime adventure story.
Comics for kids? not always.

One of the most enjoyable parts of reading the adventure strips in Classics is the slice of social history that you get. The war stories were written by people who had lived through it and could probably tell you quiet readily what was to the left hand side of a Wellington bombers tail gunners foot rest. And the recent Tough of the Track story was a great peep into working class life in the 1960’s outside toilets, no central heating, no white goods or convenience foods. At the risk of sounding like one of the four Yorkshiremen the past is a different country.

I must admit that seeing the social change through the years is a big draw for me to read comics from my youth and from earlier periods.

I won't expound too much on this subject as I want to save lots for my 1000th post!

colcool007
I'm looking forward to your 1000 post.