Hit & Run
(or random notes from an idiot comics writer)

Not So Epic Anymore
The front door has barely slapped Bill Jemas on the arse and already Marvel is undoing some of his achievements. Namely scaling back the Epic line from four-five titles to one quarterly anthology.

Well, quarterly is as much as the first issue will come out, and then Marvel will assess how well it sells before committing to a second issue.

Hang on, doesn't that make it a one-shot then?

My condolences to the creators who have seen Marvel bottle out on any faith they had in their work before it had even been listed in Previews. Granted, Crimson Dynamo has yet to burn through the sales charts, but didn't the low-expectation production matrix allow for that?

Nope, smacks of a heavy-handed new broom sweeps clean kind of mentality.

28 Walking Dead Days Later
Read the first issue of Image's The Walking Dead the other night. And despite the initial opening reading like an Amercanised spin on the begining of 28 Days Later (lead character wakes from a coma to discover the whole worlds gone all zombified), Robert Kirkman has capture the sphincter-constricting atmos necessary for a gripping survival horror read. Tony Moore's grey-toned art is also something to be thankful for too - get a copy while you can, and feel smug when the likes of Wizard jump on the bandwagon months after you've been reading it.

Tattoo You
Obligatory plug time. The latest issue of Warhammer Monthly - numero 74 - has my The Tale Of The Tattoo strip capably illustrated by Jon Haward. I never had the chance to meet Jon at last week's London Comic Festival unfortunately. Pity that, as the man's apparently a hardened KISS fan. I'm currently rediscovering my love for the retro rock I grew up with, it would have been fun to have a chat about Gene and the boys. In the meantime, check out Jon's webpage at www.jonhawardart.com

Also, please order Warhammer Monthly 77 from the latest issue of Previews. I've been reliably informed by Master of the Monthly Christian that Mundizuma's Revenge - my tale of an idiot lizardman - will see print in that issue. I've seen Brit stalwart artist Mike Collins work on this and, trust me, it'll be worth your cash for that alone. And then there's also all the other top notch sci-fi and fantasy adventure strips by the likes of Gordon Rennie, Dan Abnett, Mitchell Scanlon, etc.

Oh yeah, and get on the ground floor with this title now as there are a heck of a lot of established Brit artists doing work for the Monthly and Inferno! magazine too. You want names? How about Steve Yeowell, Gary Erskine, Clint Langley and - brace yourself kids - Frazer Irving?

London Comics Festival
The past weekend saw the inaugural London Winter Comics Festival - the newborn sibling of the UK's established Spring Bristol Comics Festival.

I only got to sample the show for a couple of hours, one of which was spent on the judging panel of the New Writers Pitching Session, but there was an upbeat, enthusiastic atmos reminiscent of the early-UKCACs. Even rent-a-presenter Jonathan Ross dragged his son over during the afternoon, before he hob-nobbed with the fans around the small press area. Speaking of which, most of the attention at the show was focused on these pools of nascent talent - perhaps largely because few of the big publishers made the trip across the Atlantic for the show?

The Black Library had a prime position opposite the entrance to the main talks/presentation hall. And whilst they didn't see as manic a trade as the September Games Day, editor Christian Dunn said that he was blown away by some of the portfolios that came his way. Which is encouraging, since my ad in Comics International looking for artists has just been printed - maybe I'll finally find an artist to get Broken Claw off the ground?

2000AD was notable by its absence. Well, corporate presence anyway. Most of the guests were 2000AD writers and artists, so fans could get their books filled with as many autographs and sketches as their twisted little hearts could desire. 2000AD and The Megazine are no doubt be saving up their convention budget for the Dreddcon, due to take place sometime in the next month or so.

There was no Marvel, Dark Horse, Image or the like, but DC sent over editor Dan Didio, who offered a corporate perspective on the pitching panel. Also on the panel were 2000AD artist Siku, Authority scribe Robbie Morrison, and Authority/Fort/Necronauts artist Frazer Irving.

It was the first time I'd met the latter, and whilst we waited for Kev F Sutherland to kickstart the pitching panel, I had a pleasant chat about the wonders of Eastern European women and the merits of working with the Black Library. Apart from being fun to work for, they actually pay bloody quick too (that's the Black Library, not Eastern European women).

The panel was frenetic and fun - and I came away with a hell of a lot of respect for anyone with the balls to get up on stage in front of a packed audience (it's one of the Festival's most popular features), and try and sell your character/series/one-off idea in just two minutes. It's kind of like Pop Idol, but less glamourous, and no-one really wants you to make a tit of yourself (unlike the ritual humilations on offer on the ITV shitertainment show).

Even though we over-ran the hour slot, we could still only fit in 10 entrants, with the outright winner being a Future Shock-style series called Culture Shocks (if my memory, and badly scrawled notes, serve me right). The concept was to have an Ally McBeal-like character (who swears a lot) satirically comment life in the 21st Century. Differences between the US and the UK were touted, as well as between the sexes, discrimination towards the disabled... in fact, my over-riding impression was that this was a series that Michael Moore would probably come up with if he turned his attention to comic books.

I hope Selina (the creator whose first name is all I have written down - sorry!) is able to get the series into print. If the quality of the pitch was anything to go by, it could be a blinder and would find a comfortable niche at the likes of Oni.

Just time for me to plug pitch entrant Jason Cobley's excellent Bulldog Adventure Magazine. Jason kindly gave me a copy of the latest issue of BAM after the panel, which features artwork from Frazer Irving no less, as well as showcasing some rising stars in the British underground comics scene. So do yourself a favour, email Jason now on kingsunset@yahoo.com for information on how to order a copy. Tell him Flak Jacket sent ya!