Taking a deep breath.

         

I've waited all summer for something brilliant to happen, something to look forward to week in week out. I've lived the excitement, followed by the slight disappointment. My football team, Liverpool FC came so close, only to miss winning the Premiership by two points, England fell out of the World Cup and on TV Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. ended spectacularly for a summer break leaving the summer of 2014 long and hot. Some things made it worth while, Marvel's X-Men:Days of Future Past and Guardians of the Galaxy, pre-season football matchs and a holiday in the sun helped move the time along. So soon the football season started again and the internet buzzed with tales of a Time Lord we've yet to see, as he toured around the globe. But finally this weekend as the world waited with baited breathe the twelfth Doctor arrived. His timing was great as my Liverpool where to play their biggest rivals City, on Monday, I could give the Doctor my full, undivided attention. 

It's been eight months since we last saw any tales from the TARDIS. But tales from the press were there aplenty, with leaks on the internet spoiling the suspense. He's dark, too dark. Scary, far to scary! I stuck my head in the sand rather than an internet ice water bucket. Let's wait and see. He did come and boy did we see. Deep Breath everyone. 

Before we all get to clever and analyse every second of the feature length feast to death, lets just stop and think with our seven year old self. I want the Doctor to be dangerous, exciting and a little bit silly. Let me go off subject ever so slightly here, as a kid I used to skate board. I wasn't good at it, but I had my moments. One day I rode down the path across from my house where stretch across it lay a plank of wood on to a skip, with two builders rolling a wheel barrow filled with rubble aiming for the skip. How stick with this I'll get quickly to the point. Instead of stopping or crossing over to the other path like all my friends I decided to lay down flat on the skate board and coast under the plank. It was amazing and dangerous at the same time. My young friends cheered, my Mum give me the telling off of a life time. But that's what kids want, danger, excitement, to be seen as cool, even if it's very silly. So was Peter Capaldi's Doctor dangerous, exciting, cool and silly? Let's see.

Doctor Who started with a giant Tyrannosaurus Rex, my seven year old self jumped for joy, the Patanoster Gang appeared on the scene, my seven year old selfs favourite characters. The T. Rex coughs out the TARDIS where we find inside there's a mad man in a box. All is well in my seven year old selfs world. Let's for the minute stop there, it's Doctor Who, my seven year self is going to love it anyway, cause there's silly jokes, action and clockwork monsters. My forty-four year old self was worried about the darkness of the Doctor. Yes I would have liked to see Calpaldi's Doctor with some kids, like Matt Smith did in with Amelila, to show he's alright, a Doctor you can trust. But do we need to be that coy? 

I heard a lot of people saying that no one could replace David Tennant, but Matt Smith did! I heard people say that Matt was un-replaceable. No one likes an old grumpy, angry Doctor. I did have flashes of no one can replace Tom Baker, but Peter Davison did. Flashes of an un-replaceable Davidson being replaced by a grumpy dark Colin Baker. But all the Doctors had a darker side, Hartnell, Troughton, Pertwee, Baker, Davison, Baker, McCoy, McGann, Ecclestion, Tennant and Smith all had their dark sides. One of the best Doctors of modern times, Captain Grumpy himself the War Doctor, John Hurt was dark, but he also made me laugh loudly. Did Capaldi's Doctor make me laugh? Yes of course he did, he's the Doctor! Did he steal (or borrow) the old tramps coat? Did the Doctor leave Clara in danger to save himself?  Did he push the Clockwork man out of the escape pod? Questions we all asked as if we doubted our hero. He needed the coat which he over payed for with a priceless watch, he could have gotten a new coat for that, which wouldn't have smelled either. He had a plan knowing he could get himself and Clara out while finding out more about the Clockwork people, trusting that the Patanoster Gang wouldn't be far behind. Was the Clockwork man pushed or did he fall, or did the Doctor send him on his way to his heaven, his paradise. Did the Doctor leave Clara in Victorian London? Or sort his TARDIS, wardrobe and frame of mind out. 

Is this Doctor a good man? Clara knew even before she left London. Before the eleventh Doctor called her up. She knew while she was held captive by the villain, the Doctor would be right behind her to hold her hand. The question is do we think he is? The title is Doctor Who, it's a question, "Doctor? Doctor who?" Let's find out just how good he is together. 

Is Peter Calpaldi a good Doctor? No, he's more than good, he was brilliant and I can't wait for next week! 

Doctor? Doctor who?

Teenage kicks.

This month 30 years ago Spider-man #582 was published by MarvelUK, on the 2rd of May 1984 to be exact. There's nothing overly important about this issue really, Spider-man reveals his secret identity to the Black Cat, the Hulk takes on a mind controlled (by the Leader,) US Army, both very readable stories. A news filled Bullpen Bulletin and the weekly letter page, simply titled "Spider-mail." While re-reading this issue I took great interest in the "Star Letter", the writer of the "Star Letter" would win a Marvel Annual, a yearly produced hard back book normally released in Autumn ready for the Christmas market, quite a good prize. Some winners letters were basicly childlike drivel, along the lines of "I love Spider-man can he send me a costume like his?", "who's stronger, Spider-man or the Hulk?", "bring back the Hulk, he'll beat Spidey every day." You get the idea we've all asked those questions at different times in different ways. But Marvel is a broad-church, so there's also letters from older fans, who wanted to give a mature point of view. This weeks crop of letters were all quite mature, this weeks Star Letter winner was from Gavin Palmer, QNS, from Weymonth in Dorset. I don't know who he is or even if he still reads comics these days, but his points still are valid 30 years on. 

 He made a good point about how attitudes have changes at MarvelUK, with those comics being directed a young readers and how the right combination was being reached, this was true however a year later the Spider-man title would be rebranded "The Spider-man comic" to attract an even younger readership and by August 1984 it would be dumb down even more as it became "Spidey comic", this  would kill the comic, but I tell you all this with hindsight. 

He also commented on how the rest of society took comics to lightly, how the public view of comics were set by the TV versions they saw, the Bat-man TV series, Super-man films, Cartoons of the time, like Spider-woman, Spider-man and his Amazing Friends, the Bat-man Cartoon and the Incredible Hulk, which in his view were all directed at a young audience. I'm not to sure if my fourteen year old self fell into that category, but I would watch all of those with different appeal, the live action Spider-man and Hulk TV series relied on the human side of the charactor, as super powers were hard to recreate on the small screen. Spider-woman and Spider-man Cartoons were simple but watchable, with SM&HAF guest starring a whole host of super heroes, which made it fit into the Marvel Universe well. The Incredible Hulk cartoon mated the best of super human with Banners hard luck human side. The DC fair seemed to have created the problem of credibility to the general public. I've always believed that, then and now. Gavin Palmer wrote how he believed that "People tend to take these as typical of the whole comics field. The supposition is also contributing to the lack of extension in the comics industry." I've got to believe that too, I think comic in the mid 80's in general were failing the older readership. Yes there was always some great comic at that time, Des Skinn's Warriors, MarvelUK monthly output, that cherry picked the best from Marvel, 2000AD showcased the best in British, but I think in America there was a dip in really great graphic prose. So much so that DC's Vertigo line would plunder the UK talent pool later that decade.

Has people's view of the comic industry changed today? Is it cool to be a comic geek? I think today the general views from the outside has changed. Stan Lee view of the human being the centre of the super-human story from the early Marvel era is as strong today as it ever was. Maybe even stronger. Just look at Marvel films, they're all charactor driven. My brother-in-law questioned why in the Avengers Assemble movie all the main charactors would lose their masks towards the end of the film, was it so all the Hollywood stars would get their fair share of face time? But for me I wouldn't expect anything less of a modern Marvel film. Hawkeye is still Hawkeye, the Black Widow is still the Black Widow, but it feels more realistic when they are called Barton and Romanoff. A CGI version of Iron Man feels more real if we see the desperation of Robert Downey Jr's Tony Stark, behind the mask. The Amazing Spider-man films, X-men films, Marvel Studio movies and the fantastic Marvels Agents of SHIELD TV series all give credibility to the comic book universe. The way the charactors cross over resonates a true to life feel but mated with incredible action. The prime example is "Captain America, the Winter Soldier", absolutely sensational! I imagine Gavin Palmer would be loving the current outcrop of comic book inspired movies/TV. 

The last major point that Gavin made in his letter was he wouldn't be surprised that 75% of 11 year old  or younger readers would stop reading comic by the time they were 16, by either parent or peer pressure. He wrote how this experience was starting to affect him. I too had experience of this, even today I get that kind of pressure. This reminds me of an article in a magazine, I can't remember which, it may have been Comic Collector or maybe Deadline, but it illustrated a comic readers path though the graphic medium. A child would start with the Beano or the Dandy type of comic, before moving on to the MarvelUK range, while as the reader became a teenager 2000AD became the suggested pleasure and later on, into adulthood Deadline, Heavy Metal or DC's Vertigo line became the norm. I can really see that being the case for many comic fans, but once you get passed a certain age, let's say mid life/40's you start to look back to a younger nostalgic time. I miss the Beano/Dandy period out completely, oh yes I did read them while waiting for haircuts, picking up anything from the barbers coffee table to pass the time away, together with Battle, Hotspur, Wizard and the like. But they never really made me want to buy them. My brothers collection of Dracula Lives, Plant of the Apes and his two single copies of The Mighty World of Marvel #200 and Super Spider-man #203 fuelled my love of MarvelUK for many years.

I recall going to a local newsagent with my best friend in February 1981, Simon was always the brainiest  in my class, his parents were very well educated and he was amazingly bright. He choose an issue of the Beano while I picked up the more stylish Captain Amercia #5 from MarvelUK with its heroic lead, sophisticated Iron Man, a very modern Dazzler, a charactor who wanted to be a super star not a super hero and the dynamic Defenders. I didn't scorn him for it, I just expected him to pick some more highbrow. But that's part of my point, we all like different things for different reasons. 

I hid my love of comic all the way though my teenage life and adult life from many people, it's just easier that way, but it never stopped my continued reading of comics. Like when I would every month take a walk to the nearest newsagents during my school dinner break to pick up a copy of Captain Britain  Monthly, secreting it in my school bag and making an excuse for my absence. That the buzz of collecting, the long walks to the newsagents just to see what he's got in store, the train journeys to Manchester to visit comic stores or second-hand book shops to raid the pulp filled shelves. Happy days indeed. 

I was one of Gavin Palmers 25% who continued to read comics well passed their 16th birthday. Even when the content of those comics changed towards a younger readership, I clung to them, changing ship from MarvelUK to Marvel US monthlies, to all that Fleetway could produce and the finer side of DC Vertigo. Eventually returning to MarvelUK in the form of Panini comic and their Marvel Collection editions, until life and kids caught up with me. Now I enjoy my old collection and the power of eBay to reach new, but old classic comics from the past.

Gavin's letter made me think of so many things, it's one of the reason why I loved those MarvelUK reprints as much as the American originals. I wonder what he would think about of it today if he read it with maturer eyes. I kind of hope he still reads or collects comics and cherish those golden days too. 

Make Mine Marvel.

Barbarians, super-heroes and sorcery!

The Avengers comic from MarvelUK ran for 147 issues from 23rd September 1973 to the 14th July 1976, before sadly merging into The Mightly World of Marvel issue 199. It was the third weekly comic to come from Marvels British division, after MWOM and Spider-man Comic Weekly, but to my mind it was the classic weekly for a more mature readership. While MWOM offered the Hulk, Fantastic Four and DareDevil action and SMCW showcased Iron-Man, the mighty Thor and the webslinger himself, both comics may have been seen as juvenile, the Avengers offered the best in super-hero, mystic arts, martial arts, with sword and sorcery adventure, tales with a slightly more teenage/young adult feel. 

The Avengers started with the title heroes and Stan Lee/Steve Ditko's Master of the Mystic Arts- Doctor Strange. But they were soon joined by Shang Chi, Master of Kung Fu and later Iron Fist. The strongest line up came when The Savage Sword of Conan merged into the comic with issue 95 on the 5th July 1975. 

I've always had a soft spot for this comic and tried to collect every back issue of its run. The stories filled the gap left by the hard to get (or expensive to a young comic reader of the time,) American back issues. Not long ago I bought from eBay the last issue missing from my collection, "The Avenger and the Savage Sword of Conan no. 120." Boy! I wasn't disappointed. Published on the 3rd of January 1976, this issue fell right in between the Avengers/Conan golden age. 

The first tale was Conan the barbarian, by Roy Thomas with artwork from John Buscema and Ernie Chua, "Flame winds of Lost Khitai!" Adapted from the novel Flame winds by Norvell Page. The lack of colour in British comics of the time doesn't detract anything from the beauty of the artwork in anyway. Sometimes I think readers have got to see Buscema and Chua's work in black and white to really appreciate the greatness of it. Thomas' writing is at it's most amazingly fear fraught epic! Blood and guts stuff, but for a comic aimed at a young British readership someone at MarvelUK (maybe Neil Tennant or Tony Isabella) thought that Busema' depiction of females was too revealing for these weekly audience and shaded in many of the ladies bodies. If you look carefully you can see a bra and brief combo that has had extra lines and circles added to it. Keeping the youth of Britain safe from such immoral images. I don't think a six or seven year old at the time even noticed any of the female characters much anyway, but what the hay. 

Roy Thomas also wrote the second strip, The Mighty Avengers adventure "The Man-Ape always strikes twice!" This time drawn by Johns brother Sal Buscema with embellishment from Tom Palmer. Clear and crisp artwork that again suits the black and white look. Thomas knew how to take less well known characters and make them interesting, even with Captain America returning to the assembled ranks, the Black Panther and Man-Ape take centre stage. Lovely stuff!

The third and last strip comes in the form of Dr. Strange, Master of the Mystic Arts! Written by Steve Englehart and drawn by Frank Brunner who's wonderful Dali like title page shows the good Doctor adrift in some surreal void on a journey find the magician Cagliostro and battle the evil Baron Mordo. The title of this instalment is simply the engaging "Time Doom".

I still believe that those black and white weekly comic from over thirty seven years ago are just a wonderful today as they were all those years ago! This forty-four year old reader dearly treasures that run and the childhood memory's it brings. I just LOVE them! 

Make Mine Marvel.

 

The steep and thorny path, or the primrose way?

To create your own worlds or to improve someone else's version? That is the question! Whether 'tis nobler in the minds of the viewer to reshape another's creation?

I play with those questions when I compare characters, stories and comic strip creators. But those questions came back to my geek mind recently, after I got involved in a twitter conversation started by Erik Larsen (@ErikJLarsen), who posted this question, 

 "Who would you list as singular visionaries whose characters should never be touched by successive creators?"

Many tweeters replied with answers; Garth Ennis-Preacher; Alan Moore-Watchmen; Jack Kirby-New Gods; Steve Gerber-Howard the Duck and also Erik Larsen-Savage Dragon, but to that single question there wasn't many tweets for a creator who's creations fitted that bill. Yes many came close, but not completely. 

I throw in my suggestion of Stan Lee's Silver Surfer, only to be, quite rightly, pointed out by Mr. Larsen that the cosmic one was a creation of Jack Kirby while working with Stan. In truth it was the way the Silver Surfer was written that I felt should never be tampered with, as in the first Silver Surfer series. So I jokingly pushed my case forward with this tweet, 

 "@ErikJLarsen Very valid point. Can I change it to Lee & Kirby on Silver Surfer (with a little input from John Buscema) or is that cheating?" 

His reply was, 

 "@The_BeeSting Cheating." 

Well that's me put in my place. He's right of course!

One of the tweets to his question was retweeted by Erik, from @Louiestowell it read,

 "@ErikJLarsen no such animal. Great characters have potential to live beyond their creator." 

He later posts another question from @gibsoncomics which read, 

 "@ErikJLarsen I'm almost a little more curious about people who have done better versions of certain characters than their original creators." 

To this Erik replied that he thought almost everybody's Batman was better than Bob Kane's. I don't think I'll find many to disagree with that statement. 

The question of "better versions that the original," is one with which I played with many times too. The original creators ideas can be truly brilliant, but let another master of the artform take it and run with it, this can become spectacular. Away from the comic world take the play Hamlet. Written by the wordsmith genius William Shakespeare somewhere between 1599 and 1602, so I'm lead to believe. Still played today, it's the bench mark for a quality actor. But why try if you can't really improve on it? Make Hamlet a lesbian freedom fighter in the year 2599 and it just becomes another pale copy. Sir Laurence Olivier is said to have performered the definitive version of the Prince of Denmark. When David Tennant took a break from Doctor Who to try his hand at the roll made immortal by the late knight, many scoffed, but he received rave reviews. Like in Doctor Who itself, the actor who becomes the Doctor has to be the same but different. This take skill to find the new in the old, Peter Capaldi has that skill in plenty. For an actor any iconic roll is the test of greatness. I would say it would be easier to start with a blank page and create something interesting, than be given something that been seen a million times and make it interesting. But where is the challenge in that? 

 

Back to comics, I love Stan and Jacks original X-Men, they where a truly original idea in 1963, but the closest they got to being the definitive version was the Sentinels/Bolivar Trask storyline in issues 14-16. But for many it wasn't until Chris Claremont/John Byrne worked together that the MasterMold for the X-Men was created. (Alright some may say Wein/Claremont/Cockrum, and yes Thomas/Adams where also brilliant.) Claremont/Byrne have an amazing talent for moving characters on a level, their versions of Iron-Fist, Ms. Marvel and Spider-man improve on the originals. But even characters that they create can be improved on. Claremont with Herb Trimpe created Captain Britain for Marvel UK in 1976, but for me Alans Moore and Davis got the character just right! Even when Claremont and Davis teamed up to give us Excalibur it wasn't going to rival the Moore/Davis version, even as great as it was.

Alan Moore can do both, create wonderful new characters and revitalise something from the past, Marvelman is just such an example of the old, (Yes it is Marvelman not Miracleman!) while with David Lloyd V for Vendetta is possibly the most perfect complete piece of graphic work ever! Even though DC had to finish the story off in their colour editions, it has to be read in its original form, the black and white strip in Warriors, to be really appreciated. No one else is going to improve on it, even though I do enjoy the film version, which was only given the blessing of Lloyd not Moore. 

 

Conan the Barbarian is great with Roy Thomas and Barry Windsor-Smith but even better with Thomas/ John Buscema, although Robert E. Howard was the visionary that cemented the character in an entire world of wonder and adventure. I can't see DareDevil without Frank Millers vision, nor Wolverine with out that Claremont/Miller mini series. Captain Marvel has to be Sterlin, Nick Fury for me with his agents of Steranko. But let's thank the visionaries that created the charactors; Stan Lee/Bill Everett; Len Wein/John Romita Sr/Herb Trimpe; Stan Lee/Gene Colan and Stan Lee/Jack Kirby. Heroes all! 

I'll finish off with a tweet I posted to @ErikJLarsen. 

 "True. But I like to think that Lee & Kirby created characters that where gifts to creators that followed as well as the world." 

Whether the "steep and thorny" or the "primrose path" I thank all creators for filling my free time with their wonderful gifts. 

“Do not, as some ungracious pastors do,
Show me the steep and thorny way to heaven;
Whilst, like a puff'd and reckless libertine,
Himself the primrose path of dalliance treads
And recks not his own read.” 

William Shakespeare "Hamlet" Act I Scene III

Make Mine Marvel.

Names, numbers and cupasoups.

It's been a fantastic week running up to the 50th anniversary of Doctor Who. With TV, radio and the written media giving it their all. One high light was Mark Gatiss's love letter to Doctor Who, An adventure in space and time. Which was heart felt and warm. As good as any drama on TV. I can see awards coming for it. But for all the fun and nostalgia, we all where looking forward to the anniversary special- The day of the Doctor. And boy was it worth the wait. 

Yes there was many surprises for fans and casual viewers, but honestly did any fan believe that Steven Moffat would never have all the Doctors in it, even as a glimpsing cameo. He's the biggest fanboy ever! I loved it all! All the nods to the past and even to the future. From the opening titles, the policeman, I.M.Foreman scrap yard sign,  I'll take it the sign was advertising the scrap yards location just down the road and not next to the school.) Coal Hill school with Ian Chesterton on the school committee and Anthony Coburn as Headmaster, UNIT, the Eleventh hanging off the TARDIS over London, Lethbridge-Stewart, the Daleks, Gallifrey, the Time War, the sad War Doctor, the Morment, Bad Wolf, a fez, the Tenth riding a horse through an impossible doorway, Queen Elizabeth I, Zygons, the Tenth Doctor warning a rabbit, a fez, a time vortex, sonic screw drivers, suits and sandshoes, chins, the Black Archive, a gallery of past companions, a time-manipulator, the TARDIS desktop, the First, Second, Third, Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, Seventh, Eighth, Ninth, and the Twelfth (Steven Moffat wasn't going to forget him, it's all part of his writing palette, showing a little bit of the future.)  Doctors joining in to Save The Day! So everybody lives! I'd love to know what Russell T. Davies thinks about it all. Was the Moment's big red button just a reset button? It doesn't matter, it was a FANTASTIC celebration that summed up 50 years of time travel. 

One last surprise for the fans though -the mysterious Curator. Who is he? He could have been the first Doctor played by David Bradley, or even Ian Chesterton played by William Russell, the oldest living cast member, or the Twelfth Doctor as played by Peter Capaldi. When we hear his voice the hairs on the back of fandoms neck stand as high as the TARDIS. Is he the Fourth Doctor? He looks a little like him. Is he a bit like Claire Bloom's character in "The end of time", the Doctor father? I'd like to think so. His he the Doctor conscience? Or maybe just a daydream, or fan indulgence. Who knows! It was great, to see Tom Baker again. 

The special, like Doctor Who, changes the game but remains the same. John Hurts War Doctor was so completely perfect. He is a colossal actor. His acting technique style is so small, yet so powerfully big like a certain blue box. But what should we call him? Doctor 8.5? The Ninth Doctor, then move every one up? The Hurt Doctor, because of the pain he feels, (I quite like that it's quite clever.) or the War Doctor. I think that's what he will be know as. But if there's now twelve Doctors that make Matt Smiths regeneration the last.  I expect a magical solution in the Christmas special from Steven Moffat, only four weeks away. But the end is near and it's been prepared for.

Matt Smith, David Tennat, John Hurt, Jenna Coleman, Billie Piper with Steven Moffat and Nick Hurran where all brilliant! But like Mr. Capaldi said we all make Doctor Who what it is. So to every fan who has ever worked on it or watched it, they were brilliant and so are you! 

"Doctor? Doctor who?"

  

For those special events.

In three weeks time, on the 23rd of November a certain TimeLord reaches his fiftieth year as a television sensation. There will be many special events to celebrate that milestone. I remember the tenth, twentieth and twenty-fifth specials as they were celebrated on TV, there has always been some form of merchandise that came with it, so too this year.

Back in 1983 the Doctor had ran up a brilliant twenty year of action and adventure. So MarvelUK wasn't going to miss a great opportunity to mark the event. In June, five months before the anniversary, a Summer Special went on sale with a wonderful cover artwork by Steve O'Leary, showing the Doctor rushing out of the TARDIS to face Abslom Daak slicing the dome off a Dalek. 

Alan McKenzie, the editor of MarvelUK's monthly lineup at that time, which included Doctor Who Monthly, produced the most perfect piece of summer, sea-side  entertainment you could buy for 60 pence. Forget your bucket and spades, this brightened up the wettest of weekends in your summer holidays, feeding the excitement of the on coming anniversary. Born in Glasgow, McKenzie came to MarvelUK with Dez Skinn, helping him though the Marvel Revolution. His strength was always the monthly range, so when Skinn left the young Scott was tailor made for the job. He was also a great writer, who would sometimes write under the pseudonym Maxwell Stockbridge, a name also used by Paul Neary and Alan Moore, which lead to the town of Stockbridge and the character Maxwell Edison as readers of the Doctors Strip may possibly know. In this summer special McKenzie used his real name in the credits of the opening story,"Catalogue of Events". The Doctor finds himself in side a futuristic library where cosmic events are catalogued by a mysterious gentlemen known as "The Librarian". This text story would link the two strip tales also included in this special. Steve Dillon and Steve O'Leary drew artwork to enhance to story, showing the Doctor in his fifth generation.  

The first full strip tale, neatly placed into the text story, was "Junk-Yard Demon". Written by Steve Parkhouse and drawn by Mike McMahon with inks by Adolfob Buylla, this Fourth Doctor adventure was originally seen in Doctor Who Monthly #58-59, about half way though McKenzies run as editor of that magazine. Two space junk collectors stumble across the TARDIS and claim it as junk. These cosmic rag and bone men have also found a damaged Cyber-man. McMahon's makes beautiful work of this strip, with his version of a "Tenth plant" Cyber-man and a wide eyed Tom Baker, drawn with love and knowledge of this material. 

The text story then leads off again into the second strip, "Abslom Daak...Dalek-killer", for some reason introduced by the fourth Doctor, but neither fourth nor fifth Doctor appears with in this adventure taken from Doctor Who Weekly #17-20, a tale of mass murder Abslom Daak who's sentenced to death by Daa-Kay! Exile to a plant within the Dalek Empire, with the only hope you have is to kill as many Daleks as you can before they kill you. Steve Moore crafts a gripping story that allows Steve Dillon to draw some of this best artwork, especially when you think that Dillon had only been drawing professionally for about one year, when this strip was first published. His first strip  

was a Hulk story for Hulk comic at the age of 16. It's really beautiful work and worth buying this special for in itself. 

SPOILERS!!! 

McKenzie wraps up the text bookend tale after the Doctor leaves the Event Library with a guest appearance from Rassilon himself. Giving the impression that the Council of Gallifrey have been manipulating events in time and space for sometime. 

The special also contains mini posters of past female companions, Lalla Ward and Mary Tamm as Romana on the inside front and rear covers sadly in black and white, while Janet Fielding as Tegan and Sarah Sutton as Nyssa have pride of place on the gloss coloured centrefold.

Finally one other strip can be found within this special, stuck in the middle of the text tale, on page 5, "Dr Who, The next 20 years". A humours preview of what lies ahead for the Doctor running up to his fortieth anniversary, by Tim Quinn and Dicky Howett. Future events include the first female Doctor in 1988, the Doctor looking like a clown in 1990, (could this be the idea for the sixth Doctor costume?) a third Dr. Who movie in 1998 (3 years after Paul McGann took on the roll) and the strength of merchandise in 2000 and 2003. It's a brilliant special when read though a thirteen year old's eyes or today with thirty years of hindsight. Looking back the fiftieth must have seemed an impossibly distant anniversary dream, that may never have been celebrated. So glad we can. 

Three weeks to go!

"Doctor? Doctor who?"

United we stand, divided we fall!

The art of merging comics is nothing new, in the UK it's been going on for ages. When a comic shows signs of flagging sales, the decision to merged it with a similar comic with flagging sales in the hope they will boost sales, or merge it with a strong seller so that the better strips survive. Typical examples; TV Action joins TV Comic; TV Century joins TV21 which was also merged with Solo, then Valiant which later has Battle merged into it; Zip joins Swift; Rover and Adventure joins Wizard which joins Victor; Sparky joins Topper; Swift joins Eagle which is later joined by Boys World; Smash is joined by Pow which later incorporates Fantastic; Revolver joins Crisis; 2000AD is joined by Starlord, andTornado. It never really happens that much in the US, probably the most well known is when Green Lantern was joined by the Green Arrow in an attempt to bust sales, it didn't quite blow away those sales figures but artistically it was a huge success.
The master of mergers has to be MarvelUK. This month I read, has I continue my re-reading all my MarvelUK comics in order with a thirty year time slip, The mighty Thor and the X-Men, from 31st August 1983. This isn't a inspiring merger by no means. As solo comics they where bizarre choices, which for Thor lasts for 19 issues while the X-Men lasts 17. Together they manage another 19 issues until they join Spider-man. You would say it was a failure from the start, but at least they tried.

The other side of the coin came in 1975, on the 12 of July. MarvelUK had filled news stands with strong super-heroes titles, The Mighty World Of Marvel, Spider-man Comic Weekly, The Avengers and The Super-Heroes, horror/film/pulp fiction titles Dracula Lives, Planet of the Apes and The Savage Sword of Conan. All great comics but perhaps it was spreading the quality too thinly. MarvelUK one of the lesser selling hero comics, The Avengers with Conan. A fairly new sword and sorcery title that had only lasted 19 issues, but with a strong following. The Avengers had done 94 issues with brilliant Avengers stories, wonderful Dr. Strange tales and Shang Chi, Marvels own Kung Fu star. The merger was one of MarvelUK's greatest. Issue 95 boasted a fine line up of sword and sorcery, super-hero adventure and Kung fu finest. In coming weeks Shang Chi, Dr. Strange and Iron Fist would swap for the third strip slot, while the titles lead characters where permanent fixtures. The writing and artwork was always of a strong level. Roy Thomas was some times writing all three strips, while John Buscema drew two of the lead strips. Other great creators also produced fantastic work in this weekly, Barry Windor Smith, Sal Buscema, John Byrne to name but a few. Sadly this comic had to end by merging with MWOM after issue 147 to be called Mighty world of Marvel starring the Incredible Hulk and the Avengers. With the Avengers and Conan joining the Hulk and DareDevil with MWOM #199.

Their next merger chronologically came with the success of the Titans landscape format, The Super-Heroes after 50 issues merged with Spider-man Comics Weekly to become Super Spider-man with the Super-Heroes in issue 158 on the 21st of February 1976. In 1976 on the 23rd of June Apes joined a blood sucker to make the title Planet of the Apes with Dracula Lives. Two good titles made stronger, lasting another 35 issues before it also joining MWOM on the 2rd March 1977 with issue 231, with Planet of the Apes joining the Hulk in the title. Dracula would join the comic and title in issue 247 (22rd June 1977). Titans ended after 58 issues to join Super Spider-man and the Titans #199 on the 1st December 1976. On the 13th of July 1977 Captain Britain merged with Super Spider-man and on the 7th September of that year Fury joined MWOM with issue 258. The next year the Complete Fantastic Four joined MWOM after 53 issues on the 14th June with issue 298. 

The Marvel revolution came in  the late 70s the idea of changing format was used instead of merging titles, Rampage weekly became Rampage monthly and MWOM now called Marvel comic became Marvel Super-Heroes, a new monthly that continued MWOM numbering from #353 after a short merger with the Spider-man comic. 

As the 80s started so to came MarvelUK's tried and tested method with The Incredible Hulk comic joining Spider-man Weekly. Marvel Team Up sadly only lasted 25 issues to join them both in the titled Spider-man and Hulk comic incorporating Team Up. Forces in Combat joins Future tense on the 28th January 1981 with Future Tense issue 13, 7 issues later Valour joins them. Marvel Action and Captain America became Marvel Action starring Captain America on the 15th of July 1981 and later in October Marvel Super Adventure joined under the simple name of Captain America. 

On the monthly formats  Savage Action joins Marvel Super-Heroes in February of 1982 and a month later Blockbuster joins Rampage magazine after 9 issues. As 1983 started one of the strongest merger took place as Rampage was incorporated in to Marvel Super-Heroes with a strong line up of the Avengers, X-Men and Night Raven. Sadly this monthly was rebranded as a new title under name of Mighty World of  Marvel. DareDevils lasted 11 issues before joining that second volume. Strangely enough itself joined Savage Sword of Conan monthly after 17 issues. 

Back in the weeklies Spider-man became the dumping ground for every failed comic, from the Incredible Hulk, the Fantastic Four, Thor and the X-Men, The Thing is Big Ben, and Indiana Jones. Star Wars would also join Spider-man and the Zoids, itself not a merged title but a Spider-man second volume. 

Some mergers worked better than others, while some didn't stop the dreaded cancellation call, they did at least create some wonderful and interesting formats with hours and hours of reading fun.

Make Mine Marvel.