Tube Surfing: Dan Dare, Death's Head and World Book Night outrage

Some quick news items...

• (via the Dan Dare Yahoo Group) A bust of Dan Dare is now sitting comfortably on a beautifully made plinth in a prominent position in the library of Southport College (where his creator, Frank Hampson and other original Dare team members, studied) as an inspiration to future budding Hampsons, Harold Johns or Eric Edens.

Once the library has been refurbished next year there is an intention to bring together a collection of Eagle-related material and have a special section set aside to display it.

• Paul Birch has posted an entertaining review of the Death's Head Volume 2 collection on Speech Balloons, noting the history of Marvel UK as both a publisher of licensed comics and publisher of many US format comics during Paul Neary's tenure as Editorial Director. "How many of the countless Marvel UK superheroes pumped out during that time can anyone remember fondly?" he challenges. "Aside from Death's Head II by Dan Abnett and Liam Sharp that is? Not many, I'm sure..."

Off the top of my head? Warheads, Digitek, Motormouth and Killpower, Hell's Angel (re-named Dark Angel after legal threats from the Hells Angels), Gene Dogs, Shadow Riders. Admittedly, I did edit some of those titles so my memory might be better than others. More important, perhaps, than the characters, was the sheer number of talented folk Paul and the MUK team nurtured between them, now widely known to the general comic audience: artists like Bryan Hitch who had worked for MUK for some time but was rightly given the limelight along with Liam Sharp, Gary Frank and many more.

• Let me join in with the widespread disappointment at the BBC's decision to totally ignore readers of science fiction and fantasy on World Book Night in its BBC2 show, The Books We Really Read: a Culture Show Special (currently available here on iPlayer). Over on the Forbidden Planet International blog, Joe Gordon notes there was "outraged chatter on Twitter about this over the weekend" over the slight.

"The simple fact is that SF&F novels absolutely dominate the bestseller charts and have done for a couple of decades now," notes Joe. "Terry Pratchett, Peter F Hamilton, Iain M Banks and many more almost always go right into the top ten national bestselling hardback list when their new books come out. You can’t do that if you are just a small, easily ignorable niche market." Too right.

Joe reports that long time SF&F commentator (and bestselling author in his own right now) Stephen Hunt (founder of ace SF web site www.sfcrowsnest.com) has decided that instead of our usual moaning of the mainstream media’s dismissive and ignorant approach to our beloved genre that something should actually be done and the BBC made aware of how poor their decision was and how it meant they failed to serve the interest of a large percentage of viewers (who are the ones who fund the Corporation, after all). He has a fairly flaming response to the lack of coverage on his blog already.

"As the hour went by, strangely absent from this detailed parade of what people actually like to read was “a certain” genre, you know… the unclean one, speculative fiction, as in fantasy/horror/science fiction… which together accounts for between 20/30 per cent of the fiction market, depending on what measure you choose to believe.

"I can forgive the committee of World Book Night itself, whose selection of 25 titles to give one millions free copies away was made by a board which clearly apes the views of the Booker panel – which is that fantasy, horror and sci-fi, much like hardcore porn, has no place in any respectable fiction list, but the BBC?" (Philip Pulman's Northern Lights was on the World Book Night list, but only, the BBC made clear, as an example of Young Adult-crossover – heaven forbid it should be an actual example of fantasy).

Outraged, Stephen has set up a Facebook page as well as planning a petition of Brit SF&F authors to complain at the complete lack of coverage by the BBC. So if, as individual viewers based in the UK, you want to complain to the BBC about failing to cover a single fantasy, horror or science fiction novel, the online form to do this is located at... https://www.bbc.co.uk/complaints/forms/ ... the more complaints, the better! Don't forget to mention the snobby show that started all this.


Perhaps, if enough people write in, we'll get a decent SF show on TV - and no, I'm not talking about Outcasts, which made it clear it was more about the "human condition" than SF, and has rightly bombed in the ratings as a result of boring its audience to death...

The original Death's Head returns in Marvel Heroes

A page from the new Death's Head
versus Hulk story by Simons Furmsn
and Williams. Via Simon's blog

(with thanks to Simon Williams): One of Marvel UK's most popular characters, Death's Head, is set to return in an all-new story for Panini Comics Marvel Heroes.

Issue 33 of the newstand title, on sale in March, will see the original Freelance Peacekeeping Agent Death's  Head back in action – and fighting none other than the Incredible Hulk.

"For the past month or so, I've been making hints on both my Facebook and Twitter accounts in regards to a certain project that I've been working on," says Simon on his official web site on deviantart, "a project which I truly believe is the most exciting thing I've worked on since breaking into the comics business in 2003.

"Well, after numerous weeks of teasing the masses, I can now finally spill the beans... Death's Head is back! The original Freelance Peacekeeping Agent is returning to the pages of of a UK comic, in the pages of Panini Comics' Marvel Heroes, in a tale written by original Death's Head creator Simon Furman, with art by yours truly.

"It's the second part of a two-part story (both parts in the same issue), the first written by Ferg Handley with art by John Ross. Death's Head grand entrance however isn't until our part of the tale."

"Amazingly, this marks my first work on the original Death’s Head since the early 1990s," says Simon Furman, "when he guest-starred in the likes of She-Hulk, Marvel Comics Presents and Death’s Head."

A page of Simon Williams'
fan fiction tale featuring
Death's Head and Hulk

For Simon Williams, this is a dream come true - the accomplished artist even created his own Hulk versus Death's Head strip just for fun some time back, which features in his online gallery.

"It's no secret that I've been campaigning for the return of Death's Head since I broke into comics," Simon enthuses, "so I can't begin to tell you how excited and proud I am to be part of this."

For him, the fact that Death's Head will be fighting none other than the Hulk is "icing on the cake".

"Honestly, my job could never get any better than this," says Simon. "I know for sure that a lot of Marvel UK and Transformers fans out there are going to be very pleased with this news!!

• Marvel Heroes Issue 33 is on sale in all good UK newsagents from 24th March 2011. Death's Head is back... and it's about time, yes?

• Simon Williams blog is here: http://soulmaninc.blogspot.com

Tube Surfing: Death's Head, Poot, Chattyman and a Christmas Competition

• Death's Head is back! And not some Johnny-Come-Lately Death's Head II or III, or even the bit-on-the-small-side Version I, the result of an encounter with the good Doctor and his TARDIS. No, Marvel's new S.W.O.R.D. title features everyone's favourite robot bounty hunter from his giant robot days, back when he could go a few rounds with a Transformer or two -- and indeed, did, before he was dropped into the Marvel Universe via Doctor Who Magazine. Written by Keiron Gillen, with art from Steven Sanders, the book's second issue, featuring a no-holds barred fisticuffs between Marvel UK's most memorable mechanoid and S.W.O.R.D's finest. Catch it via your local comic shop now.

• Poot! Comic is back! This British humour comic was first published in the 1980s and 90s but has now been relaunched as a bi-monthly title. Issue number 2 is in the shops now: we'll have more about this soon, but in the mean time, check the comic's web site at www.pootcomic.com.

• Anyone watching the Comedy Awards on ITV Sunday night may have noticed a superhero style to some of the set dressing around the room, including Alan Carr as "Chattyman". One of the contributors to this look was none other than Jon Haward, these days best known for his work for Classical Comics but who can clearly turn his hand to just about anything! "I was asked by the Production Designer Simon Kimmel to draw Mr Ross looking like a superhero," explains Jon. "The producers of the show liked my samples so I was given a contract to work on the show!"

• The second batch of four David Lloyd illustrations to raise money for the Cartoon Classroom project went for over £300 on eBay. There are another three up now and darn fine they look too...


• RAF News recently published a story on the ongoing success of Commando, which still have total sales of some 70,000 copies per month. (We assume that figure is for all eight titles issued in one month, not per issue). Talking to editor Calum Laird about the DC Thomson war comic he attributes the title's enduring success to the stories, "their quality and complexity and the authenticity we try to give them, backed up with first-class artwork. The stories are quite complex and multi-layered.”

• If you want to dip back into Commando, why not give their Christmas competition to win collections of the comic?. Yes, some lucky person will win a (postman crippling) eight of Carlton's Commando reprint books in this competition being run on the official Commando website. Considering how big each book is that is a lot of reading for someone in the New Year!

• downthetubes stalwart Matthew Badham has not only been busy in print, with a massive John Ridgway interview in the latest Judge Dredd: The Megazine: he's also just posted a 2008 archive interview with Si Spurrier on his own ace blog, talking about the much-missed Warhammer Monthly. Only a few select quotes from the interview were used in the Judge Dredd:The Megazine two years ago, and the longer interview offers much more information.

• And finally for this Tube Surf - the creators of Mirabilis - one of the best unfinished strips in the much-missed subscription only comic The DFC - are offering a fantastic ghost story for Christmas: check it out on their web site. If you like it, please help us to spread the word!

Compiled with thanks to Calum Laird, Jeremy Briggs and Sven the Sax!

Tube Surfing: 21 October 2008

• Titan is to release a collection of Jane strips from the Daily Mirror later this week and over on Bear Alley Steve Holland has cast his expert eye over the various stories which made up the strip’s run. The article includes a full listing of her stories.
Jane: The Misadventures of a Bright Young Thing is published by Titan Books on 24 October 2008. You can buy it from amazon.co.uk (ISBN 978-1848561670)

• (via Forbidden Planet International): Phill Jupitus continues his series talking to a variety of cartoonists for Radio 4, this week meeting Charles Peattie and Russell Taylor, creators of the financially obsessed City businessman Alex. As with the first two parts (with Gary Trudeau and the Cartoonists With Attitude group) there is also a permanent link. If you missed the show show or forget to use the BBC's "Listen Again feature" before it expires (it has a seven day window) you’re still covered.

• downthetubes is pleased to report that contributor John Freeman is now writng British comics news items for the SciFi Channel UK web site.

• The first issue of Liam Sharp's new project, Gears of War, has sold out! "I'm so delighted," the British artist says via his deviantart blog. "It's been an age since I last had a sell out comic - Death's Head Gold in fact, from '93 I think. Thankfully I hear Diamond are putting in an order for more, so if you missed it make sure to go and reserve a copy!"
There's a new site up with art for sale from Gears of War but Liam warns it's selling really fast. "My head is spinning!" he says. Check it out at: gowart.weebly.com

• Talking of Death's Head, Marvel UK fan blog It Came From Darkmoor has a detailed psoting on the appearance of Doctor Necker, creator of Minion aka Death's Head II in a recent issue of Marvel's Nova, written by Dan Abnett (also the writer of Death's Head II back in the 1990s) and Andy lanning. So, any chance Marvel is finally bringing Death's Head intot he mainstream Marvel Universe? Read the full post...

Hulk versus Death's Head!

Apart from a cameo confrontation between Death's Head II and the Incredible Hulk in Marvel UK's Shadow Riders #1 (a little in joke on the part of myself and co-writer Brian Williamson, at the expense of the often maddening demands of editor in chief Paul Neary to have as many Death's Head II appearance in MUK early 1990s books as possible), it's amazing the two characters have apparently never met in the 'real' Marvel Universe.

While it's incredibly unlikely such an encounter ever will happen (which we all here at downthetubes think is a downright shame), comics artist Simon Williams has at least stepped up to the plate and is delivering an unofficial encounter between the original Death's Head and the green-skinned behemoth over on his deviantart pages.

"I thought some of you older Marvel UK fans may get a kick out of this," he told Marvel UK fans on the make Mine Marvel UK Facebook group. "It's a comic strip that just started out for fun... but has since taken on a life of it's own!

"It features a battle between two of my all-time favourite characters: Death's Head and the Incredible Hulk... a fight I've always wanted to see done in comics, but the likelihood of it happening seemed like zilch. So I thought, well.. since I've drawn both characters professionally, why don't I do it?

"It started of as just a couple of pages that I'd posted up on my Deviant Art page, but has since then became pretty popular... with people often emailing me asking when I'd be doing more! Seeing as it's set in the Hulk's past, I decided to draw it in a style much like the old Marvel UK comics from the 1970's... hence the grey-toning."

The art is a wondrful tribute to the Hulk strips republished by Marevl UK bac in the 1970s and 1980s and well worth checking out. Plus, it's Death's Head -- what's stopping any MUK fan from checking that out?

• Check out the ongoing battle at: soulmaninc.deviantart.com/gallery/#The-Incredible-Hulk-vs-Death-s-Head
• Simon Williams Deviant Art Web Site

Boring Death's Head cover

Former Marvel UK editor in chief Richard Starkings just sent me this unused cover for the original Dragon's Claws #5, drawn by Geofff Senior, following discussion about Death's Head on It Came from Darkmoor.

Richard says the cover was rejected as "too boring" and wonders just why Simon Furman was not asked to write Death's Head II when Paul Neary took editorial control at Marvel UK back in the 1990s.

"I never understood why he wasn't writing the relaunch," says Richard, "having worked with him on... um, everything, I know that he would have taken on a new direction quite happily."

As I recall, Simon did indeed pitch a revamped Death's Head treatment to Paul, which was rejected, but I don't know the reasons.