The Road Goes Ever On

The comics convention season is now well under way. Last weekend it was kicked off in fine style, not just at the Thing but also up in Inverness at Hi-Ex.

Massacre's third musketeer, Bolt-01, was there in his capacity as the Zarjaz!/Dogbreath and Futurequake co-supremo (via FPI Blog):



That Rogue Trooper image gets everywhere!

We'll be making our next appearance of the year at Unicon in April. It's an exciting programme of events and we're happy to be a part of it.

Moving on to May and there's The Big One. Steve and I are intending to go to Bristol as visitors this year, three shows as exhibitors in three months is a little beyond us.

Of course, you don't have to come to a convention in order to buy our comics. Indeed, I've just added Walking Wounded: Death on the Rock to the Massacre site so, if you prefer, brand new Nazi-thrashing action can come to you.

Thing 2010 Uncovered

On Saturday 27th March 2010 Steve and I attended the UK Web & Mini Comix Thing in London's murder-heavy east end.

We had table 45 and set it up to look like this:



Our neighbour for the day was the hugely talented Rob Jackson:



We even sold one of his comics for him, that's how neighbourly we were!

Astonishingly the benovolence didn't end there as I was allocated an hour's "volunteer" duty manning the show entrance counter. It was an hour spent in the company of none other than Woodrow Phoenix. During this time I learnt about Woodrow's acclaimed graphic novel, Rumble Strip and also that you take a lot more money selling entrance tickets than you do selling comics.

Steve is a big fan of Woodrow's and so he was rather jealous:



See. Jealous. In fact Steve later purchased his own copy of Rumble Strip and must have simultaneously done a good job pimping our stuff to Woodrow because he later came over and bought the lot!

Another highlight was the taped interview we gave Mike Leader. Hopefully the stuff we said made some sort of sense.

As always with the Thing there was an abundance of great material on show. It's hard to beat work like The Bedsit Journal, Tozo and Hope For The Future, to name but three.

Sales wise we did okay, if not amazingly. Probably a little down on last year, but nothing too concerning. We'll certainly be back next year with Massacre For Boys: Back In Action....

The Things We've Done

The hell of waiting for the new comic to get back from the printers is over.

It's time to make the final preparations for our fourth Thing:



Why not not come and say hello?

Fridge Magnet

Its not often that a national magazine swipes your fan art and turns it into a widely distributed fridge magnet. However, it happened to PJ & Steve.

No, wonder cause this is a great piece:



I know Steve recognises that technically he should have been asked permission first but that he's not too upset to see his work used in this way. In fact if SFX or Comic Heroes like his stuff this much perhaps they might remember him when considering future commissions.

Lots more reaction here and then the happy ending.

Walking Wounded: Death On The Rock

What we've done here is taken the classic formula for British war comics and then added monkeys to the mix. As you would expect, this has resulted in a publication that could be described as the greatest comic in comic history.

Well, it probably won't be described as that, but it could be.

Legends of Thrill Power

My old friend and former housemate Danny Graydon is one of the organisers of this upcoming comics festival:



These are Danny's events, suitably mouthwatering I am sure you will agree:

ARCHITECTS OF THRILL-POWER! – THE LEGENDS OF 2000AD

Since its launch in 1977, 2000AD – “The Galaxy’s Greatest Comic” – has been at the forefront of British Comics and remains a shining light in an increasingly barren landscape. Arriving perfectly in time with the popular re-emergence of Science Fiction and bearing a punky, anti-authoritative tone, 2000AD thoroughly invigorated Boys comics, introducing a collection of classic characters. For a vast array of 2000AD’s artists and writers, the comic was vital springboard to international recognition and success. UniComics is proud to present a panel discussion with three of 2000AD’s most iconic and renowned creative stars from its formative years – founder, debut editor and writer PAT MILLS (Slaine, Charley’s War), artist DAVE GIBBONS (Rogue Trooper, Watchmen), and artist KEVIN O’NEILL (Nemesis The Warlock, The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen) – who discuss the early development of the title as well as their own specific and greatly-admired contributions. Saturday 24th April, 6pm. Hosted by Danny Graydon. Tickets are priced £10

WEEKLY BRITISH SPIRIT – SIXTY YEARS OF THE EAGLE & DAN DARE

On April 14th, 1950, a new Boys comic called The Eagle vigorously introduced some wonder in to the drudgery of post-war Britain, and, with its star strip Dan Dare: Pilot of The Future, showcased a profoundly alluring fantasy of a strong and vital Britain in then far-flung 1997 that boldly led the way in the exploration of outer space. One of the most successful comics in British history, at its height, The Eagle remarkably sold just under a million copies a week. In celebration of the 60thanniversary of both this landmark, much-beloved title and its highly-memorable flagship character, UniComics presents a panel discussion to explore what is considered to be one of the high watermarks of British Comics history. The panel includes PAT MILLS (Founder of 2000AD), NICK JONES (Founding editor of Titan Book’s Dan Dare library), DR.WILL BROOKER (Kingston University) and GARY ERSKINE (Artist, Virgin Comics’ Dan Dare). Sunday 25th April, 6pm. Hosted by Danny Graydon. Tickets are priced £10.

Whilst we're talking about festivals, let's not forget Hi-Ex!, the Scottish comic show masterminded by Richmond Clements. Crusader colourist is but one other string on his many stringed bow. He can still shoot arrows though. I am not sure where I am going with this. Best stop now.