The Reputation Is Not Good

Having re-acquainted myself with some old contacts in Europe I found the conversation leading to UK comics.  So I asked: what do European comic people think of the UK and UK comics.

First response was: "The reputation is not good. And you only have comic albums published by a Frenchman"

I set the record straight there (I have to do it often enough here so why not?). Cinebook the 9th Art pub;lishes Franco-Belgian-Canadian comic albums in English. Olivier Cadic set up the company BUT it is a UK based company and pays taxes, etc. the same as any other UK business. So it is a British company.

From online activity that some had seen as well as witnessed or heard "Brits(in comics) are seen as being very toxic, in it for what they can get and some appeared downright uneducated". Apparently not many of those who rate themselves as "comic stars" get invited to European events because they are not known. When a couple of creators were invited to a Belgian comic event back in 2017 the organiser had one email after another asking what their guest passes got them for free and other questions such as the price of beer at the event.

At another event, the Malta Comic Con, two British creators kept referring to Spain trying to get Malta back but that "We'd fight them like we did the Argentineans for the Falklands!" Apparently, those around them thought this was a British joke they did not get. Eventually one man looked at the Brits and said "This is Malta not Gibraltar you idiots!" and walked off angrily.

Concensus was that it was unbelievable that any of the British creators were getting paying work. One (privately) noted how he got regular paying work from D. C. Thomson then went on to not "rudely maligned" an editor but the company itself. A couple workingfor US publishers were also slating their -paying- bosses. The only people coming out of this well were Dave Gibbons and David Lloyd!

One thing that a couple of these people had noted was "kniving each other constantly in their backs". Two very chummy and palsy comickers, once separated, told so many bnasty stories about each other "before any drinking began".  It seems drinking seemed to be considered the only reason Brits attended events.

You have to remember that this was not all from a number of events over the years but 2 and the main one was Malta Comic Con.

Not for the first time I was told "The UK is seen as being extremely toxic when it comics to comic pros". 

It was wondered what would happen if Thomson bosses or even Image Comics bosses learnt what the creators working for them were saying about them and calling them?  Atthis point the conversation dwindled off.

From respect in the 1980s it seems UK creators have hit an all time low reputation-wise. Why the hell can't they just behave like adults and get on and produce comics??