Sales of Black Tower books to the US (with the exception of the world mystery line), which is a massive loss maker, has now been sorted out so should not be available to order from 1st May 2021.
Sorry but the losses after US tax are too high.
Wednesday, 31 March 2021
Tuesday, 30 March 2021
Monday, 29 March 2021
Let's promote lack of interest
How jolly of theUS Internal Revenue Service to send me a letter saying how much of the sales money they are taking,,,,clue here is that I make nothing from sales to the US as it goes to the IRS.
As soon as I hear how to exclude the US from ordering my books the better.
Cinebook Ltd Newsletter 159 - March 2021
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Hexagon Comics: Guardian of the Republic & Dragut & Scarlet Lips & Time Brigade
Jean-Marc Lofficier & Alfredo Macall, cover by Alfredo Macall.
7x10 squarebound comic,
48 pages
b&w
ISBN-13: 978-1-61227-908-4.
US$9.95 / GBP 8.99
Who is the mysterious enitity who has transported the indomitable GUARDIAN OF THE REPUBLIC to Mexico in the 16th century? And for what obscure reasons?
The course of history is being threatened by the invasion of the powerful Baal-Sagur, a.k.a. THE NECROMANCER, who intends to chase the Spaniards and other Westerners from the New World and seize control of the American continent for himself. But the villainous mastermind did not plan for the intervention of CAPTAIN DRAGUT and his lovely companion, the vampire SCARLET LIPS...
What role will the GUARDIAN play in this frantic battle for the future of the New World? And will the TIME BRIGADE from the 41st century be able to thwart the machiavellian traps that an old enemy of theirs has laid across the strands of time?
This historical epic by Jean-Marc Lofficier and Alfredo Macall starts on XMas eve and spans three eras in a mad quest for the control of the future.
Source Material: Garde Republicain Special Noel 2015
"Guardian of the Republic & Dragut & Scarlet Lips & Time Brigade" what a mouth full! I prefer the title "Once Upon A Time...In The West!" The Necromancer has launched a campaign to kick Europeans out of America -imagine the way that might alter everything today. Conquistadores, giant robots and some epic battles with three heroes thrown into the mix and Macall draws it -that is bound to be a winner!
Imagine you lived through three years of that, What a sory to share with friends. Except a certain Time Brigade erases your memory of the events. Some of my fondest Avengers comic memories are when some of the team journeyed back to the Wild West -it was fun to read. This story may not contain Marvel's Avengers but it is just as much fun.
In all honesty, if you do not buy these books now it is no good in a few years time finding out how good they are and then pay the extortionate Ebay or Amazon prices to buy copies! If you want fun and action buy today!
Sunday, 28 March 2021
Thursday, 25 March 2021
Wednesday, 24 March 2021
Hexagon Comics -Kidz: Valor does not awai
J.-M. Lofficier & Alfredo Macall
7x10 squarebound comic,
52 pages
b&w
ISBN-13: 978-1-61227-895-7
ISBN-13: 978-1-61227-895-7
US$10.95 / GBP 8.99
When a trio of powerful super-villains brings the U.S. to its knees, incapacitating all adult heroes, the only hope left are... THE KIDZ! Brought together by the eccentric scientist ARCHIE BOLT, a new team assembles, composed of IVAN WOLONSKY, teenage psychic, the sub-aquatic champion MARINO, motorcycle master MOTOMAN, energy construct creator QUBE, super-genius SUPERBILL and, from the depths of cyberspace itself, the amazing FL@MBO! Together, they fight their first battle against a triumvirate of evil comprised of former foesd that have forced the surrender of the United States!
The teenage heroes of the Hexagon Universe gather for the first time in this book-length saga by J.-M. Lofficier and Mexican artist Alfredo Macall.
The difference between Kidz and other teenage superhero books like Teen Titans, is that none of the members of Kidz were sidekicks; all were once the stars of their own series in the 1960s and 70s. Unlike DC and Marvel, Hexagon’s predecessor, Editions Lug, did not hesitate to publish books starring teenagers!
When a trio of powerful super-villains brings the U.S. to its knees, incapacitating all adult heroes, the only hope left are... THE KIDZ! Brought together by the eccentric scientist ARCHIE BOLT, a new team assembles, composed of IVAN WOLONSKY, teenage psychic, the sub-aquatic champion MARINO, motorcycle master MOTOMAN, energy construct creator QUBE, super-genius SUPERBILL and, from the depths of cyberspace itself, the amazing FL@MBO! Together, they fight their first battle against a triumvirate of evil comprised of former foesd that have forced the surrender of the United States!
The teenage heroes of the Hexagon Universe gather for the first time in this book-length saga by J.-M. Lofficier and Mexican artist Alfredo Macall.
I looked at the cover and thought "Kidz" well this is going to be a let down" and I have no idea why. The UK had plenty of child heroes in its weekly comics so why I was so negative I have no idea. We live in strange times, folks and nothing is stranger than my mind (which is quite normal).
The story and concept works really well and I would like to think that a company like Thomson or Rebellion could do this type of thing but so far old characters used by Rebellion have been rebooted and Americanised. What Hexagon have done here is to prove that with a good writer who knows all of the characters and a good artist you can make an interesting comic featuring kid heroes.
Of course, you have to have the best dastardly villains, too!
A lot of people are checking these Hexagon reviews out and I do hope some are gpoing to buy because otherwise people are really missing out.
Sunday, 21 March 2021
Hexagon Comics Tales of the Twilight People: Dr. Despair
Marc Agapit & Jean-Marc & Randy Lofficier; cover by Alex Tuis.
7x10 squarebound trade paperback,
148 pages
b&w
ISBN-13: 978-1-61227-457-7.
ISBN-13: 978-1-61227-457-7.
US$12.95/GBP £6.99
Stormshadow, shaman of the Twilight People, introduces the tale of a man who survives a car crash, but finds himself trapped in a private clinic at the mercy of its lunatic owner, the terrifying Doctor Despair. The Doctor seeks to use him as a pawn in a monstrous scheme of revenge against the wife who once betrayed him.
The hero struggles to save her, but in Doctor Despair’s asylum, no one is ever sure of what is a lie and what is the awful truth...
There is some background info on this story as well as a brief interview with Agapit and though we know who drew the cover and intro there is no internal art credit unless this was drawn by Lofficier? The characters -main and side ones- all work well and those additional "side characters" drew my eye to them because, if this were a film instead of a comic, those are the ones people would be talking about.
How do you tell people what goes on without ruining the story for them? In the case of this book you really cannot as it all fits in so well and leads to the climatic final page. £6.00 for a 148 page book is excellent and if you like your horror then you will enjoy this and for all ofthe horror comic fans out there who insist on trying to buy any horror related comic they can -guess what? I'd say this one was for you.
Phew. You HEARD Me I Said "Phew"
Between acting as a fox mange advisor over the last two weeks as well as concentrating on the wildlife papers I have been facing continued battles with the old PC (two hours working on it yesterday) and my Mustek A3 Pro scanner (was a great workhorse) -1800-2100 hours before I could get iot to work yesterday (known in my mind as "The day that ****** computer and double-**** pig of a ****** scanner ticked me off").
So I could not scan any of the pages from books to be reviewed -publisjhers should provide such pages on their sites for reviewers to use. I have A3 art waiting to be scanned and I doubt that's going to happen for a while but I might get away with some of the A4 art for new books or stuff I've already scanned.
But no real sales bringing in money for new equipment you'll know why CBO is not being updated one day. Pretty soon I'm guessing because osteoarthritis in hands and delicately nudging PCs along do not go too well together.
So a few more reviews to go and I'm done with my commitments.
Phew
Saturday, 20 March 2021
Hexagon Comics -Tiger and the Eye; just your average Meso American 'Tecs!
Jean-Marc & Randy Lofficier; art by José Luis Ruiz Pérez; cover by José Luis Ruiz Pérez
7x10 squarebound trade paperback,136 pages
b&w
ISBN-13: 978-1-61227-713-4. US$ 12.95 /GBP £6.99
ISBN-13: 978-1-61227-713-4. US$ 12.95 /GBP £6.99
The saga of Tiger and The Eye takes place on an Alternate Earth dominated by Mesoamerican cultures, one on which the Indo-European civilizations never rose to prominence, leaving room for the Mesoamerican cultures to thrive and grow, and create technological advancements unique to that world, including the ability to cross into other worlds by using the much coveted “wayak” technology.
Our two protagonists, the eponymous Tiger and The Eye, are private detectives in the well-trodden tradition of Raymond Chandler, who are led to investigate a series of murders among the aristocracy of their society, and drawn into a web of espionage and deceit that threatens the safety of their entire world.
We've had alternate Earths where the Germans won World War 2 or the Russians won World War 3 but I can't think of anyone having set a story in an alternate meso-american parallel. I like the art style and clean lines with occasional solid blacks and it seems to work well with the story. Reading comics for so long you get that "Oh, that looks like so-and-so's art" pop into your head and that happened a couple times here but it did not affect the story.
The story had a few twists and filled in a lot about this meso-American parallel and how things work there -don't worry there is still blood and heart removal -plus flesh eating savages. I think if the regular hexagon heroes cross over into this one there could be a few problems!
As a one-off this was a bit of a surprise as I had no idea what to expect after all this is not a super hero book. It shows that Hexagon Comics can be novel and inventive. Well worth reading.
Thursday, 18 March 2021
Wednesday, 17 March 2021
"Have You REALLY Had 20,000 Hits in Two Weeks?"
Yeah, the stupid questions are still being asked but thank you to the person who pointed it out since I hardly check stats.
Indeed, 20k views in the last two weeks -how do you think CBO got to (officially) over 4 million views?
Hexagon Comics: THE LUNATIC LEGION
Jean-Marc Lofficier, David Lafuente & Cyril Bouquet; cover by Juan Roncagliolo Berger.
7x10 squarebound comic,
52 pages
n&b
ISBN-13: 978-1-61227-873-5.
ISBN-13: 978-1-61227-873-5.
US$10.95 / GBP 8.99
Contents:
- LO! THE LUNATIC LEGION! by Jean-Marc Lofficier & Cyril Bouquet
- THE LUNATIC LEGION LIVES AGAIN! by Jean-Marc Lofficier & David Lafuente
- Dossier: UNCLE RUFUS by Raffaele Paparella.
In the tradition of HOWARD THE DUCK and THE INFERIOR FIVE, meet the oddest superheroes ever – Baron Sarcasm, a Scrooge-like, wealthy, cantankerous elderly man living in a castle somewhere in the French countryside; his niece, the pretty, spunky Mademoiselle Mademoiselle, also a brilliant inventor, her teenage son Gizmo, and their cousin, a gentle giant nicknamed Captain Camembert.
- THE LUNATIC LEGION LIVES AGAIN! by Jean-Marc Lofficier & David Lafuente
- Dossier: UNCLE RUFUS by Raffaele Paparella.
In the tradition of HOWARD THE DUCK and THE INFERIOR FIVE, meet the oddest superheroes ever – Baron Sarcasm, a Scrooge-like, wealthy, cantankerous elderly man living in a castle somewhere in the French countryside; his niece, the pretty, spunky Mademoiselle Mademoiselle, also a brilliant inventor, her teenage son Gizmo, and their cousin, a gentle giant nicknamed Captain Camembert.
Together, they built a rocket in their backyard shed in 1954, went exploring into outer space, and returned today, having barely aged a day, now transformed into… The Lunatic Legion! But are they the same astronauts who left half a century ago?
Discover the origins of the Lunatic Legion, previously introduced in Phenix #1, and its first adventures with two stories by writer Jean-Marc Lofficier, French artist Cyril Bouquet, and Spanish artist David Lafuente, known for his work on Ultimate Comics: Spider-Man and The Adventures of Archer & Armstrong.
Okay, everyone should know by now that I have a problem with humorous comics. Having had to write a few for other publishers as well as newspaper/magazine one panel gags I had my funny bone removed. I have a collection of Howard The Duck as well as Captain Carrot and his Amazing Zoo Crew and I like the art but do I laugh? No. I appreciate that this is Hexagon Comics and I showed a couple people scans of one of the strips and they loved it. So it's just me!
I know there are people out therewho only collect humour comics and if you are one of those who do then give this a try. Quality etc is there and in these bloody awful times we could all do with a good laugh.
Hexagon Comics: Hexagon Group Volume 1: The Dark Hive
Jean-Marc Lofficier & Juan Roncagliolo Berger & José Luis Ruiz Pérez.
Cover by José Luis Ruiz Pérez.
Contents:
A CALL TO ARMS
Story: Jean-Marc Lofficier; Art: Juan Roncagliolo Berger
IN THE DEPTHS OF THE DARK HIVE
Story: Jean-Marc Lofficier; Art: José Luis Ruiz Pérez
O, BITTER VICTORY
Story: Jean-Marc Lofficier; Art: José Luis Ruiz Pérez
7x10 squarebound comic,
76 pages
b&w
ISBN-13: 978-1-61227-928-2US$12.95
https://www.hexagoncomics.com/shop-hexagon-group-1-the-dark-hive.html
History
The Hexagon Group is a private organization of six super-powered heroes gathered together to protect Earth against superhuman threats. The group is financed by the personal wealth of its members, but mostly Nerotek. It is named thus because a hexagon is the perfect structure offering maximum resistance and tensile strength. The Hexagon Group is headquarted in New York; it has worked together with C.L.A.S.H. and other U.N. organizations. It has at its disposal a vast array of advanced technology, mostly invented by Cletus and Dominik Nero and Sweet.
The FOUNDING MEMBERS of the Hexagon Group were Jeff Sullivan, Dark Flyer (I), Black Lys, The Mysterious Archer (I), White Mask, Aster and Pinky, who were brought together to defeat Melanos. After the disastrous affair of the Black Hive, White Mask resigned and swore to never work with the Group again.
Max Tornado and Mozam then joined the Group, but Max Tornado soon asked to become a "Reserve Member" because of his duties towards NASA. Dax (Mysterious Archer I) was recalled by the Brotherhood of Archers and replaced by a second Mysterious Archer, Jukka Häyhä. At that time, after a battle with Fred "Blackie" Sullivan, Gun Gallon, exiled from the other dimensional realm of Orios, joined the Group.
Eventually Cletus Nero (Dark Flyer I) retired, only to be replaced by his son, Dominik Nero (Dark Flyer II). Gun Gallon returned to Orios and was replaced by Plasma, Jeff Sullivan's daughter. Mozam left and was replaced by Rakar (II), who had just left the Marines and helped Hexagon against their arch-enemy, the Necromancer.
Later, the Necromancer managed to get control of the Group and forced them to battle the Strangers on the Moon. Jeff Sullivan appeared to die there and was replaced by his brother, Fred, who had reformed. Ben Leonard then joined the Group under the alias of "Râ". The Group was recently manipulated into fighting the Enchanters, but soon teamed up with them to battle the dark goddess Aruna.
I know what you are asking: "Terry, what can you tell us about this book?" Nothing. Seriously, if that history above does not get you curious then having a full plot synopsis will do nothing!
There is some character information so you don't sit there thinking "Who's this?" -in fact, you could just take these as new characters. The artwork within compliments the stories superbly. Honestly, I neverread the story until my third pick-up of the book. I was dealing with another computer breakdown and glanced at the cover of this book and next thing I knew I had forgotten the PC!
The art, especially by Berger, is superb. This is what Harrier Comics could have been. The art is so smooth and detailed and the printing quality is so good that panels pop out at you.
I will be honest with you: I have only been really excited three in the last few decades when it came to new comics. Once was in the 1970s with Seaboard's Atlas Comics and the other time was in the 1980s when Archie brought out its Red Circle Comics and the 1980s Hong Kong Jademan Comics. Since then things have just plodded along. Is it weird that at my age I am now getting so excited by a new (rejuvenated) line of comics?
Please do yourself a favour and try a copy of this book. I hope it might spark fresh enthusiasm in others.
Tuesday, 16 March 2021
"Why haven't you published anything recently?"
Someone had the cheek to ask me why I had not announced any new books recently. My reply was "Why -how many have you bought from me so far?"
Now, I get no Patreon or any other kind of backing to keep CBO going or to carry on producing new books. I have given any number of businesses -in and outside of comics- the opportunity to advertise on CBO as well as inside Black Tower books or on the back covers. No takers.
It is, therefore, surprising that between finishing my own projects such as The Green Skies and Black Tower super Heroes as well as losing my laptop (it just died -NOT covid related) and having to constantly hack and fixed my old PC (no money for a new one) I have spent over one year solidly editing comics, comic albums and graphioc novels covering all genres. there are now, at the online store, some 173 books covering 18 'pages'.
Sadly, as previously noted (and I am still waiting to hear about restricting sa;les in the US) any sale in the United States I get hit with taxes on. So any profit has about 65% taken from it. Again I'll make it clear that there is NO OVERSEAS shipping fees -all books ordered are produced in the buyers region.
I have three (I think three) books lined up but I am currently taking a breather -I have soldiers to paint as well as wildlife work to carry out as well as a few other things. I set April 2nd as the date when I start the next season of publishing and over the summer I am updating The Red Paper which will see me go quiet again and pray that my PC can just keep going a little longer.
The best and easiest way for anyone to support continued publishing is. of course, to purchase a book.
Monday, 15 March 2021
Hexagon Comics: Bob Lance #1: The Round Table
Pier Carpi & Luciano Bernasconi, cover by Roberto Castro.
7x10 squarebound comic,
64 pages
b&w
ISBN-13: 978-1-61227-393-8,
ISBN-13: 978-1-61227-393-8,
US$12.95.
When young Robert Lance leaves his posh British university, he has no idea that he is about to step into the mysterious world of the secret order of the Round Table, and that he himself is the descendent of the legendary Lancelot.
Thrown into this unfamiliar world of shadows, Bob and his new friend Guinevere must first face the curse of a witch once burned at the stake by superstitious villagers...
Love the cover. Like the way the king looks as though he is looking past Lance and
is thinking: "Is that man drawing us??"
The printing is exquisite with sharp black on white and the art itself might be called by some trendy idiot "old school". No computers used to draw anything and you are looking at the work of a skilled artist who knows how to use negatives (b&w), cross-hatching and shading effectively -Luciano Bernasconi, of course, created the legendary character Wampus.
Although Bob Lance was created in 1970 by Pier Carpi and Bernasconi none of the work has dated -the art is in fact better than in some modern US comics. And since the action is set in the past that certainly is not going to be a drawback. In fact Bob Lance became one of Hexagon's most popular series and now English readers can get in on the fun. If you've always been interested in European comics but the foreign language put you off along with ordering from overseas -no more!
Start your collection today with Hexago Comics!
Stop Moaning
Yes, there are more reviews coming up but as CBO is not funded or supported in any way I tend to have to carry out running "fixes" of the decrepid old PC I have.
You don't pay for CBO so stop moaning.
Sunday, 14 March 2021
HEXAGON COMICS: THE FIRST 70 YEARS! THE ILLUSTRATED HISTORY OF FRANCE’S OLDEST COMIC-BOOK PUBLISHER edited by Jean-Marc & Randy Lofficier
HEXAGON COMICS: THE FIRST 70 YEARS!
THE ILLUSTRATED HISTORY OF FRANCE’S OLDEST COMIC-BOOK PUBLISHER
edited by Jean-Marc & Randy Lofficier; cover by Roberto Castro.
7X10 trade paperback
300 p b&w.
ISBN 978-1-61227-807-0.
US$22.95 / GBP 14.99
https://www.amazon.co.uk/HEXAGON-COMICS-ILLUSTRATED-COMIC-BOOK-PUBLISHER/dp/1612278078
https://www.hexagoncomics.com/shop-hexagon-comics-the-first-70-years.html
Established in 1950, Hexagon Comics is France’s oldest comics publisher, with a universe of characters as diverse and varied as Marvel’s or DC’s. This profusely illustrated 300-page history includes articles by Stan Lee, Will Eisner, Joe Kubert, Roy Thomas and Mike Baron, ten comics stories, four prose stories by some of America’s best pulp authors, illustrations by Paul Pope, Stan Sakai, Steve Rude, Steve Bissette, Jean-Claude Forest and dozens of the world’s best comic artists, interviews, biographies, characters’ profiles, a history of Hexagon from its first publication in 1950, and more...
HEXAGON COMICS: THE FIRST 70 YEARS is “a discovery of unsung European comic books, heretofore unseen by American readers” (Will Eisner), and an “eye-filling collection of some of the best series that Hexagon produced during its long and lustrous history” (Stan Lee), not to be missed by any true comic-book aficionado.
CONTENTS:
FOREWORD BY FILM MAKER MARC CARO (CITY OF LOST CHILDREN).
COMICS STORIES:
- BATHY-09 (RJM LOFFICIER/ALFONSO RUIZ),
- DOUG MALONE & MALINBORNE (RJM LOFFICIER/JUAN RONCAGLIOLO),
- KABUR (RJM LOFFICIER/DAVID LAFUENTE),
- MORGANE (RJM LOFFICIER/MANUEL MARTIN PENICHE),
- OZARK (JM LAINÉ/JM ARDEN/REED MAN), THE PARTISANS (RJM LOFFICIER/MARIO GUEVARA),
- PHENIX (RJM LOFFICIER/FERNANDO PASARIN),
- RAKAR (RJM LOFFICIER/ROBERTO CASTRO),
- STARCYB (RJM LOFFICIER/MANUEL MARTIN PENICHE),
- WAMPUS (FRANCO FRESCURA/LUCIANO BERNASCONI),
- ZEMBLA (JIM DANDY/FRANCO ONETA).
PROSE STORIES:
- GALOR & ANTONIN (TRAVIS HILTZ),
- JED PUMA (MATTHEW BAUGH),
- STORMSHADOW (FRANK SCHILDINER),
- THE TIME BRIGADE (CLAUDE J. LEGRAND).
ILLUSTRATIONS BY JM ARDEN, LUCIANO BERNASCONI, ALESSANDRO BIFFIGNANDI, STEPHEN R. BISSETTE, ONOFRIO BRAMANTE, ALEXIS BRICLOT, LINA BUFFOLENTE, ANNIBALE CASABIANCA, ROBERTO CASTRO, DOMINIQUE CEBE, VINCENZO CHIOMENTI, LEONE CIMPELLIN, MARIO CUBBINO, MARIANO DE LA TORRE, MARCELLO DI CHIARRA, JJ DZIALOWSKI, SERGIO FERNANDEZ DAVILA, JEAN-CLAUDE FOREST, GERALD FORTON, JEAN FRISANO, EDUARDO GARCIA, MANUEL GARCIA, CHRISTIAN GOSSETT, TIMOTHY J. GREEN II, DANILO GROSSI, MARIO GUEVARA, LADRÖNN, MAURO LIRUSSI, ALFREDO MACALL, CHRIS MALGRAIN, ALESSO MARIANI, MANUEL MARTIN PENICHE, GABRIEL MAYORGA, JEAN-YVES MITTON, YVES MONDET, FRANCO ONETA, CHRISTOPHE OUVRARD, FRANCO PALUDETTI, RAFFAELE PAPARELLA, IVO PAVONE, STEPHANE & OLIVER PERU, PAUL POPE, LUCA POZZA, EDMOND RIPOLL, JUAN RONCAGLIOLO, STEPHANE ROUX, STEVE RUDE,ALFONSO RUIZ, JOSE LUIS RUIZ PEREZ, STAN SAKAI, JAY STEPHENS, RAUL TREVINO, GIORGIO TREVISAN, EMILIO UBERTI. NESTOR VARGAS, GUIDO ZAMPERONI.
INTERVIEWS WITH LUCIANO BERNASCONI, JJ DZIALOWSKI, JM LAINÉ, ALFREDO MACALL, MANUEL MARTIN PENICHE, FRANCO ONETA, IVO PAVONE, GIORGIO TREVISAN.
BIOS OF LUCIANO BERNASCONI, ALESSANDRO BIFFIGANDI, ONOFRIO BRAMANTE, LINA BUFFOLENTE, ANNIBALE CASABIANCA, CARLO CEDRONI, VINCENZO CHIOMENTI, LEONE CIMPELLIN, MARIO CUBBINO, DANILO GROSSI, CLAUDE J. LEGRAND, JM LOFFICIER, YVES MONDET, THIERRY MORNET, FRANCO & FAUSTO ONETA, FRANCO PALUDETTI, RAFFAELE PAPARELLA, IVO PAVONE, GIORGIO TREVISAN, EMILIO UBERTI, GUIDO ZAMPERONI.
ARTICLES BY MIKE BARON, ERIC BOISSAU, MATTHEW DENNION, WILL EISNER, JM LAINÉ, PATRICE LESPARRE, JOE KUBERT, STAN LEE, RJM LOFFICIER, THIERRY MORNET, MICHEL PAGEL, FRANK SCHILDINER, ERIC STOFFEL, ROY THOMAS.
FOCUS ON THE GUARDIAN OF THE REPUBLIC, KABUR, PHENIX, STARLOCK, STRANGERS, WAMPUS, ZEMBLA, NEW HEROES, TEENAGE HEROES, UNDERWATER HEROES.
If you read my post on Jean-Marc Lofficier and Hexagon Comics then that post compared to this book was me placing a microdot on the back of a stamp. If you missed that feature (thanks to Blogger and its weird search engine) here is a link:
https://hoopercomicart.blogspot.com/2016/09/jean-marc-lofficier-man-who-created.html
This book was certain;ly an eye-opener for me and the contents had me flipping back and forth through the pages. The creator biographies are always welcome if you have a genuine interest in comic book history -phpotographs of the creators are very welcome because you may see the name and the art style that goes with a name but there is nothing like the words "Oh. So that is what he looks like!" Nice especially since a good number of these creators are no longer with us.
There is plenty -plenty- of artwork as well as stripwork. You get to see the "generation 1" creators -the originators- and "generation 2" the new blood that are taking Hexago into the 2020s!
It is always a very nice surprise when you have been reading and collecting comics as long as I have to find new characters, creators and comics. I know that there are other old companies around the world but how many ever feature in books or even online? Timely became Atlas and Atlas became Marvel Comics and National Periodical Publishing became DC Comics but Hexagon was and is Hexagon!
Even if you are not interested in the history then the characters are some of thwe most unique -such as Wampus. But if you just love looking at different art styles and page layouts this book has that. I just cannot recommend this book enough-it is pure comics joy and I am still browsing through it and how can you ignore that cover?!
Friday, 12 March 2021
Up-coming Reviews
I had to get some wildlife stuff out of the way so now...I'm looking at the recent batch of Hexagon Comics that were sent to me. Will start reviewing tomorrow.
Wednesday, 10 March 2021
The Pixie Policeman and Fairies
A word of caution. If you think that buying a high priced Gerald Swan annual or book on Ebay -or from sellers that charge Ebay prices- and that means you can sell it for more -forget it.
Interest in the albums is quite low but people do get sucked in my the "VERY rare" and "extremely rare" claims of sellers. There is a conner out there whose copy of one album has been £1000 for a very long time...no one biting! Having hit financial insecurity I found that none of the sellers would buy good quality copies of the albums that, according to them, can be priced high and they will be snatched up. I was told more than once "its a buyers (ie Seller's) market".
It was good to find a roughly A6 Swan story comic and as they were never dated the best the seller could do was "1940s-1950s" and even though it is No. 58 it does not appear in Gifford's guides (as he included other story papers that is odd). I believe this is post war but needs more research.
The stories, as you will see, are typed and obviously pasted up columns of text with the odd lovely illustration.
Below: The Pixie Policeman and illo enlargement
As with Swan comics the Fairies Albums were all reprinted material from the A6 booklets and I have a few of those and they always make me smile!
So how much did I pay? £5.00 and I can tell you now that I only paid that because I wanted an example for my archive. I would love to say that this is going to make me a fortune IF I resold it but I won't and since there were no takers on Ebay other than me for this one I think I'd be letting myself in for a big disappointment if I did try a re-sell!!
Tuesday, 9 March 2021
Journey of the ID -The Dr Morg Trilogy
A4
B&W
52pp
£7.50
https://www.lulu.com/shop/terry-hooper-scharf/journey-of-the-idthe-dr-morg-trilogy/paperback/product-22705545.html
Metapsychophysics meets comics. Its the next natural evolutionary step in comic books! For the first time all three parts of the highly acclaimed Dr. Morg Trilogy are combined into one volume:
WORDS WITHIN WORLDS,
AFTER ORWELL and the final explosive
THE DEATH OF DR. MORG!
Ace Hart No. 3
20pp
A4
B&W
Text and comic strip
£5.95
https://www.lulu.com/en/en/shop/terry-hooper/ace-hart-no-3-july-2020/paperback/product-669g9z.html
Ace Hart -The Atom Powered Man. One of the UKs first post war super heroes is guided through more action and stories by Ben R Dilworth in this third issue.
And behind that powerful Atomipower cover you'll find stories including: What Is It Good For? Stone Cold Killer Box and the story behind the cover -UP Stream!
Ace Hart No. 1
A4
B&W
20pp
Text and comic strip
£5.95
https://www.lulu.com/en/en/shop/terry-hooper/ace-hart-no-1-june-2020/paperback/product-mmqe22.html
Ace Hart The Atomic Man -one of Britain's first and greatest super heroes is back in his own limited series created and produced by Ben R. Dilworth. With an Atomipower cover designed to irradiate your eye-balls
1970, After The Bomb, Arride, 42 and Princess.
All stories complete so if you just want to try one issue you can!