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Review
What we'd like to see in 2007
Prog 2007
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Gavin Hanly: Taking
a look back at last year's "what I'd like to see in 2006" there's one thing that
sticks out: "More short interviews/ publicity on big comic sites"
This applies to next year more than ever and what I really want to see is a
huge marketing push for the 30th anniversary of 2000AD. It's a major achievement,
and many magazines and newspaper supplements would fall over themselves to be
able to do an article on this event - especially when Bishop's Thrill Power Overload
is coming out at the same time. It's a massive opportunity to raise awareness
so please don't drop the ball!
In addition to this, I'd really like to see some efforts made to draw in lapsed
or new readers. The quality of the weekly comic is fine for those of us who will
buy the thing whatever - but there's much that can be done to draw in new readers
to the fold and I'd really like to see some groundwork in this area. The comic
can't possible continue forever based on a core and very loud internet community,
so let's see some efforts at drawing in some new punters.
I'd also like to see some changes to this very site to make
it easier for contributors to write articles and reviews without waiting to get
through the bottleneck that exists because only I can load stuff onto the sites.
There will be more work on that in the early part of next year, so keep a look
out for that.
James Mackay: Naughty pictures
of Tony Blair having intercourse with David Cameron, a collapse of the party
political system, and a Green government. For 2000AD, I honestly don’t
want much to change: the title’s doing what I pay it to do, which is to
say thrill me to the max. I’d like to see Droid Life get a bit less
formulaic, and a return to the old Judge Dredd logo, but that sort of tinkering
around the edges just shows how satisfying the main product is right now.
Robert Cornell: I would like...
From the weekly:
- More of the same, please, but don’t get cocky, we’ll
turn on you in an instant.
- More self-contained stories like Chiaroscuro.
- Fewer double lengthers that are obviously two episodes stuck together.
- Sinister and Dexter have been given an unexpected opportunity
to go out in a blaze of glory and I’d like to see them take it. And, perhaps
more contentiously, Nikolai Dante, too.
The Megazine and elsewhere:
- I’d simply like to see the new
guy turn things around after a wretched year. As it stands renewing my subscription
was a poor investment.
- There has to be better reprint material
in the back catalogue. Darkie’s
Mob and Charley’s War gave us something much more interesting than third-rate
Dredds.
- Extreme had found a niche providing
stuff from ye olde days that you wouldn’t
dare print as a TPB. Recently, it’s been reprinting dross. And I don’t
like dross.
- Finally, and this is VERY important,
a worthwhile 30 year celebration. Come on, guys, it’s a great achievement.
SHOUT about it!!!!!!
Alex Frith: I'd like the weekly and monthly
to keep going as they have been; the already announced schedule looks fantastic.
Even the future trade paperback list is pretty exciting, what with the Nemesis
and Strontium Dog Case Files. I guess I'd be most keen to see volume
four of RoboHunter - a chance to tie up the Brit-Cit adventures.
Stephen Watson: I’ll be happy with
what has been promised -
Button Man 4 and Anderson - Big Robots. If I can dream some Cannon Fodder and
Leviathan too please. Oh and Darren Dead - what happened to him?
Linton Porteous: I would like:
- Double-page spreads (in the centre), regular Star Scans and
another Winter Special (because it was really refreshing).
- More
Simping Detective, Caballistics, Ten-Seconders and Cursed Earth Koburn.
- Less Sisters
of Death as Anderson's only foe and no more Comedy Hijinks From The Black Museum
(or the Black Atlantic), or any more Young Middenface, because frankly it's going
nowhere slowly.
- Get Al Ewing and Rufus to create a series, with complete
impunity.
- Oh, and more from PJ Holden – watching his style
develop has been a real pleasure, topped off excellently with The 86ers episode
in Prog 2007.
- Finally, create a new comic – if screws up, the best
of it can be folded back into the long queue of thrills for 2000AD. If
it succeeds – wouldn't
that be cool?
- Whilst I'm in fantasy land – send all readers
a solid gold bar.
There, that should do nicely.
Anderson - Big Robots
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Andrew Howe: So where to from here?
I’m
a little nervous that some of my least favourite stories from 2006 may be gearing
up for an extended run (in particular Harry
Kipling, Nikolai Dante and – God help us – a reformed Sinister
Dexter), but the fact that several long-running series reached their conclusion
opens the way for the proverbial breath of fresh air. I also know that Caballistics and Anderson can’t
stay away forever, and I’ll be hoping for a few of the 100-200 page self-contained
stories that fill most of the spots on my list of all-time favourites (not every
new series has to be earmarked for an indefinite run – a beginning, middle
and end will do just fine).
I concluded my 2005 wrap by saying I was looking
forward to the big-ticket events and unexpected treasures of 2006 with an easy
heart. I feel the
same way about 2007, because my respect for the weekly’s creative team
is undiminished by my failure to hear the music this year. If there’s
one thing you can be sure of, it’s that with 2000 A.D. the song
rarely remains the same.
Bryan Coyle: I would like...
- A Firefly-style Strontium Dogs
tv show would be nice.
- A kiddie-friendly 2000ad clone to get newer and younger readers into the
book (and comics in general).
- A few more writers breaking out of the Future Shock ghetto and trying their
hands at full series.
- More series, as opposed to the same oldies coming back time and again.
- More painted art.
Adam Crabtree: Well, lemme think. I want to
see…
- An ongoing series for the Al Ewing, Kev Walker, Inaki
Miranda and Eva de la Cruz.
- The "Moses Wars" knocking it out of the
park and continuing SinDex’s rejuvenation.
- Simon Spurrier's continued page
space predominance...
- Harry Kipling to ditch Neela and jettison the unfitting
Soma storyline...
- Sterner moderation of the Mills Droid...
- The Ten Seconders
(with Dom Reardon on art duties!) to arrive immediately...
- For the Strontium
Dog and Lobster Random to start making more than one yearly appearance…
- An
increase of Future Shorts (an exciting experimental formula that is not being
made enough of at the mo),
- An episode of Droid Life and a letters page in
every prog...
- More reserved and sophisticated material such as Malone;
get Abnett back into "Cal Hamilton" mode!
- A Rogue Trooper free year!
- More stuff
from Arthur Ranson...
But generally, when you love something, one phrase is
key: don’t change!
To 2007AD!
Dead Eyes |
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David Knight: I’d like to see more from
Ian Edginton and Al Ewing. Dan Abnett’s
new series ‘Kingdom’ is intriguing, with its narrative style a blend
of mythic and infants school reading book. His new Megazine story, Black Atlantic,
may read too much like his Sinister Dexter work to easily bed in as set in Dredd’s
universe, although ‘call me email’ did make me laugh out loud. So,
I’m looking forward to seeing how Kingdom develops, and seeing more puns
from the Abnett droid.
Clint Langley doing the art adds a whole new dimension
to ABC Warriors. On the whole I’d like to see longer stories in 2007, more
returning characters, and fewer self-contained serials like Chiaroscuro and Stone
Island.
Martin Charlton: More Caballistics Inc., please,
a satisfying end to Origins (and perhaps Dante & Sinister
Dexter), and a consistently high quality run of strips in the Megazine. God knows
it needs it.
WR Logan: I’d like to see 2000AD continue
to charge my thrill circuits as it has done all through 2006 but my biggest hope
is that the Megazine finds a new identity under its new editor and decides what
it wants to be. I don’t mind the articles
although recent ones haven’t really covered topics that I find that interesting
but in my opinion the biggest waste of space and the section that means absolutely
nothing to me is the small press section.
Savage - Double Yellow
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Pete McCosh: I’d like to see the current
high quality continue. I’d like to
see everything that’s been previewed in Prog 2007 actually appear this
year. I’d like to see the value of the dollar slip even further to maybe
tempt some of the old guard back to the comic. I’d like to see a decent
run of Caballistics.
Most of all – now that John Hicklenton’s come
out of hiding – I’d like to see Simon Harrison return to the fold
to draw The Death of Judge Dredd.
Joseph Saxton: The most pressing concern in
my opinion is the Megazine. While quality
of strips varies I think the problem of why people buy it and what it can offer
different to the prog. Personally I’d indulge its status as the more
mature reader title, running the strips that are less suitable for all ages,
giving the writers a bit more free rein on some issues. I also think a
comics magazine should talk about comics.
Thanks to all of our reviewers - and have a great 2007!
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