The Forbidden Planet International Blog Log

Here we go again, continuing the list of all of those great comics that we all want to see collected so we can gaze lovingly at them on our bookshelves – for the idea and the rules see the first post.

This time it’s a straight A-Z, with the contributor in brackets alongside the title.

Justice League / All-Star Squadron (Stuart Fletcher – ex Nostalgia & Comics)

Stuart: Personally I’m desperate for reprints of 80′s Justice League issues. It’s where it all began for me and I’d like to see it all again. When you write about reading Captain Britain for the first time it all feels very much like the memory of buying two comics while visiting my Nan oh so long ago. Stick All-Star Squadron in there too for the same reason. Sadly nostalgia often bypasses taste.

I’m guessing he means the early 80s stuff with the classic crossovers between the JLA & All-Star Squadron around 1982 (cover galleries: JLA / All-Star Squadron).

Laser Eraser & Pressbutton (Pádraig Ó Méalóid)

Obviously the great draw to Warrior was Alan Moore’s Marvelman and V For Vendetta but Steve Moore’s psychotic cyborg with an orgasmic pressbutton surely deserves a collection by now? (Reprint This)

Jeremy Dennis Complete (Matthew Badham)

Jeremy Dennis is a veteran of the UK small press scene, producing beautifully individual strips. Yet 10 plus years of comics and nothing in a book yet.

Lux & Alby Sign On And Save The Universe – Martin Millar & Simon Fraser – 1993 (Matthew Badham)

To my knowledge this was writer Martin Millar’s only comic series. Bizarre, drug-fuelled and funny.

Master Of Kung Fu – Steve Englehart & Jim Starlin, Doug Moench & Paul Gulacy (Paul Cornell)

Paul: The Essential Master of Kung Fu. We’d need about five volumes, we want five volumes. That lovely Paul Gulacy art will look much better in black and white, and the scripts need to be out there for a modern audience.

‘Mazin Man – by Bob Rozakis and Stephen DeStefano – from 1996 (Pádraig Ó Méalóid & Matthew Badham)

Padraig supplies just this: “because it was lovely!” And it was. (wiki)

Martha Washington – the complete collection (Pádraig Ó Méalóid)

As I write this, I’ve just seen that Dark Horse are actually doing an Absolute style Martha Washington collecting everything Martha Washington. So that’s one off Padraig’s list! Although I did read one review of it that did suggest getting it and then ripping out Martha Washington dies as it’s possibly the worst comic the reviewer had ever read.

Misty (Pádraig Ó Méalóid)

Starting in 1978 and peetering out after a merger with Tammy in 1981/2 Misty was a most unusual thing, a horror comic for girls. As is the way with many UK girls comics of the time the stories and art were top notch. The plans to reprint Misty were announced on Down The Tubes back in February 2008, but as yet nothing has appeared. We shall wait and see. In the meantime, head to MistyComic.co.uk for more, including the special 2006 Misty.co.uk Halloween special comic, the first new Misty for 24 years.

Neil The Horse – Arn Saba – 1975 (Pádraig Ó Méalóid)

Neil The Horse was published here, there and everywhere from 1975 to 1991, but this happy, inventive comic that did it’s best to make the world safe for musical comedy has never seen a collection. Indy Magazine has a nice retrospective review.

Puma Blues – Stephen Murphy & Michael Zulli (Richard Bruton)

A wonderful series, collected once long ago, but never again. Environmental issues, isolation, post nuclear America, mutated animals including the beautiful flying Manta Rays. It started out simply but swiftly became complicated, dense, visionary and wonderful.

Rocketeer – Dave Stevens (Pádraig Ó Méalóid)

With the sad, premature death of Dave Stevens earlier this year I’m surprised that nothing definitive has been released. Of course, there isn’t that much to release, but it was all great.

Rick Geary’s Blanche comics (Pádraig Ó Méalóid)

Padraig: If there’s not enough to make up a volume, let him write more if it! (And if you haven’t been buying his Treasury of Victorian Murder, you’re in for a treat…)

Roachmill – Rich Heddon & Tom McWeeney (Pádraig Ó Méalóid)

This was one of those on the list that I’d completely forgotten, but just the memory of it triggered waves of nostalgia. A great series. A four armed exterminator willing to kill anyone or anything. Insanely funny as I recall. (wiki)

Robo-Hunter – John Wagner & Ian Gibson (Joe Gordon)

Joe does love his old 2000AD strips. And with quality like Robo-Hunter I can’t argue.

Rubber Blankets – David Mazzuchelli (Richard Bruton)

Mazzuchelli’s Rubber Blankets was incredible when it came out. Partly because this was the guy who’d just done Batman Year 1, partly because it was so different, partly for the incredible oversized book, but mostly because it was just so amazingly good.

And that’s it for part 2. Any to add? Hit those comments. Final part tomorrow.