Messages

Mills ranting about character ownership is nothing like Disney doing the same with the mouse. The nearest equivalent would be Rebellion itself protecting its IP, not Mills. Remember, Mills doesn't actually "own" any of the characters he's created for 2000 AD, and the only reason editors let him get away with such claims is because otherwise he acts like a spoiled brat (see: Rennie's Satanus story).

However, I still think the fact he wrote crap for years is what counts against him, not anything else. As for his current work, it's certainly an improvement, but still feels rather old-hat at times.

Frankly, if Wagner went nearly a decade without writing anything half-decent, I'm pretty sure people would be laying into him on a regular basis.

I think it's because Mills went a long time writing only "khaos" crap, and also because he's managed to totally wreck previously exciting characters. Slaine is at best a shadow of his former self and at worst a total embarrassment. Although Dredd can at times be mediocre when written by Wagner, it's never truly dire, but that's not the case for Mills. Also, Wagner gets across his own personal politics at times without resorting to being overtly preachy.

Excellent Sin/Dex cover, and I agree that the Anderson logo is pretty neat. I've never been convinced by that ABC Warriors pic, but it's good to see the covers generally improving, and actually being relevant to the contents.

Uh, *February* thrill power? I've had Verdus for ages...

Realistic version: slow, gradual rises in readership followed by slow, gradual falls in readership. A few great new stories and creators, and a number of "meh" stories and "defections". Same old, same old, with the occasional "wow" moment.

Fantasy version: several 2000 AD characters get optioned and all end up in production in Hollywood. Despite the relocation of Strontium Dog to New York, it is a massive success. Slaine gets unfairly compared to Conan, but surprises its critics by taking a massive box office, recouping its costs several times over. The ABC Warriors CGI TV series manages to gain a cult following, but the DVD release sells extremely well, and although many 2000 AD fans grumbled when Johnny Depp was cast as Nikolai Dante (too similar to "Pirates", too old, too skinny), he proved masterful in the role, and the film was one of the year's biggest hits. The resulting massive spike in 2000 AD's readership and Rebellion's subsequent deal to release an American monthly compilation version with DC led to many of top names returning to the comic, mingling with up-and-coming talent. The Dredd film is now in pre-production with an unknown in the lead, Wagner as Executive Producer, and Ridley Scott directing.

Nightmare version: 2000 AD's sales gradually slide over the next decade, and the magazine's price continues to increase accordingly. The Meg and 2000 AD merge into a monthly anthology, causing many writers to depart for pastures new, due to the lack of potential work per month. The magazine clings on for another year before finally giving up the ghost four issues after becoming a reprint-only mag, with the exception of one new six-page Dredd strip and one all-new ten-page "guest" strip each month. Scojo gloats on alt.comics.2000ad, but there's no-one there to hear him.

"Any last words before I fire you out of the window using my trusty man-sized catapult?"

He looked both pissed and totally uninterested to be there, unlike the woman from Garbage who looked like she wanted to rip everyone a new one.

However, Pegg gave us Spaced and SotD and is generally pretty good on the TV, so I'm not going to go off him due to an appearance on the fucking Brits.

I think one of your points regarding Heatseekers makes sense. Rather than being a "trashing" column, it would be better if most of the columns were "here's something you really must see, and here's why" (which some of them are), leaving Rennie to be the resident grumpy sod.

I'd say The Meg edges it of late in terms of the quality of the strips. Both have managed to stay about the 60 per cent line that I used to judge them on (i.e. that at least 60 per cent wasn't rubbish). As for the text features in The Meg, I think they're fine, and I don't see how they're in any way tricky to read.

See what happens when I leave you lot alone for a minute? Tch.

Play.com has the Rogue book on 24hr dispatch.

Bear in mind that Amazon UK is utterly hopeless with regards to listings. My latest book originally had a publication date of late December. This was then bumped to January, but at the start of December, Amazon UK slapped a ?1.99 finder's fee on this "hard to find" item. I contacted them, saying I was the author, and that they were screwing my pre-orders, due to the fee. Their response was pretty much "we don't give a shit, and there's nothing we can do anyway". After THREE WEEKS of complaining to them (my publisher was also doing this), they changed the listing. Therefore, always take any listing on Amazon UK with not a pinch of salt but a bucketload.

Has anyone actually ordered any of these books from the Future Shop? If so, how are they shipped? Seeing as 2000 AD and the Meg are shipped in envelopes and non-comic items I've had shipped from Rebellion in the past have sometimes turned up damaged, I was wondering whether the books have protective packaging. I'd be happy to order from Rebellion, but not if the things are just sent in a normal envelope or an inadequate jiffy bag.

1. Apparently not, given the number of typos.
2. Because someone evidently thought it was a good idea, to avoid some of the pages having larger margins. It wasn't a good idea.