"Funk you!" -- Prog 1387

[The Amstor Computer]

"that happens all the way through the progs tho..from wagner dredd to abnett sindex..no-one pays it a second thought unless its a Mills story"

I thought the point had been made earlier that this WASN'T limited to Savage, just that it was particularly noticeable in that strip.

Also, I believe the placing of emphases in a strip is the responsibility of the writer - scripts typically indicate to the letterer where to use bold, or any other lettering effects - so I doubt Ellie de Ville is to blame for awkward placement.

[-=>DEMONIZER<=-]

Some writers - like Mills, Wagner and Steve Moore - make excellent use of bold text to enhance their (often simple) dialogue.

Of course if the words are contentious, then their skills can bring too much attention to them where other lesser writers may be easier to forgive.

[satchmo]

Cover: shite

Dredd: priceless

AHAB : pretty good

Lowlife: great art, story rubbish

my two faves though were Chopper and Savage.
A last hurrah for Jug Mckenzie, fabulous.What pleases me most though is John Wagner is finally having his say after Chopper was pretty much ruined by other writers.(apart from the poster prog story)
Savage is brilliant,far better than I thought it would be.Nice one Pat.This one is going to be the most controversial thrills of recent times, me thinks : )

[thrillpowerseeker]

yep..  ; )..i love a heated debate

[DavidXBrunt]

So do I. Let's all have a massed debate.

[Trout]

Already having one, aren't we?

I have to say I'm delighted to see a six-page prog thread for the first time in months.

It's nice that the comic is generating so much discussion again.

- Trout

[thrillpowerseeker]

well if they keep delivering fare of this quality we may get 8 pages of intense discussion..huzzah i say, seriously though the prog is the best its been for about 3 yrs

[Banners]

I've been a designer now for over ten years, and yes the logo IS *VERY* important. Rapid ease of/identity recognition is everything and totally fundamental on crowded shelves

Isn't that a complete misconception? I can't believe that anybody buys 2000AD based on an impulsive reaction to a swiftly-glanced cover...? I figure you have to know what you're looking for, and then seek it out. Raising that awareness is key, and you do that by branding. And as long as the cover reinforces expectations of the brand, that's the main thing.

and I wasn't just referring to this issue: 2000 AD has been pissing about with its logo for a very long time now.

That was true in the late 90s, but the new regime has done lots to strengthen the 2000AD brand - firstly by reinstigating a classic logo, and secondly, by not changing the name at the turn of the millennium.

To me, 2000AD is now a stronger brand than it's ever been. And it's the brand that sells.

But as much as the logo is a big part of the brand, pictures by top artists of hard bastards with guns is an even bigger part. So, if such an image is going to obscure the logo - and thus, to repeat my first point, reinforce the brand - then fine.

M@

[Dudley]

When you look in 99% of all newsagents (round here, anyway), 2000AD is pretty much the only comic on the shelf.  

There might be a couple of American things as well, but they are quite distinct from 2KAD by size and style of cover image.  The only other British comic would be Beano/Dandy/Thomas the Tank Engine, and they're quite clearly aimed at other agegroups.

This has been the situation for a very long time, so I think it's unlikely that anyone would fail to recognise the brand merely because the logo were covered.  And it doesn't matter in specialist comic shops because as far as I can see they usually have a healthy 2000AD section.

In short, if the comics market undergoes a miraculous turnaround and 2000AD is suddenly fighting for space with half a dozen startups, then maybe the logo-messing would be a problem.  Until then, they are the market and can afford all the messing they like.

[Max Kon]

duds - u are right. As all the american stuff is a diferent size too its harder to mistaike

[-=>DEMONIZER<=-]

Yes, the simple fact that 2000AD is the only adult comic worth reading in this explored universe is a total fact --

Fans like me will crawl through broken glass to buy and read it every week.

There is a reason for this - long may it continue.

[Floyd-the-k]

dang it, I`m late to this thread. Oh well, here`s my revoo

Logo covering - doesn`t matter, as has been said. Good cover

Droid life, really cute, getting better all the time

Dredd: nice funny story, great art

Savage; brilliant art, good story, incongruous swearing. The gay/christian thing was a little annoying but not very for me, I`ve gotten used to it with Mills. Gay Christian though I am, I must admit it did sort of suit his character
AHAB; looks very good, really interesting
Low Life; flint heaven. Has the best line in the prog: I`m regurgitating
 uh you mean renegotiating, right, cooze
thass right
Chopper; time will tell. This character feels tired to me. I wouldn`t have noticed the cute girl (I assume Krusti means the underpants-flashing one) if I hadn`t read this thread! That`s what boards are for

[IndigoPrime]

I've been a designer now for over ten years, and yes the logo IS *VERY* important. Rapid ease of/identity recognition is everything and totally fundamental on crowded shelves

Isn't that a complete misconception? I can't believe that anybody buys 2000AD based on an impulsive reaction to a swiftly-glanced cover...?

That's not the point - it's about reinforcing your brand and enabling people being able to rapidly find 2000 AD on sprawling shelves of material (and, let's face it, many newsagent's are such things these days). Sure, the "I'll just pick this up browsers" are fairly low in number, but to say "you have to know what you're looking for" says a lot about the state of 2000 AD's readership. Effective use of the brand means 2000 AD could win back readers rather than just relying on the same old ones every week.

I agree that the logo isn't everything - the entire cover needs to reinforce the expectations of the brand. But there are a lot of new characters these days, and plenty of cover art has been murky. The logo ALWAYS stands out (when not covered with artwork and drop shadows). You don't see the likes of Guardian, Q, Macworld, et al, doing the cover-up thing, yet many of those have a dedicated readership.

When you look in 99% of all newsagents (round here, anyway), 2000AD is pretty much the only comic on the shelf.

True, but where is it to be found? I can go to ten different stores and find 2000 AD in ten different places (well, if you can find it at all, which you can't in the town I live in). Having a distinct, visible logo helps with location, because it can be distinguished from other content at a distance, unlike much of the cover art.

[Judge Olde]

I decided to try & re-read Low Life, as I've arrived at the current party a bit late. It didn't set the world on fire back in 2004 exactly, is it worth the time to catch up on the back story & do I really need to, in order to fully appreciate the current 2011 story?

[I, Cosh]

I decided to try & re-read Low Life, as I've arrived at the current party a bit late. It didn't set the world on fire back in 2004 exactly, is it worth the time to catch up on the back story & do I really need to, in order to fully appreciate the current 2011 story?

Quality necropost. I'd say it's worthwhile reading it as there's not really that much of it. As to whether you need to: not really. I think the seeds of the current story only go as far back as that one time Low Lie was in the Meg and the two D'Israeli ones.