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[NO SKIN OFF MY CHIN]

My favourite Dreddism would be (to the effect of): "NO SKIN OFF MY CHIN".

I don't think so ... what story did he feature in?

[Dok! WHAT A COLLECTION!]

I got my copy this morning. Dok! WHAT A COLLECTION!

It's a relatively slim volume, but it is heavy so I knew it had to feature gloss paper, which means colour content. There is a surprisingly huge selection of stories inside, all one-shots from various early annuals, Sci-Fi Specials (and even the John Byrne 'Block Out' future sport story). The sub-heading on the front cover reads: "2000AD Annuals & Specials, Year: 2099 -2106"

Reproduction is generally good. Oddly, some of the reprints seem to be heavy on the black ink, but the text in the speech balloons looks sharp.

I have 90% of the stories already, but this compendium does away with the need for digging out the odd anuual or tatty Sci-Fi Special from a moutain of yellow progs.

9/10!

I'm still interested in buying the two CDs I mentioned, until the previous seller decides he actually wants to sell them to me 

I just consider Strontium Dog to be one hazy, possible future of Dreddworld (like, possibly Robo-Hunter), until one day, Dreddworld catches up and either is .... or it isn't.

Certainly, much of what we've seen in Alphaworld's Earth appears to the dawn of a New Dark Age, with much of the world bombed (WW5? WW6?) to a state resembling Dredd's post-Atomic War era (ruins, rad-zones, lots of new mutations, DP camps).

I can't remember what year/s Robo-Hunter was set in, but one time I thought it was a fun notion that Man might have built millions of robots to quickly rebuild after Alphaworld's nuclear devastation, but the robots got carried away and then took over 

[MEGA-CITY MASTERS?]

Pardon me for not wading through the thickets of earlier pages, but what are the MEGA-CITY MASTERS?

Can the first person to actually see it please let us know what the contents are in general?

I might be reviewing it for 2000AD Review (as well as the Anderson Psi-Files 01, if it's not already been done). The Restricted Files 01 should be arriving tomorrow AM.

[SHADES OF DEATH]

Here's a preview of the SHADES OF DEATH cover:

http://www.johncaliber.com/SoDPreview.pdf

It borrows design elements from the classic Titan and Eagle reprints of the 1980s, combining them with a new cover illustration by yours truly.

Korg M3?  Niiiiiice. 

It's an ugly-looking spug, but it does the job. I did originally order a Yamaha, but there were supply problems so the seller recommended a Korg. Had to buy additional speakers, but for top-notch sound it's usually the case. (apologies for OT)

I've always refused to buy musical instruments online though.  Who the hell can buy a guitar (or similar) without playing it, finding out how it feels and how it sounds?  Idiotic.  This is the reason your local music shop has closed (or is about to).

Do you think that's true of all instruments, however? I've bought two synthesisers (lately a Korg M3) sight unseen and it never crossed my mind to test them first-hand; bearing in mind I've not spent years of intensive playing, but are there sufficient variations between keyboard control surfaces to make or break an online sale?

I do, however, feel that anybody who sends their own faeces through the mail should be stood upside down in a vat of it.

Unless it's for medical purposes. I've suffered enough already! 

I'm not certain about the USA writers struggling so much with compressed, 5-6 page storytelling, since there are a fair number of UK writers (sometimes those whose only experience to date has been with 2000AD) who can't correctly pace anthology-scaled multi-parters (that, or they are only thinking of the bigger, more glamourous picture: a TPB where cliffhangers inserted with surgical regularity don't matter).

How many of the lapsed 2000AD readers no longer read any magazines/comics at all? I noted from personal experience those who do still read (or occasionally dip in) have to be 'in the loop' in the first place. The art of reading now appears to be a 'fringe lifestyle choice', not a necessity.

There's the cultural stigma (previously a jealousy of intelligensia, that it causes inequality; presently, a fashion for anything electronic) against reading any literature other than sound-bites on web-pages. The massive drop in comic book circulation also seems to parallel the loss of pride in reading and writing standards in Western societies.

The first issue of the Dossiers is scheduled for February (hopefully...).

Apologies in advance for any delays. I am labouring under poor health (ranging from poor to nightmarish), and am relying on the NHS to arrange two operations (one minor, one major) sooner rather than later (seven weeks overdue and counting--they have no beds) so I can finally arrange for the Dossiers to appear on a regular basis. Thanks to my associate Ivan Noel for the editing assistance and unending patience.

The first issue focuses on a single story, a Cursed Earth saga called Shades Of Death, approximately 65 A4 pages in length. It guest-stars the Lawlords, dune sharks and some whimsy imported from the old b/w ABC Warriors comics...

At least one fan, any way! 

Is Michael Fleisher the same man who wrote Jonah Hex for DC in the 1970s? He did a sterling job on that title (my favourite Western comic). Offhand I'm note sure what else he did in the USA. I can well understand why his style did not gel with 2000AD readers. It's interesting how much better UK writers fare in the States than likewise.

Do British scribes have an easier or a harder time on the European continent? I don't know of any other than Pat Mills and his Vampire Knight series.