Various writers and artists, but mostly Stephen Prestwood
Publisher: Evolutionary Comics
British (formerly Bulldog) Adventure Magazine is something of a legend in the self-published scene; an established old-timer with a reputation for good quality comics storytelling. And I've never read an issue until now, although I did quite enjoy the first issue of spin-off Bulldog: Empire. It seems that I've been missing out.
Ironically, the lead "Bulldog" strip fails to impress me, as while more than competent in execution, it seems rather light on plot, and the attempts at humour fall flat. The same is true of "Danish of the Yard," a strip with excellent art (from the apparently overworked Prestwood, who is editor and publisher, artist on four of the strips and writer of three!) that nonetheless fails to make a lasting impression.
But those are just two strips in five, and I'm pleased to say that the other three more than make up for their weaknesses. "The Weed from Beyond the Stars" is great fun, a Kirby/Starlinesque cosmic epic condensed into five pages, and with a great final twist of the completely bonkers 70s sort. There are a few too many close-ups, and as such it's a bit of a shame that Prestwood didn't open up the visuals a bit more to intensify the epic feel, but it's a great strip nonetheless.
Small press veteran Mitzi turns in his usual superb work for "Heart of the City," a solo story for Bulldog supporting character Keiko Panda; Mitzi's art style is simple but wonderfully emotive and full of character and movement, and the story is an eerie and effective tale of urban spookiness. Only some slightly dodgy lettering detracts from the quality of this strip.
The other big highlight of the issue for me was the first episode of superhero adventure "Trilithon." The titular character is a dimension-hopping immortal hero with a uniquely British attitude, and the strip as a whole, with down-to-earth humour and characterisation contrasted with cosmic plots and situations, strikes me very much as how Captain Britain should be written. There's just something wonderful about a comic in which a hero who has lived for thousands of years and has travelled to thousands of alternate dimensions sits down with a mug of tea to watch Bargain Hunt. It's not strictly a spoof, but it has fun with the conventions of superheroes in the same way that the early superhero work of Morrison and Moore did.
Three top-notch and two average but forgettable efforts is a very good record for an anthology; 2000AD often fails to achieve even that. It's something of a shame that the lead strip isn't stronger, but all in all this is a very strong comic, and fully deserving of its reputation.
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