So you think you have all of the U.K comics...

[Simply Sci-fi]

Okay, the Marvel comics was what many fans collected but the U.K comic saga doesn't end there.

An important part of the Star Wars fan scene was the Archie Goodwin/Al Williamson comic strip which was included in the Sunday Express Supplement Magazine. The first U.K edition appeared in 1983, which was part of the promotions for Return of the Jedi. The strip originated in the L.A Times and it had been running there for years.

The last L.A Times edition was published in America on 11th March 1984 but the Sunday Express carried on incredibly for years afterwards by simply reprinting stories that had been released previously in America. Not all of the stories ended up being printed by the Sunday Express though. It was only when I bought the giant three-volume compendium that I discovered the huge scale of the comic strip saga.

People talk about the "dark times" for Star Wars but for fans who knew about it, the Sunday Express was something to look forward to each week. I collected every edition and constructed my own comic book. I used Sellotape unfortunately, which has contracted and yellowed over the years. The strips are in generally good shape though. If people have mint copies, I'd be interested in colour photocopies or scans.

Personally I simply loved the strips and my self-made comic book is one of my most treasured items. I collected all of the Dark Horse "Classic Star Wars" reprints but the colouring was nothing compared to the gorgeous Sunday Express versions.

I have included the full story of the Sunday Express comic strip in my upcoming book, including the combined Marvel/L.A Times story arc – watch out for it on Kindle soon!

Craig.

 

[x-pack]

Great post. Never heard of these before.

..and may I just say - Joan Collins at 50. Phwoaarrr!

 

[Palifan]

I only discovered those a few years back and picked up the Dark horse reprints. I had heard of the giant reprints but this is the first time I've seen them....impressive!

I totally agree with you on how good these stories are and the artwork is as good as it gets in my opinion, it feels vintage and so right.

Thanks for sharing and I'm still amazed at the level your collection goes to. I still have a few bits and bobs from growing up but you really looked after all of yours, well done sir!

Ian

 

[palitoyjunky]

Great post. Never heard of these before.

..and may I just say - Joan Collins at 50. Phwoaarrr!

Joan Collins at 50, what a milf/gilf :twisted:

 

[Grant_C]

I only discovered those a few years back and picked up the Dark horse reprints. I had heard of the giant reprints but this is the first time I've seen them....impressive!

I totally agree with you on how good these stories are and the artwork is as good as it gets in my opinion, it feels vintage and so right.

Thanks for sharing and I'm still amazed at the level your collection goes to. I still have a few bits and bobs from growing up but you really looked after all of yours, well done sir!

Ian

Same, Same

 

[Dark Sith Lord]

Great limelight Craig. Very imformative! 8)

 

[Grant_C]

I have seen strips come up for sale, but never a collection of them.

I wonder what the value would be. I'm guessing comic collectors would also be interested as well as star wars fans

 

[Dublinjeff]

Excellent post Craig. Very interesting. Never seen these before

 

[Simply Sci-fi]

Thanks for the positive response everyone.

If a whole set came up for grabs I can imagine that could it go for mega bucks, if the seller was able to find the right kind of bidders. A fan might have collected a set of them as simple cuttings, or more likely stuck them in a scrap book. I found a partial set that the kid stopped collecting because he ran out of scrap books! People collect strange things and I bet you that there are entire runs of the Sunday Express Supplement magazine out there somewhere.

The colouring is truly magnificent and transformed Al Williamson's monochrome work into true works of art. All of the coloured versions of the strip I have seen that were released outside of the U.K had much more simplistic colouring, which brings up the possibility of the Sunday Express versions being unique to the U.K.

I have included a couple of examples. I can't do a like for like comparison because I'm away from home for the weekend.

If people are interested, I'd be happy to exchange scans using the mint versions I've found, because my originals have had a hard life and then some.

Craig.

 

[Bollux]

This looks great, let us know when they're out on Kindle please.

 

[Simply Sci-fi]

Just to confirm, my book (tentatively) titled "Star Wars: Made in Britain" is due soon on Kindle and hopefully physical copies at some point. I'm sending out preview versions right now.

I'll probably include a couple of the strips in the illustrations under the heading of "memorabilia" but any more than that and I'll have various copyright holders breathing down my neck.

I'd be interested in contributing to an image file that would be available to fans, perhaps as a charity project. It would be great if all of the strips could be included. I'd like a copy myself!

Craig.

 

[x-pack]

A comic strip collection book would be great. Probably a bit of a niche market though. A Kindle version would be do-able.

 

[Simply Sci-fi]

It depends on whether people have copies of the strip that can be scanned and if they want to contribute. I probably have 30-40 in good condition outside of my self-made comic book.

Are there people out there with these strips in their collection?

I think it would be a great project to get going.

Craig.

 

[Pomse2001]

Great post. Never heard of these before.

..and may I just say - Joan Collins at 50. Phwoaarrr!

Joan Collins at 50, what a milf/gilf :twisted:

Yummy :lol:

 

[Pomse2001]

About the comic strips from the papers, is it the same stories that can found in the Marvel UK and Marvel US comics or are they different ?

 

[Simply Sci-fi]

The comic strips in the newspapers and magazines are entirely different from the Marvel comics. The easiest way to read them is via the Dark Horse "Classic Star Wars" series, which reprinted them but left many of the individual panels out.

I'd recommend the Archie Goodwin/Al Williamson ones highly as they are some if the best Star Wars comics ever. The Russ Manning stories less so.

Craig.

 

[Pomse2001]

Cool, I have all the Dark Horse comics, but those looks like they are from the 90s, so it has been more than 15 years since I last read that comic.

Funny today I learn they are from papers in the 80s :lol:

Archie Goodwin/Al Williamson was so cool 8)

So now I have all the Dark Horse, US Marvel and the Danish Marvel.

This weekend I bought 170 UK marvel this is my first UK marvel comics. I hope to find some stories in them that I have not read before

 

[Simply Sci-fi]

There is a thread here on Rebelscum discussing Danish Star Wars items. I was a amazed to see that the L.A Times comic strip was published in your country. The examples posted aren't by Al Williamson though.

http://forum.rebelscum.com/t1104002/

Would you be able to scan and post any covers from the Danish Star Wars comic with unique artwork? I'd be very interested.

Craig.

 

[Pomse2001]

Wow nice link, sure no problem. I can scan for you

We also have a Danish thread on this forum, I still have a lot of danish stuff. I just need the time to take some picture of it and write about it. I have also been writing about the danish comics in this thread :wink:

http://www.starwarsforum.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f=16&t=10847

 

[ShootyDogThing]

I remember these, but unfortunately my scrapbook of cuttings is long gone. I can understand why the Omnibus reprints have been rejigged, but these publishers often fail to realise that it's the nostalgia that drives many of us to seek these old strips out, and that relies on things being reprinted just as they were when we first saw them. It's the same with the DVD of the Ewoks cartoon: a new and arguably lesser presentation is not what's wanted.

 

[ShootyDogThing]

Just to confirm, my book (tentatively) titled "Star Wars: Made in Britain" is due soon on Kindle and hopefully physical copies at some point. I'm sending out preview versions right now.

If a physical copy becomes available I'd be interested. I'm a bit of a luddite when it comes to personal reading preferences.

 

[Robstyley]

This is great Craig! I know very little about Star Wars comics and comic strips, I've literally just discovered them and started to get interested in them. I recently bought a SW no.12 and an ESB no.129 just because I liked the covers, I'm going to frame them. I might start collecting a few more. I just love the artwork and the colour on them, they look so cool and retro. Would like to learn more, will keep an eye on this and maybe pick your brains at the next pub night!
Andy

 

[Simply Sci-fi]

No 12 of Star Wars Weekly is a classic. The cover takes huge liberties with the story, which was the style of the early comics. Issue 129 is one of the better covers from during the run of the adaptation of The Empire Strikes Back, featuring Al Williamson art rather than Carmine Infantino.

I'm always happy to talk about the Star Wars comics – especially after a couple of beers. At the next pub night I can bring along my scrapbook of all of the British Goodwin/Williamson comic strips and the giant three volume compendium.

Collecting the U.K comics is hugely rewarding and if you decide to collect more of them you won't regret it.

Craig.

 

[ShootyDogThing]

I found a gallery of the covers:
http://www.comicvine.com/star-wars-weekly/4050-47786/?page=3

This is for the first 117 issues only, but there's links to other pages featuring the retitled comics.

 

[Simply Sci-fi]

That's a good website. I've not done a great deal of searching for reference material because I have all the information that I need already.

I once made a list of all of the comic stories that I considered to be part of the storyline and those which did not fit in. As long as the reader is willing to be selective, there's a very good story arc to be found between and after the events of the films.

Craig.

 

[DanProsser]

Great collection, those coloured strips look great. If there was a collection of them, I'd buy it in a heartbeat

 

[theforceuk]

Not my thing but great post.