6 Dec
2010

Posted in: Blog, Pictures
By Fanton    12 Comments

Tom vs Dragon

WHEN IT comes to influences on my creative skills, there are three names that instantly spring to mind – Roald Dahl, Stan ‘The Man’ Lee, and Tom Paterson.

Everyone knows the first two, but I’ll wager there’s not many who recognise the third name on the list, yet you may well have seen his work if you read ANY British humour comics over the past thirty years or so, and he’s definitely the biggest artistic influence in my life, for sure.

Tom is one of the first artists whose work really stood out for me, catching my young eyes with his wonderfully deranged style, his panels crammed full of brilliant detail and so, so funny. I mean, not just chucklesome, but laugh out loud, gut-achingly hilarious.

Just look at this Calamity James page below, pulled from one of the hundreds upon hundreds of Beanos in my collection. Look at the grotesque detail whenever James is pummelled, the little signs everywhere and the ubiquitous smelly sock and Little Squelchy Thing which he’d work into nearly every strip. It’s all just so BRILLIANT.

Calamity James from 'The Beano' (c) DC Thomson & Co

From Sweeny Toddler in Whooppee!, to the brilliant covers for Buster comic, and his crowning glory (in my mind) the aforementioned Calamity James for The Beano, I was completely and utterly entranced by his work, and would pour over those pages for hours, copying my own wonky tributes to his characters in my sketchpad.

And so the wonky tributes continue, with my rough approximation of Tom’s style in my picture of George (from my Dandy strip George vs Dragon) at the top of this post. I’ll never be as good as ‘the master’, but I hope I haven’t disgraced myself too much. If I have, I expect an anvil to drop on me at any moment, or a runaway steam-roller to mow me down.

Tom is still working today, producing his wonderful pages in The Beano, including occasional work on the comic’s iconic Dennis the Menace. And he still continues to inspire me hugely, and influence me all the time (as evidenced maybe by my penchant for background gags in my own strips).

So, here’s to you Tom – thanks for unwittingly inspiring me to pick up a pencil, and long may you keep on working, and squelching!

- Fanton.

Peter Gray has an awesome collection of Tom Paterson’s work for you to admire, by just clicking here.

4 Dec
2010

Posted in: Blog, Pictures
By Fanton    12 Comments

Dragon and On and On

AS the snow-madness subsides and the weather gets back to normal (well, as normal as it does in these isles) now’s the chance to venture to the shops without fear of turning into a human icicle or slipping on your arse and looking like a right wally in front of shoppers everywhere, and pick up your copy of this week’s Dandy! HOORAY!

In this week’s George vs Dragon, George gets himself a brand new, super-fast horse called Thunderbolt (pictured above) – with HILARIOUS results! (Or should that be ‘hay-larious’? No, you’re right). And look out for the tiny cameo appearance of one Lord Likely – if you spot him, let me know and you’ll win one thousand ’Cool Points’ (retail value 0.00000000000000001p).

As well as their regular strip, both George and the Dragon pop up in a couple of other places in this week’s issue – check them out hosting the contents page, and see them stealthily invading the advert on the back page. Oooh, those medieval mischief-makers!

As I write this, I’ve just finished colouring the last of the initial run of George vs Dragon, which is quite sad. I’ve really grown to love these two characters (and others such as Wirlin the Wizard) and obviously I am relishing working on such a fun strip for such a fun comic! And getting paid, of course!

Will there be more? I hope so, but it’s in the readers’ hands! You can show your support for the strip by voting for it HERE – it’s currently leading, I’m glad to say – although the poll is a bit messed up as it appears you can vote multiple times – which I’d recommend against, as that seems to take the point out of the whole exercise! But thank you if you’ve already voted!

Alternatively, you can demand more George vs Dragon on the Dandy’s Facebook page, or their Twitter account, or email them, or turn up at Dandy HQ dressed as a dragon with a placard reading ‘GvD iz Kool’ or something. I dunno, but if you want more, just let them know and then who knows? Maybe they shall return…

Oh! And finally, HAPPY BIRTHDAY to The Dandy – it was on this day (December 4th) in 1937 that the first issue saw print – and I must say, it’s looking very sprightly for a 73 year-old! HOORAY!

- Fanton.

25 Nov
2010

Posted in: Blog, Pictures
By Fanton    9 Comments

Bear Faced Cheek

(c) D C Thomson & Co.

WHO REMEMBERS Biffo the Bear, from The Beano comic? The dungaree-wearing, humanoid bear first appeared in the comic in 1948, and ran right up until 1999, (with a few appearances here and there since), making him one of the comic’s longest-serving regulars.

The thing I never quite understood about this vintage strip was how come none of the people in the town were phased by the fact that they had a BEAR living among their number? Surely someone must have thought it peculiar. But no, they all seemed quite happy to let this weird, talking animal go unchallenged.

Bearing that in mind (pun intended), I knocked up this little sketch, for fun:

Oh, Biffo!

Naturally, Biffo the Bear is © D C Thomson and Co, and no infringement is intended. So please do not unleash the bears on me.

- Fanton.