- Crisis (comic book)
Infobox comic book title
title=New Statesmen
imagesize= 250
caption=Crisis #1 (Sept. 1988), featuring an image byCarlos Ezquerra of Eve from "Third World War"
schedule=Fortnightly (1-48)
Monthly (49-63)
format=Comics anthology
publisher='Fleetway
date=1988 - 1991
issues=63
main_char_team=
writers=
artists=
pencillers=
inkers=
letterers=
colorists=
editors=Steve MacManus
creative_team_month=
creative_team_year=
creators=
subcat=Fleetway and IPC Comics
sort=PAGENAME
nonUS=y"Crisis" was a British comic published from 1988 to 1991 as an experiment by
Fleetway to see if intelligent, mature, politically and socially aware comics were saleable in the United Kingdom. The comic was initially published fortnightly, and was one of the most visible components of the late-80s British comics boom, along with "Deadline", "Revolver", and "Toxic! ".History
"Crisis" was
Fleetway 's response to the success of "Deadline".David Bishop , in his "Thrill Power Overload ", comments "2000 AD" had once represented the cutting edge of British comics, but was now in danger of looking staid and old fashioned next to "Deadline".David Bishop "Thrill Power Overload ", page 127]"Crisis" would offer to make the work
creator-owned , which might the chance for royalties and greater copyright control, which was a departure from the way they had done business up until then. They also planned to turn the stories intoAmerican comic books which would sell better on the other side of the Atlantic, although ultimately only the first few titles got this treatment and the title moved to shorter stories from issue #14 onwards.As a 2000 AD spin-off, it was initially
science fiction based. It began with two stories: "Third World War", byPat Mills andCarlos Ezquerra , extrapolated some of the effects of globalcapitalism on thedeveloping world into the near future, as seen through the eyes of a group of young conscript "peace volunteer" soldiers; "New Statesmen" was a "realistic superhero" strip by John Smith andJim Baikie . "Third World War" later moved on from developing world topics to minority issues within the UK and introduced two new artists,Sean Phillips andDuncan Fegredo , while Mills took on co-writers including Alan Mitchell andMalachy Coney .When "New Statesmen" finished it was replaced by two contemporary stories: "Troubled Souls" by
Garth Ennis andJohn McCrea , set amid the "troubles" ofNorthern Ireland , and "Sticky Fingers", a flatshare comedy byMyra Hancock andDavid Hine . "Troubled Souls" was Ennis's comics debut, and led to a sequel, "For a Few Troubles More", and a religious satire, "True Faith", the latter illustrated byWarren Pleece ."True Faith" and another proposed strip, "Skin" by
Peter Milligan andBrendan McCarthy , aboutskinhead s andthalidomide , ran into problems with censorship.Robert Maxwell , Fleetway's then owner, withdrew the collected edition of "True Faith" from sale after receiving objections from religious groups; "Skin" was dropped after the printers refused to handle it, probably over its harsh language. "Skin" was later published as a graphic novel by Tundra, and failed to generate any noticeable outrage.Another casualty of censorship was John Smith and Sean Phillips's "Straitgate". Its main character was intended to be a self-obsessed young loner who suffers from delusions and ends up going on a killing spree, but it was toned down until he became little more than a self-obsessed young loner.
Grant Morrison andSteve Yeowell contributed "The New Adventures of Hitler " (originally published in "Cut", a Scottish arts and culture magazine), a speculative story about how the youngAdolf Hitler 's stay inEngland might have affected his later actions. Morrison also wrote " Bible John", illustrated byDaniel Vallely , about a series of murders inGlasgow , and "Dare", his revisionist take onDan Dare . "Dare" was drawn byRian Hughes , and had started in "Revolver", the sister comic of "Crisis". Unfortunately "Revolver" folded before the last episode of the story, which was therefore concluded in "Crisis". Morrison's frequent collaboratorMark Millar contributed a grim prison story, "Insiders", drawn byPaul Grist .Later issues of "Crisis", by then edited by
Igor Goldkind , included a number of translated European strips, includingMilo Manara andFederico Fellini 's "Trip to Tuluum" (collected in a trade paperback published byCatalan Communications ) and a number of short strips byMiguelanxo Prado . After issue 49 "Crisis" was published monthly, for 14 further issues, finally ending in October1991 .Other creators whose work appeared in "Crisis" include
Simon Bisley ,Glenn Fabry ,John Hicklenton ,Philip Bond ,Si Spencer , Steve Sampson,Chris Standley , Peter Doherty, editor Igor Goldkind, Tony Allen, James Robinson,Tony Salmons ,Oscar Zarate ,Paul Neary ,Steve Parkhouse andBernie Jaye .Ultimately the comic did not sell sufficiently well to survive, and Fleetway cancelled it in 1991. Nevertheless, while it lasted, "Crisis" broke the mould of
British comics Fact|date=June 2008 by publishing stories which tackled urban struggles, political issues, economic inequality, sexual politics, racial and nationalistic disputes, and cutting-edge speculative writing.Editors
*
Steve MacManus #1–49
*Steve MacManus and Michael W. Bennent #50–52
*Michael W. Bennent #53–63Notes
References
*comicbookdb|type=title|id=18364|title="Crisis"
External links
* [http://www.fortunecity.com/tatooine/sputnik/53/crisis.htm A "Crisis" fansite]
* [http://www.toonhound.com/crisis.htm A brief guide to the comic]
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