Tales from the Emerald Isle 2

Last year, David McDonald of HIBERNIA COMICS put together a really cool 2000ad fanzine which focused exclusively on characters from the comic that were of Irish origin. I contributed a Sinister-Dexter tale to the anthology, which went down well enough, apart from the too-specifically-Irish-by-far pun I included at the end, which lost most readers (as the majority of them weren't specifically Irish at all. D'oh!) So I learnt a lesson from that, so I did. Know your readers!!!

This second edition of the comic abandons the 2000ad angle and instead draws together random tales of fantasy and fiction, all of which are based in Ireland and contain Irish themes and characters. Designed as a "convention special", the stories are, as such, shorter and sweeter. Big fan of Slaine that I am, I wanted to do something in that vein, so decided to have a crack at bringing Fionn Mac Cumhaill to the, er, small page. I mean, come on, Fionn Mac Cumhaill, he got psychic powers from burning his finger while cooking a magic salmon for God's sake, and he stabs himself in the head with his own damn SPEAR to stop himself nodding off, how freaking awesome is that! If only I had the power to suck on my thumb and have all the answers to life's conundrums revealed to me in an instant...that would be SWEET. A big spear to poke myself in the head with when I was falling asleep while trying to get through "Shutter Island" for the twentieth time would also be convenient. But alas... I have neither. Sigh. Anyway, Fionn Mac Cumhaill, a bit of a brute and not very bright but he had lovely flowing white locks and...the Salmon Knowledge!! Here he is in action:



How indeed?? In this story, one of Fionn's most famous feats of derring-do (the outsmarting and slaying of fire-breathing underworld fairy Aillen at the Hill of Tara) comes back to haunt him when he encounters a foe hell-bent on taking revenge for this heroic act. Will Fionn manage to prevail this time? You'll have to read the story to find out!

Art is by FILIP RONCONE, who went above and beyond the call of duty and put this 3 pager together in just three days!!! Not only that, but he also managed to produce what is one of my favourite pages of artwork based on a script I've written so far.

Enjoy, and hopefully I will get the chance to write more Fionn adventures in the future. I had a lot of fun writing this one.

DVD

Tales from the Emerald Isle

"Sinister Dexter: All Malone Again", my first ever script to appear in print format - that is, in actual ink, on actual paper! - appears in this brand new, supercool comic orchestrated and put together by David McDonald.

Its a 28 page black & white fanzine featuring 2000ad characters of Irish origin and I'm really excited about being a part of it. Apart from Sinister Dexter you will find tales featuring Judge Joyce, Maeve the Many Armed, Slough Feg and the Harlem Heroes, all accompanied by some fabulous art.

Only 100 issues have been printed and they are going fast so if you would like to support the venture (And me!) buy one - PLEASE! They won't last long!

More info about how to order can be found HERE.

So whaddaya waitin' fer! Go and buy one. Go on, go on, go on, go on, go on, go on, go ON!!!! :)

The boys are back in town...

...but which town, exactly?

"Tales from the Emerald Isle" is a new 2000ad fanzine being put together by David McDonald, which turns the spotlight on those characters from the comic with Irish blood running through their veins. There are more of them than you would think! Being Irish myself I was eager to get on board with this project and offered my scribing services. The result - a short and snappy Sinister Dexter tale which revisits some places and faces from Finnigan Sinister's past.

It's ironic I've written a Sinister Dexter tale really. When the story first started in the pages of 2000ad I absolutely detested it. Abhored it. Couldn't stand the sight of it! I gave up on reading 2000ad around about then, and every time I considered returning to the comic over the course of the next 10 or so years, I would pick up a copy in the shop, have a quick flick through, find Sinister Dexter was still there...and walk away. Not for me, I thought. Stupid, pointless story.

Fast forward to 2006 and I did come back to the fold, for prog 1500, from which Sinister Dexter were relievingly absent. Or so I thought. In truth, a story called "Malone" which I really, really enjoyed, turned out to be a Sinister Dexter story in disguise, catching me completely off-guard...and making me interested in Sinister Dexter for the very first time. Fast forward again to 2010 and now I own all the Sin Dex trades and the series is one of my favourites ever to appear in the prog!!!! Go figure!!!

Anyway, while you all patiently wait for the release of "Tales from the Emerald Isle", here's a teaser panel from my story, with funting great art by David Blankley. Enjoy...and be sure to pick up "Tales from the Emerald Isle" when it comes out!