ComicBitsOnline.com

Bye-Bye Dandy!

 

Yes,tis true.  the UKs longest running weekly comic,The Dandy,is no more.  It is now fortnightly and retitled,after 70 years,to Dandy Comix -an insert in Dandy Xtreme.

And why?  Well,for one,I am not buying into Thomsons excuse,or shall I be kind and call it “reason”?

According to Dandy Editor Craig Graham:

“Following extensive research, we discovered The Dandy readers were struggling to schedule a weekly comic into their hectic lives. They just didn’t have enough time.

“They’re too busy gaming, surfing the net or watching TV, movies and DVDs.”

 ”They still enjoyed The Dandy, but if they were going to buy it themselves they expected more than just ‘a comic my dad used to read’.

“They required a guide, packed with the stuff kids need to know to stay in the loop - a lifestyle magazine attuned to their hectic lives, featuring all the latest trends, must-haves, must-sees and must-dos.

“They made us promise to retain comics, but suggested we make our characters cheekier, edgier, and more extreme.”

Well..what a load of rot!  Thomson desperately tried updating The Dandy so we got The New Dandy.  Some good art but the ’soul’ of the comic was gone.  All the weekly free gifts in the World were not going to change that.

This excuse that it is what the reader wanted doesn’t wash.  It is accepted now by businesses that if things are failing or you can’t be bothered putting more cash into something you cancel or scrub it “because customers” demanded it.

The local Council cut vital services that were just not bringing in money and those services were cancelled “because customers requested this” -right.  Local seats in several parks were removed by the authority “at public request”!  A bus service is cut because it isn’t making a huge profit “because customers ask for changes”-and fare rises!

If you are telling me that people buying The Dandy could “not fit” reading through a weekly comic due to hectic lifestyle then my response is make the comic fortnightly or bump up the pages making it a monthly.

But,trying to make it fashionable [again] by changing format once more and using the very 1990s “Xtreme”,means you are very desperate.  Sales could not be that good in the first place.

In my Annual Report On The British Comics Industry [published yearly between 1985-2001],I predicted that Thomson weeklies such as The Dandy would flounder -even after its “New Dandy” re-styling.

Thomson has the characters in its archives that could make a difference but they keep plodding on with the same mind-set that will eventually call for the Dandy Comix/Dandy Xtreme to be re-titled The Dodo.

 

DENNIS & GNASHER NOVEL PACK

Double the fun!
A FUN-tastic offer. Two Dennis andandGnasher Novels for only £3.99.

HEEBIE JEEBIE HOLIDAY
“No one escapes from Fort Fearsome”! Dennis’s holiday hadn’t even started and already it was a disaster.What happens next has to be read to be believed! Spooks, shipwrecks, and sinister, scary secret signs - this strange and silly story has them all!

MONSTER SURPRISE
“If I tell you something, Dennis, you’ve got to promise that you’ll never tell anyone. It’s a really big secret.”

When Dennis the Menace meets Rory the Rascal, he has no idea he is about to get involved in one of the world’s greatest mysteries! Nail biting stuff (and a lot of laughs!) from our favourite Menace!

£3.99

2007 Annuals

Remember;if you want to order annuals online you can visit Thomsons site at

http://ecommerce1.dcthomson.co.uk/

60 Years Of Dandy & Beano -A Seventies Selection

Prepare to be transported back in time to the 1970’s, where you’ll find Minnie The Minx with a tank top, Roger The Dodger in bell-bottoms, Korky as The Cat With The Hat, and the first appearance of favourites such as Ball Boy, Cuthbert Cringeworthy (of Bash Street School) and the Jocks and the Geordies -and you’ll meet Corporal Clott’s Mum and even Grandpa’s Dad!!  All that and Dennis The Menace,Desperate Dan and [YAY!] General Jumbo.

144 pages full colour

Size:200×300mm

£4.63

BEANO Annual 2007

Still the UK’s favourite Christmas stocking filler after over 65 years of making kids of all ages laugh.  This chart- topping annual features the usual gang of rogues – Dennis and Gnasher, The Bash Street Kids, Roger The Dodger, Minnie The Minx and all the rest.  Sit back and enjoy

the fun – no batteries required!

144 Pages Full Colour
Size: 191mm x 278mm

£3.63

DENNIS THE MENACE 2007

The spiky-haired little tearaway and his faithful hound, Gnasher, return with their special brand of mayhem. Loved by generations of comic fans, the terrible twosome provide more mischief than Jamie Oliver in a canteen of dinner ladies.

96 Pages Full Colour
Size: 191mm x 278mm

£3.50

DANDY ANNUAL 2007

The world’s longest- running comic has been going since 1937, so it’s no surprise that The Dandy Annual has become as much a Christmas tradition as a post-turkey snooze.  No matter how busy the festive season is, make sure you don’t miss your chance to catch up with comic legends 

 Desperate Dan and Bananaman, and have a laugh with the new kids on

the block, Jak and Ollie Fliptrik.Young or old, everyone’s a kid when they

 read it!

144 Pages Full Colour
Size: 191mm x 278mm 

£3.63

THE BASH STREET KIDS ANNUAL 2007

The tiny terrors from class IIB at Bash Street School drive Teacher crazy but get A+ when it comes to making kids laugh.  Danny, Spotty, Plug, Fatty, Smiffy, ‘Erbert, Wilfrid, Toots and Sidney – they’re in a class of their own!

96 Pages Full Colour
Size: 191mm x 278mm

 £3.50