But, of course, all of that pales into insignificance because it will forever go down in history, thanks to just one incident, and one incident alone.
And that was the legendary moment when US president Jimmy Carter was attacked by a rabbit.
If I remember rightly, he might have been in a boat when it happened and it was an attack that could chill the marrow in a man's very soul but, to be honest, other than that, I know little. What was the rabbit's motivation? Who won the epic battle? Did it stick to his face, to be followed, three days later, by a new, younger rabbit bursting out of his chest before going on a deadly rampage in the corridors of the White House? I couldn't say.
But it is amazing how such a thing has stuck in my memory when more world-shaking events from the time have faded from mind.
Inevitably, what hasn't stuck in my memory are this month's issues of 2000 AD. Not only can I not remember their contents but I can't even claim to recall any of their covers, making this feature even more hopeless than ever.
The only things that strike me from looking at them are that one of them bears the title The City of Lost Souls which brings to mind Blondie's 1982 single Island of Lost Souls and its notoriously drug-addled video which has to be one of the most clueless promos in the history of music. Meanwhile, Prog 108 semi-references the band Dr Feelgood and, on the cover of Prog 110, Dan Dare seems to have teamed up with some sort of Mekon creature with a normal-sized head. Does this mean that most members of the Mekon's race have normal-sized heads and only he has a noggin the size of a beach ball?
If so, it at least means I've learnt one thing from this post, so it hasn't been a total waste of time.
Some sort of Mekon creature with a normal-sized head? That would be a Treen then, Steve.
ReplyDeleteYou weren't struck that these covers were drawn by Carlos Ezquerra, Dave Gibbons - both of them Fury cover artists extraordinaire ;) - and the mighty Mike McMahon?
If I recall correctly, prog 110 had the first Dredd episode to follow the Judge Cal storyline "Punks Rule", notable for its rather zarjaz Brian Bolland artwork.
Tharg was clearly playing a blinder in the first half of '78.
-sean
I did wonder if it was a Treen but I've read in a million and one places that Terry Nation may have stolen the idea for the Daleks from the Treens in, "Dan Dare," and I couldn't see how the person on the cover resembles a Dalek.
ReplyDeleteReally?
ReplyDeleteThat does seem a bit of a far-fetched accusation, especially considering Frank Hampson said he based the Treens on the Nazis. Not exactly an usual source for fictional villainy.
Btw, on the subject of Dan Dare, that Gibbons cover reminds me of how little thought went into the continued attempts to reboot the character in 2000AD - that costume is terrible (although at least he doesn't seem to have that metal hand - or glove or whatever it was - yet)
Dave Gibbons had such a Hampson influenced style it would have made more sense to do it completely retro.
-sean
Doing a little research before you blog will work wonders.
ReplyDelete