Cor!! Buster Easter Special 2020: Deadly Hedley – The Vamp ‘Tec Heads To Sin CIty!
8th April 2020
It’s a trying time for us all right now and we’ve never needed a good laugh more than now – and that’s just what the Cor!! Buster Easter Special will deliver. Page after page of funnies from the glorious golden age of Brit humour comics, brought up to date by the best in the biz.
Buy now in print and digital >>
There’s so much in here, some you might know, some you might not and all perfect for the next generation of comic readers who, after all this social distancing and staying at home, will be desperate to get their hands on something great to put a smile on their faces.
And here, we’re talking to Rositsa Vangelova and Paul Goodenough, artist and writer on Deadly Hedley, vampire detective, who takes his sleuthing skills over to the neon-lit delights of Sin City, Las Vegas in this repeat outing!
The Cor!! Buster Easter Special 2020 goes on sale Wednesday 8th April 2020 from all good newsagents, whatever comic shops may still be open (please support them however you can!), and through the 2000 AD and Treasury of British Comics web shops.
Rositsa, Paul, lovely to speak to you both. Rositsa, it’s great to have you onboard for your first work here at the Rebellion family
Rositsa Vangelova: Hi Richard, thank you for giving me the chance to share some information about me and the cool project through this interview. Sorry for the late reply, but my kid was sick ( he is fine now) and I’m in the last month of a pregnancy and just couldn’t concentrate. Hopefully, it’s not too late! It’s been complete chaos here in Bulgaria as well. Hopefully everything will go back to normal soon and people can go out as usual again. Staying at home all the time it is really difficult.
Congratulations! Another 2000 AD family baby! Glad to hear you’re keeping safe and yes, we all hope it’s all going to go back to normal asap! As for Deadly Hedley, this is your first strip I can remember seeing (forgive me if I’m wrong) – what’s your background?
RV: I come from an animation background, having studied 2D animation in New Bulgarian University, Sofia city. I have been an illustrator for series of children books. Currently, I work for a gaming company in the casino industry. I also work as a freelance illustrator and 2D artist.
Is Deadly Hedley a strip you remember from your youth or are you far too young for that? If so, was it a case of going back over the old strips and studying the style of the old one?
RV: I’ve loved comics since I was a kid. When I read and look at them, I imagine that the comics are like little storyboards for animation and my imagination is playing the “movie” in my head. The old comics with the simple style and great, fun stories and characters had always amazed me. I’ve been learning from old comic artists a lot through my work experience. That’s why I was so excited to have the opportunity to study the style of these artists even more deeply and to draw a Deadly Headley comic.
And have you adjusted your style at all for this one?
RV: This is the first comic that I had done so far. Usually, for my illustrations and characters design, I use many colours all at once, but for this comic I’ve tried to stay consistent with the style of Deadly Hedley. To do that I did research and looked at many references before starting to draw. I had so much fun with this one and the process resembled a lot my usual workflow. To sum it up I usually have to almost always adjust to a specific style for the task at hand. I see it as a good thing, and a chance to grow as an artist.
Hopefully, we’ll see more of these kids specials coming from the Treasury of British Comics. And thinking ahead, what other characters would you love to get your hands on in the future from the massive archive at the Treasury of British Comics?
RV: I like that kind of spooky characters like Deadly Headly and the atmosphere that those characters create. I think it would be fun for me to draw a comic for Frankie Stein and/or Scream Inn.
Paul Goodenough: I’m a massive British comics fan – I’ve got everything from Valiant to Battle to Cor!! and Buster (of course) But for me, the one I miss most and think is most overdue for a renewal is Storm Force… I’m a massive fan of that strip and I’m desperate for it to make a comeback. It managed to connect my tiny child mind to a worldwide landscape of maniacal spider villains and weird with an amazing disregard for human life. What’s not to like?!?
Have you had any feedback from people indicating that we’ve seen new readers picking the comic up?
PG: Absolutely. Last year I bought a box full and gave them to local schools and reading groups, and from that I know a whole bunch of new young readers have picked up their own copies, and started reading comics.
Amazingly for me, many of them had never actually read a comic despite having Spider-man bags and Batman t-shirts. I find it such a shame that despite our best efforts, kids just aren’t really as connected or as able to get comics as my generation was – but I’m doing all I can to change that.
What do you think is the way forward for kids comics? Is it something along the lines of the Cor!! Buster Special publishing a few issues per year and then delivering a bigger collection, or is it some type of original graphic novel format such as we see with Telgemeier and Pilkey?
PG: It’s a hard one. I personally love regular comics, so every Saturday becomes ‘comic day’ when kids can have their weekly fix. I personally find that an annual launch means there’s impetus lost over the year, and you need to reintroduce the characters and the brands again as readers will have forgotten what’s gone before.
I do realise that Rebellion have a really tough job however, they’re doing amazing things when no one else was prepared to take the risk; so I’m personally really grateful that the team there is so invested in bringing the best in British comics back to life again.
And what do you hope to see happening with some more adult-focused comics in the future?
PG: For more adult-focused brands, I’d love to see something akin to the Marvel Max imprint with brands like Punisher and Moon Knight. What I’d love to see is Rebellion commissioning or allowing a grittier reimagining of much-loved characters with some really inspirational and original storytellers. Storytellers who are prepared to take risks and make it ‘theirs’ rather than just playing it safe. I think this is needed if the brands are to penetrate a crowded marketplace while appealing to the core audience which let’s face it, is middle-aged men. In terms of comedy comics, I’d love to see them released three times a year (Spring, Summer and Winter specials), but given Covid-19, I can’t see that being possible anytime soon.
Thank you so much to Paul and Rositsa for finding the time amidst illness and quarantine to answer a few questions. Stay safe and keep happy everyone! Look out for one another, wash your hands, and remember that we’re all going to get through this… together apart!
The Cor!! Buster Easter Special 2020 goes on sale Wednesday 8th April 2020 from all good newsagents, whatever comic shops may still be open (please support them however you can!), and through the 2000 AD and Treasury of British Comics web shops.