After the post yesterday where the writers and artists involved had their say about the DFC it seemed only fair that the rest of us had a chance as well. So I’ve gotten together some quotes from friends, colleagues and people who were kind enough to send comments.
Matthew Badham
‘I’m not really enjoying the DFC,’ says occasional comics journalist and full-time dad Matt Badham, ‘although I highly rate Jim Medway’s strip, Crab Lane Crew, and the work of writer Ben Haggerty and cartoonists John Welding and Sarah McIntyre, who also contribute to the comic.
‘However,’ he continues, ‘when I apply the Doctor Who test to the DFC, it passes with flying colours. If I don’t like an episode of Doctor Who, I ask my 15 year-old nieces what they thought of it and defer to their opinion. Usually their response is that the episode in question was great. I defer to them because, as a 34 year-old man, I’m not the target audience for the show. Likewise, I’m passing my copies of the DFC to my nieces once I’ve finished with them. They’re loving the comic, in particular the strips Sailor Moon and Violet. Job done, I think. I hope the DFC can market itself to enough kids and teengers to survive. Judging by my nieces’ response to the DFC, it deserves to succeed.’
Peter Duncan
We’re slightly older in our household. My daughter is 11 and I’m 48. I initially subscribed to DFC more or less because I felt the enterprise deserved support but it is now a real part of our Friday night/Saturday morning. Love the variety in the art-styles, some good writing and I probably enjoy it more than my weekly 2000AD habit.
What I’m enjoying most about it though, is reading it with my daughter and the impact it has had on her. Comics have ceased to be those weird things Dad likes and are now something she thinks about as a worthwhile medium. So much so that there have been a few early attempts by her to draw her own comics from our bedtime stories into her school art book. Neither of us quite get Mo-Bots but most other stories have been enjoyed by one or the other of us or in most cases both. I was delighted to see Mezolith when it first appeared, very European, very traditional in style and yet it seems to fit in quite neatly. I’ve been working away this weekend so we are an issue behind, but my
daughter is totally captivated by the single image of the Swan Women from Mezolith which appeared on the DFC web-page. I’m delighted with the comic and hope it does well enough to survive for some time to come.
It’s really interesting to see the child’s point of view.
My son, who is six, reads the DFC (because his cartoonist Dad was interested in it … but he does really like it!) He also goes for the funny ones rather than the adventure ones.His friends are also largely unaware of it because it has such a low media profile. It really needs to get into the shops, for longer than a week. I agree about Crab Lane Crew. My first reaction was, “What is all this about?” But when you read a few you realise it’s all about friendship and it’s actually quite moving in places.
And finally, some of the letters and comments from the DFC website.
Thanks very much to the folks at the DFC for permission to reproduce these:
Me and my dad really enjoy the DFC. We think the best stories are Mobot High (bring it back soon!), John Blake, Crab Lane Crew, Spider Moon and Monkey Nuts. Don’t make the strips too cartoony or silly - we like the adventurous ones, and are looking forward to Mezolith.
Katie
We like getting the DFC on Fridays . We take it in turns to read first (not dad). Our favourites are:
Sneaky the cleverest elephant - Molly
Strange Strange World of Weird - Henry
Violet - Kasia
John Blake - Dad
Thanks for the comic!
Kasia, Henry and Molly (and Dad)
I’m still loving all the characters and their crazy adventures. I’m glad Rivet and Sid retrieved the diamond egg. I think Fish-Head Steve is hilarious (where does Jamie get his ideas???) Are their any new strips coming up??? And when’s The Boss coming back??? My sister is eagerly awaiting MO-BOT High.
From James
“Since getting The DFC [my grandson] has suddenly been able to read.” Angela (Grandparent)
“I am the Most Popular Mother ever! My eight year old son has devoured the first issue … and is now rivetted to Desktop Publisher devising his own version. Inspirational!” Alison (Parent)
And lastly, my favourite comment of the lot……
Dear DFC
The DFC means don’t free chimpy.
When will their be more Boss mystery? I like it when the Boss tells everyone what to do and solves the crimes. And I like Lettuce and especially Agent K because he tells everyone how to solve the mystery.
This is my comic.
Love Sonia (age 10)
This is MY comic. That’s exactly how the DFC should be making children feel. And it seems it is doing it very well indeed.
No comments:
Post a Comment