Gadget Is Here For The Birthday (Comic-Book Style)

It's my birthday today, and I kind of feel like posting something... so how's this for a semi-narsissistic change of pace? It's the cover of a British comic book issue which was in stores just around the time I was born in 1988.

This is issue number 3 (February-March 1988) of a short-lived, UK comic book magazine published bi-monthly by Marvel Comics in London. Marvel had nothing to do with producing the magazine's contents; they simply translated and adapted issues of the French "Inspecteur Gadget" magazine published by Greantori for several years in the 80s. Greantori's comics were adapted from TV episodes, and were for the most part pretty awful: Badly paced storytelling coupled with amateurish drawings which were usually traced off of stills from the given episode. The one saving grace was the cover art, which almost always looked terrific. The covers were also based on existing artwork - model sheets, promotional art or episode motives - but were much better drawn than anything inside.

I quite like the above cover for Marvel's third issue. Yeah, the characters are posed somewhat generically, and there are some off-model colors, but Gadget, Penny and Brain still look very, very nice. I also like the gallery of faces in the left-hand margin, and the title logo here looks noticeably better than the classic American merchandising logo (with the possible exception of the squeezed "O", which seems to be redrawn from the "U" in the French "Inspecteur Gadget" logo).

The entire cover for Marvel's No. 3 was clearly taken from the French Greantori publication "album n°2" which I believe collected several stories from the standard magazine issues. I don't know the exact publication date of the French album, but here it is for comparison:

And that's not all for this motive, either. To continue the game of connect-the-dots: in 1993, the German publisher Bastei-Verlag used it for a one-off "Inspektor Gadget" comic published as issue 9 of their magazine series "Bastei Fernseh-Comic" ("television comic"). This time, however, the actual Greantori artwork was not used. Bastei's cover is apparently traced from the Greantori art instead, for whatever reason (specifically from the Marvel cover, I think, looking at the juxtaposition of elements and Gadget's speech bubble) - and it has to be said that the inking and character drawing is not nearly as accomplished as on the French and British covers. Still interesting to see, though.

Gadget's speech bubble line: "There is no problem that is a problem to me!"
The story inside is based on the episode "Gadget's Replacement". Its German TV episode 
title is actually "Arbeitslos", but it's titled "Die Computer-falle" in this comic book.

(With thanks to GC for providing the magazine images seen in this post.)

Viper's Inspector Gadget Comic Gets Published in Spain

Well... what do you know?

It seems that Viper Comics' first Inspector Gadget issue (yes, issue -- I still can't get myself to call it a graphic novel when it's only 40+ pages long) is going abroad. If I'm interpreting the facts I've found correctly, the comics department of the Barcelonian publishing house La Galera is publishing "Inspector Gadget: Gadget on the Orient Express" in Spanish (left) and Catalan (right) language editions on February 21, 2012.

I'm sorta surpriced to see this happening in Spain before a country like France, which is probably still the place in the world where Gadget's popularity ranks the highest. On the other hand, it's nice to see the Inspector's new comic book extend its reach outside the United States, even if the comic itself is not exactly perfect.

(Almost New) Podcast Interview with Gadget's Comic Book Writer

Here's a bit of old news that passed me by: Back in March, Gadget writer Dale Mettam appeared on The Outhouse Pirate Podcast, where he was interviewed about all things Viper Comics... and among many other subjects, his work on the then-upcoming Inspector Gadget book. If you skip to about 00:37:45 on the audio player, you can hear Dale talk for a few minutes about how he approached the job of writing Inspector Gadget in the 21st century while still staying true to the original series. One of the most interesting parts is probably when Mettam is asked about what he thinks is the basic appeal of Inspector Gadget, for both new and old audiences:

Interviewer: What would you say (...) was the charm that (...) even today (...) could keep Inspector Gadget such a fun property? 

Dale Mettam: Well, I kinda suspect that... I mean, realistically, remembering as a kid, it was very much kinda like (...)... you really want to get from Penny's point of view. And, it's kinda like, you know; you have this uncle who is, relatively speaking, a superman; he can do... pretty much anything and everything. And yet, you're still the one who saves the day. I think, you know, a lot of kids kinda feel like that. It's kinda like: "Yeah, yeah, mom and dad... whoever... you know, they're the ones who make all the rules (...) - but I know what I'm doing! That's not a problem!" Now, most kids don't, and, you know, they kinda learn that along the way... [but] it, it's a cool fantasy to kinda, like, live with and, you know, play up! So, you know, it's just fun. 

I very much agree with what Mettam says here... it IS a cool fantasy! There's nothing overly original about the "Kids are smarter than adults" theme, but it can be most effective when done right. Speaking of which... Mr. Mettam, I really hope you give Penny more to do in the next comic book issue. She needs to get in on the action if we are to truly "live with the fantasy". Just a suggestion:)

Get Signed Gadget Comics For Free at the NC Comicon

It's the Free Comic Book Day all over again! Well, not quite. But check the below picture to find out what, when and where:

And to quote Viper Comics themselves:

Want to get some free Viper Comics goodness? 

Want to get a signed copy of Viper Comics’ Inspector Gadget and Johnny Test books?
Make sure you swing by the NC Comic Con on November 5th and 6th. Editor-in-Chief and writer of some of Viper’s most recent smash hit comics, Dale Mettam, will be at the con signing and giving away some free Viper comics.

So, if you live in Morrisville, North Carolina or nearby - and if you want a free copy of Viper Comics' first Inspector Gadget issue, signed by writer Dale Mettam - you now know where to be on November 5th and/or 6th.

I find it interesting, by the way, that Dale Mettam is described as "Editor-in-Chief and writer of some of Viper’s most recent smash hit comics". Does this mean that Inspector Gadget and Johnny Test were both sales successes? That would be very pleasant news for the Gadget franchise.

The Future of Inspector Gadget, under Cookie Jar (?)

A forum thread on the Bluray.com site got me thinking about Inspector Gadget's potential future. The question discussed in the thread was, will we ever see Inspector Gadget (1983) on Blu-ray? Here's what forum member BluAtreyu (probably someone who worked on the Shout! factory DVD box set) had to say about the matter:

Speaking as someone with a VERY intimate knowledge of this series (I helped put DIC shows on DVD), I know that the masters of these shows are not in the best shape, and would need some heavy restoration to be anywhere near HD quality (we are talking some very heavy repainting, cleaning, sound mixing...).

Add that to the fact that the show has never sold well either as a single disc or box set, the demand is just not high enough to justify the money and time that would need to go into getting these "Blu-Ray ready." Also, INSPECTOR GADGET is now owned by Cookie Jar since DIC is no more, and Cookie Jar just doesn't have the same history and affection for the show that the folks at DIC had. At DIC, it was the Mickey Mouse of the company - at Cookie Jar it is just another title they got in a big bundle of old 80s show titles. 

I'm not saying it will never happen (I love the show and pushed it very hard while I was working on it), but I would SERIOUSLY not hold your breath. 

Sadly, I suspect BluAtreyu is right on this one... but only to an extent. It's true that Inspector Gadget was DiC Entertainment's flagship property, but at the same time, it's no less true that DiC did some awful things to the Gadget franchise during their last 10-15 years with it. The live-action movies, for instance: Sure, they made some quick bucks when released, but in the long run I think they may have damaged the franchise more than they've helped it. Simply because they were awful movies.

It is also true that the Cookie Jar Company (which took over Gadget and the rest of DiC in 2008) does not have that same history and affection for the show... but I think Cookie Jar overall seems like a pretty different animal than DiC. So far, they haven't done anything truly horrible to Gadget; at least nowhere near the awfulness of Disney's live-action movies and DiC's two direct-to-video films from the last decade. This may be partly because Cookie Jar doesn't need to do so much with Inspector Gadget. They are a larger company than DiC ever was, with other titles that are far more profitable and popular among younger generations than a Saturday Morning cartoon from the early 1980s. In that respect, what BluAtreyu says is right: Gadget is more or less one of the titles in "a big bundle of old 80s show titles". And in most countries, the U.S. included, the show still hasn't even made it to DVD in complete form. (France is one of the very few exceptions to this rule.) But that doesn't mean Cookie Jar has declared the franchise dead... it's just hit something of a low spot for the last decade or so.

For Inspector Gadget to get back into the public eye - and to even be considered for the full Blu-ray treatment - I think the franchice needs a serious boost in its popularity, a resurgence of some kind. I'm hoping that Viper's new comic book can help start such a resurgence... but that, I think, is dependent on the comic book improving significantly from its first issue (which had good intentions, but ultimately didn't live up to its potential). Too many times, I think, revivals of Inspector Gadget have failed simply because they haven't been good enough (Inspector Gadget's Biggest Caper Ever, anyone?). This has a devastating effect on the franchise as a whole. After all, there's no better way of ruining a popular character's reputation than by putting out a lot of junk with that character's name on it. Keep it up, and audiences eventually grow tired of the character. That's pretty much what DiC achieved when they put out two god-awful live-action movies and two horrendous direct-to-video animated films in rapid succession between 1999 and 2005. (Seriously, Inspector Gadget's Last Case was Gadget's worst moment EVER in animation!)

I do get the feeling that Cookie Jar, ever since they took over Inspector Gadget, has been trying to quietly turn that trend around. They've been trying to replace bad Inspector Gadget products with good ones, or at least better ones than what DiC gave us. Since they gained ownership of the franchise, we've gotten not only a very cool iPhone/iPad game that has actually become something of a hit among gamers... but also, of course, the first issue of a brand new comic book. Both the game and the comic book share a common factor: They are trying to go back to the roots of Inspector Gadget, to find the core that originally made him popular back in 1983. The M.A.D. Dash game even uses Shuki Levy's original theme song as its background music! After years of DiC's ill-conceived and unsuccessful attempts to tinker with the franchise, it's nice to see Cookie Jar apparently taking Inspector Gadget back to basics. If this approach works, and more people start liking the franchise again, then maybe -- just maybe -- we will someday see an HD version of the original series make it to Blu-ray. And even better... maybe a brand new cartoon series starring Inspector Gadget will be produced... and for once, this new series will be both good and successful among audiences. It can all happen. We just need something to start the snowball rolling.

Even if all of this were to happen, though, it's probably still some years down the road. But in the meantime, we can always dream...

Here's hoping that one day, the original show looks as good on Blu-ray as this original cel looks on my laptop! 

My Condensed Review of Inspector Gadget's Comic Book, Issue 1

As regular readers of this blog knows, my in-depth comic book review of Gadget on the Orient Express is running extremely late. The thing is, I have read the book... but with my studies going full speed, I just haven't had the time (or the good conscience) to delve into writing a full review. And at the moment, I'm afraid I have no idea when I'll have the time, either. So to tide you over, I decided this morning to type a very short review where I try to sum up the most important pros and cons of the first issue...

There were things that I liked with the book and there were several things that I didn't like. The artwork was uneven, to say the least, and sometimes looked extremely rushed. I do hope José Cobá gets a much better grip on the Gadget characters with time. Also, I wish the story could have been much longer, ideally divided into two parts (the story in the book is exactly 45 pages long). The way it is now, it feels like the story ends just when the action is really getting started... I didn't feel satisfied at the end, like I would after one of the best TV episodes. And that's too bad, because Dale Mettam's script has a lot of details and touches which I really appreciate, and which really helps this book feel like the classic Inspector Gadget - in parts, at least.

The script's biggest weakness is probably that Penny has way too little to do. Penny is a very important character to the Inspector Gadget universe but for some reason she gets neglected in almost every revival I've seen. Penny is more or less the heart of Inspector Gadget. Her love for her uncle is what keeps Gadget alive (remember, she's the one who at times has to talk Brain into protecting him); and the fight between good and evil is not really a fight between Gadget and Dr. Claw, it's between Penny and Dr. Claw. Penny also represents the pure action parts of the TV show's story lines. While Brain is running around saving Gadget from M.A.D., Penny goes on high-brow adventures trying to uncover and stop the crime Dr. Claw is up to. She often gets into real perils, and most often has to be saved by Brain... but in the end, she's the one to defeat Dr. Claw. To sum up - I really, really want to see Penny get in on the action in the next issue. Because that's where she belongs.

Same with Dr. Claw, by the way. In the TV series, the awesome super-villain is at his best - and most dangerous - when he's personally flying around in his M.A.D. jet shooting missiles at Gadget and friends (or using those missiles/lasers to carry out M.A.D's crime). Now that's action!... and it's something I missed from this first issue. Let's have Dr. Claw back as a hands-on villain the next time around.

All in all, Viper Comics' Inspector Gadget does have potential... and I appreciate that they're trying to go back to the core of the 1983 series. But if this comic book is to succeed, I think both the writing and the art needs to be tightened and improved. The writing needs to give us more (longer/tighter stories, better balance between the characters), and the art needs to find its characters and generally be more solid/less rushed. Despite these weaknesses, I will encourage people to buy the book and check it out for themselves. Let's give it a chance and see if the following issues manage to improve on things!

A Quick Reminder...

...for those of you who prefer getting your comic books in a shop: Inspector Gadget's first issue from Viper Comics hits U.S. shelves TODAY according to what editor Jessie Garza told me twelve days ago. Look for Inspector Gadget: Gadget on the Orient Express in every book store/comic shop you're in.

Personally, I bought the book just a few days after online ordering became possible, so it's kinda ironic that I'm still waiting for my copy by this point. But I guess shipping to Europe does take its time. When I do get to read the book, my plan is to post an in-depth review of it right here. But that's not all... I have several other plans for this blog, including:

- A walk-through of Inspector Gadget's history in comic strips, from the 80s up until today. (That's right, Viper's effort is far from the first one to translate the Inspector into comic strip form!)
- A presentation of an original UK Annual starring Inspector Gadget, published in the 1980s.
- Gadget's ugliest cover art ever

   ...and, to quote the special features section of a DVD cover, MUCH MORE!!!

In other words, stay tuned. My studies are keeping me pretty occupied right now, so it's hard to tell exactly when I get the time to blog about all this cool stuff. Hopefully before too long. In the meantime, buy/read the comic and don't hesitate to comment here if you've got any viewpoints/opinions about it. Did you like it? Didn't you like it? If so, why? In a little while, you'll certainly be getting a lot of my opinions about it;)

How to Pay More for the Comic Book

My, how time flies. At least it felt like it must have when I suddenly came across the first issue of Inspector Gadget's comic book on Ebay - merely a week after its publisher, Viper Comics, first made it available to online customers. And the Ebay pricing is even four cents more expensive than it would be to buy the book directly from the publisher. I must say it's amazing how quickly the collector's value for comic books is rising these days.

Buy The Comic Book NOW from Viper's Online Store (or Amazon)!

Yep, just checked!... Inspector Gadget is officially listed for sale at Viper Comics' online Book Store! Click here to buy the 48-page book for $5.95! (Or alternatively, buy it on Amazon if you prefer that. It seems to be in stock at a lot of online places right now, which is probably the best confirmation we can get for the fact that the comic book you see right below these words is FINALLY OUT! :)

Oh, and before I forget: Viper's store is also offering two other versions of the Gadget comic. One, the Free Comic Book Day Issue with the first 15 pages (for $0.99); and two, the San Diego Comic Con Issue, which is just like the regular 48-page issue except for a specially drawn cover which makes it more expensive ($7.95). There, now you know. Happy purchasing! 

Edit: The Comic Book is In Stores August 31, Available from Viper's Online Store This Weekend

A small correction on the status of the comic book: I recently posted a comment on Viper Comics' web site asking about Gadget's exact release date, and editor Jessie Garza responded:

Posted by Jessie on 19 August 11 at 6:36am

Sorry for the confusion. The book will be in stores on the last Wednesday of this month. Inspector Gadget book can also be purchased from the Amazon.com and also will be live for orders on the Viper Store ( http://www.viperbookstore.com/ ) as of this Weekend.

Jessie

In other words, the book is not out in stores right now - but will be in 12 days, as of Wednesday, August 31. Those not wishing to wait that long can order it online from Viper (and probably other retailers as well, though Amazon still hasn't got the book in stock) as of this weekend! (A quick check reveals that the book hasn't been listed at Viper's Book Store just yet, but the weekend is still young...)

And yes, the Viper Comics Book Store does ship overseas. I asked about that, too;).

Inspector Gadget's Comic Book is Out This Week; Thumbs Up (Mostly) from Detroit News

This August 16 review by Eric Henderson of Geek Watch (Detroit News) seems to confirm that Inspector Gadget: Gadget on the Orient Express will not be delayed until December. Here's the very first thing Henderson writes in his brief review:

"Viper is releasing a couple licensed kid titles this week, “Inspector Gadget” and “Johnny Test.”

So there you have it. Issue 1 of Inspector Gadget's comic book is getting released this week. While the delay didn't turn out to be as long-lasting as feared, I still think Viper could have made some kind of announcement regarding the fact that one of their books were a month-and-a-half behind schedule. But at least it is out.

I'll try to get hold of the book and review it myself as soon as possible - but for now, I'll point you to Eric Henderson's review, which seems mostly enthusiastic about Gadget:

"I was a big “Inspector Gadget” fan as a kid, (...) so it was a treat to read that. (...) 

"The book flows pretty well like an “IG” episode, and I could still hear the original voices in my head as I read."

Henderson does point out one drawback, which I agree with to an extent:

"The only place that the book fell short was in the art. The characters are recognizable, but Penny’s face is a bit off, and Gadget’s face looks almost unrecognizable in a few spots. It also appears the pages were drawn for a physically larger product, so sequences feel cramped in the current format somewhere between standard comic and digest. Odd shadow work in the coloring doesn’t help."

I've felt much the same way about José Cobá's artwork, I must admit, while reading the 15 preview pages. Henderson's comments on Gadget and Penny's faces are dead-on; and I'll try to elaborate on this in my own, future review. Still, I think Cobá's shadow work can be defended, as that style of shadowing - or close to it, anyway - was used extensively in the original TV show. (Of course, the book's shrunk format perhaps being too small for this kind of shadowing is another matter.)

Anyhow... until next time, be on the lookout for THIS in comic shops - and please tell us in the comments when you do find the book in a shop, just to confirm once and for all that it truly is released!

EDIT: The book is not out in stores this week. It will be available for online ordering as of this weekend, but won't hit the store shelves until August 31. Check my latest post on the subject.

What The New Inspector Gadget Comic Might Have Looked Like

Found these on deviantArt a little while back and realized I had to post them here. This comic page (above) and pin-up illustration (below) are official Inspector Gadget art samples done by comic artist Andy "ND!" Genen for Viper Comics! 

   You see, back when Viper were trying to decide on the artist for their upcoming Inspector Gadget book, they apparently arranged a so-called "tryout" to find that person... letting several artists draw their version of the Gadget universe. So these are the samples that Mr. Genen produced for that assignment.

Genen's Inspector Gadget didn't make the cut, but his samples give a fun glimpse into an alternative interpretation of the Inspector in comic book form. Here's what the artist himself says about the experience (in his deviantArt comment for the pin-up):

"This was a pin-up I did for the "Inspector Gadget"-tryout at Viper Comics. Attentive followers of my stuff may recognize the background I recycled here (in fact, I had less than 24 hours to crank out a page and a pin-up...and within those 24 hours, I had no electricity for about 5 hours...)
I had SO MUCH FUN drawing those characters!!"

Despite the harsh deadline and electricity shortage, I have a feeling Genen is really genuine when shouting out how FUN it was. There's a real sense of fun to his artwork, at least - though the characters do look pretty odd at times (especially Penny - what happened to her nose and hands??). But that oddness is part of the fun!

(Oh, that's right: Click here to visit the main deviantArt page of Mr. Genen and check out some of the other cool stuff he's drawing.)

SECOND FIRST LOOK: The Rest of Inspector Gadget's Comic Book Preview

Since we're still waiting for that first, official issue of Viper's comic book, I thought I might as well post the rest of the preview pages included with the Inspector Gadget: M.A.D Dash iPad game (especially seeing as that game is currently available for free on iTunes). A full review of these comic pages is on its way - but meanwhile, read for yourself and let us know what you think! Presenting pages 6-15 of Dale Mettam and José Cobá's Inspector Gadget on the Orient Express (continuing where we left off in my February 14 post)...

Page 6...

Page 7 and 8...

...page 9...

...page 10-11...

...page 12-13...

...AND page 14-15, ending the preview with a genuine splash (page)!

When Are We Getting The Comic Book?

Well, Inspector Gadget's official, first comic book issue from Viper Comics should supposedly have been out in June - but still no physical sign of it anywhere according to the various retailers I've asked here in Atlanta, Georgia (where I'm currently vacationing). One Barnes and Noble store suggested that it was either sold out or never printed, and another was 99% certain it had never been printed. So there ya go. Adding to this, Dave's Comics and Collectibles thinks it won't be out until August. They sound like they know what they're talking about so I'll treat that thinking as a fact until something else turns up. Not least because Viper's official site says nothing whatsoever about this delay...

UPDATE (August 1): According to the good people at Oxford Comics and Games, the first issue of Viper Comics' Inspector Gadget series is currently scheduled for December 28, 2011(!). This is, of course, a mysteriously long delay for a book which is reportedly already written and drawn. Oxford's theory: It's simply a temporary estimate from Viper because they don't know as of yet exactly when the book will be out. The guy I was talking to still thought it might be published within the next couple of months.

UPDATE #2 (August 18): The comic book is apparently out. Check my other update.

FIRST LOOK: Inspector Gadget's New Comic Book!

Presenting the first 5 pages of Viper Comics' upcoming Inspector Gadget book, written by Dale Mettam and illustrated by José Cobá. Feel free to discuss in the comments section below!

Page 1....

Page 2-3...

...and page 4-5.