Mark Millar's CLiNT

[ShayMay]

As seen here (swearies).

Has Millar's Nemesis, a sequel to Kick-Ass, and strips and interviews with celebrities such as Frankie Boyle and Johnathan Ross.

Rather watch a whole episode of Eldorado, etc.

[madhair60]

I assume it's called CLiNT because of the old "rule" in newsprint comics that you absolutely can't use the words "flick" or "clint", due to the paper's absorbency meaning that you can never be sure of a blank space between the "L" and the "i".

That's kind of clever yet also a bit, well, [censored]y. I assume they're hoping it'll be misread from afar and shock granny.

[L. T. Dangerous]

I've got the first issue. Kick-Ass 2 starts well but there's evidently been a bit of a timeskip so so far not much makes sense. Turf is good but exceptionally wordy with loads of concepts crashing together. Not read the other strips yet.

I feel as though the articles are there purely so it can be labelled a "lads mag" rather than a comic. Which is what it is.

Stu, that's precisely why it's called CLiNT.

I want this to do well, I think the UK comics market needs it. Time will tell, though...

[madhair60]

I''m torn, because UK comics obviously need to do well, but equally this publication is pish and the articles are basically Nuts/Zoo calibre. Frankie Boyle's on the cover for God's sake.

[ShayMay]

I like Frankie Boyle.
But yes, it is mince.

[L. T. Dangerous]

I hope the articles are phased out over time and are just here to earn a fanbase who wouldn't normally buy comics. They are toss, however, and while I do love Frankie Boyle, he's clearly only on the cover so people say "That's Frankie Boyle! Let's buy that, I bet it's well funny!" and then they'll never buy it again.

Surely a publication that is just a comic would do well with Mark Millar's name on the front. The problem isn't that there aren't people who will buy comics- it's demonstrably a profitable market. The problem is that UK publishers are [censored] scared of aiming comics at anyone over 10. CLiNT ought to be the publication to challenge that and say "It's okay, really, there's money here".

EDIT: Okay, I've just read Rex Royd part one and I'm not entirely sure Frankie hasn't fallen off the wagon. The articles further convince me they have no place here. I'm not sure what that Manson Family article was originally written for, no way did Mark Millar say to someone "Mate, perfect opportunity for you for that Manson piece of yours- we're gonna put it in a comic!!". And I have an interview with that prick from that film to look forward to. Great.

[Mambo's Here! Look Busy!]

Sept 4, 2010 22:23:25 GMT L. T. Dangerous said:

The problem is that UK publishers are [censored] scared of aiming comics at anyone over 10. CLiNT ought to be the publication to challenge that and say "It's okay, really, there's money here".

And even comics marketed to those under 10 are becoming "kid's lifestyle" magazines...

This looks like an adult version of *coughEgmont'scough* Toxic magazine... I'm half expecting it to be giving away free whoopee cushions...

[L. T. Dangerous]

Finished reading it. Nemesis has promise. The articles are all worthless. They could have fit in at least one more comic strip instead of such pish.

[Beeth]

So I saw the first issue of CLiNT in Tesco's this evening. Decided to have a FLiCK through it.

.

[Charles]

Sept 4, 2010 22:23:25 GMT L. T. Dangerous said:

EDIT: Okay, I've just read Rex Royd part one and I'm not entirely sure Frankie hasn't fallen off the wagon.

What the hell WAS that crap? What was the point of it, where was the humour, why does it exist?

The UK needs a comic like CLiNT, but after the first issue I'm not sure if CLiNT is that comic.

[L. T. Dangerous]

Issue two sort of confirms that CLiNT isn't what it needs to be.

Kick-Ass 2 progresses at a snail's pace, with a pathetically weedy page count, meaning not enough happens and it's over before you know it.

Nothing really happens in part two of Turf. The alien is an addition too far to the story. Mobsters and vampires I can handle, the overlap works. The alien is too much and, two parts in, has added nothing to the plot.

American Jesus shows promise but it's been out for ages so why shouldn't I just buy the graphic novel? It's obviously been included as a safety strip for when they run out of issues of Millar's US-published comics to reprint.

Nemesis is still cool, but obviously it's early days there so a lot of story is yet to be told. Won't be long before they run out of comic, actually, issue four's only just out.

Rex Royd is [censored]ing abysmal [censored] of the highest order. It's not funny, it's not clever, it's just [censored]. I can't believe I'm saying this about Frankie Boyle but he's clearly trying to be offensive for the sake of offensive. And that's not funny. For those of you who want fair warning, the strip has God (yes, God) raping Eve in the Garden of Eden, before Rex sets everyone God has supposedly wronged on Him, culminating in Jesus impaling the Almighty with the cross. It's revealed this sequence is sort of a proposal for a film, meaning it contributes nothing to the plot in the long run other than pissing people off. Now, while I'm a Christian, I'm not offended, purely because I think it's too pathetic to be offended by. However, I do feel fair warning should be given about that little sequence because there will be people it does offend. Protest if you must by speaking the one language comic book publishers understand and close your wallets.

Space Oddities continues to be a waste of page space. I thought CLiNT was supposed to offer new writers a chance, so far this monthly three page turd is all we've seen of anyone new and both offerings have been useless. The main strips are given to one of Marvel's top writers, one of Britain's highest paid entertainers and an incredibly in-demand stand-up comedian. These are not people who need to build a career. That they couldn't secure even one new or new-ish British talent to pen one of the main strips is a travesty.

I haven't bothered reading the articles yet, if I do, though it's painfully apparently Pegg and Frost- fan of theirs though I am- are only interviewed because the Shaun of the Dead graphic novel is being re-released (it's not "New!" as the advert falsely states). Incidentally, one patron of my LCS said the Shaun of the Dead GN isn't even very good so save your cash or watch the film, I guess.

CLiNT is its own biggest enemy. It doesn't know what it is. Millar has variously told his fans "it's a comic" and the people he's trying to win over "it's a lifestyle magazine". In truth, it tries to be both and ends up being neither. The strips are either pish or reprinted, Kick-Ass 2 being the sole exception, though its paltry page count is a massive negative. If the magazine was nothing but comics, even the crap ones, it'd be great value for money, but it's not so it can't be, thus: the articles add pages so bump the price up, so if you want a comic, you're throwing cash away, yet if you're genuinely not interested in comics the comics are a huge waste of space and the articles do not in any way justify a £3.99 price tag.

If I want to read Charlie Brooker, I will read his column (and, indeed, I do). If I want to read about celebrity top-hats being the total top-hats they are, I'll buy a women's glossy rag. If I want cheap titilation then, dare I say it, I'll look online or purchase Nuts or Zoo (I won't, obviously, they're wastes of money, but they're both cheaper than CLiNT). Even if the articles are good this month, I don't care and I don't want to pay £3.99 for them. And, quite frankly, the way things are going, if I want to read these comics, I will wait for the trade editions.

CLiNT doesn't have to be "different". It just has to offer comics that aren't Batman, Spider-Man, Superman or the X-Men. How is that hard? Millar's smug response to the legitimate criticism on his forum hasn't made me want to buy further issues. Rather the opposite, his cockery has in fact made me set a deadline: if CLiNT isn't good by issue 5, I stop buying it and put the £3.99 towards other things. Now, if those other things are issues of Kick-Ass 2 and Nemesis, so be it. However, if things don't change, CLiNT will not be something I am willing to support.

[madhair60]

Why not just stop buying it now? That's £12, you can get two good games for that.

Of course this was going to be crap; Frankie Boyle was on the cover of issue one. That tells you everything you need to know about it right there. Take the time to flip through the pages and discover "diary of a teenage pothead", or similar drivel. OK, Kick-Ass 2, fine. Why do we need a Kick-Ass 2? The original run was fine, thanks. There's nothing more to say. I'll stick with Invincible, which doesn't rely on gratuitous gore, swearing and coke-snorting pre-pubescents as a cipher for maturity.

[L. T. Dangerous]

I can't provide a succinct, convincing argument for why I don't just give up. Part of it's the car crash theory- it's terrible, but I'm intrigued as to what happens next.

Speaking of it, that pothead column just offended my sensibilities. I don't smoke pot but I'm not a big enough bellend to think smoking pot is cool. If people wanna do it, good for them, I'm sure. I just don't care and I hate when smug fannies rub it in my face about how cool they are because they do weed and how being high is awesome. Pretentious arsemongerers.

Some of the articles I can forgive. The bit from Chloe Moretz makes sense since she plays the live action version of one of the characters seen in the comic. An interview with the scrote who played McLovin, talking about having sex with his mother, however, is not something I give a [censored] about.

I could go on but I'm already getting irritated and I fancy a chip butty to calm me down so I'll go away now.

[Baron Canier]

Oct 12, 2010 13:14:53 GMT madhair60 said:

OK, Kick-Ass 2, fine. Why do we need a Kick-Ass 2? The original run was fine, thanks. There's nothing more to say.

I thought this. Millar claims it was always conceived to have three parts. I don't really see the point.