Comic Book Review - The77 Annual No.1

Rob reviews The77 Annual No.1...

It's been a great couple of years for The77 Publications. Not only have Benksy and the creative team managed to consistently evolve their bread and butter issue after issue. We've also seen new strips getting launched, and new writers and artists falling under the The77 banner - and that's before talking about Blazer!, and the upcoming Pandora.

Since its launch back in May 2020, the anthology has seen six editions published, as well as gathering a strong (and extremely loyal) fan base. Not only are the team (and it's a large team) active in promoting their work - they're also a great bunch of folks too! From hosting launch parties to script and art submissions, the team certainly know how to cater to their audience and make them included in the success of the publication. 

Aiming to continue this trend, the team have recently completed crowdfunding for their most ambitious project yet - The77 Annual. This annual comes in two forms: a 144-page hardback (exclusive Kickstarter reward), and a 136-page softback retail version. Regardless of what version you're reading it's jam-packed with one-off's, introductions, re-visiting old friends, and plenty more. Where The77 anthology is billed as a "love letter to the comics that made us" the annual is arguably a "love letter to the annuals that made us". 

Try Hard (Steve Bull, B.T. Wright, Darren Stevens) 

'Try Hard' starts the Annual off well. It's a great introduction to the "cast" of The77 and isn't afraid to poke fun at their comic book rivals. The interactions between Benksy and Tharg...I mean Mr T. are quite interesting and certainly calls back on The77 just losing out to 2000 AD within ComicScenes Best Of poll. The rest of the crew also get their time to shine as John McLame attempts to thwart their hostile takeover. Naturally, there's a twist in the tale, and I'm hoping we get Try Hard 2: Try Harder!

The artwork is fairly simple, yet does its intended job well. All in all, a solid 5-page opening. 

Chi77er: The Recruit (Christoff RDGZ, DamianEd)

Timmy lives in a world where sci-fi and reading comics is deemed harmful to your imagination. But legend has it that a secret shop still sold these contraband materials. Following a tip-off from his cousin, Timmy sets off to find 'The 77 Army'. 

Not so much a Chi77er in the traditional sense. However 'The Recruit' takes a satirical look at modern-day comics. Much like Timmy's world, physical comic book shops are a dying breed - and that's the real Chi77er!  

Divison'77: Merry Christmas Mr Shard (Dave Heeley, Ade Hughes, Annie Parkhouse)

Set within the early days of their service to the Grakon, 'Merry Christmas Mr Shard' sees Division'77 tackle the Katakik - a barbaric race that's so far keeping the Grakon advances at bay. It's full-on action as Shard and company deal with an enemy that's out for their blood. And Colusa...well that's a different story. 

Ade Hughes takes on art duties this time around. There's plenty of strong bold line work that highlights the robotic nature of Shard and his men. The opening shot of the Battleship Cheney is a superb piece of art that calls back to many classic sci-fi moments.

The Cell (Bambos Georgiou, Andrw Sawyers, Fillipo)

We're given more world-building as this one-shot follows 73V3N through a typical working day (is it working?). While we still don't know the full extent of the Elders plans, it's clear that even their armoured guards are essentially prisoners of this regime too. 

It's great to see 'The Cell' back in some shape or form. This time Bambos Georgiou and Andrw Sawyers are given 8-pages to work with. In my opinion, this has worked wonders for the overall story. Not only do we get a more in-depth approach to the narrative, but we also get 8-pages of Sawyers incredible artwork - which is never a bad thing! 

Chi77er: The House Wins (Paul Neal, Glenn Fabry, Annie Parkhouse)

The Infinity Hotel, the largest casino on the planet. Yet no one ever heard of it. Rather than dealing with money, the currency at this Casino is your life. With its patrons gambling their lives away, it's time someone got even. 

'The House Wins' is a perfect sample of what this Futureshocks, Tharg's 3Rillers inspired series should be. It not only keeps you guessing right up to its payoff, but the overall story also leaves you wanting more. Glen Fabry is also here, and we'll you don't need me to tell you how much of a good thing that is!

A Midwinters Tale (Conan, Morgan Gleave)

Conan and Gleave bring a nice simple take to the classic 'Night Before Christmas'. As the family sleep, Santa is leaving presents under the tree. However, he's not alone. And is it even the real Santa? 

The Monster In You (Anna Everts, KISH Williams)

28-Days Later meets The Thing, as England has fallen prey to yet another rampant virus. As the infected mutate into violent monsters, a lone survivor may have stumbled upon a possible cure. 

It's great to see Anna Everts back within The77. Everts has been a real break out star since debuting back in issue #3. Not only winning the Mad Cave Studios 2021 talent search but they are also appearing in the upcoming Pandora too!

KISH Williams also does a great job in bringing this tale to life. There's a great use of black, white and red, that highlights the horror within the script. Here's hoping we see a sequel! 

SGT Shouty Of The Moonforce: The Origin Of Doctor Plank (Lew Stringer)

To plenty Lew Stringer is a comic book legend, who's got many big titles written on his resume. The veteran creator has written for big hitters such as - The Dandy, The Beano, and Sonic The Comic. For The77, Stringer is the master behind SGT Shouty Of The Moonforce - a somewhat parody of Captain America, with plenty of British comic book whit thrown in. It also looks gorgeous too!

This time around we're off to learn the origins of Doctor Plank. In true supervillain style, this origin tale involves an experiment gone wrong - disastrously wrong! With more SGT Shouty adventures teased for 2022, I can't wait! 

V (Steve Bull, Ian Stopforth, Annie Parkhouse) 

We're back into the past with this instalment as we find out just how Ba'al made it into the future. And into the arena.

There's yet more character building for V's mysterious bad guy. While his motivations are still a guarded secret we have seen hints towards his possible madness or working for a much larger threat. Whatever "my beloved" is will hopefully make an appearance soon - fingers crossed. 

Ian Stopforth takes over art duties for this one. While it's incredibly different from Ade Hughes normal style for V, it works great to highlight the change of perspective. There's ferocity within the linework that adds plenty of atmospheres, which is all topped off with some great character expressions. 

Penny Pentagram: Just For One Day (David Thomas, Andrew Richmond)

Fresh from tackling book-selling Werewolves, teenage occult investigator Penny Pentagram is back. Only this time she's after something that's stirring up trouble in 'Jolly Ha Ha Land'.

Penny soon finds herself in trouble as the likes of Frankenstein's monster, a Zombie, and even Gill Man all come back to haunt her.

All in all, another decent outing for Penny Pentagram. The ending does well to set up the future, and asks a lot of questions. There's also a change in artwork as Andrew Richmond takes over. I feel that the new art style suits the story better than Jon Roydon's work on the previous outing. Don't get me wrong there's nothing wrong with Roydon, but everything here works well. Richmond’s work gives a strong horror vibe with some pretty dark tones that contrast what a bright-happy place a fairground should be. If this is the future to Penny Pentagram - it's gonna be a good one!

The Filth And The Furry (Dave Heeley, Pete Western, Fillipo)

'War of the Worlds' meets 'Sid and Nancy' as aliens invade 1977's London. As Sid and Suze battle the Invaders, the future takes a somewhat different tone to our own. 

The Filth And The Furry is quite an odd tale. While it boils down to a typical alien invasion, I had no idea what was going on. Pete Western's art is a psychedelic nightmare that quite literally jumps off of the page. The cameos from Blazer!'s own Dom Tom, and 2000 AD's Tharg were also a nice touch. 

Krampusnacht (Jo Heeley, Mark Marren)

I'm not going to lie, knowing that Jo Heeley is behind this one, I read the whole thing picturing Dave Heeley as the protagonist (or should that be antagonist) Maxi Liebling. Anyway, as Maxi terrorises his family he soon learns that Krampus is very, very real. 

This one is a great slice of Austrian folklore with a possible more sinister twist at the end. Marren draws a pretty good Krampus, and you certainly feel sorry for Dave...I mean Maxi at the end. 

The Devil Wasn't Always Red ( R-DVE, Gary Burley, Fillipo) 

Something very different with this one as we head off to the Eastern Front. It's Christmas 1942 and a group of Russian soldiers are planning to storm a German airfield. Their target is General Koch. 

There's plenty of guns and explosions as R-DVE brings a great action spectacle to the annual. Gary Burley also brings some solid linework to proceedings that are bathed in a gorgeous blue and white palette. 

The Devil Men (Paul Neal, Steve Pugh, Annie Parkhouse)

Ever noticed little inconsistencies within your day to day life? Maybe a set of misplaced keys? Or having an empty glass when you explicitly remember not drinking it? How about the sinking of the Titanic? Or even nuclear war? Well, all these are the work of a group of invisible demons called 'the Devil Men'. Paul Neal gives us a great story that goes from A to nuclear war in 10-pages. Everything from Hillary Clinton's failed election, to earthquakes, and even the death of JFK has been the machinations of these demons. Just do yourself - and humanity a favour - don't anger them! 

Steve Pugh gives this demonic tale a grounded look with some shockingly detailed pencil work. Even as the world is going to Hell, everything looks amazing.

Technofreak: Past, Present; Future, Tense (John Charles, Antonio Gonçalves, Lindemberg Mendes, Charles)

Cyborg Private Detective John Sherlok is whisked through time by a wanted criminal - Loretta Youth. What follows is 'A Christmas Carol' with a sci-fi twist as the duo are chased through time by the Time Fuzz. 

Another great little tale that this time draws inspiration from both Charles Dickens and 2000 AD's Judge Dredd. There's plenty of humour with Loretta telling a child to "piss off", and Sherlok's robotic cat attempting to keep up with everything.

The only criticism I have at this one is that the opening pages seem to have been switched around in the digital copy that I'm reviewing this from. As such the opening is a little confusing, but it's still a nice strip nonetheless. 

The All Rounder (Dave Bedford, Morgan Gleave)

Yet another decent interlude strip. This time we're fighting crime with "The All-Rounder". Armed with cricket attire, and a sidekick knew as "The Umpire", this masked vigilante knows that there's no rest for the wicket (budum, tish!).

Great work from Dave Bedford and Morgan Gleave. It's a silly 2-pager that will certainly make you chuckle. 

The Waker (Mamode Ogbewele, Toyin Ajetunmob, Filipo) 

We're back into the realms of the supernatural with this one as the mysterious Ivie attempts to wake a young girl up from a deep sleep. Turns out it's not that simple and as such a demon is involved. Thankfully as a "Waker" Ivie is well equipped to deal with the situation. However, her investigation unearths something more sinister. 

What begins as a typical supernatural strip, takes a much darker turn as Ogbewele explores the human psyche and the demons that traumatic events conjure. 

Key Runners/ Key Runners Part 2: Ride On Time (Drew Marr)

Ending The77 Annual is a brilliant story by a young writer, artist, and publisher Drew Marr. There's an introductory interview between Benksy and Marr as the two catch up since Marr's appearance back in The77 #1. We're then given another look at the original 4-page Key Runners strip, before jumping into Key Runners Part 2: Ride On Time. 

I was very impressed with the story here. Drew Marr has a great eye for detail and he knows how to keep his scripts flowing. Everything feels like a James Bond story as Key Runners goes on a globe-trotting journey. Art is also pretty good with plenty of layered scenes and effective shots that capture focal points and aid the story's progression. 

All in all, The77 Annual is a journey through the publications greatest hits as well as a peek into its future. The creative team have done a fantastic job in creating this annual and it's been a true pleasure to read. 

The last 2-years have been a massive success for Ben Cullis and his team and long may it continue! 

Rob Lake - For more comic book and video game chat why not follow Geek Culture Reviews on Twitter and Facebook @GeekCultureRev