Geek Culture Reviews

You all remember the Eagle right? When Alan Holloway and Ed Doyle initially announced they were planning Falcon I was a bit sceptical. While the A3 tabloid style comic book was a hit back in the mediums golden era, would it be a design that holds up in 2024? While the likes of Sentinel and The77 reign supreme in capturing the very essence of what made up the youth reading of their respective communities, can Falcon recreate the excitement that came with reading The Eagle back in day? And more importantly, was my initial scepticism proved to be wrong? While I’m far too young to remember the initial outings of The Eagle, working in a charity shop I’ve experienced gawping through the publications first three annuals (no they didn’t come home with me). Even with some of the writing being a little stuffy in places I could easily see why the publication was quite a hit back in the day. It even surprised me that my Dad used to read The Eagle too! (Apparently he was a big Dan Dare fan! Wh...

Previewing Sentinel #14: Heartbreak Spotel… Alan Holloway is back with another issue of Sentinel - the Starblazer inspired mini-digest that offers a complete story in 64-pages. And we’ve got a preview of what to expect below!  For issue #14 ‘Heartbreak Spotel’ Holloway is joined by artist Paul Spence, who’s no stranger to the Sentinel format (‘A Fare To Remember’). Fans of Starblazer are also on for a special treat as veteran artist Keith Robinson is providing the variant cover! ‘HEARTBREAK SPOTEL' is quite obviously inspired by the classic UK sitcom from the 1970s, 'Fawlty Towers'. We don't try to hide it. Naturally, it's all our own work and doesn't rip it off, but it was fun to do a comedic issue with a few names and themes that reflect such an iconic show. If you've never seen it, it doesn't matter, but fans will enjoy spotting the references.’ Sentinel #14: Heartbreak Spotel is currently crowdfunding via Kickstarter, with the campaign being availab...

A tribute to a comic great… For those who knew him, Dave Evans was the go-to guy when it came to the British Small Press scene. The overseer to 2000 AD fanzines Zarzaz and Dogbreath, Evans  worked with many talented artists, and writers who contributed to the projects he helmed. When he wasn’t attending comic conventions, or tutoring those he took under his wing, Evans  was busy lending his lettering skills to other independent works. Sadly in 2021, Evans succumbed to his inner demons which resulted in him taking his own life. Move forward to 2022 and Sentinel founders Alan Holloway and Ed Doyle were busy at work creating something that would act as a lasting tribute to the legacy that Dave Evans created. As such Bolt-01: A Tribute to Dave Evans was born. Utilising the powers of social media, Holloway and Doyle sent a shout out to those who worked with Evans, or brought one of his many FutureQuake Press productions to get in touch. To say that the response was less than incred...

Rob reviews Sentinel Issue #12: Valhallasaur... After a short hiatus, the creative talents of Sentinel founders Alan Holloway and Ed Doyle collide once again to bring a tale of Vikings and dinosaurs. At writing it's been eight long months since we last delved into the creative mind of Alan Holloway . Previous Sentinel issue; Dark Matter saw the writer take an experienced mercenary squad across a planet-hopping, action-packed adventure. Dark Matter was well received, Holloway is drawing in plans for its sequel!  Anyway, back in the present and we're thrown to 950AD. Opening to a Viking longboat wading its way through the frozen North, the crew soon discovers a distant island. Mistaking this island for Iceland, the crew suddenly realizes they are miles off course and as such make landfall. Little do the raiders know that they're not alone on this island. It's here that dinosaurs still roam supreme, and they can't wait to take a bite out of those who...

Rob reviews Sentinel Issue 11: Dark Matter... From what started life as a homage to the vintage comic series S tarblazer, Sentinel  has expanded into its own thing. While the publication retains the signature Starblazer style of a full story within 'x' amount of pages, Sentinel gives you a great mixture of different stories, characters, and themes.  It's also this assortment that makes each issue   a terrific read. Not only do we get a distinct look into writer  Alan Holloway 's varied imagination, but there's also a different artist there to bring it all to life. For Dark Matter, Alan has enlisted artist Ian Beadle who's no stranger to working with the writer on drawing for Sentinel . Fans will already recognise Beadle 's line work as he was the artist for ' Misty Moore ', and the cover artist for the brilliant ' Hell on Harry Howson '.  This time however Beadle trades in horror and fantasy, for a gritty sci-fi military affai...

Rob reviews Sentinel Issue #9... There's panic on the streets of London as Alan Holloway channels his dark side (and inner punk) to bring us 80-page of tantalising terror!  What's it all about? Well, we're about to hide behind the sofa as we journey into the realms of ' 77' ! Sentinel is one of those comics that amazes me issue after issue. With each being a mini digest that features a complete story, both Alan Holloway and Ed Doyle have one crazy imagination. So far Sentinal has tackled every genre going, and much like its Starblazer inspiration - every issue is vastly different from the previous. This time around Holloway tackle the horror genre as he teams up with veteran artist  Neil Sim, as well as Sentinel co-creator  Ed Doyle,   Andrew Richmond and Sinclair Elliot.  Not only this we also see the return of Philthy Luca who just happens to be guest editor for this issue. It's all delightfully frightful, and a great addition to the growing Se...

Rob reviews Crackpot... Crackpot   is a brand-new all-ages comic compendium that's coming from the team behind Sentinel.  Following Sentinel's success, the team have decided to crowdfund Crackpot via Kickstarter. At the time of writing the project is currently at £508, and has been backed by 50 backers - myself included. Considering the success of Sentinel I have full confidence that Alan Holloway and Ed Doyle will smash their £600 target for Crackpot.  What's more interesting is that the comic will adopt the same sizing style seen within the USA. This means that  Crackpot  will not only look different to pre-established all-ages comics but will also fit into the standard comic bags and boxes...  Taking inspiration from titles such as;  The Pheonix, Buster , and  Krazy,  Crackpot aims to appeal to an all-ages audience. As such the 31-page comic is packed full of humour and general light-heartedness.  Taking place over ten s...

Rob checks out the Sentinel #7: Hell on Harry Howson Kickstarter... I've been a fan of Alan Holloway and Ed Doyle's Sentinel since I was introduced to the series late last year with Kazana The Slayer. I found the mini-digests to be a fantastic read that has a lot of humor, themes and action throughout. Fast forward to 2021 and the UK's 2nd breakout comic ( ComicScene Top Ten of 2020 list ) is back with the sci-fi fantasy; Hell on Harry Howson . Hell on Harry Howson sees the return of space couriers Doyle Braddock and RHLSTP, who where last seen in Sentinel #1 . This time the pair are trapped on the Westworld inspired world/theme park - Harry Howson's World. With plenty of Greek mythology, monsters and dry humor, Holloway and Doyle bring everything to the complete 64-page story.  As the title suggests, Hell on Harry Howson comes from both writer and artists love of stop motion master - Ray Harryhausen . And from the very early preview I've seen fans...

Rob Lake reviews Sentinel Issue #6: Bad Kitty... Following on from a successful 2020, Alan Holloway is back, this time around he's joined by Morgan Gleave who's on art duties for Sentinel Issue #6: Bad Kitty . Before I begin this review I'd like to give Alan Holloway a shout out for his continued support since I set up Geek Culture Reviews.  It's been an absolute pleasure in reviewing Sentinel and I hope to continue to do so going into 2021.  Be sure to check out the Sentinel Facebook page  for details on the up-and-coming Kickstarter campaign for Bad Kitty , as well as more Sentinel goodness. Bad Kitty follows the Sentinel formula of being a 68-page self-contained story. It's a nice humorous revenge story of a tale of Cat Vs. Dog with a Human caught in the middle.  Bad Kitty is essentially a story about Cat Vs. Dogs in a sci-fi setting. Caught up in the middle of this revenge play is Carlos Harrison. Harrison is a notorious thief who's plannin...