In Review: Sector 13 Issue 6

By John Freeman on December 22, 2019

There are some new and welcome elements to the line-up in the latest issue of Sector 13, the 2000AD fanzine from Belfast in Northern Ireland, including the introduction a new co-host, Oonargh, inspired by the classic 1970s girls comic, Misty.

The sixth issue features a story of supernatural horror by Julia Round, the author of the Gothic for Girls, a comprehensive and insightful book about Misty, also on sale now and well worth checking out. (A review of the book is in the works, as soon as I get chance).

“Borrowed Time” centres on a deceitful girl whose decision to steal an old book leads to a well-deserved and deliciously macabre comeuppance…

“Julia brought all her understanding of what made Misty tick to the crafting of this tale and in Morgan Brinksman we had the perfect artist to bring it to life'” editor Peter Duncan enthuses.

I’d agree – this is one of the issue’s highlights, and its inclusion is both an excellent idea and deserving addition to the zine’s story strands.

There’s plenty more to enjoy this time out, too, not least a brand new fantasy story, “Horse Sense“, from 2000AD legend, Will Simpson. Fans of Will’s work in the Galaxy’s Greatest Comic are not going to want to miss him showing the imagination and skill that earned him such a key role in the development of Game of Thrones. It’s a great, action-packed tale and a coup for the zine to feature it.

Of course, there’s 2000AD inspired tales on offer, too. W D McQuaid and Patrick Brown introduce new SD agents, Cameo and Hurt-Box, in “Strontium Dogs: Raw Silence“, the first of what will hopefully be an onging series of adventures; and this issue also continues the stories of the Sector 13 Judges with the second part of “Judge Knight: The Long Walk”, scripted by Peter with art by Scott Twells, a story that continues in “Home”, with Laurence McKenna providing the photostory art. Laurence is doing some great work on the latter, and it’s developed in leaps and bounds since earlier issues, and way better than fans of 1980s Eagle comic might think.

The issue also includes a story by two newcomers to Sector 13, Ed Whiting and Mike Slattery, delivering the Future Shock tale, “Lethal Weapons“. You’ll never look at a cockroach the same way again…

Strontium Dog and Mega City mayhem aside, I have to confess one of my favourite strips this issue is “Coltard the Conqueror“, a humour story starring a wonderfully petulant and hapless super villain, written by Glenn Matchett with great art by Cat Byrne.

Another great independently-published anthology, the Sector 13 team have pulled out the stops again to deliver a heady mix of stories. The usual caveats that not every story in an anthology will appeal to everyone apply, but the latest Issue is an enjoyable read and worth a look.

• For More Information about Sector 13 Issue Six, which will begin shipping soon after Christmas (27th/28th December 2019), visit this Page on the Box of Rain web site

The zine costs £7 (inc UK P&P) via Paypal to Sector13@BoxofRainMag.co.uk. The Family and Friends option saves on charges but isn’t compulsary and do remember to add your name and address in the message section

• The Sector 13 team are always on the look out for new writers and artists for the zine and for various other projects we have on the go at the moment. Please send art samples (sequential work, not single images) or scripts to Sector13@Boxofrainmag.co.uk. And if you’ve sent something to them in the past few weeks or months, they’ll be looking for stories for Issue seven very soon

John Freeman

The founder of downthetubes, which he established in 1998. John works as a comics and magazine editor, writer, and on promotional work for the Lakes International Comic Art Festival. He is currently editor of Star Trek Explorer, published by Titan – his third tour of duty on the title originally titled Star Trek Magazine.

Working in British comics publishing since the 1980s, his credits include editor of titles such as Doctor Who Magazine, Babylon 5 Magazine, and more. He also edited the comics anthology STRIP Magazine and edited several audio comics for ROK Comics. He has also edited several comic collections, including volumes of “Charley’s War” and “Dan Dare”.

He’s the writer of “Pilgrim: Secrets and Lies” for B7 Comics; “Crucible”, a creator-owned project with 2000AD artist Smuzz; and “Death Duty” and “Skow Dogs” with Dave Hailwood.