Nice ...

A Nice screenshot of a recent day's traffic on fred's old blog here.

 

That's pretty high for a day's traffic around these parts.  There's been a little increase lately, more interest growing from the magazine relaunching I suppose.  And it's nice that it's not just the Singapore and Hong Kong bots, they've been around but less assertive, it's mostly north America and some Europe.  Presumably some of them were real persons.

 

And there is news and progress.  I got order confirmation and even a survey (I actually completed it).  The new magazine #1 (or "Legacy #321", sheesh, as if the issue numbering isn't messed up enough already.) is to be shipped in April and is to be available at comic shops too.  

 

Lostboy has a couple news links on the excellent heavymetalmagazinefanpage.com site.  The Discord is still pretty active, more chatter and more people sharing their art.  Supposedly Heavy Metal is showing up as available from comic distributors to shops.

 

So far so good.  I'm hoping they get the new first issue shipped and more coming.  I never thought it would happen, and I'll be happy to be wrong here, when it does. 

 

Waiting ...

When the Heavy Metal Magazine re-launch Kickstarter made its initial goal by over 100X when it completed the end of December, the first issue of the new mag was said to be sent out end of April.  Supposedly over 200 pages.  My card got charged so I sure hope it actually happens and I get my actual paper magazine.

But it's been pretty quiet since then.  The only HM email I got since the campaign was promoting some other Coffin Comics offering.  A few mentions on the HM Iggram or Fbook and Discord, but not much besides.  I'm ok with a lack of breathless previews and sneak peeks or other hype, but I hope there are a couple status updates to keep us hoping.  Even the Discord is pretty quiet of speculation, it's mostly people sharing their fantasy art, some pro some amateur, some ok some good.  (they run a "Drink and Draw" for arty types to get online and do art live while drinking etc, which seems popular).  With the occasional burst of conversation.  Which is cool.  

But mostly I hope that the time until April is filled with lots of planning and forethought, and execution, by the current owners and management, to ensure the mag actually happens, and they take that first big step towards making Heavy Metal Magazine real, again.  While they keep working to address the people that got screwed by the old bunch of clowns.  That's what I really hope is happening.  Maybe we can hear about progress every so often too.  Thanks

Den by RM Rhodes

RM Rhodes of heavymetalmagazine.wordpress.com/ fame, has written an article on Heavy Metal Magazine's website, about Richard Corben's Den.

Seeing that it's a rollickin' reminiscence on Den's dick in Heavy Metal Magazine, it's a fun read.  While I may not be quite so enthusiastic on the topic, and I might want more evidence for the assertion that Mr Corben was influenced by Tom of Finland before I really believed it, I do agree that the dick of Mr Corben's Den was a ... prominent ... feature of Heavy Metal's early days.  Den wasn't the only one lettin' it all hang out, but he was probably ... the biggest ....  

In fact, beyond the soaring fantasy and sci-fi and ridiculous violence and excitement in Heavy Metal, the presence of drawn dicks to go along with the bountiful bosoms and assertive asses, was really appealing to barely-an-adult me in 1977 when I first saw Heavy Metal Magazine.  I like sexy, and I also enjoyed the more open and peripheral nature of the nudity of the boys and girls in the mag, and how it wasn't always just about sex appeal.  Moebius, Drulliet, Caza, and others, often slipped in a dick or two in their work here and there, while busily serving up plenty of other nude bits besides.

But Corben was really good at it, and somehow we are still talking about it, almost fifty years later.  Thanks to RM Rhodes for the informative and amusing article, and congrats on getting your writing on Heavy Metal out there for the rest of us.

New and Old

So what's New is, the Heavy Metal Kickstarter launched, wildly successfully, surpassing its initial $5000 goal by over 80x.  More recently the Heavy Metal website shop opened again.  I did sign up for the kickstarter.  I may even order a trinket from the Heavy Metal website shop.  

Very long ago I ordered some old magazine issues from Heavy Metal as I filled out my collection in the late 2000s, but I never wanted to subscribe or order much from them, since I didn't want to be on too many mailing lists.  (how quaint.  it's funny that it kind of worked, until I used my blog email to comment on an article on the website in 2016, and a few years later I started to get HM newsletter emails, twice each, that I otherwise didn't sign up for)  And in more recent years I surely didn't order anything from them, with all the wailing I saw about unfulfilled orders.  

Now I'm inclined to take the chance, a little bit anyway, to see if it will work.  I'm just signing up for one copy with the Hildebrandt cover, not any of the dozens of variants and special metal cover this or that.  I'll just see if my card really gets charged and I really get a magazine after it closes the end of December.  I'm hoping it all goes well.

For the Old, I got a copy of Fantastic Films from November 1981, featuring the Heavy Metal movie:

As well as having the cover feature about the Heavy Metal Movie, there's a nice little HM related bonus about special effects on the movie Outland, for which there was also a feature adaptation in Heavy Metal Magazine by Jim Steranko, from mid-1981 through early 1982.

For the Heavy Metal feature, there's a nice fawning article, and an interview with John Bruno, who directed the Taarna sequence in the movie along with taking other tasks in the production:

Pretty cool going back the the days magazines being the sources of press releases and puff pieces in print media for movie promotion, with pages-long articles and two-tone photos for color movie stills.

And I'm trying to be optimistic for the actual return of Heavy Metal Magazine in print form.

Progress

Real stuff is really happening.  The HM website is up and filled with lots of things, the Discord has increasing flurries of hints and chatter.  The Kickstarter has raised some interest and may be starting soon.  No online shop as of yet, no firm magazine issue date, but social media is reactivating and linked on the site main page.

I'm pleasantly surprised.  I'll believe it when I see the new issue of the paper magazine as I hold it in my hands, but it sure looks like they're gaining momentum.  

There are still some quirks and questions, along with some great developments.  Much of the discourse on the Discord is artists speaking up and showing off and expressing interest in being in Heavy Metal Magazine.  There's also much other talk about what people want or don't want the mag to be.  I'm still trying to get used to navigating it, but it's informative to observe.  

The website includes a magazine index with cover images, some with content indexes and previews, some not, that is a work in progress.  Some of the recent issue entries only have one cover image, even though most had multiple cover images by then. 

I like how the website resurrected some of the old articles from previous website iterations, and how some links in the articles I saw were updated to refer to web archive versions.  I thought this one about Ray Harryhausen was a real treat, from 2019.

I enjoyed seeing an article again about Rock Opera including a link to a still-active youtube with Rod Kierkegaard Jr talking about it.  It's from almost 10 years ago.  Amazing.

There are newer articles too, some linking short films and other art.  A couple about the 1981 movie.  I'm not likely to read every older article, or every newer article, but I will enjoy looking at them, paging through the site every so often while waiting for more Heavy Metal Magazine developments.  I've heard it'll be a quarterly with the first issue appearing early 2025.  We'll see how true that becomes.

RIP Greg Hildebrandt

Greg Hildebrandt has passed away.  One of the famous Brothers Hildebrandt, well known and respected artists over decades-long careers.  Scifi Art had a nice feature of a handful of art pieces by them.

Perhaps most well known for work other than for Heavy Metal Magazine (such as an original Star Wars poster), their work on Heavy Metal Magazine covers, many in its earlier years, as well as illustrating a promotional release for "The Sword Of Shannara" (by Terry Brooks) in Issue #1, earns their place in Heavy Metal Magazine history.

Sadly, Greg's twin brother Tim passed away in 2006.  Remarkably, Greg continued and was active and prolific to his end.

Happily, Greg Hildebrandt had been more engaged with Heavy Metal Magazine in more recent years.  As well as a re-use of one of my favorite HM cover art pieces for Heavy Metal #314, and what I believe is a now-iconic rendering of Taarna for Heavy Metal #320, the last of its era, and a Heavy Metal 2023 Calendar, Greg Hildebrandt just recently produced a new cover art piece for the planned rebirth of Heavy Metal Magazine, which I quite enjoyed seeing.

It is sad to lose him; my condolences to his family and loved ones.  May their memories be honored, maybe even by Heavy Metal Magazine's rebirth, with the new cover art.

Heavy Metal Kickstarter

The Heavy Metal Magazine reboot seems to be proceeding apace.  After the couple of articles surfaced noted on my Look at 'em Go! post, traffic on the new "official" Discord skyrocketed, after being quite quiet during the preceding weeks.  It's kind of chaotic, many chiming in on what they want the mag to be, asking for things, with some self-righteous crankiness causing moderators to step in.  

A lot of it passes me by.  Many many creators jumping in, but that's not me.  Most fans seem to have got the itch seeing the 1981 movie, usually much later than its debut, so not many so old as me it seems.  Many people have many other interests in HM-adjacent things, like games and other fantasy comics, but I'm pretty narrow minded myself.  I don't care to pounce on every comment by self professed Heavy Metal Magazine experts pushing factual errors, or pretend to be much of an authority myself.  So I mostly lurk and chirp up a bit.

But it's really active now, with a large list of channels, and a handful of big shots, including Frank Forte, joining in discussions and dropping slightly less-obtuse hints about their plans.

Including the Kickstarter announcement:

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/heavymetal/heavy-metal-magazine-1

I'll sign up to see what happens.  At this time it's just signing up to notified of the launch, but I'll see what comes of it.  While there is evident optimism, there is still much to happen.  

I did like how the art in the Kickstarter ad, teasing a cover by Greg Hildebrandt, has the astronaut character reading the February 1982 issue, cover by Mr Hildebrandt, and that the reflection on the visor looks like the mag is open to pages 22 and 23 of the issue, showing The Incal Light by Jodorowsky and Moebius. 

Good on Mr Hildebrandt for the attention to detail.  I am amused.  

May we actually see this rebirth become true.  But don't hold your breath.

Look at 'em Go!

A couple of articles containing "official" announcements of Heavy Metal Magazine's rebirth have appeared:

https://bleedingcool.com/comics/heavy-metal-relaunches-with-frank-forte-chris-thompson-dave-kelly/

https://www.cbr.com/heavy-metal-magazine-returns-new-lineup/

Both apparently drawn from the same press release, and both rather lacking in "official" links.  There are some ideals expressed and references to a kickstarter for the first issue.  It sounds ... hopeful ... sad ... so many things.  It may illuminate how hard it is to restart it, how deep the hole must be, how hard the climb out will be.

But perhaps a little optimism may be warranted.  It might be nice to have a Hildebrandt cover again.  There's likely to be an initial rush of interest, there may be enough energy to make a splash and gain some momentum.  Maybe it won't suck.  So much to hope for.

I'll believe it when I see it, of course.  And we'll see then what "it" is. 

I got the links via the "fan" Discord.  There has been more chatter on the "official" Discord" as well.  There's other social media out there, of which I am without clue.  I signed up via the "official" website for a newsletter a while ago, but nothing yet.  We'll see what happens next.

HARZAKC

Retro Sci-Fi Art has done the world a service, by posting scans of Moebius' HARZAKC, from the July 1977 issue of Heavy Metal Magazine.

A snap from my screen:

I figure many Heavy Metal Magazine fans may not have been able to see this early Heavy Metal story, from the fourth issue of the magazine, so I think it's nice that Retro Sci-Fi Art put this up for all to see. 

I think it contains multitudes, but mostly I think the glimpses of violence and sex, and fear and fantasy, along with its terrific art and only somewhat cohesive storytelling, make it one of the finest examples of what Heavy Metal Magazine brought to the world, as "The adult illustrated fantasy magazine". 

So go take a look, and thanks to Retro Sci-Fi Art for sharing this with the world.

Updates

Allow me to direct your attention to the excellent heavymetalmagazinefanpage.com, where Lostboy recently and helpfully summarizes the nascent rebirth of Heavy Metal Magazine.  The heavymetal.com website shows under construction, the shop is shut down, and a new Discord is active.  I did join the new Discord and I see there are people claiming the mag will be reborn and making other positive noises, and there are many others joining.  Input is being solicited and statements seem sincere.

I want to believe, but they have such a big hole to dig themselves out of, and there is so little firm information available, about who is making this happen and why.  And when.  So I'll believe it when I see it.  But thanks for trying, hoping for the best.