Andrew J Lewis Talks About The Latest Volume Of 2000AD Fanzine ZARJAZ

A Love Letter To The Prog

Zarjaz editor Andrew J Lewis recently reached out to Tripwire to discuss Volume 3 of 2000AD’s long running anthology fanzine. In an effort to discover more our contributing writer Paul N Neal conducted a new chat with him about its latest iteration…

TRIPWIRE: Before discussing ZARJAZ, can Tripwire get to know you a little? What would you say were the first comics you recall reading?

ANDREW J LEWIS: The earliest comics I can remember reading were things like The Beano and Whizzer & Chips when I was at primary school in the mid-70s. I was fortunate that my parents encouraged me in my comic reading, and I would have several titles delivered throughout the week with the newspaper. It was probably a ploy to keep me occupied! I was always buying annuals from jumble sales for 10p a time, absolutely anything I could get my hands on, so I pretty much knew every character from every comic. I especially liked the Dennis the Menace and Beryl the Peril Annuals which were almost entirely made up of reprinted older single-page strips.

At school we were encouraged to buy from the BookWorm book club and every month there was always an Asterix or Tintin title on offer, so it wasn’t long before I progressed onto those as well.

When it came to ‘serious’ comics I was extremely loyal to DC Thomson, and I became obsessive about Bullet and Warlord. When The Crunch came along, I felt like it was the greatest comic I’d ever read. Then a friend introduced me to 2000AD, and I made the switch to IPC with Prog 168. The pages were slightly wider and the artwork was rougher and more dangerous looking. The characters were less obviously heroic, and it was a real eye-opener.

Credit: Pete Hobson and Jonno & Tim Burnell

TW: How would you describe yourself? A writer, an artist, editor or a very passionate comic fan?

AJL: When I started ZARJAZ originally, I saw myself very much as a writer first and foremost. I was determined to get something published in 2000AD and had been submitting pitches for some time when I started my own small press comic as a means of getting some feedback on my work. I was lucky to get encouragement from the likes of Alan Grant and Andy Diggle who was extremely helpful with suggestions and advice. Nowadays my role is mostly editorial, as I spend a lot of time working with writers developing their ideas and reworking things. It can be quite an arduous process for all involved, but the end product benefits from it. I’m sure it drives some of the writers crazy when I keep asking for changes.

I want each issue of ZARJAZ to remind readers of those early issues of 2000AD, so that means working with writers to produce compressed narratives. There’s a place for comics where it takes 3 pages for a character to walk into a room and sit down, but that place isn’t ZARJAZ!

I’m also very keen to get the artists involved in the writing process as much as possible. Some of the stories being developed for upcoming issues are a 3-way collaboration between myself, the writer and the artist.

TRIPWIRE: I gather you are on volume 3 of ZARJAZ. For those unfamiliar can you provide a little history? To start with, what occurred in Volume 1 and 2. How many issues were there? When were they released? Were they popular?

AJL: I was the original editor back in 2001– I started ZARJAZ as a way of showcasing the talent of a group of writers and the artists who at the time were all submitting to 2000AD. We got Rebellion’s approval and were promoted in the pages of 2000AD itself. I published 4 issues originally over the course of about 2 years, which were B&W photocopied and hand stapled. Contributors included people like Si Spurrier, Al Ewing, Adrian Bamforth, Mike Donaldson and PJ Holden all of whom were about to break into comics professionally.
Each issue went down really well, and lots of professional writers and artists contributed work and comments for features.

Credit: Ed Traquino

AJL: We were even able to get an interview with Alan Moore who was about to release Lost Girls. We won a National Comics Award, and I think it’s fair to say that we were pretty popular with 2000AD readers. I’ve recently republished the first two issues and there’s been quite a demand for them. When I handed the reins over to others, they elected to restart the numbering as Vol.2.

TW: So, Volume 2 of ZARJAZ was a slightly different affair then?

AJL: My life went off in a different direction and I was not involved with ZARJAZ throughout that entire time. At some point, Dave Evans took on the editing role and by all accounts did a fantastic job promoting the talents of lots of creators who are now really well established in the independent comics world. When Dave sadly died a few years ago, ZARJAZ entered a hiatus and was sorely missed. Finding out about this, I made some enquiries and decided to relaunch the title.

Vol 3 is very different to Vol 1– first of all I’ve made it a rule that all the stories are focused on the very earliest years of 2000AD, the first 250 issues or so: what many fans consider the Golden Age. Also, we are running a number of episodic stories. We will be publishing on a monthly schedule so that there’s real continuity. And we’re developing something of a shared continuity across several stories too, which will become more and more obvious as time goes on.

TW: How would you describe most ZARJAZ contributors? Are they superfans who wish to just get involved and contribute or are they aspiring professional artists and writers?

AJL: I guess they’re a mixture really– but primarily they’re creative people who love comics. Some of them are easily good enough to work professionally and hopefully it’s just a matter of time before they succeed at that. Some just enjoy having fun with the characters on offer. But part of my agreement with the 2000AD editorial staff is that what we offer is of a certain standard. They’re happy for us to use their characters as long as we do it properly. So that means all contributors have to adopt a professional attitude and be prepared to rework things if they’re not quite right.

TW: So, what characters can readers expect to see in future issues?

AJL: Readers can of course expect the ‘big three’– Judge Dredd, Strontium Dog and Rogue Trooper. We’re also going right back to the original issues of 2000AD and will be having major storylines featuring MACH 1 and Bill Savage. In fact, the Volgan Invasion of Britain depicted in those early issues will feature across several different stories and our writers are collaborating to sow in some shared seeds along the way. Some will be obvious, others less so.

AJL: We already started sowing those seeds in last year’s SCI-FI SPECIAL. One of the stories takes place after those Invasion stories in Volgan-occupied London. I’m also really into reviving obscure characters so there’ll be a few of those popping up along the way. We’ve got a fantastic Slaine story in the pipeline and a lovely episode featuring the boy wizard Luke Kirby. Other include Judge Anderson, Harlem Heroes, The VCs and loads more including hopefully some surprises along the way. Oh, and a rather naughty Torquemada series too.

TW: Will ZARJAZ feature any new Tharg’s Future Shocks? Just one-off stories that 2000AD is famous for?

AJL: Yes and no– we have a strand called ‘The Cosmic Claw Presents…’ It was started in the ZARJAZ SCI-FI SPECIAL last autumn– David Court had written a one-off story, and we wanted to have a linking character to introduce it. David suggested several possibilities and settled on Eternicus; the golden gauntlet worn by Dan Dare in his 2000AD stories.

We decided to make him something of a snarky presence to top and tail the story which was drawn by the incredible Torgo Wells. So, in the forthcoming run of issues, we will see more stand-alone stories introduced by the Cosmic Claw.

They are very Future Shock orientated, but, if they have a distinct defining quality, it’s more that they all seem to focus on gross stupidity than anything else.

TW: Can you tease any details about the cover artists fans might see in future issues?

AJL: Yes indeed– Issue 1 has a fantastic action-based image by Alba Ceide– Alba was one of the first artists to complete her story for issue 1 and I was so impressed with it that I immediately asked her to come up with some cover ideas to accompany it. Her initial sketch of Johnny Alpha and his Mutant Army charging into a blizzard was so striking that I knew it was going to make an absolutely knockout cover– I really don’t like comic covers where the hero is just standing there looking ‘cool’! For me it’s far more exciting to see them engaged in some kind of action.

Credit: Paul Malone

AJL: Issue 2’s cover is by Ed Traquino who has been involved with ZARJAZ since the early days– Ed has illustrated a Judge Anderson story, and his cover employs a simple but effective technique used repeatedly by the art-designers on 2000AD covers in the early 80s. Issue 3 is by Brett Burbridge and accompanies the Judge Dredd story he’s drawn titled ‘Ricochet’.

The story itself is a sort of Dredd meets the Texas Chainsaw Massacre, and the cover takes inspiration from 2000AD’s Prog 199 with Dredd under attack from Captain Skank and Salvador Dali’s surrealist masterpiece ‘Autumnal Cannibalism’. Jack Bates is working on a Slaine cover to accompany the story he’s also illustrating, and Scott Twells is working on a cover that pays respectful homage to a classic Mike McMahon cover. And there’ll be a cover to accompany the ongoing Invasion! story illustrated by Tom Bonin.

TW: Are you personally writing anything for volume three of ZARJAZ?

AJL: At the moment I’m most happy in the editorial role – but I have penned one brief story for issue 2. The writing on ZARJAZ is very much a collaborative process anyway– the writers all understand that their initial ideas are likely to be given a good shake-up before they get to the script stage, and even then things are being continually revised by myself and often by the artists.

Credit: Brett Burbridge

TW: At this stage, is ZARJAZ a purely print endeavour or will it be available to enjoy digitally or online?

AJL: It will always be a purely print venture as far as I’m concerned. I know that is part of its appeal is that it’s reminiscent of those old comics from the childhood of many readers, so it wouldn’t make sense to release it digitally.

TW: So, to clarify all the back issues of ZARJAZ will remain collectors’ items to hunt down and enjoy?

AJL: I’ve started reprinting the very earliest issues– Vol 1 issue 1 was released earlier this year and issue 2 will be published very soon. I’m doing them as Facsimile editions, so they resemble the originals as closely as possible with only the editorial contact details changed.

It’s meant digging out all the original print proofs from over 20 years ago, scanning them all and cleaning them up. Issues 3 and 4 will probably follow at some point if there’s sufficient interest. But I have no say over what happens to the Vol 2 issues, so I don’t know what will happen there, if anything.

TW: From a legal standpoint, how does a fanzine like ZARJAZ stand? What is your relationship with Rebellion, the publishers of 2000AD? Are there restrictions on what you can publish?

AJL: ZARJAZ exists very much with the blessing of Rebellion and the 2000AD staff, and fortunately it always has. When I first started it, I contacted the 2000AD office straightaway and sought permission from Andy Diggle who was then its editor. I already had a good rapport with him since I was submitting story pitches and had spoken to him a few times at conventions, and he was familiar with my work.

So, he gave us the green light and promoted the earliest issues in 2000AD itself. That arrangement continued when Matt Smith took over as editor of 2000AD and both he and Andy contributed to an in-depth article I put together for issue 2 on how to write a Future Shock, which at the time was the accepted way of breaking in. When I had the idea two years ago to return to ZARJAZ, I once again contacted the editorial office and was given the go-ahead. Now each issue even gets a place in the hallowed 2000AD archive.

TW: Are there any red lines as such? Shall we say characters you cannot use?

AJL: As far as no-go characters are concerned, as far as I know all characters are owned by Rebellion. But they prefer us not to use certain characters and we respect that. In the early days, we had a well-documented situation with Pat Mills who asked us not to use his characters. I have written fully about this in a publication I put out entitled ZARJAZ: YEAR ONE.

Credit: Jack Bates

AJL: At some point in the interim, Pat authorised Dave Evans to include his characters in his issues and I took the step of contacting him directly myself to check he was OK with us continuing to do so under my editorship. Fortunately, he was and so I now have a much fuller choice of stories to represent 2000AD‘s early days than I did first time round!

I should also add that the agreement with Rebellion is that we run it as a not-for-profit publication.

TW: What is your personal favourite 2000AD character or storyline?

AJL: I have a real soft spot for Judge Dredd’s epic story The Judge Child – it’s the story that was already running when I started reading 2000AD and the three artists involved, Brian Bolland, Mike McMahon and Ron Smith, were absolutely at their finest at that time. I also really loved the first Strontium Dog stories I read, things like the Schickelgruber Grab and Portrait of a Mutant.

I thought the combination of drama and humour coupled with Carlos Ezquerra’s exemplary artwork was an almost transcendental experience reading it as a teenager! And then there’s the outstanding initial run of Nemesis the Warlock stories in which Kevin O’Neill and Pat Mills created this incredible future world of strange architecture, with medieval-inspired demonic aliens and Terminators and again very dark humour and concepts that really challenged your preconceptions about the world around you.

TW: What is the dream for ZARJAZ? Is it to compete for sales figures with 2000AD? Essentially I ask does ZARJAZ have a mission statement? What would be the ultimate goal or accomplishment?

AJL: The goal of ZARJAZ is twofold really I guess– firstly it’s a chance for the talented creators involved to explore their craft, to see their work in print and know that it’s going to be read by people who absolutely love what they’re doing. And to be part of a team that is supportive and dedicated to putting out a comic each one of us can be proud of. Secondly, its goal has to be as a springboard for the writers and artists involved, a means of getting their work noticed and hopefully fulfilling their dream of working professionally in the medium.

TW: Andrew, can we start slowly to end simply on this? In about 200-300 words can you say to comic fans and obviously 2000AD and Judge Dredd fans why they should buy copies of Volume 3 of Zarjaz?

AJL: Every single person working on ZARJAZ has got involved because they love making comics, and what they have crafted is, I believe, something very special: some are using characters we already know really well in exciting or unusual ways…

Some are picking up the threads of stories that ended when there seemed to be more to say. Some are just having a lot of fun recreating the stylings of comics from the past, but with a modern twist.

Principally though, these stories deserve to be read and enjoyed and if you’re a fan of 2000AD or Judge Dredd I don’t think you’ll be disappointed. And it’s unbelievably cheap to buy too!

TW: Do you enjoy comic conventions? Can 2000AD fans expect to find you promoting ZARJAZ at all?

AJL: We’ll be at Lawless this May. In fact, I’ve added an option on the order page for readers to reserve their copy of issue 1 and pick it up from us there. I went to Lawless 2 years ago and it was the first comic convention I’d been to in about 20 years. I did it partly because I’d been out of the comic scene for so long and I’d had the notion to revive ZARJAZ and I wanted to ‘test the water’ somewhat.

As well as finding the other fans friendly and enthusiastic, I was fortunate enough to speak to two of my all-time heroes: John Wagner and Mike McMahon. Both were extremely encouraging and their kind words convinced me that relaunching ZARJAZ was the right thing to do. So, if anyone feels like a chat about ZARJAZ or wants to show me their art samples, please come and find me at the ZARJAZ table in Bristol!

TW: That brings me neatly onto my next question. Are you open to new talent? What advice would you offer to anyone new that hopes to feature in future issues of ZARJAZ? How many issues are written in stone? Or are there still opportunities in the not-too-distant future? Do you have submission guidelines at all? For writers and artists? Or indeed colourists and letterers

AJL: I recently stopped accepting story submissions because I had more than enough material from writers to last until the end of the year. So, if you’re an aspiring writer then I’m afraid you’ll have to wait until after Christmas at the very least, at which time I’ll put out some new submission guidelines.

I’m always happy to look at new artists because obviously art takes longer to complete and there’s automatically going to be more demand. But the standard is extremely high already, so anyone new coming in is going to have to be very good indeed! Artists need to show that they can tell stories visually and that means showing me strip work not just covers or pin-ups.

The content is currently almost all black and white with occasional colour. Fortunately, most artists are able to letter and colour their own work, but we do have people covering this if they don’t.

TW: I ask as a fan: has anyone submitted any stories connected to Harry Twenty on the High Rock? It is a favourite old 2000AD Thrill of mine.

AJL: I loved Harry 20, great Alan Davis art! No, I don’t have anything involving him at all.

TW: Would you agree you are perhaps an unofficial Tharg. How would you react if an artist tried to draw you personally looking like Tharg?

AJL: Ha ha! I did a self-portrait as Tharg in ZARJAZ: YEAR ONE!

TW: On principle alone, our interview must include that image

AJL: I’ll dig it out! One of my kids had taken a photo of me wearing silly plastic joke shop teeth and I copied that, added the Tharg features and called it ‘Tooth’.

TW: One final question: If there was a 2000AD character you would love to write officially for six or eight episodes, which character would it be and why?

AJL: I think it would be Wolfie Smith, the teenage boy with telekinetic powers – I wrote a story about him for the first ever issue of ZARJAZ, which had nothing to do with the established continuity, it was more of a re-imagining with him getting a girlfriend and lamenting the fact that because he could read people’s minds it spoilt his relationships. I wouldn’t mind exploring that properly. Either that or Return to Armageddon Book 2.

TW: And who with all the options available to you would your dream artist be on such a project? Please appreciate some options have sadly passed away.

AJL: Oh, any one of the incredible artists currently working on ZARJAZ! But a return to Armageddon Bk 2 would have to be the incredible Redondo. A very under-rated artist who worked on MACH 1, Nemesis and Wolfie Smith as well as lots of one-off stories.

TW: Do you have any final words you would like to add?

AJL: My final words? Thank you for your time and for your interest in this project, Paul!

TW: Can you offer any helpful online links for fans to buy copies of ZARJAZ? Not just the future issues but the reprints you mentioned.

AJL: This is vol 3 #1:

https://zarjazvol3.blogspot.com/p/buy-vol3-prog-1.

https://zarjazvol3.blogspot.com/

Plus:

https://zarjazvol3.blogspot.com/p/buy-zarjaz-vol1-1-facsimile-edition.html