Fleetway Confirms No New UK Sonic Comics

8:20 PM EST: Doctor Zachary sent me some new information; this straightens out some problems with the original article below:

Firstly, it was not at all unexpected. It was like a volcano ready to erupt. The comic has been two thirds reprint for a year or so and some fans anticipated this to happen by the end of June (as more reprints were added every June for the last two years) – and they were right.

Secondly, Selena’s petition was not the first one on the web. There are in fact two around now, the other being Caroline Marett’s petition at

http://members.tripod.co.uk/sonicandtails/stc.html

As of this writing, there are six signatures on this petition. It is suggested that both petitions be signed for maximum impact. Fans might want to write to Sega and/or Fleetway as well.

Finally on this update, we have the words that started it all. Lew Stringer, now a former writer, said these words that dictated the doom:

I know STC has meant a lot to you all, but comics come and go all the time. The glory days of STC are gone. The best you can hope for is that one day another publisher picks up the reigns and does a Sonic comic, but that isn’t likely to be until Fleetway’s version ends and/or Sega produce their next high profile Sonic game.

On the newly formed petitions, Stringer had to give a word of advice:

I know you all mean well, and your loyalty to STC is admirable, but please don’t waste your time with petitions. You will not reverse Fleetway’s decision. Besides, as I understand by law, a petition is seen as only one letter. Write separate, polite letters of complaint if you have to, but Fleetway will only quote bad sales as their reason.

I am going to say it again–Archie fans now have severe reason to worry if bad sales is indeed the reason behind this. With slumping sales in the USA, Archie could follow the example, and that means the true end of Sonic comics. We are getting information as quickly as it comes, from Doctor Zac, and from other sources around the Internet. This situation will be monitored closely for further developments, right up to the end of June.

ORIGINAL STORY

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This is simply unbelievable and totally unexpected by this webmaster (though it comes as no surprise to others–see new information.). Beginning with #185, all Fleetway Sonic comics will be going to reprint only. That means NO NEW FLEETWAY SONIC EDITIONS. Let me make this very clear–this does not mean no more Fleetway Sonic Comics period (though that would be the next step…stay tuned…). It is like your favorite network putting its shows on rerun mode while preparing for the new season, but in the case of Fleetway, it’s permanent.

Since this has happened, already a petition is up. Save our STC, already has a few signatures. Here is that site webmaster’s personal opinion on it:

I have been a fan of STC longer than many of the ’employee’s’ have worked there. I have almost every issue, every poster magazine, every special and every free-gift. I attended every UKCAC in which STC featured, and have acquired a rather large collection of Sonic The Comic paraphernalia. Of this I am proud.

STC began when I was 11. I was a child, a fan of a cartoon character, a computer-game freak. I loved STC for what it was, for the art, the wonderful stories, the light hearted reviews and editorials. Now I am 18. I grew up with STC; I feel that it is a part of me, a part of my childhood. In every generation there are those who enjoy a comic beyond ‘normal’ passive reading. In the 1950s it was Super Man and now, in the 1990s, it is us, with Sonic The Comic.

STC became my motivation forwards. I began to aspire to create something as wonderful as STC. I wanted to be a comic-strip writer or comic artist. I read STC well into young adulthood, where the stories continued to be powerful, humorous, dramatic or profound. The art continued to be amazing, to leave me in awe. I’d grown up, but my respect for the comic had remained the same. Sure, now I had other objectives; I read STC to understand, to learn about comics, but my main reason for reading was for the sheer love of it, not for the career opportunities it awoke me to.

When I heard that STC was going into full reprint, it broke my heart. I am not ashamed to say this. Though I’d seen it coming, when the actual crunch came, it was a heavy weight on my shoulders. When something that is so special, so much a part of who you are, like STC is a part of who I have become, it’s not easy to let go. It’ll never be easy. The comic molded me, lead me on my way to my dreams of becoming a ‘cartoonist’ or a writer for children’s publications. Whatever happens to the comic, I shall always be thankful to the kindness of the writers, the artists, and the editors, for their actions and words have helped me in ways that all the career advisors in the world could not. For that I am truly thankful.

But I will still do everything in my power to regain STC to its former glory. Sega themselves have come back into the folds of the public with the Dreamcast after the almighty fall of their Saturn. Who’s to say that STC cannot follow suit?

This is why I have began this petition. I am one of the die hard fans, and there are many like myself, who love STC and do not want it to fall into this doomed future. Help us. Sign the petition.

We are going to follow this extremely closely. The timing could not be worse on this, as in the states, a comic crisis might erupt soon as well, and this could be a sign of things to come.