''Starlord'' was a short-lived weekly

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel unive ...

comic book magazine published by IPC in

1978 Events January * January 1 – Air India Flight 855, a Boeing 747 passenger jet, crashes off the coast of Bombay, killing 213. * January 5 – Bülent Ecevit, of Republican People's Party, CHP, forms the new government of Turkey (42nd go ...

as a sister title to '' 2000 AD'', which had been launched the previous year in anticipation of a science fiction boom surrounding ''

Star Wars ''Star Wars'' is an American epic film, epic space opera multimedia franchise created by George Lucas, which began with the Star Wars (film), eponymous 1977 film and quickly became a worldwide popular culture, pop-culture Cultural impact of S ...

''. ''Starlord'' was planned as a

fortnightly A fortnight is a unit of time equal to 14 days (two weeks). The word derives from the Old English term , meaning "" (or "fourteen days," since the Anglo-Saxons counted by nights). Astronomy and tides In astronomy, a ''lunar fortnight'' is h ...

title for older readers, with longer stories and higher production values than ''2000 AD'' and the rest of the IPC boys' comics stable, but this proved too ambitious. Episodes were shortened, the number of colour pages was reduced, although the better quality paper and printing were retained, and ''Starlord'' was published weekly at a higher cover price than ''2000 AD''.

Stories

Stories included: * ''

Strontium Dog ''Strontium Dog'' was a long-running British comics series starring Johnny Alpha, a mutant bounty hunter who lives in Earth's future. The series was created in 1978 by writer John Wagner (under the pseudonym T. B. Grover) and artist Carlos Ezque ...

'', a series about a mutant bounty hunter created by writer

John Wagner John Wagner (born 1949) is an American-born British comics writer. Alongside Pat Mills, he helped revitalise British comics in the 1970s, and continues to be active in the British comics industry, occasionally also working in American comics. ...

and artist

Carlos Ezquerra Carlos Sanchez Ezquerra (12 November 1947 – 1 October 2018) was a Spanish comics artist who worked mainly in British comics. He is best known as the co-creator of ''Judge Dredd''. Biography Early work Born in Ibdes, province of Zaragoza, Arag ...

. * ''

Ro-Busters ''Ro-Busters'' is a British comic story that formed part of the original line-up of '' Starlord''. Similar in premise to that of the '' Thunderbirds'' television series, it was created by writer Pat Mills and was drawn by Carlos Pino and Ian Ke ...

'', a robot disaster squad created by writer

Pat Mills Patrick Eamon Mills (born 1949) is an English comics writer and editor who, along with John Wagner, revitalised British boys comics in the 1970s, and has remained a leading light in British comics ever since. He has been called "the godfather o ...

and artist Kevin O'Neill, although it was more usually drawn by

Carlos Pino Carlos Pino (born 1940) is a Spanish comics artist who has illustrated Spanish, British, and American comics. In a quarter of a century he provided the art for around three hundred issues of ''Commando'', for which he still continues to work (as o ...

Dave Gibbons David Chester Gibbons (born 14 April 1949) is an English comics artist, writer and sometimes letterer. He is best known for his collaborations with writer Alan Moore, which include the miniseries ''Watchmen'' and the Superman story "For the Man ...

. * ''Mind Wars'', a series about two psychic teenagers in the middle of a galactic war, written by

Alan Hebden Alan may refer to: People *Alan (surname), an English and Turkish surname *Alan (given name), an English given name ** List of people with given name Alan ''Following are people commonly referred to solely by "Alan" or by a homonymous name.'' *A ...

and drawn by

Jesus Redondo Jesús Redondo Román (born 8 August 1934)
Down the Tubes, 9 June 2011 is ...

(concluded in #22, but briefly returned for a sequel in the 1981 Starlord Annual) * ''Timequake'', featuring a tramp steamer skipper reluctantly recruited into Time Control, an agency which fought to prevent anyone tampering with time. * ''Planet of the Damned'', a passenger jet vanishes in the

Bermuda Triangle The Bermuda Triangle, also known as the Devil's Triangle, is an urban legend focused on a loosely defined region in the western part of the North Atlantic Ocean where a number of aircraft and ships are said to have disappeared under mysterio ...

and the passengers find themselves on a hostile alien world. Written by

(as RE Wright). * ''Holocaust'', Carl Hunter, a private detective, discovers a government cover-up of an alien invasion. Written by

Publications

As well as 22 regular issues, there were also three Annuals dated 1980–1982 (each published at the end of the previous year) and one Summer Special in 1978.

Merger

IPC found that publishing two science fiction titles split the market. ''Starlord'' was actually the better selling of the two titles, and normal policy was to end the poorer-performing title and merge it into the more popular comic. However, group editor John Sanders preferred ''2000 AD'' and so he decided to end ''Starlord'' instead. ''Starlord'' was cancelled after 22 issues and merged with ''2000 AD'' in issue 86 of that title. Its last issue was dated 7 October 1978. Sales of ''2000 AD'' steadily increased. ''2000 AD'''s line-up was strengthened by the merger: ''Strontium Dog'' became one of its most popular and long-running series; and ''Ro-Busters'' continued on in ''2000 AD'' for a while and led to an enduring spin-off, ''

ABC Warriors ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

'', which still features today. ''Timequake'' also briefly featured in issues 148 to 151. By that time the title ''Starlord'' had been dropped from the cover of ''2000 AD'' with issue 127 in August 1979.

Collected editions

Two series, those that carried on into ''2000 AD'', have been collected by

Rebellion Developments Rebellion Developments Limited is a British video game developer based in Oxford, England. Founded by Jason and Chris Kingsley in December 1992, the company is best known for its ''Sniper Elite'' series and multiple games in the ''Alien vs. Pre ...

into

trade paperbacks A paperback (softcover, softback) book is one with a thick paper or paperboard cover, and often held together with glue rather than stitches or staples. In contrast, hardcover (hardback) books are bound with cardboard covered with cloth, ...

: *''Strontium Dog Search/Destroy Agency Case Files: File 01'' (336 pages, January 2007, ) *''The Complete Ro-Busters'' (336 pages, November 2008, ) The series ''Mind Wars'' was reprinted in the supplements to issues 408 and 409 of the ''

Judge Dredd Megazine ''Judge Dredd: The Megazine'' is a monthly British comic magazine, launched in September 1990. It is a sister publication to '' 2000 AD''. Its name is a play on words, formed from "magazine" and Judge Dredd's locale Mega-City One. Content Like ...

'' in 2019. The episode in the Annual was reprinted in the supplement to #411.

Editor

''Starlord'' was edited by

Kelvin Gosnell Kelvin Gosnell is a British comics writer and editor. He was involved in the founding of the long-running comic '' 2000 AD'' in 1977, and was its second editor (1977–1978). He also edited '' Starlord'' (1978) and ''Tornado'' (1979). Biography ...

, who was also editor of ''2000 AD'', although he mostly concentrated on ''Starlord'' and left ''2000 AD'' to assistant editor

Nick Landau Nick Landau is a British media figure. He is co-owner of the Titan Entertainment Group, which publishes Titan Magazines and Titan Books, and owns the London Forbidden Planet store. In the 1970s, before starting up Titan Distributors, he publishe ...

. After ''Starlord'' merged with ''2000 AD'', Gosnell became editor of new comic ''

Tornado A tornado is a violently rotating column of air that is in contact with both the surface of the Earth and a cumulonimbus cloud or, in rare cases, the base of a cumulus cloud. It is often referred to as a twister, whirlwind or cyclone, altho ...

''. Like ''2000 AD'', ''Tornado'' and '' Scream!'', ''Starlord'' had a fictional editor, a bouffant-haired superhero also called Starlord, and each issue was supposed to be a primer for survival in the galaxy. When the title was cancelled and merged with ''2000 AD'', Starlord announced that his mission on Earth had been successfully completed and he was off to battle the evil Interstellar Federation on other worlds, though he urged his readers to "keep watching the stars" (his catchphrase). When a ''2000 AD'' reader asked after Starlord's whereabouts in a 1999 issue though, ''2000 AD'' editor

Tharg Tharg the Mighty or The Mighty One is the fictional editing, editor of the British science fiction comics anthology, comic ''2000 AD (comics), 2000 AD''. The character was introduced on the cover of the first issue in 1977 and is one of only two c ...

claimed that "While Starlord has not been sighted on Earth since 1979, rumours that he was seen in a McDonalds in Basingstoke cannot be entirely discounted". On another occasion, it was claimed that he was "out in the Rakkalian Cluster, singing lead soprano with an Alvin Stardust tribute band". Heralding the 40th anniversary of the comic, and satirising the flurry of revelations regarding 1970s children's entertainers, it was suggested in a satirical story that Starlord was in fact a warmongerer who brainwashed children to become

child soldiers Children (defined by the Convention on the Rights of the Child as people under the age of 18) have been recruited for participation in military operations and campaigns throughout history and in many cultures. Children in the military, includ ...

and had been imprisoned as a war criminal for the past four decades.2000AD #2061, ''Starlord: Watch the Stars!'' published 13 December 2017

Story index

Regular issues

Planet of the Damned
Issues: 1–10
Episodes: 10
Pages: 49
Script:

Art: Lalia 1; Pena 2, 5, 6, 8, 10; Azpiri 3, 4, 7, 9
Cover dates: 13 May 1978 to 15 July 1978 Timequake
''First story''
Issues: 1–3
Episodes: 3
Pages: 18
Script: Jack Adrian
Art: Ian Kennedy 1, 3; John Cooper 2
Dated: 13 May 1978 to 27 May 1978 ''Second story''
Issues: 4–9
Episodes: 6
Pages: 36
Script: Jack Adrian
Art: Magellanes Salinas
Dated: 3/6/78 to 8/7/78 ''Third story''
Issues: 10–13
Episodes: 4
Pages: 28
Script: Ian Mennell
Art: Magellanes Salinas
Dated: 15 July 1978 to 5 August 1978 Strontium Dog
''Max Quirxx''
Issues: 1–2
Episodes: 2
Pages: 10
Script: John Wagner
Art: Carlos Ezquerra
Dated: 13 May 1978 to 20 May 1978 ''Papa Por-ka''
Issues: 3–5
Episodes: 3
Pages: 15
Script: John Wagner
Art: Carlos Ezquerra
Dated: 27 May 1978 to 10 June 1978 ''No Cure For Kansyr''
Issues: 6–7
Episodes: 2
Pages: 10
Script: John Wagner
Art: Carlos Ezquerra
Dated: 17 June 1978 to 24 June 1978 ''Planet of the Dead''
Issues: 8–10
Episodes: 3
Pages: 15
Script: John Wagner
Art: Carlos Ezquerra
Dated: 1 July 1978 to 15 July 1978 ''Two-Faced Terror!''
Issues: 12–15
Episodes: 4
Pages: 23
Script: John Wagner
Art: Carlos Ezquerra
Dated: 29 July 1978 to 19 August 1978 ''Demon Maker''
Issues: 17–19
Episodes: 3
Pages: 15
Script: John Wagner
Art: Brendan McCarthy 1; Ian Gibson 2–3
Dated: 2 September 1978 to 16 September 1978 ''The Ultimate Weapon''
Issues: 21–22
Episodes: 2
Pages: 10
Script: John Wagner
Art: Carlos Ezquerra
Dated: 30 September 1978 to 7 October 78 Ro-Busters
''First story''
Issue: 1
Episodes: 1
Pages: 11
Script: Pat Mills
Art: Carlos Pino
Dated: 13 May 1978
''Second story''
Issues: 2–4
Episodes: 3
Pages: 18
Script: Pat Mills
Art: Carlos Pino
Dated: 20 May 1978 to 3 March 1978 ''Third story''
Issues: 5–6
Episodes: 2
Pages: 10
Script: Bill Henry
Art: Ian Kennedy
Dated: 10 June 1978 to 17 June 1978 ''Fourth story''
Issues: 7–12
Episodes: 6
Pages: 38
Script: Pat Mills
Art: Carlos Pino
Dated: 24 June 1978 to 29 July 1978 ''Fifth story''
Issues: 13–14
Episodes: 2
Pages: 14
Script: V. Gross
Art: Ian Kennedy
Dated: 5/8/78 to 12/8/78 ''Sixth story''
Issues: 15–19
Episodes: 5
Pages: 34
Script: Jack Adrian
Art: Carlos Pino 1, 3, 5; Ferrer 2, 4
Dated: 19 August 1978 to 16 September 1978 ''Seventh story''
Issues: 20–22
Episodes: 3
Pages: 23
Script: Jack Adrian
Art: Ferrer 1, 3; Carlos Pino 2
Dated: 23 September 1978 to 7 October 1978 Mind Wars
Issues: 2–22
Episodes: 21
Pages: 129
Script: Alan Hebden
Art: Jesus Redondo 1–19, 21
(with Ian Gibson in episode 11);
Mike White 20
Dated: 20 May 1978 to 7 October 1978 Good Morning, Sheldon, I Love You!
Issue: 11
Episodes: 1
Pages: 6
Script: John Wagner
Art: Casanovas
Dated: 22 July 1978 Holocaust
Issues: 14–22
Episodes: 9
Pages: 69
Script: Alan Hebden
Art: Lalia 1–4; ''unknown artist'' 5, 8–9;
Madigllianes 6; Luis 7
Dated: 12/8/78 to 7/10/78 Earn Big Money While You Sleep!
Issue: 16
Episodes: 1
Pages: 6
Script: Alan Grant and John Wagner
Art: Casanovas
Dated: 26 August 1978 The Snatch
Issue: 17
Episodes: 1
Pages: 3
Script: Alan Hebden
Art: Pena
Dated: 2/9/78 Skirmish!
Issue: 20
Episodes: 1
Pages: 5
Script: Alan Hebden
Art: Pena
Dated: 23 September 1978

Summer special

Timequake
Pages: 9
Script: Patterson
Art: John Cooper Ro-Busters
Pages: 10
Script: V. Gross
Art: G. Campion Trash
Pages: 7
Script: D. Hooper
Art: Magano Strontium Dog
Pages: 10
Script: Bill Henry
Art: Brendan McCarthy Neutron Tide
Text story by Arthur C. Clarke
(Reprinted from ''

Galaxy Science Fiction ''Galaxy Science Fiction'' was an American digest-size science fiction magazine, published in Boston from 1950 to 1980. It was founded by a French-Italian company, World Editions, which was looking to break into the American market. World Editi ...

'', May 1970)

Notes

References

* Bishop, David (2007) ''

Thrill-Power Overload ''Thrill Power Overload'', or ''TPO'' is a book about the history of the British comic '' 2000 AD'' written by David Bishop, one of its editors. History The book started life as series of articles written by David Bishop and serialised in the ...

: The Official History of 2000AD'' (

, June 2007, )
''Starlord''
at Barney * * {{Buster Comics magazines published in the United Kingdom Fleetway and IPC Comics titles Defunct British comics Science fiction comics 1978 comics debuts Magazines established in 1978 Magazines disestablished in 1978 1978 comics endings