I recently wrote a "mission statement" for the direction I want 2000 AD to take
during my tenure as Editor, and distributed it amongst our creators. So far it
has met with great enthusiasm. I thought you lot might be interested to read
it, if only to initiate debate. Think of it as my "Manifesto for
Thrill-Power"...

Andy

2000 AD: A NEW BEGINNING

THE PROBLEM

"2000 AD just isn't as good as it used to be." That seems to be the
consensus opinion of the 25,000 readers who have stuck with us over the last
23 years... not to mention the 100,000 who have abandoned the comic during
that time. Sure, nostalgia plays a part, but that's not the whole story. On
the whole, I think 2000 AD is better right now than it has been for several
years - but at the same time, I can read progs from 20 years ago that still
pack more of a punch than some of the stuff we're publishing now. So what's
gone wrong?

2000 AD was created with a powerful sense of energy and vision - you can
still feel it in those early progs. But over the years, that original vision
has become diluted. For quite a while now, 2000 AD seems to have been
running on autopilot, and somebody needs to stand up and question whether
it's actually heading in the right direction.

I believe that if it ain't broke, don't fix it. But if it is broke, we'd
better figure out what's wrong, and fix it - sharpish! That's what this
document is all about. I believe we can make 2000 AD a lot more fun and
exciting than it is at the moment.

What follows is basically my vision for the future of 2000 AD, and the kind
of stories I think we should be publishing. It would be naïve of me simply
to try and set the clock back to 1977 - the world, the market and the
readers have obviously changed radically since then - but a lot of the core
values of those early days are sorely missing now. 2000 AD used to appeal to
readers young and old alike - and it should do again. I really believe that
if we can put some of that energy, that imagination and that attitude back
into the great work we're already doing, we can once more make 2000 AD a
creative force to be reckoned with.

THE HIT

2000 AD readers talk about getting their weekly 'hit' or 'fix' of
Thrill-power, and they're only half joking. The comic should be a drug; a
jolt of raw, unrefined energy and imagination. We aren't there just to raise
a faint ironic smile on the readers' lips; we should blast them into a whole
new reality! 2000 AD should be fast, dense, bizarre, twisted, funny, insane,
rebellious, dark, ironic, imaginative and exciting! We should blow the
readers' minds wide open, and give them something they can't get anywhere
else!

What we should never be is bland, derivative and familiar. 2000 AD should be
the comic other people copy... not the other way round.

We may all have different ideas of what 2000 AD is all about, or what it
should be. I think it's the editor's job to provide a vision for the comic,
a common goal for us all to aim for. So let's get down to the basics, and
build it up from there.

WHAT IS 2000 AD?

2000 AD IS A SCI-FI ACTION COMIC. The three pillars of its foundation are
sci-fi, action (ie. violence!) and humour. Any story that doesn't include
all three is liable to run into trouble... unless it's very, very good!
Almost all the stories in 2000 AD include some element of humour, but
out-and-out comedy strips that don't put an emphasis on physical action and
jeopardy tend to get crucified by the readers.

I want to make the readers happy... because I'm one of them. I'm a 2000 AD
fan. I want to publish the kind of stories I like. The kind of stories that
blew the back of my head off 20 years ago, and have kept me hooked ever
since. Let's give 2000 AD its balls back!

What follows is a general call-to-arms for every 2000 AD creator. Much of it
is undoubtedly grandmother/eggs stuff, but it never hurts to re-state the
obvious...

DENSITY

One of the reasons ex-2000 AD writers have been so successful in the
American comics market is that 2000 AD (and the whole British boys'
adventure market of old) teaches writers how to condense. When you can tell
a complete action story with a beginning, middle and end (and a point!) in
five pages, you've cracked the art of comics writing. So let's keep it
dense, tight, snapping along at a cracking pace. Never use two panels (or
pages, or episodes!) where one will do. In comics, less really is more.
Condensing the action down into the least possible number of panels actually
increases the drama; it's like a form of distillation. Boil that barrel of
beer down into a shot-glass of rocket fuel!

Atmosphere is all well and good, but when it takes six panels for somebody
to find their car keys, the readers just aren't getting their money's worth.

CONCEPT

The best 2000 AD series are based around a single character with a strong
defining motivation, simple enough to be summed up in a single sentence. For
example, "He's Dirty Harry in New York of the future; judge, jury and
executioner!" or "He's  a genetically engineered soldier who goes AWOL to
search for the traitor who killed his fellow GIs;" or "She's an ordinary
girl living in a futuristic slum who dreams of just getting out."

Plot and setting are important, but still very much secondary to the core
character concept: Who is the hero, and what does he/she want?

EYE CANDY

There are too many 'talking heads' stories in 2000 AD. There's nothing wrong
with good dialogue and character interaction, but conversation itself must
never be the be-all and end-all of the story. Stories must unfold though
visual action, not verbal exposition. The rule of thumb is; no more than
three balloons/captions per panel, and no more than 25 words per
balloon/caption.

If a casual browser leafs through the pages of 2000 AD and just sees a
succession of talking heads, he'll probably put it straight back on the
shelf. If he sees big, eye-grabbing visuals, weird locations, cool-looking
hardware and exciting action, he might just stop and read it long enough to
decide whether he wants to buy it.

This applies to characters as much as situations. 2000 AD used to be full of
bizarre-looking aliens, cyborgs, robots, freaks and mutants - and they were
the heroes! Nowadays, most of our characters look like they just stepped out
of a mainstream Hollywood movie. Let's remember to create characters with a
bold and unique visual style.

Comics is a visual medium, and we've only got five or six pages to grab the
reader and give him that hit. Writers need to give the artists plenty of
incredible, dynamic images to draw which will fire their imaginations. Okay,
so we can't expect a big, in-yer-face 'money shot' (so to speak) on every
page... but let's aim for one on every other page, where possible -
especially for the cliffhangers. Speaking of which...

GRAB 'EM BY THE BALLS!

2000 AD is an action comic, remember. It's in danger of becoming too
'sophisticated' for its own good. Sure, a touch of knowing irony is one of
the key ingredients for a successful 2000 AD story - but at the same time,
we should never be too 'sophisticated' to go for the big, cheesy,
grab-'em-by-the-balls cliffhanger. There used to be an energy and rawness to
the action which is missing nowadays. It's all part of the 'hit' the readers
crave - they want thrills, dammit!

End every episode on a high note, and leave the readers gagging to find out
what happens next. It's the only way to maintain a weekly readership. If
they don't care, why should they pick up the next issue?

GET WEIRD!

Another of the dangers of becoming too 'sophisticated' or, dare I say it,
'mature' (shudder) is that it can stifle the imagination. If, when you're
writing a story, there's a little voice inside your head saying, "Yeah, but
that would probably never happen in real life," take it out and shoot it! We
need to take the readers to the weirdest, most whacked-out fringes of our
fevered imaginations. That's what they're paying us for!

We should give the readers something they can't get anywhere else - be it
movies, TV, video games, whatever. When 2000 AD looks bland and conventional
compared to the average computer game, we're in trouble. First and foremost,
let's all BE ORIGINAL!

ENOUGH, ALREADY...

So there you go, that's what I'd like us all to aim for. Shouldn't be a
problem - most of the creators I've spoken to have echoed similar
sentiments. The fact is, everybody loves 2000 AD - they just don't all love
what it became. But I think the comic has been steadily improving over the
last few years, so we're heading in the right direction. Now that 2000 AD
has a new look, a new editor and a new owner, let's have some fun with it!

Andy Diggle
Editor, 2000 AD