Review to a Kill (or two)

 First up - I expect many reading this have already seen Davey Candlish's 'Comic Heroes' cutting, in which Paragon #9 is reviewed and given a lovely 4.5/5 verdict. Well, as my blog title implies, beating my own drum is not an activity to which I'm a stranger, so here's the review again:

I do feel that reviewer Rob Power (now there's a wonderfully villainous name!) has completely nailed what Paragon is and should continue to be - a spectacle of madcap action, frenzied energy, and gripping narrative. Happy to see the comic getting this kind of well-deserved praise, and particularly great to have my own strip singled out as a highlight: Davey Candlish and I share the audacity plaudits with Mighty Matthew McLaughlin and the indomitable James Corcoran, the latter of whom will be lending his not-inconsiderable talents to my next Spencer Nero tale in Paragon #10. (Can't wait to see the end result.)

Next review is from David Hailwood over at Temple APA, regarding the Martillo strip on which I collaborated with David Broughton for that very same august publication. It reads:

• Greg Meldrum and David Broughton. A well-polished and thoroughly enjoyable first contribution. The Martillo strip had great artwork; I especially liked the hard edged angular nature of the characters. Very amusing script as well; I enjoyed the complete lack of subtlety that Martillo displays when dealing with his exorcisms (when in doubt, bash it with a sledgehammer). Favourite line? ‘I shall require an open window. And this goat.’

Once again, jolly happy with that: plans to do more with the character are beginning to gather momentum. (If you don't have a copy of Temple #10, you can download it free HERE.)

And that's that. So, before my ego expands further... vamanos, dear reader. Vamanos!

¡ Vete Al Infierno !

Temple APA #10 is out (with a cracking cover from the mighty Malcolm Kirk), and within its varied virtual pages lurks an odd little story by myself and collaborator David Broughton (with lettery goodness fresh from the fragrant fingers of foxy Owen Watts.) As indicated previously, the story is the debut of a man called Martillo, a grim-faced Spanish priest with a skull-busting past and penchant for a very specific form of defenestration.

Download the pdf HERE, bask in David B.'s ridiculous talent, and then gasp in amazement when you realised he rustled up the art for this in less than a fortnight.

As for the origins of the story, well...  many years ago, I was introduced to the violent and often extremely funny films of Spanish director Álex de la Iglesia, whose work I loved, to the extent I'm frequently seen sporting an 'Accion Mutante' t-shirt in tribute to his first film. One particular highlight was 'El Dia De La Bestia' (The Day of the Beast), in which a Catholic priest struggles to avert what he believes will be the modern reincarnation of the Anti-Christ. To achieve this end, he begins sinning as vigorously as he can in the hope of being allowed into the Devil's confidence. The film ends with the surviving characters in Retiro Park, next to a famous statue of Lucifer. I was absolutely fascinated by the notion that Madrid had a statue of the Devil on public display, and when I finally paid the city a visit, I made a beeline for said monument.

Whilst Martillo himself has little in common with the  film's main character, aside from their mutual profession, the presence of that infernal statue was very much the inspiration for the strip. What a wicked place Madrid must be if it celebrated its sins so publically! Likewise, Martillo's unique approach to exorcism was derived from Spain's reputation, deserved or otherwise, for being every-so-slightly lacking in concern for animal welfare. Martillo, as you will have noticed, has no concern for anyone's individual welfare - an ends-justifies-the-means type, he is firmly in the mould of Doomlord from 'Eagle' in his approach to fighting evil.

Will he return? He may indeed. I certainly like the idea of digging into Spain's occult history and juxtaposing that with the state of the country under the Franco regime. A fertile setting indeed...

...for evil!