Z comic - issue 2

I've looked previously here and here at "Z comic" - a comic produced by the Zodiac toy shops.

A 48 page full-colour comic (sadly my copy is only 44 pages long - the centre page poster having being whipped out of my copy). Issue 1 had no price on it, this is priced at 45p but then says "free with the compliments of Zodiac" - so I'm not quite sure what's going on there. Anyway, 48 pages fortnightly and free(-ish) is a lot of content to be putting out. I'm unclear how many further issues there were.

I haven't scanned example of ALL the strips, instead these are just to give you a flavour of the comic...

Star bears

Miami mice

Socca bear

Martin and the Martians - by Gibas/Benson

If you're interested in the stickers (see advert below) then check out this previous post I did on the subject...

UPDATE: Sticker book - Star Bears & Scare Bears

I've discovered some more images for this sticker book - they're at the bottom of this post and highlighted in red

I looked here and here at Z comic from the Zodiac chain of toy shops. There was an advert for a free gift in issue 2 of a 'Scare Bears and Star Bears' sticker book...

I've not yet acquired a copy of issue 2 of Z comic but I do now have a copy of the sticker book...

The album has a copyright date of 1987; the copyright date on the stickers is 1986 for the Star Bears stickers and 1985 on the Scare Bears stickers (although it actually says  (c) Superbear Limited).

The album is hard to describe but if you opened it at the Star Bears 'front page' you go from stickers 1-180; you then get to the middle pages and you'd have to flip the book upside down; now you carry on with the (inverted) book and you count down from Scare Bears sticker 330 to Scare Bears 181

or to put it another way...

The album is hard to describe but if you opened it at the Scare Bears 'front page' you go from stickers 181-330; you then get to the middle pages and you'd have to flip the book upside down; now you carry on with the (inverted) book and you count down from Star Bears sticker 180 to Star Bears 1 

I got 2 packets of (loose) stickers recently - which is why I know about the copyright dates - but I hadn't seen them before. 

My album now has 58 stickers in it - a total album would have 360 stickers in it, so I don't think I'll ever be able to complete it as an album but I sort of like these hopeless projects because it's the thrill of the chase that's the fun bit. If I get any more stickers I'll let you know.

The 'full page' multi-sticker images look like they're by George Nicholas (my look at his work is here) and the single images by Craig Dixon and Mike Dibas.

If you've got any spares for the album do let me know - I've got a single spare (#213).

Further examples of the stickers...

As this 1989 advert shows there were plenty of Zodiac toy shops...

Sticker book - Star Bears & Scare Bears

I looked here and here at Z comic from the Zodiac chain of toy shops. There was an advert for a free gift in issue 2 of a 'Scare Bears and Star Bears' sticker book...

I've not yet acquired a copy of issue 2 of Z comic but I do now have a copy of the sticker book...

The album has a copyright date of 1987; the copyright date on the stickers is 1986 for the Star Bears stickers and 1985 on the Scare Bears stickers (although it actually says  (c) Superbear Limited).

The album is hard to describe but if you opened it at the Star Bears 'front page' you go from stickers 1-180; you then get to the middle pages and you'd have to flip the book upside down; now you carry on with the (inverted) book and you count down from Scare Bears sticker 330 to Scare Bears 181

or to put it another way...

The album is hard to describe but if you opened it at the Scare Bears 'front page' you go from stickers 181-330; you then get to the middle pages and you'd have to flip the book upside down; now you carry on with the (inverted) book and you count down from Star Bears sticker 180 to Star Bears 1 

I got 2 packets of (loose) stickers recently - which is why I know about the copyright dates - but I hadn't seen them before. 

My album now has 58 stickers in it - a total album would have 360 stickers in it, so I don't think I'll ever be able to complete it as an album but I sort of like these hopeless projects because it's the thrill of the chase that's the fun bit. If I get any more stickers I'll let you know.

The 'full page' multi-sticker images look like they're by George Nicholas (my look at his work is here) and the single images by Craig Dixon and Mike Dibas.

If you've got any spares for the album do let me know - I've got a single spare (#213).

UPDATED: Cartoon Aid

I've looked before at publications associated with the Cartoon Aid charity (like Band Aid but with more cartoons and less Bob Geldof) - if you missed them they are as follows...
a). the Olympic book is here
b). Bryan Hitch's work in the Kidz book is here
c). Mike Collin's work in the Kidz book is here
d). Terry & Sheila Bave's work in the Kidz book is here
e). Simon Donald's work in the Kidz book is here
f). Cartoon Aid auction at Sotheby's & a festival in Margate is here

g). Waddington's jigsaw (from the Margate festival is here)

h). Scare Bears monster party book is here

The latest item I've spotted is this really big tome - Cartoon Aid

Look at how big it is! That's a lot of content

Looks like the art is all reprints...

...some Judge Dredd art (Mick McMahon art I think)

this is 'Pinboing wizard' from the 1981 Judge Dredd annual

Scare Bears monster party book - published by Cartoon Aid

I've looked before at publications associated with the Cartoon Aid charity (like Band Aid but with more cartoons and less Bob Geldof) - if you missed them they are as follows...
a). the Olympic book is here
b). Bryan Hitch's work in the Kidz book is here
c). Mike Collin's work in the Kidz book is here
d). Terry & Sheila Bave's work in the Kidz book is here
e). Simon Donald's work in the Kidz book is here
f). Cartoon Aid auction at Sotheby's & a festival in Margate is here

g). Waddington's jigsaw (from the Margate festival is here)

And a new addition to the list is this item that I've spotted on eBay...

it's a blurry photo but you can clearly see that the book is published by Cartoon Aid...

As characters the Scare Bears had appeared in Z comic (here) and in Scouse Mouse and the Scallywags (one of my earliest ever posts...here)

George Nicholas week (3) - scouse mouse and the scallywags

Scouse Mouse and the scallywags

32 pages, again no copyright date is present, some more Scouse Mouse newspaper strips are printed, Budgie Malone & Owl Capone is a comic strip.

We'll get to the 'Were Bears' comic in a few days time but, interestingly, it appears to be called 'Scare Bears' at this stage.