Offbeat and irreverent, adult comic Belly Up! has launched its first issue, poking fun at the silliness and vacuous nature of everyday magazines. Amongst other random features, Belly Up! Part One has some irresistible items including 'Zombie Apocalypse Surprisingly Polite' and 'Jesus Returns and Takes Part Time Work in Charing Cross Left-Luggage Office'.
It's a luxurious and substantial title that's bursting at the seams with complete absurdity. It's beautifully written and takes a post-modern swipe at glossy publications, whilst tipping the hat to the classic fanzines of old. Belly Up! is a welcome alternative from the tired humourless releases and empty celebrity obsessed titles that clutter the outlet shelves.
The comic, created by Darren Allen and William Barker, contains highbrow references alongside several instances of complete juvenile nonsense. It's smart, but accessible and in-keeping with a rich tradition of British surrealist comedy. The illustrations range from child-like to beautifully decorative. Many are heavily influenced by the graphic novel genre and have a Python-esque quality.
The inner sleeve depicts a Gustav Klimt style fairytale scene and there are smatterings of Victorian Comic style artwork throughout. Regardless of style there is plenty of scope for nudity and awkward eroticism. In the debut instalment there's a surreal sex guide (with detailed illustrations, of course) where we are encouraged to introduce trumpets, banana suits and other oddities into our bedrooms (and beyond).
There are also bizarre comic strip characters that are sure to become ironic, household favourites. Captain Unemployment is a great feature that celebrates being liberated from, and the avoidance of, graft of any kind. Editor and co-author Darren Allen states, "He's my worldly avatar. I'm a strenuous work refuser."
Belly Up! has the mark of a magazine that has managed to absorb all the best, and worst, aspects of popular publications and blend them to become a uniquely weird, offbeat entity of its own. It's razor-sharp and fuses all the grubby smut of a student mag with the high end production values of specialist magazines usually associated with the facile elite.
It is clearly a publication that knows the industry inside out and is suitably placed to lampoon, and it's also evident that the team behind Belly Up! are passionate about the content, a genuine labour of love.
Belly Up! is stylish, intelligent and skilfully composed. It's well worth immersing yourself in its weird, wonderful and salacious world. To top it all off, Issue 2 has a special Salford feature that will definitely be worth discovering.
Belly Up! Part One
Out now - £7 (+p&p) from Honest Publishing – click here
Also available from Amazon and comic book shops
See the Belly Up! launch trailer YouTube video – click here
Words by Ian Leslie
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
(3).jpeg)
.png)
(1).JPG)
