Here’s a review of another comic from Fleetway. Wow! was rather-short lived, only running from June 1982 to June 1983 and 56 issues, at which point it merged with Whoopee! Although this comic actually closed before I was born, again I was lucky enough to find a couple of issues in a charity shop. Here’s a page-by-page review of one (No, 37, 12 February 1983) with my analysis of the strips and their artists. 
Pages 1 & 2: Shipwreck School. The adventures of some children and their teacher stranded on a desert island, but they still have to learn!
Page 3: Bleep. A short three-panel strip about a robot.
Page 3: Ossie. Another short strip featuring an ostrich and his friends, drawn by the talented Robert Nixon. This page also features contents for the issue and a message from the editor.
Page 4: Here Is The News. A strip featuring short silly stories. I always liked the jokes and drawing style of this strip but unfortunately I haven’t been able to track down who drew it. 
Page 5: Adam And His Ants. Do you see, very funny. The ants would always come to the rescue. 
Page 6: Creepy Comix. A boy who has a comic where strange characters inside it come to life.
Page 7: Homeless Horrors. A rather odd strip featuring various ghost-like characters.
Page 8: an advert for the Health Education Council.
Page 9: Wow! Star Turns. A chance for readers to send in their jokes, with £2 for every one published.
Pages 10 & 11: Boy Boss. A strip about a boy who runs a big business.
Page 12: Penny Dreadful. The outrageous adventures of a girl, but they were hardly in the Minnie The Minx/Beryl The Peril league.
Page 13: Bill And Coo. You’d probably think from that title that this was a strip about a boy and his pet pigeon… and you’d be right.
Pages 14 & 15. Team Mates. A strip about a useless football team who have difficulty playing with one another, drawn by Tom Paterson, another one of my favourite comic strip artists. 
Pages 16 & 17. TV Quiz Kids. The centre-pages spread (in colour!) featuring puzzles presented in the style of game shows such as Call My Fluff with Robot Robinson and drawn by my favourite comic strip artist J. Edward Oliver. It may not surprise you to learn that I like this one. 
Pages 18 & 19. Kids Band Radio. Some children who like talking to one another on those CB radio thingies. It was fun in those days, honest.
Pages 20 & 21: Family Trees. Another strip drawn by Robert Nixon about some adventurous trees.
Page 21: An advert for Buster which promotes the free gift of a badge.
Pages 22 & 23: Gulliver’s Troubles. The adventures of a rather lanky boy and the fun that causes. Page 23 also features a coupon to reserve your weekly copy of Wow!, and some adverts for philately which always seemed to turn up in children’s comics for years, as if it was the only hobby that children wanted to have. 
Page 24: Kid Comic. Another boy who enjoys telling jokes.
Page 25: an advert for Top Trumps.
Pages 26 & 27: The Upper Crusts And The Lazy Loafers. Yet another “rich v poor” strip.
Pages 28 & 29: Spare Part Kit. A boy with really strong false big arms and legs, and another triumph for Robert Nixon!
Page 30: an advert for Whizzer And Chips, plus this. Honestly, children nowadays, they talk a language all of their own… 
Page 31: Country Cousin. Some bumpkin goes to live with his family in the big city. Chaos ensues.
Page 32: Barney’s Badges. A boy called Barney who has adventures with his magical badges. Drawn by Terry Bave, another great artist who deserves a lot more appraisal for his work. 
ADAM'S NOSTALGIC MEMORIES 
Here Is The News is by Ed McHenry, in case you’re still wondering 🙂
LikeLike