Viz comics

Just found a stash of these while cleaning out my closet this week. Yes, I admit I had a stash! They were stupid, crass, immature and morally questionable, but so are many of the things I enjoy most. I found out about Viz in college, while dating a Brit who later became Mr. Chrissie...used to crack up at many of those characters...Roger Mellie, the Man on the Telly? Sid the Sexist? Student Grant? Paul Whicker the Tall Vicar? Oh man, so many...anyone else gonna admit that they read this rag? And does anyone know if they still publish it? I haven't seen one in nearly 20 years!

Nope. Too unpolitically correct methinks. They were very good though

I think I have a couple of annuals somewhere.

Still going strong last time I glanced up at the top shelf merely for research purposes you understand

Right, research. Of course, MT...

To be honest, Dabamash, I liked the fact that they were politically incorrect! I know that humour's not everyone's cup of tea, but I thought the writers had a real grasp on what people are actually like. I have met Student Grant, Sid, and loads of other Viz characters in real life, if you know what I'm saying. People really are that horrible sometimes! I think the fact that Viz pointed it out was great, because they never pretended about the short-sightedness or stupidity of the average punter you'd meet down the pub. They laughed at those mentalities and never celebrated them. Those characters were supposed to be unlikeable...and they were!

Plus there's something to be said for their Letter Bocks section, which parodied the Letters to the Editor of other newspapers/magazines. And their Top Tips...hysterical! A typical submission to Top Tips:

"Don't listen to people who advise you to do your holiday shopping early and beat the rush. I did my shopping a full twelve months ahead of time last year and it was as busy as ever."

I used to read Viz regularly. I loved the fact that it was gross and got up peoples' noses. It was bloody funny too. Not read it in years. Buster Gonad and his Unfeasibly Large Testicles, Johnny Fartpants, The Fat Slags, Billy the Fish, Farmer Palmer. Aaaaaaahhhhh. Those were the days.

Definitely still up and running. They even have a website

Viz Website here

Well, thats news to me. Lol, I should subscribe.

Viz, I think, was never politically incorrect. "Sid the Sexist" was not a sexist comic strip, more it was lampooning the misogynistic idiots that prowl our town centres of a weekend. But the best, the absolute BEST thing about that was that the sexist gits had no idea that it was taking the mickey out of them, so they thought it was hilarious too...

The same goes for things like Alf Garnett, but with racism. People used to approach Warren Mitchell praising him for his racism, and he'd shout at them telling them they had totally missed the point.

I just realised i put UNpolitically correct. That was quite a rare grammer slip up for me, i'm usually quite anal about these things.

Dabamash wrote:

i'm usually quite anal about these things.

Fnarr Fnarr!

Viz - wonderful stuff! I still have a Roger Mellie the Man on the Telly T-shirt in a drawer somewhere - if I had a clue where it was perhaps I should wear it at Delamere tonight so we could meet up (or people could avoid me )

Oh that would have been such a good idea!
Does anybody else remember brown bottle and cider woman,the 2 hilarious (well in my juvenile mind anyway) anti super heroes?

I used to love the top tips page and the letterbox bit, hilarious! thanks for the link i will check it out!

I remember once when the late Paula Yates wrote in to complain about something Viz had said about her. I don't remember the item in question being that funny, or the complaint, but what did amuse me to the point of uncontrollable giggles was the headline they gave to her letter which read:

"Yates's Whine Lodged"

asleepintheback wrote:

Oh that would have been such a good idea!
Does anybody else remember brown bottle and cider woman,the 2 hilarious (well in my juvenile mind anyway) anti super heroes?

Yessss! Also liked the Modern Parents...again, I knew those characters in real life as well. There was a couple that were always trying to be the most progressive, politically-correct, forward-thinking parents in my daughter's pre-school group. Insufferable tw*ts, is what they were, actually.

Oh, just remembered another comic which was published in Scotland in the late '80's/early 90's and was similar to Viz, called Electric Soup. That one made me laugh because I recognized a lot of the humour (their parody of the Broons, called the Greens, for example), but that one didn't last long and I don't think they put out too many issues. There was a character called Tunnock McNulty, I think, and another strip was about an obnoxious family of losers living in Govan, sort of Rab C. Nesbitt-type stuff...not nearly as iconic as Viz but it had its moments.

I just found my Viz stash I have issues 19-25 which i discover are selling for 36 quid a go and loads that are selling at 12 or 6 quid and also a book at £50. Im really glad I kept em.....