Thrill-Power Countdown #27: 2000ad Annual 1979

All of the 2000ad annuals have some kind of thrill-power, and there are still some sparks of it in the second big book that 2000ad produced back in the late 1970s. There is some very early Brett Ewins/Brendan McCarthy comics, which look sharp and modern, even if they still have the unavoidable clumsiness of youth. And there is a typically shiny and sharp cover from the truly mighty Kevin O'Neill.

But much of the comic material in this annual is dire, with artists who are clearly not ready for prime time on established strips like Dan Dare, MACH 1, Harlem Heroes and Invasion - the indispensable Barney database doesn't even know who did much of the art for this annual, and the stories are just as forgettable. The successful formula that 2000ad will lock into in the early 80s isn't quite there yet, and the annual is full of short stories that they can't even bother calling a Future Shock.

There is also a load of reprint material, and because company policy was to not reprint anything too recent, it's all from the pre-2000ad days and dull, like they escaped a 1966 Lion annual. The Phantom Patrol is a lot of empty sound and fury that goes on forever, although The Guinea Pig is almost charming with some bonkers ideas (why not float all the way to the moon in a space suit?) And some Dr Sin is always welcome. 

But it's easily the poorest of all the annuals. Maybe some kids in the dying days of the late 70s got their thrills out of this thick collection, but the future could only get better from here.