As mentioned in our interview with Peter Mennigen, there is a new magazine now out that celebrates the Phantom and the publisher Bastei. We shared the news on our Facebook account and now we can share the details and contents of the magazine which includes a never before seen Phantom story and artwork. Bastei Freunde (translated to 'Friends') is a magazine dedicated to comics published by Bastei-Verlag in Germany. The magazine is produced by fans and contains articles and interviews related to Bastei's comics. Previous issues (#26, #27, #31, #39, #41, #42 & #45) have Phantom related articles, illustrations and or covers. However this magazine is pretty much all about the Phantom and its relationship with the publisher. The magazine is 52 pages, in colour besides the comic page art and measures 29.7cm x 21cm. Included with the magazine is a new story by Peter Mennigen, which is based off a Phantom script that was never published with the cancellation of the "Phantom" magazine. The title is "The Slaves" and has been rewritten into a prose adventure. Included in the magazine are examples of the script and two pages of the original never before seen artwork from this story that was started 35 plus years ago. The two pages will be completed with text in the speech bubbles as it was originally intended. Issue #238 is where the original Bastei comic series stopped and "The Slaves" as intended here was originally intended to be issue #242. Makes you wonder how many other complete stories and covers were created and maybe also awaiting to be discovered. Also included is a short biography on Phantom artist Ortiz Tafalla, information about writer Peter Mennigen, an article on the elements with the Phantom, an interview with the founder of the magazine Martin Hilland and a memorial piece on the former editor-in-chief of the youth department at Bastei publishing house Werner Geismar who passed away in 2018. If you are interested in getting yourself a copy, I would recommend contacting Ulrich Wick at www.wick-comics.de.

Review Upon entering the theatre my heart was warmed as we were greeted with the Good Mark of the Phantom

We review the long awaited Phantom 4 inch figurines from Boss Fight Studio's featuring the 21st Phantom

I haven't read and do not own all the DC Phantom comics from the late 1980's so enjoyed sitting down and reading the stories for the first time in the Hermes Press' most recent publication, a magnificent hard cover with bright glossy colour pages. Overall I was certainly not disappointed and recommend any phan to add this book to your Phantom library. This quality reproduction contains 224 pages of action packed stories, starting with the complete 1988 mini-series by Peter David with art by Joe Orlando and cover art by David Gibbons. Following that is the first two stories from the 1989 series with script by Mark Verheiden and pencils and inks by Luke McDonnell Both series are coloured by Anthony Tollin. As with any good Hermes Press books it includes information about the creators, in this case an interview by Peter David and an essay on Joe Orlando, who was a giant in the comics field and passed in 1998. This is the first of three volumes and a highly recommended purchase. If you would like to learn more about the DC Phantom series, we would recommend watching/listening to X-Band: The Phantom Podcast interviews with both Mark Verheiden and Luke McDonnell. You can buy this and the next two volumes at local comic books shops, the Hermes Press website and other online stores.

Chronicle Chamber has examined these books to share a video review with you (see above), but to summarise

(Editors Note: This review was originally published in the Sydvesten newspaper - shown right on 21 October

Attached is my review of the three comics.

Monogram International has made available for pre order a Defenders of the Earth themed set of 2 inch These are sold in blind bags, much like the King Comic PVC Figurines released by Boss Fight Studio (Our review More and more Defenders of the Earth licenses are being granted by King Features Syndicate. store stock current Monogram International products on their stores and we expect them to stock these Defenders

Jungle Patrol hat and beanie and have washed, worn and fully tested them to bring to you a detailed review

Today I review the 2020 Fantomen Christmas album and the latest Softcover Album which is the sixth in Mysterious Ambassador") by Lee Falk and Sy Barry "Bergsfärden" by Jacob Habinc and Janusz Ordon These reviews

A full video review of the TPB is below. The Chronicle Chamber team will review the stories in our upcoming May Comics and News Podcast.

Protagonist Le marquis de Fabras from The Cathedral Mystery biography Thank you to Ohm for his indepth review All reviews are included in our monthly X-Band: The Phantom Podcast's. We are still chasing a reviewer from Brazil who can review the new O Fantasma comics for us, please contact

"There are times when the phantom leaves the milk and drinks his cuppa black like an ordinary man"..... New Jungle Saying Every one needs a new mug and what better with our hero, The Phantom on it? Ikon Collectables have produced several high cost items and the new heat changing mug is a great low cost collectable affordable for all budgets. Christmas 2020 is all set with this mug now out and the new puzzle released from 1 December 2020. What makes the purchasing even easier is that Sanity Music is now stocking these present ideas at their 150+ shops Australia wide. Get down to either Sanity, your local Australian comic shop and or Ikon Collectibles online to order this mug (and their puzzle).

The latest issues of #13, #14 & #15 comes as a relief to phans, who were anxious about the future of the series, and also nicely coincides with the first anniversary of Regal's publishing of the title. With three books out after a 3 month gap, it remains to be seen what the new publishing schedule will be for Regal. As usual the comics are printed in the same high quality thick gloss paper (similar to the high-quality colour trade paperbacks of Frew) that was very well received and since in use from the first time it was presented with the 2020 Christmas Special Issues #5 & #6. Issue #13's cover is by Vincent Moses Raja and comes with a free mini poster of the cover art. The stories included are the dailies of 'Temple of The Gods Part 1 - The U-Boat Mystery' and 'Temple of The Gods Part 2 - Return to Eden'. Both stories have been written by Tony DePaul. Part 1 has been illustrated partly by George Olesen with Keith Williams on inks and finished by Paul Ryan (who started his long career on the strip from the middle of this story) who is also the artist of Part 2. A great issue considering it collects both parts of what I consider a really intriguing epic story. Issue #14's cover is drawn by Ankit Mitra (yours truly) and it comes with a free sticker of The Phantom based off the the issue's cover art. The stories included are the Sunday Strips of 'Woduro's Secret' written by the late Claes Reimerthi (RIP) and 'The Viking Fortress Mystery', written by Tony DePaul. Both stories have been illustrated by Graham Nolan. Issue #15's cover is drawn by Ankit Mitra (yours truly again) and it comes with a free card which is based off the issue's cover art. The stories included are the Tony DePaul written dailies 'The Ghost Wall', drawn by George Olesen with Kieth Williams on inks and 'The Crime Apprentices', drawn by Paul Ryan. It's great to see Regal come back from this period of uncertainty with their familiar high quality production values. And also capping off their one year of publishing 'The Phantom' with three issues in one go feels like a good boost to get back that impetus all over again! The price for each issue is 200 Indian Rupees which is about: $3.66 Australian Dollars, $2.69 US Dollars, 2.27 Euro & 23.11 Swedish Krona. (Approximate Rates) Due to licensing limitations, Regal can only sell & ship to addresses within India - so for Phans living outside India, I recommend you befriend an Indian Phan & have these books bought & shipped to you by them. If not, FREW are selling some copies of this series via their website, and I'm sure these issues too will show up for order there - although in very limited quantity. Regal have an Amazon Storefront for Indian Phans who would like to order these books from Amazon.in Issues #1 to #6 can be ordered HERE Issues #7 to 10 can be ordered HERE Issues #11, #12 & Mandrake #1 can be ordered HERE Issues #13, #14 & #15 can be ordered HERE For any assistance regarding ordering these books directly from Regal you can contact Regal Publishers here: Regal Publishers Whatsapp & Phone No: +91 94810 52592 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/regalpublishers/ Instagram: https://instagram.com/regalpublishers/ E-mail: regalpublishers@gmail.com

While comic book companies across the world seem to be cutting down & cancelling titles, Regal Publishers from India seem to be upping their production in 2021. Since the start of their full colour 'The Phantom' English comic series in August 2020, Regal's publishing schedule has been that of two issues released together with a month's gap till the next two issues. However that seems to have changed - In February of 2021 Regal released Issues 7 & 8, and Issues 9 & 10 are now already out in March! This is great news for Indian Phans, who will be hoping that Regal keep up this schedule and release a pair of issues every month from now onwards. The comics are printed in the same high quality thick gloss paper (similar to the high-quality colour trade paperbacks of Frew) that was very well received and since in use from the first time it was presented with the 2020 Christmas Special Issues #5 & #6. The Regal Direct freebies this time include a sticker of 'The Phantom' based off the cover art from Issue #9 & a mini-poster based off the cover of Issue #10. Each books reprints two Sunday strips, all of them written by Tony DePaul and illustrated by Terry Beatty. Issue #9's cover is by Ankit Mitra (Yours Truly) based off a panel from 'The Power House Gang' story - The issue runs 56 pages and has the two Sunday stories 'The Power House Gang' & 'Death Stalks the 5th Phantom' - the latter being one of my favourite stories illustrated by Terry Beatty alongside 'Trouble in the Twelve Nations'. Issue #10's cover is by, Regal Comics' veteran, Vincent Moses Raja (this is his 5th cover) & is based off a panel from the Story 'The Ghost Story', and probably my favourite Phantom work of is so far. The issue runs 56 pages too and contains the two strips of 'The Ghost Story' & 'The Iceman'. The price for each issue is 200 Indian Rupees which is about: $3.61 Australian Dollars, $2.76 US Dollars, 2.33 Euro & 23.85 Swedish Krona. (Rates as of today) Regal have set a benchmark amongst serially published monthly released 'The Phantom' comic series titles with the sheer quality of their paper and printing, & its a matter of pride for any Indian Phan to be able to get these stories in such quality at such economical prices. It is also a publication that any international Phantom collector would regale at the sheer quality of its production value. I wish the best for Regal and hope this series runs for years, giving us the dose of Phantom that has been missing for a long time in India. Due to licensing limitations, Regal can only sell & ship to addresses within India - so for Phans living outside India, I recommend you befriend an Indian Phan & have these books bought & shipped to you by them. If not, FREW are selling some copies of this series via their website, and I'm sure these issues too will show up for order there - although in very limited quantity. Regal are still finding it difficult to distribute their books since the pandemic, and now as India is seemingly bracing for a second wave of the pandemic, things are looking to get even more grim. I wish the team at Regal the best of luck, & for the sake of all the Phans worldwide I hope these sell well enough to ensure we keep getting these fantastic comics at such great prices domestically. Regal have an Amazon Storefront for Indian Phans who would like to order these books from Amazon.in Issues #1 to #6 can be ordered HERE Issues #7 to 10 can be ordered HERE For any assistance regarding ordering these books directly from Regal you can contact Regal Publishers here: Regal Publishers Whatsapp & Phone No: +91 94810 52592 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/regalpublishers/ Instagram: https://instagram.com/regalpublishers/ E-mail: regalpublishers@gmail.com