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David Bishop
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Thrill-power Overload Hardcover – 25 July 2007

by David Bishop (Author)
4.2 4.2 out of 5 stars 20 ratings
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For 30 years, 2000 AD has been one of the most influential Science Fiction comics in the world. Home to such respected characters as Judge Dredd, Strontium Dog and Rogue Trooper the Galaxy's Greatest's influence on the world of comic books as a whole is incalculable. Now, former 2000 AD editor David Bishop explores the history of this legendary comic in a comprehensive and fully illustrated book.
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  1. Print length
    260 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    2000 AD Graphic Novels
  4. Publication date
    25 July 2007
  5. ISBN-10
    1905437226
  6. ISBN-13
    978-1905437221
  7. See all details
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Product description

About the Author

David Bishop is a respected author and Editor. Formerly the editor of UK comic 2000 AD, Bishop has written many successful novels and comic stories.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ 2000 AD Graphic Novels (25 July 2007)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 260 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1905437226
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1905437221
  • Customer reviews:
    4.2 4.2 out of 5 stars 20 ratings

About the author

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David Bishop

David Bishop

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David Bishop is the author of twenty published novels, and has written TV dramas and radio plays for the BBC. His non-fiction books include Endeavour: The Complete Inspector Morse, and Thrill-Power Overload, an acclaimed history of iconic British science fiction comic 2000AD, which he edited from 1996-2000. When not writing, he is programme leader for the innovative Creative Writing MA at Edinburgh Napier University in Scotland. He's a member of the Crime Writers' Association and the Society of Authors.

Customer reviews

4.2 out of 5 stars
20 global ratings

Top reviews from United Kingdom

ShammyB
5.0 out of 5 stars Good companion to the comics - if you have the comics
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 27 June 2015
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Im currently going though all my back progs, starting with prog 1 and making up the gaps with electronic editions.
This book makes a good introduction to each period of 200AD, and I dip into Thrill Power Overload (TPO) book to see the background of what was going on internally within 2000AD.

I've actually been in publishing myself (I wrote, co-wrote or acted as technical editor/reviwer on 20 books, Web design and multimedia, 2000-2005), and a lot of the issues and incidents at 2000AD make me nod knowingly, because a lot of the time, the whole publishing industry is just one big vanity publisher (or acts as if it is!).

The books itself looks good, being in full colour quality paper with lots of illustrations. As other people have mentioned though, the comic strips themselves take a second role to the people involved in this book, so if you want to know about all but the main the strips themselves, this is not the book for you - TPO assumes you are already a fan and therefore assumes all the common knowledge that a regular reader would have. Some people may complain about that, but I think its pretty fair: you would not buy this book unless you were in the Squaxx dek Thargo. Most of the big stories are covered though. There is a nice and satisfying writeup about my favourite strip for example (The Ballad of Halo Jones), a lot said about the tardiness of Bisley for the Slaine and Dredd/Batman strips, and all the other main strips that are key to 2000AD..

People who don't have at least some of the progs (such as someone coming in from the Judge Dredd films) will suffer though.

Additionally, the book is a bit dry, and you won't be able to get through it in one sitting without a pile of back progs near you to inject the thrill power of the actual comics into the endeavour.... however, that's exactly what I am doing, so full marks!

Most importantly, it is making this 40 something year old reader more aware of one of the big deals from his childhood!

Fun fact: reading this book has made me realise all sorts of strange facts - such as 'I can see where 2000AD used to be printed from where I currently work (Holbeck, Leeds). How zarjaz is that!
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Lewis Stringer
5.0 out of 5 stars A worthy book for comics historians
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 13 July 2007
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Hefty book, hefty price, but well worth it. This is a mature look back at the history of 2000AD from its insiders. Bishop uses his position as ex-editor to talk to the creators themselves, and they don't hold back on the criticism.

However, it's not a negative book by any means. So few comics survive for 30 years and this is a worthy and positive tribute to its longevity.

Yes, it would have been nice to see unused character sketches, or photographs of the creators at work or at convention appearances, but this is the story of 2000AD the comic, and that's where it's focused. Some unused pages from the original "dummy issue" are shown, including the cover (when it was called AD2000).

Some books on comics are little more than boring plot resumés of the characters. This book is nothing like that thankfully! This is the "behind the scenes" story of the comic, and the industry surrounding it, from the horse's mouth as it were, warts and all.
15 people found this helpful
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Patrick Mahon
4.0 out of 5 stars A warts and all history of the Galaxy's Greatest Comic
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 8 December 2012
As someone who read 2000AD consistently for its first fifteen years, then left it behind when the worlds of work and marriage rudely interrupted my leisure time, I found 'Thrill-Power Overload' a fascinating book. It chronicles the development of the Galaxy's Greatest Comic in awesome detail, including lots of behind the scenes information on disagreements between creators, editors and management that I found fascinating.

Coming to this in the aftermath of a recent revival of interest in 2000AD (prompted by seeing the excellent 'Dredd 3D' film a couple of months back), it was great to find out about the comic's mixed fortunes in the fifteen years after I stopped reading it. I'll definitely be getting hold of some of the graphic novel reprint volumes now.

As others have said, this is a really good book, but it does have some flaws. For me, there are two main ones. The first is that writer David Bishop has a tendency to refer to writers and and artists either by first name or surname for much of the book, which makes the text very confusing at times (given, for example, the number of people called Smith who have worked on 2000AD). The second issue for me is that many of the cover images and story extracts that illustrate every page are printed so small that it's almost impossible to read the text on them - which is just plain frustrating!

Nonetheless, this is an enormously valuable book, and I am extremely grateful to David Bishop for having written it, and to all those who spoke to him for having been so open and honest about the highs and lows of bringing 2000AD to the British (and global) public.

Well worth reading.
One person found this helpful
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Design Guy
5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful retrospective on the galaxy's greatest comic
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 4 April 2015
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Wonderful retrospective on the galaxy's greatest comic. Interesting tales spanning the many years it's been around. Reminds me just how amzing 200ad was - I highly recomend!
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Mr. J. W. Campbell
5.0 out of 5 stars Splendid Stuff!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 30 December 2009
Take no notice of those reviewers who complain about the fact that this book details the infighting and drama that lay behind the astonishing feat of producing a weekly title full of original material for thirty consecutive years ... it's a *fantastic* story!

I can't think of anything duller than a procession of facts in chronological order about which stories were more popular than other stories, which at least one reviewer suggests this book should be.

There's at least one chapter where this book could have dished a lot *more* dirt, but that doesn't change the fact that this is a thoroughly entertaining read, generously illustrated and authoritatively written by former 2000AD editor David Bishop.

And -- if you are looking at this book out of a sense of nostalgia for a comic you remember from your youth -- there is one more thing to consider: 2000AD is not only still going strong, it's close to being as good now as it's ever been. Ask your newsagent ... he'll order you a copy, and you won't regret it.
3 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

Duncan
5.0 out of 5 stars An amazing history
Reviewed in Canada on 12 January 2014
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As a long-time comic book collector and big fan of Judge Dredd, I've always been familiar with 2000AD. My father was from Glasgow and on the few trips I took to Scotland, I always made to pick up a copy or two. This history of 2000AD is fascinating and gives an amazing glimpse not only into the comic itself but also into the nuts and bolts of the publishing industry over the years in the UK. I highly, HIGHLY recommend this book. It was a fantastic read.
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J. Willson
4.0 out of 5 stars Tharg would be proud - 2000 AD done right
Reviewed in the United States on 4 October 2009
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This review is being drafted by an American, who once happened across some copies of 2000 AD, the astonishingly good science fiction weekly comics magazine from Great Britain, and became a fan for life. As any comics fan will realize from reading this book, many of today's top international comic book artists and writers started out working for 2000 AD, and this book covers every issue and period in great detail. Filled with artwork from the likes of Alan Davis, Brian Bolland, Mike McMahon, Steve Dillon and many others, THRILL-PACKED reminds us of what a major force of great comics that 2000 AD has been since the 1970's, and continues to be today. Recommended for anyone who loves great comics, edgy sci-fi and appreciates a good post-apocalyptic story told with quirky and intriguing characters.
4 people found this helpful
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