Crisis (also known as 2000 AD Presents: Crisis in early issues) was a British comic anthology published by Fleetway Publications from 17 September 1988 to October 1991, initially fortnightly and later monthly. Designed to appeal to older readers than other Fleetway titles in order to take advantage of a boom in interest in 'adult' comics, Crisis featured overtly political and complex stories; one issue was even produced in conjunction with Amnesty International.
Despite being branded under the umbrella of the successful 2000 AD, the comic was not a sales success and – despite periodic attempts at revamps – was cancelled after 63 issues. However, it did feature early work by a number of notable British comics creators, including Garth Ennis, John McCrea, Mark Millar, Grant Morrison and John Smith.
Creation
Background
The breakout success of Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons' Watchmen and Frank Miller's The Dark Knight Returns had greatly boosted the view that comic books (or as mainstream press outlets often called them, 'graphic novels') were a credible form of entertainment on both sides of the Atlantic. Coverage in national newspapers and influential magazines such as The Face and Time Out - together with the high profile of many of the creators involved in what was referred to in the comics industry as the 'British Invasion' - seemed to point to a potential audience of older British comic readers that were not being catered for by 2000 AD, despite the title's growing maturity.
The success also added to the growing discourse on creator ownership in comics. IPC Magazines, owners of 2000 AD and one of the most dominant comics publishers in the UK, operated a model whereby creators signed away their rights under a work for hire agreement. The company had long justified this stance by paying generous page rates in return to contributors signing away all ownership to their work - which allowed the company's material to be reprinted or syndicated overseas without royalty payments, while popular characters such as Judge Dredd were entirely owned by the publisher. Until 1977 - when Kevin O'Neill was able to get credits into 2000 AD - IPC didn't even attribute the work of its creators. The growth of the comics industry fandom with specialised publications like The Comics Journal threw a greater spotlight on the poor treatment of the likes of Jerry Siegel, Joe Shuster, Jack Kirby and Steve Englehart, leading to a rise in 'independent' comic companies such as Pacific and Eclipse, who allowed authors and artists to retain rights to their creations - as well as Marvel Comics establishing their Epic Comics imprint.
Meanwhile, 2000 AD editor Steve MacManus quit the title, citing burnout after an initial temporary stint replacing Kelvin Gosnell in 1979 had turned into a decade-long residency. MacManus had been instrumental in ensuring 2000 AD repeatedly bucked sales trends and weathered the downturn in British comic sales of the 1980s which had claimed many of IPC's titles, and was persuaded to stay on by editorial director John Sanders in order to hand 2000 AD to new editor Richard Burton. With that done, MacManus was then to take a lengthy working holiday to America in March 1987, to see how IPC could launch a title to take advantage of the public interest in adult-orientated comics.
To help work on the title (to be named 50/50 to reflect the split content), MacManus recruited Goldkind from Titan. The latter acted as a sounding board for the proposed Mills strips, and their discussions on global corporations and brands led to Mills conceiving "Third World War". Goldkind also suggested graphic artist Rian Hughes, who mixed agency work with small-press comics, to design the 2000 AD Presents 50/50: Third World War half of the flip comic; Steven Cook - who had a strong record, having produced successful redesigns for Starburst, Doctor Who Magazine and most recently 2000 AD - for the 2000 AD Presents 50/50: New Statesman half. However, management felt the title was not "sales friendly" and furthermore were concerned that the split format would cause concern for newsagents, which still made up the primary market for British comics. 50/50 was retitled Crisis at Goldkind's suggestion (MacManus would later recall management weren't enthusiastic about the new title either), and Hughes was retasked to create the overall look of the exterior as well as the interior for "Third World War", while Cook would style the interior for "New Statesmen".
Publication history
Launch
British comics generally drummed up publicity for a new title by including a free gift with early issues and prominent retailer displays in return for early issues being supplied on a sale or return basis until the title found its average circulation. Feeling it would go against the grain of the title's intended older audience, MacManus eschewed the free gift while Goldkind worked on a publicity campaign, MacManus recalled there was some sentiment that the larger Fleetway were trying to steamroller a potential rival with corporate muscle, something he denies being a conscious choice. The press campaign saw the first issue of Crisis sell an impressive 80,000 copies. The low production values of many reprints was criticised in some quarters.
More behind-the-scenes disruption came when Sanders, tiring of Maxwell's unpredictability, left Fleetway.