WIZBANG! The Necro-Parasite

 

(2B pencil on a 139mm x 87mm postcard)

Another piece based on those old comic-book adverts.

The more disturbing the item these adverts seem to sell, the more likely they were bought by equally disturbed kids. Joke and novelty companies were the main culprits of such dubious prank products, but they knew their market well.

WIZBANG! The Triplejack Gun

(2B pencil on A6 card)

 - NOT AVAILABLE - 

Anything that remotely hinted at some kind of weapon which could be use on others was siezed upon with the old comic-book ads. Things like airguns tended to be seen in the much older Boys' Own papers and you rarely saw such things in comics.

 

This piece shows the kind of thing that kids would have loved. What nasty little child wouldn't want something that made others pewk, piss and shit themselves at the same time?

WIZBANG! Pocket Atom Bomb

(2B pencil on a 139mm x 87mm postcard)

 

One of the better products you were able to get from comic book ads was the Exploding Army Hand Grenade. It wasn't a full-sized one and was a bit crude looking (nothing like the picture) but it was pretty good in the way you could load caps into it. In this Wizbang! advert, I've spoofed that by having it as a pocket atom bomb that kids can have fun totally destroying their neighbourhoods with.

WIZBANG! Pet Demon

(2B pencil on a 139mm x 87mm postcard)

- NOT AVAILABLE - 

Even pets were not immune to comic-book ads and there were quite a few different ones, whether it was the now infamous sea monkeys, or even squirrel monkeys (which were a real con, because you actually did get nothing for your money). As with other items that were advertised, they were sold as something wonderful and exotic, when they were really very mundane (sea monkeys were just brine shrimp).

 

With these Wizbang ads, I decided to reference them with an advert selling everything you could possibly need to grow your own little pet demon. A strange DIY kit that would probably sell well if it was advertised.

WIZBANG! Death-Ray Specs

(2B pencil on a 139mm x 87mm postcard)

 

Of all the comic-book ads which existed, the one that most tend to remember are the iconic "X-Ray Specs" ones. The original adverts tended to show the same character looking at the bones in their hand, or looking through the dress of a woman. It was responsible for many a child parting with their pocket money and was something of a catalyst in introducing them to this strange world of bullshit comic-book ads. I chose to spoof it here and kept the artwork for it very basic.

WIZBANG! Star Portal

(2B pencil on a 139mm x 87mm postcard)

  - NOT AVAILABLE -

As I remember, the original small-ads were very crude in their appearance, so the rough nature you see in the ones I've done do match that. This is helped by doing them with a simple 2B pencil, which gives them that rough "letterpress" feel that the original adverts once had. So it's fortunate that I didn't choose a fineliner, because I don't think they would have looked as good.

WIZBANG! Mind Probe

(2B pencil on a 139mm x 87mm postcard)

  - NOT AVAILABLE -

The old comic-book adverts were something of a phenomenon that many have fond memories of. They instilled a sense of wonder in the kids that fell under their spell, and even though what they received through the post fell way short of their expectations, they still sent off for more. Ad agencies today can only drool at the way these small ads captured the imagination of the young, knowing they could never get away with anything like that now, not without spending some time in prison.

 

In this artwork, I've created a fictional company called WIZBANG! as usually these small ads were from the same company who used different names. In this case, it's a strange company that creates genuine items like the mind probe and sells them cheaply.

 

And just a note: Don't send any money to the address in the ad, unless you're really stupid, because I doubt you'll receive anything back. If you do, it won't be what you expect. Pretty much like the original comic-book ads themselves!