Classic Covers Calendar

In 1989, as part of its blowout 200th issue, the Transformers comic by Marvel UK introduced the "Classic Covers Calendar". This feature would celebrate the history of the comic by printing the inks of a classic cover with new (uncredited) colours in a two-page spread, centrefold style, paired with a portion of that year's calendar. All the dumb stubbies had to do was print one instalment in the comic once a month. What could go wrong?

What went wrong

January's instalment didn't even spell "calender" correctly. An inauspicious start.

The main problem was the Classic Covers Calendar was plagued with scheduling issues. With the understanding that contemporary cover dates reflected the seventh day after release, we can estimate each issue's publication date. The pattern emerges that over half of the calendars were published after their corresponding month was already underway, usually about four days late, with the January calendar dropping on the 7th. April's calendar was the first and only instalment to actually release on the first day of the month.

This was followed by calendar for June, published erroneously in place of May (and in what would have been good time, too!) before the May calendar arrived 27 days too late, far beyond its usefulness. July and August's calendars were released in advance of their months beginning, though by September things had once again started turning up slightly belated.

Readers were encouraged to remove their Classic Covers Calendars from their comics for wall-stick-up-ery.

The Classic Covers Calendar was advertised as being pull-out posters; centrefolds the reader could stick on their wall.

• Required dismantling the comic

• Flat recolouring
• Small pool of covers

Gallery

	January	February	March	April	June	May
Calendar	Issue 200	Issue 204	Issue 208	Issue 212	Issue 216	Issue 220
Cover date	January 14, 1989	February 11, 1989	March 11, 1989	April 8, 1989	May 6, 1989	June 3, 1989
Approx. publication	January 7, 1989	February 4, 1989	March 4, 1989	April 1, 1989	April 29, 1989	May 27, 1989
Original cover	Issue 117, "Hunters"	Issue 134, "Headhunt"	Issue 138 "Ladies' Night"	Issue 152, "Enemy Action!"	Issue 133, "Headhunt"	Issue 136, "Grudge Match!"
Original artist	Geoff Senior	Lee Sullivan	Barry Kitson	Lee Sullivan	Dave Gibbons	Robin Smith

	July	August	September	October	November	December
Calendar	Issue 224	Issue 229	Issue 234	Issue 237	Issue 243	Issue 247
Cover date	July 1, 1989	August 5, 1989	September 9, 1989	September 30, 1989	November 11, 1989	December 9, 1989
Approx. publication	June 24, 1989	29 July, 1989	September 2, 1989	September 23, 1989	November 4, 1989	December 2, 1989
Original cover	Issue 129, "Buster Witwicky and the Car Wash of Doom"	Issue 142, "Child's Play"	Issue 130, "Worlds Apart!"	Issue 153, "Enemy Action!"	Issue 135, "Grudge Match!"	Issue 145, "Stargazing"
Original artist	Robin Smith	Dan Reed	Geoff Senior	Lee Sullivan	Jeff Anderson	Barry Kitson