Semic Interprint
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| Predecessor | Interprint |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1988 |
| Successor | Adoc-Semic |
| Country of origin | Hungary |
| Headquarters location | Budapest |
| Publication types | Comic books |
| Fiction genres | Superhero, Humor, Manga, adventure |
Semic Interprint, now known as Adoc-Semic, is a Hungarian publishing company, located in Budapest. It publishes mainly translated Hungarian comics and magazines. It has been the main comics company in Hungary, and the only source for American comics in the country for over a decade.
Publishing history[edit]
Formed in 1988, it started as a Hungarian-Swedish joint venture, incorporating the Swedish Semic Press and the former Hungarian publisher Interprint. It took over former titles and introduced a whole series of American and European comics, never before seen in Hungary, including Spider-Man, Batman, Superman, and The Phantom. Publishing peaked in 1991, when the company put out more than 120 books a year.
After the success of the three well-known American titles, new ones got introduced, such as Transformers, the X-Men, and Marvel Extra, which featured the Avengers, Fantastic Four, Daredevil, and many more. Others were Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (Mirage comics), RoboCop, Garfield, and Calvin and Hobbes. Kretén featured mainly works of Hungarian artists; later it translated some material from MAD. Some older ones were forced into joint bi-monthly titles like Batman and Superman. Besides the growing number of comics, there were also unsuccessful moves like the short-lived X-07 magazine, which was meant to feature Franco-Belgian comics like XIII and Largo Winch.
At the end of the 1990s, financial disputes with Marvel Comics (which at that time was bankrupt) led to the cancellations of Marvel Extra, X-Men, and the Transformers, leaving only Spider-Man as the last Marvel character in the country. After this, Semic Interprint turned to Dark Horse Comics and Image Comics. X-Files, Spawn, and Star Wars were launched in 1997. X-Files got canceled after one year, and Spawn in 1999 together with Spider-Man, leaving the county with practically no comics.
In 1999 the company introduced the first manga published in Hungary, namely Dragon Ball, Video Girl Ai, and Sailor Moon. The first two were manga-sized 52 page, monthly titles; Sailor Moon featured the colored Animanga version in a 52-page comic book-sized edition. The ban on Dragonball in Hungarian TV broadcasting had a diminishing effect on the spread of anime and manga at that time, and after the cancellation of Video Girl Ai and Sailor Moon, Dragon Ball also got sacked.
The next big move for the company was the introduction of the hit US comic series Ultimate Spider-Man. Titled Csodálatos Pókember in Hungarian, it got the same title as its predecessor in hope of wider recognition among older comic fans. 2001 also featured a sad event. DC's last representatives, Superman & Batman, disappeared from the news stands.
The years since can be dubbed stagnation at the company. No new regular titles, few one-shots like the Batman movie adaptation got published, but no big investments.
With the Appearance of Panini Comics in Hungary, which also publishes American comics, Semic chose to make Csodálatos Pókember a monthly title.
Adoc-Semic products are available at newsstands (there is no direct market for comics in Hungary). Some back issues are still available from the publisher.
Published titles[edit]
| Title | Publication dates | Issues | Content |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ai, a videolány | 2000 | 4 | Video Girl Ai |
| Alf | 1990 | 12 | Alf |
| Batman | 1990–1993 | 25 | Monthly, later bi-monthly title featuring various stories from Detective Comics and Batman. Issue #1 featured Batman: The Killing Joke. |
| Bobo | 1986-1992 | 53 | Bobo, the Swedish comic. |
| Bolondos dallamok | 2003 | 1 | A one-shot with the crew from Looney Tunes. |
| Csodálatos Pókember | 1989–1999 | 127 | One of the company's longest-running comics, featuring Spider-Man stories from The Amazing Spider-Man, Spectacular Spider-Man, Web of Spider-Man, and Marvel Team-Up. |
| Csodálatos Pókember Album | 1990–1991 | 2 | Oversize annuals featuring Marvel Team-Up stories with Spider-Man. |
| Csodálatos Pókember: Sikoly | 2005 | 1 | A 96-page one-shot featuring the legendary Shrieking story from The Amazing Spider-Man. |
| Csodálatos Pókember vol. 2 | 2001-2010 | 90 | Ultimate Spider-Man |
| Csodálatos Pókember vol. 3 | 2011 | 2 | Featuring Spider-Man stories from The Amazing Spider-Man. |
| Dragon Ball | 2000–2001 | 16 | Dragon Ball manga split into 52-page monthly manga size comics. |
| Falomlás | 1989 | 1 | A one-shot about the fall of the Berlin Wall. |
| Fantom | 1987–1992 | 24 | Stories from the Swedish The Phantom, Fantomen. |
| Fantom Album | 1990 | 1 | An oversized album of collected The Phantom strips. |
| Flintstone család | 1990 | 6 | The Flintstones |
| Garfield | 1990-2011 | 253 | Various Garfield strips collected in a monthly comic book format. |
| Garfield zsebkönyv | 1991-2010 | 97 | Garfield strips in pocket-size books |
| Góliát | 1986–1992 | 52 | |
| Góliát Album | 1988–1991 | 3 | |
| James Bond | 1988–1989 | 6 | Black and white James Bond stories plus |
| Juli, Klári, Cili | 1991 | 1 | One-shot with French comics. |
| Képregény Koktél | 1994 | 6 | Calvin and Hobbes strips collected into comic volumes. |
| Kretén | 1993-2009 | 100 | A humor magazine, mainly with Hungarian artists' works. It has a regular MAD section. |
| Lobo | 1999 | 2 | Short-lived title about the DC Comics character Lobo |
| Lobo & Maszk | 1999 | 2 | Team-up of Lobo and The Mask. |
| MAD | 1997 | 6 | Stories from MAD magazine. |
| Maja, a méhecske | 1990 | 12 | |
| Marvel Extra | 1993–1996 | 24 | Various stories from Marvel Comics featuring The Avengers, Iron Man, Daredevil, Fantastic Four, Hulk, Spider-Man and partially events, like Secret Wars, Inferno, and Kraven's Last Hunt. |
| Nils Holgersson | 1988–1992 | 49 | Nils Holgersson |
| Pókember - A sors hálójában | 2005 | 1 | A Spider-Man one-shot. |
| Pókember mozifilmek | 2002 | 2 | Comics adaptations of the Spider-Man movies. |
| Robotzsaru | 1990–1993 | 13 | Marvel's RoboCop comics. |
| Rózsaszín Párduc | 1987–1992 | 41 | Pink Panther comics. |
| Sailor Moon | 1999–2000 | 24 | 52-page monthly color animanga about Sailor Moon |
| Snoopy | 1997 | 2 | Snoopy |
| Spawn - Az ivadék | 1997–1999 | 18 | Todd McFarlane's Spawn |
| Star Wars | 1997–2011 | 82 | Bi-monthly title featuring various Star Wars stories from Dark Horse Comics. |
| Star Wars film adaptációk | 1999–2005 | 3 | Comics adaptations of the Star Wars movies |
| Superman | 1990–1992 | 18 | Monthly (later bi-monthly) Superman title, featuring stories from The Man of Steel, Action Comics, and Superman vol. 2 |
| Superman & Batman | 1992–2001 | 54 | Bi-monthly book featuring stories from Action Comics, Superman vol. 2, Superman: The Man of Steel, Batman, Detective Comics, and Shadow of the Bat. |
| Szimat szörény | 1989 | 3 | Photo-comic about a Hungarian TV show, featuring a hound as detective |
| Tarzan | 1992 | 4 | Edgar Rice Burroughs' Tarzan by Blackthorne Publishing |
| Tini Titán Teknőcök | 1991–1995 | 38 | Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (Mirage comics) from Mirage Studios |
| Tiszta Dili | 1994–1997 | 24 | Bimonthly humor magazine with various artists |
| Transformers | 1990–1997 | 35 | Transformers by Marvel Comics |
| Tumak | 1988–1989 | 15 | Tumac, an Incan Indian. |
| X-07 | 1995 | 2 | Featuring XIII and Largo Winch |
| X-Akták | 1997 | 6 | The X-Files by Topps Comics |
| X-Men | 1992–1997 | 36 | Stories mainly from Uncanny X-Men |
| X-Men: X2 | 2003 | 1 | Comics adaptation of the X-Men: X2 movie |