Preview: ‘Roy Of The Rovers: Pressure’ – End Of The Season Brilliance!

Time for the preview of the next Roy of the Rovers (ROTR) graphic novel – bringing season two to a beautifully done conclusion from Rob Williams, Lisa Henke and Rebellion – it’s absolutely a Roy of the Rovers moment…

Over the course of six graphic novels by Rob Williams and Ben Willsher (art – season 1, books 1-3) and Lisa Henke (art – season 2, books 4-6), and six prose books from Tom Palmer (with illustrations by Lisa Henke and Dan Cornwell), we have the whole ROTR experience across two seasons, and it’s mean a complete rejuvenation of one of the all-time classic Brit comics characters.

This is perfect Roy of the Rovers, with the graphic novels and the books alternating through the football season to give us fantastic football and soap opera comics and prose, worthy of the Roy Race legacy.

With Pressure, it’s the end of season 2 and what a season it’s been – after getting promoted to Division 1 (that’s the third tier of English football), Melchester are having to play their games out of Tynecaster’s Premier League stadium after the Melchester ground was burned down, Captain Vic Guthrie lost control in a match and is taking a break, old manager Mighty Mouse is back in charge after recovering from his heart attack, and their crooked owner is behind bars – for financial irregularities and the arson attack on Melchester’s stadium.

Thankfully, the 30-point deduction Melchester were penalised with has been rescinded, but it still means they have no stadium and, unless they can find a new owner by the end of the season, no hope of carrying on as a football team.

But on the pitch, there’s only one thing on everyone’s mind, including new co-Captain Roy Race – and that’s winning promotion to the Championship. Can they do it?

Well, that’s what you’ll find out in this perfect ROTR graphic novel. Seriously, by the end of the book I had goosebumps, having read 50-odd pages that perfectly mixed up the on and off-field excitement and delivered the only ending it could, the only ending it should.

I’ll cover more of this with a review once the book’s actually out in October, but for now I just wanted to let you all know that this IS Roy of the Rovers, a perfect rejuvenation of a classic, brought to life by Williams, Henke, Campbell, Charles, and Mendes.

Enjoy the preview below and make a note to pick up everything in the ROTR series…

Roy of the Rovers Book 6 – Pressure – Season 2, Graphic Novel #3 – written by Rob Williams, art by Lisa Henke, letters by Jim Campbell, colours by John Charles & Guilherme Lindemberg Mendes, published by Rebellion.

Pressure is released on 29 October – put it on your to buy list.