Hoy Komiks, Pinoy Version of Mad

At last, I'm finally able rediscover the long lost Hoy Komiks magazines I bought many many years ago. I somehow lost hope that they may have been included in the garage sale initiated by my sister some years ago, but fortunately they showed up stacked neatly among piles of old magazines in my grandfather's library.

For those old enough who still remember it, Hoy Komiks was first released in 1986 shortly after the People Power Revolution that toppled the Marcoses from political power. As such, most of the Hoy's contents reflected the era of the times: cartoons and caricatures that lambasted the arrogance and the indulgence of the Marcoses. The komiks-magazine proved to be non-partisan, though, as Cory and Doy also got their share of critical caricatures.

Hoy was patterned after the popular American comic-magazine Mad. It is about the same size and the same number of pages. Unlike Mad, however, Hoy was only short-lived with only about less than seven issues published, I believe. It was published by Wahoo Guerrero (grandson of Ramon Roces), and published by Image Enterprises, Inc., which its offices located in 18th Ave., Murphy, Cubao, Quezon City. Of course, GASI was also located in the same compound.

I am fortunate to be able to keep a few copies of this rare Hoy Komiks-Magazine. I'm sure many among you remember this komiks, but back then (twenty years ago), spending 7 pesos for a komiks magazine was not really very affordable, especially when the country was experiencing one of the worst post-Marcos recessions in Asia. Well, that is unless you're also a rabid komiks collector like me. And so, not many people were able to hoard copies. Some copies may have have suffered the same fate as the old Tagalog komiks--pambalot ng tinapa (dried fish wrapper).

Of course, comics is just one way to catch a glimpse of the realities of a nation's struggle to freedom, and just liked the short-lived Lipang Kalabaw and Telembang komiks-magazines during the Philippine-American period, the Hoy Komiks-Magazine was also the cartoonists' inspired and albeit hilarious view of the social, political, and cultural events of its times. It maybe short-lived, but it had lived its life fully.



Hoy#1


Hoy#2


The Barcoses at Halacanang. Illustrations by Vicatan.



Hoy#4

Ulyanin na si Mako