For the Love of the Tagalog Komiks

For as long as I can remember, I have loved komiks and the entire experience of reading Tagalog komiks. When I was growing up, to help me in my reading, my father always bought me komiks. Our old house in Cubao was near the GASI offices in 18th Avenue, and there my father would buy back issues of Pinoy Komiks, Aliwan, Pinoy Klasiks, Pioneer, and those horde of komiks magazines being published by GASI.

There were plenty of horror komiks magazines during those times, with prices ranging from 75 centavos to 1 peso. I was very attracted to komiks with horrifying drawings. I remember quite clearly Devil Car by Vic Poblete, Cannibal by Jim Fernandez, Goomboo Roomboo by Mars Ravelo, and The Hands by Hal Santiago.

Yet, the beauty of Tagalog Komiks is the diversity it offered its readers. In an issue of Aliwan Komiks, for instance, the pages are alternately filled with horror serials, love shorts, fun page, cartoon strips, action, melodrama, etc. It catered to all people of different tastes and ages. Nothing is limited in the imagination and the komiks provide the reader to navigate their fantasies with them.

Tony Velasquez, Father of the Tagalog Komiks.
He created Kenkoy in 1929--the very first cartoon character in Asia.

(Dennis Villegas collection)

Sometimes when we didn't have enough money, we just rented komiks from a Sari-sari store in the neighborhood. The komiks were all lined up like sinampay in front of the store, and there we would rent for 20 centavos each for the latest issues. The rent time was only three hours so we better read immediately.

In the 1980s, with some money saved from my school allowance, I began buying komiks on my own. There really wasn't any value on them, but I thought I would like to put into folders my favorite komiks magazines. What fascinated me was the idea of having something tangible to be able to browse on rainy afternoons, rather than make them into pambalot ng tinapa or fuel for our cooking stove. I didn't realize then that I was starting a collection.

Ang Alipin ni Hogarta
(Dennis Villegas collection)

Basahang Ginto by Mars Ravelo and Elpidio Torres.
The 1950s komiks were excellent reading and visual materials

(Dennis Villegas collection)

Ironically, I stopped buying komiks during the mid 1980s. I may have been occupied with school, and certainly during those times, my interest in komiks somewhat waned, possibly due to the fact that there were other hobbies I could concentrate on. My father went to Saudi Arabia (and back then, it seemed that all other fathers were in Saudi Arabia). When my father came back, he brought with him chocolates, a stereo component, several cassette tapes, and a very interesting toy called Game and Watch, a pocket game in which a helicopter drops a marine solder into the sea and my task is to catch the guy in my boat or he drowns or eaten by an octopus. The game was the start of the computer craze that was to dominate the youth's interest in those times.

When I finally had a regular job, I went back into collecting komiks. As far as I know, very few people collected Tagalog komiks, and so I was challenged to collect only Tagalog komiks. I never cared for Batman, Spider-Man, the Fantastic Four, the X-Men, or Superman. I wanted Darna, Bondying, Kenkoy, Tsikiting Gubat, Ponyang Halobaybay, Panthomanok, Kalabog en Bosyo, Zuma, or Mahimud Ali. My main objective was to collect the oldest possible komiks magazines.

Bomba Komiks: Adult-oriented komiks

(Dennis Villegas collection)

Since our house was just very near the GASI and ATLAS compound, I started inquiring if they had back issues willing to sell. But the General Manager Deo Alvarez bluntly told me that their back issues were not for sale. I was allowed to see the collection, though, and to my horror, I found that their great collection of komiks was stored in a damp and humid warehouse without proper ventilation. And so up to this day, Atlas compound has the largest un-inventorized Tagalog komiks collection in the world, where the komiks are already in a state of decomposition. I give a few years and this magnificent collection will be destroyed by the elements if not given proper care.

But then, fortunately, I had other sources of komiks.

Vir Redondo was a friend of my father's, and at that time, he was frequenting GASI to sell some of his old komiks. He sold me some of his collections before he died. I also purchased many bound komiks from the late Tony Velasquez, Tony Tenorio and Pablo S. Gomez. People told me I was crazy because I was spending all my salary into all these komiks magazines. Yet I give thanks to my parents who supported my passion and even loaned me money to purchase collections.

In the late 1990s, I discovered that some komiks were being sold in local auctions for 100-200 pesos each. I couldn't afford many but I thought this was my chance to build my collection. Thankfully, auction prices never went high than their initial prices simply because nobody, back then, was buying komiks. I was the only crazy one.

This general lack of interest in komiks has what led me to take interest in preserving this cultural richness of this unique literary and visual artform. As far as I'm concerned, the Philippines has the richest komiks culture in Asia, and possibly in the whole world. No country had a richer comics culture than the Philippines. Our komiks was not only a reflection of our people's fantasies, but a mirror of our mores, our sufferings, our history, our beliefs, and our religion.

By the start of the year 2000, I had accumulated so much komiks materials that I decided to sell the duplicates, and I used the money to buy more komiks and, this time, original art. In time I was able to open a komiks gallery in Cubao, was able to reprint the first comic book in the Philippines, and opened this blog--all for the benefit of cultural awareness of the importance of Tagalog komiks.

Early Philippine Cartoons

Jorge Pineda and Fernando Amorsolo belonged to the first generation of Filipino cartoonists to have emerged during the early years of the American occupation. Most of their cartoons were published in popular news magazines like the Free Press, The Independent, Lipang Kalabaw, and Telembang. Amorsolo and Pineda, of course, eventually developed into great painters that somehow overshadowed their massive body of cartoon works.

When art patronage became a fashion among the elite during the 1920s, Amorsolo and Pineda eventually gave up doing caricatures and concentrated on painting portraits of rich people and commissioned landscapes, which was of course, more profitable. This shift in art, though, can hardly deny the fact that in the 1920s, the Philippines may have the two most talented batch of cartoonists ever to have graced the pages of news and comic magazines.

The cartoon strips shown below are a typical example of elegant Philippine cartoons from these two great cartoonists. The first is by Fernando Amorsolo, and the second by Jorge Pineda.


Simbang Tanan by F. Amorsolo





Balasubas sa Diario by J. Pineda

Early Ruben Yandoc Work (1951)

Here is one of Ruben Yandoc's early works in Hiwaga Komiks dating back to 1951. I consider Yandoc to be one of the most interesting illustrators during the Golden Age of Komiks in the Philippines. His unique style was earlier influenced by Redondo, but he managed to develop the style into uniquely his own.

Yandoc was at his best when illustrating fantasy and horror stories, the kind of which I consider Philippine gothic. It was a very popular genre in the early years of komiks in the Philippines.

The story below is an example of the beautifully rendered art and storytelling abilities of Ruben Yandoc. (Please click on the images to view the larger images)

Early Floro Dery Work from 1964

I recently unearthed from my old Bulaklak komiks collection this 1964 work of Filipino illustrator Floro Dery. Dery is one of my favorite komiks illustrators. I was surprised that Dery was also illustrating for Bulaklak during the time when Alex Nino was also starting his career there as apprentice to the great Jess Jodloman, who was then Bulaklak's chief artist.

Looking back to 1964, this comics illustration by Dery(see below), is done in the Redondoesque style of drawing that was popular during those times, a style created, of course, by Nestor Redondo.

By the way, Dr. Dery has a wonderful website in which he showcases his recent drawings and illustrations. These beautiful illustrations manifest Mr. Dery's passion for exaggeration and depth in his drawings, a point he repeatedly expounds as the basis for his unique style. You can visit his website here.

(Click images below to enlarge)

Spot the Difference

Oh no, I've been browsing my old piles of komiks and saw these:

Pilipino Komiks #47, 1949. Cover art by Francisco V. Coching



Pilipino Komiks #195, 1954. Cover art by Alfredo Alcala



Super Action Komiks#169, 1988. Cover art by Franklin Batolinao.

My only question is: is it really possible to rescue a woman in that position while riding in a horseback? My personal opinion is that it would cause injuries to the woman.

Pilipino Funny Komiks (1978-2004)

Pilipino Funny Komiks started me into collecting Tagalog komiks. Back in the 1970s, my father used to buy all sorts of Bugs Bunny and Batman comics being poorly reprinted by National Bookstore, hoping I could easily learn to read English. But I never liked reading them. In fact I have a bunch of them in my bookshelf now which I will gladly give away to anyone who will take care of them.

On the other hand, I liked Pilipino Funny Komiks because it is written in Tagalog, and I can easily relate with it. I feel lucky that our family did not have the habit of throwing away things. We just keep everything in our old bauls and bookshelves. Some of our collections have been destroyed due to frequent typhoons, but still most have survived. When I got a job in the late 1980s, I started augmenting our collection, trying to find the objects that were part of our childhood. And this included Pilipino Funny Komiks.

Pilipino Funny Komiks is a full color komiks first published in 1978 by Islas Filipinas Publications, Inc., a division of Atlas Publications, owned by Don Ramon Roces. Back then, Atlas was located at Scout Reyes Street, in Quezon City. (The company was later purchased by Mrs. Socorro Ramos of National Bookstore, and the company transferred to 20th Avenue in Cubao, just right across where I was living.)

For those who grew up reading Pilipino Funny Komiks, reading them now could bring echoes of nostalgia of the simpler days when children were just complacent reading a colored comic book, filled with beautiful stories about animal superheroes and endearing characters. Back then, there were no video games, internet, MP3, and home video. All we had then was a black and white television where we watch children's programs like Kuskos Balungos and Sesame Street.

And then appeared Pilipino Funny Komiks, which changed the way we Filipino children lived at that time. It was only a comic book, but it was still a comic book. And we loved it.

Let us travel back in time revisit those good old days by viewing once more the most endearingly memorable characters we grew up with in Pilipino Funny Komiks. Pilipino Funny Komiks was last published in 2004.. What I can show you now are the older copies I found in my komiks library.

It's good to be a child once in a while to momentarily escape the boredom of being grown-ups.

Pilipino Funny Komiks#1


#2


Tsikiting Gubat written by Tony Velasquez and illustrated by L.S. Martinez



Batute by Rene Villaroman and Vic Geronimo




Bulol at Tangak by L.S. Martinez



Roni Santiago's Planet op Di Eyps



Bim, Bam, Bung by Larry Alcala



Superkat by L.S. Martinez


Superkat versus Mighty Rat



Before Pupung, there was Lilit Bulilit by Tonton Young



The Fun Page!



Superdog!



Niknok! Our own version of Dennis D'Menace.



The lovable Mahimud Ali

Growing Up 1970s Style

It was the 1970s, and I miss those times.

Like most Filipino children growing up during the Martial Law years under the Marcos regime, I grew up a complacent child, learned early proper discipline, and enjoyed afternoons watching Sesame Street, a beloved program which is sometimes cut to give way to an impromptu Marcos speech. Back then, we as children understood what was authority, and we know how to keep quiet whenever someone older than us has something important today.

Although our family disliked Marcos, we respected his authority, and my father forbade us to say anything against Marcos. My father knew that Marcos was a powerful man and we understood it. It would be inviting trouble to say anything against the dictator. Everyone seemed to be spying on everyone.

Right now I see how many children become so unruly that their parents become so frustrated disciplining them. I should say that I was still fortunate growing up as I did, respecting authority. Perhaps Marcos wasn't really so bad. Certainly he did a lot of bad things, but the discipline that he instilled in the minds of the people is admirable.

Nowadays, children are not so afraid of authorities. They have learned the word freedom, which is very dangerous. They hurl threats to authorities, to teachers, to parents. You spank a child to discipline and you can end up being sued in the Bantay Bata. These children will eventually grow up and then their own children will do the same to them. That is because they were not as disciplined as we were during our time. And so they just passed what they learned in childhood to their own children.

The new media of the internet and home videos contribute to the current degeneration of today's children. Some parents let their children use the internet not knowing that a lot of hazardous things are in store for their children to learn. Children today kill each other all over the internet, in dangerous games like Ragnarok, Diablo, and the like. In between they can watch porno, which is all over the internet. There is one Filipino eight-year old child discovered by his parents masturbating in front of the computer screen, watching hentai. Apparently, his favorite anime hero, Goku (of Dragonball Z) was featured in the movie having sex with Sailor Moon! Parents should be careful of giving their child gifts of laptops, cellphone, and mp4 as these can easily be downloaded with sex movies.

Back in the 1970s, our family owned a black and white TV set called Zenith. It had dial knobs to change channels and volumes. On afternoons we watch Speedy Gonzales, Sesame Street, and endless reruns of black and white old Tagalog movies. On evenings we watch Wild Wild West, Six Million Dollar Man, Starsky and Hutch, the Incredible Hulk and Charlie's Angels. I later learned that these series were all filmed in color and the reason why they appear black and white was that our TV was black and white...

The closest thing that I can ever come up to watching porno was when Gloria Diaz starred in the movie Pinakamagandang Hayop sa Balat ng Lupa, and it was shown on TV, and even the scene when she didn't have a bra was cut. To my dismay. All our neighbors were flocking to our house because we were one of the few who happened to own a TV set in the entire neighborhood.

I remember curfew. No one was allowed to loiter in the streets from 12 am to 4 am. From that time on you can secretly look from the window through a small opening of the curtains, and you see a very quiet neighborhood. Every barrio was like a ghost town. Even the stray dogs were herded into the city pound. The vagrants had to stay out of the streets. The result was that the crime was lessened. Everyone was afraid of Marcos.

Now, I still think I'm fortunate growing up in the Martial Law years. It was a relatively peaceful time. And we respect our elders.

It was the 1970s, and I miss those times.

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

Mars Ravelo: The Original Komiks King

I have been following with keen interest the news about the so-called campaign to revive the komiks industry in the Philippines led by Carlo J. Caparas, whom the media named as the Komiks King.

I didn't know that Carlo J. Caparas is now regarded as the King of Komiks. This makes me look back on the Golden years of Tagalog komiks, when Mars Ravelo was hailed as the Komiks King.

Now, I don't have anything against Carlo J. He is one of our great komiks writers, maybe even second only to Mars Ravelo (and only if you neglect the great writings of Clodualdo del Mundo, Jim Fernandez and Pablo S. Gomez) . Caparas' output is still so far behind that of Ravelo. His stories barely influenced the industry as had Mars'.

Yet, now, Carlo J. is at the forefront of the campaign that may revive the komiks industry. His efforts are commendable for spearheading this important movement. He lent his prestige and personal money in this, and it is very important. Well, if he succeeds in this, he may well deserve the title, and will not be regarded as just a "pretender to the throne".

Because way back in the heyday of the komiks in the Philippines in the 1950s and 1960s, Mars Ravelo was the original undisputed Komiks King.

During that time the komiks greats had their own monickers, not unlike movie stars today who get the title of Superstar (Nora Aunor} "Megastar"(Sharon Cuneta}, "Diamond Star"(Maricel Soriano), "Star for All Seaons" (Vilma Santos).

In komiks the title holders were:

Tony Velasquez: "Father of Tagalog Komiks"; Francisco V. Coching "Dean of Filipino Illustrators", and Larry Alcala was the "Dean of Filipino Cartoonists".

The King of Komiks title was usually applied to only one man: Mars Ravelo

Mars Ravelo, the original Komiks King

People today barely have any knowledge about Ravelo. He died in 1988 and most of his works can no longer be read due to the rarity of old komiks materials.

The closest thing that the people had been able to relate to his works was watch GMA 7's fantaseryes like Captain barbell and Darna, which are way too different from Mars Ravelo's original versions. Many of the scenes in both series were so ridiculous, it alarmed me that people create an impression that Ravelo was a nonsense writer contented with creating superficial heroic characters who fought absurd and ridiculous nemesis.

In truth, Mars Ravelo was a great writer, arguably the most talented popular writer the Philippines ever had. Some may argue with me, especially those "scholarly" writers who thought komiks was just crap. Indeed Ravelo himself experienced it, in a symposium designed to teach komiks writers the art of komiks writing . Ravelo recounts:

"There was a meeting [in 1979], at the Philippine International Convention Center. The meeting was composed of "legitimate" writers and komiks writers. I had been invited by [fellow komiks writer] Ramon Marcelino. Before the meeting opened, we were formally briefed by Marcelino who told us not to question any of the speakers, who were all "legitimate writers". And these writers started to lambast us the komiks writers. I remember one of the speakers very well because he was the one who got my goat, a certain Bienvenido Lumbrera. When I couldn't take what he was saying anymore, I raised up my hand to ask him questions. And my questions brought home the fact that his knowledge of komiks writing was at best superficial. Marcelino's face was red. And so was Lumbrera's. I ended up by telling the audience that we, the komiks writers, know the komiks best. And that we do not need the advice of people who do not know anything about it, to tell us how to do our work. I got a long applause from the komiks writers present"
(source: Matienzo, Ross ed. "The Philippine Comics Review" 1980, Manila Philippines)

In all his career as komiks writer, Ravelo broke grounds and established new ones. He was a master storyteller. His writings were lucid, straight and without any verbosity.

He understood that the primary consideration in komiks writing is to captivate the attention of the reader at once. His more than 500 successful komiks creations are proof that he mastered it. No doubt, Ravelo is the greatest writer the komiks industry had produced.

Our grandparents knew Ravelo's masterpieces: Maruja, Mambo Dyambo, Bondying, Dyesebel, Jack en Jill, Rebecca, Pomposa, Roberta, Goomboo Roomboo, and hundreds more. I was younger but am fortunate to read them in my musty old bound Tagalog komiks sets.

When you read Mars Ravelo comedy, you end up with stomach and jaw aching due to so much laughter. His tearjerkers can make you melancholy for days. His adventures can make you leave momentarily the boring plane of existence you are currently in.

Truth is, when you read Mars Ravelo, you forget everything and become a spectator to a unique world he had created, be it the world seen from an abused child (Roberta), or the brokenhearted (Maruja). That's why I prefer reading his komiks than reading Harry Potter.

Only when one takes a survey of most of the komiks writing of the last fifty years, one can truly appreciate how Mars Ravelo became the original King of Komiks

GASI:The Rise and Fall of a Komiks Giant

Note: I had to rewrite this essay completely due to some new discovery of materials pertinent to the history of GASI. This updated essay contains new information as a result of further interviews to those who worked in GASI, especially with Pablo S. Gomez, Hal santiago, and Ramon Marcelino. I would like to thank them for their unbiased insights -Dennis Villegas

Immediately after the fall of the giant Ace Publications in 1962, Don Ramon Roces (its publisher) met with Tony S. Velasquez, Damy Velasquez, and Ramon Marcelino, to discuss the future of the komiks industry in the Philippines.

The aging magnate decided to retire but he still wanted to continue the family tradition of mass media publications which he inherited from his father, the late Don Alejandro Roces, Sr.
Specifically, Roces still wanted to pursue the comics industry which he and Tony Velasquez started in 1947.

But since Ace had folded up due to laborer’s strike a few months before, Don Ramon wanted to create a new comics publications which would grab back the market lost to small competitors like GMS Publishing Corporation, PSG Publications, Extra Publishing, Bookman, Sosayti, and the CRAF Publications.

Indeed, the comics industry was too profitable industry, that it would be unimaginable the rich Roces clan would suddenly withdraw from this business.

Roces did not want the company named for him though, or even carrying the Roces name, since it was just too recent that his Ace Publications closed down, lest Ace’s former employees file claims in court.

Hence, from that meeting between Don Ramon, the Velasquez brothers and Ramon Marcelino, was born the Graphic Arts Service, Incorporated or as it became more popularly known, the GASI. The company was formally launched on August 1, 1962, with Damy Velasquez acting as publisher, Tony Velasquez as General Manager, and Ramon Marcelino as editor. GASI’s offices and printing press were located in Gen. Solano St., San Miguel, Manila.

The first comicbook of GASI was called Kislap Komiks, first published in September 1962. In October of the same year, GASI produced its second comicbook, the Pioneer Komiks. In January 1963, the Aliwan Komiks was born, followed in May by the Pinoy Komiks, and in August by Pinoy Klasiks, and one month later, Holiday Komiks. The last baby of GASI was Teens Weekly Komiks, which first saw publication in 1968.

A Gallery of Early GASI Komiks-Magazines

Kislap Komiks

Pioneer Komiks

Pinoy Komiks

Pinoy Klasiks

Aliwan Komiks

GASI: Restructuring

In June 1968, a major revamp on the top management of GASI was implemented by Don Ramon, who now decided that it was time to put the Roces name on GASI. Hence, Ramon Marcelino resigned from GASI to organize the new Ace Publications (also under the Roces clan) and Damy Velasquez replaced him in the editorship.

Tony Velasquez remained as General Manager of GASI. The position of publisher was given to Dona Elena Roces-Guerrero, one of Don Ramon’s two daughters. The other daughter, Dona Carmen Roces-Davila took charge of the new Ace Publications founded by Ramon Marcelino.

By the end of the 1960s, the Roceses were once again on the top of the comics publishing business in the Philippines. Their competitors either sold their comic titles to the Roceses (like PSG’s United Komiks, Kidlat Komiks and Universal Komiks) or closed down permanently (like CRAF Publications and Sosayti). Others held on until well into the early 1970s, until heavy censorship under the Martial Law regime forced them to fold up too.

In 1972, Tony Velasquez retired as General Manager of GASI, and was replaced by Mrs. C.P. Paguio, a protege of Dona Elena Roces. In gratitude to his long service to the Roceses, and his immense contributions to the Philippine comics industry, Roces gave Tony Velasquez lifetime royalties to the sales of GASI comic books. In addition, Roces gave Tony Velasquez a big apartment inside the GASI property (located in 18th Avenue, Cubao, Quezon City) lifetime free of rent.

Velasquez refused this generosity, thinking "delicadeza" that other editors might regard it as favoritism. But the old man insisted, saying that he would not accept no as an answer. Hence, from that time until Velasquez death in 1997, he and his wife Pilar lived in that big house in GASI. After Roces' death in 1993, Velasquez was pressured by the heirs to vacate the house.

The Martial Law Years

On September 21, 1972 President Marcos placed the entire country under Martial rule. The komiks, as well as other mass media, was heavily censored. The content of komiks must strictly adhere to the moral regeneration program of President Marcos' New Society.

The economic policy of Martial Law also affected the physical look of the komiks. To support local paper manufacturers, Marcos ordered that the publishers use cheap local paper materials instead of the more durable imported paper they were used to print their magazines . It was actually a patriotic move, but the look of the komiks became also cheap.

With komiks printed in cheap paper, and writers forced to write stories that only adhered to the social program of President Marcos , the komiks inevitably lost its appeal to the mass readers. Even Tony Velasquez, shortly prior to his retirement in GASI, was forced to lend his prestige to the kind of komiks approved by Marcos.

At Marcos' insistence, he wrote a novel entitled "The Green Thing" a fantasy novel that encouraged the Filipinos to support Imelda Marcos' program of 'Green Revolution"

A Komiks Resurgence

It was only after the lifting of Martial Law that the komiks somewhat regained life, regaining most of its lost mass-readership. Yet, in all those years of censorship under Martial Law, the Roceses' GASI and Atlas still dominated the field of komiks publishing.

As proof that it was still going strong, three more titles were added in 1982 to the GASI comics fleet: Nobela Klasiks, Kuwento Komiks and Damdamin Komiks. The GASI (and Atlas) had all but monopolized the komiks industry in the Philippines. Their market share account for more than 70 percent of the total sales of komiks in the Philippines. The remaining 30 percent shared by small publishers like Rex, Bookman, and GMS.

The early1980s also saw a rise in mass readership of komiks, such that millions of komiks copies were being printed for distribution not only in the Philippines but abroad, particularly countries with large Filipino population.

The surge in readership may be due to the lifting of Martial Law in 1981 by President Marcos. More writers became bolder in their chosen themes, and the komiks was no longer dominated by fantasy adventure fare about caped superheroes, talking horses, and the like.

The more relevant social themes became a major genre in komiks. This field was dominated by such talented writers as Elena Patron, Nerissa Cabral, Gilda Olvidado, Carlo Caparas, and Pablo S. Gomez. Their serials of drama set in the local theme of poverty and/or oppression ( a hint of Marcos dictatorship) became favorites. Themes of poor people succeeding in life because of their kindheartedness were also favorites. Hence the success of such titles as "Bukas Luluhod ang mga tala" and "Bituing Walang Ningning", and many more.

The Decline and Fall of GASI

This resurgence in komiks interest was short-lived, however, for other factors began to affect the komiks industry once more. The advent of other alternative entertainment hurt the komiks industry.

Even in the early 1970s, the television had already been accessible to many Filipino homes. Reruns of old black and white Tagalog movies were frequently aired on the televisions, as well as game and entertainment shows like Student Canteen and Tawag ng Tanghalan. Also Japanese anime started to creep into Filipino TV screens at this time, with Voltes V, Daimos, and Mazinger Z being most popular.

But perhaps the biggest rival of komiks entertainment was the importation of American TV shows in Filipino television. They captured the attention of the Filipinos in the mid and late 1970s. The Incredible Hulk (starring Bill Bixby and Lou Ferrigno), Six Million Dollar Man, Wild Wild West, Combat, Charlie’s Angels, were the biggest shows on Filipino television.

Meanwhile, the arrival of the telenovelas in the 1980s (most notably Ana Liza and Flordeluna) sealed the fate of the Philippine comis industry. Now, entertainment is no longer the monopoly of komiks, and Filipinos even did not have to pay to watch television. There was no problem even in the barrios where most people cannot afford televisions. One TV set was enough in one neighborhood; it was a tradition among Filipinos to let neighbors watch on your TV.

By the 1990s, the comics industry was in such a bad state that Tony Velasquez, living in retirement, refused to comment on an interview about the prospects of the future of Philippine komiks industry. The advent of the video games, the Romance pocketbooks, all contributed to the decline of the Philippine comis industry, not to mention the later arrival of gadgets like pages and cellphones, and the birth of the internet.

GASI one by one cancelled their titles, and shifted more in publishing movie-magazines, the gossip type where popular with movie fans. More and more, the komiks was relegated as the “other publication”, being published only for the sake of tradition. In 1997, Tony Velasquez, founder of the old Ace Publications and GASI, and the recognized “Father of Philippine Comics” died in GASI compound. He never saw the re-emergence of the industry he loved and founded, and died of a broken heart.

His death saved him from further hurt, though, for later that year, GASI was finally dissolved as a publisher of comics.

A curtain was therefore lowered down on one of the great publications company in Philippine comics history.