There's no doubt it is one of the best British comics blogs, with no particular bias or prejudice against any kind of comic while exuding an upbeat view of the industry and its creators. And despite being the tool of a retail and mail order shop, you'd hardly know it, as it's not continually (or ever, really) pushing its merchandise or hurling screaming animated advertisements at you while you're trying to read (and it so easily could). It's all about the content, and the content consists of quality writing on a diverse range of subjects, genres and media.

On a personal note, FPI have been very supportive of The Rainbow Orchid and, in fact, if you look at the blog's contributors, I'm privileged with generosity from all. Joe Gordon, captain of the ship, has regularly featured RO news and tidbits; Richard Bruton positively reviewed volume one; Matthew Badham conducted something of a 'master' interview, while Pádraig Ó Méalóid did a spot-on book-focussed interview; and Wim Lockefeer made my day with the following comment on his own blog, The Ephemerist:

"As a Belgian, and therefore assuming that I have anything to say in things ligne claire (which I don't), I think this is one of the best comics to step in Tintin's footsteps, along with Dirk Stallaert's Nino and Peter Van Dongen's Rampokan..."

I've been waiting for ages to quote that somewhere! One contributor who we don't see so often (hopefully it's the success of Blank Slate Books that has kept him away), but whose rare posts are always insightful, is Kenny Penman, and I'll leave you with the Forbidden Planet International advert he commissioned from me in 2007 (click it to see a larger version).

You can see the FPI birthday post here. Thanks for all the great reading, Joe and team. Here's to the next five...