It was speculated to shut down the site after such a hostile act against us, but for now this is a remote choice: what we need now is to reorder the ideas. Of course we don't want to leave all the work done until now and the so many projects still under construction, but at this time we really need to catch our breath.

We'll be back. That's a promise.

You can just imagine the shock. Among other things, Disney accused us to "generate confusion among the audience about the origin of their product" and "harm the image of their company". See for yourself the scans of the letter, pag. 1 and pag. 2. Below follows the translation of the essential passages:

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Milan, 24th January 2003

Mr.
Davide Cencini
(address)

Raccomandata R/R

SUBJECT: PKERS CALENDAR

Dear Mr. Cencini,

[...]

It is with great disappointment that Walt Disney Company Italia aknowledged that Your Company realized and is willing to distribute a calendar named PKERS, featuring the unauthorized use of images inspired to the magazine PK thus violating her copyrights about it. Moreover, Your initiative generates not only a concrete danger of misunderstanting inside the audience about the origin of the product and makes up a penally chargeable fact, but harms the image of our Company by the use of Disney comics characters fully undressed and so absolutely against the guidelines of respect and care of our main target.

Therefore this letter worths as warning to cease immediatly any publishing and/or initiative realted to such calendar.

[Waiting for answer in 10 ten days or penal action will start.]

Greetings.

Adv. Cristina Ravelli.

-----------------------------------------------

Well, if they put it like that, we're left no choice: we give up to violence. Evidently that means the calendar was so well made that they were afraid readers could confuse it with something Disney-made, because otherwise there would be no explaination why they said nothing in the past when we published very "harder" material; the product's quality, possibly related with its "ideological" side of protest against the target, probably did not like to the Company that decided to shut us up with force instead of dialogue.

Therefore, because of the facts above, we have no choice but to suspend immediatly and definitely the publishing of the calendar. But we wish to add the following to our defense, since Disney shows a real misunderstanding of our intents.

1. First, as we CLEARLY specified when the first files were uploaded, we had no intention of offending anyone. Quoting from the news of  29th December 2002: "We point out that this calendar is intended as a product solely for adults (just like this site, again) and we'll not feel responsible for eventual damages to Disney's image or to the elementar's smart kids' brain. [...] One footnote: surely many people will feel scandalized by the publishing of pictures portraiting really naked female ducks, but we see it as a try to "educate" at least a part of the public to a different way of thinking and living Disney comic, and adult version not intended to lessen or insult the classic way of Disney - nor we aim to be coarse. This is our philosophy, and we are faithful to it: this calendar can be seen also a strong sign of our protest against the very low target the series was pushed. The making of doujinshi, calendars etc. is a normal thing in the world of comics (especially about mangas), but it's definitely the first time that a group of readers/artists comes to an initiative of this level in the Disney area. [...]". So, their accuses were answered at the very beginning of the initiative, and even with this they portraited us and killers of their image and curruptors of the young audience.
2. We do not understand why they speak of us as a "company". PKERS is not a company! It is a free private site where PK-fans exchange opinions, drawings and stories. This makes us think they took this thing way too seriously than they should have.
3. Calendar's diffusion was only thought for the Internet, for free: in Pkeri it was talked about selling, but the idea was soon abandoned just to avoid confrontation with copyrights. By the way nobody can accuse a person of a crime never committed, and italian law does not contempt process to intention. And, from this calendar, we did not earn even one Euro. We simply take to your attention that in foreign countries such as Japan, editorial companies not only let fans make doujinshi of any kind (most x-rated), but even to sell them, and the thing is considered absolutely normal!
4. We repeat the idea that our calendar can generate confusion in the audience to be simply RIDICULOUS and pretext, as the occasional visitor is put in condition to find himself over and over again in front of warnings and disclaimers saying that this site has nothing to do with Disney, does not share her policy, is projected for an adult audience and makes thing for it. If their target are the elementar kids, are not adults necessarily a DIFFERENT audience?

Beyond all this, Disney has the legal right to care her image and we have to admit her reasons in this situation, even if we found their behaviour definitely unpleasant, to ignore us as long as we don't bother them and to shut us up as soon as we cross the line. By doing what they did they earned once more the disapproval not only of this site, but of the whole community: they care so much after their image, sometimes they should also take care of this.

The only, if can be called so, satisfaction in this sad story is that finally Disney had to ADMIT our existence. Of course we'd have preferred a different way than censorship, but it finally seems evident that any try to have a friendly dialogue with these persons is useless. It is with great sadness that we see how the company does not deserve, at least from us, the love and fidelity we always paid to them even though the bad treatment we always received, nor the huge amount of free advertising we did to them. Because, we want to point this out, all we did was just for love, not for revenge or libel, but for the dream to give the audience a different and new style. But, as story teaches, the reward for loving a Cause more than your own convenience is only self-destruction.

And since we're here, we recommend you to take a look at Eclyspe Neo (http://eclypse.iwebland.com), which has been updated with lots of interesting articles and new original sketches!

For all those who cannot acquire a copy of the magazine, next month we'll put online the scans on PKERS.

Another Witch-filled month is coming... at this time Silverware gives up his reviewer duties to Sarky (who is given the hard task to examinate the final match among Will and Nerissa!), who after a testing period might be confirmed as permanent reviewer. An aid become indispensable because of the great amount of job that the webmaster cannot work out alone anymore. Indeed, also the place of PK-reviewer could be soon vacant. If you think you're good enough, just start evaluating the thing, your reviews could appear on PKERS every month! We'll give you further details...

"This task is up to us!"

…Otherwise, which protagonists would we be?
So we finally reached the endgame. The preparations are fervent for the extreme defence of the fortress. The Heart of Kandrakar breaks and on Nerissa's order it starts to drip pure evil on the sacred boundaries of Kandrakar, while the keepers make a nap and dream… They dream a normal life forgetting Kandrakar and their mission - but in demonstration that love is stronger than any spell, Cornelia clinging to the almost fragile memory of Caleb, breaks Nerissa's enchantement.
The unavoidable duel between Will and Nerissa, instead of being a spectacular physical and magic clashes, resolves in a verbal challenge to who is worthier to keep the Heart of Kandrakar. The talisman in fact, just unbroken thanks to the fusion with Cassidy's Light, is still unresolved about which side should it join. Nerissa's arrogance definitely pushes the Heart in the hands of Will who has understood that the powerful talisman is endowed with a proper self-consciousness, that of the nymph Xin Jing.
Impressive episode that definitely concludes the cycle of Nerissa (damn concludes! They've incinerated her!). Enna's script is fluid and essential and exhaustive at the same time, showing us once more the great experience of this author; nothing is left dormant if not what's needed to keep our curiosity awake for the coming issues.
The drawings of Alessia Martusciello, who already penciled "Meridian's black roses" (W#8) and "The seal of Nerissa" (W#16), excellently inked by Baggio-Zanotta-Zangari's trio, show that this girl has quite a lot of talent and the past experiences have improved her style.
Aching note however the pin-ups; the first one, definitely well drawn, clearly contrasts with the second (the oracle seems made up of wood).
Nice as useless instead the apparition of Kadma, only to disclose us what happens to the retired keepers and to send in panic Cornelia (I wonder myself how could Corny recognize Cipu, the blackbird of Kadma, without having ever seen it).

What can I say more? For once Disney really put together a team of artists worthy of such name (however I'm still commoved to the memory of the trio Gnone-Barbucci-Canepa. That was true poetry.)
By the way, I fully undersign the criticism of Silver. It is unadmittable and even unprofessional to ask to the readers which should be the destiny of a character or the series' plot. For years a lot of Pkers have been sending their ideas to the redaction with the result of being totally ignored - or fooled. To accept suggestions is not a crime, it is a sign of maturity, but Witch has reached the levels of a soap opera. This criticism is not turned to scriptwriters and draftsmen, but to whom is taking these decisions behind their shoulders that sometimes kill art to marketing...
If you have noticed different anomalies in this review, don't worry; simply it was wrote by your new (I hope) reviewer Sarky with the supervision of the indomitable Silver (thanks for this opportunity, senpai.)
PKERS' rating: 7,5/10 (c'mmon, we have a new reviewer here, let's be generous... n. by S.)

What do you think about the new PK?

1.) It's great, they did very well 17 (7%)
2.) They could have done better 22 (9%)
3.) Nothing has changed 4 (2%)
4.) It's an insult to hardcore fans! 153 (64%)
5.) It's cool, but it's not PK. 43 (18%)

Total Votes: 239

With a good majority (64%), pkers say not only say that they don't like the third series, but they feel offended by the operation carried on against us. Vox populi: nothing to say...

That's our new poll: would you buy a PK or Witch romance? And with which target? Click here to vote!

Hello PkRensel,
PK may be a good comic, but it would never sell well in the United
States. Audiences in the U.S. who look at comics prefer to have something
that is raw and realistic. A duck in a space suit is not realistic. Maybe
it has a good story behind it, but nobody wants to read a comic about a
duck in a space suit. One of the reasons Disney is losing market share in
the American TV market is because of the sophistication of Japanese Manga
cartoons. Shows like Pokemon and Yu-Gi-Oh are incredibly popular, while
Disney's shows are not. This is because the Japanese shows are more sophisticated and deal in more adult issues. While Disney cartoons deal in comedy [if he says this about Pokèmon, what would he tell of Evangelion... just think how Disney cartoons are in USA, if Pokèmon is considered adult! N. by S.]. While Italy may have had adult cartoons with Donal Duck's face on them for years, in the United States we have had nothing but bad comedy and cute episodic in conjunction with anything Disney. The American market has no interest, and will never find interest in a duck in a space suit.
In addition, the game was made for the Italian market, as UbiSoft is a
French owned company, and they only released it in the United States in
order to cash-in on the kids buying anything Disney related. The game is
pretty lousy.
Thanks for the background on PK though. If the comic is as great as you
say, then they are bound to make a good video game out of it someday.
Kevin

Kevin's speculations have very based reasons: in fact, decades of bad education to Disney style caused by silly cartoons have fixed on the american audience the image of duck as something that can't be anything but parodistic and ridiculous, that of course could never make something serious, and surely not act as a real superhero. Is it ever possible that no marketing expert realized that american mass culture is simply not psychologically READY to embrace the vision of a different Donald Duck?! We easily accepted PK because italian Donald Duck is not the hopeless idiot pictured by american cartoons, but in USA they've never had the chance to read those comics! And, they're telling us, nobody cares about homorous comics. Possibly the only chance to impress the audiences would have been to make an incredibly adult product to reclaim attention, and instead they popped up with this kiddy thing.

What can we say but... Disney really went looking for this!
How's the story? We were forced against our will to all these sacrifices to fit the series to the tastes of the american audience (so they'd be supposed to KNOW at least what such audience wants), just in the hope to make PK worldwide known and appreciated - that's what we were told - and now all the operation is crushed by the great simpleness of the analysis of an american reviewer. Wow, fine marketing strategy!
Let's give up men, this time they really kicked our asses: if what Kevin says is true, and he looks clever enough, americans did never want nor ever will a PK like the one from the third series. And that's another evidence that OUR phylosophy always was the right one. If only some persons in Disney had been humile enough to hear what fans always kept telling them, now we wouldn't find ourselves in this ridiculous and catastrophic situation. MANY APPLAUSES BY THE PKERS, YOU GENIUSES!

(We inform all users that for organization/personal/holiday matters etc. the full review of PK #006 - UNA GALASSIA LONTANA (A Far Galaxy) is definitely gone. The issue, interesting for some sides and a bit too ridiculous for others, with drawings on the first story not the state-of-the-art and nice on the second one, brings home its 6,5 with the usual support score +2, and a boring rate now reaching deadly levels with the whole series...)