The Z.I.N.E. from U.N.C.L.E.

Zine
Title:	The Zine from U.N.C.L.E.
Publisher:	Carriage Hill Press, then Tia's Pals' Press
Editor(s):
Date(s):	1985 (September) -1986
Series?:
Medium:	print
Size:
Genre:
Fandom:	Man from UNCLE
Language:	English
External Links:	Fanzines Published by Tia's Pals' Press
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The Z.I.N.E. from U.N.C.L.E. were originally published by Jay Marchand. They are gen anthologies.

There was an ad asking for submissions for a zine by the same name in the spring of 1981 in the letterzine S and H. In the June issue, there was an announcement by Karen S. that this zine had been cancelled due to lack of submissions. It is unknown if this is the same zine.

Issue 1

cover of issue #1

The Z.I.N.E. from U.N.C.L.E. 1 contains 92 pages. It was originally published in September 1985. It contains stories written by Jay Marchand:

• The Tangled Web Affair (50 pages)
• The Forget-Me-Not Affair (15 pages)
• The Housewife Affair (24 pages)

Reactions and Reviews: Issue 1

It's not often that a zine comes along with UNCLE stories that I actually finish. Most of them I give up on long before completing them - usually faulting a lack of interesting plot or poor characterizations. Zine from UNCLE is a rare exception to the rule. This is a one shot from Jay Marchand, her first and, sadly, only contribution to UNCLE fandom. It 's unfortunate that she chases not to continue, she obviously has a feeling for both the show and the characters that many UNCLE writers lack. Of course, UNCLE has a way of coming back on editors and she has mentioned that she might just weaken to the lure. We can only hope. The zine is made up of three stories, all penned by Jay. The first, "The Tangled Web Affair" offers a plausible explanation to the space of time between the series and the recently produced movie. It explains how and why Illya picked up the life of a fashion designer in a way in which the character isn't compromised. From there, it launches into a nifty little tale with jungles and double agents that go one better. Then we have a rather standard UNCLE plot involving rookie UNCLE agents, amnesia drugs and a performance at the Met. The humor in "Forget-Me-Not Affair" is particularly good, making up for blandness of the plot. This story is predictable, but still interesting enough to stick with. Lastly, we have the "The Housewife Affair". It's about what happens when you put an ordinary housewife into extraordinary situations. Again, Jay manipulates Napoleon and Illya much as a general directs his troops, always in command. Napoleon and Illya respond beautifully to this. The overall appearance of the zine is clean, crisp and appealing. Artwork is handled by CL Crouch and my only real complaint is that there's not more of it. Three title pages hardly whets the appetite. Yes, if you are in the market fpr a few hours of good, old-fashion UNCLE fun, check out "Zine From UNCLE". It's worth every bit of attention you can give it. Definitely a 9.

Moving up the literary scale a bit [from my previous review of Kuryakin File #1] we come to ZINE FROM UNCLE, which has only three stories in its 92 pages, The first, "The Tangled Web Affair," ties in with the series' 1983 "reunion" TV movie, and actually gives some welcome explanation for some plot points in it. Having seen the movie is helpful, but not necessary to enjoy the story which has to do with revenge and world conquest. The second story, "The Forget-Me-Not Affair," has Solo involved with an amnesia producing drug. The same idea was used in the aired episode "The Nowhere Affair," but is handled better in this piece.

The third, and best, story is "The Housewife Affair," which has an ex-agent turned—surprise—housewife who gets caught up in a plot to save the world. The agent is a wonderful character with a delightfully "true-blue" dim-bulb of a husband. She's bright, resourceful and dangerous — not standard issue fan fic female at all. I was sorry to see the story end. In fact, I could have wished the whole zine was longer. I hope the author will be writing more soon.

Issue 2

cover of issue #2

The Z.I.N.E. from U.N.C.L.E. 2 was published in 1986 and contains 82 pages. It contains stories written by Jay Marchand:

• The Man from Cambridge Affair (35 pages)
• The Red Flag Affair (20 pages)
• The So Long Solo Affair (27 pages)