Harry Potter influences and analogues Potter" involve an average eleven-year-old, better at sport than academic study, who is sent to boarding school. Upon arrival, the boy gains a best friend (in Tom's case, East, in Harry's case, Ron Weasley) who helps him adjust to the new environment. They are set upon by an arrogant bully – in Tom Brown's case, Harry Flashman, in Harry's case Draco Malfoy. Stephen Fry, who both narrates the British audio adaptations of the "Harry Potter" novels and has starred in a screen adaptation of "Tom Brown", has commented many times about the similarities between the two books. "Harry Potter –
Tom Thug Tom at school, the strip underwent a title change to Tom Thug's Skooldayz (a spoof in name only of "Tom Brown's Schooldays"). There, Tom Thug continued to run until December 1999 ("Buster"'s final issue), although the last couple of years were reprints of earlier stories due to budget cutbacks by the publisher. However, during its run, "Tom Thug" had become one of the comic's most popular strips and even replaced the lead character "Buster" on the cover on occasion. In the final issue of the comic at the beginning of 2000 in a segment written and drawn by Jack Oliver,