Preview: THE BEST OF THE STEEL COMMANDO

Cover art: Geoff Campion.

Another vintage collection is released by Rebellion's Treasury of British Comics in a few weeks. This time the book will be in digest format and the subject matter is The Steel Commando, the WW2 robot who featured in Thunder comic (and then in Lion and Thunder) in the early 1970s.

The book contains a selection of stories, rather than religiously sticking to a consecutive run. As the episodes of The Steel Commando were usually self-contained this is ideal for a "pick and mix" collection. Artwork is by veterans such as Alex Henderson, Jack Pamby and Charles Roylance, and there's even some Captain Hurricane episodes in there too from when he met old "Ironsides" as the robot was nicknamed. 

Here's the PR from Rebellion, along with a preview of the first episode. The book is a perfect treat for fans of this lighthearted war story and I'm sure it'll prove popular for many. 

Art: Alex Henderson.

• CREATIVE TEAM: Frank Pepper (w) Alex Henderson, Vince Wernham (a)
• RELEASE DATE: 22nd August 2019
• DIGEST PAPERBACK, 164 pages
• PRICE: £6.99
• ISBN: 9781781086810
A new collection of a forgotten 20th Century classic, presented in the popular digest format. With superhuman strength, bulletproof casing and an unstoppable resolve, the Steel Commando is the Allies’ ultimate weapon in the war against the Axis powers. There’s just one bug in his circuits - he’ll only take orders from Ernie Bates, the laziest soldier in the British Army! Watch ‘Ironsides’ and ‘Excused Boots’ Bates carry out thrill-filled missions in dangerous enemy territories! This fun-packed army adventure also includes an early comic strip crossover as the Steel Commando joins forces with the mighty Captain Hurricane!

Available in print from: book stores, Amazon, and UK comic book stores via Diamond

Available in digital from: Treasury of British Comics webshop & apps for iPad, Android and Windows 10

When Biff! became Sam

During the 1970s IPC were never shy of reprinting old strips and changing the character's names to try and convince readers they were new. Quite a few characters from Wham! were reprinted this way. The Tiddlers and Super Sir became The Horrors and Puffing Billy, General Nitt and his Barmy Army became Sir Hector and his Hardnuts, The Wacks became The Beat Boys... and so on. 

In 1970/71, new IPC weekly Thunder reprinted Biff from Wham! retitled as Sam. Quite a bit of a dull change, that one. (No offence to any Sams of course.) Here are a couple of examples. Art by Leo Baxendale on the first one...

Apart from the name change, the big difference is that because the early issues of Wham! had a superior printing technique that allowed painted artwork, the art had to be recoloured using flat tones for the cheap newsprint that Thunder was printed on. (Otherwise the pages would reproduce in a muddy mess.) Unfortunately, any subtlety in the colouring was replaced too. Leo Baxendale's technique of having a face in the foreground in shadow, to give a sense of depth, was replaced by a flesh tone, making the bully look like a giant on the same level as Biff. The other big change is that Leo's signature was removed from the reprint. Although Odhams were happy for artists to sign their pages, IPC were not, - at least not in 1970. 

This next example is drawn by Graham Allen...

Reprints such as this were a major factor in why Leo Baxendale quit mainstream comics a few years later. (Bear in mind that creators received nothing for reprints.) The lack of respect that publishers showed towards creatives in that regard cost them a great artist/creator, and reflected badly on the UK comics industry for years. 

Preview: BLACK MAX Volume 1

After the ridiculously manic over-reaction to American comics imports in the 1950s, (see here) horror comics for kids were effectively banned in Britain under the (Children and Young Persons) Harmful Publications Act. However, publishers knew that children loved monster stories, and that a well-told horror comic wouldn't really do them any harm. They were prevented from blatantly publishing horror comics, but did manage to inject elements of such stories into their traditional adventure comics. 

One such strip was Black Max, a serial that ran throughout the short-lived Thunder anthology weekly in 1970/71, and then into the merged Lion and Thunder. Black Max was basically presented as a war story, featuring arial combat in World War One, but it was its horror element that was its main attraction. 

Episode one art by Eric Bradbury.

That horror came in the form of giant mutated bats created by evil scientist Baron Maximilien Von Klorr, who used them to attack the Allied forces. Written by Frank Pepper and Ken Mennell, it was one of the more memorable series in Thunder, and deservedly became very popular with the readers. (On a personal note, it was also a favourite of my dad's, who started reading comics again a few years before he died.)

First page of episode two. Art by Alfonso Font.

Now, Rebellion are collecting the early chapters in a book to be released on October 4th. Black Max Volume 1 reprints all the episodes from Thunder, plus the first few months of its continuation in the merged Lion and Thunder. The artwork is by the amazing Alfonso Font (who also provides an introduction and new cover), although the episode from Thunder No.1 was drawn by Eric Bradbury. (Presumably Bradbury's episode would have been drawn for the dummy issue of Thunder, and he may have been too busy to do the series once the comic got the green light months later.) Bradbury of course was a master of atmospheric horror in British comics. Font's style is lighter, but equally dramatic and his bats are the stuff of nightmares.

Black Max is a superb collection. Alfonso Font's work deserves to be seen and appreciated by a modern audience so I hope comic shops have ordered this marvellous book. If your local comic shop won't stock it, you can order it directly from the publisher here:
https://treasuryofbritishcomics.com

• CREATIVE TEAM: Frank Pepper, Ken Mennell (w) Eric Bradbury, Alfonso Font (a)
• RELEASE DATE: 4th October (UK) 24th October (US)
• PAPERBACK, 115 pages
• PRICE: £10.99 (UK) $16.99 (US)
• ISBN: 9781781086551
• DIAMOND: AUG182151

Ace fighter pilot Baron Maximilien Von Klorr is the scourge of the skies, menacing the Allied forces during the bloodiest battles in WWI. Skilled, ruthless and in possession of two giant, mutated kingbats who fight by his side, Von Klorr AKA Black Max is almost unstoppable. Only the brave pilots of the Royal Flying Corps, including Lieutenant Tom Wilson, oppose the Black Max's complete dominance of the air. Thrilling supernatural war comics from the pages of classic British comics Lion and Thunder!

Available in print from: book stores, Amazon, and comic book stores via Diamond

Available in digital from: 2000 AD webshop, 2000 AD iPad app, 2000 AD Android app, 2000 AD Windows 10 app