Commando Comics
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| Commando | |
 Cover for issue 2523, a reproduction of issue 1 |
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| Publication information | |
|---|---|
| Publisher | D. C. Thomson & Co. Ltd |
| Schedule | Weekly |
| Format | Ongoing series |
| Genre | War |
| Publication date | July, 1961 – present |
| Number of issues | 4,202 (as of May 2009) |
| Collected editions | |
| The Dirty Dozen | ISBN 1-84442-307-7 |
| True Brit | ISBN 1-84442-121-X |
| ANZACs At War | ISBN 1-84442-059-0 |
| All Guns Blazing | ISBN 1-84442-284-4 |
| Rumble in the Jungle | ISBN 1-84442-002-7 |
| Bandits at 12 O'Clock | ISBN 1-84732-128-3 |
Commando For Action and Adventure, formerly known as Commando War Stories in Pictures, and colloquially known as Commando Comics, are a series of British comic books that primarily draw their themes and backdrops from the various incidents of the World Wars I and II. The comic, still in print today, is noted for its distinctive 7 x 5 1/2 inch, 68 page format that became a standard for these kinds of stories. It has remained more popular than many other British war comics, and some would say British comics in general, despite its simplistic stories and simply sketched black and white artwork, with only the covers in colour.
The stories contain certain characteristic motifs; to mention a few - courage, cowardice, patriotism, dying for the sake of one's country, noble actions in the face of danger, enmity turning into friendship when the going gets tough, and so on. Apart from portraying these universal qualities, Commando Comics also show soldiers in somewhat dated national stereotypes, glorifying Allied soldiers, and showing others mostly as cruel, stupid or ignorant barbarians; However in a lot of the stories some enemies are portrayed as nice, friendly characters who dislike their country's justification of war e.g.Willi Much from know your enemy. There was usually no continuity between books; each book was a complete story with start and finish, though recently series (2 or 3 stories) of books following the same character have been published.
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[edit] Publication history
The comic series, then going by the title Commando War Stories in Pictures, was launched by D.C. Thomson of Dundee, Scotland, in July, 1961. It was an addition to the company's already high profile comics, such as The Beano and The Dandy. During its launch year two issues were published per month, but due to the comic's increasing popularity this rose to four a month. Since 1981 there have been eight issues published per month. As of issue 539, certain stories have been reprinted. In September 1993 the comic title changed to Commando For Action and Adventure. The last issue to feature the former title was issue 2690, Password to Freedom, published in August. The first comic to feature the new title was issue 2691, A Race Against Time, published the following month. [1]
As well as the comics, annuals were also produced in the years 1989 and 1990, each containing seven new stories. However, many feel that the production of these annuals was poor and that they were produced to capitalise on the popularity of the comic. The annuals were in full colour and illustrated in the style of the time, not in the original style of the comics.
[edit] Appearance and format
The Commando comic differs from more widely known US comics in that it is published in a 7 x 5 1/2 inch, 68 page format, with some 135 panels per story, which is roughly similar to a standard 22 page US comic. Most panels have both captions and dialogue to further the plot. Sound effects are rarely if ever used. The intention is to make a Commando story easy to read and follow.
The artwork is in black and white except for the covers, with the lettering done in typewriter font. Until recently writers and artists went uncredited as usual for D.C Thomson comics, though now a small grenade icon appears on the first panel, crediting individuals with story, art and cover.
[edit] Collected editions
In 2005, Carlton Books Ltd released an anthology of twelve Commando stories selected by George Low, who has edited the series since 1963. So far these collections are:
- Commando:
- The Dirty Dozen (784 pages, November 2005, ISBN 1-84442-307-7)
- True Brit (784 pages, October 2006, ISBN 1-84442-121-X)
- ANZACs At War (783 pages, August 2007, ISBN 1-84442-059-0) This anthology contains a rare issue set in the Vietnam War.
- All Guns Blazing (784 pages, September 2007, ISBN 1-84442-284-4)
- Rumble in the Jungle (784 pages, May 2008, ISBN 1-84442-002-7)
- Bandits at 12 O'Clock (784 pages, September 2008, ISBN 1-84732-128-3)
[edit] In other languages
The comics are popular in Finland, where they are known by the name "Korkeajännitys", meaning "high voltage". Special issues of Korkeajännitys based on Finnish themes have been published by Egmont Publishing since 1998. These themes include Finnish Civil War, Finnish War as well as Winter War and Continuation War.
[edit] See also
- List of magazines published in Scotland
- List of DC Thomson publications
- Starblazer, a sister publication, with a science fiction theme
- Ricardo Garijo, long-time illustrator for Commando
Other similar series:
- Action
- Adventures in the Rifle Brigade, by Garth Ennis
- Battle Picture Weekly
- Battler Britton, by Garth Ennis
- Charley's War, by Pat Mills
- Warlord
- War Picture Library
- War Story, by Garth Ennis
[edit] Notes
[edit] References
- The Official DC Thomson Commando site
- Gott in Himmel!, BBC, April 27, 2007
- Commando Comic sales
- The Unofficial Commando Comic guide Works only in Internet Explorer.
- A Commando Comic fansite
- Writing Commando: the Ten Year Veteran
[edit] External links
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