New Commandos feature art by Keith Page, Rafael Auraleon

Here's the latest issues of Commando, on sale now in all good newsagents, which include a great new story drawn by Keith Page and two 'classic' tales from the archive, specially chosen to mark the title's 50th Anniversary.

'Red Runs the River' features art by Spanish artist Rafael Auraleón, who died in 1993. He first worked for the Spanish agency Selecciones Illustrada, drawing the comic strip 'Flash' for Space Ace and Lone Star. His work would later appear in Commando in 1961 and 1968, but he's perhaps best known for his work on US publisher's Warren's titles such as Vampirella and Eerie in the 1970s, where he was one of their most prolific artists.

Commando 4387: Blood Money
Story: Alan Hebden Art: Benet Cover Art: Benet

If there was one thing the Convict Commandos - Jelly Jakes, Smiler Dawson, Titch Mooney - liked, it was easy money. Unfortunately the money their leader Guy Tenby had them chasing wasn’t easy, it was very difficult indeed. For it was in Nazi-Occupied Norway... and the Nazis didn’t want them to get anywhere near it.

Commando 4388: Rebellion in the Raj — Ferret’s Mutiny
Story: Norman Adams Art: Keith Page Cover Art: Keith Page

He’s back - as you’ve never seen him before! Veteran war reporter Fred “Ferret” McGlone celebrates his landmark 100th birthday in style - and reminisces about his earliest days as a roving newshound on the shady, cobbled back streets of Victorian London.

Naturally, that’s only the half of it. What about Ferret’s thrilling adventures on the high seas? Or his dangerous despatches from the front line chaos at the heart of the British Empire in India?

Get the inside scoop on this cracking story - a Commando exclusive, of course. It’s one you won’t want to miss!

Commando 4389: Red Runs the River
Story: Eric Hebden Art: Auraleon Cover Art: Ken Barr
Originally Commando No 8 (September 1961), re-issued as No 2579 (July 1992)

MASSACRE AFTER MOON-RISE!

Many and fearsome are the perils that can beset a man on a swift-flowing river after dark. Japanese river patrols knew all these dangers, but armed to the teeth they feared none of them.

Then, one dark night, there glided into that gleaming river a new menace that was to strike terror into every Jap soldier… a swimming Irishman with hatred in his heart and a Commando knife between his teeth...

"The early batch of Commando stories contained a fair few jungle tales - complete with fanatical enemies," notes Editor Calum Laird in a special introduction for this latest 50th Anniversary reprint. "But this one isn’t quite like the others as the fanatic is on the British side. He’s a fighting mad Irishman determined to settle a score with the Japanese, and any Japanese will do.

"The trouble is that his own side need to keep him out of the fighting as he’s too valuable to lose.

"Eric Hebden weaves a classic Commando here, ably backed up by Auraleon and Ken Barr."

Commando 4390: Paratrooper
Story: R.A. Montague Art: Blasco Cover Art: Ian Kennedy
Originally Commando No 1402 (March 1980), re-issued as No 2740 (March 1994)

They floated out of the sky into the fields of enemy-occupied France. For this crack team of British paratroopers it was the moment of truth.

Dropped miles from their objective, a handful of determined men on their special Wellbikes set off to complete their mission. The odds against them were incredible but they had no alternatives. The fight was on...

"I’d love to tell you how I remembered this story’s memorable characters, well-thought-out, men-on-a-mission plot and action-packed finale from the day I first read it. I’d love to… but, to be honest, the thing I remembered most vividly from reading “Paratrooper” in 1980 was the awesome sight of British soldiers whizzing around occupied France on cool little motorbikes," says Commando Deputy Editor Scott Montgomery.

"As a child I recall wanting to have a go on one of those dinky Wellbikes. 30 years on, re-discovering this great tale has been a wonderful trip down memory lane (but sadly, not on a Wellbike). And, yes, I still want to have a go on one."


• Official Commando web site: http://www.commandocomics.com/ 

• Click here for subscription information or write to: D.C. Thomson & Co Ltd, The Subscribers Department, Commando Library, 80 Kingsway East, Dundee DD4 8SL or Freephone (UK only) 0800 318846  

• Commando is also available for iPad and iPhone. The apps are free to download through the Apple iTunes App Store and a digital subscription is priced at £4.99 per month, compared to a £99 annual print subscription. For those not sure there are four free issues to download prior to making a purchase.  

• Commando Comics iPhone App on iTunes  

• Commando Comics iPad App on iTunes

In Review: Kate & William - A Very Public Love Story

On the day of The Wedding it seems appropriate to review Markosia's Kate and William: A Very Public Love Story, their take on the story that will climax in Westminster Abbey round Noon today. Written by Bleeding Cool's Rich Johnston and illustrated by Mike Collins on the bride's side and Gary Erskine on the groom's side, the book version of the tale combines the two separate comics, Kate Middleton: A Very Private Princess and William Windsor: A Very Public Prince, into one double length flipbook.

It is a safe bet that you already know the plotline so suffice to say that the book takes both its hero (beginning at the "back" of the book) and heroine (beginning at the "front") from their childhoods to their appearance on the steps of Westminster Abbey as a married couple, which is shown as a centrespread in the middle of the book. Writer Johnson tells the two separate stories as snippets from their lives with Kate's in a girl's diary format and William's as newspaper style headlines. As the story reaches St Andrew's and their lives intertwine, so the two stories show some of the same incidents from both sides including the now famous fashion event with Kate in the see-through dress.

The Kate story works better, possibly because it is less familiar, but more likely because it seems to have fewer jumps in the narrative showing as it does Kate falling for William while in the William version they are apparently suddenly a couple.

It is interesting to see how the two artists deal with the similar subject matter. Collins take on the Kate story makes the characters more elegant than Erskine's more accurate style on the William story, but they are well assigned to their stories as I can't imagine the book working at all if the two had have been swapped around. Indeed the one major event that they both cannot get away from is that dress and Erskine's take is typically accurate, based on the available photos and showing what the audience saw, while Collins take is rather more glamorous and possibly more in keeping with what William thought he saw.

The book is good, not great, but good and an interesting addition to the biographical comics that are becoming more prevalent nowadays. Personally I think that my interest in it will increase in the years to come as a record of how the couple were perceived today, much in the same way that I find DC Thomson's Princess Margaret: Told In Pictures, that was issued in time for her wedding over half a century ago, fascinating as a period piece.

In the end it doesn't really matter what any reviewer says about this book. If you are already sick of hearing about the wedding then you won't be touching it with a barge pole (but still no doubt making the most of your Friday holiday) while if you are sitting in front of your TV with your union flag ready to wave as the couple recreate the book's centrespread and step out onto the Abbey steps as man and wife, you probably already have it.


• There are more details of Kate & William: A Very Public Love Story, and the two separate comics it comes from, on the Markosia website.

Tank Girl and Lenore head for iPad as part of new Titan Comics App

Titan Publishing has announced the launch of a brand new comics app, featuring Tank Girl and Lenore comics, available on iPhone and iPad for the first time ever.

The new stand-alone app allows iPhone, iPod touch or iPad users to explore Titan’s digital comics portfolio, including – for the first time in digital format – Lenore volumes 1 & 2 by Roman Dirge, Tank Girl: Bad Wind Rising (Alan Martin & Rufus Dayglo) and Tank Girl: Skidmarks (Martin & Dayglo).

The dark surreal world of Roman Dirge comes to life on the iPhone and iPad with the digital debut of his cult comic creation, Lenore. These gruesomely grisly tales see Lenore, the cute little dead girl, and her twisted menagerie of demented friends do battle with Nazi zombies, avoid the unrequited love of Mr. Gosh, and fend off the massed forces of Heck and an overeager, hungry earthworm.

Bad Wind Rising is the brand new Tank Girl series by Alan Martin and Rufus Dayglo, which sees Tank Girl and her long-term partner Booga split up in dramatic and outrageous circumstances.

Described by Ain’t It Cool News as ‘possibly this year’s coolest comic!’, the series is a must-read for all Tank Girl fans.

Martin and Dayglo’s previous series Skidmarks sees Tank Girl participating in an Outback ‘take-no-prisoners’ race in an attempt to win prize money for her friend Barney’s operation. The series is also available digitally for the first time in the new app.

For the first time Titan’s wide-ranging portfolio is available in one app, featuring exclusive free content including WWE Heroes, Transformers (exclusive UK strips), Shaun the Sheep and Wallace & Gromit. Brand new comics are set to be released by Titan via the app throughout the year.

• To explore Titan’s digital comics, simply go online to the iTunes app store and search 'Titan Comics' to download the app or follow this link direct.

• More information about the app can be found at http://titanmagazines.com/pages/titan-comics-app/

• More about Titan Comics at www.titanmagazines.com

Comics@SciFiLondon Schedule Released

Comics @ Sci-Fi London takes place this weekend (30th April - 1st May) - a two day festival about the best of British Comics from the last 30 years in a lovely new space - The Blue Room - at BFI Southbank, London. Here's a full run-down of the weekend's events.

This is not a ticketed event, however there will be a sign up sheet on the door on both days, if you would like to reserve a seat for individual panels.

Day One: Saturday 30th April
The Blue Room, 1st Floor, BFI Southbank, Waterloo, London
Doors open at 10am – Small press creators will be around to sell their work and meet visitors.

Creators in attendance include Paul Collicutt (Robot City Adventures), Phillipa Rice (My Cardboard Life), Alex Milway (The Mythical 9th Division), Eddie Robson (Doctor Who Adventures), V.V. Brown, David Allain, John Spelling (all City of Abacus), Lee O’Connor (Ctrl Alt Delete unmasks corruption), Zarina Liew, Yuri Kore, Clio Millett (Manga Jiman winners), Matt Jones (BERG design) and Matthew Sheret (Paper Science).

11am – SF comics for kids
Paul Collicutt (Robot City Adventures), Phillipa Rice (My Cardboard Life), Alex Milway (The Mythical 9th Division) and Eddie Robson (Doctor Who Adventures) discuss creating Science-Fiction and Fantasy comics for kids and having interested children in the format, how to keep their love of comics going. Followed by a children’s workshop run by Paul Collicutt.

Chair : Chris Johnson (CBBC)




12.30pm – City of Abacus
A panel discussion with four of the creators of the serialised graphic novel City of Abacus including writers V.V. Brown and David Allain and artists Lee O’Connor and John Spelling, who drew issues two and three respectively, looking at the intriguing mix of dystopian SF and fantasy that the comic presents. Followed by a City of Abacus signing

Chair: Alex Fitch (Resonance FM)

2pm – Manga Jiman
Three recent finalists – Zarina Liew (Runner-up 2009/2010), Yuri Kore (Winner 2009/2010), Clio Millett (Winner 2010/2011), Karen Rubins (Runner-up 2008, 2011) – of the Japanese Embassy’s ‘Manga Jiman’ (Pride in Manga) competition join one of the judges, to discuss the homegrown manga scene in the UK and the difference between Manga and Western style comics.

Chair: Karen Rubins (Comic book artist in residence, Victoria and Albert Museum 2010)




3.30pm – The work of Warren Ellis
Editor Matt Jones (principal, BERG design who commission Ellis’ new comic SVK) and writer Matthew Sheret (Solipsistic Pop), whose love of comics started with Warren’s work, discuss the work of comic book / multimedia writer Warren Ellis who has penned some of the most influencial SF comics of the last 20 years.
Followed by 10 minute preview screening of new documentary, Warren Ellis: Captured Ghosts.

Chair: Iyare Igiehon (BBC 6Music)

5pm Close

• More info at: www.sci-fi-london.com/festival/2011/programme/event/comics-sci-fi-london-day-one

Day Two: Sunday 1st May
The Blue Room, 1st Floor, BFI Southbank, Waterloo, London
Doors open at 10am – Small press creators will be around to sell their work and meet visitors

Creators in attendance include Al Davison and Tony Lee (IDW Doctor Who comic), Tom Humberstone (Solipsistic Pop), David Hine (Batman), China Miéville (Kraken), Denise Mina (The Field Of Blood), Alice Duke (Self Made Hero), Mark Stafford (Cherubs), Martin Fisher (Battle Among the Stars), Huw J. Davies (Freeman), Edward Ross (Parasites!) and Roger Mason (The Mice)

11am – Small Press to Mainstream
Al Davison and Tony Lee (IDW Doctor Who comic), Tom Humberstone (Solipsistic Pop) and David Hine (Batman) talk about how working in small press comics has lead to work for mainstream publishers, but also provided a home to publish alternative titles throughout their careers so far. Followed by ‘Drop in and draw’ activities for first time artists wanting encouragement in creating comics, run by Tom Humberstone.

Chair: Matt Badham (Judge Dredd Megazine)

12.30am – H.P. Lovecraft and Edgar Allan Poe
Novelists China Miéville (three-time Arthur C. Clarke award winner for SF literature) and Denise Mina (The Field Of Blood) alongside artists Alice Duke (Self Made Hero) and Mark Stafford (Cherubs) discuss the influence of American writers Poe and Lovecraft on comic books and the difficulties posed by adapting their stories into strip format.

Chair: Alex Fitch (Resonance FM)

2pm - Comics and Moving Pictures
Comics have been both the basis of and influenced the look of much TV and film over the past few years and so creators Martin Fisher (Battle Among the Stars), Huw J. Davies (Freeman, Garth), Edward Ross (Filmish, Parasites!) and Roger Mason (2000AD, The Mice) will be talking about how their interest in both fields has led to cross-pollination in their work and how they see this influencing both media as a whole.

Chair: Rich Johnson (Bleeding Cool)

3.30pm – Horror and noir
A panel looking at the crossover between two popular genres with guests Denise Mina, graphic novelist Hannah Berry who will be previewing her new book Adamtime and David Hine who has written horror themed comics throughout his career from Strange Embrace to Spawn.

Chair: Paul Gravett (Comica Festival)

5pm Close

• More info at www.sci-fi-london.com/festival/2011/programme/event/comics-sci-fi-london-day-two

• Further information is available in the May BFI Southbank programme and at www.bfi.org.uk/southbank