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Post by Deleted on Dec 4, 2018 15:42:38 GMT -5
Commando Comics, published by DC Thomson, has been around since 1961. Featuring war stories of all kinds, from various conflicts, it is unique on today's newsstand in that the magazines are A5-format and in black and white. Here's the cover of a recent issue:  Here's an interior page:  Many British war comics (e.g. Warlord) have come and gone. Many were a product of their era. Some tried to be different, such as Charley's War (detailing the military service of a conscript in 1916), but the majority, at least the ones I read, were action-driven. Some were jingoistic, too. That isn't always a bad thing, but it does mean that their "shelf life" is limited, especially as conflicts such as WWI and WWII become distant memories, although we should never forget, of course. Now, to the reason for this topic: the UK comic industry is not what it was. Nowadays, with the exception of the likes of 2000 AD, the majority of UK comics are either Marvel/DC reprints or licensed comics based on whatever property is "hot" on TV right now. Yet Commando is still going after 57 years! I haven't read it in many years. It was never a regular buy for me, anyway. It does raise the question, though: how does such a title buck the trend in 2018? It is A5-sized and publishes black and white adventures on newsprint paper. Only the covers are in colour. Glossier, A4-sized comics have come and gone, but Commando remains. Would an A5-sized title that is published in black and white appeal to young folk raised on a "diet" of glossy paper and digital art? Any thoughts/hypotheses?
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Post by Paste Pot Paul on Dec 4, 2018 17:43:06 GMT -5
I grew up on these, along with WAR and BATTLE PICTURE WEEKLY.
COMMANDO especially was THE title to read and was always popular with everyone, even to the extent that people who hated comics loved and collected these.
I would say they have more appeal to those, like me, who grew up in the 60s and 70s when the "war" was still reasonably recent or relevant.
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Confessor
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Post by Confessor on Dec 4, 2018 22:26:24 GMT -5
I liked Commando comics a fair bit back as a kid in the early 80s. I also liked Battle Picture Weekly, although "Charley's War" used to bore me rigid back then. These days, my tastes have done a complete about face and I think "Charley's War" is one of the best British comic strips of all time. Certainly it's the best war comic ever produced in any country ever, as far as I'm concerned.
I still have a small collection of, I dunno, maybe a dozen or so issues of Commando left over from my childhood. Like you @taxidriver1980, I never bought it regularly (my comic buying funds usually went on Star Wars Weekly, 2000 AD, or various Marvel superhero reprints) and I definitely gravitated towards the Air Force type stories when I did -- either RAF or American 8th Air Force stories. The artwork in these comics was mostly excellent, but, although I enjoyed the stories a lot back in the day, re-reading them nowadays as an adult is painful; they're not exactly great literature.
I also bought the odd issue of the similarly sized, somewhat short-lived sci-fi themed companion comic Starblazer, remember that?
As for why or how the title has managed to survive, I think it must be because of nostalgia among those of us who grew up reading it. I really can't imagine that many young kids today are buying it. Also, it's smaller size and the black and white interiors must keep production costs down, I suppose.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 5, 2018 1:43:20 GMT -5
One thing that I want to share here ... I went to London (early 90's) and I saw two nice young (early teens) boys back in the 90's and they loved these books very much and quite easy to collect. Because the number is on the top left corner. It's that's easy and they told me that. I even read a couple of them while I was awaiting for the bus and thanked them for letting me read them. Nice Chaps ... I may add. They told me that they are popular and well received and highly acclaimed books.
Loved the stories and the artwork inside.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 5, 2018 5:32:22 GMT -5
I also bought the odd issue of the similarly sized, somewhat short-lived sci-fi themed companion comic Starblazer, remember that? I did buy some of those in a second-hand bookstore many years ago. I believe the title will be celebrating its fortieth anniversary next year. |
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Confessor
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Not Bucky O'Hare!
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Post by Confessor on Dec 5, 2018 7:43:47 GMT -5
Actually, there's an issue of Commando that I used to have back when I was a kid that has vanished from my collection over the years. It was another U.S. 8th Air Force-themed issue, centred around a squadron of B-24 Liberators operating out of England during World War 2. This would've been an early 80s issue, but despite looking online a number of times, I've failed to identify which issue it is that I remember. I'd love to find it though and pick up a copy, just for old times sake.
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Post by tingramretro on Dec 24, 2018 7:41:27 GMT -5
I liked Commando comics a fair bit back as a kid in the early 80s. I also liked Battle Picture Weekly, although "Charley's War" used to bore me rigid back then. These days, my tastes have done a complete about face and I think "Charley's War" is one of the best British comic strips of all time. Certainly it's the best war comic ever produced in any country ever, as far as I'm concerned. I still have a small collection of, I dunno, maybe a dozen or so issues of Commando left over from my childhood. Like you @taxidriver1980 , I never bought it regularly (my comic buying funds usually went on Star Wars Weekly, 2000 AD, or various Marvel superhero reprints) and I definitely gravitated towards the Air Force type stories when I did -- either RAF or American 8th Air Force stories. The artwork in these comics was mostly excellent, but, although I enjoyed the stories a lot back in the day, re-reading them nowadays as an adult is painful; they're not exactly great literature. I also bought the odd issue of the similarly sized, somewhat short-lived sci-fi themed companion comic Starblazer, remember that? As for why or how the title has managed to survive, I think it must be because of nostalgia among those of us who grew up reading it. I really can't imagine that many young kids today are buying it. Also, it's smaller size and the black and white interiors must keep production costs down, I suppose. What keeps production costs down is that of the eight issues published every month (!), four are always reprints. But nevertheless, Commando is popular, and apparently not just with older readers. It's also worth noting that when they began offering digital subscriptions, subscriptions to the paper and ink version immediately almost tripled! |
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