Heroes! The British invasion of American comics - part 9

Recently (ish!) finished at the Cartoon Museum (here) was their exhibition 'Heroes! The British invasion of American comics'. 

For anyone who couldn't make it here's part 9 of my look at what you missed...

Part 1 was here

Part 2 was here

Part 3 was here

Part 4 was here

Part 5 was here

Part 6 was here

Part 7 was here

Part 8 was here

The microlife of Alistair Sadgitt

I'm always happy to highlight the work of Lew Stringer (his blog is here), particularly any of the more obscure titles that the Lew Stringer completist in your life might not be aware of.

You can check out all previous mentions of Lew on the blog here

The last mention for Lew on the blog featured his Combat Colin comic produced waaaaaay back in the year 2000 - check it out here

Anyway, back to today's post! This is Lew's affectionate parody of all things The Prisoner TV show related. This looks really familiar to me and I wonder if I purchased it back in the day? Can't remember. Anyway, one for you all to look out for.

Ring Raiders - the German issues!

A recent discovery for me are these German edition of Ring Raiders comic. The British edition lasted just six issues (plus a special) but in Germany there were nine issues, published by Bastei Verlag.

I wonder if there issues 7-9 had stuff in them that would have been in the British version? If you know then please DO get in touch.

According to the German Comic Hunters website, the regular series ran for issues, published monthly from February to November 1990.

There were also three collected editions, and one extra issue (ExtraHeft”), published directly by Matchbox.

Ring Raiders, issue #1

same cover as #1 in the UK

Here’s an interior spread…

Ring Raiders, issue #2

This cover was used for issue #3 in the UK

Ring Raiders, issue #3

This cover was used for issue #5 in the UK (albeit the four character heads have been added to the German edition)

Ring Raiders, issue #4

Ring Raiders, issue #5

Cover not to hand - can you help?

Ring Raiders, issue #6

Ring Raiders, issue #7

The art is credited to (Enrique) Campdepadros

Ring Raiders, issue #8

Ian Kennedy head, but the rest of the art is credited to (Enrique) Campdepadros

Ring Raiders, issue #9

The art is credited to (Enrique) Campdepadros

Ring Raiders Special #1

Ring Raiders Special #2

Cover not to hand - can you help?

Ring Raiders Special #3

Cover not to hand - can you help?

Ring Raiders Extra Heft

Ring Raiders Extra Heft

UPDATED: Keith Burns covers for Commando

I first came across Keith Burns art when he illustrated the Titan comics Johnny Red series, since then he's just started illustrating Commando covers and the covers are fantastic. Here are the covers he's done so far...

Commando 5209 - American avenger

Commando 5215 - a matter of honour

Commando 5229 - shadow in the storm!

Commando 5241 - steel inferno

Commando 5251 - Radar raiders

Commando 5259 - Braddock

Commando 5267 - Braddock demons

Commando 5289 - the Wombat and the Tiger

Commando 5297 - fog of war

Commando 5299 - Sladen's promise

Commando 5307 - Stealing Stukas

Commando 5315 - Ironhide

Commando 5329 - Blitzkrieg west

Commando 5335 - Durand's Dunkirk

Commando 5337 - Dodger's Dunkirk

This issue is interconnected with issue 5337 Durand's Dunkirk but told from the perspective of the British fighting to stop their retreat.

Commando 5353 - Outgunned!

Commando 5355 - Bullseye Bruno

Commando 5377 - Third time lucky

Commando 5385 - The flying emu

Commando 5395 - HMAS Expendable

Commando 5411 - Ready for Anything!

Commando 5417 - The girls on the guns

Commando 5448 - Die-or walk!

Check out the third of our nine 60th Anniversary specials Issue 5448 Die — or Walk! Former editor Calum Laird's sequel to Commando Issue 1 Walk — or Die! has the table turned with the Brit carrying the Jerry!

Commando 5463 - Target Tomcat

Commando 5481 - Vengeance

Commando 5497 - Pearl Harbor

Commando 5511 - Escape from Java

Commando 5525 - Sink the Shokaku!

published March 15th 2022

Commando 5547 - Stay behind squad

published June 9th 2022

Commando 5559 - Wild weasel!

to be published July 21st 2022

Commando 5607 - Combat air patrol

Commando 5619 - Achtung, destroyer!

Commando 5641 - Sink the Tiger

The unthinkable has happened —HMAS Tiger has been captured by the Japanese and is being used to create havoc amongst allied shipping! The Australian Navy’s most experienced destroyer commander, John Griffin, is called in to solve the problem, his orders: “SINK THE TIGER!”

Keith's design roughs for Commando 5641

Commando 5671 - Dutch courage

Commando 5677 - Hell on high

They called Lieutenant Robert Lloyd a coward for flying out of formation in his B-17 and blamed him for the death of his crew. He was demoted to co-pilot in another outfit but his new pilot wasn't going to listen to a coward’s advice on flying!

Commando 5687 - Beneath

When the Nazis thundered over Europe, they did not know what horror lay beneath, hungry from the last war. It had tasted human-flesh and it craved more…

Commando 5711 - 3 Company

Three's certainly company with this lot! A soldier, a sailor, and a pilot find themselves stranded on the Dunkirk beaches each blaming the other for their predicament. But they'd soon after to work together to escape the clutches of the Nazis!

Commando 5715 - Steer into danger

The salty seadogs are back for another oceanic adventure in the Pacific as the experienced skippers of HMAS Tiger and HMAS Wombat take on deadly Japanese Cruisers!

Commando 5731 - Leg before Chindits

Major Charles Beevor and his depleted group of Chindits were deep into the jungles of Burma. Cut off by the Japanese, they were out for six and would not stop until the Japanese threat was bowled over!

Commando 5747 - the deadly sun

In 1918, the deadly sun shone down on the desert and blinded Pilot Martin Connors. Out of its rays came a German plane flown by an ace who had already killed three other British pilots!

Commando 5755 - D-day pilot

Commando 5779 - Pressure Point

Commando 5807 - Small but mighty!

Maltese Private George Abela was an artillery gunner on Fort St Elmo and he might have stood at a diminutive five foot two but like Malta and its people, he was tough! And he was about to stop an audacious Italian plan to destroy the Grand Harbour!

Commando 5839 - no surrender!

Egypt, 1942. The war in the desert was as hot as the blazing sun, with the Italians fighting the British in an all‑out battle for supremacy. The Long Range Desert Patrol was an ace in the hand of the Brits, and their raiding parties went behind enemy lines to cut off vital supplies to their Italian opponents.
Little did they know they would soon be fighting shoulder to shoulder for survival against a common enemy – the German Afrika Korps!

Commando 5847 - HMAS Wombat: the duel

The time has come for the crew of HMAS Wombat to strike out on their own adventure! With a Japanese destroyer helmed by Captain Aki Kato causing havoc in the shipping lanes, it falls to Captain John Griffin and his rough and ready crew to save the day once again!But with Kato able to predict all of Griffin’s tricks, the battle for the Pacific soon turns into a duel to end all duels!

Commando 5851 - War-torn!

In 1939, war was declared, sparking six years of devastation known as World War Two. Two brothers, Michel and Hans Weber were torn apart by the conflict — separated and on opposite sides of the fighting, with one in Germany and the other in Canada. They had started the war as brothers — would they end it as enemies or could their bond survive?

Commando 5929 - Harrier Squadron Armistice Day

The year is 1993. Across Battleground Europe, World War III rages as the invading armies of the ASBLOC (Asian Bloc) battle the defending forces of WESFED (Western Federation). At the tip of the spear are Harrier Squadron, an international allied task force of jump-jet pilots caught up in this desperate battle — but when the chance for a ceasefire lands in their laps, they must defeat a conspiracy hell-bent on continuing the conflict! 

Commando 5941 - The fox vs the lion

The Western Front, 1917. Charlie Wilberforce, a British fighter pilot, sees the Royal Flying Corps devastated by the German Flying Circus, with their superior planes and experienced pilots. But things turn around when Wilberforce is introduced to a new plane — the Sopwith Camel!

Commando 5953 - Terror train

this is cover #49 for Keith and it's out now!

Tunisia, 1943. A German military supply train cuts through North Africa, delivering vital supplies to the German lines. Equipped with vicious anti-aircraft guns, making it impossible to attack from the skies, the behemoth train threatens the Allied stronghold.  
Tasked with destroying it, Captain Mike Lambert and his New Zealand Long Range Desert Group unit must fight carriage‑to‑carriage to wrest control from the Germans and destroy the supply line once and for all.