Valiant Annual #1964 - #1984 - IPC Magazines (Complete series)

Valiant Annual

IPC, 1963 Series

Published in English, United Kingdom

Publication Dates:

1963 - 1983

Number of Issues Published:

21 (#1964 - #1984)

Color:

Colour cover; Black and white with some colouring interior

Dimensions:

7.5 " x 11 "

Binding:

Hardcover

Publishing Format:

Was ongoing

Series Details:

Cover Gallery   Details by Issue   Series Timeline

Publisher's Brands:

A Fleetway Annual (2 issues)

without publisher's brand information (19 issues)

Indicia Publishers:

IPC Magazines Ltd. (21 issues)

Pages: 160       Indicia frecuency: Annual

Authors: 

Script:

Barry Pine?, Fred Baker, Reg Wootton, Tom Tully ?, Nobby Clark

Pencils: 

Nadal, Doug Maxted, Eric Bradbury, Reg Wootton, Charles Roylance?, Mike Western, 

Francisco Solano López ?, Jesús Blasco, Reg Parlett

Inks:

Nadal, Doug Maxted, Eric Bradbury, Mike Western,

Reg Wootton, Charles Roylance?, 

Francisco Solano López ?, Reg Parlett, Jesús Blasco

Colors: Reg Wootton

Letters: Reg Wootton

 

Links: Valiant Annual #1964 - #1984⇲⇲

Fleetway Super Library: Fantastic Series, Stupendous Series, Secret Agent Series, Front Line Series

Publication Dates: 1967 to 1968

Color:       Colour cover; Black and White interiors 

Binding:  Softcover 

Publishing Format:  Was ongoing 

Pages :   132         Indicia frequency:    ?

Fantastic Series

Publication Dates: January 1967 – January 1967

Number of Issues Published: 2 (#1 – #2)
Pages: 132  Indicia Frequency:  ?

Continued in Fleetway Super Library Stupendous series Fleetway Publications, 1967 series#3

Authors

Script

    Jerry Siegel    Jerry Siegel    Alessandro Biffignandi 

Pencils

Aldo Marculetta,  Alessandro Biffignandi,  Carlo Jacono (signed),  Carlos Cruz

Inks

    Aldo Marculetta, Alessandro Biffignandi, Carlo Jacono (signed), Carlos Cruz

Colors

    Carlo Jacono (signed) 

Stupendous Series

Publication Dates: February 1967 – January 1968

Number of Issues Published: 24 (#3 – #26)
Pages: 132  Indicia Frequency:  ?

Tracking:
numbering continues from Fleetway Super Library Fantastic Series (IPC, 1967 series) #2

Authors

Script

    Donne Avenell,    David MortonScript

    Ken Mennell

 Pencils

    Carlo Jacono (painted), Jesús Blasco, Giorgio Trevisan, Carlos Cruz,

 Francisco Cueto,  Aldo Marcuzzi, 

Inks

    Carlo Jacono (painted), Jesús Blasco, Giorgio Trevisan, Carlos Cruz, 

 Aldo Marcuzzi, Francisco Cueto, 

Colors

    Carlo Jacono (painted)

Secret Agent Series

Publication Dates: January 1967 – January 1968

Number of Issues Published: 26 (#1 – #26)

Script  ?  Pencils ?  Inks ?  Letters ?

Front Line Series

Publication Dates:   January 1967 - January 1968 

Number of Issues Published:    26 (#1 - #26)
Pages: 132  Indicia Frequency:  ?

Script  ?  Pencils ?  Inks ?  Letters ?

Fleetway Super Library was a comic published by Fleetway from 1967 to 1968. 

As its title suggests it followed the picture library format, albeit on a chunkier scale than usual:

 each issue was 

132 pages long, containing a 122-page main story alongside back-up material 

such as a quiz or reprints of humour strips.

The Fleetway Super Library series was itself split into three smaller series, each with two protagonists. Stupendous, which was called Fantastic during the first month 

of its existence, 

followed the exploits of the Steel Claw (from Valiant) and the Spider (from Lion);

 the military-themed Front Line starred Maddock’s Marauders and 

Top-Sergeant Ironside, 

both of whom would migrate to Battle Picture Library following the demise of Super Library; 

and finally Secret Agent told the stories of Johnny Nero and the Lion hero Barracuda.

Super Library was not long-lived: it ended in January 1968 after a total of 78 issues, 

26 for each sub-series. 

Steve Holland has argued that it could 

be regarded as Britain’s first series of graphic novels.

Fleetway Super Library Fantastic Series #1 - #2 Complete Series

Fleetway Super Library Front Line Series #01 - #26   Numbers 1-4, 7 ,9, 11, 13-15 & 17-19 are missing

Fleetway Super Library Secret Agent Series #01 - #26   Numbers  4, 6, 8, 10, 11 &  20 are missing

Fleetway Super Library Stupendous Series #03 - #26  Complete Series

The Steel Claw #01 – #04 (1986 – 1987) Quality periodicals - Complete Series

Publisher: Quality periodicals

Publication Dates: December 1986 – March 1987

Number of Issues Published: 4 (#1 – #4)

Color: color

Dimensions: standard Modern Age US

Binding: saddle-stitched

Publishing Format: limited series

Script: H. Ken Bulmer, 

Pencils: Garry Leach, Jesús Blasco,  Steve Potter (art assistant), 

Dave Elliott (splash page, framing sequence),  Steve Whitakerer (framing sequence), Mike Elliott (Art Assistant), 

Inks: Garry Leach, Jesús Blasco,  Steve Potter (art assistant), Mike Elliott (Art Assistant), William Simpson (framing sequence), 

Letters: Jack Potter, 

The Steel Claw was one of the most popular comic book heroes of British weekly adventure comics of the 1960s and 1970s.

The Steel Claw first appeared in the debut edition of Valiant dated 6 October 1962. The strip was one of several put together for the comic by Fleetway editors Ken Mennell, Jack Le Grand and Sid Bicknell, and was then refined by writer Ken Bulmer and artist Jesús Blasco. After the first three serials, Bulmer left the title, and was replaced by Tom Tully. The Steel Claw appeared in Valiant throughout much of the 1960s and was one of the most popular strips in the comic. Tully wrote the series for the remainder of its run. The story ended briefly in May 1970, but a year later was back, retitled Return of the Claw, which would run until 1973.

In 1967, Fleetway featured the character in a number of digest-size original stories in their Stupendous Series of Super Library comics. The Steel Claw would alternate with The Spider from Lion in these books, with the Claw featuring in the odd-numbered editions. Because of the pressures of deadlines, these monthly titles saw a variety of different writers and artists employed, usually various Italian artists, most notably future 2000 AD artist Massimo Belardinelli. These ran until January 1968.

However, when Valiant merged with Battle Picture Weekly, the strip transferred to Vulcan, from 1975, in a series of reprints. The strip had by now found popularity worldwide, including in Germany, India and Sweden, and it remained in print in these countries long after the character’s final appearance in the UK.

The Steel Claw remained fondly remembered by its fans and future comic creators, and during the Alan Moore and Alan Davis run of Captain Britain comic, The Steel Claw was renamed The Iron Tallon for a brief cameo appearance. This was followed by a four issue series published by Quality Comics in 1986, which reprinted material from Valiant (in this, the character’s name was edited to ‘Louis Randell’, and the stories were coloured), with new framing material drawn by Garry Leach.

The character remained in limbo for a number of years until Grant Morrison used The Steel Claw’s superhero incarnation (as well as a number of British heroes from the 1960s) in his Zenith strip in 2000AD. This was followed by a one-off special featuring The Steel Claw, amongst other 1960s characters, which was created by various 2000AD creators of the time.

However this failed to spawn any continuing series and the character again entered limbo, until it was announced in 2005 that DC Comics would be using the character along with a number of other IPC characters, in a six issue mini-series called Albion. This would be plotted by Alan Moore, and written by Leah Moore and John Reppion, with art by Shane Oakley and George Freeman. The series was complimented by an album collection, published by Titan Books, reprinting the Ken Bulmer/Jesus Blasco serials from Valiant.

Links:   The Steel Claw ⇲⇲