Beowulf - Dragon Slayer!

Beowulf - Dragon Slayer adapts the famous Old English epic poem into comics form. It was not first to do so and far from the last. Michael Uslan and Ricardo Villamonte are the creative team on this effort. Save for Beowulf getting a strange superhero-like visual treatment (his helmet is supposedly a minotaur skull), the story begins much like it does in the original Anglo-Saxon poem. A monster named Grendel assaults the hall of King Hrothgar and when Beowulf gets wind of this, he heads out to help. 

Once again, this series was part of DC's attempt to grab some of the Conan the Barbarian business with a raft of heroes from various mythological settings. Beowulf stands up quite strong amongst this company which saw most all of them gone after a year. 

The one previous attempt to adapt the poem was Thane of Bagarth by Steve Skeates and Jim Aparo over at Charlton comics. The setting of this back-up series for the Hercules comic was after the events of the Anglo-Saxon epic. The adaptation has quite a legitimate feel, not unlike that of Prince Valiant. But eventually it gives way to a science fiction influence. The same thing will happen at DC. 

Beowulf and his men along with Nan-Zee head off for a quest into Hell where they fight all manner of creepies and even a tame dragon and ultimately do encounter Satan. The point of this meandering lost on me, save that it prolongs the story. The upshot is that he is sent on a quest by Satan to find two things to perk him up sufficiently to defeat Grendel. 

The quest through Hell continues. Grendel is still threatening Hrothgar's kingdom while Beowulf and his compatriots confront sundry menaces including a serpent. It is from this serpent's venom that Beowulf derives some powers enough to face Grendel, almost. Now he must find called Zumak. 

Having survived the rigors of Hell, Beowulf and his band run into warriors dedicated to fighting Vlad the Impaler and they get swept up in that conflict. They discover that the Zuman is not there. 

The introduction of flying saucers well and truly jumps this little series off the rails. Not unlike the earlier Charlton series we get sci-fi tropes dumped into a Beowulf environment. Strange to say the least. In this instance we get Atlantean servants of the space gods who pick up Beowulf and Nan-Zee just in time for the to witness the destruction of the advanced city. Beowulf even meets another epic hero from an even earlier tradition. 

Cast adrift the pair eventually arrive in Crete where they are led to the famed Labyrinth in which they find a Minotaur and ultimately the Zumak. Beowulf is now fully-charged and ready for Grendel as he and his gal head for Heorot at last. Meanwhile Grendel who is plotting against Satan. The arrival of Ric Estrada on layouts made this the most readable issue of this benighted series. 

This little series was a major disappointment for me. I'd hoped they had told a good yarn about the great Anglo-Saxon hero, but that's not what happens. Uslan's script is meandering, and Villamonte's artwork is at times bewildering. The addition of Nan-Zee affects the story not at all, save that it gives Villamonte the chance to draw a chick in a bikini for the entire brief run. The character I'm most interested in is Grendel, who we do get at length dragging away victims and bellowing about his sad lot to Satan. One character called the Shaper is a magician and some of his spells are fun to decode as they are the same variety as what Zatanna uses. One reads "Happy Birthday Cindy".

But comics were not done with Beowulf. 

Beowulf is one of those pieces of classic literature to speaks to my fanboy heart. Not unlike the mythology of the Greeks and Romans, or the Nordic sagas, we have a story which bonds reality with myth in a way which makes it immediate and potent. The poem serves a lot of masters, but at its core it's the story of a noble man who wants to defend people from predators and who wants to make the society better. The story has not been adapted to comics all that many times. Classics Illustrated never touched it (to my knowledge). But the first time I ever chanced across the poem itself being adapted to comics was when Jerry Bingham produced it for First Comics as their initial graphic novel in 1984.

I've never been completely satisfied with the result. To be fair, I'm not a huge Jerry Bingham fan, always considering him a workmanlike talent who was able to produce pages which successfully evoked both Neal Adams and John Buscema without the immediacy or drama of either. But compared to the soulless stuff I see on the stands today, he was a master. Still, he was above average of the day, and I like his stuff more and more as the years grind away. It turns out Beowulf was a labor of love, produced by Bingham pretty much on spec and finding a home at First Comics when he bargained to draw some of their books for them. I like that a lot. 

Bingham discussed the "graphic novel" several years ago on his blog here. He discusses how he came to be aware of the poem and how he finally was able to bring this remarkable work to fruition. He also discusses some of it weaknesses, weaknesses I agree make it less than a work which was completely successful. To my mind it lacks the grit and necessary darkness of the poem, allowing superhero tropes to overwhelm a story which is at its core a horror tale. You can also see quite a bit of the artwork from the series.

But whatever the deficiencies might have been to my mind, Jerry Bingham was able to bring Beowulf to the page and then bring it to the newsstands and that's no mean accomplishment. I congratulate him and wish him well. He seems to have done well for himself outside the world of comics and for a guy who I considered a middle of the road talent has become quite a compelling painter. But when the name Jerry Bingham comes up for this comics fan, the first thing I will think of is Beowulf. I rather think he'd like that. 

Here are later adaptations of the poem that I've come across. 

(2006)

(2007)

(2008)

(2016)

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Sarge Steel - File 101

One thing I discovered some years ago to my dismay while I was gathering materials for some posts on Judomaster  was that my Sarge Steel collection was incomplete. The series runs for eight issues as Sarge Steel then becomes Secret Agent for two more issues. I thought I had them all, but it's been years since I looked closely, and I found to my horror that I did not have a copy of Secret Agent #9 thus making my collection woefully incomplete. I jumped onto the internet and found a copy which I promptly ordered. It arrived promptly, so I can for the first time owned the entire Sarge Steel saga through. I begin that today with the first issue. 

But on with the report.

Sarge Steel #1 is dated December 1964 and begins as a quarterly comic. Oddly for Charlton this is Volume 1 #1, something common to other publishers but almost unheard of for the Derby outfit. But wait, the numbering and titling will get confusing later so don't fret. The credited creator of the series is Pat Masulli, also the executive editor of Charlton at this time. Joe Gill is listed as scripter and Dick Giordano is on the art. The story titled "The Case of the Pearls of Death" is File #101.

Chapter I is titled "Consignment Terror". It begins in the morning as Sarge returns to his office at 5:45 after a night of entertainment. His secretary Bessie Forbes meets him and after some flirting from Sarge she shows in his client. She is a lovely Vietnamese girl named Lin Ying. Sarge dismisses himself to shower and change clothes then he gets Ying's story. Her father is pearl merchant and has disappeared and a man named Ivan Chung might well be involved. As they walk along the street a thug of appears but Sarge puts him down fast. They have breakfast and Sarge learns that there is a secret deal with these pearls out of Saigon and Ivan Chung, a name Sarge already knows, is involved. Sarge and Lin get in his XK-150 sports car and head to Chung's presumed headquarters. Here Sarge uses his steel fist to break in the door. but they find nothing. Then another thug appears but he is dispatched, and the pair get onto a small boat looking for Chung's ship. But they are spotted, and Chung and his henchman try to shoot their boat, then run it over. Sarge is cast into the sea but is fished out by Chung's men and Sarge's last thoughts are of Saigon where he lost his hand.

"The O.S.S. in World War II" is a three-page feature about the efforts of the Office of Strategic Services and its role in arming partisans and other espionage work in the Big One. It seems to be by the Bill Fracchio and Tony Tallarico team.

"The Spark" is a two-page text piece about some important battles during World War I.

"The Road to Freedom" is a one-page piece about Marines in the 1st Division trying to maneuver after the battle of Chosin. The art seems to be by Sam Glanzman.

Chapter II of the Sarge Steel story is titled "Nightmare in Saigon" and is a clever flashback sequence featuring Sarge's memories of his days in Saigon while cutting back once in a while to the unconscious form of Sarge and Lin on Chung's ship. Captain Sarge Steel was apparently quite formidable and was responsible for breaking up the network of Ivan Chung in Saigon. But after capturinng Chung several attempts on Sarge's life are made which he survives. The last one happened at a dance and while Sarge was attempting to enjoy himself dancing with a young lady a grenade tumbles into the room. Sarge grabs it to throw it out the window, but it has had some sticky substance applied so all he can do is thrust his arm out the window. This of course doesn't kill him, but he loses his hand.

Chapter III is titled "Destination Death" and in it Sarge wakes from his Saigon nightmare to confront Ivan Chung. Lin is by Sarge's side in tears. Chung is trying to find the pearls Lin's father brought to him but has now hidden. Lin is distraught so at one point Sarge smacks her to bring her to her senses. Listening in using a bug, Chung overhears Sarge and Lin talk about the pearls being hidden in the lining of an attache case. Chung sends agents to find it. Meanwhile Bessie has contacted the CIA to tell them that Sarge has gone missing and inform them about the case he was on. The CIA intercept Chung's agent getting the pearls and then have him take them to Chung's hidden location. Back on the ship, Lin is reunited with her father and the three plan an escape. Chung goes to thwart the plan, but this time he's been tricked as Sarge is waiting for him and subdues him with his steel fist. After some small gunplay they radio for help and Lin is so relieved that she hopes aloud that her vacation won't be a complete waste. Sarge tells her if she sticks with him, it won't if she says "Yes Sarge" to everything he suggests.

This is a neat origin story. It's got plenty of action, answers the questions about the background of our hero but leaves lots of room for expansion. Sarge is clearly a blend of the noir-style tough guy detective and popular super-spy. The story is a tad wordy, but the use of first person point of view adds to the noir feel of the book and gives the story an interesting character. This point of view will be used throughout the series with a few exceptions. Sarge's Vietnam connection gives the book a specific and modern feel that other comics of the era lacked, since rarely was Vietnam mentioned in comic of the time other than a war book. This is something that Charlton did quite often in fact in their books. Sarge is definitely a cold warrior, and that will become a greater part of the series as it develops. The unofficial subtitle of the book is "Private Detective", but this focus will shift also as the series continues.

More Sarge Steel to come.

This is a Revised Classic Charlton Post! 

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The Lonely War Of Capt. Willy Schultz!

The Lonely War of Capt. Willy Schultz is a bit of a legendary series in the near hundred years lore of the comic book. The series was written by a very young man named Will Franz and drawn by a veteran talent named Sam Glanzman. It was produced by Charlton Comics, a house infamous for its production of what many deem substandard comics. Personally, I've always been a Charlton fan, appreciating the utter strangeness which could percolate in a company which by definition had little oversight over its talent because they paid so poorly. We'll pay you less money, but we'll leave you alone. It's a bargain many creators accepted. But in the case of this series maybe even the lackadaisical Charlton saw a need to crack down. (Caution: There are spoilers below.)

Will Franz was a very young man when he submitted samples to Charlton. At first his work was rejected but eventually he got a gig when his story titled "The Sniper" was published in the fifth and final issue of Charlton Premiere. War stories seemed to be his area of interest and he got a few more. Then he partnered with Sam Glanzman. Glanzman likely needs no introduction, but for the record he was a veteran of World War II and had been working in comics for a few decades when he and Franz joined forces to bring the world The Lonely Wart of Capt. Willy Schultz. 

The saga of Willy Schultz begins with a boner as the folks at Charlton misspelled his name on the cover of the debut issue of Fightin' Army. Willy is an American soldier in a tank unit. His immediate superior gives an order that kills his colleagues and Willy, a man of powerful conscience, is properly annoyed. Circumstances are such that as he pulls a gun on the hapless officer a Nazi soldier shoots and kills him. But the blame quickly falls on Willy and while being transported for trial his jeep is attacked and he is the only survivor. Considering himself a de facto dead man in the American forces, he puts on a German uniform and after a brutal trek across the desert blends into a unit. His dilemma is powerful -- how does he save himself while masquerading as a Nazi and at the same time not bring harm to Allied forces. 

While still set in WWII in North Africa, the story brings to the four-color page the situation of a warrior who finds decency in his enemy. It's not a message necessarily that folks looking to program young men to fight in foreign lands are eager to see. The depth of the characterization is something apart from the war comics of the time. Below are some of the war titles on sale alongside the debut issue of The Lonely War of Capt. Willy Schultz. 

An entertaining batch of comics to be sure, but not comics that necessarily challenge the aims of war fighting. 

I'll just note (as did Stephen Bissette in the fantastic introduction to this collection) that another entertainment at the time was causing some ripples in the classic approach of media to war fighting. Branded starring the Rifleman himself Chuck Connors dealt with a disgraced military officer who must wander through the wild west seeking some solace. 

Willy spends several issues disguised as a German fighter, manning a Panzer tank. His situation is quite intolerable as he tries to negotiate the battlefield without directly taking American lives. The fact that he is nonetheless supporting the effort is treason by any definition. His choice to commit treason is that he's found a sympathetic humanity in the enemy. He eventually is able to slip away in the heat of battle and chances on a dead U.S soldier and appropriates his identity. But his time with the Germans has given him sympathy with the men if not their cause and he finds killing "the enemy" difficult. 

He continues his trek across North Africa, trying his best to avoid both forces. He has no success in that when he comes across a young German woman who has been blinded in a small engagement. His fluent German convinces her he's on her side, though that's an illusion which only lasts until others arrive. Willy and the woman named Ilse develop feelings for one another. 

There is some sense of redemption for Willy when he finds himself captured alongside General Stenik, the man whose son's death he's charged with. The General seems much more open to hearing the other side, though it's a tragic result for all those involved. 

Schultz is drawn into helping a British commando unit when they mistake him for American sent to assist them. He cannot adequately explain his presence, so he dons yet another German uniform and proceeds with the mission. He is ultimately captured along with the rest of the British team and lined up to be shot as a spy, but destiny in the name of Ilse provides an out. 

Sam Glanzman's artwork was really opening up about this time. His work on Hercules was becoming looser and vigorous, and likewise I see the same ideas for interesting design beginning to assert themselves in this two-parter which has Willy as a POW in an Italian camp, and he is  selected to lead an escape. As with most things in Willy's life, it doesn't go all that smoothly. 

Willy is recognized by an American officer, but one who decides that Schultz is more useful helping the Italian Partisan movement. An OSS officer named Daurio offered to get Schultz a pardon for his crime if he worked with the underground.

Franz's commentary on the ugly violence of war seems to be becoming more in focus as this two-part tale unfolds and Willy himself almost falls victim to the fury and rage of those he's trying to help. It was around this time that even the usually hands-off folks at Charlton started to request some changes. 

Both Glanzman and Franz seem to have found their way finally on this series, with the writing becoming ever more focused and emotional and the art more illustrative and compelling. Still and all the impact of the series was being felt and would yield repercussions. 

Shultz is routinely confronted with dilemmas while seeking to kill as few of the enemy as he can. Often his own life is at risk. Those around him are more willing to kill, as of course that's the purpose of war. 

Willy is able to find some measure of happiness even when he finds love with an Italian girl named Elena. They are confronted with the fact that they might have only a short time together and tragically that proves to be true. 

The series comes to an end with the death of the OSS officer Daurio and the chance for Schultz to gain his pardon. The Italian forces they fought with are wiped out, save for Elena and a few others. Where the strip would've gone from this point is unknown, but it didn't matter. The humanity and sympathy that the series demonstrated for the "enemy" was cited by one Conscientious Objector and that caused the military to contact Charlton and request that the series come to an end. Franz was given little notice and after a few more random war tales, effectively did not work in comics again. 

During the run of The Lonely War of Capt. Willy Schultz DC began the series Enemy Ace, which to my mind touched on many of the same themes, albeit with a more distant war and with warriors of a different kind. 

For this collection a new story by Franz was solicited, a chance to bring the saga of Willy Schultz to a satisfying conclusion. So, after many decades Franz was able to wrap up the saga, but sadly without his partner Sam Glanzman who had since passed away. Wayne Vansant was picked to draw the story, and he does a remarkable job of following Glanzman's style. We learn that Willy's life of tragedy continues when he loses Elena and soon thereafter circumstances again allow him to assume the identity of a German soldier. The war comes to a conclusion and escape detection he joins the French Foreign Legion and fights for many years before settling down on a rubber plantation in Vietnam. He'd found Isle again and they live a somewhat happy life, as much as anyone can after all the tragedy they'd endured. 

The series was reprinted by ACG many years ago, but it is wonderful to have these stories in a solid collection and it's most interesting to read an ending after all these decades. DC emblazoned their war stories for a time with the phrase "Make War No More", but in the saga of Willy Schultz we see that ideal played out as much as it can be. 

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