Century 21: Classic Comic Strips from the Worlds of Gerry Anderson Volume 2: v. 2 [Paperback]

At one time (longer ago than I care to think about) Wednesday was the highlight of the week - that was the day the TV21 comic would drop though my latterbox.
I shudder to think that threw away these original comics (now worth a fortune) when I was 'too old' for such things.
Now they are back, thanks to editor Chris Bentley and publishers Reynolds & Hearn. In most cases the publishers have been able to use the original artwork, and the lines and colours leap straight off the page at you, giving you the action stories of Stingray, Fireball XL5, Captain Scarlet and Thunderbirds.
So whether you want these books to appreciate the art of Frank Bellamy, Mike Noble et al, or for the thrill of reliving your childhood, these books are for you.

Fabulous labour of love compilation of old TV Century 21 strips from a variety of titles. The stories selected here are connected across the Anderson universe which was one of the great strengths of the comics, and the gorgeous artwork is beautifully remastered and in some cases looks better than it did originally.

Lots of stuff from the greatest unsung British comics artist, Mike Noble; very entertaining in this volume to watch this mighty talent grappling with the concept of an 'eye-leaf' monster...

Artists: Mike Noble, Frank Bellamy, Ron Embleton, Don Harley, Frank Langford, Don Lawrence, Ron Turner

Very, very good value and hugely recommended.

I grew up in the 1960s reading DC and Marvel comics, but I remember there were some British comics back then that stood out in quality and scope. I was too young for `Eagle', which started several years before I was born, bur I remember the start of The Trigan Empire in `Ranger' and then continued in 'Look and Learn', which I would read in the public library every Saturday, but the comic book event of my childhood was the debut of Gerry Anderson's `TV21' comic. I couldn't name the artists then, but I could recognise Frank Bellamy's work, which stood out above anyone else's, even 1960s' Marvel. Allegedly, Stan Lee offered to let him draw anything he wanted if he'd work for Marvel.

In recent years there have been quality reprints of The Trigan Empire from a Dutch publisher, and Titan Books have been reprinting the Dan Dare strips from `Eagle', which has led to an appreciation of Frank Hampson's work (and the reprints have now reached the Frank Bellamy period!). Now, in these Century 21 volumes (volume 5 is scheduled as I type), we have the start of the ongoing reprinting of the classic TV21 strips from the mid-late 1960s, and the high-point of the British comic book (2000AD was a different format and in a different style). TV21 featured strips drawn from the various Gerry Anderson TV series, with a few back-ups created for the comic, but set in the Anderson `universe'.

The TV21 format was the same "widescreen" that `Eagle' and its rivals were published in, and the publishers of Century 21 have found the archive of the original artwork, which they are using for these volumes. There are some gaps, and these have been filled by digitally-remastered scans from the comic book pages, but the vast majority of the pages presented here are taken from the originals. Some of the strips were presented as two-page spreads in the centre of the comic; as this is a bound book, the pages have been reprinted with a bit of overlap, so you don't lose any artwork in the binding - something American publishers should take note of.

This volume, containing 149 pages of comics, presents the epic stories of Stingray's `Monster Weed Menace' by Mike Noble, and Lady Penelope's `Androids of London' by Frank Langford; three Fireball XL5 stories, two by Mike Noble and one by Don Lawrence; three Thunderbirds stories, two by Frank Bellamy and one by Ron Turner; one Zero X by Mike Noble; and two Captain Scarlet stories, one by Don Harley, and one by Jim Watson & Mike Noble.

This is indeed one of the treasures of the British comics industry, and will probably come as quite a shock to American comic book enthusiasts in terms of quality and scope. And considering it sold almost a million copies a week in the mid to late 1960s (and more if you include its spin-off titles), it also outsold even the top-selling American comics by a margin of two or three to one.

Further Treasures of the British Empire:
Classic Dan Dare: Trip to Trouble (Dan Dare (Graphic Novel)) (Dan Dare: Pilot of the Future)
Latest volume to date, featuring Frank Hampson's artwork
Classic Dan Dare: Voyage to Venus Part 1
First volume of the series, featuring Frank Hampson's artwork
Trigan Empire: The Invaders from Gallas v. 1
First volume of the complete Don Lawrence series (he was followed by Oliver Frey)
Century 21: Classic Comic Strips from the Worlds of Gerry Anderson Volume 1: v. 1
Century 21: Classic Comic Strips from the Worlds of Gerry Anderson Vol 4: Above and Beyond
Century 21: Classic Comic Strips from the Worlds of Gerry Anderson Volume 3
Further volumes of this series
Ron Embleton's Wulf the Briton: The Complete Adventures
Another full-colour classic from the 1950s
Karl The Viking The Complete Don Lawrence (deluxe 4 volume set)
Black & white artwork.
King of Crooks (featuring The Spider)
Jerry Siegel creates a British comic classic.
The Steel Claw: Vanishing Man
Another classic British comic series.