It’s one of the last great survivors of a classic era of British comics on newsagents’ shelves and for decades the digest-sized Commando series has been presenting old-school tales of battlefront action with a traditional focus on heroism and derring-do. But without the grimmest realities of the historical conflicts depicted. It was, on its inception in 1961 after all, a comic aimed at schoolboys. For much of that 50-year-plus publishing history Commando has made only rare sidesteps into other genres. In recent years, though, it’s been far more adventurous in its output. With eight issues on sale every month, and half of them generally reprints, the standard approach of the past remains a tangible reality. But there’s been a greater willingness in recent years to explore blends of war and other genres (particularly the horror issues around Halloween), and to loosen up the formerly house style visuals.
Commando #5829 (yes it’s really been that long-running) uses World War II simply as a framing sequence to dip into atypical mythological fare for the series. Forced to retreat from the fighting in Greece in 1941, four soldiers find refuge in the home of a local. While sheltering there he tells them a story of the region from millennia before as we visit the world of Maro, a young blacksmith whose village is about to fall prey to the hordes of the marauding sea people. What follows for Maro is a quest to find the means to liberate his people from their oppressors, one that will involve the Greek god Hephaestus and the mysterious ‘Sword of Destiny.
Writer Ferg Handley crafts a thrilling tale – one complete with coming-of-age themes – that, once we return to the later-day framing sequence, has neat allegorical ties and echoes to its parent narrative. It’s the art of Alejandro Perez Mesa that shines here though. A slightly caricatured cast of characters grabs our attention more immediately than a more realistic style of art might and Mesa’s deft, clear linework is beautiful in presentation.
Commando may not be within the usual area for coverage at Broken Frontier but these are challenging times for British periodical comics, as we have seen recently with the cancellation of Monster Fun and news of troubled times for the UK’s most established newsagent chain. Commando offers physical/digital subscription services so is not entirely reliant on high street shop shelves. However, if you’re a lapsed reader and you spot an issue in your local newsagents now would be a good time to give it some support. Frankly, now would be a good time to give any British comic your support.
Ferg Handley (W), Alejandro Perez Mesa (A) • DC Thomson, £2.99
Review by Andy Oliver
