Captain Canuck returns!

[Sir John A.]

http://www.cbc.ca/story/arts/nationa...uck040921.html

Captain Canuck returns
Last Updated Tue, 21 Sep 2004 18:04:32 EDT

WINNIPEG - Captain Canuck, the Canadian superhero who fought neo-Nazis, drug kingpins and aliens for 15 issues in the 1970s, is returning to comic-store shelves.

Created by Richard Comely, the character has been resurrected for a three-issue limited series titled Captain Canuck: Unholy War.
The new Captain Canuck (courtesy CaptainCanuck.com)

The new series is the work of Brandon, Man.'s Riel Langlois. He approached Comely about two years ago to discuss bringing the character back to life.

"That was one of the first comic books that I was given when I was a kid," Langlois told the Winnipeg Sun. "I guess, being in Canada, you always want there to be a Canadian superhero."

The first instalment of Unholy War lands on store shelves later this month. Comely handled editing duties on the title.

At the time of his debut, Captain Canuck was the only made-in-Canada superhero fighting crime in this country. Some books, like The Uncanny X-Men, were U.S. titles that featured the occasional Canadian character.

Langlois does not have a background in the medium. "I've been interested in getting into the comic-book industry for quite awhile," the substitute teacher said.

"I figured I'd either make up something completely new or I'll take something old and make it new again."

Langlois's brother, Drue, did the art for Unholy War.

Comely started publishing Captain Canuck in 1975. He published 14 issues, plus a summer annual, before ceasing operations.

The comic was set in the futuristic world of the early 1990s, when Canada had become a respected superpower. RCMP officer Tom Evans, Captain Canuck's alter ego, gained superhuman strength after being shot with an alien ray.

In the new series, RCMP officer David Semple is a former peacekeeper with a background in gymnastics and judo who becomes a costumed crime fighter because of his thrill-seeking nature. The villain is the mysterious Mr. Gold, the crime boss who was Captain Canuck's adversary in the original series.

Comely attempted to resurrect the character once before, with 1993's Captain Canuck Reborn title. It fizzled after four issues.

Regardless, the character remains an icon for comic-book connoisseurs of a certain age. In 1995, Canada Post issued a five-stamp series with a superhero theme, one of them featuring a picture of Captain Canuck.

It does not appear that the new series will resolve the cliffhanger that ended the original series. In Captain Canuck No. 14, the Captain was transported back in time to the year 1980. Since Comely then halted publication, the red-and-white do-gooder has been stranded in the past ever since.

Written by CBC News Online staff

[Canucklehead]

Awesome! I'll be looking for that. I hope some local store owners will order a few copies. I wonder, depending on it's success, if they would consider resurecting other characters such as Fleur de Lis. They could give the Cap'ain a little univers to work in.

D.

[Sir John A.]

There's a funny, hard to find Canadian comic called "Angloman".

He lives in Montreal and his weapon is a bilingual stop sign / sheild which stops everything in both languages.

In one issue he battle Celine Dion: The Evil Poutine Queen!

PS: I was going to collect the Captain Canuck comis in the 90's but they were so bad I couldn't do it....

[Canucklehead]

He lives in Montreal and his weapon is a bilingual stop sign / sheild which stops everything in both languages.

In one issue he battle Celine Dion: The Evil Poutine Queen!

LOL, too funny. Yeah, I know what you mean. A part of me wants it to stay 100% Canadian, but another part of me wants Marvel to buy the rights to the characters so they can join Alpha..... Except Angloman....

D.

[Legerd]

Well, I just finished reading Captain Canuck #1, and I loved it. He isn't the 'perfect hero', more like a hero-in-training who gets by with a little help from his friends. The humour in it is what I want to see in Alpha Flight, more character driven than situational.

*WARNING HERE THERE BE SPOILERS*





Captain Canuck, in his secret ID, admits to his RCMP partner who he is.
CC: Okay. You got me. I'm him.
Partner:(Calmly): Cool.
CC:(Upset): Christmas! Aren't you even going to ask me why?
Partner:(Still Calm): Hey what you do on your own time is your own business. Wanna grab some curry?
CC:(Dejectedly): I guess.
-----
Captain Canuck is wrapped in chains with an anchor about to be dropped off a boat.
Villain: Looking for me?
CC: Yes.
Villain: You have my undivided attention.
CC: Doesn't seem so important now. You know what? It can wait until tomorrow.

It has a couple of good action scenes, not too many, just enough to keep the story exciting and it all unfolds well. It introduces the hero; his motivations; his friends; the villain and the overall plotline all in one book, but it isn't rushed or crammed together. I'm definitely going to collect all three of the books.

[Northcott]

That's funny. I was dealing with another guy about... oh, six months back or so... who was supposed to be launching a new CC series. But his writing was BAD. Horrid. Painfully so. And he seemed flaky in his approach to business matters. But because Comely had greenlighted the project, and I'd really love to work on the character, I figured I'd scope out the project.

I guess Comely had several pots on the stove, so to speak. Glad to see that a product with quality made it to the shelves. The character deserves a solid treatment.

[Richv1]

The first issue was good but I haven't seen a # 2 yet and its been awhile.

[Northcott]

I wonder if the problem is scheduling or funding? The marketing effort was almost nill, so I wonder whether or not they made enough sales to justify a second issue. Might also be that they didn't generate enough revenue to work on it full time, and so cobble together pages in the spare time they have, after hours -- which can be HELL if you're doing other work of a similar vein. (I know whereof I speak)

[Richv1]

It could be any of those reasons. My guess would be poor sales since its a Canadian comic and not American as most are. Most Americans would not be familiar with the locations plus the writing style had a Canadian feel to it to. It wasn't as flashy as American super-hero comics are. It had a more down to earth feel. Whatever the reason its to bad because it was a quality comic.

[Northcott]

Y'know, as Alpha crashes (again) and characters like Captain Canuck tend to disappear with some regularity, I've often heard the chorus of voices that rest the blame on these things being Canadian products. I just can't buy it, though.

Looking at various media it's obvious that Americans don't have much of an aversion to seeing stories and/or heroes come from other nations. Never have, probably never will. There are, of course, exceptions: cultures fall in and out of favour with the American public all the time. I can't see a French character catching on, for example -- especially during the foolishly anti-French sentiment that bubbled up just before the recent Iraq outing.

Heck, there's this undercurrent of self-deprication in Canada, and there are a few such folks in the USA who'd gladly back that up. "Why would anybody want to read about Canadian heroes?" Same reason that allowed movies like Braveheart and Gladiator to become box-office hits, or that allowed Jack London's tales of the Yukon to become best-sellers in the USA in their day: they're good stories.

Alpha Flight was once one of Marvel's best sellers, as was Excalibur -- set in England, no less. Part of the trick of making a good story is making the setting come alive. People might not be familiar with it, but they have to buy into it, just as so many did back in the 60's when Stan and Jack decided to have most of the super-hero adventures occur in New York city.

This isn't a knock against the CC book. I haven't read it, and can't say what brought about it's current scheduling (or lack thereof). But I just don't buy that foreign content automatically equals series death in the American market. (My apologies for the rant. That's been building for some time.)

[jay042]

Yeah, writing is the big thing. Uless the author is creating a compelling story there just won't be any interest.

[HappyCanuck]

Yeah, writing is the big thing. Uless the author is creating a compelling story there just won't be any interest.

not only that, but actually acknowledging the country your based in - or hell, USE THE CULTURE of the country your in - would be a good start. Oh and don't let the self-depreciating humour in the solits, especially when they are geared primarily at Americans. Kinda undercuts what you are trying to do.

[syvalois]

[...] I've often heard the chorus of voices that rest the blame on these things being Canadian products. I just can't buy it, though.

But I just don't buy that foreign content automatically equals series death in the American market. (My apologies for the rant. That's been building for some time.)

Why always aim at the american public? Why not do a comic for Canadian first? And then if it's good go to the American public. That's what I always see in any nation except in Canada where it's if you do stuff, you got to please the American market first. I just don't understand.

[HappyCanuck]

Amen, Sylvie.

[Northcott]

Why always aim at the american public? Why not do a comic for Canadian first? And then if it's good go to the American public. That's what I always see in any nation except in Canada where it's if you do stuff, you got to please the American market first. I just don't understand.

It wasn't my intent to suggest that the tale be aimed at the American public. I'm of the opinion that our cultures are, in spite of some significant differences, close enough that a good story will cross the border fairly well. I'm not suggesting that a writer tone the story toward American sensibilities, but rather that a good story will not suffer simply by virtue of being placed in Canada with Canadian characters.

There are undoubtedly some Americans who won't bother touching a comic that's not set in the USA -- but really, I'm not to worried about that small demographic.

On the flipside, a Canadian comic would probably die a painful death if it only sold in Canada. With the death of the Newsstand distribution system, and children no longer buying comics as often as they used to, Canada is no longer as viable a market as it used to be. Especially after the big market downturn of the late 90's; by the time that ended there were just over 300 comic book stores left across the nation. That's right -- the whole nation.

If we assume that a title were to achieve an amazing sales level of 10 copies per store, that's still only 3,000 copies. Barely enough to keep publishing a small-press black and white, and not nearly enough to keep pushing anything larger. Certainly not enough to merit doing the work full time.

The reality is that, in today's market, international concerns must be seen to. Now if only the Japanese market would open up to outsiders, things could get interesting. As it is the Japanese are perfectly willing to export their work, but getting them to import something from another nation is next to impossible. That might open up the North American market somewhat, and perhaps inject more variety.