| Boy Commandos | |
|---|---|
_1973.jpg) Boy Commandos #1 (Sep/Oct 1973), art byJack Kirby andJoe Simon. | |
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | DC Comics |
| First appearance | Detective Comics #64 (June1942) |
| Created by | Joe Simon,Jack Kirby |
| In-story information | |
| Member(s) | André Chavard, Alfie Twidgett, Jan Haasan, Brooklyn (later retconned asDan Turpin) |
Boy Commandos is a fictional organization fromDC Comics first appearing inDetective Comics #64 (June 1942) byJoe Simon andJack Kirby.[1] They are a combination of "kid gang" characters, an international cast of young boys fighting Nazis — or in their own parlance, "the Ratzies".[2]
Simon and Kirby were hired away fromTimely Comics by DC towards the end of 1941, primarily due to their success onCaptain America, but without there being a clear purpose to the decision, nor title to work on.[3] Finding themselves initially embroiled in theCaptain Marvel lawsuit,Jack Liebowitz gave them free rein to create or revamp DC heroes. Initially, the duo created new versions ofThe Sandman, andManhunter (both of whom bore strong resemblance to their Captain America work), before deciding that "kid gangs seemed to be the way to go".[3] Teenagesidekicks (Batman'sRobin,Captain America'sBucky, etc.) were fast becoming a comics staple, intended to provide young characters with whom youthful readers could identify.[4] Simon and Kirby's ownSentinels of Liberty (later theYoung Allies) had already succeeded in this mold, and had an influence on their subsequent creation.
Having already created the "Sentinels of Liberty" for Timely, they now created for DC theNewsboy Legion ("aDead End Kids-style group led by a police officer in a Captain America-like blue-and-yellow costume, toting a shield"[3]). Although America had not yet entered thewar, headlines and news stories highlighted the role of British commandos, so Simon and Kirby fused the kid gang with the commando, and createdThe Boy Commandos.[5]
The international group included the French André Chavard, the English Alfie Twidgett, the Dutch Jan Haasan and an American only known as "Brooklyn".[6]
Debuting in the pages ofDetective Comics[7] #64 (the issue #65's cover(left) showsBatman presenting the gang but they appeared first in the issue before) cover-dated June 1942, the team became extremely popular, also appearing inWorld's Finest Comics (#8-41, 1942-1949) and were then soon spun off into their own title,[8] launching with a 'Winter 1942' date. The title sold "over a million copies each month", and was one of DC's "three biggest hits" alongsideSuperman andBatman.[3] Kirby drew around five pages a day of the title, but Liebowitz requested an even faster turn-around, fearing (as happened) that the two would be drafted, as had many other industry professionals. Simon and Kirby hired "inkers, [letterers], colorists, and writers, striving to create a year's worth of tales" (Boy Commandos was also a quarterly title until Winter 1945). Among those hired was a youngGil Kane, who recalls being:
According toJess Nevins' Encyclopedia of Golden Age Superheroes, "most of their criminals are ordinary, either Germans and Japanese or merely human criminals, but there are also exotics like Crazy Quilt, Diamond Hand, and Mr. Bleak, he of the devilish shadow".[9]
Boy Commandos ran until issue #36 (Nov/Dec 1949),[10] and was edited throughout byJack Schiff. Among the individuals who assisted Simon and Kirby on the title (and its covers) were future-Superman legendCurt Swan,[11] as well as Steve Brodie,Louis Cazeneuve andCarmine Infantino.
Theeponymous characters wereAndré Chavard fromFrance;Alfie Twidgett fromEngland,Jan Haasan from theNetherlands, and a member known only as"Brooklyn" from theUnited States. An elite commando squad of orphaned children, led by the adultCaptain Rip Carter, they fought on all fronts of theSecond World War.[2]
In September 1944, the Newsboy Legion teamed up with the Boy Commandos to stop armed and armored traitors based out of New York City.[12]
The team's adventures continued well past the war, even though there were many roster changes. Jan left first, having found relatives in his homeland to stay with. Alfie was replaced by a Texan namedTex. Percy Clearweather, a glasses-wearing genius, replaced André.
Years later, writersretconned Brooklyn as a young version of Superman supporting character (and fellow Kirby creation)Dan Turpin, that André Chavard had become the head of the French IntelligenceDépartement Gamma, and that Alfie Twidgett was now the head of the firm Statistical Occurrences Ltd. (SOL), with his daughter Twiggie.
In addition, members of the team have seen print in a couple of titles since the late 1940s.
In the 1970s, during Kirby's involvement at DC, several of their stories were reprinted in various books, particularly those written and drawn by Kirby himself (e.g.Mister Miracle #6 in February 1972). A reprintBoy Commandos title was published in Sep/Oct 1973 under editorE. Nelson Bridwell, but lasted only two issues before disappearing.[13]
The four original members, minus Brooklyn, reappeared late during the run ofLen Wein'sBlue Beetle, which reintroduced Alfie as the founder and president of Statistical Occurrences Ltd., an insurance company specializing in properties which may attract the activities of superhumans. Using his daughter "Twiggie" as a mediator, Alfie hires Murray Takamoto, an ex-S.T.A.R. Labs administrator (and college roommate ofTed Kord) who'd worked on a"Star Wars" satellite program, which S.O.L. had received a contract concerning its protection. Joining Alfie in this venture are his old teammates Andre, now head of the fictional Department Gamma of theFrench Secret Service, Jan, now a professor working for theHague Centre for Strategic Studies, and their former mentor "Rip" Carter, now a general. It was implied that they would eventually come into conflict, along with the Blue Beetle, with corrupt European industrialist Klaus Cornelius, who had already used his influence to disband Europe's lead super-hero agency, theGlobal Guardians, and was working to resurrect the Boy Commandos' old enemyAgent Axis. However, the series ended before the storyline could reach fruition, and no further developments have been mentioned since then, although Cornelius did make a brief cameo duringKurt Busiek'sPower Company miniseries.
They made an appearance in the most recent incarnation ofThe Brave and the Bold (issue #9, February 2008), in which they teamed up with fellow World War II heroes, theBlackhawks.
DC published the first of 2 hardback collections of Simon and Kirby's work on the series:
The inaugural issue ofBoy Commandos represented Joe Simon and Jack Kirby's first original title since they started at DC (though the characters had debuted earlier that year inDetective Comics #64.)
