The top 100 Adventure characters

[Lew Stringer]

It is for this thread but I think myself, Lew and Paw had moved on to talking about introduicing another thread based on British action heroes not from either Fleetway or DCT (hence, the Marvelman, Jack Staff etc debate).

Personally speaking, I was just trying to help keep this list on track. There's already so many lists on this forum that we now need a list of lists, without any more being started.

And I don't even like lists!

[Phoenix]

Shade the Shadower who fought crime using mechanical bat wings that enabled him to fly!

Was the story written by George E. Rochester, Phil? He seemed obsessed from the beginning of his novel writing career in 1935 by all aspects of flight, and he did produce The Black Wing in 1951, which I assume is the same story as the one in my 1957 novel Black Wing, which is about Volka and his secret flying suit.

[Phoenix]

I must admit that Andy's proposal was my assumption for this thread. This is why I ignored DCT comic

Surely the reason you ignored DC Thomson comics was because DC Thomsons were never part of The Amalgamated Press, and were therefore not even eligible for any of these lists from the moment Peter started his thread.

[Phoenix]

I think myself, Lew and Paw had moved on to talking about introduicing another thread based on British action heroes not from either Fleetway or DCT (hence, the Marvelman, Jack Staff etc debate).

Can I add to my AP list?
This could go on for ages as, I am sure we all change our minds or are reminded of another charater or story.
The Legend Testers
The Robot Builders

This is all getting out of hand. First, nobody has talked about introducing another thread about action heroes. It is merely a widening of the eligible characters for this thread - The Top 100 Adventure characters. Secondly, why is Paw, who has already put forward some excellent suggestions for this thread, now offering story titles for the characters thread when there is already a thread for them elsewhere? All this confusion is wrecking Peter's initiatives. Come on guys, let's have some clearer thinking. It's not rocket science.

[paw broon]

"Come on guys, let's have some clearer thinking. It's not rocket science." Phoenix.
Now I am becoming confused. The last 2 named are characters, or a group of characters, The Legend Testers and The Robot Builders. It's simply that, as with the Challs., the character/team names are also the titles of the series. At least, that has always been my reading of it. I could swap the team names for Rollo and co. but I think I will leave it as it is and see what others want add their opinions. But then I do love the idea of team names in comics, probably because of prolonged exposure, from an early age, to American comics.
Despite my lack of study of the header for this section, I eventually realized/was put right, that this subject was Retired IPC/Odhams/Fleetway titles - The top 100 Adventure characters.
Now, without in any way trying to be controversial, I suggested a list of action heroes from other British companies because there is the possibility of opening it up to others who might not be big fans of humour strips, or DCT, or AP. I know it's a bit selfish but I like that sort of thing. I hope I was not out of order when making the suggestion, which would have required another heading/thread/section or whatever, but it would seem odd if only some members were permitted to suggest new topics and headings. It is possible that I am misunderstanding your reply, Phoenix and, if so, I apologize.
But this is about a bit of fun, hopefully learning something new, and trying to encourage members and readers to investigate new possibilities in comics. Because if it isn't, a large part of the appeal of comicsuk disappears, imo.
I'm off to track down that other story titles thread. All cool, I hope.

[Phoenix]

I'd suggest that for the purposes of this thread, it should be adventure stories originated by AP/Odhams/IPC/Fleetway or indeed Rebellion

I don't understand why there was any need to introduce Rebellion into this thread at all. If the Wikipedia article on Fleetway is to be believed, all the characters that Rebellion bought from Egmont are available for selection simply by being originally at Egmont. Any new characters that Rebellion may have come up with later would not be eligible because Rebellion didn't buy Egmont, and are not therefore linked to The Amalgamated Press.

[Phoenix]

All cool, I hope.

Of course.

The last 2 named are characters, or a group of characters, The Legend Testers and The Robot Builders. It's simply that, as with the Challs., the character/team names are also the titles of the series.

The problem, Paw, is the confusion that is running wild in this thread simply because members are offering story titles when they should be offering characters' names. Members who see The Legend Testers and The Robot Builders being offered for consideration in a thread seeking recommended characters will feel that if people like Tammyfan and Paw Broon are doing it, and Phil Rushton offering support, then it must be OK, so they will then offer some titles of their own as well. Now I don't personally know these stories nor, obviously, their main characters, but I was right to assume that they were story titles. Given that the characters' names are clearly not the same as the titles, despite your claim above, would it not have been simpler to write Character A and Character B (The Legend Testers) and Character X and Character Y (The Robot Builders) if in your opinion you can't have one character without the other? That way you would have placed the emphasis on the characters, the titles simply indicating where the characters can be located. It would be the other way round for the 100 Best Adventure Stories.

[paw broon]

A bit of digression doesn't seem a problem to me. Lists of stuff aren't really all that important, more a statement of personal preferences and a way to have others look up the characters mentioned. However, I'm sticking to my guns and keeping The Robot Builders and The Legend Testers as part of my favourite A.P. characters list.
As a matter of interest, would you allow The Famous Five from The Magnet or prefer my way of entering them as, Wharton & Co.? That was just my fancy on the spur of the moment. They are a group of characters whose collective name is The Famous Five. As in my 2 apparently contentious entries, they are a duo and group known as ---well, you know by now.
I hope the lack of response to mention of The Black Whip and Flying Justice means you are all away looking them up.
Rochester's Black Wing and the follow up, Secret Pilot, are much later than Flying Justice, and there is more than a passing resemblance between them, but then there were a number of flying heroes in the storypapers.

[colcool007]

I'd suggest that for the purposes of this thread, it should be adventure stories originated by AP/Odhams/IPC/Fleetway or indeed Rebellion

I don't understand why there was any need to introduce Rebellion into this thread at all. If the Wikipedia article on Fleetway is to be believed, all the characters that Rebellion bought from Egmont are available for selection simply by being originally at Egmont. Any new characters that Rebellion may have come up with later would not be eligible because Rebellion didn't buy Egmont, and are not therefore linked to The Amalgamated Press.

But Rebellion did buy the rights to use these characters. Or did they just buy a license to use them? And to be honest, most of us look at it as DCT or AP/Fleetway/Odhams/IPC/Egmont/Rebellion/Did I Miss any? As the amalgamation of companies does give a convoluted continuity to them.

[philcom55]

Shade the Shadower who fought crime using mechanical bat wings that enabled him to fly!

Was the story written by George E. Rochester, Phil? He seemed obsessed from the beginning of his novel writing career in 1935 by all aspects of flight, and he did produce The Black Wing in 1951, which I assume is the same story as the one in my 1957 novel Black Wing, which is about Volka and his secret flying suit.

Unfortunately Illustrated Chips wasn't in the habit of giving their writers a byline at that point Phoenix. However it is noticeable that Tracey Air 'Tec ("Crack Pilot of the Air Police" - whatever they are!) encountered a similarly-equipped criminal called the 'Human Vampire' just two weeks before Shade made his debut.

Here's the illustration to that story, followed by the header from the first episode of Shade the Shadower:





...Clearly bat-winged characters were a concept that was very much 'in the air' during the 1930s - in more than one sense!

- Phil Rushton

[Phoenix]

As a matter of interest, would you allow The Famous Five from The Magnet or prefer my way of entering them as, Wharton & Co.?

Neither. When Peter started his first list five or six days ago, which has now splintered off into three lists, with Heaven knows how many more waiting in the wings, I posted my list of characters from The Amalgamated Press. I stand by that list, which included just three characters from Greyfriars that I felt were worth considering for a place in The Top 100 Characters, now renamed The Top 100 Adventure Characters. To reiterate, they were Billy Bunter, Mr Quelch and Hurree Jamset Ram Singh. This does not mean that I do not like Harry Wharton and his other pals, or enjoy their exploits. It simply means that I don't believe any of them would sniff a place in The Top 100 Adventure Characters. In fact, I could make out more of a case for including Herbert Vernon-Smith, Horace Coker, and even Herbert Mauleverer than I could for Harry Wharton, Frank Nugent, Johnny Bull or Bob Cherry, and Arthur Augustus D'Arcy from St. Jim's is a more original character than those four put together, and he doesn't make the cut.

Lists of stuff aren't really all that important, more a statement of personal preferences and a way to have others look up the characters mentioned.

To take these three views in reverse order, I think in an ideal world all members would look up all the characters mentioned, but it isn't likely to happen unless they have easy access to the relevant comics or story papers, an unlikely scenario if they haven't been collecting them. I think that all the lists presented so far, including my own, are lists of personal preferences, but there needs to be a distinction drawn between those that members simply like, and those that stand out as quality creations even if readers dislike them. Finally, lists are definitely not that important, and I have finally had a bellyful of them, all of them.

[Phoenix]

But Rebellion did buy the rights to use these characters. Or did they just buy a license to use them?

They bought them, and all the characters that they did buy, which appear to be just those in the 2000AD stable, came from Egmont. They are all, therefore, characters from The Amalgamated Press, so they were eligible for selection in any case for any of Peter's lists. Any characters that Rebellion created, even those to be used in their new 2000AD stories, would not be eligible because they will not have originated under the banner of The Amalgamated Press. Rebellion is not the last link in the chain started by The Amalgamated Press because it didn't buy Egmont. It isn't in the chain at all.

[Phoenix]

Clearly bat-winged characters were a concept that was very much 'in the air' during the 1930s

Thanks for your reply, Phil. It's a good job that there is no copyright on ideas though because both the Human Vampire and Shade the Shadower are straight rip-offs from The Wizard's popular criminal-turned-legit (well, mainly) Captain ''Q'', who debuted in August 1930. I will post an illustration soon. I can't at the moment because I'm tarting up a scan, which I'm too tired to complete tonight.

[Tammyfan]

What about Charlie Peace, Fishboy or some of the other Buster adventurers?