Weird War Tales
| Weird War Tales Vol. 1 | |
|---|---|
 Issue #1 of Weird War Tales (September 1971). Art by Joe Kubert. |
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| Publication information | |
| Publisher | DC Comics |
| Schedule | Monthly |
| Format | Anthology |
| Publication date | September 1971-June 1983 |
| Number of issues | 124 |
Weird War Tales was a war comic book title with supernatural overtones published by DC Comics which ran from September 1971 to June 1983.
Contents |
[edit] Background
The title was an anthology series that told war related stories with science fiction, horror, mystery and suspense. Changes in the Comics Code Authority made the use of horror elements possible.[1] Each issue was hosted by Death, usually depicted as a skeleton dressed in a different military uniform each issue. Recurring characters began to appear late in the series run, notably the G.I. Robot, and the return of The War That Time Forgot (which originally ran in Star Spangled War Stories). Writer J. M. DeMatteis and penciler Pat Broderick created the Creature Commandos in Weird War Tales #93 (November 1980)[2] Other stories would often feature robot soldiers, ghosts, the undead, and other paranormal characters from different eras of time.
[edit] Publication history
[edit] Original series
The original title ran for 12 years and 124 issues (1971–1983).
[edit] Revival
| Weird War Tales Vol. 2 | |
|---|---|
 Issue #1 of Weird War Tales (June 1997). Art by Glenn Fabry. |
|
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | DC Comics |
| Schedule | Monthly |
| Format | Anthology |
| Publication date | June 1997-September 1997 |
| Number of issues | 4 miniseries issues, and a one-shot special |
| Creative team | |
| Writer(s) | Brian Azzarello, Ian Edginton, Paul Jenkins, Peter Kuper, Joe R. Lansdale, Peter Milligan, Grant Morrison, Gordon Rennie, John Ney Rieber |
| Artist(s) | Richard Corben, Randy DuBurke, Duncan Fegredo, Frank Quitely, Sam Glanzman, Peter Kuper, James Romberger, Eric Shanower |
Weird War Tales was revived by the DC Comics imprint Vertigo. In 1997. it published a four-issue limited series followed by a single-issue special in 2000.
[edit] Contributors
Several well-regarded comics creators worked on the series including writers:
- J. M. DeMatteis
- Arnold Drake
- Steve Englehart
- Garth Ennis
- Steve Gerber
- Jack C. Harris
- Robert Kanigher
- Sheldon Mayer
- Roger McKenzie — McKenzie and Frank Miller's first collaboration was on a two-page story published in Weird War Tales #68 (October 1978).[3]
- Jack Oleck
Artists that contributed include:
- Joe Kubert, series editor
- Alfredo Alcala
- Pat Broderick
- Howard Chaykin
- Reed Crandall
- Tony DeZuniga
- Mort Drucker
- Mike Grell
- Russ Heath
- Frank Miller
- Alex Niño
- Frank Robbins
- Marshall Rogers
- Walt Simonson — Simonson's first professional published comic book work appeared in Weird War Tales #10 (January 1973)[4]
- Frank Thorne
- Alex Toth
[edit] See also
- Weird Western Tales, a sister title dealing in Weird West stories.
[edit] References
- ^ McAvennie, Michael; Dolan, Hannah, ed. (2010). "1970s". DC Comics Year By Year A Visual Chronicle. Dorling Kindersley. p. 147. ISBN 978-0-7566-6742-9. "With the Comics Code Authority relaxing its decades-long stance on censoring the use of monsters and the undead in mainstream comics, DC placed an emphasis on the horror of combat with Weird War Tales."
- ^ Manning, Matthew K. "1980s" in Dolan, p. 189 "A battalion of horror icons created by the U.S. government to aid the American war effort made its debut in an off-beat story by writer J. M. DeMatteis and penciler Pat Broderick."
- ^ Weird War Tales #68 at the Grand Comics Database
- ^ Cooke, Jon B. "Simonson Says The Man of Two Gods Recalls His 25+ Years in Comics" Comic Book Artist #10 (Oct. 2000) TwoMorrows Publishing p. 18
