creator-owned
In the United States, creator ownership in comics is an arrangement in which the comic book creator retains full ownership of the material, regardless of whether the work is self-publishing, self-published or published by a corporate publisher.
I ...
superhero
A superhero or superheroine is a fictional character who typically possesses ''superpowers'' or abilities beyond those of ordinary people, is frequently costumed concealing their identity, and fits the role of the hero, typically using their ...
comic book
A comic book, comic-magazine, or simply comic is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panel (comics), panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are often accompanied by descriptive prose and wri ...
series
Series may refer to:
People with the name
* Caroline Series (born 1951), English mathematician, daughter of George Series
* George Series (1920–1995), English physicist
Arts, entertainment, and media
Music
* Series, the ordered sets used i ...
created by writer
Chuck Dixon
Charles Dixon (born April 14, 1954) is an American comic book writer, best known for his work on the Marvel Comics character the Punisher and on the DC Comics characters Batman, Nightwing, and Robin in the 1990s and early 2000s.
Early life
D ...
and artist
Tom Lyle
Thomas Stanford Lyle (November 2, 1953 – November 19, 2019) was an American comics artist, best known for his work on '' Starman'' and '' Robin'' for DC Comics, and ''Spider-Man'' for Marvel Comics.
Career
Tom Lyle's comics career began in ...
, published by
Eclipse Comics
Eclipse Comics was an American comic book publisher, one of several independent publishers during the 1980s and early 1990s. In 1978, it published the first graphic novel intended for the newly created comic book store, comic book specialty stor ...
between 1987 and 1988. It concerns about a teenage boy who finds the power harness of Sgt. Strike, a hero who fought in World War II for the United States before disappearing.
Creation
''Strike!'' was one of the four launch titles for
Timothy Truman
Timothy Truman (born February 9, 1956) is an American writer, artist and musician. He is best known for his stories and Wild West-style comic book art, and in particular, for his work on '' Grimjack'' (with John Ostrander), ''Scout'', and the ...
and Chuck Dixon's 4Winds imprint. Inspired by the popular revival of
Hillman Periodicals
Hillman Periodicals, Inc., was an American magazine and comic book publishing company founded in 1938 by Alex L. Hillman, a former New York City book publisher. It is best known for its true confession and true crime magazines; for the long-runn ...
'
Golden Age
The term Golden Age comes from Greek mythology, particularly the ''Works and Days'' of Hesiod, and is part of the description of temporal decline of the state of peoples through five Ages of Man, Ages, Gold being the first and the one during wh ...
hero
Airboy
Airboy is a fictional Golden Age of comic books, Golden Age aviator hero of an American comic book series initially published by Hillman Periodicals during the World War II, before ending his initial run in 1953. The hero was the costumed identi ...
for Eclipse, Dixon and artist Lyle devised the Strike concept, using the elements of a Dixon pitch called ''The Revenger'' that hadn't been cannibalised for ''Airboy''. The conceit was that the series was a modern update of a Golden Age character called Sgt. Strike. However, Sgt. Strike didn't exist; Dixon fabricated a metafictional backstory claiming the character had started out in a strip printed on the back of boxes of cereal before graduating to a pack-in title called ''All Thrill Comics''. At the same time Truman was exploring a similar idea in another 4Winds/Eclipse title, ''The Prowler'', though that made no secret of the WWII era character being a modern creation.
Publication history
The title was picked up by Eclipse. It would feature "new" ''Strike!'' stories by Dixon and Lyle as the lead feature and "vintage" ''Sgt. Strike'' stories as backups. The latter were actually scripted by Dixon and featured a variety of artists mimicking a Golden Age style; despite being parodic to the point of being poor these were popular with readers. Promotional material from Eclipse also referenced the purported history of the title, while Dixon wrote extensive text pieces detailing the "history" of Sgt. Strike.
In the letters column of the sixth issue Dixon finally officially admitted to the ruse. How successful the ploy was is unknown; ''
Amazing Heroes
''Amazing Heroes'' was a magazine about the comic book medium published by American company Fantagraphics Books from 1981 to 1992. Unlike its companion title, '' The Comics Journal'', ''Amazing Heroes'' was a hobbyist magazine rather than an anal ...
'' noted that the
Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide
''The Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide'' (or ''Official Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide'') is an annually published comic book price guide widely considered the primary authority on the subject of American comic book grading and pricing in t ...
had no record of the character, and included quotation marks around the word "reprints" in a preview of the series.
The issue was the last of the series; the planned #7 was repackaged as the one-shot ''Strike! vs. Sgt Strike Special''. The issue saw Sgt. Strike return from being kept in stasis by aliens and attempt to reclaim the power harness from Dennis. Eclipse also published a crossover with Airboy, ''Air Fighters Meet Sgt. Strike'', set on D-Day.
The characters next appeared in major roles in the 1988-1989 crossover ''
Total Eclipse
An eclipse is an astronomical event which occurs when an astronomical object or spacecraft is temporarily obscured, by passing into the shadow of another body or by having another body pass between it and the viewer. This alignment of three ...
'', which followed on directly from the ''Strike! vs. Sgt Strike Special''. Dixon stated he and Lyle (who was planning to take over as writer) had multiple future arcs plotted and hoped ''Total Eclipse'' would generate more interest in the property. However Forman was killed off in ''Total Eclipse'' #4, and while Sgt. Strike survived the events the character has not appeared since.
Plot
Dennis Forman, a young African-American living in a slum, discovers missing World War II superhero Sgt. Strike's power harness, costume and diary in his mother's attic. The diary suddenly stops, giving no information about where Sgt. Strike went or how his effects ended up where Dennis finds them. Sensing an opportunity to get them out of the ghetto he attempts to profit from the new power.
Reception
Martin A. Stever reviewed ''Strike!'' in ''
Space Gamer/Fantasy Gamer
''The Space Gamer'' was a magazine dedicated to the subject of science fiction and fantasy board games and tabletop role-playing games. It quickly grew in importance and was an important and influential magazine in its subject matter from the la ...
'' No. 83. Stever commented that "The strength of this comic is solid art and Dixon's stories. The reader has absolutely no idea as to what is going to happen next; so each story is a real adventure. The hero, the archetypical poor but bright high school student, is written with realistic human motivations, making us very sympathetic to his cause, beating the tar out of bad guys." Conversely W. David Hall slated the title for ''Amazing Heroes'', heavily criticising the second issue's stereotypical characters and bemoaning the "sheer stupidity of some of the situations". In the same publication,
Andy Mangels
Andy Mangels (born December 2, 1966) is an American science fiction author who has written novels, comic books, and magazine articles, and produced DVD collections, mostly focusing on media in popular culture. As an openly gay man,