Captain Canuck #1 (1975)

I recently received a few old issues of Captain Canuck as a gift from a friend of mine. Took me a bit, but I’m starting to give them a look.

#spoilers

I’ve only read the first issue, but I have to say that this is such a treat. As a proud Canadian, it’s fun to read such a richly-Canadian book. This isn’t Marvel’s Alpha Flight or anything like that. This is the humble little company of Comely Comics making a play for the greater market. It’s a little low budget, but it’s got heart.

The story takes place in the then future of the 90s, where Captain Canuck and Blue Fox, two Canadian super soldiers, are sent to the north where to stop an ambiguous terror group from launching nuclear weapons and seizing control of Canada. Along the way they are befriended by a native hunter, Utak, who saves them from a polar bear and escorts them to their quarry with his sled dog team. Upon arriving at the base, Blue Fox double-crosses Captain Canuck and our hero is taken prisoner. Before long, Canuck breaks free and takes on all the bad guys himself. Blue Fox begins the launch sequence for the missiles, but Canuck subdues him and aborts the firing.

It feels like an old-school propaganda piece akin to Captain America, but with the obvious Canadian twist on things. The writing is a little iffy, but the story is coherent enough. What I was most surprised by is that a lot of the landscape images utilize actual photos of the icy north, including the dog team. It’s a little lazy, but the way they impose the illustrations over top the images is pretty effective.

It’s a very different book, lacking in some cases, but overcoming all with that old-fashioned flare for the fantastic and sensationalism. If you’re ever tired of the same old Marvel/DC brand, give Comely Comics a shot.

TL;DR Score: Probably only because of Blue Fox, but reading this gave me a lot of El Santo and Blue Demon vibes… the wrestlers… anybody remember those guys?