A
BRIEF PUBLISHING HISTORY OF 
CAPTAIN
CANUCK
Kebec's talking about a drug
bust...but he might just as well be contemplating the gargantuan task of
trying to create the first mainstream Canadian comic book since the Golden-Age
of the 1940s.
Captain Canuck was first conceived of by Ron Leishman
in the early 1970s, and he shared the concept with his buddy, Richard
Comely. Comely ran with the idea (with Leishman's blessing) and
by 1975, the 1st issue of Captain Canuck was on the stands
featuring the adventures of a super-hero/super-cop in the (then) future
of 1993.
Published
out of Winnipeg by Comely Comix, with Comely practically everything
from the cook to the bottle washer, Captain Canuck tried
to distinguish itself from its U.S. competition. Markedly more expensive
at 35 cents (U.S. comics were 25 cents) Comely offered glossy, expensive
paper, multi-tone, painted colour, and more pages (with two features) plus
some odds and ends. Comely was literally years ahead of his time:
U.S. comics only started employing quality paper in the 80s and the multi-tone
colouring in the last decade.
The staff tripled quickly with the addition of newcomers
George
Freeman and Jean-Claude St. Aubin, and Comely tried to
evoke a humourous, bullpen air in his regular columns, keeping things
friendly and personal, reminiscent of Marvel and Stan Lee's soap box.
Fans were invited to just drop by, and apparently some did...and were well
received.
But costs were high and the production schedule was erratic. There are no cover dates on the 2nd and 3rd issues, but based on comments
in the letter columns, the schedule might have been quarterly...or even
bi-yearly. Reference is also made to a Times Magazine
article that was, apparently, less than flattering.
The early issues were admittedly uneven, but showed a
marked improvement in story and art, but Comely Comix folded and
that was the end...
until...
...1979
when Captain Canuck resumed, this time published by CKR
productions in Calgary. The original trio reunited (with the
addition of business manager Ken Ryan), and Captain Canuck was back
in action. Still more expensive than its U.S. competition (though
less so: 50 cents vs. 40 cents), the paper was now conventional comic book
paper, but the vivid colours remained, as did the extra pages and back
up features. The production schedule was more regular (bi-monthly)
and the series gradually became better all around, particularly when George
Freeman took over as permanent artist (not just because he was the better,
more dynamic artist, but because Comely's scripts improved).
Subtle changes in content began to take place. Religious
references made in the early issues, reflecting Comely's Mormonism, were
dropped entirely, and the Captain became more secular. As well, the
character went freelance. Story elements also became more flamboyant,
relying less on real world spies.
How much of that was Comely's decision and how much might
have been imposed upon him, I don't know. Comely left the company
shortly before the end. In the pages of the comic, it was said he
had left to pursue other projects (and certainly within a year he had launched
his political comic Star Rider and the Peace Machine, in
which he expounded on his belief in a global conspiracy between Western
super-industrialists and the U.S.S.R.). However, in Star Rider
a reference is made to his "dismissal" from CKR.
Freeman (who had co-plotted many of the issues) took over
the scripting without any noticeable drop in quality.
With #14, an attempt was made to switch C.C. from his
future setting to modern times -- a change I regard as ill-advised.
C.C. wasn't the most flamboyant of characters, in powers or personality;
part of his appeal (and uniqueness) was the science fiction element that
distinguished him from Batman or Captain America, and his
status as an operative as opposed to a loner. And by this point,
the comic had built up a healthy supporting cast and a rogues gallery of
villains -- all necessary foundations for an on-going comic. To start
from scratch seemed risky.
Considered
in the context of subsequent events, it was presumably a last, desperate
attempt to boost sales by moving the character more in line with U.S. superheroes.
It was too little, too late. Captain Canuck was cancelled
for a second time. The claim was that the sales were good, but the
costs of producing an independent comic were just too high (U.S. advertisers
weren't much interested in hawking their wares in a Canadian comic, and
Canadian companies just weren't used to the idea of advertising in that
venue). And this was before the boom in direct sales and comic
book specialty stores.
In 1993 (ironically, the year in which the first story
was set), Richard Comely relaunched Captain Canuck,
once again on his own. This "new" Captain was Darren Oaks; it was
set in modern times and continued the political philosophizing of
Comely's Star Rider and the Peace Machine, with Captain Canuck
battling a global conspiracy. Despite attempts to make use of the
internet, and an on-line format (as well as a printed version), this new
series folded quickly.
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