Tag Archives: Steve Leblanc

The 1980 Comics Annual

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One of my greatest regrets is that there are not more easy to access resources regarding Canadian comics. Some of these would not only include historical information but also sample work. This is perhaps one of the reasons why I so love anthologies. They are a testament to the range and variety of comics, artists and writers that were published at the time.

Ian Carr, a Canadian who has done a bit of everything in the comic book industry, is a man after my own heart. In 1979, Carr edited a book called The 1980 Comics Annual published by Potlatch Publications. Carr’s original goal was to put out an anthology like this yearly, featuring many top artists but unfortunately that did not happen. Had it been more successful, I would probably not be needing to write this blog, but I’m so happy he took the initiative anyway. The book, weighing in at 128 pages, half of which are in colour, feature work from great Canadian creators. Here is a list of the contents:

  • Return of the Magician: Arn Saba (Script), Lois Atkinson (Script assistance), Don Inman (Art)
  • Blarg the Swordsman: John MacLeod
  • The Intergalactic Depletion Machine #21
  • Stareway
  • Tales of King Arthur: Bill Slavin
  • Street Noise: Ken Steacy
  • Sir Rolaid and the Black Knight: Bill Slavin
  • The Believer!
  • Haab the Luckless: Steve LeBlanc
  • Totter of the Mounted: JOT
  • Last Chance!: Bob Smith
  • Neil the Horse: Arn Saba, D. Roman
  • The Revenge of Yukon Tom!: Richard Cordoba
  • Malcolm and Eric: Ian Carr
  • The Hunter: Martin Springett
  • Wirely L. Wiremire: Tom Nesbitt
  • Wirely L. Wiremire in Wired Again, Part I: Tom Nesbitt
  • Cave-in: James Simpkins
  • Dust Bowl Sanction: Jim Craig (Art and script), Bill Payne (Inks and Lettering)
  • Wirely L. Wiremire in Wired Again, Part II: Tom Nesbitt
  • The Gauntlet of the Gods: John MacLeod (Art and script), Steve LeBlanc (Assist)
  • Tommy Whitehawk: Don Inman
  • Cave-in: James Simpkins
  • Danger Squad: Ian Carr
  • A Dick Mallet Adventure: Michael D. Cherkas
  • Flying Eight Ball: Tom Nesbitt
  • Neil the Horse Goes to Hell: Arn Saba, D. Roman
  • Spud: William King (Plot), Paul McCuscker (Art and script)
  • Bubblegummers in The Cat’s Night Out: Jeff and Carol Wakefield
  • Little Feller: Ron Van Leeuwen (Script), Franc Reyes (Art)
  • Space Cat and the Flaming Commandos: Tom Nesbitt

The book also has that very distinct feel of the seventies with the science fiction fascination at the time, while there is also a very strong influence of underground comics, especially with MacLeods already satirical style. But most importantly, it shows a broad range of talents from more mainstream styles like Ken Steacy and Jim Craig to cartoonish spoofs by Bill Slavin and Tom Nesbitt. It even has Neil the Horse, a comic that successfully bridges the gap from the seventies to the eighties. As sited above in the Potlach Publications link, this book is still for sale by the publisher, but it’s also available on ebay or Abebooks if you look.

The Black Scorpion

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Cover by Peter Grau

The Black Scorpion was a black and white comic released in 1991 by Special Studios, a subsidiary of Diamond Press. Although the publisher was located in Brantford, the comic itself was created by American Ron Fortier as a noir style detective story.

After writing the Green Hornet for Now comics, Fortier and co-writer Dave Darrigo wanted to produce something with a similar style but with a more modern touch. The outcome was that Fortier created the main character, the Black Scorpion, who was an African American “publisher turned crime fighter” also known as Ben Wright, and Darrigo created his young sidekick Dart.

The scripts were usually produced by either creator, and under the pseudonym George Stryker. For each issue, the two would each produced a 16 page story with the intent to find different artists for each story.

The series, like many Canadian small press comics, had a limited print run and in this case, Darrigo wanted to finish the comic after only three issues. After Black Scorpion, many of the artists became quite successful in the comic book industry. You can click on their names to see their sites and more recent work.

Luckily, most of this information can be found on GCD, but I will list some of the basic information for ease of reading.

Issue #1 April 1991 (Cover by Peter Grau)

  • Knights of Justice: Steve Leblanc (Pencils and inks)
  • Double Take: Scott Dutton (Pencils); Jim Scott (Inks)

Issue #2 July 1991

  • A Game for Old Men: Chris Jones (Pencils and Inks)
  • Roar of the Lions: Brian B. Chin (Pencils and Inks)

Issue #3 October 1991 (Cover by Peter Grau)

  • Blackmailers Auction: Peter Grau (Pencils and Inks); Fred Fairfield (Letters)
  • The Ravenia Ripper Strikes Again!: Brian B. Chin (Pencils and Inks)
If you haven’t already, I do recommend checking out some of the artists’ other work. Scott Dutton had a great site and a fantastic hand and Steve Leblanc has a great web comics blog. Special Studios did publish a few other comics which I will look at at a later date. Finally, a thanks to Ron Fortier for providing me with information regarding the short history of Black Scorpion. A really well done comic with some truly great art.