List of Action stories

Last updated

A list of stories published in the IPC weekly boys' comic Action between 1976 and 1977.

Contents

Blackjack

Published: 14 February to 4 September 1976 [1]
Writers: John Wagner, Chris Lowder [1]
Artists: Leopold Sánchez, Gustavos Trigo, Alan Philpott [1]

Jack Barron, a British professional boxer who fights in order to help poor kids escape the hard life he had as a youth, discovers that he is going blind. Despite his worsening condition he fights on to the delight of his followers but eventually loses his eyesight and moves into the music industry in an attempt to raise money for an experimental operation to restore his vision.

The Coffin Sub

Published: 14 February to 3 April 1976 [1]
Writer: Ron Carpenter [1]
Artist: Angelo Todaro [1]

Submarine HMS Conquest sinks, with Lieutenant-Commander Mark Kane the sole survivor. The sub is raised, refitted and sent back into service with Kane in command, hell-bent on getting revenge for his old crew and with his new crew wary that he might sent them to a watery grave too.

Death Game 1999

Published: 8 May to 16 October 1976, 4 December 1976 to 12 November 1977 [1]
Writer: Tom Tully [1]
Artists: Costa, Ian Gibson, Mike White, Massimo Belardinelli, Ron Turner [1]

A lethal future sport played by condemned prisoners.

Double Dynamite

Published: 4 December 1976 to 18 June 1977 [1]
Writer: Scott Goodall [1]
Artists: Felix Carrion, Bill Lacey [1]

Amateur boxers and best friends Tyke Trueman and Ossie Miller are signed up by professional trainer Bulldog Brady, with the former as a heavyweight and the latter as a middleweight. The pair get involved in numerous scrapes as their careers advance.

Dredger

Published: 14 February to 16 October 1976, 4 December 1976 to 12 November 1977 [1]
Writers: Kelvin Gosnell, Pat Mills, Steve MacManus, Chris Lowder, Geoffrey Kemp, Stewart Wales, Gerry Finley-Day, Terry Magee [1]
Artists: Horacio Altuna, Fred Holmes, Leandro Sesarego, Ricardo Villagrán, Jordi Badía Romero, Jesús Blasco, Geoff Campion [1]

Intelligence agent Simon Breed of D.I.6 receives a tough new partner - the 'shoot-first, ask-questions-never' Dredger.

Green's Grudge War

Published: 24 April to 18 September 1976 [1]
Writer: Gerry Finley-Day [1]
Artist: Massimo Belardinelli [1]

In 1942, Private James Green joins the Commandos, believing it to be the route to personal glory and medals. However, he soon clashes with the more humble Private John Bold, taking personal offense at the latter's thoughtless bravery and popular personality, and takes every opportunity to try and show him up. His envy is only stoked further when Bold is promoted to Corporal.

Hell's Highway

Published: 19 June to 16 October 1976, 4 December 1976 to 2 April 1977 [1]
Writer: Alan Hebden, Chris Lowder [1]
Artists: Mike White, Tom Hirst [1]

Truckers Steve Manning and Danny Kuzlak find themselves drawn into espionage after stumbling across a road accident that has left USAF Intelligence officer George L. Doolly dead. In order to clear their name they are forced to carry out jobs by Hartwell and Hayer, two agents form a secret US government department.

Hellman of Hammer Force

Published: 14 February to 16 October 1976, 4 December 1976 to 12 November 1977 [1]
Writer: Gerry Finley-Day [1]
Artists: Mike Dorey, Alex Henderson, Mike White, Jim Watson [1]

Honourable Wehrmacht tank commander Major Kurt Hellman fights for Germany while opposing the brutal attitudes shown by the Nazi regime.

Hook Jaw

Published: 14 February to 16 October 1976, 4 December 1976 to 12 November 1977 [1]
Writers: Pat Mills, Ken Armstrong [1]
Artists: Ramon Sola, John Stokes [1]

Hook Jaw is a massive great white shark and the hero of the series, even though he spends most of his time eating most of the human cast of characters. The name 'Hook Jaw' comes from the gaff hook which remains stuck in the shark's jaw after some fisherman tried to catch the creature shortly before being eaten by it.

Jinx Jackson

Published: 25 June to 12 November 1977 [1]
Artist: A.G. Coleman [1]

Accident-prone 'Jinx' Jackson is a young staff photographer for the Transglobal News Service on Fleet Street; while his clumsiness irritates boss Jock McBane, Jackson has an uncanny knack of being in the middle of a story and ending up with important pictures.

Kids Rule O.K.

Published: 11 September to 16 October 1976 [1]
Writer: Chris Lowder [1]
Artist: Mike White [1]

In a dystopian near-future London a plague has wiped out most of the adult population, with the result that violent gangs of children now run riot.

The Loner

Published: 9 April to 17 September 1977 [1]
Writer: Chris Lowder [1]
Artist: A.G. Coleman [1]

All-action Detective Sergeant Tom Darrow is transferred to a new squad of undercover police under the leadership of Commander George Coutts, who soon has to deal with the tough, uncompromising cop.

Look Out for Lefty!

Published: 1 May to 16 October 1976, 4 December 1976 to 12 November 1977 [1]
Writer: Tom Tully [1]
Artists: Barrie Mitchell, Tony Harding [1]

The adventures of Kenny Lampton, a working-class teenager whose powerful left foot gives him the nickname of "Lefty", as he juggles a budding career with Wigford Rovers with his senile grandfather and headstrong girlfriend Angie.

Play Till You Drop!

Published: 14 February to 16 October 1976, 4 December 1976 to 12 November 1977 [1]
Writer: Ron Carpenter [1]
Artist: Barrie Mitchell [1]

Alec Shaw is seemingly living the dream as star striker for Rampton City, but his career takes a turn when a journalist named Grice turns up and begins blackmailing him, threatening to publish photographs of his father Tom - a retired player himself - taking bribes. Not wanting his father's name to be disgraced, he agrees to fix games for Grice.

Probationer!

Published: 25 September to 16 October 1976 [1]
Writers: Stewart Wales, Geoff Kemp [1]
Artist: Tom Hirst [1]

Given a six-month probationary sentence, Dave Brockham tries to keep his nose clean despite a number of criminal acquaintances trying to get him involved in illegal activities.

Roaring Wheels

Published: 4 December 1976 to 18 June 1977 [1]
Writers: Stewart Wales, Geoff Kemp [1]
Artists: Mike White, Colin Page, Kim Raymond [1]

Formula One ace Brad Foreman survives a huge crash at Indianapolis 500 and returns to fitness, only to be taken out of his comeback race by underhanded rival Luigi Solla. Sacked by the McGarren team, he goes it on his own, building up a Formula 5000 car in his garage.

The Running Man

Published: 14 February to 12 June 1976 [1]
Writer: Steve MacManus [1]
Artists: Horacio Lalia, Mike White [1]

Visiting New York, British athlete Mike Carter becomes drawn into a Mafia plot when he is kidnapped and his face is altered with plastic surgery to resemble that of the wanted gangster Vito Scarlatti. Carter is forced to go on the run from the police while he tries to find a way to prove his innocence by finding the real Scarlatti.

School for Survivors

Published: 22 June to 12 November 1977 [1]

After a group of students from Alma Road Comprehensive are shipwrecked near a desert island in the West Indies, troublemakers Joey Slade, Sam Fern, Sludger Smith and Ralph Griffin immediately form a gang to start terrorising the other marooned pupils and staff.

Slater's Steamer

Published: 24 September to 12 November 1977 [1]
Artist: A.G. Coleman [1]

Brothers Gary and Tim Slater get trapped potholing. When they return to the surface they find Britain has been hit by a nuclear attack, leaving few survivors. The pair borrow a steam traction engine from eccentric survivor Lord Drago of Drax Manor to take them to London as they look for their father.

Sport's Not for Losers!

Published: 14 February to 1 May 1976 [1]
Writer/s: Steve MacManus [1]
Artist/s: Dudley Wynn [1]

Barncastle hurdler Dan Walker tears his Achilles tendon, and seemingly ruins his hopes of making a career to help his impoverished father. Instead, he decides to begin training his slob brother Len to become a hurdler instead.

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 Holland, Steve (2002). The Fleetway Companion. Rotherham: CJ & Publication.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Jewell, Stephen (17 January 2017). "The Sevenpenny Nightmare!". Judge Dredd Megazine . No. 379. Rebellion Developments.
  3. 1 2 Jewell, Stephen (20 June 2017). "Interrogation: Chris Lowder - In Case of Emergency: Break Heads". Judge Dredd Megazine . No. 384. Rebellion Developments.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Barker, Martin (11 August 1990). Action: The Story of a Violent Comic. Titan Books. ISBN   9781852860233.
  5. ↑ "Inside Action: The Coffin Sub". downthetubes.net. August 23, 2016.
  6. ↑ "A Brief History of Action". downthetubes.net. February 16, 2016.
  7. ↑ "Inside Action: Green's Grudge War". downthetubes.net. August 23, 2016.
  8. ↑ "Inside Action: Hell's Highway". downthetubes.net. August 23, 2016.
  9. ↑ Freeman, John (January 14, 2007). "Collected Hook Jaw Hardback Up For Auction". downthetubes.net.
  10. ↑ "Inside Action: Probationer". downthetubes.net. August 23, 2016.
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