Captain Canuck
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| Captain Canuck | |
 The Original Captain Canuck |
|
| Publication information | |
|---|---|
| Publisher | Comely Comix |
| First appearance | I: Captain Canuck #1 (Comely Comix, July 1975) II: Captain Canuck: Reborn # 0 III: Captain Canuck: Unholy War # 1(2004) |
| Created by | I:: Richard Comely Ron Leishman II: Richard Comely III: Riel Langlois Drue Langlois |
| In story information | |
| Alter ego | I: Tom Evans II:Darren Oak III:David Semple |
| Abilities | I: Super-strength, super-speed |
Captain Canuck is a superhero, one of comic books’ most popular Canadian-owned heroes. Created by writer Ron Leishman and artist/co-writer Richard Comely, the original Captain Canuck first appeared in Captain Canuck #1 (July 1975).
Three characters have worn the maple leafed costume of Captain Canuck. Described as a cross between Captain America and Flash Gordon, the first Captain Canuck patrols Canada in the (then) futuristic world of 1993, where "Canada had become the most powerful country in the world." He was the costumed agent of the CISO (Canadian International Security Agency).
Like most independent comics, Captain Canuck's adventures have been published sporadically. However, he has built-up a strong cult following among both Canadian and American collectors.
Captain Canuck is sometimes confused with John Byrne's Guardian, leader of Alpha Flight, who he created for Marvel Comics in the 1980s. Both characters have very similar costumes, and of course, both are Canadian. Marvel had approached Comely for the rights to use Captain Canuck in Alpha Flight, but were refused, so Byrne created a new character.
[edit] Fictional character biography
Canuck's first appearance was in 1975, published by Comely Comix of Winnipeg, Manitoba. The story followed Tom Evans, a Canadian secret agent who gained superhuman strength from contact with extraterrestrials. This first version of the Canadian superhero ran four issues until going on hiatus in 1976. In 1979, it came back, with Comely being backed by CKR Productions, and publishing 10 more issues, plus a summer special, concluding in 1981; it was drawn mostly by George Freeman, taking over from Comely, who was pushed out of CKR about midway through the run. In 2004, the completed issue #15 was finally published in a limited edition by Comely.
Since the original there have been two newer incarnations of the Canadian icon: Comely launched a second version in 1993, under the banner of Semple Comics. Set in the present, Captain Canuck: Reborn featured a new Captain Canuck, Darren Oak, who fought a global conspiracy. This title lasted only four issues (#0-3) and was drawn by Richard Comely, Leonard Kirk and Sandy Carruthers with inks by Eric Theriault. That incarnation continued as a newspaper comic strip for a short while.
A third incarnation (sometimes called the "West Coast Captain Canuck"), edited by Comely but written and drawn by brothers Riel and Drue Langlois, appeared in 2004 under the banner of Comely Comics, entitled Captain Canuck: Unholy War. Yet another man, RCMP Constable David Semple, adopts the guise of Captain Canuck, to take on a biker gang called the Unholy Avengers. "Unholy War" was slated as a three-issue miniseries, the third and final installment being published in January 2005. However, the series came out with a fourth issue (under the 'Hot Hail' banner) in August, 2007, which fully concluded the character.
A new Captain Canuck miniseries began in the fall of 2006. Entitled Captain Canuck Legacy, the series contained two continued stories: one detailed the efforts of the second Captain Canuck to prevent illegal weapons from reaching Canada, whilst the second chronicled the continued adventures of the third Captain Canuck.[1] [1]
The current series "Legacy" has had often been late, the second issue delayed by over a year, and has all but been forgotten by readers. Original slated for release in February 2006, the issue failed to be produced. Unlike previous series, the artwork was consistently poor, and the colouring drab and unprofessional. The writing of "Legacy" has also been criticized as weak. With the delays and poor quality of the material, fans fear this incarnation of Captain Canuck may be the last, the final nail in his casket.
