The original Battlestar Galactica TV show was must-see TV for Teen Groove. That such a short-lived show is so well remembered (and revamped with yet another fan-fave TV show) decades later speaks much for Glenn A. Larson and company. The reality is, though, BG wasn't the huge hit it was meant to be, so it didn't last as long as it deserved. Thank goodness, then, for Marvel Comics. Marvel licensed and adapted BG from the get-go, with the comicbook series outlasting the show by over a year (the TV series lasted from September 1978-April 1979, while the comic lasted 23 issues from December 1978-October 1980). Ol' Groove's all-time favorite is is #16's (March 1980) "Berserker" by Roger McKenzie and Walt Simonson. McKenzie's story is fast-paced and action packed. Plenty of laser-guns and space ships and the coolest Cylon ever. This allowed Simonson to really strut his storytelling stuff, giving us all kinds of wild action angles, explosions, innovative layouts, and cool sound effects. Walt even colored the ish, adding yet another layer of storytelling to his already prodigious artistic arsenal. You're gonna really dig this one, Groove-ophiles!
I love Simonson's short-span work of the '70s. I have several fill-ins like this one. It really shows where he would take Thor and the Fantastic Four in the '80s and '90s. Is it just me, or does this issue's Cylon bear a slight resemblance to Manhunter?
ReplyDeleteIf anyone has 'em, I'd love some postings of the Battlestar Galactica comics from the British Look-In magazine of the '70s-'80s.
ReplyDeleteIf you're interested, I have a chronology and analysis of Battlestar episodes, comics, and novels at http://battlestar.popapostle.com/
The later half of the Siminson stuff on Marvel Battlestar Galactica book,was better than anything the tv series was doing at the time.And this story gave us a Cylon equile to the Colonial Warriors-unlike the dumasses of the show.It was until Cye,showed in the last episode ''Return of Starbuck.''that we see a neat Cylon again.After that,the wait took some years until new series got underway.This comic not only had great art,it showed brains.We saw the Galactica doing some things never seen on tv and the vipers ,too.Sure,like one site say,it had a few flaws-like how Cylon Mark III survived the lava pit,when the other types wouldn't.But I guess McKenzie and Simonson was trying to show how tough these Cylons were.Too bad other comics and material didn't pick up on the Mark III Cylons.I'd love seeing them again.
ReplyDeleteThis was the first time I ever saw Walt Simonson's art, and I still remember many of these pages decades later. Thanks for letting me see the whole story again at long last!
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