As previously noted, excepting the original presentation which ran in
Heavy Metal back in '79, i completely missed the
Buck Rogers revival comic strip from
Jim Lawrence and
Gray Morrow. There was another Buck Rogers comic back then which i did catch, though most folks in the USA may have missed it - even though it was based on the US television series starring
Gil Gerard and
Erin Gray:
Look-In is a UK magazine which featured comic series often based on tv shows. The issue in which Buck debuted also featured comics starring
Benny Hill,
Charlie's Angels,
The Smurfs,
Mork & Mindy, and the now largely forgotten
Sapphire & Steel.
(And, no - I can't read those old Benny Hill strips without hearing Yackety Sax) These were typically serialized stories in short 2-page chapters.
Before we get to our main feature, of course, we have our ongoing serial -
Twin Earths from
Oskar Lebeck and
Alden McWilliams.
Previously on Twin Earths:
Vanna is a defector from
Terra -
Earth's more technologically advanced twin in the same orbital position hidden by the sun. Having allied herself with the FBI, she has been educating her liason, agent
Garry Verth, and his team about her culture and science. After revealing the existance of "Space Islands," what we would call Space Stations, Vanna helps them to create a detection system. Meanwhile, the FBI has discovered a "telviphone" - a combination telephone and television - and is attempting to learn more about it and the technology involved...
Twin Earths - Chapter 12
To Be Continued...
Our Buck Rogers tale is written by
Angus P. Allan, with artwork from
Martin Asbury. Angus was the sole writer for the series, but there were three artists who rotated over the not-quite 2 1/2 years the series ran, with two of the three returning for a second engagement.
The story that kicked off the series:
The Praxonian Conquest -
As noted above, the continuing adventures (and so the next two tales) were presented in full colour.
Here's the cover of the issue in which the series premiered:
Oh... If you were wondering about that title "
Far Beyond My Time" - Buck Rogers, like
M*A*S*H, was a tv show that used an instrumental theme song which had featured lyrics in the movie version. And, with both shows, i got a lot of weird looks when i sang along with the theme.
(The lyrics to Suicide Is Painless certainly didn't help) The theme for Buck Rogers was titled
Suspension, by
Kipp Lennon. The lyrics -
Far beyond the world I've known, far beyond my time
What am I, who am I, what will I be?
Where am I going and what will I see?
Searching my mind for some truths to reveal
What thoughts are fantasy, what memories real?
Long before this life of mine, long before this time
What was there, who cared to make it begin?
Is it forever or will it all end?
Searching my past for the things that I've seen
Is it my life or just something I dreamed?
(Instrumental break)
Far beyond this world I've known, far beyond my time
What kind of world am I going to find?
Will it be real or just all in my mind?
What am I, who am I, what will I be?
Where am I going and what will I see?
art from Twin Earths newspaper strips (1952) and Look-In v10 #s 43-39 (1980)
