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By Frank Hampson & Don Harley (Titan Books)
ISBN 10: 1-84576-412-9 ISBN 13: 9781845764128
The frantic pace of adventure never slows for the heroic and indomitable Dan Dare. When an alien spacecraft crashes into the Pacific Ocean, Dare, Digby, aquanaut Lex O’Malley, and Flamer Spry must face unbelievable new challenges in a new but equally unforgiving environment to rescue the outlandish passengers.
But that’s only the start. The interstellar refugees have come seeking assistance in a faster-than-light ship, from Cryptos, five light-years distant! Undertaking a heroic odyssey Colonel Dare and his comrades battle bizarre space monsters and terrible hardships before becoming embroiled in a dreadful war between the Cryptosians and the unstoppable, genocidal Phant warriors of the wandering planet Phantos.
This historic adventure ran from 13th May 1955 until November 25th of that year, and the shorter than usual run comprises the main tale in this volume. It was not however the end of the story. The epic continued and concluded as Rogue Planet, collected in the next Dan Dare book (ISBN: 1-84576-413-7), so you might want to pick up both at the same time.
But that’s not the end of this edition’s reprinted treats. In addition to the ever-informative text feature (a glorious Frank Hampson sketchbook) there are three short, complete, fully painted yarns taken from some of the Dan Dare and Eagle Annuals. ‘Mars 1997’ is a thrilling tale of interplanetary rescue, ‘The Robocrabs’ deals with an attempted invasion of Earth, and ‘Operation Silence’ is a Christmas story featuring a host of past friends and foes, including the malevolent Mekon.
Dare is as much a part of heroic Britain as King Arthur, Robin Hood or Richard the Lionheart. Moreover, these tales are undiluted by time or mis-repetition. What you see is original, genuine and pure. Pure entertainment, pure joy.
© 2007 Dan Dare Corporation Ltd. All Rights Reserved.