THE BLACK DRAGON COVER GALLERY...

Copyright MARVEL COMICS

Was it really a staggering 34 years ago that I first read this then-new 6-part limited series from MARVEL COMICS, The BLACK DRAGON?  Yup, it sure was, but (as you'll no doubt be tired of reading me repeating by now) it sure doesn't seem like it.  I don't really remember what it was all about, so I took a quick look through all 6 comics before scanning, and there are dragons, fairies, ROBIN HOOD, MORGAN LeFEY, and lots of top-notch drawings in it.  (Hey, if that doesn't make you want to read them, nothing will.)

I plan to reacquaint myself with their contents before too long, but even though I don't recall much of the plot, I've never forgotten the artwork, which made more of an impression on me than the story, obviously.  It's probably been issued in a collected edition at some point down through the years, so I'm going to keep my eyes open for one as I'd like a volume that I can dip into at any time, instead of having to rearrange the contents of my room in order to access the individual issues, which are tucked away in a drawer with loads of stuff in front of it.

Look at the cover of #3, which is my favourite, and for some reason reminds me of my early childhood.  That may be because the house in which I was living during the mid-'80s wasn't very far from the very first one we had in this town after moving here from the West End of Glasgow in 1960.  From my '83-'87 bedroom window I could see the woods I'd played in as a kid, beyond which had once spread acres of fields and countryside, but which now sported an industrial estate.

However, I remembered it as it was,  and it seemed to me that the cover of issue #3 captured the place as I'd once known it.  No, I don't mean that knights had fought in it or that it sported marquees - only that the illustrated grass, trees, clouds and sky looked as if they had been plumbed straight from my youthful memories, and therefore felt very familiar to me.  And, 20-odd years later, there was yet an expanse of greenery within sight of my new house's bedroom window, which reinforced my childhood images and brought them into the (then) present day.  

However, enough of my nostalgic, self-indulgent sentiment, let's get to the pictures before you abandon me for some other blog.  Did you read this series back in the day?  Then let rip in the comments section about what you thought of it.  

Posted in: Cartoons