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Pirates and perfidious treachery on offer in new Commando comics!

By John Freeman on September 11, 2024

There’s globe-spanning action from North Africa to the South Pacific in Commando issues 5783 – 5786 from DC Thomson, on sale from Thursday 12th September 2024 in all good newsagents and though various digital platforms.

Commando 5783: Home of Heroes: Bait
Story: James Moran | Art: Alberto Saichann | Cover: Simon Pritchard

The first new adventure in this set is “Bait”, written by James Moran, screenwriter for such films as Severance and Cockneys vs Zombies, as well as television shows like Doctor Who. It’s a smashing tale of enemies thrown together, a staple theme to many a Commando story, pulled off in style, with some cracking art from Alberto Saichann thrown in for good measure.

With pop culture maestro Simon Pritchard on cover duties, you’re assured of a special issue… and how can you not be intrigued by a story featuring marauding lions?

Simon Pritchard's full cover art for Commando 5783 — *Simon Pritchard’s full cover art for Commando 5783*

Also new this week is “Lucky Coin” by Ferg Handley, drawn by Vicente Alacazar, a tale of danger and deceit in wartime France, with a bit of a pirate twist. We get another pirate tale, too, in the represented “The Treasure of Devil Island”, a spooky 1980s whodunnit in set in the tropics.

The latter is a smashing reprint choice – the story well-paced, offering a not one but two “enemies thrown together” strands, and a nod to Robinson Crusoe along the way!

Plus, there’s “Nothing but Trouble”, too, a classic high-flying caper with an incredible cover by the masterful Ian Kennedy and interior art by Ibanez.

Commando 5783: Home of Heroes: Bait
Story: James Moran | Art: Alberto Saichann | Cover: Simon Pritchard

North Africa, November 1942. During the aerial front of Operation Torch, an Allied pilot and a Vichy pilot are forced down in a mountainous region of Algeria. Ready to continue the battle hand to hand, they soon must put their differences aside, as they discover they’ve landed slap bang in the hunting ground of a large pride of Barbary lions!

Commando 5784: Gold Collection: Nothing but Trouble
Story: Staff | Art: Ibanez | Cover: Ian Kennedy
Originally printed as No. 218 in 1966

Private Andy Rooney was a real bad lot — a skiver, a shirker, a nasty piece of work. And when he became a glider pilot it was the same — wherever he went, he got into hot water. With friend and foe alike, the arrival of Andy meant…nothing but trouble!

Commando 5785: Action and Adventure: Lucky Coin
Story: Ferg Handley | Art: Vicente Alacazar | Cover: Marco Bianchini

In the year 1745, Bonnie Prince Charlie landed in Scotland to win back the British crown, with the support of the The Old Alliance. The French sent supplies and money to aid their Scottish allies, and so began the last of the Jacobite rebellions.

Centuries later, one coin was in the hands of Bruce Niven, a SOE agent working with the French Resistance. But would the French coin bring him luck — or would they both end up buried in French soil?

Commando 5786: Silver Collection: The Treasure of Devil Island
Story: CG Walker | Art: Carrion | Cover: Ron Brown
Originally printed as No. 1571 in 1981

Not every desert island is a paradise… as the shipwrecked British sailors washed up on Tarotonga were quick to find out. They’d barely dragged themselves ashore when an eerie wailing echoed along the beach and chilled their blood.

Someone or something seemed displeased at their presence, and events began to take a more murderous course. As if that wasn’t enough, the castaways also had to contend with some Japanese airmen who’d crash-landed into the same path of trouble!

Commando issues 5783 – 5786 – Cover Gallery

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John Freeman

John is the founder of downthetubes, launched in 1998. He is a comics and magazine editor, writer, and Press Officer for the Lakes International Comic Art Festival. He also runs Crucible Comic Press.

Working in British comics publishing since the 1980s, his credits include editor of titles such as Doctor Who Magazine and Overkill for Marvel UK, Babylon 5 Magazine, Star Trek Magazine, and its successor, Star Trek Explorer, and more. He also edited the comics anthology STRIP Magazine and edited several audio comics for ROK Comics; and has edited several comic collections and graphic novels, including volumes of “Charley’s War” and “Dan Dare”, and Hancock: The Lad Himself, by Stephen Walsh and Keith Page.

He’s the writer of comics such as Pilgrim: Secrets and Lies for B7 Comics; “Crucible”, a creator-owned project with 2000AD artist Smuzz; and “Death Duty” and “Skow Dogs”, with Dave Hailwood.