US publisher About Comics has released an omnibus collection of the marvellous SF strip Dalgoda by Jan Strnad and Dennis Fujitake, first published in the 1980s by Fantagraphics.
Back in 1983, writer Jan Strnad and artist Dennis Fujitake introduced Dalgoda, an original comic book series about a dog-alien who comes to Earth seeking help to defend his besieged home planet. The intensely written, gorgeously drawn series drew praise from fans and critics, but came out at a time before even series with fully formed storylines could be assumed to be getting a book reprint. In the decades since, the series has been spoken well of by the folks who remembered it, but without a collection, it has failed to get its due place in the comics canon.
“In a crowd of doddering old men, Dalgoda is a bright, bouncing baby of a comic – thoroughly enjoyable and thoroughly modern,” said artist Frank Miller of the book, a quote featured in an advertisement in the May 1986 issue of Amazing Heroes.
Now, About Comics has released The Dalgoda Omnibus, a thick, comprehensive collection of the entire Dalgoda saga. The Omnibus reprints, in black and white, not only the Dalgoda stories from the original eight-issue series (including the double-length first issue), but also the four issue follow-up miniseries, Flesh & Bone, and two short stories that appeared in other titles, one drawn by the legendary Kevin Nowlan, first published in the fourth volume of the British anthology, A1.
(For the record, Kenneth Smith coloured the Dalgoda strip for the original series when first published, and Mark Wheatley and Katheryn Mayer for the Flesh & Bone mini-series.The original black and white films have been lost, according to the series publisher. Designer/illustrator Scott Dutton had a crack at recolouring the strip and you can see examples of his work here).
In addition to over 300 pages of comics storytelling, the omnibus also includes a dozen covers, a gallery of promotional images, and a new afterword by Strnad.
In the story, Dalgoda is on a desperate mission to save his world from alien invaders. The planet Canida, where the dominant species evolved from canines, faces annihilation by the warlike Nimp unless Dal can muster Earth’s resources in Canida’s defense. Can he trust a race of erratic, violent beings evolved from apes? Dog may be Man’s best friend, but so far, Dal has met with bigotry, deceit, and attempted assassination…and that’s just Day One.
California-based writer Jan Strnad has written comics ranging from the mainstream to the offbeat, including a series of collaborations with Richard Corben. Dennis Fujitake, born and still based in Hawaii, has brought to comics everything from the fantasy of Piers Anthony to the science fiction of Keith Laumer, including Retief!, adapted by Strnad, also drawing stories such as Dinosaurs of Summer, Children of the Night Tide, Sea Dragon and Waddlewalk published by Fantagraphics.
Both creators took an active hand in assembling this collection.
“I’m so glad to see it! It’s been about 40 years since the series originally ran,”Strnad says of the new Dalgoda Omnibus, the cover designed by Steve and Cindy Vance, in a Facebook post, noting the amount of work Nat Gertler put into the book’s production, revealing “he spent hours and hours extracting Dennis Fujitake’s brilliant pen work from under the layers of colouring in the comic books, a task that has held back a collection for a long time.’
The Dalgoda Omnibus is available for immediate ordering from Amazon worldwide and will soon be available at other online bookstores and by special order at your favourite local book shop. (US readers can pick up a copy from Barnes & Noble, for example, here).
Founded by Nat Gertler, California-based About Comics is a publisher of a unique and eclectic assortment of comic books, books about comics, and other things that are just plain interesting for over a quarter century. Some of their most popular lines include comic book collections, including work by Kurt Busiek, Lela Dowling, Steve Leialoha, Bill Mumy, Scott Shaw, Gail Simone, Bryan Talbot, and others, including the work of Charles Schulz, beyond Peanuts.
• The Dalgoda Omnibus by Jan Strnad and Dennis Fujitake | ISBN: 978-1949996821 | 360 pages, black-and-white 7.44″x9.69″ trade paperback | Buy it from Amazon worldwide (Affiliate Link for AmazonUK)
The Dalgoda Omnibus is not being offered through the direct market distributors, so retailers interested in carrying the book should reach out to questions@aboutcomics.com
Further Reading…
• About Comics is online at aboutcomics.com
• Follow Jan Strnad on Facebook
• Dennis Fujitake – Poop Sheet Foundation Early Zine Work Gallery
• 1986: Dalgoda Might Just Be the Best Comic Book You’ve Never Heard Of
“From the first issue we can see that Dalgoda is going to be somewhat different,” notes Jefferson Powers
• The Comics Reporter – Comics I Read In Series Form In The 1980s: Dalgoda by Tom Spurgeon
I mentioned to a friend who still occasionally reads comics that I was going to write about Dalgoda soon and he said he’d buy that comic today. It’s kind of odd to imagine, but I wonder if that exact content came out this summer if it wouldn’t have the same position in the marketplace that these books did 28 years ago. That may say a lot about those comics, and even more about the market.”
• CBR: Have you seen this dog? Dalgoda by Chris Arrant
“For comics, the 1980s were a Wild West in terms of experimental and varied content, with publishers large and small taking chances, and new creators coming into town and leaving before you had a chance to fully appreciate them…”
• Scott Dutton: Dalgoda by Jan Strnad & Dennis Fujitake
Dalgoda by Strnad & Fujitake occupies the same place in designer/illustrator Scott Dutton‘s memory and experiences as Don Simpson’s Border Worlds. “Both were wonderfully unique works of science fiction material from the mid 80s,” he notes. “Strnad had worked with Richard Corben, and one of Fujitake’s influences was Jean ‘Mœbius’ Giraud, and so the connection to Heavy Metal during its best years was strong.”
• Retief of the Mountain of Red Tape
A great look at another SF project adapting Keith Laumer’s SF story into comics by Strnad and Fujitake, which was published by Mad Dog Graphics between 1987 and 1988, and collected in 1990 as Retief!: The Graphic Album by Apple Press
- About the Author
- Latest Posts
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.
Categories: Comics, downthetubes Comics News, downthetubes News, US Comics
Star Trek comics round up: new limited comic series, collections warping your way 
Monster Island and Forbidden Planet’s Dog Man collaboration proves a major success 
In Review: Captain America: Brave New World 
Alison Bechdel’s new graphic novel, “Spent” launches soon, exhibition announced