Bore da! This September, 2000AD welcomes back a Welsh legend for an all-new story spinning from the pages of the classic series, Zenith!
Originally appearing in 1987 in Grant Morrison and Steve Yeowell‘s much-loved strip, available in collection (AmazonUK Affiliate Link), Welsh superhero Red Dragon is returning in 2025 for a new series which looks back at the character’s origins, marking a major new series for The Galaxy’s Greatest Comic!
Original Zenith artist Steve Yeowell returns with writer Rob Williams and artist Patrick Goddard for a new story set across two ages, exploring the beating heart of Welsh courage.
Red Dragon first debuted in the very first Zenith series in Progs 535 in 1987: a Welsh superhero recruited by the bratty young superhero to take on the danger of Nazi super-soldier, Masterman. Red Dragon, real name Siadwel Rhys, was a pyrokinetic hero who had found fame in the 1960s – but by the 1980s, Zenith found this once-mighty hero had become disillusioned and lost his heart for battle.
“Reading Red Dragon’s story arc in Zenith in 1987 broke my heart, and I wasn’t alone in that,” says Rob. “Grant and Steve created this vibrant, deeply flawed, extremely human character and, what’s more – he was a Welsh superhero. Red Dragon sounded and felt like quite a few people I’ve known over the years growing up in South Wales, just they didn’t have the ability to fly (although there were a few alcoholics and arsonists).”
Siadwel’s only appearance to date was in the first “phase” of Zenith, although he’s long been a fan-favourite character – as Yeowell knows all too well, noting that Siadwel has become “one of the mainstays of my sketching repertoire.
“My first encounter with him was when he appeared in Zenith phase one,” says Steve, “a broken and disillusioned figure, fated for a tragic end. So I’m really excited at the opportunity to work with 2000AD writing veteran Rob Williams and fellow artist Patrick Goddard on this dual timeline story, to show him as a super hero in his 1960s prime – charismatic, confident and principled”.
This new series heads back in time to explore the young and powerful Welsh pyrokinetic in his glory days during the swingin’ Sixties. Yeowell and Goddard will split artistic duties, with Yeowell joined by colourist Dylan Teague to explore the 1960s-set sequence, while Goddard remains in the present day, pencilling events as a documentary crew head to post-Brexit Wales to look at the legacy left by their greatest hero.
To celebrate that legacy, Williams and Goddard will both be heading to Forbidden Planet in Cardiff on Saturday 27th September from 3.00 – 4.00pm for a very special Red Dragon signing. To make things even better, they’ll be joined by “Rogue Trooper: Ghost Patrol” artist, and fellow Welsh hero, Neil Edwards, making this a can’t-miss event for 2000AD fans.
For the creative team this is an opportunity to explore Welsh heritage and culture, as Williams notes: “When I was asked if I would be interested in telling a Red Dragon story, I started to think about the idea of a Welsh superhero. Of where the UK and Wales was in the 1960s of Red Dragon’s heyday, of showing some of that optimism and bright colour, and then telling a story about where Wales, and Britain, is now.”
• Red Dragon starts in 2000AD Prog 2451, a special bumper issue releasing on 24 September! Subscribe to 2000 AD today to reserve your copy!
Catch up on Zenith…
Zenith: Phase One (Volume 1)
by Grant Morrison (Writer), Steve Yeowell (Artist)
• Buy it from AmazonUK (Affiliate Link) | Buy it from 2000AD
Berlin, 1945: British war hero Maximan lies defeated at the feet of German ‘Ubermensch’ Masterman. His victory is short-lived, as the allies drop a nuclear bomb on their location, killing both men.
Over forty years later, the world has become all too familiar with the existence of superhumans. Now there is only one left – Zenith – an egotistical pop star who is anything but heroic. Unfortunately for mankind, dark gods from another dimension known as the ‘Many-Angled Ones’ have sent Masterman’s twin to take over the planet and only Zenith and a small number of depowered heroes from the ‘Flower Power’ generation stand a chance of defeating him!
Zenith: Phase Two (Volume 2)
by Grant Morrison (Writer), Steve Yeowell (Artist)
• Buy it from AmazonUK (Affiliate Link) | Buy it from 2000AD
Zenith is the only superhuman popstar. He’s saved the world, had a number one record – but his only interests are women, drugs, alchohol and fame. But Peter St. John and the unexpected reappearance of Ruby forces the superbrat to take off and tackle a nuclear threat to London – from his own creator!
Zenith: Phase Three (Volume 3)
by Grant Morrison (Writer), Steve Yeowell (Artist)
• Buy it from AmazonUK (Affiliate Link) | Buy it from 2000AD
The Lloigor are back and this time they plan to take control of everything. In order to do so, they must align alternate universes and form a crystal known as the ‘Omnihedron’. Maximan of alternate 23 has gathered together an army of superheroes from multiple Earths to fight back against the dark gods. With reality itself at stake, will Zenith be mature enough for once to take the war seriously?
Zenith: Phase Four (Volume 4)
by Grant Morrison (Writer), Steve Yeowell (Artist)
• Buy it from AmazonUK (Affiliate Link) | Buy it from 2000AD
With the Lloigor defeated nothing can stand in the way of the superhumans and universal domination! The remaining members of the original British super-team Cloud 9 with some additional powered affiliates (including Zenith’s infant son) have destroyed America in retaliation for an attempt on their lives. Now they plan to incubate in the sun and evolve to the next level of existence, destroying the Earth as they do so. Once again Zenith and St. John must make a stand for humanity and this time it’s personal!
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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.
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