Canada Day is here again, and what better topic for today's patriotic posting than Captain Canuck, Canada's favourite (if not only) superhero.

The first homegrown Canadian entries into the superhero market were Johnny Canuck and Nelvana of the Northern Lights, who made their debut in World War II during an American ban on comic exports.  Johnny was an adventure hero/pilot along the lines of the American Blackhawk Squadron comics, and, like Wonder Woman, Nelvana found her origins in the world of mythology, although in her case, in Inuit legends rather than Greek. (Just for the record, Nelvana's 1940 debut beat Wonder Woman to the punch by a full year.)

Following the demise of Johnny Canuck and Nelvana after the war, there was a long gap in the Canadian comics market*, a gap which lasted until 1975 when 24 year old artist/author Richard Comely released Issue One of Captain Canuck under the banner of Comely Comics.

Set 18 years in the future, when Canada has become one of the major world powers, Captain Canuck's story is really that of Canadian International Security Organization agent Tom Evans.  While on a camping trip with the Boy Scout troop that he leads, Evans is the victim of alien abduction.  When he and his Scouts return to civilization, Evans discovers that:

Suddenly I was twice as strong! I could lift twice as much and move twice as fast as I could before! It wasn’t long before the heads of C.I.S.O. were also aware of my new power and they had a plan on how to capitalize on it.

C.I.S.O. directors and specialists created a costume and a code name. They wanted to create an image – a symbol of C.I.S.O. authority and power – a show piece for Canada!

To be honest, the early issues of Captain Canuck suffer from average art and mediocre storytelling, but over time the Captain began to develop his own unique style and attracted a solid (if almost exclusively Canadian) fan base.  Sadly, financial issues led to an early demise for Captain Canuck, although over the years there have been two other incarnations of the Captain, along with various special editions, mini-series, collections and so on.

In spite of this relatively unsuccessful career, Captain Canuck seems to hold a special place in the Canadian mythos.  He continues to receive media attention, he appeared on a stamp in 1995, and the National Archives now have ownership of some of the original Captain Canuck artwork.

And I guess I'm part of that ongoing interest, although I come by it honestly - I bought three or four issues of Captain Canuck back in the 70s. In fact, I sent Mr. Comely a fan letter when I was about 17, and to my youthful astonishment I received a hand-written response within a week.  To my intense regret, I cannot for the life of me lay hands on that letter, although I've looked in all the logical places.  In my defense, I have done eight or nine relocations since then, and things do get lost over time, but let's be optimistic, maybe in the next box of miscellaneous memorabilia that I open...

Happy Canada Day, everyone!

- Sid

* Strictly speaking, not a completely empty gap, there were one or two one-off parody comics published, but Captain Canuck is arguably the first fully-fledged attempt to create a Canadian comic book hero after World War II.

"Without irony or snark."

He’s a super-agent and possibly even a super-soldier, he’s been military and law enforcement (and a scout master!) in past incarnations, and his power set is quite grounded and so he wears armour and carries gear. His night-sticks, or tonfa, new to this incarnation, are his signature weapon. They can electrify at his command, or can merge into a single bo staff. All non-lethal weapons, (but formidable in the right hands) something that touches on his Canadian-ness, which is at the heart of this revamp, without irony or snark. We’ve seen patriotic super-soldier characters before, but we want to emphasize the things that set a Canadian one apart. Cap doesn’t carry a gun or a sword or blast people to smithereens, he relies on strategy, negotiation, and wits. And he’s also super-polite, it’s a real power that all Canadians possess.

Comic creator Kalman Andrasofszky on the new Captain Canuck.

Among my Boxing Week purchases in 2012 was a marked down DVD/blu-ray combo copy of Captain America, which according to one of the reviewer blurbs is "the best superhero movie ever!"

And you know, they may be right.  Steve Rogers' journey from 4F to supersoldier is handled with the perfect combination of sincerity, dignity and humour - there isn't a false note in the whole film.  Watching it again after seeing it in theatrical release, I'm struck again by the perfection of that last line in the movie, that matter-of-fact statement of regret when he says, "I had a date…"

Captain America, with his roots in World War II, is one of the most iconic comic book heroes - quite literally iconic, the man is wearing a flag and is named after his country.   Because of that iconic nature, with its focus on honour and integrity, there has always been a sort of purity to the character in all of its various incarnations. 

Canada's equivalent, Captain Canuck, is currently being rebooted in animated form - the video teaser clip shows a parcouriste Captain leaping from rooftop to rooftop. It's quite a departure from the old uniform - the octagonal texture effect in the fabric is a bit trendy, and I'm not sure about the shoes, but overall, it's a good look, and I like the graphic integration of the Canadian flag motif into the uniform.

But really, that's all irrelevant.  If they can't bring the right sort of representative elements to the character, the Canadian equivalent to the elements that have always defined Captain America, then the new Captain will just be another spandex knockoff.  However, there's a good chance that Andrasofszky can pull it off - after all, he's a Canadian too.

 - Sid

 

Fan Boy.

 

Many years ago, someone suggested to me that I should mention something about my personal life on my resume. After a little thought, I cautiously added the following:

PERSONAL INTERESTS

• Science Fiction
• Military History *

I can't honestly say that this has had any overt effect on being hired since then, but I did once have an job interviewer say to me, in the same conspiratorial tone of voice that one would use to discuss a shared interest in latex or lingerie, "So, science fiction....do you go to...conventions????"

In response, I laughed a bit, and said, "No, never, I'm not that kind of a fan."

Which is quite true. I know a few people who have similar interests to my own, but for the most part my fandom has been a private activity.**  I'm also enough of an introvert that I'm not a huge fan of crowds, and as such, I've always viewed conventions and so forth as being a bit too busy for my tastes.  Nonetheless, last Saturday I found myself picking out a suitable t-shirt for an experimental visit to the second day of Fan Expo Vancouver.

After all, conventions have become the great public face of fandom and should be recognized as such. The first World Science Fiction Convention was held in New York in 1939, with a classic guest list from the Golden Age of science fiction: Isaac Asimov, Ray Bradbury, Jack Williamson, John W. Campbell, Hannes Bok, E. E. "Doc" Smith, L. Sprague de Camp, and so on. (It also featured the first example of cosplay - legendary fan Forrest J. Ackerman and his partner Myrtle R. Douglas wore "futuristicostumes" that she had designed and created for the gathering.)

The current standard for conventions is the San Diego Comic-Con, which started with a modest 300 attendees at its debut in 1970, but has since grown to over 200,000 attendees in 2018, with New York Comic-Con pulling in similar numbers on the East Coast.  I really don't think I'd be comfortable participating in an event on that scale, making the expected 30,000 guests for the 2019 Fan Expo look like a much more approachable option for a neophyte like myself.

My final t-shirt choice for the show is my lenticular Astroboy souvenir shirt from our 2015 trip to Japan.  It's apparently a good choice, based on the handful of compliments and comments that it garners from random people in the convention crowd once I'm on site. 

 

I arrive around lunch, at which time the con floor space is not terribly crowded (to my mild relief).  For a small show, they've done all right for guests - for old school fans there's George Takei and Billy Dee Williams representing the Star Trek/Star Wars camps, and Cary Elwes and Wallace Shawn from The Princess Bride. The balance of the theatrical guests relies heavily on the number of television shows being shot locally, with representatives from Riverdale, Arrow, Flash, and Supergirl.  Coming in from further afield we also have Bruce Wayne and Alfred from Gotham - David Mazouz and Sean Pertwee - Pom Klementieff from The Guardians of the Galaxy, and Khary Payton (King Ezekiel in The Walking Dead, as well as voice acting for Big Hero 6 and Teen Titans).

Other attractions include the usual Artist's Alley area for comic creators - I've been out the market for quite a while but I recognize a few names:  Arthur Suydam, Ty Templeton, Arthur Adams, and Steve Englehart, legendary for his work on Batman with Marshall Rogers in the 70s. (My friend Christi*** had the good fortune to walk away with an original Ty Templeton drawing from one of the Sketch-Offs between artists.)

The cosplay crowd is represented by the famous 501st Legion of Imperial Stormtroopers, along with the Mandalorian Mercs and the Falcon Base Rebel Legion, and some individual cosplayers such as Oshley Cosplay, Evilyn13, and Cherry Amaru. The 502st Legion is accompanied by a remote controlled R2-D2, which gets a lot of attention as it wanders the floor.

 

There's also a pretty good selection of cosplay on the part of the attendees. Right in front of me when I enter is a very well done classic Time Lord costume from Doctor Who, and as I wander through the retail area there are a lot of anime characters, an excellent Ghostbuster, an eight-foot tall Bumblebee from Transformers, a wide range of game-derived costumes, and easily a dozen Harley Quinns - for future reference, please be careful with those giant wooden mallets, ladies!

Some of the costume references are quite obscure - until I noticed the TV set in Viking gear, I didn't realize that the green-faced woman with wizard's hat and six-foot tall wand was Dot Matrix from the computer animated Reboot! series. (The TV is named Mike, not that it's important.)  It's safe to say that you're mining a very narrow vein of fandom if you wear a costume that appeared in a single episode**** of a show from 1994.

The booths cover the expected range of broad geek shopping categories:  comics, weapons, toys, clothing and art, along with a few unexpected items that you probably never thought you'd need (Imperial AT-AT planters, anyone?) 

 

I don't leave the show empty-handed, although Star Wars planters don't make the cut. The Canadian Comics booth has a number of attractive deals, and after browsing through several boxes of half-price graphic novels and omnibus collections, I select a Captain Canuck Compendium and a DC New 52 collection of Dial H for Hero, written by science fiction/fantasy author China Miéville, whose surrealistic style should make for interesting reading. I also buy a souvenir shopping bag, because really, you should always get at least one piece of show schwag - and I don't really need any more t-shirts.

Overall, I would have to say that it was an interesting experience, but unless they had someone on the guest list that I desperately wanted to meet in person, I probably wouldn't go again.  It's not that I found any problems with the event, it was well organized with a good selection of guests for a small show, but ultimately I'm more at home at home, where I can peacefully browse shopping opportunities and science fiction updates online.

I guess it's true - I'm really just not that kind of a fan.

- Sid

* The science fiction part has gotten a comment or two, but NO ONE has ever asked me about military history - why does no one want my opinion on how the Russian T-34 was the game changer in WWII tank design?

** Says the man with 816 posts about his hobby on the internet.

*** Yes, her insignia is on the wrong side, but let's not be picky about this.  (In her defense, the dress itself appears to be mirror reversed - the wide part of the collar should be on the left.)

*** Episode 9, Season 1: Wizards, Warriors and a Word from Our Sponsor.