The Trigan Empire - Classic or FUCKING CLASSIC

A surprisingly anti-imperialist message from a comic so frequently tagged as ultra-rightist.

The possibility of a homo-erotic subtext is interesting. I think the women were all pretty hot too, but in a classy kind of way. also, I think the artist did some comics for jazzmags at some stage in his career (don't ask how I know that).

Just to comment about a few details in your other replies, the strip was indeed called The Rise and Fall of Trigan Empire at first and, of course, it did start it's life in another comic, Ranger. Ranger was, to my mind at least, a far superior read, but then I a bit young for Look and Learn at first. By 1973 it was called simply The Trigan Empire and the 1973 annual of the strip was called, "The Look and Learn Book of the Trigan Empire". How many episodes this book covered I am not sure.

Someone mentioned the "dead hand on the astro-helm!" How unforgetable the words and pictures are, even over 30 years later! The excitement I gained from opening a fresh, crisp, copy of Look and Learn and turning to the latest adventure of the brothers, Trigo, Klud and Brag, just can't be explained.

The full text of the first page of the adventure read, "Through the ice-cold vastness of outer space hurtled a cosmo-craft - huge, unearthly and out of control... ...out of control as it had been for eight billion miles, yawning wildly... ...out of control for the most final of all reasons - THERE WAS A DEAD HAND ON THE ASTRO-HELM! The craft was manned by a crew that had been frozen to death. The heating equipment of the ship had been destroyed and the unimaginable cold of outer space had done the rest. The result was instant death for the men who were the last of the Trigans, all that were left of a once- mighty civilisation, pride of the planet Elekton."

Now, by a strange coincidence, I have a copy of the afore-mentioned annual from 1973 and, since I am short on storage space, I might be tempted to sell it if anyone cares to email me with a sensible offer. It is in very good condition, though minus dust cover. I also have a complete bound set of Look and Learn (Issue 1 Jan 20th, 1962 - issue 104 Jan 11th, 1964) which I might similarly be persuaded to part with for an equally sensible offer. These are pre Trigan Empire though, but someone might be interested.

Regards,

Brian Robertson.

As an old comics pro and critic, this is the kind of artwork I like least, gorgeous looking individual images, but limp and lifeless read as a comic. The Hal Foster school.

Top stuff I think,

Stephen

Ron Embleton, who did some of the art work, though I'm not sure if he was the artist when I was reading it, illustrated several books about real Romans.

Not in Breaking Free he wasn't.

Rebellion have finally got hold of the rights and are putting out an affordable version.

I suspect I'll have to pick it up for the non-Don Lawrence stuff.