<![CDATA[Tornado]]>

Publisher: IPC
Publication Dates: 31 March 1979 – 18 August 1979
Number of Issues Published: 22 (#1 – #22)
Color: Colour

Information thanks to the Grand Comics Database

Tornado was a short-lived weekly British comic published for 22 issues by IPC Magazines between March 1979 and August 1979. After the cancellations of the Starlord and Action titles IPC launched Tornado as a way to use up stories already commissioned for the other titles. Like Action it was a mixed title featuring War, Detective, Horror and Science Fiction stories. Tornado was printed on the low quality newsprint stock used by 2000 AD and also had 5 stories of 5 to 6 pages per issue. The title also had a ‘superpowered’ editor, like Tharg, ‘Big E’ who was portrayed in photo-strips by a rather portly Dave Gibbons. The real editor was Kelvin Gosnell.

Main stories were:

– The Mind of Wolfie Smith written by Tom Tully, with art by Vincente Vano, was the story of a young boy whose telepathic and telekinetic powers suddenly emerge, leading him to become a runaway.
– Angry Planet written by Alan Hebden, with art by Massimo Belardinelli, was set in the late 21st century on a Mars that had been made habitable by humans. The story told of the struggle of the first generation of genetic ‘martians’ to free themselves from exploitation by Earth.
– Wagner’s Walk was a WW2 story much in the ‘Action’ style as the hero is an escaped German POW fleeing the Red Army.
– Blackhawk, written by Gerry Finley-Day with art by Alfonso Azpiri, was the story of a Nubian Galley slave who rescues his ship from pirates. Granted his freedom and a commission as a Centurion, Hawk forms his own legion out of other slaves who are then treated as a type of “Dirty Dozen”.
– Victor Drago was a pseudonymous revival of Sexton Blake, IPC’s long-running fearless detective, written by Bill Henry with art by Mike Dorey.

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Tornado 1979-03-24
Tornado 1979-03-31