My name is Bond, James Bond! The 007 adventure is returning to comics. US publisher Dynamite Entertainment has announced its partnership with Ian Fleming Publications Ltd., the company that owns and administers the literary copyright of Ian Fleming’s published works, including his fourteen James Bond books.
“It’s good to have comics having more opportunity to show what they can do and the comics could be way better than the movie have been because they are not hampered by budget and big stars or level of acting talent, so long as a good writer is behind it. Anyone who wonders if this will work with the superhero comic, market needs to just look a little past the surface of the market, they will realise that there is a huge and very rich culture of non superhero comics with critically acclaimed books of both original properties and franchises like ‘Doctor Who’ or ‘Steed and Mrs. Peel’ and numerous others,” said Meta Desi, founder Akshay Dhar.
James Bond has a long history in comics, beginning with the James Bond newspaper strips, which was first published in the Daily Express from 1958 onwards, starting with an adaptation of Casino Royale. Some of the well-known and most read comics of Bond include, Dr. No, License to Kill, Octopussy, Light of my death and many more under various distributors (Titan, DC).
Under the agreement between these two companies, negotiated by Jonny Geller of Curtis Brown, Dynamite has been granted worldwide rights to publish comic books, digital comics, and graphic novels starring 007. The new books are being edited by Mike Lake, co-founder of the Forbidden Planet chain. Mike has been working on a James Bond comic strip line for some time and Dynamite has yet to announce the names of the creative team that will be involved in the revived comic.
“A property like this should be brought back. It’s a great move and will boost our pop culture. I haven’t read any James Bond comics yet, but I would love to read the new content. I think it’s high time that we should move beyond superheroes and mythological characters,’ expounded Abhijeet Kini Merck, founder Abhijeet Kini.
US publishers Marvel, Eclipse and Dark Horse have all published James Bond comic books in the past. But the best known foreign language adaptation of James bond are those by Scandinavian publisher Semic Press, who initially reprinted the Daily Express strips in James Bond but began originating stories in 1981, with titles such as Operation: UFO, Experiment Z, and Kill Bond.
Dynamite’s new Bond stories will explore the early history of the character, creating a series of brand new adventures unveiling the defining and largely undocumented, early years of Bond’s career.
“This is one of the best news this year, especially for the comic industry. I have read the earlier James Bond series. Characters like Silver Finn, Black Widow and Dr. who are very much similar to Bond series. I’m eagerly waiting for the comic, it will be great fun, and we can actually restore our childhood days now,” added Chariot Comics, founder Aniruddho Chakraborty.
Some other familiar faces from the expansive 007 venture will also make appearances in this series; criminal masterminds, hired henchmen, glamorous Bond Girls, and secret service allies, alongside all-new characters.