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James Bond comic strips #5, 4, 6
The James Bond Omnibus: Volume 001
James Bond, the world's most famous secret agent, has thrilled audiences for over fifty years with his globe-trotting adventures. THE JAMES BOND OMNIBUS collects eleven of Ian Fleming's original daily comic strips for the very first time in a mammoth omnibus edition.
Including the stories: CASINO ROYALE, LIVE AND LET DIE, MOONRAKER, DIAMONDS ARE FOREVER, FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE, DR. NO, GOLDFINGER, FROM A VIEW TO A KILL, FOR YOUR EYES ONLY and THUNDERBALL.
Including the stories: CASINO ROYALE, LIVE AND LET DIE, MOONRAKER, DIAMONDS ARE FOREVER, FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE, DR. NO, GOLDFINGER, FROM A VIEW TO A KILL, FOR YOUR EYES ONLY and THUNDERBALL.
304 pages, Paperback
First published September 8, 2009
About the author
Jim Lawrence
98 books4 followersAka Hunter Adams, Victor Appleton II
Jim Lawrence has written fiction extensively for both children and adults in a variety of media: books, magazine articles, film and radio scripts, and comic strips, including "decision" strips. He estimates that he has written some sixty books of fiction, many of them under pen names for series like Tom Swift Jr. and Nancy Drew. His radio credits include weekly scripts for Sergeant Preston of the Yukon, The Green Hornet, and Sky King. He has written for, and in some cases created and illustrated, the comic strips Dallas, Joe Palooka, Captain Easy, Friday Foster, and Buck Rogers. To date, he has authored two works of interactive fiction: Seastalker and Moonmist.
Jim Lawrence has written fiction extensively for both children and adults in a variety of media: books, magazine articles, film and radio scripts, and comic strips, including "decision" strips. He estimates that he has written some sixty books of fiction, many of them under pen names for series like Tom Swift Jr. and Nancy Drew. His radio credits include weekly scripts for Sergeant Preston of the Yukon, The Green Hornet, and Sky King. He has written for, and in some cases created and illustrated, the comic strips Dallas, Joe Palooka, Captain Easy, Friday Foster, and Buck Rogers. To date, he has authored two works of interactive fiction: Seastalker and Moonmist.
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Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
June 27, 2022
I’m not much of a reader of graphic novels, so I’m not able to make any informative comparisons. ‘Road to Perdition’ lingers well in the memory.
This volume one of six is made up of strips that first appeared in the Daily Express newspaper between 1958 and 1962. The first two volumes from Titan Books are made up of the twelve Fleming novels and six of the nine short stories. They’re a bit of fun – dialogue and storytelling is concise, and the black and white graphics (by John McLusky) is generally striking and atmospheric. The design is often stylised (Dr No looks positively alien with his bald, pointed head), and there’s every opportunity taken to highlight the violent action of the stories, as well as Fleming’s eroticism. Yesh, the shplendid Mish Honey Rider looksh poshitively shecshiful in Dr No!
On the negative side, the introduction by Roger Moore adds nothing that is specific to the content, and is, I believe taken from another book. I would have much preferred a history of the strips and how they were put together (which I believe was in previous editions). But, adding my voice to others, the main criticism here is to the size of the reproductions. They’re way too small. I suspect the size isn’t too different to how they originally appeared in the newspaper, but, you would then be reading only three or four panels until the next instalment appeared the following day. But this is not how you would read them in book form. Here, ten pages was the maximum I was getting through before the size of the text started to tell on my eyes. I believe earlier re-printings of the strips were larger in size.
What surprised me here, considering that these came out prior to the first James Bond film (Dr No in 1962), is to see the physical similarity of the illustrated Bond to one, Sean Connery. Now I’ve no doubt that Connery’s very Bondian role in ‘The Frightened City’ (1961) – in terms of look, mannerisms and action – had a lot to do with him being chosen, but after looking at these, I do dare to wonder if his looks to the cartoon strip Bond also came into the equation. Good grief, I’ve randomly opened to page 159 (From Russia, With Love), and for me, it is Sean Connery looking back!
Connery’s my favourite Bond, by far (though Lazenby is underrated); but I can hear and see in stylised cartoon imagery an imaginary Harry Saltzman hammering down upon his desk and aggressively pointing in a 1967 rant, just after Sean Connery has said ‘You Only Live Twice’ would be his last, “So ya want more money do ya Connery? Well the only friggin reason ya got the gig in the first place was cause ya looked like a friggin cartoon character! Sho there!!!” To which the protesting Mr Saltzman is sent crashing head-first through the window in explosive imagery, and a cartoon Connery is heard to utter, “Shattering! Poshitively shattering!”
This volume one of six is made up of strips that first appeared in the Daily Express newspaper between 1958 and 1962. The first two volumes from Titan Books are made up of the twelve Fleming novels and six of the nine short stories. They’re a bit of fun – dialogue and storytelling is concise, and the black and white graphics (by John McLusky) is generally striking and atmospheric. The design is often stylised (Dr No looks positively alien with his bald, pointed head), and there’s every opportunity taken to highlight the violent action of the stories, as well as Fleming’s eroticism. Yesh, the shplendid Mish Honey Rider looksh poshitively shecshiful in Dr No!
On the negative side, the introduction by Roger Moore adds nothing that is specific to the content, and is, I believe taken from another book. I would have much preferred a history of the strips and how they were put together (which I believe was in previous editions). But, adding my voice to others, the main criticism here is to the size of the reproductions. They’re way too small. I suspect the size isn’t too different to how they originally appeared in the newspaper, but, you would then be reading only three or four panels until the next instalment appeared the following day. But this is not how you would read them in book form. Here, ten pages was the maximum I was getting through before the size of the text started to tell on my eyes. I believe earlier re-printings of the strips were larger in size.
What surprised me here, considering that these came out prior to the first James Bond film (Dr No in 1962), is to see the physical similarity of the illustrated Bond to one, Sean Connery. Now I’ve no doubt that Connery’s very Bondian role in ‘The Frightened City’ (1961) – in terms of look, mannerisms and action – had a lot to do with him being chosen, but after looking at these, I do dare to wonder if his looks to the cartoon strip Bond also came into the equation. Good grief, I’ve randomly opened to page 159 (From Russia, With Love), and for me, it is Sean Connery looking back!
Connery’s my favourite Bond, by far (though Lazenby is underrated); but I can hear and see in stylised cartoon imagery an imaginary Harry Saltzman hammering down upon his desk and aggressively pointing in a 1967 rant, just after Sean Connery has said ‘You Only Live Twice’ would be his last, “So ya want more money do ya Connery? Well the only friggin reason ya got the gig in the first place was cause ya looked like a friggin cartoon character! Sho there!!!” To which the protesting Mr Saltzman is sent crashing head-first through the window in explosive imagery, and a cartoon Connery is heard to utter, “Shattering! Poshitively shattering!”
August 4, 2012
I don't usually read "graphic novels" because that term is just a way that lazy readers can pretend they are reading a proper book when they're really just looking at comics. However, I made an exception in this case because I already knew the character of James Bond, and I thought maybe I'd be a bit more tolerant regarding something I was familiar with. The book contains abridged but faithful renditions of seven Bond novels and three short stories in comic strip form, in the way they'd been published in newspapers decades ago, now collected together in one place to create full narratives. John McClusky's drawings show a Bond more rugged than the pretty-boy cinematic versions, and because the stories are based on Fleming's original work, which had always been less fantastic than the movies, they often lack the silly gadgets and megalomaniacal supervillains, all of which lends them a more realistic edge. I was pleasantly surprised to find I enjoyed it a lot and was a little disappointed when the book came to an end. However, the final page advertises the second volume in the series, so I'll have to keep an eye out for it.
August 5, 2010
It was neat to see Ian Fleming's original comics, but unfortunately comics in the 1960's were not very exciting. These are more factual tellings of the stories, a very simply-written event-by-event summary of what happens, with panels illustrating the text in its most literal form (though the art itself is nice). In short: historically interesting, but lacking in narrative style and the intrigue that would have come with it.
January 15, 2022
Casino Royale, Live and Let Die, Moonraker, Diamonds Are Forever, From Russia With Love, Dr. No, Goldfinger, From A View To A Kill, For Your Eyes Only, Thunderball.
I'm familiar with all of these James Bond adventures thanks to watching all of the films with my dad and grandpop as a child. But I've never read any of Ian Fleming's novels that gave birth to the world's greatest spy. Thus I was very excited when I found this anthology at my favorite used book store- Books Do Furnish A Room.
Prior to debuting in the movies, Ian Fleming signed an agreement with The Daily Express to adapt his books into newspaper dailies. Fleming was hesitant at first. He didn't want his works to be dumbed down to an elementary level. Fleming also didn't like on how Bond was originally designed. But I'm glad he finally settled with John McLusky!
The Bond strips were McLusky's first gig. An art teacher at the Slade School of Art, McLusky drew Ian Fleming's creation in a way that is really eerie. That's because McLusky's Bond looked just like Sean Connery- almost 5 full years before the Scottish actor would take on the role in 1962's Dr. No.
The interesting thing about these adaptations are how different they are from the live-action films produced by Albert Broccoli. Comparatively, the strips could be considered dull. For example, in Moonraker, Bond doesn't go into outer-space and there's no blimp or Golden Gate Bridge in the adaptation of A View To A Kill. Broccoli clearly felt that in order to enthrall audiences, the wow factor needed to be set to 11. But here in these comics, Fleming crafted some very elegant mystery-thrillers that are very British.
Casino Royale is perhaps the weakest of the stories. For one thing, it was Ian Fleming's Bond debut. Pilots always have kinks to work out. Plus, that story was adapted by Anthony Hern; who just doesn't seem to have a firm grasp on the character. The other stories were adapted by Henry Gammidge with the except of Dr. No which was written by Modesty Blaise's Peter O'Donnell. Dr. No wasn't bad. But Gammidge really seemed the ideal writer for the James Bond comics.
1962's Thunderball was perhaps the most clunky story. Ample time is devoted to Bond's time at a health spa in which he runs afoul of a Tong gangster. The plot to steal 2 nuclear bombs by Ernst Blofeld and his cronies at SPECTRE is drawn out to perfection. But the ending is rushed to just 2 pages with zero actual appearances by baddie Emilio Largo or Bond Girl Domino Derval.
For a solid minute, I felt that maybe some pages were omitted from this volume. But the numbering of the strips don't skip. I later researched this and discovered that The Daily Express temporarily ended it's relationship with Fleming and rushed a quick ending to the story. After Fleming and Daily Express editor Lord Beaverbrook settled a dispute over the comics strip rights to The Living Daylights, Bond would return to print in 1964.
And that's where we end volume 001. Well, not quite. Ever heard of the Bond story Risico? Neither had I. It's a short story buried within the pages of For Your Eyes Only. So far, there has never been a Bond film called Risico. But maybe!
Risico reads a lot like Ian Fleming's anti-drug opus. In this story, Bond goes to Italy to end the heroin trade that has been flowing into the UK. Just about every character makes PSA sounding statements about the evils of opium and heroin. It almost feels that Ian Fleming watched a few episodes of Dragnet while writing this book. Good story but very propagandized.
The first James Bond Omnibus was a delightful read. The right artist was selected for the strip. It took a little while, but this strip also found it's voice. If you've never read the original works but are more than versed in the films of James Bond, this is a wonderful look at a little known corner of MI6.
I'm familiar with all of these James Bond adventures thanks to watching all of the films with my dad and grandpop as a child. But I've never read any of Ian Fleming's novels that gave birth to the world's greatest spy. Thus I was very excited when I found this anthology at my favorite used book store- Books Do Furnish A Room.
Prior to debuting in the movies, Ian Fleming signed an agreement with The Daily Express to adapt his books into newspaper dailies. Fleming was hesitant at first. He didn't want his works to be dumbed down to an elementary level. Fleming also didn't like on how Bond was originally designed. But I'm glad he finally settled with John McLusky!
The Bond strips were McLusky's first gig. An art teacher at the Slade School of Art, McLusky drew Ian Fleming's creation in a way that is really eerie. That's because McLusky's Bond looked just like Sean Connery- almost 5 full years before the Scottish actor would take on the role in 1962's Dr. No.
The interesting thing about these adaptations are how different they are from the live-action films produced by Albert Broccoli. Comparatively, the strips could be considered dull. For example, in Moonraker, Bond doesn't go into outer-space and there's no blimp or Golden Gate Bridge in the adaptation of A View To A Kill. Broccoli clearly felt that in order to enthrall audiences, the wow factor needed to be set to 11. But here in these comics, Fleming crafted some very elegant mystery-thrillers that are very British.
Casino Royale is perhaps the weakest of the stories. For one thing, it was Ian Fleming's Bond debut. Pilots always have kinks to work out. Plus, that story was adapted by Anthony Hern; who just doesn't seem to have a firm grasp on the character. The other stories were adapted by Henry Gammidge with the except of Dr. No which was written by Modesty Blaise's Peter O'Donnell. Dr. No wasn't bad. But Gammidge really seemed the ideal writer for the James Bond comics.
1962's Thunderball was perhaps the most clunky story. Ample time is devoted to Bond's time at a health spa in which he runs afoul of a Tong gangster. The plot to steal 2 nuclear bombs by Ernst Blofeld and his cronies at SPECTRE is drawn out to perfection. But the ending is rushed to just 2 pages with zero actual appearances by baddie Emilio Largo or Bond Girl Domino Derval.
For a solid minute, I felt that maybe some pages were omitted from this volume. But the numbering of the strips don't skip. I later researched this and discovered that The Daily Express temporarily ended it's relationship with Fleming and rushed a quick ending to the story. After Fleming and Daily Express editor Lord Beaverbrook settled a dispute over the comics strip rights to The Living Daylights, Bond would return to print in 1964.
And that's where we end volume 001. Well, not quite. Ever heard of the Bond story Risico? Neither had I. It's a short story buried within the pages of For Your Eyes Only. So far, there has never been a Bond film called Risico. But maybe!
Risico reads a lot like Ian Fleming's anti-drug opus. In this story, Bond goes to Italy to end the heroin trade that has been flowing into the UK. Just about every character makes PSA sounding statements about the evils of opium and heroin. It almost feels that Ian Fleming watched a few episodes of Dragnet while writing this book. Good story but very propagandized.
The first James Bond Omnibus was a delightful read. The right artist was selected for the strip. It took a little while, but this strip also found it's voice. If you've never read the original works but are more than versed in the films of James Bond, this is a wonderful look at a little known corner of MI6.
April 10, 2020
These are the same strips as in The Complete James Bond – Dr No: The Classic Comic Strip Collection 1958-60, except this one has a couple more stories, but it is in smaller format and worse paper.
Everything I said about the other book holds here - the three-box format of a strip published in a newspaper does not work well for these kinds of stories. The tension is lost in the need to keep the story flowing with each box, and what is thrilling in the movies/books becomes a dry narration with no variations in story dynamics.
Everything I said about the other book holds here - the three-box format of a strip published in a newspaper does not work well for these kinds of stories. The tension is lost in the need to keep the story flowing with each box, and what is thrilling in the movies/books becomes a dry narration with no variations in story dynamics.
August 22, 2017
Massively disappointing, this collection suffers from three problems. First, uneven writing. Some of the stories are rather well paced, but others are a disaster. Two, John McLusky is a poor visual storyteller. Before Sean Connery was cast as Bond, he drew the character to look just as Connery would look in the part and perhaps that inspired director Terrance Young to cast the part with Connery. The rest, however, is plodding art. Third and finally, some crazy editor decided to reprint these comic strips too small for easy reading. It is a strain read the words and occasionally to know what McLusky's art depicts.
February 7, 2018
Das sind schlicht und ergreifend keine besonders guten Comics. Aus heutiger Sicht sind sie schlicht und ergreifend altbacken, aber selbst zur ursprünglichen Erscheinungszeit gab es bessere Comics. Man merkt, dass diese hier einfach nur die Romane in straffer Comic-Form wiedergeben. Das hat einen gewissen nostalgischen Wert, mehr aber auch nicht.
May 26, 2020
Big fan of James Bond and really enjoyed the comic adaptations of the books.
The stories seem to find the right blend of detail and length in order to relay the action without losing the readers interest.
I look forward to moving on to the next omnibus to see how they adapt the rest of Fleming's novels and what other stories are unearthed.
The stories seem to find the right blend of detail and length in order to relay the action without losing the readers interest.
I look forward to moving on to the next omnibus to see how they adapt the rest of Fleming's novels and what other stories are unearthed.
January 13, 2022
Some great art, pretty cool way to experience these stories. I liked seeing how different they were from the movies. But even though the pacing of the actual strips was good, trying to read it all in one go like this was kind rough. Would've been fun to have been reading these as they came out in the newspaper
July 16, 2022
Hadn't even known that the Bond stories had been adapted to comic strip format almost from the beginning before we came across this book. Not bad, but the storytelling is uneven which is not uncommon in comics. Was rather funny to see how much McLusky had drawn Bond to look quite similar to Sean Connery even before the movies were made
April 22, 2023
A good template if EON ever wanted to make the novels into a serious television adaptation. The things I don't like about the novels are re-worked in a way that gels pretty well. The artwork is also cool and crisp!
February 1, 2019
Good comics, well representative of the character.
July 13, 2020
This collector's edition is a must have for all JB fan.
Includes the first ten newspaper comic strips including favourite Dr.No ..
Includes the first ten newspaper comic strips including favourite Dr.No ..
March 7, 2022
The brilliant Daily Express cartoon strip from the 50s and 60s. Well drawn. A précis of the plots.
April 6, 2013
For people who enjoyed the Ian Fleming books, this is a real treasure. The comics, originally printed in the 60's, faithfully render the stories in graphical form. It's a bit disconcerting if you were expecting the stories from the films, which are quite different.
Because these are reprints from the 60's, the artwork isn't that great, but it is certainly adequate. It is used primarily to help drive the narrative. The stories are (more or less) faithful adaptations, and well written. The exception is Thunderball, which I found quite unfathomable, the latter part of the story is edited beyond any degree of reasonableness.
That said, overall this is a very good read for anyone wanting to experience Bond as Fleming intended him to be.
Because these are reprints from the 60's, the artwork isn't that great, but it is certainly adequate. It is used primarily to help drive the narrative. The stories are (more or less) faithful adaptations, and well written. The exception is Thunderball, which I found quite unfathomable, the latter part of the story is edited beyond any degree of reasonableness.
That said, overall this is a very good read for anyone wanting to experience Bond as Fleming intended him to be.
February 5, 2017
It's entertaining to read these adaptations of the books - they predate the films, so they're not tainted by Connery, Lazenby, Moore, et al. They read more like tough guy stories than fancy spy capers, and they're more gripping for it. Of course, the three-panel strip format has its limitations, so they're still not as good as reading Fleming's prose, and they had to tone the stories down for the newspapers of the late 1950s, but they're still worth reading, especially the adaptations of the lesser known short stories.
November 22, 2010
Po-faced in comparison with the novels, presumably because of the risk that tiny tots will read comics. It's particularly noticeable that all the lesbian stuff is edited out of Goldfinger, rendering bits of it somewhat baffling.
I love the way Bond is drawn; he's based on Ian Fleming's description and looks much more how I imagine Bond than any of the movie versions do.
I love the way Bond is drawn; he's based on Ian Fleming's description and looks much more how I imagine Bond than any of the movie versions do.
July 16, 2016
Excellent collection of the Bond Daily Express newspaper strip that appeared in the sixties . The strip started with all Ian Flemings stories then started original stories the carried on well in to the eighties. Lawrence was the first artist to tackle the strip and Bond is definitely Flemings ideal .
October 7, 2013
The earliest of the newspaper strips adapt the Bond novels in order of publication. Obviously, there are changes from the original stories to suit the new medium, but they're well done and entertaining.
May 20, 2015
La calidad de las tiras no son parejas, pero es algo que te avisan en el prólogo. Al igual que como pasa cuando se lee El Eternauta, se siente esas pausas entre cada tira que hacen que el relato se ralentice y no tome un ritmo constante.
December 1, 2013
The Stamford Advocate used to run these three panel James Bond comic strips a long time ago. I enjoyed reading 007 in this format.
July 20, 2013
Comix the old - school way: black and white, 3 - panel serial form from a newspaper. Great for the Bond nerd.
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews