Charley's War is the story of a simple-minded, quick-witted teenager named Charley Bourne, who lies about his age and signs up in 1916 to fight the Hun for King and Country. He finds himself in the miserable hell of the French trenches and struggles to survive amid a company of other misfits, under orders from simpletons and psychopaths.
It’s a bleak and terrible story, but despite the overwhelming cynicism and negativity that surrounds the trenches, there’s just a grain of faith in the human spirit. Not enough to ever make this remarkably sad tale ever attractive to Hollywood, but there’s something genuinely moving in Charley’s letters to his parents and the real friendships forged among the men in the front line. Like most of the great comics Pat Mills created during his most vibrant period of, say, 1976-89, the power of humanity is greater than the power of the "authority" which commands it to do terrible things in the name of royalty, nation or planet. (You’ll note that when Mills loses track of this around the time of mid-period Slaine, or Finn, or Pagan-Friendly ABC Warriors, suggesting instead that humanity is lesser than the power of some Earth goddess or khaos or whatever, his work becomes markedly less readable.)
Mills had an incredible illustrator with him to provide some genuinely amazing artwork for this series. Joe Colquhoun sadly passed away before that rush in the late 80s for American publishers to sign British talent. While it’s unlikely Colquhoun’s incredibly detailed work and his vibrant use of black and white would have found a place in any American book, it still meant he just missed the chance at more widespread recognition. What Colquhoun accomplished in Charley’s War is nothing short of amazing. You can feel the mud on that field, you can smell the polish on a German officer’s boots. Every single panel is fully grounded in its own world, and no shortcuts were taken. This is simply among the most remarkable works of comic art ever produced.
Charley's War Volume 1: 2 June 1916 - 1 August 1916. 112 pages, £14.99 UK, $19.95 US.
From renowned UK comics writer Pat Mills (Marshal Law, Slaine) and legendary artist Joe Colquhoun (Johnny Red) comes a truly classic piece of British comics history, by turns thrilling, humorous and horrifying. In 1916, Charley Bourne lies about his age to enlist and fight on the battlefields of France. But thoughts of glory and patriotism are swept aside by the bloody artillery barrage of horror and needless sacrifice amidst the trenches of the First World War. Rich in the detailed minutiae of the terror-punctuated existence of a 'Tommy', Charley's War features a brand new introduction and 'director's commentary' by Pat Mills, a cultural history of the comic, and an essay on the Battle of the Somme.
Contents:
Charley's War episodes #1-29 (from Battle Picture Weekly #200-228, Jan. 6 1979 - July 21 1979)
Introduction and strip commentary by Pat Mills
Into Battle: A Chronology of Charley's War by Neil Emery
The Battle of the Somme: Putting Charley's War in Context by Steve White
Charley's War Volume 2: 1 August 1916 - 17 October 1916. 112 pages, £14.99 UK, $19.95 US.
Renowned UK comics writer Pat Mills (Marshal Law, Slaine) and legendary artist Joe Colquhoun (Johnny Red) continue the thrilling, humorous and horrifying story of World War One soldier Charley Bourne. It is now the late summer of 1916. Though Charley has survived the early days of the Somme, with treachery on both sides of the wire and a dangerous new commanding officer, triumph and tragedy lie in store as he desperately tries to survive...Rich in the detailed minutiae of the terror-punctuated existence of a 'Tommy', this second volume of Charley's War features a brand new introduction and 'director's commentary' by Pat Mills, plus exclusive extra content.
Contents:
Charley's War episodes #30-59 (from Battle Picture Weekly #229-243 & #245-253, 258-263, July 28 1979 - March 22 1980)
Introduction and strip commentary by Pat Mills
Landships: The Evolution of the Tank by Steve White
Afterword by Garth Ennis