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Classic UK Comic 'Battle' Revived for Judge Dredd Megazine to Publish Operation: Overlord

Published Mon, 14 Jan 2019 16:19:50 -0600

Last updated Mon, 14 Jan 2019 21:55:36 -0600

Once upon a time, there was a weekly kids comic called Battle, featuring tales of war (mostly from World War II) published by IPC. Originally Battle Pictures Weekly, it was also known as Battle Picture Weekly and Valiant, Battle Action, Battle Action Force and Battle with Storm Force as it merged with other titles during its long run, from 1975 to 1988.

It included stories such as Rat Pack, by Gerry Finley-Day and Carlos Ezquerra, Darkie's Mob by John Wagner and Mike Western, and Charley's War, by Pat Mills and Joe Colquhoun. It also contained true stories of World War I and II, as sent in as letters by readers about their fathers and grandfathers.

The comic was created by Pat Mills and John Wagner, who would later create 2000AD and Judge Dredd, intended as a rival title to DC Thompson's Warlord. But it tried to tell harder, more truthful stories of war.

And now, as current 2000AD and Judge Dredd publishers Rebellion have bought the IPC backstock and copyrights, the Battle name is to be revived.

As an imprint-within-Judge Dredd Megazine, to publish in English for the first time, the French comic Operation: Overlord.

Written by Michaël Le Galli with art by Hellblazer artist Davide Fabbri, part one of the series set in World War Two is being published with this month's Judge Dredd Megazine. The series is being published under the new 'Battle presents…' banner.

Operation: Overlord tells four tales of heroism set during the Normandy landings on D-Day, June 6th, 1944, and is being reprinted in a series of reprint editions bagged with the Megazine. Each 48-page issue is a stand-alone story, set in separate locations such as Saint-Mere-Eglise, Merville, and Omaha Beach.

Part one comes with Judge Dredd Megazine #404, on sale in newsagents, comic book stores and online on 16^th January. Further volumes of Operation: Overlord will be collected with Judge Dredd Megazine numbers 405 (on sale 20^th February), 406 (on sale 20^th March) and 407 (on sale 17^th April)