The new collected edition of Avengers Comic Strips from Big Finish is due out this week. I can't wait to see how the project looks in its final form. While we wait, let's take a closer look at some of the Chinese editions of New Avengers comics from the Spy Vibe collection. Having lived in Japan for a number of years, I have a special fondness for rare book editions printed in Asia. I've shared pieces from my archives on Spy Vibe in the past, including Japanese printings of the Ian Fleming and Man From U.N.C.L.E. novels. Last year I acquired two sets of comics printed in China, The Avengers and James Bond- both as boxed book sets. According to the Avengers Anew site, it took quite a while for classic spy shows to break through the Iron Curtain in China. The original Avengers series wasn't aired until the late 1980s and The New Avengers saw transmission in 1990. The characters must have been popular because an eight-volume series of New Avengers comics was published that same year. The art style was quite flat and crude, with few exceptions, but story adaptations appeared to be based faithfully on actual episodes. Skimming through my set, it's been quite fun to notice imagery lifted from 1976 classics such as Last of the Cybernauts and Target. And it's always fun to see Patrick Macnee's John Steed, Purdey, and Gambit in comic form. Our friend in Avengers fandom, Denis Kirsanov, helped to spread knowledge of this comic set back in 2014 and I was able to gather a complete collection last fall. Below are the painted covers for each of the eight volumes, plus a sample of some of my favorite pages. Lastly, I'm including a piece of rare original New Avengers art that was used to produce a Chapeau Melon et Bottes de Cuir comic in France (something I spotted at auction- very tempting). Enjoy! Related posts: The 10th Victim Japanese and Kindle, U.N.C.L.E. Japanese Books, Ian Fleming's Japan, Jane Bond Hong Kong Records, Bob Morane series, Thai Bond Design, James Bond Japanese Editions, Ian Fleming Chinese Edition.
