Valiant and Lion (1974)

Back in the day Lion and Valiant (along with Buster) were the mainstays of my reading after the demise of the Power Comics line, but by the time I left school in 1974 I was no longer reading many British comics and only occasionally reading American ones. So many other things in life were beginning to garner so it is a joy even in my late fifties to explore those titles I missed.

I knew Lion like so many other comics had disappeared at some point and it's merger with Valiant in 1974 comes as no surprise. I was lucky enough to be able to pick up not just the first "super combined" issue but the two that followed it.

  

These two comics were standard "boys" adventure comics for the time and Lion, despite it's merger with the short lived but excellent Thunder was not enough to save it. Valiant was always the stronger of the two titles and seeing Captain Hurricane team up with the Steel Commando was a joy to see from a long lost age.

Adam Eterno and Zip Nolan also made it through to the combined comic along with Mowser, a strip featuring an "aristocratic" cat.

Other strips in this new comic included Kid Pharaoh and there were new stories such as Valley of the Giants and The Trail to Nowhere.

Not forgetting Billy Bunter of course!

Who could forget Billy!

Valiant had already merged with Smash and TV21 and  another merger was to come before it to, fell prey to falling sales as tastes in comics began to change.

Watch this space.