What If King Kong Became Superman? Previewing ‘The Complete Johnny Future’

Another long-lost classic of Brit comics coming back in April 2020 – The Complete Johnny Future. Basically, think of it as the incredible idea of “What if King Kong became Superman”? Oh yes, Brit Comics back then were something else, weren’t they?

Yes, Brit Comics of the 60s and 70s were spectacular things, amazing, bizarre, staggeringly weird things. Which is pretty much where Johnny Future comes from.
So, what it is… The Missing Link, creature of limitless strength, who pursues an expedition party he finds in his homeland back to Britain? Cue Hulk-like chaos and devastation, until The Missing Link wanders into an experimental nuclear research facility… and then this…

Turns into this…

Seriously, is it any wonder Alan Moore is one of the strips champions?
So, the Missing Link goes from super-strong creature to advanced human, genius-level intellect, super-strength, enhanced senses, the ability to fly… basically Superman in Britain. And then, as Johnny Future he protects mankind from such sinister beings as The Master, Disastro, Animal Man and the Secret Society of Scientists.
(And yes, just substitute Johnny Future for Zenith and you really can see where Grant Morrison got some of the ideas there.)
But more than how wonderfully weird it is in its very superhero DNA, Johnny Future is spectacularly good because of Luis Bermejo’s artwork. Seriously, if for nothing else, this is worth it to see just how good Bermojo’s line and composition is… things like this…

Damn, that stuff is just so good.
Bermejo worked extensively through Brit comics, with strips in Battle Picture Library, Girls Crystal, Tarzan Weekly, Lion, and Eagle. But you might know his name from his work in the 70s for Warren Publishing, where he’d appear alongside such luminaries as José Ortiz and Esteban Maroto.
So, before the preview… just a little bit more of the artwork. Beautiful, amazing stuff…




The adventure begins, with The Missing Link, in April… and below, you’ll find the very first strip..
The Complete Johnny Future – written by Alf Wallace, art by Luis Bermejo
Hardback edition, published by The Treasury of British Comics on 30 Apr 2020 (UK) & 28 Apr 2020 (US)