When the Battle Cry is spoken … Adventures in the Rifle Brigade Vol. 1

Oh Vertigo, what has happened? Back in 2000 Vertigo released two mini series from the amazing mind of Garth Ennis titled Adventures in the Rifle Brigade and Operation: Bollock. As befitting a Vertigo title these were adult oriented tales of a British special forces commando unit in World War Two. Unfortunately, with Vertigo being the rather diminished imprint that it is this collection of those Vertigo comics comes from the natural successor, Image.

Garth continues to delve into the once very popular WWII genre in his ongoing War Stories title and it is great to see this earlier work republished. We follow the exploits of Captain Hugo Darcy, 2nd Lieutenant Cecil Milk, Sergeant Crumb, Corporal Geezer, Hank the Yank and The Piper as they trek across Europe. The hunt for Hitler’s missing testicle, the hugely well endowed Nazi interrogator Gerta Gasch, the Arabic country of Semmen … definitely not for kids but a hilarious satire which is expertly crafted.

Fantastic art from Carlos Ezquerra, superb colours by Patricia Mulvihill and Kevin Somers. This is a really good looking collection. The original covers by Brian Bolland and Glenn Fabry are included as pin-ups.

If you are a fan of Garth Ennis’ work you are probably familiar with these issues and having all six issues in one collected volume is pretty sharp. I am definitely recommending this to Vertigo fans of old.

Title: Adventures in the Rifle Brigade Trade Paperback | Publisher: Image
Writer: Garth Ennis | Artist: Carlos Ezquerra
Price: $14.99

About Author

Martin Boruta

Martin Boruta has been reading comic books and graphic novels for 50+ years (he reads books without pictures too, just sayin’). A lifelong fan of Captain Canuck, Martin is the curator of The Unofficial Yet Definitive Captain Canuck Comicography website. Since 2016, Martin has been reviewing comic books and highlighting great new Kickstarter projects at First Comics News. Martin’s writting has also been featured in Sequential Magazine. For over two-hundred episodes, Martin enjoyed teaming up with his pals and sharing hosting duties on The Hey Kids Comics Radio Show broadcast on Trent Radio 92.7 CFFF FM in lovely Peterborough, ON Canada, and still available at The Hey Kids Comics Radio Show website. Martin is a founding member of the Canadian Comic Book Alliance. In his various adventures, Martin has demonstrated an innate ability to spell “Erik Larsen” incorrectly.

Martin’s “day job” is owner of Shaw Computer Systems Inc., an Information Technology consultancy firm in Peterborough, ON, specializing in Managed Services for small to mid-sized businesses since 1980.

In the past, Martin served in the Canadian Armed Forces Reserve as a member of the Cadet Instructors List (Cadre), reaching the Queen’s Commissioned rank of Captain, was awarded a Baronship of Sealand, and was ordained as a Reverend in the Universal Life Church while watching an episode of Monster Garage.

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