Did you know that the first superhero in the world was Polish? For this a great patriot. He was appointed captain, but after the war he had to settle for a sergeant. Kowalczuk and Godlewski recalled his story.
I really like what and how it is published by Wydawnictwo 23 and Słowobraz. Prison Pit , Brom or Rotmistrz Polonia are bold, original projects for conscious recipients. Usually comics are enriched with interviews with authors or introductions that show the comic in a broader context. This makes my nerdy heart very happy . The book by Kowalczuk and Godlewski also allows us to look at the history of the first Polish superhero.
Łukasz Kowalczuk is a networking demon and work leader. He has his own imprint , organizes conventions (Rumia Comic Con and Szlam fest), draws and writes. Kowalczukverse is slowly emerging from his increasingly richer own and co-authored works . They are inhabited by unpretentious heroes and reptilians. In Captain Kowalczuk and Godlewski combined these two elements with love for Polish comics.
History, form …
The book by Kowalczuk and Godlewski is divided into three complementary parts. It is successively: the story of Captain, a comic with his participation and finally his next adventure, this time described in prose. As you can see, the work is short, but multidimensional.
In the introduction you will find the story of the first Polish superhero, created by Jan Martwicki in 1919. Yes, he is older than Superman! First, he served his homeland as a captain, fighting against the Nazis and communists. After the war, he reconciled with the latter, took the rank of sergeant and became a sidekick , nerdy boy scout, Marcin. Sounds like a piece of Polish history? Exactly, this – the career I have given in a telegraph – is presented by Kowalczuk. After the introduction, there is also a text by Jacek Frąś, who recollects his childhood with the adventures of Captain and how he infected the two Lukas with his fascination with this character. If you are ever in Sopot, look for pubs Placeand while sipping melon beer or great coffee, ask him about memories of childhood hunting for another comic strip. Especially since … he will have to invent them on a regular basis. Captain’s character and story were created in 2010. Disclaimer can also be found on the Guild . Do not be discouraged by the hoax, he is still a thoroughly Polish superhero made of flesh and blood.
The cartoon part of Captain tells the story of how the first Polish superhero – Stefan Janowski – is summoned by his homeland, i.e. taken out of a pub and forced to support a secret mission led by a small team of talented agents. They include a mad scientist, a young idealist, and old veterans. Danger? Many, scaled and pretending to be human! Janowski may and would prefer to chew gum cynically, but it was not included in the equipment of this unit. He’s left – of course – to kick tailed butts. Łukasz Godlewski captures all these adventures with sometimes a very classic line, almost reminiscent of a historical comic, fortunately enriched with expressive facial expressions.
The short story that finishes the book is an obvious tribute to the action movies of the 80s and 90s. There is a place for Mexican Hellboy boxing , helicopters and mystery islands, elegant wickedness and explosions. Kowalczuk’s humor remains classic, but original, it appears in aggressive dialogues and sudden plot twists.
On the one hand, Captain Polonia is a product of the same pop culture fascinations as The Underhogs or Slime Fiction . This is how the Kovalchukverse is forged . On the other hand (since the name Frąś has already appeared), it is a combination of perversity worthy of Melon and a fascination with historical documents, the face of which we saw faithfully to reality in the meticulously factual Totalnie nie nostalgia.
… And what came out of it
I think that for fans of independent comics and low-circulation mainstream, Captain Polonia is a real miracle. If you follow Kowalczuk’s activities, you know what to expect and you will not be disappointed. There will be fame and glory to pulp fiction. What about readers who are not yet familiar with this aesthetic? It will be a little more difficult for them to grasp this proposal.
Guild comments (two of them) are a complaint about the price and a note that some are short. Dzika Banda would also like more, but praise intensely. I… of course I want more with all my heart. I am also glad that the Captain of the Polish Diaspora did not disappear ten years ago, because in such a situation I would have no idea that he existed. The only thing that I really miss in this edition is, for example, an interview with the creators, which would bring the story of this joke closer to the reader who is not in the habit of googling everything.
It is possible that we are at this point in the history of Polish comic books when we recall and summarize, because we realized how valuable some ideas were, how much talent was put into them. In this context, the book by Kowalczuk and Godlewski is another swallow of our spring, like the announcement of the Grandy’s Independent Polish Comics Library series . On this occasion, let me repeat that I can read more of such things.
