On the occasion of Children’s Day, we return in spirit to our puppy years, remembering the titles that started our adventure with comics.
W.I.T.C.H.
Growing up in the 1990s involved at least a fleeting acquaintance with the WITCH magazine , which could be found in every kiosk. In my case, it turned into a quite permanent relationship – these comics not only took pride of place on my shelf, but also ended the rather embarrassing period of subscription of the Barbie magazine , thus opening the gates to the world of fantasy for me.
The plot of the comic book is classic – five teenagers were endowed with extraordinary powers. As is usually the case in comics, great responsibility comes with great power. Will, Irma, Taranee, Cornelia, and Hay-Lin were appointed guardians of the heart of Kondrakar, an inconspicuous crystal that united the power of all the elements. The WITCH comic book has a special place in my heart, not only because it was my first encounter with fantasy. The “manga” line and Hay-Lin’s endearing style provided inspiration for my first (and so far last) cosplay. – Paulina Kasińska
Fistaszki
I first saw reprints of stories about the adventures of Charlie Brown and his pet Snoopy in Gazeta Wyborcza . I was 10 or 11 years old. The relationship of the main character with the world of adults and his beloved quadruped captivated me to the living. On the one hand, I had problems with understanding the whole message, and on the other, I felt through my skin that these non-obviousities are just an element of getting to know reality. The Peanuts collected series has become number one on my gift list over time. Unfortunately, all the collections went to hell during one of the removals. Just like me. I knew most of the stories by heart, but I liked knowing that I have Schulz’s peanut comics at my fingertips. – Ola Woźniak / Łoliek
TM-Semic
I don’t quite remember which comic was my first one. While browsing through old boxes in my parents’ basement, I found a few notebooks. I remember all of them quite well mainly from the pictures, not necessarily from the content they contain. As a person raised in the 90s, I had quite a large collection of DC Comics and Marvel titles published in Poland by TM-Semic. The earliest are from 1991 and they are Batman. Aboriginal , Superman. Exterminator? , The Punisher. The Slayer and Spider-Man. Cobweb . My parents were eager to buy them for me, and as a fan of superheroes, I admired the drawings. The one in Superman I remember the most . The final phasewhere Clark Kent, acting here as Krypton-Man, tries to crush the head of his enemy, Draaga, with a huge boulder. Apparently, this brutal moment somehow stuck in my memory. And what was the best thing about finding comics from years ago? I finally got to know their plot! – Piotr Markiewicz
Donald Duck, Tom and Jerry , Bugs Bunny
The first comics I encountered were those related to children’s themes. The 1990s in Poland abounded in various types of comic book publications, from Marvel and DC, and ending with Moomins, Pokemon or Donald Duck, and even Tom and Jerry and Looney Tunes. As a child growing up in the last decade of the 20th century, I was somewhat “exposed” to children’s titles.
I received these comics mainly from my grandmother who, seeing the colorful “magazines for children”, so unattainable during the communist period, tried to provide them to her granddaughter. I loved the adventures of Donald Duck the most, which were first published every two weeks and then weekly. Why? Because for a long time I missed the duckling world present in Duck Tales, which series was taken off the air (it came back only in 2007). Donald Duck was giving me a bit of this universe .
Another eagerly read magazines with picture stories were Tom and Jerry and Bugs Bunny. The first title, initially published by TM-Semic, was a notebook without any additions, containing comics about the adventures of the famous duo from Hanna-Barbera studio, usually drawn by one cartoonist – Martin. Why were they so interesting? Well, unlike animations, comic stills showed us what the mute characters usually say. In turn, Bugs Bunny is the only position on the Polish market so far, which until 2002 published comics with Looney Tunes imprint DC Comics. Stories full of various types of gags were also a great complement to what Canal + was serving at that time in the bandFerris wheel . – Bartosz Stuła
Kajtek and Koko
One of the first comic books I read as a child was Kajtek and Koko. A duel with Abraham Janusz Christy, where the main characters move to the land of fairy tales, where they have to face the evil wizard Abrakapokushiperkadwatrzy, who, among other things, reduced the city’s inhabitants to the size of a mouse and kidnapped one of the princesses, and turned the other into a frog, because she did not want to become his wife.
This comic was published for the first time in 1964 in Gdańsk’s “Wieczor Wybrzeza” and it reached me in the form of an album released in 1991 in the series called “Retro seans” by the Adarex publishing house.
Janusz Christa, known as the first post-war creator of Polish comics, began his adventure with comics in 1958 with the permanent publication of comic strips on the last page of the aforementioned magazine “Wybrzeże Wybrzeża”, where stories about Kajtek and Koko appeared, and later – Kajek and Kokosz. The heroes won the hearts of readers of all ages, including mine, when I was still in kindergarten. Janusz Christa’s albums, published since 1981, already ten years later had a circulation of over 7 and a half million copies! – Aga Bot
Dragon Ball
In my case, the comic book adventure started quite strangely, as long as my memory does not fail me. It was the sixteenth volume of the Dragon Ball manga. Why this one? Because that’s what happened at the kiosk. On the cover, Goku and Piccolo aka Satan the Heart are ready to fight to the death. When I saw it, I knew I had to have this book. A financial injection from my grandfather helped with the purchase. Immediately a surprise, because the comic opens on the other side, and individual frames also seem to have been swapped. It took my twelve-year-old brain a while to realize that I had to read right to left. I was completely gone. At that time, I did not mind the fact of complete ignorance of the previous events, and the comic itself was read many times. Soon after, I got the previous parts (thanks to the help of adults) and every week I asked the lady at the kiosk if the next one had already been released. I even arranged for them to be put aside for me. I was so smart. – Paweł Grzelczyk
Donald Duck
My first comic is, of course, Donald Duck . From the first notebook I liked the inhabitants of Kaczgorod. They were always able to amuse me and put me in a good mood. My favorite hero was Donald, but I like the Scrooge most of all this great community. After my large collection of KD, all I have left are the gadgets that lie somewhere in the boxes. Only three volumes of Giants survived . I still like ducks, so from time to time, reach for an item of them, for example, Kaczogród Carl Barks. – Hubert Heller
