Task Force UK
Task Force UK is both a comic and the identity of Mark McCreadie, owner and operator of www.cohcomics.com
The comic was a joint venture between Mark and Gavin Birch and based on original hand drawn and coloured issues that were first collaborated on by the pair in summer 1989.
| |
| Giving Evil a wedgie, one pair of villainous underpants at a time! | |
| Task Force UK | |
| Data | |
| Author: | Gavin Birch/Mark McCreadie |
|---|---|
| Author Aliases: | Task Force UK |
| Games: | N/A |
| Genre: | Action & Adventure |
| Series Type: | Ongoing |
| Date Premiered: | 1/27/2005 |
| Number of Issues: | 3 (regular) 1 (special) |
| Date of Last Issue: | 10/13/2010 |
| Average Issue Length: | 20 pages |
| Main Cast | |
| Sol Star, Red Knight, Scots Guard, Doctor Smith, Merlyn | |
| Websites | |
| www.cohcomics.com | |
| Programs Used | |
| City of Heroes, Corel Paint 11, Corel Draw 11 | |
| Footnotes | |
| No additional information available. | |
Publication History
Using the advantage of the graphics engine from the City Of... series of games, in 2005 Birch and McCreadie sought to update look of the comic books the pair had first created some sixteen years previously featuring characters designed by Birch and envisioned by McCreadie, while retaining the original settings and timeframe rather than feature the environs of Paragon City in 2005, the then-present day.
The first issue was completed within a matter of weeks, leading to an ill-judged opinion that subsequent issues could be produced on a monthly basis. By design, it slavishly followed the original dialogue and layouts using images composited from various sources within the game and as such is considered by both authors to be a poor introduction to the characters to new readers.
Initially following the same process, the second issue took a much more protracted timescale to complete. It would be nine months in production, albeit it the finished material would be of such length that it would be split for publishing as the self proclaimed ‘Difficult Second Issue’ and third in the series with the latter appearing a month later. Although rapid production of the cover and initial four story pages (attributed to “creative use of white space” by the authors) began following the completion of issue one, during work on #2 Mark found the composite fight scene between the characters of JackHammer and the alien invader extremely time-consuming, to such an extent that he later commented that the “single nine panel page had almost killed the title and him there and then”. Fortunately the remainder of the sequences in the story were completed with the use of edited DEMORECORD files choreographed with the assistance of another player, Julie Sword and her characters.
Following the dissolution of the creative partnership between Birch and McCreadie a fourth issue was started In January 2006 with an original story by Mark, intended to give a much broader overview of the team and their personalities than they recieved in their premier storyline, however as of September 2007 only the cover and three finished pages have been completed
The backup story from the first issue Red Knight on Sky recently re-appeared in a re-imagined format featuring new layout and art within the pages of CCC Compendium #4, the production of which Mark has said caused his interest in the characters to be re-ignited. However during production of his abortive City Of Villains set series ‘The Darkwatch’ he commented that he found a return to the ‘house style’ established for the finishes and page layouts of his COx based comic titles “difficult to raise any enthusiasm for”.
Issues
Invasion?
23/05/89 and when a mysterious object falls to Earth the staff of M.O.D. Project: Patriot are dispatched by their shadowy mentor to investigate whether this is the vanguard of an invasion from space. What Task Force UK don't know is that the UFO has also attracted the interest of other parties or that the alien visitor is prepared for them...
Back up story: Red Knight on Sky.
A flash into the future as the de facto leader of the group takes part in a live broadcast from the street of Paragon City in the top rated life-in-spandex documentary series "Capes".
Inter Alia
As the rest of the team apparently fall, immobilised, to their doom the enigmatic Doctor Smith considers his separation and imprisonment in a pocket dimension, while back in the real world non-powered colonial hero JackHammer fights a losing battle for his life against the alien mercenary.
Having faked their crash landing the Task Force have regrouped nearby and discover that the intruder’s signals are directed not back into space, but to somewhere else on Earth!
End Game
Rescuing their overseas visitor the team take the fight to the mysterious alien attacker, while his backers watch from afar. An explosive miscalculation causes damage to his living ship which is relaying the signal and holding the last member of TFUK in stasis. Now free to take the knowledge of the aliens' mission from his mind, Doctor Smith tries unsuccessfully to prevent the failed invader from being retrieved by his masters with a Force Bolt.
Even then though the menace may not be over as an out of control Scots Guard threatens his team mates...
Back up story: Red Knight in The Enemy Within.
Red Knight is interrupted while compiling his after action report on the mission to the Lake District, but who doesn't want all the facts of recent events to be known..?
Red Knight on Sky
A newly remastered version of TFUK#1's flash into the future as the de facto leader of the group takes part in a live broadcast from the street of Paragon City in the top rated life-in-spandex documentary series "Capes".
Featuring a brand new cover homage to the 2005 original first issue and sample pages from the never before seen issue four.
Cast
Doctor Smith
Merlyn
Red Knight
Sol Star
JackHammer
d'Vorka
Powerbroker
