Dynamo Joe
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| Dynamo Joe | |
|---|---|
 Dynamo Joe #1 (May 1986), art by Doug Rice. | |
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | First Comics |
| Schedule | monthly |
| Format | standard |
| Publication date | May 1986–January 1988 |
| No. of issues | 15 |
| Main character(s) | Elanian Daro Pomru Purrwakkawakka |
| Creative team | |
| Created by | Doug Rice John Ostrander |
| Written by | John Ostrander Phil Foglio |
| Artist(s) | Doug Rice Ben Dunn |
Dynamo Joe[1] was a comic book series published by First Comics from 1986 to 1988. Created, plotted and drawn by Doug Rice, it was scripted first by John Ostrander then by Phil Foglio. Ben Dunn sometimes filled in for Rice on the art.
The series occurred in the future, involving a war in which three star-faring civilizations are being invaded by the alien and seemingly mindless Mellenares, huge green killing machines traveling in a straight line and destroying everything in their path. The brunt of the human defenses are giant, fusion-powered robots ("battle suits") called "Dynamo Class Robosoldiers" and crewed by living individuals. These battle suits can be configured for either planetary or space combat, and contain or use a wide variety of weaponry. Dynamo Joe focuses on the crew of one such suit: Imperium soldier Elanian Daro and Tavitan (humanoid feline) mechanic Pomru Purrwakkawakka, and their critical contributions to the war effort. Dynamo Joe ranged in tone from action-packed space opera to slapstick humor.
The series premiered as a back-up in the comic book series "Mars" published by FIRST COMICS, INC., then ran as a staple for the five-issue run of the anthology First Adventures, before moving to its own series. The back-up shorts found in MARS comic issues #10-12 were reprinted (with additional pages added) in "Dynamo Joe Special #1". Dynamo Joe was supposed to be a three-issue limited series, but ended up running for 15 issues, reaching a sort of resolution before cancellation. Rice was a fan of Japanese giant robot adventures, such as Robotech, and the battle suits were designed in that spirit.
(FIRST Comics in which Dynamo Joe appears)
Mars #10-12 ("Retreat From Fergusson", "The Key To Survival", "Escape Velocity")
First Adventures #1-5
Grimjack #30
Dynamo Joe Special #1 (reprinting the 3 titles (listed above) that appeared in Mars #10-12, plus a cutaway schematic of DJ and other sundry extras)
Dynamo Joe #1-15
Characters
Elanian Daro
Elanian Daro was once a captain in the Imperium Officer Corp, and for some undisclosed reason was busted down to the rank of sergeant. It is known that the Magna Khan himself takes personal interest in Elanian Daro and considers him to be of great value. When busted out of the Imperium military, he was quickly snatched up by the Earth forces and attained the rank of Over Sergeant and placed in a command position. Elanian once held the temporary rank of general when the asteroid used for a command base was taken over by the "dreamers" that had been taken over by the Mellenares. Daro came to be a personal friend of the base commander, who apparently had more data on Daro than he himself did.
Daro had a sister who was consort to the Imperium prince that oversaw the Imperium fleet. She was killed when the prince attempted to overthrow the Magna Khan.
Pomru Purrwakkawakka
Pomru Purrwakkawakka was given great leniency in modifying the Dynamo Joe battlesuit and was known for pilfering objects and performing frequent modifications, despite the fact that he had clearance to nearly anything he wanted. He figured it was easier to ask forgiveness than permission—he also considered petty larceny to be part of the "fun" involved. Dynamo Joe was the most advanced robosoldier suit on the front line as a result of his ongoing upgrades, many of which were derived from observing/studying the extra-dimensional, sentient battlesuit "Wolf-1", which was operated by a mercenary from the pan-dimensional city of Cynosure.