Tom Strong
Tom Strong is an American comic book series created by writer Alan Moore and artist Chris Sprouse, initially published bi-monthly by America's Best Comics, an imprint of DC Comics' WildStorm division. Tom Strong, the title character, is a "science hero", with a wife, Dhalua, and a daughter, Tesla, both with enhanced physical and mental abilities and longevity. He lives in a building called The Stronghold in Millennium City. He is also helped by Pneuman, a steam-powered robot, and King Solomon, a gorilla with human characteristics. His greatest foe is tuxedo-clad "science villain" Paul Saveen. The series explores many different timelines and universes, which are a nod to different comic genres. The primary characters are tributes to and spoofs of early pulp heroes.
Spin-offs include Tom Strong's Terrific Tales, Terra Obscura, and the one-shot The Many Worlds of Tesla Strong. A limited series titled Tom Strong and the Planet of Peril was published in 2013 by Vertigo.
Tom Strong appears in The Terrifics, a DC Comics series about a group of the same name formed by Mr. Terrific, Metamorpho, Plastic Man and Phantom Girl.
Fictional character biography
Tom is reared in a high-gravity chamber and given an intensive education by his eccentric scientist parents on the fictional West Indian island of Attabar Teru. His upbringing, plus ingesting a root used by the natives of the island for health and long life, makes him nearly physically and mentally perfect. Though born at the dawn of the 20th century, by the year 2000 he looks as if he is only in his 40s.Tom Strong frequently has adventures alongside his younger self. There is also a parallel cartoon universe where a talking bunny is a version of Tom Strong, as well as a Western universe, and even "Tom Teen", where characters are similar to those from Archie Comics.
Powers and abilities
Tom Strong has super-strength and is an inventive genius. Strong maintains his physical health and longevity through the regular consumption of a mysterious herb called Goloka Root. He is an explorer with vast personal wealth and has contributed greatly to the technology available in Millennium City.Publication history
Issues #1–7
The following issues are collected in Tom Strong: Book One:Tom Strong #1 – How Tom Strong Got Started
w: Alan Moore p: Chris Sprouse i: Alan Gordon c: Tad Ehrlich
Tom Strong #2 – Return of the Modular Man
w: Alan Moore p: Chris Sprouse i: Alan Gordon c: Tad Ehrlich
Tom Strong #3 – Aztech Nights
w: Alan Moore p: Chris Sprouse i: Alan Gordon c: Tad Ehrlich
Tom Strong #4 – Swastika Girls!
w: Alan Moore p: Chris Sprouse, Arthur Adams i: Alan Gordon c: Tad Ehrlich
Tom Strong #5 – Memories of Pangaea, Escape from Eden!
w: Alan Moore p: Chris Sprouse, Jerry Ordway i: Alan Gordon c: Tad Ehrlich
Tom Strong #6 – Dead Man's Hand, The Big Heat?
w: Alan Moore p: Chris Sprouse, Dave Gibbons i: Alan Gordon, Dave Gibbons c: Mike Garcia
Tom Strong #7 – Sons and Heirs, Showdown in the Shimmering City
w: Alan Moore p: Chris Sprouse, Gary Frank i: Alan Gordon, Cam Smith c: Mike Garcia
Issues #8–14
The following issues are collected in Tom Strong: Book Two:Tom Strong #8 – Riders of the Lost Mesa; The Old Skool!; Sparks
w: Alan Moore p: Chris Sprouse, Alan Weiss i: Alan Gordon, Alan Weiss c: Wildstorm FX, Mike Garcia
Tom Strong #9 – Terror Temple of Tayasal; Volcano Dreams; Flip Attitude!
w: Alan Moore p: Chris Sprouse, Paul Chadwick i: Alan Gordon, Paul Chadwick c: Matt Hollingsworth
Tom Strong #10 – Tom Strong and his Phantom Autogyro; Funnyland!; Too Many Teslas?
w: Alan Moore p: Chris Sprouse, Gary Gianni i: Alan Gordon, Gary Gianni c: Matt Hollingsworth
Tom Strong #11 – Strange Reunion
w: Alan Moore p: Chris Sprouse i: Alan Gordon c: Matt Hollingsworth, David Baron
Tom Strong #12 – Terror on Terra Obscura!
w: Alan Moore p: Chris Sprouse i: Alan Gordon c: Matt Hollingsworth
Tom Strong #13 – The Tower at Time's End!
w: Alan Moore p: Chris Sprouse, Kyle Baker, Russ Heath, Pete Poplaski i: Alan Gordon c: Matt Hollingsworth
Tom Strong #14 – Space Family Strong; The Land of Heart's Desire!; Baubles of the Brain Bazaar!
w: Alan Moore p: Chris Sprouse, Hilary Barta i: Alan Gordon, Hilary Barta c: Matt Hollingsworth
Issues #15–19
The following issues are collected in Tom Strong: Book Three:Tom Strong #15 – Ring Of Fire!
w: Alan Moore p: Chris Sprouse i: Karl Story c: Matt Hollingsworth
Tom Strong #16 – Some Call Him The Space Cowboy
w: Alan Moore p: Chris Sprouse i: Karl Story c: Alex Sinclair
Tom Strong #17 – Ant Fugue!
w: Alan Moore p: Chris Sprouse i: Karl Story c: Alex Sinclair
Tom Strong #18 – The Last Roundup
w: Alan Moore p: Chris Sprouse i: Karl Story c: Dave Stewart
Tom Strong #19 – Electric Ladyland!; Bad To The Bone; The Hero-Hoard Of Horatio Hogg!
w: Alan Moore, Leah Moore p: Chris Sprouse, Howard Chaykin, Shawn McManus
i: Karl Story, Howard Chaykin, Steve Mitchell c: Dave Stewart
Issues #20–25
The following issues are collected in Tom Strong: Book Four:Tom Strong #20 – How Tom Stone Got Started: Chapter One
w: Alan Moore p: Jerry Ordway i: Karl Story c: Dave Stewart
Tom Strong #21 – How Tom Stone Got Started: Chapter Two – Strongmen In Silvertime
w: Alan Moore p: Jerry Ordway i: Trevor Scott, Karl Story, Richard Friend c: Wildstorm FX
Tom Strong #22 – How Tom Stone Got Started: Chapter Three – Crisis In Infinite Hearts
w: Alan Moore p: Jerry Ordway i: Jerry Ordway, Sandra Hope, Richard Friend c: Dave Stewart
Tom Strong #23 – Moonday
w: Peter Hogan p: Chris Sprouse i: Karl Story, John Dell c: Dave Stewart
Tom Strong #24 – Snow Queen
w: Peter Hogan p: Chris Sprouse i: Karl Story, John Dell c: Dave Stewart
Tom Strong #25 – Tom Strong's Pal, Wally Willoughby
w: Geoff Johns p: John Paul Leon i: John Paul Leon c: Dave Stewart
Issues #26–30
The following issues are collected in Tom Strong: Book Five:Tom Strong #26 – The Day Tom Strong Renegotiated the Friendly Skies
w: Mark Schultz p: Pasqual Ferry i: Pascual Ferry c: Wendy Fouts, Carrie Strachan
Tom Strong #27 – Jenny Panic and the Bible of Dreams
w: Steve Aylett p: Shawn McManus i: Shawn McManus c: Wildstorm FX
Tom Strong #28 – A Fire in His Belly
w: Brian K. Vaughan p: Peter Snejbjerg c: Wildstorm FX
Tom Strong #29 – The Terrible True Life of Tom Strong, Part 1
w: Ed Brubaker p: Duncan Fegredo i: Duncan Fegredo c: Carrie Strachan
Tom Strong #30 – The Terrible True Life of Tom Strong, Part 2
w: Ed Brubaker p: Duncan Fegredo i: Duncan Fegredo c: Michelle Madsen
Issues #31–36
The following issues are collected in the final volume Tom Strong: Book Six:Tom Strong #31 – The Black Blade of the Barbary Coast, Part 1
w: Michael Moorcock p: Jerry Ordway i: Jerry Ordway c: Michelle Madsen
Tom Strong #32 – The Black Blade of the Barbary Coast, Part 2
w: Michael Moorcock p: Jerry Ordway i: Jerry Ordway c: Michelle Madsen
Tom Strong #33 – The Journey Within
w: Joe Casey p: Ben Oliver i: Ben Oliver c: Joe Mettler
Tom Strong #34 – The Spires of Samakhara
w: Steve Moore p: Paul Gulacy i: Jimmy Palmiotti c: Michelle Madsen
Tom Strong #35 – Cold Calling
w: Peter Hogan p: Chris Sprouse i: Karl Story
Tom Strong #36 – Tom Strong at the End of the World
w: Alan Moore p: Chris Sprouse i: Karl Story c: José Villarrubia
Additional appearances
America's Best Comics: 64 Page Giant features a Tom Strong story written by Steve Moore with pencils by Humberto Ramos and inks by John Totleben.- The ABC Preview was polybagged with Wizard magazine and this story is the actual first appearance of Tom Strong and King Solomon, albeit in a one-page cameo.
- Tom Strong also makes an appearance in The Many Worlds of Tesla Strong, a 64-page story written by Peter Hogan with various artists.
- Promethea also has an appearance from Tom Strong, which is recounted from Strong's perspective in issue #36.Tomorrow Stories Special #2 includes an "America's Best" story, "The Lethal Luck of the Magister Ludi". This is set in the Silver Age of the ABC universe and features Tom Strong, the Cobweb, the William Woolcott version of Promethea, Splash Brannigan, Johnny Future, and air-ace heroine Fancy O'Keefe. The story is a pastiche, printed on deliberately aged-looking paper and with mock-1960s art, of Silver Age Justice League comics.
- Tom Strong's name is mentioned in Top 10: The Forty-Niners during an old World War II video as one of 'America's Science Heroes' who joined in the war effort to fight the Nazis.
- Tom Strong is featured as a recurring guest-star in the DC Comics series, The Terrifics.
''Tom Strong's Terrific Tales''
Tom Strong's Terrific Tales was an anthology spin-off from the parent title. It usually featured three regular stories in each issue:- One story would usually focus on Tom Strong, or on one of his supporting cast, and be either experimental or humorous in tone.
- Another would be a Young Tom Strong tale.
- A Jonni Future story would often round out the issue. The series ran for twelve issues, and would be sporadically published over the space of a couple of years.
- A silent story in which Tesla steals the keys to the Hyper-Saucer and parties on another planet
- King Solomon in a solo adventure
- A prose history of Millennium City, with illustrations by Michael Kaluta
- Another silent story, with art by Peter Kuper
- A collaboration between Alan Moore and Peter Bagge, which recasts the Strong family in a milieu not unlike the one used by Bagge in his Buddy Bradley stories. This was printed in the final issue, and features appearances by characters resembling Dick Tracy, Fred Flintstone and the Kool-Aid Man.
Limited series
In 2010, Peter Hogan and Chris Sprouse produced the six-issue series Tom Strong and the Robots of Doom, followed by six-issue story Tom Strong and the Planet of Peril in 2013.Collected editions
The Tom Strong series been collected in several formats:Individual VolumesTom Strong: Book One, issues #1–7 Tom Strong: Book Two, issues #8–14 Tom Strong: Book Three, issues #15–19 Tom Strong: Book Four, issues #20–25 Tom Strong: Book Five, issues #26–30 Tom Strong: Book Six, issues #31–36
OmnibusesTom Strong: Deluxe Edition: Book 1, issues #1–12 Tom Strong: Deluxe Edition: Book 2, issues #13–24 Tom Strong Compendium, issues #1–36
Limited Series, Spinoffs & CameosTom Strong and the Robots of Doom, issues #1–6 Tom Strong and the Planet of Peril, issues #1-6 Tom Strong's Terrific Tales: Book One, issues #1–6 Tom Strong's Terrific Tales: Book Two, issues #7–12 America's Best Comics, containing the short story Skull & Bones, the 64-page story The Many Worlds of Tesla Strong and the original one-page cameo from the ''ABC Preview''