Steel Claw
Encyclopedia
The Steel Claw was one of the most popular comic book
heroes of British weekly adventure comics
of the 1960s and 1970s. The character was revived in 2005 for Albion
, a six issue mini-series published by the Wildstorm
imprint of DC Comics
.
dated 6 October 1962. The strip was one of several put together for the comic by Fleetway
editors Ken Mennell, Jack Le Grand and Sid Bicknell, and was then refined by writer Ken Bulmer and artist Jesús Blasco
. After the first three serials, Bulmer left the title, and was replaced by Tom Tully
. The Steel Claw appeared in Valiant throughout much of the 1960s and was one of the most popular strips in the comic. Tully wrote the series for the remainder of its run. The story ended briefly in May 1970, but a year later was back, retitled Return of the Claw, which would run until 1973.
In 1967, Fleetway featured the character in a number of digest-size original stories in their Stupendous Series of Super Library comics. The Steel Claw would alternate with The Spider
from Lion
in these books, with the Claw featuring in the odd-numbered editions. Because of the pressures of deadlines, these monthly titles saw a variety of different writers and artists employed, usually various Italian artists, most notably future 2000 AD
artist Massimo Belardinelli
. These ran until January 1968.
However when Valiant merged with Battle Picture Weekly
, the strip transferred to Vulcan, from 1975, in a series of reprints. The strip had by now found popularity worldwide, including in Germany, India and Sweden, and it remained in print in these countries long after the character's final appearance in the UK.
The Steel Claw remained fondly remembered by its fans and future comic creators, and during the Alan Moore
and Alan Davis
run of Captain Britain
comic, The Steel Claw was renamed The Iron Tallon for a brief cameo appearance. This was followed by a four issue series published by Quality Comics
in 1986, which reprinted material from Valiant (in this, the character's name was edited to 'Louis Randell', and the stories were coloured), with new framing material drawn by Garry Leach
.
The character remained in limbo for a number of years until Grant Morrison
used The Steel Claws superhero incarnation (as well as a number of British heroes from the 1960s) in his Zenith strip in 2000AD. This was followed by a one-off special featuring The Steel Claw, amongst other 1960s characters, which was created by various 2000AD creators of the time.
However this failed to spawn any continuing series and the character again entered limbo, until it was announced in 2005 that DC Comics
would be using the character along with a number of other IPC characters, in a six issue mini-series called Albion
. This would be plotted by Alan Moore, and written by Leah Moore
and John Reppion
, with art by Shane Oakley
and George Freeman
. The series was complimented by an album collection, published by Titan Books
, reprinting the Ken Bulmer/Jesus Blasco serials from Valiant.
Crandell initially used his new found gift to steal, and became a psychotic criminal. In early strips he was clearly a villain, but he later decided to use his new powers in crime fighting (it was explained that the accident which made it possible for him to become invisible had temporarily made him insane). He joined a British secret service and espionage
agency, known as the Shadow Squad. Armed with his steel claw, which by now was equipped with a variety of weapons and tools in each finger, as well as with his power of invisibility, Louis Crandell battled various criminal geniuses, aliens, and the organisation known as F.E.A.R. (the Federation for Extortion, Assassination and Rebellion).
Louis Crandell briefly donned a metal mesh superhero
outfit for a time during his adventures. His claw had a number of inbuilt weapons, amongst them being able to fire missiles and gas along with a built in radio transmitter and receiver. This was not to last though, and Crandell quickly returned to his secret agent roots. By now his Claw was also remote controlled and stacked full of gadgets. After retiring from the Shadow Squad, Louis Crandell became a detective, and then a bounty hunter, before distrust of his past eventually led him to go to South America, where he continued to fight crime.
When The Steel Claw was reprinted by Quality Comics, a framing sequence featured Crandell (called Randell in this version) as an aging secret agent reflecting on his early criminal career. His appearance in Zenith saw him disabled during battle, eventually dying from blood loss. This was followed by his appearance in 2000AD Action, where Crandell was portrayed as a burnt out government assassin.
In Paul Grist
's comic, Jack Staff
, a character called Ben Kulmer appears as The Claw. This character is a thief who tries to steal the Claw from a museum, only to have it attach itself to his left hand, and then receives the same invisibility powers, as well as added strength and shock powers in the Claw. He is now working as part of a group called "Q".
In the novel Sherlock Holmes y los zombis de Camford (Sherlock Holmes and the Camford Zombies, Ediciones Dolmen, 2010; ISBN 13: 978-84-938143-4-2) by Spanish author Alberto López Aroca, Steel Claw (Louis Crandell) appears under the name "Lewis Crandle", and his career as an agent of the Shadow Squad (a branch of the Club Diogenes from Arthur Conan Doyle
's stories in this version) is set back to the beginning of the XX century (the novel takes place in 1903). "Lewis Crandle" appears in this novel alongside a number of other IPC-Fleetway characters (Timothy Jekyll aka Tim Kelly; Seth Pride aka The Spider
; Mightech aka Mytek; among others.)
. However, the stories which were published in Kobra were partly incomplete, switching between stories unpredictably. Finally the magazine was discontinued, leaving German fans in dismay.
(1990-91 - 9 nrs published).
It seems all the stories published in Portugal are signed Spanish artist Jesus Blasco
:
Portugal Press: Jaguar (1971) #3; Titã (1973) #2; Lince (1974) #6; Jornal do Cuto (1971) #19-#41
Agência Portuguesa de Revistas: Ciclone (1972) #565 / Condor Popular #8704
Mundo de Aventuras: (1966-72) #895; #903; #977; #1013; #1026; #1170
Steel Claw was also distributed in Portugal via Angolan Editorial Globo(1976): Grandes Aventuras #1; #2; #3; #5; #7; #10; #12; #14; #16; #18; #24
becoming one of India's most popular action hero
es. In Tamil Nadu
Irumbukkai Maayavi, in Kerala
, Urukkukai Maayavi, and in Andhra Pradesh
Ukkupidi Maayavi became a popular hero for many millions of fans. In Tamil Nadu The Steel Claw was published by Muthu Comics in 1971, under the license of Fleetway Publications. Around this time, Telugu language version of Steel Claw comics were distributed for a price along with apopular Telugu children's monthly magazine. Later Lion Comics
, published the adventures of Steel Claw in South India.
This series was published in the Hindi monthly magazine Parag
under the name fauladi panja.
The series was brought to Kerala by Regal Comics and published from Kottayam
in the 1970s and 1980s. In Kerala the tremendous popularity of the series triggered many rip-offs of Steel Claw. CID Michael, CID Moosa and CID Mahesh were the Kerala equivalents of Steel Claw, though their abilities differed. In some comics these characters would make themselves invisible with a wrist watch switch, supposedly an ultra-modern device. In some comics Mahesh is invisible except for his iron helmet, a direct influence from the Steel Claw series.
Comic book
A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...
heroes of British weekly adventure comics
History of the British comic
A British comic is a periodical published in the United Kingdom that contains comic strips. It is generally referred to as a comic or a comic magazine, and historically as a comic paper....
of the 1960s and 1970s. The character was revived in 2005 for Albion
Albion (comics)
Albion is a six-issue comic book limited series plotted by Alan Moore, written by his daughter Leah Moore and her husband John Reppion, with covers by Dave Gibbons and art by Shane Oakley and George Freeman. As a result of a deal forged by Vice President Bob Wayne of DC Comics and Publishing...
, a six issue mini-series published by the Wildstorm
Wildstorm
WildStorm Productions, or simply WildStorm, published American comic books. Originally an independent company established by Jim Lee and further expanded upon in subsequent years by other creators, WildStorm became a publishing imprint of DC Comics in 1999...
imprint of DC Comics
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. is one of the largest and most successful companies operating in the market for American comic books and related media. It is the publishing unit of DC Entertainment a company of Warner Bros. Entertainment, which itself is owned by Time Warner...
.
Publishing history
The Steel Claw first appeared in the debut edition of ValiantValiant (comic)
Valiant was the title of a British boys adventure comics anthology which ran from 1962 to 1976. It was published by IPC Magazines and was one of their major adventure titles throughout the 1960s and early 1970s.-Publication history:...
dated 6 October 1962. The strip was one of several put together for the comic by Fleetway
Fleetway
Fleetway, also known as Fleetway Publications and Fleetway Editions, was a UK publishing company which mainly produced comic magazines. For a time owned by IPC Media, they are now a division of Egmont Publishing....
editors Ken Mennell, Jack Le Grand and Sid Bicknell, and was then refined by writer Ken Bulmer and artist Jesús Blasco
Jesús Blasco
Jesús Blasco was a Spanish author and artist of comic books, whose career covered most of the conventional history of comic strips. He worked extensively in British comics in the 1960s and 1970s.-Career:...
. After the first three serials, Bulmer left the title, and was replaced by Tom Tully
Tom Tully (comic writer)
Tom Tully is a noted British comic writer mostly of sports and action stories. He is probably most famous as the longest-running writer of the popular football-themed strip Roy of the Rovers, which he wrote for much of Roy Race's playing career until the weekly comic closed in 1993.-Biography:From...
. The Steel Claw appeared in Valiant throughout much of the 1960s and was one of the most popular strips in the comic. Tully wrote the series for the remainder of its run. The story ended briefly in May 1970, but a year later was back, retitled Return of the Claw, which would run until 1973.
In 1967, Fleetway featured the character in a number of digest-size original stories in their Stupendous Series of Super Library comics. The Steel Claw would alternate with The Spider
The Spider (comics)
The Spider is a British comic book character who began as a supervillain before becoming a superhero. He appeared in Lion between 26 June 1965 and 26 April 1969 and was reprinted in Vulcan. He was created by writer Ted Cowan and artist Reg Bunn...
from Lion
Lion (comic)
Lion was a weekly comic published by Fleetway from 23 February 1952 to 18 May 1974. It lasted for 1,156 issues.-Publishing history:...
in these books, with the Claw featuring in the odd-numbered editions. Because of the pressures of deadlines, these monthly titles saw a variety of different writers and artists employed, usually various Italian artists, most notably future 2000 AD
2000 AD (comic)
2000 AD is a weekly British science fiction-oriented comic. As a comics anthology it serialises a number of separate stories each issue and was first published by IPC Magazines in 1977, the first issue dated 26 February. IPC then shifted the title to its Fleetway comics subsidiary which was sold...
artist Massimo Belardinelli
Massimo Belardinelli
Massimo Belardinelli was an Italian comics artist best known for his work in the British science fiction comic 2000 AD.-Biography:...
. These ran until January 1968.
However when Valiant merged with Battle Picture Weekly
Battle Picture Weekly
Battle Picture Weekly, at various time also known as Battle Action Force, Battle and Battle with Storm Force, was a British war comic published by IPC Magazines from 8 March 1975 to 23 January 1988, when it merged with Eagle...
, the strip transferred to Vulcan, from 1975, in a series of reprints. The strip had by now found popularity worldwide, including in Germany, India and Sweden, and it remained in print in these countries long after the character's final appearance in the UK.
The Steel Claw remained fondly remembered by its fans and future comic creators, and during the Alan Moore
Alan Moore
Alan Oswald Moore is an English writer primarily known for his work in comic books, a medium where he has produced a number of critically acclaimed and popular series, including Watchmen, V for Vendetta, and From Hell...
and Alan Davis
Alan Davis
Alan Davis is an English writer and artist of comic books, known for his work on titles such as Captain Britain, The Uncanny X-Men, ClanDestine, Excalibur, JLA: The Nail and JLA: Another Nail.-UK work:...
run of Captain Britain
Captain Britain
Captain Britain , briefly known as Britannic, is a fictional character, a superhero appearing in the comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Chris Claremont and Herb Trimpe, he first appeared in Captain Britain Weekly, #1...
comic, The Steel Claw was renamed The Iron Tallon for a brief cameo appearance. This was followed by a four issue series published by Quality Comics
Quality Communications
Quality Communications is a British publishing company founded by Dez Skinn in 1982. Quality was initially formed to publish the award-winning monthly comics anthology Warrior. The company has been involved with comics in both the UK and the U.S., mainly with reprint material from Warrior and...
in 1986, which reprinted material from Valiant (in this, the character's name was edited to 'Louis Randell', and the stories were coloured), with new framing material drawn by Garry Leach
Garry Leach
-Biography:Garry Leach studied Graphic Design at St. Martin's School of Art. He was first noted for his early work for 2000 AD, which was mainly on one-off stories featuring Dan Dare and M.A.C.H. 1. He then became a fan-favourite for his work on the series The VCs.In 1981 he joined Dez Skinn's...
.
The character remained in limbo for a number of years until Grant Morrison
Grant Morrison
Grant Morrison is a Scottish comic book writer, playwright and occultist. He is known for his nonlinear narratives and counter-cultural leanings, as well as his successful runs on titles like Animal Man, Doom Patrol, JLA, The Invisibles, New X-Men, Fantastic Four, All-Star Superman, and...
used The Steel Claws superhero incarnation (as well as a number of British heroes from the 1960s) in his Zenith strip in 2000AD. This was followed by a one-off special featuring The Steel Claw, amongst other 1960s characters, which was created by various 2000AD creators of the time.
However this failed to spawn any continuing series and the character again entered limbo, until it was announced in 2005 that DC Comics
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. is one of the largest and most successful companies operating in the market for American comic books and related media. It is the publishing unit of DC Entertainment a company of Warner Bros. Entertainment, which itself is owned by Time Warner...
would be using the character along with a number of other IPC characters, in a six issue mini-series called Albion
Albion (comics)
Albion is a six-issue comic book limited series plotted by Alan Moore, written by his daughter Leah Moore and her husband John Reppion, with covers by Dave Gibbons and art by Shane Oakley and George Freeman. As a result of a deal forged by Vice President Bob Wayne of DC Comics and Publishing...
. This would be plotted by Alan Moore, and written by Leah Moore
Leah Moore
Leah Moore is an English comic book writer. She is the daughter of Alan Moore and Phyllis Moore, and is married to John Reppion. She has worked with both Alan and John on the comic Albion. She has also written for other comics and publications including Tom Strong and The End Is Nigh...
and John Reppion
John Reppion
John Mark Reppion is a British writer. He is married to Leah Moore, the daughter of Alan Moore, and he has worked with both on the comic Albion.-Biography:...
, with art by Shane Oakley
Shane Oakley
Shane Oakley is a British illustrator and comic book artist from Stoke-on-Trent, England.-Biography:He began his career contributing to the alternative comics review Deadline Magazine in the 1980s . In 1989 Shane worked as the penciller on issues 1 to 6 of Mister X volume two...
and George Freeman
George Freeman
George Freeman is a Canadian comic book penciller, inker, and colorist.Freeman's comic book illustrating career began with Richard Comely's independent Canadian publication, Captain Canuck. He made the move to the majors and subsequently worked on several superhero comics, such as Green Lantern,...
. The series was complimented by an album collection, published by Titan Books
Titan Books
Titan Publishing Group is an independently owned publishing company, established in 1981. It is based at offices in London, England's Bankside area. The Books Division has two main areas of publishing: film & TV tie-ins/cinema reference books; and graphic novels and comics reference/art titles. The...
, reprinting the Ken Bulmer/Jesus Blasco serials from Valiant.
Character Biography
Louis Crandell was the assistant to the scientist Professor Barringer, until a laboratory accident in which he lost his right hand. He then used a prosthetic metal hand to substitute for it. In another laboratory accident, with a new ray, if he received a high voltage electric shock (from power lines, etc.) he would become invisible for a limited period of time, with the exception of his artificial hand.Crandell initially used his new found gift to steal, and became a psychotic criminal. In early strips he was clearly a villain, but he later decided to use his new powers in crime fighting (it was explained that the accident which made it possible for him to become invisible had temporarily made him insane). He joined a British secret service and espionage
Espionage
Espionage or spying involves an individual obtaining information that is considered secret or confidential without the permission of the holder of the information. Espionage is inherently clandestine, lest the legitimate holder of the information change plans or take other countermeasures once it...
agency, known as the Shadow Squad. Armed with his steel claw, which by now was equipped with a variety of weapons and tools in each finger, as well as with his power of invisibility, Louis Crandell battled various criminal geniuses, aliens, and the organisation known as F.E.A.R. (the Federation for Extortion, Assassination and Rebellion).
Louis Crandell briefly donned a metal mesh superhero
Superhero
A superhero is a type of stock character, possessing "extraordinary or superhuman powers", dedicated to protecting the public. Since the debut of the prototypical superhero Superman in 1938, stories of superheroes — ranging from brief episodic adventures to continuing years-long sagas —...
outfit for a time during his adventures. His claw had a number of inbuilt weapons, amongst them being able to fire missiles and gas along with a built in radio transmitter and receiver. This was not to last though, and Crandell quickly returned to his secret agent roots. By now his Claw was also remote controlled and stacked full of gadgets. After retiring from the Shadow Squad, Louis Crandell became a detective, and then a bounty hunter, before distrust of his past eventually led him to go to South America, where he continued to fight crime.
When The Steel Claw was reprinted by Quality Comics, a framing sequence featured Crandell (called Randell in this version) as an aging secret agent reflecting on his early criminal career. His appearance in Zenith saw him disabled during battle, eventually dying from blood loss. This was followed by his appearance in 2000AD Action, where Crandell was portrayed as a burnt out government assassin.
In Paul Grist
Paul Grist
Paul Grist is a British comic book creator, noted for his hard-boiled police series Kane and his unorthodox superhero series Jack Staff.-Biography:...
's comic, Jack Staff
Jack Staff
Jack Staff is a British superhero created by comic book writer/artist Paul Grist. Billed as "Britain's Greatest Hero", it is known for being in the style of an anthology title and for its multi-linear plotlines....
, a character called Ben Kulmer appears as The Claw. This character is a thief who tries to steal the Claw from a museum, only to have it attach itself to his left hand, and then receives the same invisibility powers, as well as added strength and shock powers in the Claw. He is now working as part of a group called "Q".
In the novel Sherlock Holmes y los zombis de Camford (Sherlock Holmes and the Camford Zombies, Ediciones Dolmen, 2010; ISBN 13: 978-84-938143-4-2) by Spanish author Alberto López Aroca, Steel Claw (Louis Crandell) appears under the name "Lewis Crandle", and his career as an agent of the Shadow Squad (a branch of the Club Diogenes from Arthur Conan Doyle
Arthur Conan Doyle
Sir Arthur Ignatius Conan Doyle DL was a Scottish physician and writer, most noted for his stories about the detective Sherlock Holmes, generally considered a milestone in the field of crime fiction, and for the adventures of Professor Challenger...
's stories in this version) is set back to the beginning of the XX century (the novel takes place in 1903). "Lewis Crandle" appears in this novel alongside a number of other IPC-Fleetway characters (Timothy Jekyll aka Tim Kelly; Seth Pride aka The Spider
The Spider
The Spider was one of the major pulp magazine heroes of the 1930s and 1940s.- Background :The Spider was created by Harry Steeger at Popular Publications in 1933 as competition to Street and Smith Publications' vigilante hero, The Shadow...
; Mightech aka Mytek; among others.)
Steel Claw around the world
The Steel Claw enjoyed wide popularity in Europe and Asia, the adventures featuring the Shadow Squad being the most popular of the series.Steel Claw in France
The Steel Claw is known as Main d’Acier in France, which literally means “Hand of Steel”. In France, several series of The Steel Claw appeared, published by Gémini editions and MCL. The early Steel Claw series appeared in the Gémini editions which were published between 1962 and 1980.Steel Claw in Germany
In Germany in the 1970s the magazine Vulcan was published under the title Kobra, which used most of IPC's adventure strips, including The Steel Claw, Mytek the Mighty, Kelly's Eye, The Spider, and Robot ArchieRobot Archie
Robot Archie is the name of a fictional comic book character who first appeared in Lion #1 published in February 1952.-Publishing history:...
. However, the stories which were published in Kobra were partly incomplete, switching between stories unpredictably. Finally the magazine was discontinued, leaving German fans in dismay.
Steel Claw in Finland
Steel Claw was published in Finland in the early 1970s, firstly in a series of digest-sized pocket books, and then as part of the "Sarjakuvalehti", which had three or four different stories each month. The series were mostly about The Steel Claw's adventures as a Shadow Squad agent. The Steel Claw stories also appeared occasionally in "Mustanaamio" during the early 1980s.Steel Claw in Netherlands
Steel Claw was published in the Netherlands in the pocket (digest sized) comic serie Superstrip as De Stalen Vuist (Steel Fist) since the late 1960s. #1 in this series was actually a Steel Claw story.Steel Claw in Sweden
Steel Claw was published in Sweden under the name Stålhanden (Steel Hand) from 1969 onwards, in the magazines Swisch (1969-70 - 19 nrs published, then absorbed in Serie-Nytt), Serie-Nytt (1970–74), reprints appeared in Seriemagasinet (1977–80), various very early stories thus far unreleased in Sweden are found in its spin-off SM Special (1979–85). Steel Claw episodes appeared sporadically in Seriemagasinet until the late 1990s. Reprints further appeared in BarracudaBarracuda
The barracuda is a ray-finned fish known for its large size and fearsome appearance. Its body is long, fairly compressed, and covered with small, smooth scales. Some species could reach up to 1.8m in length and 30 cm in width...
(1990-91 - 9 nrs published).
Steel Claw in Portugal
The Steel Claw is known as Garra d'Aço or Garra de Aço in Portugal, literally from the English "Steel Claw".It seems all the stories published in Portugal are signed Spanish artist Jesus Blasco
Jesús Blasco
Jesús Blasco was a Spanish author and artist of comic books, whose career covered most of the conventional history of comic strips. He worked extensively in British comics in the 1960s and 1970s.-Career:...
:
Portugal Press: Jaguar (1971) #3; Titã (1973) #2; Lince (1974) #6; Jornal do Cuto (1971) #19-#41
Agência Portuguesa de Revistas: Ciclone (1972) #565 / Condor Popular #8704
Mundo de Aventuras: (1966-72) #895; #903; #977; #1013; #1026; #1170
Steel Claw was also distributed in Portugal via Angolan Editorial Globo(1976): Grandes Aventuras #1; #2; #3; #5; #7; #10; #12; #14; #16; #18; #24
Steel Claw in South India
Steel Claw achieved cult status in IndiaIndia
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
becoming one of India's most popular action hero
Action hero
An action hero is a character, usually a protagonist, in an action-adventure novel, film, television show, or game.-Further reading:*Osgerby, Bill, Anna Gough-Yates, and Marianne Wells. Action TV : Tough-Guys, Smooth Operators and Foxy Chicks. London: Routledge, 2001.*Tasker, Yvonne. Action and...
es. In Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu is one of the 28 states of India. Its capital and largest city is Chennai. Tamil Nadu lies in the southernmost part of the Indian Peninsula and is bordered by the union territory of Pondicherry, and the states of Kerala, Karnataka, and Andhra Pradesh...
Irumbukkai Maayavi, in Kerala
Kerala
or Keralam is an Indian state located on the Malabar coast of south-west India. It was created on 1 November 1956 by the States Reorganisation Act by combining various Malayalam speaking regions....
, Urukkukai Maayavi, and in Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh , is one of the 28 states of India, situated on the southeastern coast of India. It is India's fourth largest state by area and fifth largest by population. Its capital and largest city by population is Hyderabad.The total GDP of Andhra Pradesh is $100 billion and is ranked third...
Ukkupidi Maayavi became a popular hero for many millions of fans. In Tamil Nadu The Steel Claw was published by Muthu Comics in 1971, under the license of Fleetway Publications. Around this time, Telugu language version of Steel Claw comics were distributed for a price along with apopular Telugu children's monthly magazine. Later Lion Comics
Lion comics
Lion comics is a Tamil Comic Book series published by Prakash Publishers, in South India. Both Lion Comics and its sister publication 'Muthu Comics' , are published monthly in Tamil language. In fact, Muthu Comics is the forerunner to Lion Comics, even though the later has taken over as the...
, published the adventures of Steel Claw in South India.
This series was published in the Hindi monthly magazine Parag
Parag (magazine)
Parag was a monthly Hindi children's magazine published from Delhi by The Times Group in the 1980s and 1990s. It was among the most popular children's magazines of its time, but stopped publication after more than a decade of publishing....
under the name fauladi panja.
The series was brought to Kerala by Regal Comics and published from Kottayam
Kottayam
Kottayam is a city in the Indian state of Kerala, spread over an area of 55.40 km2. It is the administrative capital of the Kottayam district. Kottayam Kottayam (Malayalam: കോട്ടയം) is a city in the Indian state of Kerala, spread over an area of 55.40 km2. It is the administrative...
in the 1970s and 1980s. In Kerala the tremendous popularity of the series triggered many rip-offs of Steel Claw. CID Michael, CID Moosa and CID Mahesh were the Kerala equivalents of Steel Claw, though their abilities differed. In some comics these characters would make themselves invisible with a wrist watch switch, supposedly an ultra-modern device. In some comics Mahesh is invisible except for his iron helmet, a direct influence from the Steel Claw series.
Steel Claw in Former Yugoslavia
Steel Claw was first printed by Croatian publishing house "Plavi vjesnik" in its "Super Strip Biblioteka" edition under the name "Čelična Pandža", back in 1967. Later the stories were printed in several magazines all over the country until late '80s. Serbian publisher Dečje novine published this comic in its edition "Gigant" under the name "Čelična Kandža".Steel Claw Names
| Country | Name | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| France France The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France... |
Main d'Acier | Steel Hand |
| Spain Spain Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula... |
Zarpa de Acero | Steel Claw |
| Finland Finland Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside... |
Teräsnyrkki | Steel Fist |
| Netherlands Netherlands The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders... |
Stalen Vuist | Steel Fist |
| Sweden Sweden Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund.... |
Stålhanden | Steel Hand |
| Portugal Portugal Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the... |
Garra d'Aço / Garra de Aço | Steel Claw |
| Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu is one of the 28 states of India. Its capital and largest city is Chennai. Tamil Nadu lies in the southernmost part of the Indian Peninsula and is bordered by the union territory of Pondicherry, and the states of Kerala, Karnataka, and Andhra Pradesh... (India India India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world... ) |
Irumbukkai Maayavi | Iron hand invisible man |
| Kerala Kerala or Keralam is an Indian state located on the Malabar coast of south-west India. It was created on 1 November 1956 by the States Reorganisation Act by combining various Malayalam speaking regions.... (India India India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world... ) |
Urukkukai Maayavi | Iron hand invisible man |
| Yugoslavia Yugoslavia Yugoslavia refers to three political entities that existed successively on the western part of the Balkans during most of the 20th century.... (Former) |
Čelična Pandža / Čelična Kandža | Steel Claw |
| Slovenia Slovenia Slovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of... (in former Yugoslavia) |
Jeklena pest | Steel Fist |