A beloved Canadian comic book superhero is returning with a vengeance to ward off the threat of an unlikely adversary to the south.
Fans of Captain Canuck, a Mountie-turned-otherworldly warrior known for his quintessentially Canadian attire — white and red maple leaf-adorned armour — are leaning on his image to ignite a renewed sense of pride from coast to coast.
Captain Canuck first gained popularity in the 1970s and grew to represent the strength and spirit of Canada. Decades later, he has resurfaced as a symbol of patriotism in light of U.S. President Donald Trump’s pursuit of the country’s sovereignty.
“All of a sudden, Canadians are looking to Captain Canuck as a symbol. And it’s basically, to them, Captain Canuck symbolizes independence,” said Richard Comely, the artist who co-created the comic book superhero, to Global News.
Comley created Captain Canuck at a time where he felt Canadians needed their own icon, one that matched up to Captain America.
“I think there was an undercurrent, so to speak, in Canada in the ’70s. So I think Canadians were starting to feel like they should acknowledge the fact that we had our own country, and we had our own culture and be proud of the fact that we were Canadians,” he explained.
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Since the first publication in 1975, there have been four million Captain Canuck-themed comic books, books and graphic novels in print worldwide, Comely said.
In his original storyline, Comely saw Canada as a world power that warded off threats from groups seeking to undermine its independence, though the U.S. was not on his bingo card.
“Of course, never, never in any of those stories was it America that was going to be taking over Canada,” Comely said.
But, for the cover of Captain Canuck’s 50th anniversary issue, he decided to depict the superhero waving a disapproving finger at Trump, who has repeatedly said he wants to make Canada the 51st state.
“It’s got a lot of Canadians thinking about their identity as Canadians and feeling more united as Canadians. We feel like, OK, we’ve got to stand in opposition to these proposals,” he said.
Captain Canuck fell silent for some time while Comely raised his family before making a brief return in the ’90s in Captain Canuck Reborn.
In 2012, Comely signed an exclusive licensing deal with Chapterhouse Comics. Since then, Captain Canuck has become a pillar of the comic book scene, boasting an animated web series and memorabilia.
In recent times, Comely says he has received more calls from Canadian companies expressing “keen interest” in the fictional character due to the political tensions between Canada and the U.S.
“So in a sense, we have Mr. Trump to thank for a bit of resurgence,” he said.
— With files from Reuters
