The Phantom comic books are published by Wick Comics in Germany, having commenced in 2022. This series is projected to consist of a total of 12 editions, with 10 editions released thus far from 2022 to 2025.
Wick Comics, led by Ulrich Wick, is a German publisher established in 1999. The company specializes in publishing German-language comic book material, often focusing on classic or archival European comic series and character reprints. Alongside their successful, long-completed series such as “Karl May,” “Der rote Ritter,” and the “Frank Sels Archiv,” the publisher continues to actively produce and release content for popular ongoing series, most notably “Silberpfeil” by Frank Sels and the “Phantom” series.
Wick Comics’ publications are characterized by their commitment to archival quality, restoration, and editorial depth, making them a valuable source for comic enthusiasts. The publisher maintains a direct relationship with its readership, and due to the limited nature of their print runs, interested readers are often advised to contact Ulrich Wick via the company’s website directly for information on obtaining copies of their specialty, German-text comics.
The Phantom comic books contains approximately 36 black and white pages in a large format which measure 29.5cm x 21cm with German text. The series is dedicated to reprinting stories originally created for the German Bastei publisher by the creative team of writer Peter Mennigen and artist José María Ortiz Tafalla. Each edition contains distinctive covers by Turkish artist Ertuğrul Edirne which were originally published in Turkey with the Phantom seen in his red costume, however have been recolored for the German market, now seen in a purple costume.
The series includes a total of 22 Phantom comic strip stories, with 5 Phantom stories from the Bastei era which had never been previously published in comic form. These issues, which are often limited to a small print run of around 700 copies, are primarily printed in black and white, though some special issues feature digitally remastered color.
The editions released thus far are presented below; ten of the expected twelve.
All comic book front covers prominently display the publisher’s name, ‘Wick Comics,’ along with the edition number located in the bottom right corner. The header of each edition is inscribed as ‘BASTEI FREUNDE PRÄSENTIEREN PHANTOM,’ which translates to ‘BASTEI FRIENDS PRESENT PHANTOM.’ Additionally, the title of the Phantom comic strip story contained within is also printed on the front cover.
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