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The original strip ran from 1950 to 1965, with a number of format changes and a general decline in quality in the last few years. It has been revived several times, often with wildly different versions of the character: in ''ComicBook/TwoThousandAD'' (1977-1979), in the ''New Eagle'' (1982-early 1990s) and, most recently, in a limited series written by Creator/GarthEnnis.
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The original strip ran from 1950 to 1965, with a number of format changes and a general decline in quality in the last few years. It has been revived several times, often with wildly different versions of the character: in ''ComicBook/TwoThousandAD'' (1977-1979), in the ''New Eagle'' (1982-early 1990s) and, most recently, 1990s, featuring a descendant of the original Dan), an especially cynical miniseries in the pages of ''Revolver'' written by Creator/GrantMorrison (1990-1991), and a limited series written by Creator/GarthEnnis.Creator/GarthEnnis (2007-2008).
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* IronicEcho: In the 2008 mini-series: "You were asking about Digby."[[spoiler: To clarify: Digby is killed during a battle against the Mekon's forces. When Dan Dare is seemingly captured and brought before the Mekon, the Mekon mockingly asks him "No Digby?" Then, in the final battle, the Mekon ends up powerless and prone before Dare, who provide the Ironic Echo before a well-deserved stabbing.]]
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* CreatorCameo: Several characters were drawn to resemble members of Hampson's team: Gretchen Franklin as Peabody, Eric Eden as O'Malley and Hampson himself as Deputy-Commissioner O'Brien.
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* CreatorCameo: Several characters were drawn to resemble members of Hampson's team: Gretchen Franklin as Peabody, Eric Eden as O'Malley and Hampson himself as Deputy-Commissioner Deputy-Controller O'Brien.
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* CreatorCameo: Several characters were drawn to resemble members of Hampson's team: Gretchen Franklin as Peabody, Eric Eden as O'Mallry and Hampson's himself as Deputy-Commissioner O'Brien.
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* CreatorCameo: Several characters were drawn to resemble members of Hampson's team: Gretchen Franklin as Peabody, Eric Eden as O'Mallry O'Malley and Hampson's Hampson himself as Deputy-Commissioner O'Brien.
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* CreatorCameo: Several characters were drawn to resemble members of Hampson's team: Gretchen Franklin as Peabody, Eric Eden as O'Mallry and Hampson's himself as Deputy-Commissioner O'Brien.
** Desmond Walduck, who drew ''Prisoners of Space'', added himself to the last instalment as a press photographer.
** Desmond Walduck, who drew ''Prisoners of Space'', added himself to the last instalment as a press photographer.
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* SpotOfTea: Digby is something of a tea addict.
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* InNameOnly:
** It can be argued that the 2008 virgin comics mini-series changes the setting, characters and technology so much, that it is unrecognizable from the classic original series it supposedly follows. Of particular offense is a scene which suggests the original strip was dumbed down stories for children. FridgeBrilliance or TakeThat? Take your pick.
** Let's not forget the ComicBook/TwoThousandAD stories. Dan was far more of a gung-ho bruiser who'd prefer to KillEmAll then talk things out.
** The New Eagle strips were about a completely different character with the same name, albeit a descendant of the original. That said, he was more like his ancestor than the original Dan in his later appearances.
** It can be argued that the 2008 virgin comics mini-series changes the setting, characters and technology so much, that it is unrecognizable from the classic original series it supposedly follows. Of particular offense is a scene which suggests the original strip was dumbed down stories for children. FridgeBrilliance or TakeThat? Take your pick.
** Let's not forget the ComicBook/TwoThousandAD stories. Dan was far more of a gung-ho bruiser who'd prefer to KillEmAll then talk things out.
** The New Eagle strips were about a completely different character with the same name, albeit a descendant of the original. That said, he was more like his ancestor than the original Dan in his later appearances.
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* TheSwarm: The Red Moon turns out to be the home of nothing more than some bee-like insects that can swarm on a planet and strip it of ''all'' its vegetation.
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* ContrivedCoincidence: On a Martian holiday, Dan pats a visit to his archaeologist Uncle Ivor, who explains that he's recently discovered that Martian civilisation was destroyed by something called the Red Moon. As Dan leaves he gets a message from Sir Hubert: A mysterious object from space has turned up, and could Dan investigate? The papers are calling it the Red Moon...
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* CoolOldLady: Aunt Anastasia. Her MomentOfAwesome came when she noticed a hidden distress message in a communication from Digby. She immediately headed to Spacefleet HQ, pushed past all the guards, barged into the Acting Controller's office and demanded that he listen. This ended with a commando raid on the visiting Treen ships while she sat quietly in the office with a cup of tea.
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* IWantMyJetpack: The strip's 1990s have hotels on Mars and everyday gadgets including personal helicopter backpacks.
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* IWantMyJetpack: The strip's 1990s have hotels on Mars and everyday gadgets including [[HelicopterPack personal helicopter backpacks.backpacks]].
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* {{Nephewism}}: Digby was raised by his Aunt Anastasia. Similarly, the only member of Dan's family we meet is Uncle Ivor.
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* HeelFaceTurn: Dan fairly often persuaded a member of a villain race to change sides, the prime example being Sondar.
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* ShoutOut: The comic strip is referenced in Music/PinkFloyd's ''Music/ThePiperAtTheGatesOfDawn''
--> ''Stairway scare, Dan Dare, who's there?''
--> ''Stairway scare, Dan Dare, who's there?''
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The original strip ran from 1950 to 1965, with a number of format changes and a general decline in quality in the last few years. It has been revived several times, often with wildly different versions of the character: in ''ComicBook/TwoThousandAD'' (1977-1979), in the ''New Eagle'' (1982-early 1990s) and, most recently, in a limited series written by GarthEnnis.
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The original strip ran from 1950 to 1965, with a number of format changes and a general decline in quality in the last few years. It has been revived several times, often with wildly different versions of the character: in ''ComicBook/TwoThousandAD'' (1977-1979), in the ''New Eagle'' (1982-early 1990s) and, most recently, in a limited series written by GarthEnnis.Creator/GarthEnnis.
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* PragmaticAdaptation: Given that GarthEnnis ''isn't'' WarrenEllis, he was unable to fill the 2008 limited series with scads of TechnologyPorn. Instead, he focused on what he ''is'' good at - characterization, particularly that of the half-broken yet unrepentantly idealistic Dare.
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* PragmaticAdaptation: Given that GarthEnnis Creator/GarthEnnis ''isn't'' WarrenEllis, he was unable to fill the 2008 limited series with scads of TechnologyPorn. Instead, he focused on what he ''is'' good at - characterization, particularly that of the half-broken yet unrepentantly idealistic Dare.
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* FakeDefector: For some reason, Dan's general disapproval of lying doesn't extend to opposing this, and he fully supports Steve Valiant and Digby on the separate occasions when they pull this trick on the Mekon.
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* HeroicLineage: The Dan who appeared in the 1980s strips was a great-grandson of the Dan from the 1950s strips.
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* ScienceMarchesOn: The strip put some effort into being scientifically plausible in its early years, even using ArthurCClarke as an advisor, but science has marched a long way since 1950. In particular, almost all the planets of the solar system are depicted as being capable of supporting human life.
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* ThoseTwoBadGuys: In the short Eagle Annual stories, Dan often found himself up against a skinny/fat pair of crooks called Starbuck and Vulcani (who appeared to have wandered in off the set of fellow Eagle strip PC49).
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* ThoseTwoBadGuys: In the short Eagle Annual stories, Dan often found himself up against a skinny/fat pair of crooks called Starbuck and Vulcani (who appeared to have wandered in off the set of fellow Eagle strip PC49).[=PC49=]).
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* ThoseTwoBadGuys: In the short Eagle Annual stories, Dan often found himself up against a skinny/fat pair of crooks called Starbuck and Vulcani.
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* ThoseTwoBadGuys: In the short Eagle Annual stories, Dan often found himself up against a skinny/fat pair of crooks called Starbuck and Vulcani.Vulcani (who appeared to have wandered in off the set of fellow Eagle strip PC49).
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* ThoseTwoBadGuys: In the short Eagle Annual stories, Dan often found himself up against a skinny/fat pair of crooks called Starbuck and Vulcani.
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* SeadogBeard: Lex O'Malley certainly has one.
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* AFatherToHisMen: Sir Hubert, as Dan explicitly pointed out to some politicians who wanted to destroy a space station he was on at the time. Dan himself was more of a Brother to his Men.
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* AFatherToHisMen: Sir Hubert, as Dan explicitly pointed out to some politicians who wanted to destroy a space station he was on at the time. Dan himself was more of a Brother to his Men.
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* AFatherToHisMen: Sir Hubert, as Dan explicitly pointed out to some politicians who wanted to destroy a space station he was on at the time. Dan himself was more of a Brother to his Men.
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* AerialCanyonChase: {{Subverted}} during the 'All Treens Must Die' storyline. After being released from his imprisonment for genocide as Earth, now with its defences offline, came under a surprise assault from the Mekon's invasion force, in a last, desperate bid to do something, Dan and his crew were bunged into the Anastasia and told to do whatever they could. When one enemy fighter launched a missile on their tail, Dan tried to use the local canyon to escape it. Unfortunately, the missile was just as good, and his attempts to get back out of the canyon were thwarted by fighter wings at a higher altitude keeping them pinned down. With a mountain looming up ahead, Dan tried pulling straight up anyway, noted the missile was still unfazed, and just turned to his crew and apologised. Annie promptly took the missile up the tailpipe.
* AnimatedAdaptation: There was a cgi Dan Dare cartoon at the TurnOfTheMillennium.
* AnimatedAdaptation: There was a cgi Dan Dare cartoon at the TurnOfTheMillennium.
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* AerialCanyonChase: {{Subverted}} during the 'All Treens Must Die' storyline. After being released from his imprisonment for genocide as Earth, now with its defences offline, came under a surprise assault from the Mekon's invasion force, in a last, desperate bid to do something, Dan and his crew were bunged into the Anastasia ''Anastasia'' and told to do whatever they could. When one enemy fighter launched a missile on their tail, Dan tried to use the local canyon to escape it. Unfortunately, the missile was just as good, and his attempts to get back out of the canyon were thwarted by fighter wings at a higher altitude keeping them pinned down. With a mountain looming up ahead, Dan tried pulling straight up anyway, noted the missile was still unfazed, and just turned to his crew and apologised. Annie promptly took the missile up the tailpipe.
* AnimatedAdaptation: There was acgi Dan Dare CGI ''Dan Dare'' cartoon at the TurnOfTheMillennium.
* AnimatedAdaptation: There was a
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* {{Fighting Irish}}: Perhaps not a perfect example of the trope, but Lex O'Malley was never one to turn down a scrap.
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* {{Fighting Irish}}: Perhaps not a perfect example of the trope, but Lex O'Malley was never one to turn down a scrap. And had the nose to prove it.
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* OldSchoolDogfighting: Space battles are depected a lot like World War II air combat.
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* OldSchoolDogfighting: OldSchoolDogfight: Space battles are depected a lot like World War II air combat.
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[[quoteright:300:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Dan_Dare_9946.jpg]]
Classic British science fiction comic strip, created by Frank Hampson in the ''Eagle'' comic in 1950. Colonel Dan Dare of the Interplanet Space Fleet and his band of companions would explore other planets and defend the Earth from a variety of colourful alien threats, including arch-enemy the Mekon. The strip was known for the high quality of its artwork and its long, complex storylines, which could run for over a year of weekly two-page episodes.
The original strip ran from 1950 to 1965, with a number of format changes and a general decline in quality in the last few years. It has been revived several times, often with wildly different versions of the character: in ''ComicBook/TwoThousandAD'' (1977-1979), in the ''New Eagle'' (1982-early 1990s) and, most recently, in a limited series written by GarthEnnis.
----
!!Tropes:
* AcePilot: Dan.
* AerialCanyonChase: {{Subverted}} during the 'All Treens Must Die' storyline. After being released from his imprisonment for genocide as Earth, now with its defences offline, came under a surprise assault from the Mekon's invasion force, in a last, desperate bid to do something, Dan and his crew were bunged into the Anastasia and told to do whatever they could. When one enemy fighter launched a missile on their tail, Dan tried to use the local canyon to escape it. Unfortunately, the missile was just as good, and his attempts to get back out of the canyon were thwarted by fighter wings at a higher altitude keeping them pinned down. With a mountain looming up ahead, Dan tried pulling straight up anyway, noted the missile was still unfazed, and just turned to his crew and apologised. Annie promptly took the missile up the tailpipe.
* AnimatedAdaptation: There was a cgi Dan Dare cartoon at the TurnOfTheMillennium.
* AsYouKnow: [[LampshadeHanging Lampshaded]] in an early strip:
-->'''Dan:''' The impulse waves are broadcast into space from stations on the Earth, Moon and Mars, picked up by the ships and stored in Impulse Cylinders like a battery stores electricity. Then the waves are fed to the engines as required - it saves carrying tons of fuel - right?
-->'''Hubert:''' Yes Dan and C-A-T spells cat. What's the point of this elementary lesson?
* CliffHanger: Every episode. Sometimes involving actual cliffs.
* CoolChair: The Mekon sits on a hovering chair. In some stories it also has defensive shields or other gadgets.
* CoolStarship: The ''Anastasia'', a unique combination of human and alien technology.
* ColonelBadass: Colonel Dan Dare.
* DistinguishedGentlemansPipe: Dare was sometimes seen smoking a pipe, perhaps as a {{Shout Out}} to the pipe-smoking RAF officers of the Second World War on whom the character was based.
* FashionsNeverChange: A lot of the main cast wear military uniforms, but everyone else dresses like it's the 1950s.
* FasterThanLightTravel: Gradually introduced during the initial run. The first few stories are [[InterplanetaryVoyage set in our solar system]]. The first faster-than-light trip turns out to be a slower-than-light ship that put the crew into suspended animation for most of the voyage. The development of real FTL travel was a plot point in a later story, and it eventually [[CasualInterstellarTravel became commonplace]].
* {{Fighting Irish}}: Perhaps not a perfect example of the trope, but Lex O'Malley was never one to turn down a scrap.
* {{Heavyworlder}}: The gravity on Venus is approximately 90% of that on Earth, giving every human a small degree of superstrength while on the planet. They're not kryptonians, but it does give them a bit of an edge.
* HonorBeforeReason: Dan has a rigid code of honour that the Mekon tries to exploit.
* HordeOfAlienLocusts: The story 'The Red Moon Mystery' featured "space bees" that would strip planets of organic life.
* InterplanetaryVoyage: In the first few years the stories were set entirely in the solar system.
* IWantMyJetpack: The strip's 1990s have hotels on Mars and everyday gadgets including personal helicopter backpacks.
* JokerImmunity: The Mekon almost always gets away. On the rare occasions he doesn't, the heroes capture him and put him in prison, from which he eventually escapes. Averted in the case of every ''other'' villain, who tend to be around for one story and die at the end of it.
* MyBrainIsBig: The Mekon.
* OldSchoolDogfighting: Space battles are depected a lot like World War II air combat.
* OfficerAndAGentleman: Pretty much everyone, but especially Dan.
* OmnidisciplinaryScientist: Prof. Peabody is an expert in whatever science the story requires.
* PragmaticAdaptation: Given that GarthEnnis ''isn't'' WarrenEllis, he was unable to fill the 2008 limited series with scads of TechnologyPorn. Instead, he focused on what he ''is'' good at - characterization, particularly that of the half-broken yet unrepentantly idealistic Dare.
-->'''Prime Minister''': He has all this wonderful memorabilia, it really is quite charming... What I can't understand is why he said yes so readily; he quite obviously despises all that I stand for, but there he is, off to fight for king and country...\\
'''Jocelyn Peabody''': I imagine he considers it his duty... Dan was dedicated to the International Space Fleet. He saw it as everything that was best about us: Mankind United, no more wars on Earth. But when all's said and done, he's still an Englishman. When his country's threatened, he'll answer the call.
* PseudoCrisis: With a cliffhanger every two pages, some of them are bound to be less than essential to the plot.
* RaygunGothic
* ReptilesAreAbhorrent: The Mekon's race, Treens, are reptilian humanoids.
* SchematizedProp: The strip would sometimes include cutaway technical drawings of the spaceships and other tech.
* ScienceMarchesOn: The strip put some effort into being scientifically plausible in its early years, even using ArthurCClarke as an advisor, but science has marched a long way since 1950. In particular, almost all the planets of the solar system are depicted as being capable of supporting human life.
* ShinyLookingSpaceships: The ships weren't usually shiny as such, but were almost always brightly coloured. (The spaceship interiors, on the other hand, were often cramped and utilitarian.)
* {{Sidekick}}: Albert Fitzwilliam Digby.
* TheSmurfettePrinciple: Prof. Peabody is pretty much the only female character.
* SpaceClothes: Averted in the case of humans, who wear 1950s clothes even while walking around their futuristic cities. The aliens wear classic Space Clothes, though.
* SpaceDoesNotWorkThatWay: The strip made some effort to get the science right, but there were some errors, such as spacesuits hanging and folding in a way that looks like they are not pressurized (because they were drawn from real-life models wearing overalls), and spaceships manouevring like aeroplanes.
* TheSpock: Sondar, whose species (Treens) have suppresed all emotion.
* SpockSpeak: Sondar.
* TeleportersAndTransporters: The telesender (which needed a machine at both ends).
* TwentyMinutesIntoTheFuture: The first story was set in the then-distant 1990s.
* ThouShaltNotKill: Space-Fleet pistols fired non-lethal, paralysing gas, and Dan was always keen to find non-violent solutions to conflicts. Thrown out the window in the Ennis series, where the Royal Navy (who have taken over Space-Fleet's duties) pack futuristic assault rifles, and Dan apparently lethally wounds the Mekon in their climactic battle with what looks like a katana.
* TrueCompanions: The regular cast changed with each story, but the members would always be unfailingly loyal to one another.
* WillNotTellALie: Part of Dan's rigid (even by 1950s standards) code of honour. Some other characters are more flexible.
* {{Zeerust}}
----
Classic British science fiction comic strip, created by Frank Hampson in the ''Eagle'' comic in 1950. Colonel Dan Dare of the Interplanet Space Fleet and his band of companions would explore other planets and defend the Earth from a variety of colourful alien threats, including arch-enemy the Mekon. The strip was known for the high quality of its artwork and its long, complex storylines, which could run for over a year of weekly two-page episodes.
The original strip ran from 1950 to 1965, with a number of format changes and a general decline in quality in the last few years. It has been revived several times, often with wildly different versions of the character: in ''ComicBook/TwoThousandAD'' (1977-1979), in the ''New Eagle'' (1982-early 1990s) and, most recently, in a limited series written by GarthEnnis.
----
!!Tropes:
* AcePilot: Dan.
* AerialCanyonChase: {{Subverted}} during the 'All Treens Must Die' storyline. After being released from his imprisonment for genocide as Earth, now with its defences offline, came under a surprise assault from the Mekon's invasion force, in a last, desperate bid to do something, Dan and his crew were bunged into the Anastasia and told to do whatever they could. When one enemy fighter launched a missile on their tail, Dan tried to use the local canyon to escape it. Unfortunately, the missile was just as good, and his attempts to get back out of the canyon were thwarted by fighter wings at a higher altitude keeping them pinned down. With a mountain looming up ahead, Dan tried pulling straight up anyway, noted the missile was still unfazed, and just turned to his crew and apologised. Annie promptly took the missile up the tailpipe.
* AnimatedAdaptation: There was a cgi Dan Dare cartoon at the TurnOfTheMillennium.
* AsYouKnow: [[LampshadeHanging Lampshaded]] in an early strip:
-->'''Dan:''' The impulse waves are broadcast into space from stations on the Earth, Moon and Mars, picked up by the ships and stored in Impulse Cylinders like a battery stores electricity. Then the waves are fed to the engines as required - it saves carrying tons of fuel - right?
-->'''Hubert:''' Yes Dan and C-A-T spells cat. What's the point of this elementary lesson?
* CliffHanger: Every episode. Sometimes involving actual cliffs.
* CoolChair: The Mekon sits on a hovering chair. In some stories it also has defensive shields or other gadgets.
* CoolStarship: The ''Anastasia'', a unique combination of human and alien technology.
* ColonelBadass: Colonel Dan Dare.
* DistinguishedGentlemansPipe: Dare was sometimes seen smoking a pipe, perhaps as a {{Shout Out}} to the pipe-smoking RAF officers of the Second World War on whom the character was based.
* FashionsNeverChange: A lot of the main cast wear military uniforms, but everyone else dresses like it's the 1950s.
* FasterThanLightTravel: Gradually introduced during the initial run. The first few stories are [[InterplanetaryVoyage set in our solar system]]. The first faster-than-light trip turns out to be a slower-than-light ship that put the crew into suspended animation for most of the voyage. The development of real FTL travel was a plot point in a later story, and it eventually [[CasualInterstellarTravel became commonplace]].
* {{Fighting Irish}}: Perhaps not a perfect example of the trope, but Lex O'Malley was never one to turn down a scrap.
* {{Heavyworlder}}: The gravity on Venus is approximately 90% of that on Earth, giving every human a small degree of superstrength while on the planet. They're not kryptonians, but it does give them a bit of an edge.
* HonorBeforeReason: Dan has a rigid code of honour that the Mekon tries to exploit.
* HordeOfAlienLocusts: The story 'The Red Moon Mystery' featured "space bees" that would strip planets of organic life.
* InterplanetaryVoyage: In the first few years the stories were set entirely in the solar system.
* IWantMyJetpack: The strip's 1990s have hotels on Mars and everyday gadgets including personal helicopter backpacks.
* JokerImmunity: The Mekon almost always gets away. On the rare occasions he doesn't, the heroes capture him and put him in prison, from which he eventually escapes. Averted in the case of every ''other'' villain, who tend to be around for one story and die at the end of it.
* MyBrainIsBig: The Mekon.
* OldSchoolDogfighting: Space battles are depected a lot like World War II air combat.
* OfficerAndAGentleman: Pretty much everyone, but especially Dan.
* OmnidisciplinaryScientist: Prof. Peabody is an expert in whatever science the story requires.
* PragmaticAdaptation: Given that GarthEnnis ''isn't'' WarrenEllis, he was unable to fill the 2008 limited series with scads of TechnologyPorn. Instead, he focused on what he ''is'' good at - characterization, particularly that of the half-broken yet unrepentantly idealistic Dare.
-->'''Prime Minister''': He has all this wonderful memorabilia, it really is quite charming... What I can't understand is why he said yes so readily; he quite obviously despises all that I stand for, but there he is, off to fight for king and country...\\
'''Jocelyn Peabody''': I imagine he considers it his duty... Dan was dedicated to the International Space Fleet. He saw it as everything that was best about us: Mankind United, no more wars on Earth. But when all's said and done, he's still an Englishman. When his country's threatened, he'll answer the call.
* PseudoCrisis: With a cliffhanger every two pages, some of them are bound to be less than essential to the plot.
* RaygunGothic
* ReptilesAreAbhorrent: The Mekon's race, Treens, are reptilian humanoids.
* SchematizedProp: The strip would sometimes include cutaway technical drawings of the spaceships and other tech.
* ScienceMarchesOn: The strip put some effort into being scientifically plausible in its early years, even using ArthurCClarke as an advisor, but science has marched a long way since 1950. In particular, almost all the planets of the solar system are depicted as being capable of supporting human life.
* ShinyLookingSpaceships: The ships weren't usually shiny as such, but were almost always brightly coloured. (The spaceship interiors, on the other hand, were often cramped and utilitarian.)
* {{Sidekick}}: Albert Fitzwilliam Digby.
* TheSmurfettePrinciple: Prof. Peabody is pretty much the only female character.
* SpaceClothes: Averted in the case of humans, who wear 1950s clothes even while walking around their futuristic cities. The aliens wear classic Space Clothes, though.
* SpaceDoesNotWorkThatWay: The strip made some effort to get the science right, but there were some errors, such as spacesuits hanging and folding in a way that looks like they are not pressurized (because they were drawn from real-life models wearing overalls), and spaceships manouevring like aeroplanes.
* TheSpock: Sondar, whose species (Treens) have suppresed all emotion.
* SpockSpeak: Sondar.
* TeleportersAndTransporters: The telesender (which needed a machine at both ends).
* TwentyMinutesIntoTheFuture: The first story was set in the then-distant 1990s.
* ThouShaltNotKill: Space-Fleet pistols fired non-lethal, paralysing gas, and Dan was always keen to find non-violent solutions to conflicts. Thrown out the window in the Ennis series, where the Royal Navy (who have taken over Space-Fleet's duties) pack futuristic assault rifles, and Dan apparently lethally wounds the Mekon in their climactic battle with what looks like a katana.
* TrueCompanions: The regular cast changed with each story, but the members would always be unfailingly loyal to one another.
* WillNotTellALie: Part of Dan's rigid (even by 1950s standards) code of honour. Some other characters are more flexible.
* {{Zeerust}}
----
