Prince Valiant Vol. 1: 1937-1938
 2010 Eisner Award Nominee: Best Archival Collection — Strips
HAROLD FOSTER’S LEGENDARY MEDIEVAL EPIC, FINALLY IN ITS DEFINITIVE EDITION
Universally acclaimed as the most stunningly gorgeous adventure comic strip of all time, Prince Valiant ran for 35 years under the virtuoso pen of its creator, Hal Foster. (Such was its popularity that today, decades after Foster’s death, it continues to run under different hands.)
The giant Sunday-funnies pages (Valiant ran only on Sundays) gave Foster a huge canvas upon which he was able to limn epic swordfights, stunning scenes of pomp and pageantry, and some of the most beautiful human beings — male and female — ever to appear in comics. And he matched his nonpareil visual sense with the narrative instincts of a born storyteller, propelling his daring young hero from one crisis to another with barely a panel to catch one’s breath.
Prince Valiant has previously been widely available only in re-colored, somewhat degraded editions (now out of print and fetching collectors’ prices). Thanks to advances in production technology and newly available original proof sheets, this new series from the industry leader in quality strip classics is the first to feature superb restored artwork that captures every delicate line and chromatic nuance of Foster’s original masterpiece. Comic strip aficionados will be ecstatic, and younger readers who enjoy a classic adventure yarn will be bowled over.
Volume One is rounded out with a rare, in-depth classic Foster interview previously available only in a long out-of-print issue of The Comics Journal, as well as an informative Afterword detailing the production and restoration of this edition, which you can read in its entirety right here on our website.
Download an EXCLUSIVE PDF excerpt of the first 10 strips (5 MB).
Prince Valiant Vol. 2: 1939-1940
For 35 years, Hal Foster created epic adventure and romantic fantasy in
his legendary Sunday strip, Prince Valiant. Realistic in its visual execution and
noble in its subject, depicting a time in which the fabled warriors of history
and legends fought together for the greater good, it remains one of the great
masterpieces of the medium.
In this second volume, Prince Valiant helps his father reclaim his throne in the kingdom of Thule, fights alongside King Arthur, and is made a knight of the
Round Table in recompense for his bravery and wit. Bored by the peace he
helped to create, Val decides to independently pull together the forces to battle
the Huns’ descent on Southern Europe. When Val’s army breaches the Huns’ stronghold, however, he discovers that corruption
reigns still further west in Rome. Thus Val sets off with Sir Gawain and Tristam of Arthurian legend fame, and
the familial kinship of the trio sees them through chivalrous escapades, false imprisonment and daring escapes. By the
end of this volume, they go their separate ways, and Val boards a ship to Sicily—yet a storm approaches, throwing him
off-course, as adventure follows him everywhere.
Fantagraphics is proud to present these strips, which, thanks to the use of original proof sheets and advances in printing
technology, are even brighter and crisper than when they were originally published 70 years ago. Foster’s work,
painterly and sweeping, is finally treated to the grand depiction it deserves. These illustrative, time-honored comic strips
will enthrall old readers and just as easily awe new ones.
Download an EXCLUSIVE 12-page PDF excerpt which includes Mark Schultz's Introduction and 9 strips (6.55 MB).
Prince Valiant Vol. 3: 1941-1942
With this volume, Foster reaches (by common critical consensus) the peak of his drawing and storytelling prowess – a peak at which he will remain for most of the run of this glorious strip.
Almost the entirety of 1941’s strips feature a single ten-month epic entitled “Fights for the Singing Sword,” a globetrotting adventure fueled by Valiant’s obsessive search for his bride-to-be Aleta throughout Northern Africa, with stops in Jerusalem, the Arabic deserts, and, inevitably, a harem which Val must infiltrate. Then finally, in “The Misty Isles” Valiant meets Aleta face to face but upon learning that she has had his crew killed (deservedly so, actually, but still), he flees in anger, vowing never to see her again.
“Homeward Bound,” Valiant continues his travels, with stops in Athens (where he meets the boisterous Viking Boltar, who will become his friend for life), North Africa, and Gaul (where Valiant liberates Gawain), before finally returning to Camelot. But his joyous return is short-lived as an alliance of Picts and Vikings threatens Britain’s security, and thus Valiant must journey forth with, as his ultimate destination, “The Roman Wall.”
The final pages of this volume boast a special feature: a gallery of images that were censored for being too sexy or violent (or subject to other editorial interference) prior to publication, plus another gruesome example of Foster's art being altered for publication, all with commentary by series editor Kim Thompson.
Download an EXCLUSIVE 12-page PDF excerpt which includes Dan Nadel's Foreword and 10 strips (9.5 MB).
Prince Valiant Vol. 4: 1943-1944
As this fourth volume begins, Prince Valiant, haunted by the lovely Aleta, seeks Merlin’s wise counsel. This brief episode segues into one of Hal Foster’s patented epics, “The Long Voyage to Thule,” which ran for seven straight months
and featured Valiant’s return to his birthplace and reunion with his father. Of
course, Foster’s astonishingly detailed and evocative depictions of Val’s home-
land contribute greatly to this sprawling epic.
After a series of shorter adventures including “The Seductress,” “The Call of
the Sea,” and “The Jealous Cripple,” Val finally decides he can stand it no more
and sets out to find his long-lost love. Long-time fans know that his quest will
eventually be successful, but Foster throws so many obstacles in the way of true
love that the saga “The Winning of Aleta” would end up stretching a full year
and a half, well into the next volume.
This volume also features
the debut of Foster’s charming "The Mediæval Castle" strip, and
an introductory essay by Foster scholar Brian M. Kane.
With stunning art reproduced directly from pristine printer’s proofs, Fantagraphics has introduced a new generation to Foster’s masterpiece, while providing long-time fans with the ultimate, definitive version of the strip.
Download and read a 12-page PDF excerpt which includes Brian Kane's Foreword and 9 strips (6.6 MB).
Praise for the series:
“A witch named Horrit once prophesied that Val would never know contentment, but fans of the strip will find it here.” – Vanity Fair
“Sure I’d read Foster before, but I’d never found a way in. Fortunately,
Fantagraphics recently released Prince Valiant Vol. 1: 1937-38, and I was
able to absorb the material in a wholly new way.... Prince Valiant opens
up a world that I wanted to stay in—a wide-eyed early 20th century
approach to fantasy with a now-vanished sincerity and wholesomeness.
It’s an all too rare pleasure in comics.” – Dan Nadel, Comics Comics
“Medieval swordplay and adventure have never been as glorious as in
Foster’s Sunday-only comic strip. This edition has been reproduced from
pristine printer’s proofs to give the gorgeous artwork its crispest version
ever.... Prince Valiant is one of the best-drawn comics ever, and this new
edition does ample justice to its achievement.” – Publishers Weekly
(Starred Review)
"For the current Prince Valiant enterprise... Fantagraphics found better source material... [and] the present effort is wonderfully faithful to the originals: not only is the color itself much much better, but the linear detail is stunning. ...[I]t’s the fabulously high quality of the reproduction that makes these volumes a bargain at $29.99 each..." – R.C. Harvey
"Fantagraphics' Prince Valiant reprints are handsome packages, indeed. Presented in a generous 10x14-inch format and starting at the beginning of the series, Hal Foster's art virtually leaps off the page, alive with detail and vigor. With a price point of under $30 per volume, how can you go wrong?"
– John Petty, Comics Buyer's Guide
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