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by Dave Scrimgeour & Kevin McCluskey   "This is the end. My only friend, the end." Cover date- April 1989 Price- 55p Writer- Simon Furman Artist- Geoff Senior Letterer- Gordon Robson Colourist- Steve White Editor- Richard Starkings Managing Editor- Jenny O’Connor Published by- Marvel Comics LTD SynopsisAll good things come to an end, as the Claws (in a post N.U.R.S.E. limbo) endanger any potential future employment as World Development Council operatives by interjecting themselves in a hostage situation. Little do they know that this will ultimately lead them to Tanya and Michael Dragon, as well as an explosive showdown with the ex-Game team turned mercenaries, Shrine. (K) Dave So, what's your thoughts on the final issue of Dragon's Claws? Any memories of this one? Kev Mainly just sadness that, for the title, it really was the "End of the Road." What about yourself? Dave I remember that about this issue too. It's actually a good closing issue, as it ties off the story well. Kev It really does. It also pulls off the trick of leaving it open enough to continue, were that ever to happen.  "Utinni!" Dave The opening page, again, is a great, striking image of this Star Wars-esque tank being chased by the Claws. Kev It's like the big carrier/container of the Jawas, isn't it? Dave Yeah, that's it. The Jawas' Sandcrawler. It's a real nod to that. Also, The World Development Council's European Seat of Power building is like a villains lair straight out of an early James Bond film. Like Blofeld's, in 'On Her Majestys Secret Service.' Kev So it is. It has that Swiss setting which is perfect for a Bond skiing chase scene too. It's interesting that the World Development Council merely benched the Claws in light of the revelations of the whole N.U.R.S.E. debacle, rather than having them arrested, or imprisoned or something. Dave They are doing the whole deniability routine. It's also interesting to see how Dragon and Deller work together. It's a real bickering partnership. The old 80's buddy buddy film nod. Kev Definitely. Deller even saves Dragon's life here. If this was issue two, he would've let him fall to his death. Even his "old man" jibes seem more playful than vindictive at this point. Dave It's quite a good issue for use of varied locations, from Switzerland to Cuba. Kev Yeh. We're definitely on an international stage now. Very much like a globe trotting Bond adventure in that sense, actually. Dave Also with Golding's defence speech of The Claws, we are cleverly given a recap of pretty much the entire series to this point. Kev Yes. A little concession for anyone late to the party and the series at its final stages. Just to get them up to speed. Perhaps hoping that if it got enough new readers, even at this stage, it might still continue. Golding’s inner monologue seems to suggest that the W.D.C. are just as corrupt as N.U.R.S.E. “And we can’t have that, can we? Even if we have to find a scapegoat or two.” Dave Golding knows that the only reason he has been pulled up before them is that they are looking to make a scapegoat of someone in all this. Kev Totally. Both he and the Claws are being set-up to be the fall-guys for all of N.U.R.S.E.'s wrongdoings and the W.D.C.'s incompetencies.  "Come, come, Mr. Bond. You know you derive just as much pleasure from killing as I do." Dave Was the Clown that hijacked the transporter an ex-Game players or just some random villain? We never got to find out. Kev I got the impression he was ex-Game. Perhaps a member of 'The Jesters'team that's referenced in Scavenger's file page, but yeh, that's another thing we never got a chance to find out for sure. Dave Again, maybe had the series kept on going he would have returned later, with a backstory to this. Kev I think this thread would most certainly have been picked-up on at some point, yes. Dave Between the panel where he leans out the window and shoots and the one where he says "All the fun of the fair! If anything Dragon, you've improved with age!" his outfit changes to green and yellow. This quote also suggests there's a previous history. Or he could just have been an avid fan of The Game?  Clownshoes! Kev I think the colour change on his outfit is nothing more than an example of how poor the reproduction is in the trade, man. Some of the colours are so washed-out it's unreal. He could've been just a fan actually, yeh. That's a good point. He could simply have been aware of Dragon and his abilities purely by reputation, rather than by personal experience. I always just assumed be was an ex-Game player turned human trafficker. It's just occurred to be, but the gun turret thing that Mercy is sitting in in the Pig is very Star Wars-esque as well. Dave Yeah, it is. I think Geoff Senior likes that type of technology. Kev He certainly draws inspiration from and leans towards a certain kind of sci-fi tech design and often architecture too.  "Great, kid! Don't get cocky!" Dave This issue seems to have a fair bit of nodding towards 'Star Wars' architecture actually, as the place where Tanya, Michael and her dad are being held hostage looks like something out of that series too. Kev It looks like it's Egyptian or Mayan architecture crossed with something out of 'Star Wars.' Dave Yes, I agree, there's very much a Mayan /Aztec theme in this issue. Shrine seem to lean more towards a supernatural element. While we're on the subject of the 'Star Wars' design influence, The Clown's airship looks a bit like a larger model of the landspeeder used by Luke Skywalker.  Mr. Jolly. Sorry, Jelly. Kev That design of vehicle seems to be quite common in the Earth of 8162. Dragon had something not too dissimilar all the way back in issue 1. Once again, we also have an instance of Digit questioning Dragon's leadership, as well his tactics here. Dave Yeah, it was definitely leading to a clash between Dragon and Digit. Again, this is something that could have been explored in-depth in later issues, had the series continued. Kev I think so. It gets even more heated, no pun intended, later in the issue when the Shrine HQ is ablaze. Dave The return of Shrine. Another bunch of colourful characters, led by the very physically imposing Kurran. A man mountain. Kev Kurran is an excellent character and I believe he gets a short shrift here, due to the comic ending. I would've liked to have seem him explored in greater detail. I love how dismissive of his followers he is when they wax lyrical about the crusade. “Yes! Yes! Another victory for the just and righteous. Was Holden picked up?” Dave He's clearly all about the money, is ol' Kurran. Kev Yeh. It's definitely something that he uses as a cover for his less morally righteous activities, shall we say. Dave Kurran is an out and out mercenary. Kev No doubt about it. Is this Furman making a comment on organised religion, perhaps? History is littered with examples of individuals, with questionable morals, using religion as a smokescreen for money and land grabs. And cults have a reputation for seizing their follower's assets.  "C'mon, baby, light my fire. Try to set the night on fire." Dave Perhaps Furman is making a comment about that. It certainly ties in with his interest in behind-the-scenes goings on in big organisations. I wonder where Digit would fit in with all this because, with the exception of Deller, he is the only memeber of the Claws who does not have this inbuilt sense of loyalty to Dragon and almost seems to want him to fail. Kev Digit is kind-of the odd-one-out on the team in that sense, isn't he? That's another thing I would've loved to have seen how it developed. Dave He has an agenda of some kind that has not yet been completely brought to the fore. When his thoughts reveal themselves, such as "Indeed, there are many files that will bear a much closer inspection at a later date", he's doing intel on something. Kev Yes, I agree. It's all very ominous and foreboding. Thing is, he's often not wrong concerning Dragon. He does make decisions with his emotions and his intervention at the Shrine HQ is nothing short of a disaster. Just ask Tanya's dad. Dave Yeah, Dragon's on the warpath and is clouded by anger. Tanya doesn't half give him a bollocking for that one, eh? Kev She's clearly become the voice of reason in the series as it has gone on. She's the only one calling for peace. To the point that she even refers to her husband acting "like some mindless thug." Dave I love the bit where Deller returns to form by offing Kurran and Clarity with a real devious grin. He was making sure all loose ends were tied up.  You get no mercy from Deller, apparently. Kev Oh yeh, there was no way in hell that Deller was going to let that one slide, was there? Dave It fleshes out Deller again, showing that he is still out for number one. He even seems pleased that he had this chance to wipe away the evidence of what he previously was ordered to do by N.U.R.S.E. Especially with them under scrutiny. Kev That's true. It ties-off any witnesses in that regard. Although, once Digit gets into those other files belonging to N.U.R.S.E, it'll open-up that can of worms again, no doubt. Dave Yeah, Digit can be a very dangerous member of the team in that respect. Kev Plus, what did N.U.R.S.E.'s files contain on the Claws themselves? Deller isn't out of the woods yet. Not by a long shot. Dave Yeah, Deller must know it is only a matter of time before all this comes to light, so it benefits him for Tanya to remain missing. That aspect of the story could have easily been explored in later issues. Yeah, what was Dragon hiding along with the other Claws? Remember he freaked a bit in issue 7 when Digit was talking about knowing everyone's past and he kind of side-stepped that. Kev Do you think there was something untoward going on there? Dave Not sure, but with Furman's clever writing, he knows how to keep opening doors for future stories. Kev That's one of my favourite aspects of Furman's writing, that is. Deller is screwed. Tanya is missing, that's true, but Michael is now with Dragon at the end of the story, so it's only a matter of time before the little guy mentions to his dad that Deller was sent to bump him off not that long ago. Dave Oh yeah! Haha. Right enough. Mmm, interesting that the story skipped past him not seeing Deller. Well, the last two pages were intended as the final closing of the title, so they ran out of time to explore or wrap that one up. Kev Deller's got a lot of making-up to do before he is completely redeemed. That's for sure.  The cover for the never-to-be-released, difficult second album. Dave The final panel hints that Dragon's Claws may come back at a later stage for another series and it's a good closing panel, I think. But it was to no avail, they never did, which left it a one-off, classic series though. Notice Scratch has a Dragon's Claws emblem on his collar too. Kev Oh yeh. Ha, ha! That's a nice touch. It's a pretty iconic image, isn't it? It also seems to suggest that Deller is part of the Claws line-up by this point. I love the look on Dragon's face, in the previous page, where Golding is asking him if he wants to continue, it's very evocative. It shows such a range of conflicting emotions within him. Anger, guilt, sadness. Excellent work by Mr. Senior. Dave Yeah, that's a great picture of Dragon. Very humanising. It shows his vulnerability, even as a leader. Kev Senior's facial expressions are something I tend to overlook in favour of his dynamism. That's a great panel for reminding me his work can be incredibly subtle too. There's a lot more nuance in this issue in general though, to be fair. For example, Furman's use of Tanya to show the futility of violence and it's relation to a toxic form of masculinity is pretty complex stuff for you to be reading when you're 11 or 12 years old, which we were at the time. I like Tanya a lot more, reading this as a 39 year old, than I did as an 11 year old.  Dragon, clearly gutted that he was back on the dole after this issue. Dave Dragon is verging on going a bit John Rambo /Commando here, but Tanya is the conscience in this issue. Kev Yeh. Dragon is quite John Rambo-like here, isn't he? Good comparison. I like that. Dave She's very headstrong. The panel where she shoves Michael into her dad's arms is full of force and looks very powerful. Kev She is definitely the conscience here, yes. She's a pretty strong female character, actually. From what I understand, Furman has taken a bit of flack over the years for writing female characters that are regarded as being pretty weak. Yes, you could argue that she is a supporting character and a "wife" supporting character at that, but she's pretty much the heart and even more so, the soul of the series by this point. Dave I like it when Digit says "Satisfied Dragon? Your subtle touch has endangered us all, your wife and son included." Straight to the point and Dragon just does not want to hear this. He's not doing the level headed leader part very well. He's actually behaving like Deller was in the first couple of issues, going in with all guns blazing and no forethought. Kev That's a good point. He's still got that temper that he's had since childhood and it certainly effects his judgement in adverse ways. Digit is the polar opposite in this sense of course and therefore cannot understand this way of thinking, acting or reacting. Dave Digit is picking-up on his weaknesses and is purposely pointing this out. Dragon pays the price for his foolhardy behaviour at the end of this issue, as he has finally realised you cannot be a warrior and have a family life, as he has lost his wife. Could Tanya ever forgive him for the death of her dad? Kev I'm not sure if she could actually, no. Is there a Digit-led coup in the offing, you think? Dave Possibly through something like that is how Digit could come to prominence in some way. Kev He certainly seems to believe that they need someone more logical, more computer-like, to take the lead. After all, "Computers do not make mistakes." Clearly Digit never had to use Windows Vista. Dave Haha, Digit would get a different version of a bug if he wasn't feeling well, wouldn't he? Kev Maybe he would just randomly crash at really inconvenient moments. Dave He could go a bit Ash, like in 'Alien.' It's like he doesn't believe Dragon is emotionally fit to lead The Claws and he, a man of logic, would make a more productive leader.  Dragon, putting his face on for a night out on the town. Kev That would certainly seem to be his take on the matter, yeh. I really like Dragon's speech at the end, about how it'd be easier to just give up. That speaks volumes to his resilience, his warrior spirit, his heart of a soldier, as well as his stubbornness. Dave It's a definite pitch by Furman to Marvel, "Let's continue this series." It's the old warrior in Dragon continuing. It's all he knows. He didn't do family life well at all. Kev Do you think that he is fundamentally not cut-out for a peaceful, family life? Dave I don't think he was. Issue one showed this, with him obsessing and anguishing over his past by watching repeats of The Game. Almost like a junkie in withdrawal. Kev And as we've previously discussed, he can't have both, can he? Dave No, certainly not. Tanya was the present for him yet he yearned for the past, when he was winning. Dragon is a bit of a controlling person in some ways. He wanted to go back to Claws, but only seemed to handle it on his terms. Hence his uncertainty about working for N.U.R.S.E. under their implicit instructions. Kev Is the status quo at the end of the series as close to peace as he's going to get then? A more favourable authority figure, in the World Development Council perhaps and less family commitments. He has his adopted son to care for though, so he still has some of those responsibilities. Particularly now that Tanya is missing and he's essentially a single father. Dave He's a bit of a tragic hero really. Kev He is a tragic hero, yeh. An ageing soldier who is stuck in/trying to relive his past whilst attempting to recreate his greatest moments. This has been the case with Dragon since all the way back in issue 1 though. Dave Dragon's identity seems to be defined by being the leader of the Claws. The panel where he has his helmet in his hands, it is like a mask that he needs to make him the figure he sees himself as. Kev Ah, true. He is essentially faceless in that panel without that helmet, as his features are obscured by darkness and shadow. Indistinguishable and not clearly defined. Dave One thing I like about this series is how complex Simon Furman's writing is. It is so layered. He could have easily expanded this into an ongoing series. Kev It's definitely a pity that they didn't get the chance to expand on it the way they wanted too. What do you make of the cover? A painted Senoir cover, no less. Dave Yeah, it's a good final issue cover, summing up the theme of this issue. It's all about the Claws. The backstories are now covered and this is an ensemble piece issue. Senior loves exploring with his artwork eh? Quite a variety of styles he uses. Kev Definitely. I would've loved to have seen a painted series by him, a la Alex Ross and 'Marvels,' because this cover and the poster with issue two are excellent. Dave Yeah, some of the covers are classics.  'Dragon's Claws, featuring Jeremy Corbyn as Tanya's dad. Kev You got anything else you want to discuss? Or casting suggestions? Dave Richard Dreyfuss for Tanya's dad? Kev That's a good shout. There's not really any major characters in this issue that we haven't already covered, is there? Dave Cameron Monaghan as The Clown? We never did find out the characters name. Kev Ah, the "Joker" guy from Gotham. Nice tie-in with the clown aspect of both characters. Dave What about the World Development Council memeber interrogating Golding? Who is another nameless character. He looks like Tim Russ from the 'Star Trek: Voyager' series. Kev What about Eammon Walker? Russ is a good shout as well though. Dave Yeah man, Eamonn Walker too, good call. Kev I think the thing I, personally, would like to close on, with this issue, is just how much I didn't want it to end. I knew in my heart of hearts that it had ended, but I didn't want to believe it. I kept on hoping that another issue would materialise, that maybe it had just been delayed, or something. I think it took me a good 3-6 months before I finally really accepted that it was gone. I kept looking in newsagents, scouring all over town for it, checking the listings in other Marvel UK comics and finally, one day, resigned myself to to fact that it wasn't coming back. Dave It was really only getting started. It was ultimately short lived, but the good thing is, it will remain a classic. Also, sometimes when a series runs for too long it will eventually run out of steam, but with Furman's imagination and Senior's creativeness, they could have easily created a continuing bunch of colourful characters and scenarios. Kev Yeh, you're right, man. The fact that it did end when it did is a big part of what makes it a classic to me. Had it happened now, in 2017, you would've known all about it. It would've been all over social media and that would've taken the mystery and the mystique out of it.  Tanya's reaction to the series being cancelled. Dave Yeah true. There was no internet, so really our only access to info was checking the shops. Kev "Checking the shops." That's all we ever did back then. Always looking for comics. Do you remember walking all over Dundee, checking in every newsagent just to see what comics they had? We must've walked hundreds of miles all in all. Dave Yeah. It's been good to go back and look over this series, as it is still enjoyable 28 years later. Dragons Claws is definitely a top 80's, classic mini-series and certainly one of the most distinctive, as they were not really classed in the superhero genre, would you say? Kev It certainly has been enjoyable, yeh. No, they weren't really classified as superheroes at all. It was certainly more in the British tradition of 2000AD than the American tradition of superhero of comics. Dave Looking at it now, our minds were not really taking in all the subtle layers written in by Furman. I was more into the colourful, action packed nature of the series, but now I can see that there is a real human relationship story going on in amongst the many other themes we have covered. Kev Me too, man. As much as I've revisited it over the years, this has been the first time I've read it for something other than sheer nostalgic pleasure and it's revealed itself to be a much richer series than I had realised it was as a pre-teen. (D) & (K) Next: 'Just One Page'  'Dragon's Claws' really was staring down the barrel of a gun with #10.
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