De Rode Ridder #24 [zwartwit]
De zwarte banier (#24, 1965) belongs squarely to Willy Vandersteen's foundational run on De Rode Ridder — a Belgian-Flemish series that ranks alongside Suske en Wiske as one of the longest-running and most culturally significant comics franchises produced by Studio Vandersteen. Set within the King Arthur story arc that dominated albums 19 through roughly 30, this album advances Johan (Johan van Horst) deeper into the Arthurian world, placing him alongside Lancelot, Merlin, and King Arthur immediately after a victory over the Picts — a narrative thread that helped establish De Rode Ridder's reputation for weaving Flemish adventure heroics with pan-European medieval mythology. As one of the black-and-white-only albums in the series, it belongs to a distinct production stratum: albums #25–39 (and several adjacent numbers) were never released in color, making the zwartwit editions the sole original format in which these stories circulated for decades.
A 1965 black-and-white installment of the beloved Dutch comic series De Rode Ridder, this issue features the continuing adventures of the Red Knight and Johan van Horst, drawn with precise detail by Frank Sels, who both penciled and inked the interior art. The story, titled "De zwarte banier," unfolds within the series' established medieval fantasy world, showcasing the duo's steadfast resolve and the enduring artistry of its creative team.
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The script was written by Willy Vandersteen, who authored and plotted all albums through #43, while the artwork was executed by Frank Sels, who joined the series as penciller and inker from album #16 onward, replacing original artist Karel Verschuere in 1963. Sels — born 3 December 1942, died 19 December 1986 — was responsible for a substantial run of the Arthurian-era albums (#16–30), and fan commentary at roderidder.net notes the variable quality across pages in this specific album, suggesting possible studio-assistant involvement consistent with how Studio Vandersteen operated. The first album printing appeared in 1965, with two reprint editions following in 1973 and 1978.
Trivia · 8 facts
- Title: De zwarte banier ('The Black Banner'), album #24 in the De Rode Ridder series, first printing 1965, published by Standaard Uitgeverij.
- Script by Willy Vandersteen; art by Frank Sels — the creative team responsible for the King Arthur-era run (albums ~16–30).
- Frank Sels (3 Dec 1942–19 Dec 1986) joined the series as artist from album #16, replacing founding artist Karel Verschuere who had departed in 1963.
- The story is set in the Arthurian arc: Johan and the Knights of the Round Table discover a drifting, wrecked ship after a storm; the sealed shields aboard conceal a black banner — the medieval signal that plague has struck the nomadic tribe on board.
- Characters confirmed in this issue include De Rode Ridder (Johan van Horst), with Arthurian cast (King Arthur, Lancelot, Merlin) also present in this story arc period.
- This album is one of the zwartwit-only issues: a substantial run of De Rode Ridder albums (including #25–39 and adjacent numbers) was never published in color, making the black-and-white edition the definitive reading format.
- The GCD records two reprint editions of the zwartwit version: Herdruk 1973 and Herdruk 1978, plus a later color edition.
- De zwarte banier was collected in De Rode Ridder Integraal 4 ('De eerste avonturen 1963–1965'), a modern hardcover omnibus covering albums from the Arthurian arc including Koning Arthur, Kerwyn de Magiër, De Wilde Horde, De Ring van Merlijn, Hugon de Hofnar, and De Zwarte Banier.
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Reprints
Reprinted in De Rode Ridder #4 (2019)
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