Deff Skwadron (Graphic Novel)
 | |
| Editor(s) | Andy Jones, Marc Gascoigne, Christian Dunn |
| Author | Gordon Rennie, Paul Jeacock |
| Illustrator(s) | Paul Jeacock |
| Cover Artist | Paul Jeacock, Neil Hodgson |
| Staff | Darius Hinks, Dan Drane, Andy Walsh, Matt Ralphs, Fiona Stephenson |
| Publisher | Marc Gascoigne for Black Library |
| Released | May 2004 |
| Pages | 64 |
| ISBN | 1-84416-057-2 |
| Other Editions | June 2012 Direct Exclusive ISBN: 978-1-84970-2317 |
Deff Skwadron is a graphic novel about the titular Ork Fighta-Bommer Mob, the Deff Skwadron; it collects five comics about this unit of Flyboyz, all of which originally appeared in black and white in Inferno! This volume follows the exploits of this infamous unit in their campaign against the Warboss Grimlug, as recounted through the eyes of the Deff Skwadron's navigator, the Smartboy Gimzod.
Contents
Black Library Description
"The Orks of Deff Skwadron are famous for many things; their tireless devotion to increasing the killing power of their planes, their disregard for personal safety and their uncanny ability to wreck the plans of their power-hungry commander. Crammed with orks, bommerz and dead things (lots of dead things), the boyz of the Deff Skwadron take to the skies in their first graphic novel." [1]
Collected in this volume:
38 Seconds Over Big Scrap Alley
"It's Waaagh! from above with plenty of Dakka! Dakka! Dakka! as Kommanda Uzgob and his Deff Skwadron dare the guns of Big Scrap Alley." [3]
Summary
From his network of Gretchin spies, Warboss Badthug learns that Warbosss Grimlug is planning a sneak attack on his forces, so, taking the initiative, Badthug sends the boyz of Deff Skwadron to attack Grimlug's Gargant build-yards at Big Scrap Alley. Making their bombing run, Raznuts is quickly shot down and bails from his Fighta-Bommer, while his squadmate, Killboy, continues to fly his own, now-wingless, bomma. When the successful attack is interrupted by Grimlug's own Bossboy Gargant, Kommanda Uzgob engages it, deploying a prototype gantbuster bomb developed by Badthug's mekboyz, to great effect. Having successfully destroyed the facility at Big Scrap Alley, the squad withdraw.[2a]
Sink da Grimlug!
"The almost unstoppable Ork bomma squadron are back! This time, Warboss Grimlug has gone too flippin' far and his vast water-borne battleship is a threat to all the warring ork tribes. Deff Skwadron's mission is clear..." [4]
Summary
In response to the attack on Big Scrap Alley, Warboss Grimlug declares a Waaagh! on Warboss Badthug, launching his new nautical Kroozer, The Grimlug, against Badthug's forces. The Flyboyz of Karnage, Kannibal and Deff skwadrons are deployed to intercept and destroy the threat. No match for the ship's excessive defenses, all three skwadrons are shot down, with some Fighta-Bommers slam into The Grimlug and others falling into the Squig-shark-infested waters below. Kommanda Uzgob and his navigator Gimzod emerge from the water and scale the side of the kroozer, before subsequently assaulting the ship's magazine. Sabotaging the ammo dump to set-off a chain of explosions, they reatreat back to the deck, bumping into an injured Killboy, who has procured an enemy fighta-bommer. All three make their escape in the airkraft as The Grimlug explodes below them. Before heading home, they detour to the base of their rivals, Kannibal Skwadron, and cunningly using their enemy-marked airkraft, blow the place to Zog.[2b]
Da Big Push
"Its the Big Push and the inept green-skins of Deff Skwadron have grounded themselves! You can guarantee the carnage when the Skwadron's Mekboys put their improvisational 'skills' into practice." [5]
Summary
Warboss Badthug launches a less-than-effective ground counter-attack against his rival, Warboss Grimlug. Calling for air support, he's informed that Kannibal Skwadron aren't coming and are thinking of joining Grimlug instead, while no one knows what Deff Skwadron is doing. At Deff Skwadron HQ, Kommanda Uzgob emerges from the toilet and upon learning of the situation at the Front, starts to mobilise the boyz; forgetting that he earlier ordered the Mekboys to run a full maintenance strip-down of the skwadron's Fighta-Bommers, a desperate Uzgob decides that a few missing wings or engines has never stopped the skwadron before. Arriving at the Front lines, Deff Skwadron plough through the enemy in ground vehicles modified with wings and airkraft engines. With Grimlug's forces on the retreat, Warboss Badthug speaks to Uzgob about creating a rapid-response ground-based squadron.[2c]
Da Sekret Weapon
"The incompetent green-skins of Deff Skwadron are entrusted with testing a top secret new payload for their fighta-bombas. Now that can't be a good thing, can it?" [6]
Summary
At his Mekboys' testing ground, Warboss Badthug enlists Uzgob and his Deff Skwadron for a special mission, using a secret new super-heavy bomber airkraft to bomb Warboss Grimlug's base. With the ship's cannon-operators given an order to effectively shoot anything that moves, the giant bomber reaches Grimlug's base in one piece. As they prepare to drop a secret payload, the hangar-bay doors won't open, requiring Killboy to run there and open them manually; successfully releasing the doors, Killboy and the payload of hungry Squigs descend down to Grimlug's base, devestating it.[2d]
Katch Da Squigeon
"All-out avian action with the aerial aces of Deff Skwadron" [7]
Summary
With a full-blown Waaagh! going on between Warbosses Badthug & Grimlug, communication between troops in the field and HQ has become an issue. When Grimlug's Smartboyz start to utilise Squigeons to carry operational plans, Badthug sends his Flyboyz skwadrons to intercept. Beaten to the squigeon by Kannibal Skwadron, the Deff Skwadron shoot at their allies in the hope of taking the lead, and the glory. Killboy is the first to get shot down, however, when kommanda Uzgob orders him back in formation, Killboy hijacks a Fighta-Bommer and rejoins the pursuit. Out-witted by the Squigeon, Razgnuts slams his plane into a wall, and the rest of the skwadron pursue the flying Squig over a geyser field, with few emerging. As the squigeon nears enemy lines, Gimzod deploys a Squig-Hawk, which catches the squigeon and starts to fly away. Needing the battle-plans that the squigeon was carrying, what remains of the skwadron then pursue the squig-hawk.[2e]
Note:
In Katch Da Squigeon, Raznuts is mistakenly referred to as Razguts.
Trivia
 |
The title Katch Da Squigeon is a reference to the 1969 cartoon Dastardly and Muttley, which involves a squad of misfits in biplanes attempting to catch a carrier-pigeon. Due to it's theme song Catch the Pigeon, the show is colloquially best known as Stop the Pigeon or Catch the Pigeon, rather than its proper name. The events of Katch Da Squigeon are typical of an episode of the show.
Alt-cover and Images from this volume
2012 edition [8]
Service record of the Aces
The unit preping for liftoff
The cockpit of Uzgob's Fighta-Bommer
Sources
- 1:Black Library: Deff Skwadron (saved archive page, dated June 2006, last accessed 03 July 2019)
- 2:Deff Skwadron (Graphic Novel)
- 3:Table of contents, Inferno! Issue 16
- 4:Table of contents, Inferno! Issue 17
- 5:Table of contents, Inferno! Issue 19
- 6:Table of contents, Inferno! Issue 22
- 7:Table of contents, Inferno! Issue 31
- 8:Black Library: Deff Skwadron (2012) (saved archive page, dated August 2012, last accessed 17 June 2019)
