Powermetal: /* Covers (5) */

2025-09-29T21:06:35Z

Covers (5)

← Older revision		Revision as of 21:06, 29 September 2025
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	*'''Toy cover:''' Photograph of the original Action Man in the 1967 'British Infantryman' uniform, photographer unknown.		*'''Toy cover:''' Photograph of the original Action Man in the 1967 'British Infantryman' uniform, photographer unknown.
	*'''Retailer incentive cover:''' Ian Noble shoots a bad guy, by [[Andrew Currie]] and [[Jay Fotos]].		*'''Retailer incentive cover:''' Ian Noble shoots a bad guy, by [[Andrew Currie]] and [[Jay Fotos]].
	*'''Diamond UK retailer exclusive cover:''' The previous Action Man stands ready, by [[Chris Evenhuis]].		*'''Diamond UK retailer exclusive cover:''' The previous Action Man stands ready, by Chris Evenhuis.

	<gallery>		<gallery>

Saix at 17:51, 26 July 2024

2024-07-26T17:51:20Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 17:51, 26 July 2024
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	\|h2=Other\|c2=		\|h2=Other\|c2=
	*Separatists (incl. [[Tommy]]) (12)		*Separatists (incl. [[Tommy (Action Man)\|Tommy]]) (12)
	}}		}}

Saix: /* Featured characters */

2024-07-26T17:49:52Z

Featured characters

← Older revision		Revision as of 17:49, 26 July 2024
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	*[[Terrence Salmons]] (4)		*[[Terrence Salmons]] (4)
	*[[Mercy Gale]] (5)		*[[Mercy Gale]] (5)
	*Saluting Action Man (image, 6)		*[[Action Man\|Saluting Action Man]] (image, 6)
	*Bearded Action Man (image, 7)		*[[Action Man\|Bearded Action Man]] (image, 7)
	*Running Action Man (image, 8)		*[[Action Man\|Running Action Man]] (image, 8)
	*[[Action Man ~~(1960s)~~\|Armed Action Man]] (image, 9)		*[[Action Man\|Armed Action Man]] (image, 9)
	*[[Mike Brogan]] (image, 10)		*[[Mike Brogan]] (image, 10)
	*[[Victor Hugo]] (image, 11)		*[[Victor Hugo]] (image, 11)

Saix: Created page with "{{comicstory |seriesissue=''Action Man'' #1 |prev=To the Victors the Spoils |next=England, Half English |image=ActionMan1 subcvr.jpg |caption= |title="A..."

2024-07-26T17:46:01Z

Created page with "{{comicstory |seriesissue=''Action Man'' #1 |prev=To the Victors the Spoils |next=England, Half English |image=ActionMan1 subcvr.jpg |caption= |title="A..."

New page

{{comicstory
|seriesissue=''[[Action Man (comic)|Action Man]]'' #1
|prev=To the Victors the Spoils
|next=England, Half English
|image=ActionMan1 subcvr.jpg
|caption=
|title="Absolute Beginners"
|date=[[June 22]], [[2016]]
|coverdate=June 2016
|written by=[[John Barber]]
|art by=[[Paolo Villanelli]]
|colors by=[[John-Paul Bove]]
|letters by=[[Neil Uyetake]]
|edits by=[[Carlos Guzman]]
}}

'''The new Action Man is a bit green behind the ears.'''

==Synopsis==
''Four years ago, in a North [[London]] school, a teacher lectures the young [[Ian Noble]], giving him a math problem about trains that the student refuses to answer, swearing that his future will be "about more than train schedules".''

Today, south of [[Cambridge]], Ian Noble as Action Man finds himself facing a literal train collision, as one has terrorists with a dirty bomb, while the other has very explosive petrol. With his support team occupied in [[Milton Keynes]], it's up to Ian to rescue the hostages and disarm the bomb; he manages to shoot all of the terrorists without harming civilians, but he's at a loss about what to do with the bomb, and quartermaster [[Bryce Chan]] isn't of much help. After some reprimanding from Director [[Pauline Bestley|Bestley]], Ian manages to solve the situation by derailing the passenger train before it can hit the petrol train, and it tumbles into the forest, to the ire of a particular passenger, who chews out Action Man for risking their lives.

In the aftermath, Ian comes face to face with... [[tiger]]s? They're soon scared away by [[Terrence Salmons]] and [[Mercy Gale]], members of the [[Action Man Programme]]'s support team. They explain that the train crashed into the [[Shepreth Wildlife Park]], which has a tiger enrichment programme. On the way back to [[SIS Headquarters|headquarters]], Salmons chews out Ian for endangering civilians, while Gale tries to comfort him on his guilt over [[Mike Brogan|his predecessor]]'s death and dissuading his belief that Doctor X is still alive.

At headquarters, Ian isn't faring well against Salmons in martial arts training, but the bout is stopped short by Gale, who tells Ian to report to Chan. After some conversation about his relationships, Chan gives Ian a [[micro-rebreather]] and a device meant to copy and delete data from a hard drive. Next is a meeting with Bestley, who, after chewing out Ian for not meeting the standards his predecessor set, explains his next mission: he is to go to the house of former Action Man Programme director [[Victor Hugo]] on [[Guernsey]]. Extremists claiming to be for Guernsey independence have taken vacationers hostage at the house, but Action Man's real goal is to take care of a hidden hard drive containing [[O.S. codex|sensitive information]]. After some sneaking, he finds the secret room, wipes the drive, and soon comes across the extremists. Spotting an "X" mark on one of the men's belts, Ian, despite Bestley's orders, leaps into action!

==Featured characters==
{{featuredcharacters
|h1=[[Action Man Programme]]|c1=
*[[Ian Noble]] (1)
*[[Pauline Bestley]] (2)
*[[Bryce Chan]] (3)
*[[Terrence Salmons]] (4)
*[[Mercy Gale]] (5)
*Saluting Action Man (image, 6)
*Bearded Action Man (image, 7)
*Running Action Man (image, 8)
*[[Action Man (1960s)|Armed Action Man]] (image, 9)
*[[Mike Brogan]] (image, 10)
*[[Victor Hugo]] (image, 11)

|h2=Other|c2=
*Separatists (incl. [[Tommy]]) (12)
}}

==Quotes==

==Notes==
===Real world references===
*The title of this issue, as with the other ''Action Man'' issues, is taken from a book by {{w|Colin MacInnes}}; in this case, the {{w|Absolute Beginners (novel)|1959 novel}} from MacInnes's "London Trilogy".
*Ian's "mind the gap" quip on derailing the train is a reference to {{w|Mind the gap|the omnipresent safety warning}} — often in the form "Please mind the gap between the train and the platform" — found on the {{w|London Underground}}.

===Covers (5)===
*'''Regular cover:''' Ian Noble ready for battle, by [[Chris Evenhuis]].
*'''Subscription cover:''' The Action Man Programme in London, by [[Paolo Villanelli]] and [[John-Paul Bove]].
*'''Toy cover:''' Photograph of the original Action Man in the 1967 'British Infantryman' uniform, photographer unknown.
*'''Retailer incentive cover:''' Ian Noble shoots a bad guy, by [[Andrew Currie]] and [[Jay Fotos]].
*'''Diamond UK retailer exclusive cover:''' The previous Action Man stands ready, by [[Chris Evenhuis]].

<gallery>
File:ActionMan1 regcvr.jpg|
File:ActionMan1 subcvr.jpg|
File:ActionMan1 toycvr.jpg|
File:ActionMan1 cvrRI.jpg|
File:ActionMan1 Diacvr.jpg|
</gallery>

[[Category:Action Man issues]]

Absolute Beginners - Revision history

Powermetal: /* Covers (5) */

Saix at 17:51, 26 July 2024

Saix: /* Featured characters */

Saix: Created page with "{{comicstory |seriesissue=''Action Man'' #1 |prev=To the Victors the Spoils |next=England, Half English |image=ActionMan1 subcvr.jpg |caption= |title="A..."