Dan Dare life. After this initial storyline other writers were used and different supporting characters came and went, including Professor Pinkerton, a female scientist similar to Professor Peabody, and a new Digby (again, a descendant of the original). The Mekon was generally the foe in alternate stories. In 1987 the strip became more like a space opera, with increasing violence. Now drawn by John Gillatt, Dan took on a tough-guy look. He led space commandos and packed a hi-tech gun reminiscent of that carried by Judge Dredd. The original strip, featuring the characters of the 1950s Eagle, was revived in 1989, with
Dan Dare new supporting cast, who remained with the series throughout the rest of its run. Spacecraft of various designs were presented as the product of inhabitants of various planets. The vehicle most identified with Dan was the winged "Anastasia". Designed by Sondar, it employed both Venusian and Earth space drives. Later, an alien ship was adopted and renamed the "Zyl-bat". There was also an experimental time-travelling ship called "Tempus Frangit" (Latin: "it breaks time" or "time breaks"). There were land and air vehicles – in the first stories, cars conform to styling of the time, while some flying machines were based