The Steel Claw was a character who first appeared in the first issue of Valiant, dated 6 October 1962. The strip was created by editors Ken Mennell, Jack Le Grand and Sid Bicknell, initially written by Ken Bulmer and drawn by Jesús Blasco. Later writers include Tom Tully and Scott Goodall. After Blasco left, the strip was drawn by a team of Giorgio Cambiotti (pencils), Massimo Belardinelli (backgrounds) and Sergio Rosi (inks) until 1969, then by Carlos Cruz. The first series ended in May 1970, but quickly returned as "Return of the Claw", and ran until 1973. The character also appeared in the "Stupendous Series" of Fleetway Super Library in 1967-68 (alternating with The Spider, from Lion) and in reprints in Vulcan in 1975-76.
Louis Crandell, an assistant to the scientist Professor Barringer, lost his right hand in a laboratory accident, and had it replaced with a prosthetic metal hand. Another laboratory accident gave him the ability to turn invisible, apart from his metal hand, if he received an electric shock. Crandell initially used his power to become a criminal, but later became a crime fighter and then a secret agent, joining a British espionage agency, the Shadow Squad, and combating the international organisation F.E.A.R. (the Federation for Extortion, Assassination and Rebellion). He left the Shadow Squad and became a detective, then a bounty hunter, before he settled in South America, where he continued to fight crime. Over the course of the strip, his metal hand became equipped with a variety of weapons and gadgets, and he briefly wore a metal mesh superhero costume.
Titan Books published a reprint collection in 2006.
