Jack Kirby Collector #26 by TwoMorrows Publishing

#26 • November 1999 Spotlighting Kirby’s Gods

$5.95 In The US o

Galactus TM & © Marvel Characters, Inc., Mantis TM & © DC Comics, Inc.

Issue #26 Contents Jack Kirby On: ....................................6 (storytelling, man, God, and Nazis) Judaism.............................................11 (how did Jack’s faith affect his stories?) Jack Kirby’s Hercules ........................15 (this god was the ultimate hedonist) A Failure To Communicate: Part 5....17 (a look at Journey Into Mystery #111) Kirby’s Golden Age Gods ..................20 (“It’s in the bag, All-Wisest!”) Myth-ing Pieces ................................22 (examining Kirby’s use of mythology) Theology of the New Gods ...............24 (the spiritual side of Jack’s opus) Fountain of Youth.............................30 (Kirby means never growing up) Jack Kirby: Mythmaker ....................31 (from Thor to the Eternals) Stan Lee Presents: The Fourth World...34 (pondering the ultimate “What If?”) Centerfold: Thor #144 pencils...........36 Walt Simonson Interview.................39 (doing his damnedest on New Gods) The Church of Stan & Jack ...............45 (the Bible & brotherhood, Marvel-style) Speak of the Devil.............................49 (how many times did Jack use him?) Kirby’s Ockhamistic Twist: Galactus...50 (did the FF really fight God?) The Wisdom of the Watcher ............54 (putting on some weight, Watcher?) Kirby’s Trinity...................................56 The Inheritance of Highfather..........57 (Kirby & the Judeo-Christian doctrine) Forever Questioning .........................60 (comments on the Forever People) Life As Heroism................................62 (is victory really sacrifice?) Classifieds.........................................66 Collector Comments.........................67

ISSUE #26, NOV. 1999

THE ONLY ’ ZINE AUTHORIZED BY THE KIRBY ESTATE

• Front cover inks: Vince Colletta (Thor #134) • New Gods Concept Drawings (circa 1967): Pg. 2: Orion, Pg. 3: Lightray, Pg. 4: Mr. Miracle, Pg. 69: Robot Defender, Pg. 70: Ramses, Pg. 71: Space Guardian, Pg. 72: Mantis Inks: Frank Giacoia (except Ramses, inked by Don Heck, 1966) • Colors: Jack Kirby Photocopies of Jack’s uninked pencils from published comics are reproduced here courtesy of the Kirby Estate, which has our thanks for its continued support. COPYRIGHTS: Annihilus, Arishem, Balder, Black Bolt, Captain America, Cobra, Crystal, Cylla, Devil Dinosaur, Don Blake, Ego, Eternals, Fantastic Four, Fiery Mask, Galactus, Gorgon, Hela, Hercules, High Evolutionary, Human Torch, Inhumans, Invisible Girl, Jane Foster, Juggernaut, Karnak, Kro, Living Talisman, Lockjaw, Loki, Machine Man, Magnir, Makkarri, Mangog, Margo Damian, Medusa, Men in Black splash, Mercury, Mr. Fantastic, Mr. Hyde, Odin, Pluto, Red Ghost, Sersi, Sif, Silver Surfer, Spragg panel, Surtur, Thing, Thor, Triton, Typhon, Watcher, Woodgod © Marvel Characters, Inc. • Atlas, Avia, Beautiful Dreamer, Big Bear, Darkseid, Desaad, Esak, Forever People, Glorious Godfrey, Granny Goodness, Highfather, Himon, Infinity Man, Izaya, Kalibak, Lightray, Losers, Lump, Mantis, Mark Moonrider, Metron, Mother Box, Mr. Miracle, New Gods, Orion, Serifan, Slig, Sonny Sumo, Super-Cycle, Terrible Turpin, The Source, Vykin, Warden Frye, Demon, Young Scott Free © DC Comics, Inc. • Iako © Fox Features Syndicate • Captain Victory, Devil, Heroism drawing, Inspector, Klavus, Mr. Mind, Portraits of God, Ramses, Robot Defender, Space Guardian © Jack Kirby.

Jack’s uninked pencils from the Gorgon pin-up in Fantastic Four Annual #5 (Nov. 1967). The Jack Kirby Collector, Vol. 6, No. 26, Nov. 1999. Published bi-monthly by & © TwoMorrows Publishing, 1812 Park Drive, Raleigh, NC 27605, USA. 919-833-8092. John Morrow, Editor. Pamela Morrow, Asst. Editor. Jon B. Cooke, Assoc. Editor. Single issues: $5.95 ($7.00 Canada, $9.00 elsewhere). Six-issue subscriptions: $24.00 US, $32.00 Canada and Mexico, $44.00 outside North America. First printing. All characters are trademarks of their respective companies. All artwork is © Jack Kirby unless otherwise noted. All editorial matter is © the respective authors. PRINTED IN CANADA.

on: Storytelling, Man, God, & Nazis Excerpts from interviews with Jack Kirby from 1989 to 1992 by Ray Wyman, Jr. • Edited by Ray Wyman, Jr. and Margaret Hohlfeld he people of my neighborhood were immigrants from Europe. And, of course, in Europe, it is a common thing among peasants to pass stories down, to sit around the farm house and tell stories they collected. People were honored for the number of stories they had

learned from their mothers and fathers. It was an important part of family tradition. Fairy tales, the stories we tell our children now, are part of that legacy. Some of them originate from our ancient history. There were stories about creatures that flew, creatures that menaced them, and some creatures that were very good. Some of the stories came from our instinctual fear of the night; there were menacing and unknown dangers there, things that they couldn’t see. For instance, if you were a Norseman, there were stories about demons of the sea. The Celts told stories about trolls and fairies that haunted the forests. Some of the stories are foundations of our notions of good and evil; right and wrong. There were also stories about gods. Now, back then, as we do now, they had God, but they also had different gods. They had the one that we believe in, but before that they had ones for nature, for trees, the sea, the sky, and even ones that governed our feelings. They believed in each of them in every way that we now believe in one God and for the same reasons. They saw their gods in everything they did, everything that they could imagine. They created stories that they passed through the generations, legends of every imaginable kind. And since it was humans who were telling the stories, their gods were imbued with human qualities. Who was Odin but a father figure? Show me any legendary story that doesn’t have a father figure. Hercules had to bow down to Zeus, or lat east talk politely to him. Zeus ran the whole universe. The Germans had Wotan; he ran the universe. The Norsemen had Odin run the universe. Then there were other sons and daughters of gods. They had so many gods that it was of their conditioning, their way of life. They saw their gods in everything—you and I, we’re no different. I can tell you, I thought I saw God when I was standing there on Omaha Beach ten days after D-Day. It was only ten days after but I still could feel all the horror that you can imagine. Why? Because that is the nature of things, the nature of God and the spirit of people. The feeling doesn’t vanish because we stop thinking about it or even when we try to destroy it, which is our nature to try. When I stepped off that boat, even though they had cleaned things up by the time we got there, I could still see the bodies lying on that beach—and I’m not talking about a few guys or a few bodies here and there. I’m talking about a huge beach littered with... well, an unimaginable sight, thousands of bodies. We were rushed off those boats and they tried not to give us time to think about this, but we did. I did. All the horror of those memories live with me to this day. They are a part of me, and part of them is imbued in you and everybody else. Why? Because it is the nature of God to make us feel every soul, every spirit that has ever walked the Earth. That’s what we believe, that’s what I believe. It’s part of my conditioning, part of yours. There is nothing Page four pencils from Thor #144 (Aug. 1967), featuring Odin, the “All-Highest.” you can do to change it. 6

Now, you had your evil gods and your good gods and, of course from time to time they would fight among themselves or against each other. They formed the mythology that later formed the backbone of civilization; and because of that they tended to be very simple, very easy to understand—they had to be because these were simple folk. It is those stories that I used when I was doing comics because comics are mythology of the modern society; tales of good versus evil done in a simplified form. Now, all good stories are based on some aspect of reality. They are simpler to write that way because you can use elements of your own life to create a fascinating tale. Like good against evil; like the story about Darkseid against Highfather, the gods of Apokolips versus New Genesis. The first thing I did was to go back into history for ideas on how to start the story. There was a custom among the European kings to trade babies, so the French king would give his baby to the English king and the English king would give his baby to the French king, and then they couldn’t go to war with each other because in battle they might kill their own sons. It was a custom bound in self-preservation—a very real aspect to life no matter where you live, no matter who you are. Even kings think about selfpreservation. It makes good story; it is good copy. I used it in the New Gods. Highfather and Darkseid would exchange sons in the same manner; Darkseid’s son Orion was to live on New Genesis; Highfather’s son Scott Free (who later became Mr. Miracle) would live on Apokolips. “The Pact” is one of my favorite stories that I wrote for New Gods because it is based on the fact that good and evil men can make a pact; in fact mortal enemies can make pacts—like the English and French did. Of course it never really worked, but they tried. I was impressed by the record of history, that men would try such a thing because, remember, although they didn’t have any huge cannons or the atom bomb, they still felt threatened just as we do. They lived with broadswords and shields, Pencils from “Himon” in Mister Miracle #9 (July 1972)—a sequel of sorts to “The Pact.” but they were the super powers. It was do not see in a comic book; one of them is the complicated struggles more difficult to win a war back then. It was all hand-to-hand, one and forces working against each character. So I started by describing man’s hand against another, and it was personal. It was the pillaging the relationships between two sides, each very powerful, each very of cities; it was setting cities afire. If you lost it meant that you could dangerous, and each with their own unique way of looking at the world. lose your entire family. Darkseid is a different kind of character. He is the ultimate Now, the story involves more than aspects of God; there are expression of darkness. He is the guy that you and I will never get to aspects of ourselves, the condition of mankind as a whole—these are see. You would never want to see him. Darkseid is the guy who runs all part of the real picture that I try to describe to the reader. So, every the world. He isn’t anyone that anyone knows but he runs things just part of the story is important and every character has his own story the same. He is pretty well armed. He has an army behind him to to tell. When I started New Gods, I never thought about it the same control the intricate details of his empire. He is the type of guy that way as we do when we write a story about Superman or Spider-Man. I says when the dollar goes up and when the dollar goes down; he is the visualized it as being a novel, a complete story, the first comics novel. guy that says when we have a job or when we’re on the street with our There are various qualities that you will find in novels that you usually 7

tries to see us through all our hard lessons of becoming better than we are today. That is real unconditional love; a concept that often escapes the common man. Even saying the word ‘God’ embraces many things we do not understand. It’s like saying, how large is the universe? How was it created? What is the nature of fire? Nobody will ever find the answers, not in this generation, and not in any other generation. One guy might stand up and say, “The universe came into being at so-and-so; it was one big bang.” Personally, I don’t believe it. It goes much further than one theory. It involves everything that we know and everything we will learn in the future. Once we’ve learned enough about the universe we will admit to ourselves that we will never know everything. That is God. “How ’bout the angels?” But I had to sell books and couldn’t spend my time trying to come up with such a lofty expression, so Highfather looks the way he looks. He also possesses human qualities that may betray him from time to time: Frustration, irritation, carelessness, overconfidence—but he has nothing of the qualities of Darkseid. If you were to choose who you wanted as a father, would you choose Darkseid? Probably not unless you were a person who wanted perpetual punishment. Highfather did none of those things even though he might show signs of his humanity from time to time. When other characters meet Highfather they feel that they are in the presence of something grand, a supreme wisdom and light. Even Superman would feel humbled by him. I wrote a story where they met and talked—but, as good as he is, Highfather is betrayed by his overconfidence that peace is everlasting. Like Prime Minister Chamberlain, Highfather learns that wisdom and kindness are not always good positions to keep in the face of a mortal enemy. Highfather failed his own people because he could not conceive that Darkseid would go to war again. In his mind, a pact is a pact, but to Darkseid, it is a means to accomplish an end. If Highfather were one of our leaders, he’d be run out of town for this failure—just like Chamberlain was. He suffered for his failure against the Nazis, against Hitler. What was obvious to every common man escaped him because he was too good. What the British needed was a man who could fight and could deal with Hitler on his level, and that man was Winston Churchill. But Highfather is the ideal of man, not the ideal leader, not the ideal warrior. You wouldn’t want Highfather running the 6th Infantry up the hill against a nest of Nazis. No. You would want a man like Orion who could change into the darkness that he must face on the battlefield. That is why you never saw Highfather raise his hand against anybody. He could strike, because he was not a complete pacifist. Like any father, he will eventually rise up to defend his family. But he is a lousy tactician when it comes to dealing with the enemy. He is too hopeful that peace may be achieved when in reality war is the only solution. The story between Orion and Darkseid is particularly interesting to me because I felt in reality that no father would have a mortal clash with his son; he would really try resolving their differences. I think close familial differences live on forever. There is nothing you can do about it; it’s just part of your own intimate conditioning. Father and son can become jealous, angry, and mad as hell with each other; Darkseid could become angry with Orion, his own son, but since a father would never hurt or kill his son, neither could Darkseid; he just never did. He could be angry, cuss him out, push him around maybe, but never, never hurt him. Being the son of Darkseid and raised by Highfather, Orion tried to overcome his familial traits by using what he learned from his foster father to control his natural self—but he was constantly frustrated by his own instincts; betrayed by his true nature. He tried to be responsible when it is impossible to think. His one familial trait was how he transformed when angered; in that way he was more like his father. It was

Unused Darkseid pencil drawing, possibly as a cover for the 1984 New Gods reprint series.

hat in our hand. We are so taken up with our own lives and our own stories and our own fantasies, and maybe that’s good because he is the guy we shouldn’t think about. This guy is a big planner. Darkseid is what we mean when we say “the powers that be”; not satanic, not merely the Devil. He is what we mean when we say ‘them’; but what we really mean is ‘us’. Darkseid is what happens when everybody is asleep. Darkseid catches you off guard; he isn’t reckless, he is far from being a raving lunatic with his finger on a trigger. In fact, he is just the opposite. He is the perfect rational man that we put into power because either we’re too lazy to pay attention or we’re too occupied to worry about such details. Highfather is the highest ideal—that is what I meant by his name. In many ways he possesses what common man cannot attain. Highfather was once a warrior but he became this benevolent leader when he realized that war would destroy everything. He treated people wonderfully and is unlike anything that man can conceive. Is he like God? In many ways he fits that ideal, but he cannot be God because there is only one God; he looks like what we can imagine what God looks like but God is nothing like that. God would be unrecognizable to us, beyond any image that we have ever been exposed to. God defies definition. In some ways God is like every father. He gives us free will, but never turns His back on us. In that paternal way, God cares for us and 8

the one thing that Orion could never help. He could never be cured of that kind of thing—no more than an abused child can be cured of strenuous relations within his own family. Orion was in that kind of situation. Although he is Darkseid’s son, he tried to stop him in any way he can, even if it meant injury or death to himself or his father. No sane man will injure his father or his mother or his brother or people that are very, very close to him. He might strike down a relative because either he has never seen him or they have never had a close relationship. A man could be out of his own senses and hurt or kill a family member in sheer fits of madness. Orion has that capacity. He could have that sheer fit of madness just the same as any man does when he faces battle. It is the battle mentality there that does the most damage; it explodes with rage. In every human being there is that capacity to rage. Sometimes you just can’t contend with it. It overpowers you and you explode. It happens in a prizefighting ring between prizefighters. One of them will suddenly explode, for reasons of his own, not because he has to knock the other guy out. He will try to do that anyway. That is part of the game. His opponent will do something that he thoroughly dislikes, and he’ll explode; and he will be all over his opponent and the other guy is done for—because they are equally matched. These things happen, I believe, in every person. There comes an inner explosion which gives us the strength of ten; and nobody is prepared for that—even Darkseid. That’s what Orion had done throughout several of his battles. Like his first battle with Kalibak where they throw each other up on top of that great big steel girder and then go up to the top of that building. They didn’t care how much they destroyed or who was in the way. They were out to destroy each other. The first one that fell was the loser and nobody in that situation wants to be the loser because... well, because that would be the end. Now to make the story more interesting for the reader I had to include the common man as a character, and that would be Terrible Turpin. You remember the scrappy police detective who tried to stop the battle between Orion and Kalibak. This character puts mankind, the comBack cover pencils from the Terrible Turpin redux in the New Gods reprint series (issue #4, Sept. 1984). mon human struggles, into the forefront of the each other from taking territory, and to kill each other if necessary. story. Every battle may be a super-hero battle, but there are always Now, no soldier in his right mind would face a battalion of Panzers human consequences. Most wars have nothing to do with the common alone; even one would be suicide, and I just said that like I myself had man. He’s just there because somebody came over and tapped him on done it. Some people think I’m crazy, but I never did anything like that, the shoulder and said, “It’s your turn.” So, here you are with a simple but there were guys who did. You can read about them in the history weapon against a whole army of guys who want to do nothing else but books, and that’s who Turpin is. If he were a real man he would stand get at you; to kill you. I myself have found myself in battle as a young head and shoulders above what a common man of today’s society is man, and I can’t express the horror of this kind of thing. like. But still, he is the essential character of all mankind, to stand up That is the role that Turpin played. Imagine one small man between against all odds because nobody else would do the job. There’s always two gigantic cosmic powers; one obviously evil, the other obviously one who will, and when we run out of people like that, that’s when good. Both of them using a city as a battlefield and causing so much we’re all going to be in trouble. damage; mankind, our whole civilization, as a mere backdrop to a war When you use a character like Turpin you have to first ask yourself of godly proportions. If you were a soldier on the road to Metz, it would what he is like in the allegorical sense. Who is Turpin? He is a policeman. be like taking on a whole battalion of Panzers by yourself. Now, on What’s his job? His job is to keep peace in the city and to keep the that battlefield it was man versus man; Germans versus the Allies, an criminals from taking over territory. He is a soldier. equally matched contest. As soldiers we both had one job—to prevent 9

A policeman will get hit by a stray bullet or a policeman will try to break up a fight between two gangs and, of course, he may be injured or killed in the process. This is like any major struggle between all people, but more so by people who take up the responsibility of facing this kind of danger. If you are a Chinese student in China, you might be fighting for democracy. If you are a Black man, you might fight so you don’t have to ride in the back of a bus. The enemy can have any face you can imagine; it might even be a face that you thought was good. We think the Communist is always bad, but if you ask him, maybe you are what he thinks is evil and he strikes you down because he is protecting his right. Of course, it is tragic when innocent people are caught in the middle. It always is. And the experience of it is always beyond belief to you as a person. It is heart-breaking to you as a person. You are crushed by machinery that is bigger than yourself, bigger than any individual human, bigger than anything that you can imagine—and mortal man is destined to be betrayed by his own wishes and his own desires. He is betrayed right from the beginning by his image of what he believes that God wants from him and by what he believes he wants from God. The Nazis, I’m sure, thought that they were doing their god a favor by wiping out all those people. They had this notion that they were the invincibles and beyond earthly control. They wanted to please their god. Like children making their grandmother proud, they did what they were conditioned to do and fought a good battle. They were conditioned all their lives with that, but of course they were wrong. The Nazis thought they were gods themselves but that was their problem. They mocked the power of gods and in the end were destroyed by the same power that created them. That was Hitler’s big mistake. He thought that his power would go on forever, but nothing manmade is forever. God is, but not Nazi hatred. You can’t go on expecting people to hate for you endlessly. That’s what happened. His soldiers finally had to give up. Where God is concerned we’re usually wrong. First off, it’s a bad deal right from the start. God wants nothing from man, but man Final page of Our Fighting Forces #159 (Sept. 1975), still in pencil. wants everything from God. Man wants God Orion and Kalibak: Good and evil; fighting in his city and ruining to take care of things and provide us with a comfortable living, but everything in the process. They were tearing down buildings, making the relationship is more complicated than that. It is not in God’s nature a mess of everything. And the lonely brave soldier who faces a Panzer to give us these things; it’s not in God’s nature to give us anything but by himself is no less than that little police officer who has been given what He gave us in the beginning. Why? Because it would be harmful a job to stop two gods from destroying everything that man has built. to us; we would be lazy and never do anything for ourselves. He gets beaten to a pulp, but he keeps on coming back for more. Now, if you ask me, that is why a pact between two enemies is His clothes are tattered and his limbs are bloody, but yet he will still always destined for failure, because mankind does not have the ability get up and yell, “You’re under arrest” as long as he can force the words to understand his own role or to trust his own instincts on how to from his mouth. In the face of the gods, this kind of dedication to duty conduct himself from day to day. A pact may be a promise between is a small thing; insignificant as how we think of ants. With Turpin I two men, but mankind lacks this understanding and the ability to can establish the frustration of being that soldier on the battlefield, conduct his own affairs on his own. He wants an outside element like with the frustration of a police officer, a job never done and a job that God, like a promise on a piece of paper, to do the job for him. It’s can never be completed by himself alone; in any case he has to risk because we’re simple creatures. We are children and we are alone—but his life doing it, knowing that he may very well die for nothing. when we grow accustomed to this fact, then we will understand God’s The policeman does that every day. We read about it in the papers. role in our lives and we will begin to make a new life for ourselves.★ 10

other religions. The main common ground between Jews and Christians is the first five books of the Christian Bible’s Old Testament: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. These “Five Books In keeping with Jewish custom, Jack’s headstone was of Moses” constitute the Torah, an placed a year after his death. At the unveiling ceremony, those in attendance put a stone upon it in remembrance. important portion of the Hebrew Bible. The Torah outlines God’s declaration of the creation of the universe, and the covenant of faith that resulted from the encounter between Abraham and God (wherein God told Abraham his descendants would be His chosen people, so long as they obeyed His law and worshiped Him faithfully).

Judaism by John Morrow oz Kirby remarked in her interview back in TJKC #10 that Jack “believed in his faith, and he liked to read the Bible.” Roz went on to say that Jack loved and believed in God, so I don’t think it’s a stretch to state that his Jewish beliefs affected his work. The purpose of this piece is to give a brief overview of Judaism, in hopes of gaining a little insight into how it might’ve affected Jack’s thinking, and his conceptualizing of characters and stories throughout his career. Obviously, an article of this short length can only scratch the surface of this complex faith, and I’m forced to state Jewish beliefs in generalities. No disrespect is intended by oversimplifying it here, and if I inadvertently misrepresent anything, I hope our readers—Jewish or otherwise—will let me know.

The History of Judaism The recorded history of mankind began roughly 6000 years ago. The world was primarily pagan thereafter, and people worshiped thousands of different gods, usually one for each of the elements (sun, moon, rain, etc.) that affected their lives. Around 1800 B.C., a man named Abraham revolutionized religion with his concept of monotheism (the belief in the one and only God), based on his encounter with God (as scripturally recounted in the book of Genesis). This was the beginning of what would become Judaism. Much of the conflict and strife the Jews endured throughout history stems from their strict and literal adherence to Abraham’s declaration of “one God,” putting Judaism at odds with

The Evolving Attitude Toward God Judaism, like Christianity, has evolved into several “denominations” (for lack of a better word). Probably the two most prominent are Orthodox (those with a more traditional belief in God), and Conservative (who feel it’s important to believe in God, but are constantly asking questions about God’s true nature, rather than believing in a specific notion of God). From interviews he’s given, Jack appears to have been affected by both at different points in his life, so we’ll focus on those here.

Kirby’s vision of God, from 1970. Inks by Mike Royer.

Orthodox Jews have a two-way belief in the nature of God. First, they believe God is transcendent, standing above and beyond all living things. He is an invisible, distant judge of humanity. They are in awe of Him, knowing that at any moment, He could use His fearsome might to rain down His judgment and destroy the world. In Kirby’s work, this attitude is perhaps best typified by the Celestials in The Eternals, who returned to Earth to judge mankind. At the same time, Orthodox Jews believe God is an accessible, personal being who is present in daily life; a comforting parent who hears prayers and answers them. (This is somewhat conveyed in Jack’s work through the relationship of Highfather and the Source wall, or

through Highfather’s parental nature itself.) These two attitudes work in tandem—at times, Jews believe more strongly in one than the other. An important thing to understand is that Jewish belief is always self-critical, and constantly challenges itself. Because of this, Jews’ ideas of God evolve over time. This could account for Jack’s sometimes contradictory opinions on God in interviews; in the same way he was constantly evolving new stories and characters, his view of God was constantly changing, and this is fundamental and proper in the Jewish belief system, particularly with Conservative Jews. In general, Jews believe every person is unique, but created in the image of God. For Jews, to know yourself is to know God. Kirby’s uncanny ability to accept every person as they were—even the most rude or irritating—would bear this out. For, to deny another person—created in God’s image—would be to deny God. Anyone who ever saw Kirby stand for hours at conventions talking to anyone and everyone would agree he subscribed to this belief.

Right and Wrong

Final page from Eternals #7, showing Arishem as he begins his fifty-year judgment of mankind.

Jews believe God created a universe where moral behavior is required and order prevails. The world is inherently good, and if you stay in harmony with what God expects of you, you will be rewarded with prosperity, longevity, and happiness. Likewise, if you don’t obey God’s law, you and your family will suffer. Christianity and Judaism differ greatly on the concept of sin. For Christians, every person is born into a state of sin, from which they need forgiveness (through acceptance of Jesus Christ as savior), and they are rewarded or punished for their actions in the afterlife. For Jews, sin is a matter of choice, where basically “you are what you do.” There is no word for “sin” in Judaism; the closest is “chet” which means to “miss the mark” of moral and ethical behavior according to God’s law. Jews believe you make a conscious choice between good and evil; you take responsibility for your own actions, and you reap what you sow. Only by choosing good over evil, and getting back in harmony with God’s law, will you achieve happiness, and all rewards or punishment for obeying or defying God take place in this lifetime. This law, according to scripture, came about when God gave Moses His Ten Commandments, forming the basis for the Mitzvot (the laws that define Jewish behavior). These are the moral values and standards of behavior God expects of people. Holidays and rituals evolved to help Jews demonstrate their faith in obeying the Mitzvot. These include observing the Sabbath (from sundown Friday through sundown Saturday) as a time of relaxation and spiritual renewal, in honor of God’s

God’s vision of the world and all its ills. Inks by Mike Royer, again from 1970.

resting on the seventh day following six days of creation. Jews believe that humans will ultimately prevail, since we’re empowered by Godly sparks of goodness, compassion, and love. The Mitzvot guides Jews in fulfilling life’s purpose and mission: To end all the evils of the world, and welcome an era of peace and perfection (known as the Messianic Era). Here lies the fundamental difference between Jews and Christians. Jews believe their Messiah will come when the world achieves this state of perfection. (Perhaps this is the underlying reason Kirby was drawn, even at an early age, to tell tales of good conquering evil.) Christians believe the Messiah already came to the world, in the person of Jesus, and will return again in a “Second Coming” at the end of Earth’s existence. Jews believe that God created the universe and set it in motion, and lets it take its natural course. Evil comes about in two ways. First, it’s caused by humans, due to their free will; God is not responsible for it. Secondly, 1) You shall only worship the one God evil is caused by random 2) You shall not worship false idols chance. Whereas early Jews 3) You shall not take the Lord’s name in blamed much of their misvain fortune on God’s wrath, 4) Observe the Sabbath and keep it holy 5) Honor your father and mother modern Jews believe their 6) You shall not commit murder conduct has little to do with 7) You shall not commit adultery unexplained “evils” like sick8) You shall not steal ness and natural disasters— 9) You shall not bear false witness against but they still believe we your neighbor humans can upset the natural 10) You shall not covet your neighbor’s order of things, which explains house, wife, field, servant, or anything that is your neighbor’s how a sovereign God would allow so many of His chosen

people to perish in the Nazi Holocaust.

Jewish Influences in Kirby’s Work It’s been said countless times that the Fourth World series was Jack’s most personal work. The number of Jewish influences in it bear this out: • Jewish mystics believed that death was the return of the soul to its source (God). Any reader of the Fourth World series will immediately recognize this concept’s influence on Jack. • In the Jewish mystical tradition, God is called “Ein Sof,” or Infinite (“Without End”). One can easily read into the Forever People summoning Infinity Man (with his unexplained, unimaginable powers) as a scene of Jews calling on their Infinite Being (God) to help them. • Jews believe God gives free will to each person, so the taking away of that free will would be the ultimate act of evil. Darkseid’s quest for the Anti-Life Equation (which would give him domination over everyone’s free will) makes perfect sense as Jack’s ultimate villainous plot.

The Ten Commandments

• The New Gods’ departure at the end of the Hunger Dogs graphic novel, and their search for a new home, can been seen to symbolize the Jews’ search throughout history for a holy land. There are numerous similarities between names in the Fourth World and names and words in Hebrew scriptures. The Forever People’s Serifan mimics the Biblical word Seraphim (an angelic creature who purifies with fire); Esak echoes Esau from Genesis (each of whom gave up their birthright); Bekka (Orion’s love interest in Hunger Dogs) is probably derived from Rebekah (Isaac’s wife in Genesis, and Esau and Jacob’s mother); and of course, the name Izaya (Highfather of the 13

New Gods) comes from the prophet Isaiah; and the unused character Ramses, with his Egyptian garb, was probably originally intended as a villain, symbolizing the Biblical oppressors of the Hebrews. The New Testament also shows an influence, with Armagetto derived from the New Testament’s Armageddon (in Revelation 16:16, the place of the final battle between good and evil), New Genesis from the first book of the Bible, and even Mangog (who attempted to bring about Ragnarok in Kirby’s Thor run) from Magog (a symbol for God’s final enemies in Revelation, as well as the name of the land of an evil leader who makes war on the Jews in the Old Testament’s book of Ezekial). And as Jesus said, “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End...” (Revelation 1:8), Jack gave Highfather his Alpha Bullets and Darkseid his Omega Effect in Forever People. Christians and Jews alike are very careful to avoid “taking the Lord’s name in vain,” but in different ways. For Christians, the word God is always used reverently, for fear of being sacrilegious. However, in Hebrew, God is a generic term for any of the so-called “gods” of the ancient world. Lord is the specific name of the God declared by Abraham, and is the word that’s revered. So while the title New GODS may have raised eyebrows among some Christians in the 1970s, Jack probably didn’t give the title—or the use of his “god” motifs in Fantastic Four, Thor, and other books—a second thought.

Highfather in Forever People #7.

Conclusion

Sources:

Many’s the writer (in this issue as elsewhere) who’s attempted to attach Christian (and other) influences to Jack’s characters, and Kirby was probably familiar with Christian ideology (in the same way he’s shown a knowledge of Hindu, Aztec, and even American Indian faiths in his work)—but we must not forget that Jack was a Jew, and that the Jewish view of God isn’t static; it’s constantly growing, like Jack’s internal “universe” of characters. Attempts by his fans to find reflections of their own religious beliefs in his work—while fascinating, and at times probably accurate—are strictly conjecture. Likewise, attempts to find consistencies between religious influences at different times in his career are doomed to failure; as Jack’s views of God evolved, so did the reflection of them in his work. Jack’s parents appeared to be devout Orthodox Jews, even naming him after the prophet Jacob, one of the “founding fathers” (along with Abraham and Isaac) of Judaism. While we’ll never know exactly what Jack did or didn’t believe about God, hopefully this study of Judaism will give us a little insight into some possibilities. The word Israel means “to wrestle with God,” which is something we all do at different points of our lives. Undoubtedly, Jack had his own wrestling match with the topic—and just as Jews believe each person must seek and find God their own way, we must believe Jack found his. ★

Living Judaism: The Complete Guide to Jewish Belief, Tradition, and Practice. Wayne Dosick, 1995, published by HarperCollins. The Nelson Study Bible, New King James Version. 1997, published by Thomas Nelson Publishers. Thanks to Bob Bieber for his assistance and advice on this article, and to Peter Von Sholly for his detective work.

God turns His back on the world; a startling vision from 1970. Inks by Royer.

Jack Kirby’s Hercules A probing peruse of the Prince of Power (and the King of Comics), by Mark Alexander e first saw him in the Summer of 1965 on the cover of Journey Into Mystery Annual #1 (“When Titans Clash!” Thor vs. Hercules!) and as great as that cover was, the “symbolic” splash page which followed was even more impressive. Here we see Thor, on the left, squared-off with a magnificentlooking entirely new Kirby character on the right (being full aware that the reader’s eye moves from left to right, Kirby’s placement of Hercules here was quite intentional). Jack Kirby’s Hercules looked every bit as powerful and majestic as Thor, and his golden mace appeared to be as formidable as Thor’s hammer (although subsequently we’d learn it was only a glorified club, with no enchanted powers like the Uru hammer). Physically, Kirby’s Prince of Power was based on Steve Reeves, the handsome, bearded star of the 1960s Hercules films (Lee makes a reference to this in JIM #128). The costume that Jack designed for his “new god” was so appropriate that for nearly twenty years (1984 to be exact), no one would attempt to modify it. As usual, Kirby got it right the first time. In this short (15-page) story, Thor accidentally falls through a “time-space disrupter” which transports him to Olympus, home of the Greek gods. This was an extremely shrewd move on Jack and Stan’s part; by this time they had pretty much moved Thor’s storyline from Earth to Asgard, and they were getting a lot of mileage out of Asgardian characters such as Odin, Loki, Balder, and the Warriors Three, so why not introduce another pantheon of legendary gods as well? Very soon the everexpanding Marvel Universe would include Kirby-Lee versions of Zeus, Ares, Hermes, Pluto, and other Greek/Roman mythological figures. In his debut, Hercules is merely introduced; he battles Thor to a standstill and they part as friends, but no hint of his personality is revealed. His characterization wouldn’t be unveiled until his next appearance, some six months later. Fast-forward to “The Grandeur and the Glory!” (JIM #124, Jan. 1966). Here we find three storylines unfolding simultaneously; in Asia a villain called the Demon is committing mayhem, while in the US, Dr. Don Blake has revealed his secret identity (as Thor) to Jane Foster. Meanwhile, high atop Mt. Olympus, another chain of events which will affect the life of Thor is taking place: Zeus, the Olympian equivalent of Odin (introduced in JIM Annual #1) has decided it’s time for his son Hercules to visit Earth. Having no enchanted hammer to transport him though dimensional barriers, Hercules simply strolls down Mt. Olympus to Earth and the stage is set. In “When Meet The Immortals” (JIM #125, Feb. 1966) we find the son of Zeus on Earth and finally get a glimmer into his personality. Upon learning that this planet actually has cities, Hercules exclaims:

And herein lies the key to his character; Hercules is a total hedonist, a devil-may-care pleasure-monger of the highest order. To him, combat is merely another pleasurable pastime along with wine, women, song, and food. He behaves like a spoiled child in the body of a Greek god, and Thor, by contrast, seems downright stuffy and humorless. When faced by circumstances, however, Hercules can be just as noble and valorous as Thor, but he seldom chose to be. Hercules soon hooks up with Jane Foster (Thor’s beau) and upon returning from Asia, Thor is furious to find them together. He challenges the powerful prince to battle, and what follows is an epic five-issue saga which is nothing less than the pinnacle of the entire Kirby-Lee Thor series. Remarkably, Kirby created this superlative tale during the same time in which he produced the Galactus trilogy; it was arguably the creative zenith of his entire career. The next four issues focus more on Hercules than Thor. Hercules ascends to fame after defeating the Thunder God and is offered the starring role in a movie, playing himself. What he doesn’t know is that the “producer” behind this offer is actually Pluto, the evil ruler of the netherworld, and the movie contract is actually an “Olympian pact” which once signed, will free Pluto from Hades, forcing Hercules to rule in his stead for all eternity. In “The Power of Pluto” (Thor #128, May 1966), we see that Hercules is obviously drunk (or at least tipsy) when Pluto offers him the contract, and Hercules’ ego, along with his overindulgence in wine and women have proved his undoing; his fate is now sealed.

“Hercules has always loved cities! It is there where the crowds are— where reveling and merry-making are ever to be found! And who can enjoy the good life as much as an Olympian god? Take me to your city! Hercules commands!” 15

In “The Verdict of Zeus” (Thor #129, June 1966), we see Kirby’s fullpage depiction of a regal Olympian celebration presided over by Zeus, and we’re privy to this exchange between Zeus and Dionysius:

the limitation of what many considered a second-rate and somewhat juvenile medium (the comic book) and produced a veritable masterpiece of modern-day mythology. This was pop culture at its best. In the final analysis, the story of Kirby’s Hercules proved to be a morality tale; the point being, if one chooses to squander their life in the pursuit of hedonistic indulgence, then they (like Hercules) will probably end up in Hell; there’s no other way to interpret this Kirbyparable that I can see. Luckily for Hercules, someone far nobler than he unselfishly risked all to save him. That was pretty much it; one Annual and half-a-dozen issues of Thor, and after that Kirby would never revive this great character again. Granted, a Kirby-Lee Hercules series would have been too much like Thor; still, Hercules’ adventures could have been featured as a secondary storyline in the Thor series, just as the Inhumans were presented in the mid-1960s FF. Instead, like every other non-mutant Marvel super-hero, the Prince of Power eventually joined the Avengers, then in October 1975 he became part of an oddball aggregate called The Champions which lasted 17 issues (some say 16 issues too long). He then had a one-shot episode in Marvel Premiere #26 (Nov. 1975) which featured an outstanding Kirby/Colletta cover. Beginning in Sept. 1982, the son of Zeus was featured in a four-issue limited series called (what else?) Hercules, Prince of Power and an additional four issues (Vol. 2) ran from March 1984 to Jan. 1985. Since his 1965 debut, numerous artists and writers have had varying degrees of success with Jack Kirby’s Hercules (Bob Layton’s spin on the character was particularly noteworthy). Roz Kirby used to point out (quite correctly) that “Jack keeps everyone working,” and he still does; but only through the Herculean effort which he put into his work. ★

Dionysius: Ahhh, my lord Zeus, how merry is thy celebration! Where but in eternal Olympus can such revels continue without end?!! Zeus: In truth, my merry Dionysius, where there are no battles left to fight, no enemies to overcome, there ’tis time to partake of frolic and gambols in this halcyon clime! Now we know where Hercules gets his love of revelry; like father, like son. By contrast, it’s hard to imagine Odin ever The ultimate egotist, Hercules, from Thor #126. being depicted in such a frivolous mood as this. It must be noted that the last three panels of Thor #129—and #130—represent some of the finest-ever pairing of Kirby art and Lee dialogue. There’s definitely no “failure to communicate” at the end of these two Silver Age classics. Here we find the Thunder God unleashing all his fury to rescue the one who defeated him in battle and humiliated him in the eyes of his beloved. Could Hercules have been granted a more noble savior than this? Thor smashes the life out of everything Pluto throws at him, until finally Pluto himself appears: Pluto: Enough! Let the combat cease! Within a matter of minutes you have torn down what it has taken me ages to create! I can witness no further destruction to the realm I have ruled since the dawn of time! Thor: Thy place is here, Pluto! Thou wouldst not have found contentment in the world above! Pluto: You are right, Thunder God! I know that now! At this point, the story ends with more top-notch dialogue: Hercules: Thy words have wisdom Thor—even as thy limbs have power enow to make Hercules pause! Henceforth, I call thee friend! Thor: And I thee. Hercules: What riotous revels we shall enjoy together! What battles we shall share at each other’s side! Thor: Alas, Olympian—revels are not for such as me. And my hammer swings only for justice— never for the thrill of battle alone! Hercules: But what good then to be a god? Thor: Thy careless query, Hercules, is far more profound than thou suspect!

Kirby/Colletta cover from Marvel Premiere #26.

Thus ended one of the greatest epic sagas of our time. Once again, Kirby and Lee rose above 16

A Failure To Communicate: Part 5 by Mike Gartland

Submitted For Your Approval... here’s been some response during the course of my writing the “Failure to Communicate” articles that I was being unfair to Stan Lee. Several people have written to TJKC expressing their disappointment in our trying to take credit away from Stan, reminding us of Lee’s contributions, his superior writing skills (comparing it with Jack’s solo work yet again) etc., and citing that, just because Jack left a few border notes, it doesn’t necessarily mean he had anything to do with writing the stories—he was in on the plotting, but Lee was the writer. And of course there’s the old favorite critique of every research writer: “You don’t know

Pg. 4, panel 2; one of many panels that were used in the limited animation Gantray-Lawrence Marvel cartoons of the ’60s.

Splash page from Journey Into Mystery #111 (Dec. 1964); Cobra’s lower arm was erased and repositioned.

because you weren’t there.” (By the way, there was a much larger percentage of letters approving of the articles, for which we say “thanks.”) Rather than going into a lengthy explanation concerning my opinions of the Kirby/Lee creative process, I thought it would be far more enlightening and entertaining to let the stories try and speak for themselves; thereby giving the reader an example of how a typical Kirby/Lee plot was finalized before printing. In the next few articles I will be showcasing Kirby/Lee stories from various books that they have worked on, the stories to be determined by what original complete stories I can find; I will document whatever is on the original art and print it verbatim for the reader to see. It should not only give us a glimpse into the creative process of a Marvel comic, but reveal the seldom-seen editorial changes made by Stan (and of course, whatever notes Jack left for assist). In keeping with the theme of this issue, I decided to start with a Thor story from 1964. Whereas some will attest that the Thor stories from 1966-on were pretty much Kirby directing the storylines, this story comes from a time when many believe that Jack and Stan were plotting together, or Stan was creating the plots solo. The story is from Journey into Mystery #111, the second half of a two-parter. The synopsis is: In the previous issue, Loki had increased the power of two of Thor’s arch-enemies, The Cobra and Mr. Hyde. Loki also reveals to them that, in abducting the nurse Jane Foster, they will gain the advantage over Thor. They kidnap her and take her to a specially-prepared house of traps; when Thor arrives and begins battling, Jane becomes mortally wounded. Thor suspends time around the house in order to keep her from dying; with her safe for the time being, he turns to confront his adversaries.... Below are the border notes left by Jack, broken down panel-by-panel; some have been cropped off by the printer, some have been rubbed off from handling. Also, any changes made by Stan will be revealed. Notes followed by a “X” mean that the rest was cut off or not legible. Where no panels are mentioned, no notes exist or were legible. Grab your copy of JIM #111 and enjoy!

(NOTE: This story was approved by the Comics Code Authority on 7/13/64, which puts Jack drawing it in June 1964. Throughout the book, Chic Stone’s bold thick ink brush lines are actually greyish on the originals; the faces stand out as denser black because they were apparently inked separately with a pen.) PAGE 1: Splash: Thor battling Cobra and Hyde X (Note: Cobra’s right arm was erased and re-positioned.) PAGE 2: Panel 1: Cobra and Hyde twice as powerful as they used to be

(My note: Thor has two right hands) Panel 3: With these tactics Thor X Panel 4: Thor causes wind to blow X (Note: In word balloon, the phrase “—lash out with savage fury” was originally different; only the word “villain” can be made out beneath)

Pg. 2, panel 1; notice how Thor has two right hands! Panel 5: Both think they are more X Panel 6: Hyde grabs cobra--ME X

PAGE 3: Panel 1: Thor grabs girl and bolts down corridor. Panel 2: Traps spring up everywhere. Panel 5: Hammer strikes invisible beam X Panel 6: Heavy concrete block comes X

PAGE 7: Panel 1: Cobra doesn’t like his attitude Panel 2: Hurls Hyde Panel 3: Thor X him back Panel 4: Cobra hurls X Panel 5: Thor’s hammer X

PAGE 4: Panel 1: Room has been cleared of danger--Thor makes girl comfortable

SPECIAL PLEA!! Help us continue the “Failure To Communicate” series! If you have original art from Kirby’s 1960s books, send us xeroxes (and jot down any visible margin notes)! We’ll award you a FREE ISSUE when we use it!

PAGE 8: Panel 1: Cobra leaps like crazy but missiles catch up with him Panel 2: He leaps up vent as missiles blow into gas Panel 3: Meanwhile Hyde attacks Thor Panel 4: Gas reaches Hyde X Panel 5: Hyde smashes thru corridor X Panel 6: Thor throws hammer X

Panel 2: Thinks situation over Panel 4: X caution X Panel 5: Rock tossed in remains X Panel 6: Odin watches X PAGE 5: Panel 1: Notices how hard Thor battles for girl’s life--Balder offering to soothe Odin with song

PAGE 9: Panel 1: Meanwhile Odin decides to help girl Panel 2: Gives message to Loki to deliver to healer who lives

Panel 3: X thinks back X Panel 4: Thinks of gorgeous goddess--Thor’s mother Panel 5: Loki breaks in X

beyond badlands

Panel 4: Don’t trust X you rat X I’ll take message Panel 5: Balder rides off across badlands Panel 6: He’ll never make it--Thor’s girl will die

PAGE 6: Panel 1: Meanwhile Thor comes out to mop up villains Panel 2: Cobra is too fast--Hyde is closing in Panel 4: Thor wants to take on the better one first

PAGE 10: Panel 1: Badlands get rough--One slip and into flaming lake (Note: the word balloon in this panel was originally the word balloon in the next panel, but Stan moved it over) Panel 2: More danger--Balder sees something that makes him draw sword

Panel 3: Thor pursues Hyde X Panel 4: Hyde turns on Thor Panel 5: Meanwhile pushes X PAGE 11: Panel 1: Thor flips Hyde into ray (Note: Stan’s original caption for this panel read: “Meanwhile back on Earth, Thor’s own battle continues without let-up”) Panel 2: Hyde stiff as a board (Note: in upper corner is notation “Chic Stone—ST-3-1899”) Panel 3: Thor props him up X now just X Panel 4: Slams wall to expose X Panel 5: Association with Iron Man X Panel 6: Rewires circuits to X PAGE 12: Panel 1: Restores wiring Panel 2: High tingly effect courses thru circuits of entire house Panel 3: Cobra, still slithering thru interior is reached by jazzed up effect

Panel 4: Cobra X duress X stop Panel 5: Comes out X (Note: Stan changes the word “help” in balloon to “Hyde”) Panel 6: Too weak to escape X Panel 7: Cobra and Hyde ready for X (Note: the name Hyde in word balloon

Pg. 5, panel 3; Kirby intended this to be Thor’s mother, but Lee ignored his intent.

was originally something else, but cannot be made out) PAGE 13: Panel 1: She’s still in bad shape, but house is in time warp so she’s still alive

Panel 2: If Thor lifts time warp she will die--They may have to stay together in time warp for all eternity together

Panel 3: X his touch is death X Panel 4: Phantom is creature of a X Panel 5: So Balder makes his sword X PAGE 14: Panel 1: Comes to forest of sleep--plants give off gas Panel 2: Covers horse’s head with cape and with superb stamina Balder just about staggers thru

Panel 3: X of swords X Panel 4: X cape X flat rocks X hooves X Panel 5: Reaches moving mountains X Panel 6: Makes it to healer X PAGE 15: Panel 1: Thor must lift time warp--it’s a helluva way for the girl X Panel 2: It’s better that she take the risk of dying--He can become Blake and try to save her

Panel 4: Hammer breaks warp X Panel 5: No sooner does warp X Panel 6: Medicine vial X Panel 7: Medicine is X

(above) Pg. 11, panel 6; It was Jack’s idea to mention the Iron Man tie-in here. (below) Pg. 14, panel 2; note the similarity of Jack’s note to Stan’s dialogue.

PAGE 16: Panel 1: Warp is lifted--only seconds to save girl Panel 2: Take this, kid Panel 3: X sword X Panel 5: X balder X Panel 6: Girl opens eyes X Panel 7: Thanks X Panel 8: Thor and gal walk X

What conclusions can one draw from this? Obviously something was in the process of changing, since only months before on other originals there are no Kirby notes at all. In the photocopies of Jack’s pencils from JIM #101 (previously seen in TJKC #14 and #18), no notes are visible; and since these are photocopies of pencil art, one would assume that if pencil notes were there, then they’d be viewable. Also, on other pages of original art from pre-1964, no notes are found (other

than editorial notes left by Stan). So sometime during 1964 Jack begins the process of leaving notes in the borders of the artwork. Why? Were these to help remind Lee of a story they plotted weeks previously, or guide him through a story he had little input on? In other books not drawn by Jack, where he is credited as “layout” artist, also from this time (64-65), he leaves even more detailed border notes. Why? Is he laying out art, plot, story, or what; and for whom— the artist or the writer or both? Some speculate that Jack may have just left border notes on the books he drew, having gotten into the habit after leaving notes on his “layout” books; but this JIM #111 story predates his layout books. It’s also well documented that, as time went on, on future stories Jack’s notes become even lengthier, describing characters and events in much more detail. In future issues we’ll see other examples—judge for yourself what or who’s unfair (and to whom)! ★

Pg. 13, panel 2; as proof of Thor’s love for her, Jack would’ve had him stay with Jane in the time warp for all eternity rather than have her die.

“It’s In The Bag, All-Wisest!” Jack Kirby’s Golden Age Gods, by R.J. Vitone “It occurred to me—that, in this new age, we must seek new roads to tread!” —Darkseid, New Gods #6 he grinning image of an exuberant Mercury from Red Raven #1 reflects the wide-open optimism of the early Golden Age. This was a time to tread new roads, to create new myths. A horde of talented young artists and writers rushed to the job. Jack Kirby and Joe Simon were there, separately at first, then as a team that would help to shape the actual course of that early comics history. Their backgrounds and interests were similar. Joe enjoyed sports, radio dramas, reading, and films; Jack did too—plus pulp mags and newspaper comic strips. Both men would draw heavily from these sources for story inspiration. It should come as no surprise that Classic Mythology would fuel their imaginations as well. The ancient gods have been a part of man’s collective memory from virtually the earliest Jack’s first “Satan” lookalike, from Science Comics #4. recorded history. Egypt, Rome, Greece, and almost every culture contributed their own set of deities to the mix. The fabled exploits of Thor, Hercules, Zeus, Eros, Isis, Mars, Minerva, and the rest have endured the march of time. Many showed up during the Golden Age—if not in their original form, in name at least. (Hey, public domain is a beautiful thing!) Jack Kirby’s first use of his “gods” file shows up in Science Comics #4 (May 1940). Written and drawn by Jack as a proposed newspaper strip, it was cut and pasted up to sell to the feature-hungry comics market. In it, Iako, leader of the enslaved ‘Mekkanos’, bears a strong resemblance to the classic image of Pluto/Satan, an all-time

favorite Kirby villain. A short but solid story, but just a warm-up for what was to follow. “Mercury in the 20th Century” saw print in Red Raven #1 (August 1940). Drawn by Jack (from a script by Martin A. Bursten), it’s the epic tale of a full-blown mythical god, sent to Earth at the command of Jupiter to stop the evil plans of Pluto. Pluto, who looks like Satan, is impersonating Hendler, the dictator of Prussland, who looks like Adolph Hitler—whew—did you get all that? Another short story, but memorable and well done.

Joe Simon had entered the picture by this time, and the team kicked into high gear. Martin A. Bursten is also credited with the script of the “Marvel Boy” strip in Daring Mystery #3 (Sept. 1940). It’s a choppy effort, mixing Kirby art, Simon art, a couple of Timely inkers, and an origin that features Hercules descending from Valhalla! (Huh?) That same issue features the same group of artists on Fiery Mask, a truly forgettable hero, battling a bloody murderer who turns out to be a demonic angel of Hell, working for (you guessed it) Satan! Around this time, late 1940, The Vision swirled up out of the Smoke Dimension and into Marvel Mystery #13. Although a more traditional “super-hero,” he was called a “smoke god” once in a while,

Myth and reality collide in Red Raven #1.

and did face some foes that seemed a bit myth-based (and don’t forget Kai-Mak, the shark-god!). Jack and Joe took some “under-thetable” work and packaged Captain Marvel Adventures #1 for Fawcett. It’s interesting to note that while Kirby’s first version of Hercules, they didn’t crefrom Daring Mystery Comics #3. ate the character, How a Greek God rates a condo in Billy Batson Valhalla is beyond mortal ken! became Captain Marvel by shouting “SHAZAM,” which as we all know means Solomon, Hercules, Atlas, Zeus, Achilles, Mercury—perhaps the most ambitious amalgam of public domain plot devices ever attempted! When S&K began work on Captain America #1 late in 1940, they were already leaving the old gods behind. There were fresh new story inspirations pouring out of Europe, where the real Hitler was threatening to ignite more wars of conquest. America needed a loud answer, “real” or not. It’s been said many times that Captain America (and his dark shadow, the Red Skull) are as much symbols as they are “real”: Cap, the embodiment of U.S. of A. democracy, and the Skull, the living heart of evil. The early Cap issues bear out that idea. Captain America is always shown in heroic poses, and has no true identity of himself. (Steve Rogers one moment, Cap the next.) The Red Skull? Always “killed off,” he pops up again like a demonic jack-in-thebox, kills a few dozen people, then runs off (and he takes the time to pose like the bad guy in silent melodramas at every opportunity!). As Jack and Joe got deeper into the Cap run, the godstyle faded away, replaced by a solid sleekness in art and story. Soon, just about every story concerned the all-too-real menace of the Axis powers. Along the way, Cap #3’s “Case of the Murdering Butterfly and the Ancient Mummies” used some nice Egyptian The Fiery Mask from Daring Mystery #6— fighting demons in Hell. artifacts as

backgrounds, and issue #8’s “The Strange Mystery of the Ruby of the Nile” dredges up some Kirbyesque creatures out of a dusty tomb! The true curtain-closer on S&K’s Golden Age of Gods was still ahead, an ultimate adventure from across the Rainbow Bridge. The team’s move to DC saw a shift to even more light-hearted, but still reality-based stories. But the boys had one more great gods epic left in them. “The Villain From Valhalla” (Adventure Comics #75, July 1942, reprinted in Forever People #6) ranks as one of the true high points in the S&K portfolio. “Thor” invades New York with a murderous band of Norsemen, and a titanic battle between good (Sandman) and evil (Thor) blows the city apart. So what if “Thor” wasn’t “Thor”? The story took off, and was remarkable then and now. That story marked the virtual end of the S&K gods. A few stories would still feature a handful of god-like characters, but all-in-all, it was time to move on. (Satan and Hitler did show up often over the next few war-years. You just can’t kill a “good”/bad thing!) World War II called both men to the service, truly to “new roads to tread,” and it would be many years before the old gods would give way to Kirby’s new gods. Sometimes a new mythology has to travel a long and winding road. ★

Ad from Human Torch #3 (#2), featuring Cap as a mythic figure.

and strangling him. In the comics version, Thor used his hammer and flung Sigurd off into space; it’s not as graphic, but the point is made. Jack also used “Tales of Asgard” to introduce new mythological characters not in the original myths; the most notable being the Warriors Three. It becomes obvious that Fandral is based on either Doug Fairbanks or Errol Flynn, Volstagg is reminiscent of Shakespeare’s Falstaff, and Hogun is, well, Hogun—a good counterpoint to the other two. A tip of the hat is also noted to Dumas’ Three Musketeers. As with all the plots Jack worked on in the mid-Sixties, the “Tales of Asgard” stories began to develop into continuing stories, becoming

Myth-ing Pieces An examination of Kirby’s use of mythology, by Mike Gartland ack may not have introduced mythological characters to comics, but no one ever expounded and expanded upon their stories the way he did. Upon his return to Marvel/Atlas in the Fifties, he would bring in mythological concepts for the short monster stories he was drawing; Pan and Cyclops are two that come to mind. When he began creating characters and concepts for Marvel’s super-hero line, it didn’t take him long to come back to an old friend. Mythology was at Marvel to stay once Thor proved to be successful. Jack briefly touched on Norse themes in the early stories, but really opened up when he introduced the “Tales of Asgard” back-ups; the early stories from this series take much of their plot from the actual Norse myths. Using these stories, Jack also introduced readers to some of the Norse pantheon who would eventually find their way into the Thor stories— among them, Ymir, Surtur, Hela [below], Balder, Sif, and Heimdall.

Of course, for the sake of children (and the Comics Code Authority), many of the stories based on the myths were altered so as not to share the grim climaxes of their originators (in the story “Balder Must Die” in Journey Into Mystery #107, guess what happens in the original tale?); also in comics you don’t kill off potentially good return characters—not in the first story, anyway. Jack also used the opportunity to extrapolate on the myths, giving us his versions of the boyhoods of Thor and Loki. He even utilized stories from pantheons other than Norse and adapted them; the story “The Secret of Sigurd” [Journey Into Mystery #111] is actually based on the Greek story of Heracles and Anteaus. In brief: Anteaus was the son of Terra, the Earth, and remained invincible so long as he remained in contact with the Earth. In the ancient myth, Heracles defeated him by holding him off the ground

The second of two Atlas concept pages, dated May 7, 1974. We ran the first one in TJKC #23.

adventures that could’ve happened in any far-away land. They actually The Juggernaut (from X-Men #12-13, shown at right) seemed like the old movie serials—to be continued next week—with the was based on a Hindu god, whose worshippers Thor story being the feature. Jack also introduced his interpretation of threw themselves on the ground and allowed themthe Greek/Roman pantheon into the Thor books (Greek/Roman is used selves to be crushed by the idol as it was wheeled because Jack or Stan used names familiar to both civilizations: Hercules forward on a tower sixty feet high (and you thought was Roman, Zeus was the comic book character was tough!). Greek, etc.). In an effort to This was but a brief excursion into Jack’s love of continually come up with mythology, and how he used it during his career. I something new and difknow I didn’t cover the Arthurian connection with ferent, Jack would refer to the Demon and other things; unfortunately, space the Greek myths again in won’t permit it here. But before we go, let’s acknowledge the Seventies by re-inventing Jack’s own mythology—the characters he created. Atlas for First Issue Special His pride and joy was his New Gods, and the hero of #1, but the character’s the story was named Orion, after the strength was the main Greek legend of Orion “The similarity between Jack’s Hunter.” Kirby took liberties version and the myth. with old legends, and gave us Jack even re-interpreted a new mythology to enjoy. ★ his interpretation of these myths when he created The Eternals. The concept of the three divergent races of man is based on mythology; Jack threw in the sci-fi. In other books, Jack would use the names of mythological beings for new characters he was developing. Triton [shown above] and Proteus, both aquatic sons of Neptune, were names used by Jack on scalyskinned fish-like characters. Medusa should be self-explanatory; the original Medusa was from a race called “Gorgons”, so was it more than co-incidence that the first member of her race seeking her out was named Gorgon? Jack’s Gorgon resembles Pan and is of cloven foot; needless to say, the Inhumans had some of their roots in the ancient myths. (There’s also Cyclops from The X-Men, but that’s a stretch, don’t you think?) Jack also referred to obscure myths: Prester John (Fantastic Four #54) was taken from ancient tales of a Christian pontiff residing in Upper Asia, long sought but never found. Mangog (from Thor) was based on the Celtic giants Gog and Magog, who would combine their bodies to become Gogmagog, Cover pencils for Marvel Premiere #31 (Aug. 1976), featuring a Pan-like character, Woodgod. (We don’t believe Jack created the character.) a fearsome monster. 23

The Theology Of The New Gods Excerpted from “The Fourth World Of Jack Kirby: Revisited” by Donald D. Ensign (originally published in Valiant, a 1984 small-press newsletter) hile the Fourth World series can be seen in terms of high adventure and colorful action, it also possesses meaning on a deeper level. Kirby injected a strong amount of philosophical and theological thinking into these comics. He was making statements about the nature of man, good and evil, and transcendent realities.

Orion More than any other character in the series, Kirby fully developed the personality of Orion. Orion is the supreme warrior. He is always on the offensive. He does not willingly run from a fight. But while Orion is portrayed as a single-minded soldier on one hand, we are shown that he has a driven, haunted, and tragic side as well. By the end of the New Gods series we see a rather frightening and obsessed Orion. He is not only the “eternal warrior” but even of love he says, “... as for love, madam—I find love in battle hotly fought!—in vengeance fulfilled!” Also in New Gods #9, after hearing Orion scream his challenge to Darkseid, Lightray remarks that Orion is “the presence of pure and total destruction!”

Panel from Forever People #3.

In each of the main trilogy books Kirby lays forth a study in contrasts. Orion and Lightray, Mister Miracle and Big Barda, and the Forever People and Infinity Man show different sides of the same coin. Note the similarity in dialogue; Orion in New Gods #1 says “You summon me, Highfather—and I am here!” Highfather: “They (the young) must remain free, Orion! Life flowers in freedom!” Orion: “In this cause I live as well!” In Forever People #3 Infinity Man likewise says: “I am called! I am here! I am primed to act! Whatever the Forever People know—I know! Their objective is mine!” Big Barda in her initial appearance in Mister Miracle #4 comments, “We serve only Darkseid—and Darkseid serves conflict!” Big Barda, while from Apokolips (like Orion), holds a greater loyalty to Scott Free, the son of Highfather than to Apokolips (also like Orion). In early issues of New Gods, Orion was presented as a man of mystery with a murky and unknown past. Throughout the series Kirby sets down rather broad hints as to Orion’s origin. In New Gods #1 we are given a hint of Orion’s parentage during a discussion between Metron and Highfather. Metron knows of Orion’s origin, but is commanded by Highfather to keep silent about it. Metron gives the hint in his comment, “Who is more ready to fight the father—than the son!” This scene takes place after Orion has been commanded to seek out Darkseid on Apokolips. In the second issue we have the initial confrontation between Darkseid and Orion. Orion begins to advance on Darkseid but stops short. Darkseid says, “You hesitate, Orion! You sense why— but you don’t know—do you...?” Also in that issue we see Darkseid’s anger at Desaad. Darkseid’s comment that “Orion is an enemy to be respected... was Orion my own son—he would mean nothing to the purpose of our mission!” is meant to quell Desaad’s curious probings. In #3 we see the true face of Orion, a grim, hard and sinister face. “Can this be the face of one Splash page pencils from the new story in New Gods reprint #6 (1984). 24

of New Genesis?” In #5, during Orion’s battle with Slig of the Deep Six, Orion drops his handsome New Genesis face and lets the full fury of his wrath explode. Orion actually kills Slig. As in his later battles with Kalibak, Orion fulfills the prediction he made at the end of the second issue, “Though I be of peaceful New Genesis, I shall strike with more ferocity than can be mustered in all Apokolips!” In #6 Orion again kills one of the Deep Six and battles furiously the remaining undersea demons. By the pivotal seventh issue, wary readers must Orion shows his true face have sensed that Orion was the son of in New Gods #8. Darkseid. In New Gods #11, Darkseid acknowledges his parentage of Orion and Kalibak. Darkseid also shows his preference for Orion in his destruction of Desaad, who was helping Kalibak in his battle with Orion. Orion also fully realized that Darkseid was his father and that the war will only be settled when father and son confront each other. But what does distinguish the fanatic ferocity of Orion from the bestial savagery of the minions of Apokolips? There were at least two factors that Kirby developed into the personality of Orion in this area. First, was the fact that Orion was totally committed to the cause and positive spirituality of New Genesis. At the end of “The Pact” in New Gods #7, we have the first meeting between Orion and Highfather. Highfather says to the young and hostile Orion, “We have need of each other, Orion. This is a place of friends! Here is my hand!!” Orion, who had never known friendship on Apokolips, is attracted to Highfather and places his trust in him. This trust is not betrayed, but strengthened and Panel from “The Pact” in New Gods #7. Orion’s loyalties attached themselves completely to Highfather and New Genesis. This scene is pregnant with theological concepts and insights. Highfather in this case can be seen as a benevolent God reaching down to undeserving man to offer His love and care. The center of Orion’s conversion was his personal relationship with Highfather as seen in the above vignette. In Greg Potter’s otherwise excellent article “The Gods and Heroes of Jack Kirby” (The Comics Journal #59), he makes the mistake of stating that the Judeo-Christian God is one who “has always been there” and is “waiting for man to make the first move” (p. 91). This is not the Judeo-Christian God, the God of Orthodox Judaism and Christianity, the God of the Bible. It is God, as represented in the Bible, that makes the first move and not man. In Psalms 14:2-3 we have the condition of man examined: “The Lord looked down from heaven upon the sons of men, to see if there are any who understand, who seek after God. They have all turned aside; together they have become corrupt; There is no one who does good, not even one.” The Bible is a record of God’s intervention within the history and individual lives of mankind. In the New Testament God reaches down to man in the form of His Son, Jesus Christ. Romans 5:8 says, “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were

yet sinners, Christ died for us.” Again like the God of the Bible, Highfather was the one to initiate a reconciled relationship with the estranged, young Orion. Second, we do not see the sadistic cruelty in Orion that we see in the warriors of Apokolips. Darkseid chooses the Earth as a battleground for his war with New Genesis without regard to the casualties it will bring to innocents. Darkseid’s depraved assistant, the aptly named Desaad, takes his sustenance and pleasure from the strong anguish and pain of his victims. Kalibak treats earthmen as “worms,” “ants” and “flies” that are almost beneath his notice in his savage search for Orion. Orion is respectful of the earthmen. He tries to rescue and protect them from the battle whenever possible and even enlists their aid against the enemy. Orion’s furious wrath is directed against evil, and even when he exacts terrible judgment on his Apokolips enemies, it is done swiftly and without pleasure. Orion, while steadfast in his objective, is not just a hate-filled, unthinking, fighting machine.

Orion and Kalibak The relationship between Orion and Kalibak could have Biblical connotations. The story of Cain’s murder of his brother Abel comes to

Back cover pencils from the 1984 New Gods reprint series.

to hide but Orion is “plagued by shadows” and has “chambers which no one may enter,” reinforcing this idea that Orion is a man of duty and his mission is his unquestioned obedience to the commands of the Source. In New Gods #6 when Lightray again appears with Orion, he is described as a “smiling lamb.” Orion says to the noble Lightray, “Your kind brings an undeserved honor to war.” As in the first issue we see the strong attraction of friendship that links Lightray to Orion. In the second issue Lightray tries to join his friend Orion in the battle but is forbidden to do so by Highfather. In New Gods #6 he does join Orion but breaks his word to Highfather to do so. In Robert Cosgrove’s fine article “Jack Kirby, Modern Mythologist” (Sense of Wonder #12), he makes a case that Lightray is the Christ archetype in the series. If Lightray is a Christ symbol, he is an imperfect one at best. Lightray’s disobedience to the command and will of Highfather is uncharacteristic of the Christ of the New Testament. In John 5:30 Jesus says, “I can do nothing of My own initiative. As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is just, because I do not seek My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me.” Also in John 6:38 Jesus says, “For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me.” Also Lightray shows only the sacrificial, loving side of Christ, the side of Christ’s first incarnation. The portrayal of Christ in His second coming is one of a mighty ruler, a king of kings and lord of lords. He will establish justice by the imposition of His will forcefully on mankind (Rev. 19:11-21). Orion, with his strong sense of destiny and duty and Splash page from New Gods #8—Kalibak shows a total lack of respect for humankind. moral justice, is closer than Lightray to this mind. The analogy is not perfect because in a real sense Orion wore the side of Christ. However, Orion is even a more imperfect archetype of mark of Cain (Gen. 4:15)—i.e. his true face—as much as Kalibak did. Christ than Lightray. Unlike Christ, Orion’s lineage is tainted by evil. Later in Genesis we have the story of Esau and Jacob, the sons of In his climactic battle with his half-brother Kalibak, Orion declares, Isaac. Esau was the elder son and was hairy and a skillful hunter like “We must be brothers you and I!—different sides of the same coin! Kalibak, and was in rivalry with his brother Jacob over their birthright. True sons of Darkseid—The essence of his creed of total violence!” Genesis 25:22 states that Jacob and Esau struggled with each other In New Gods #8 we again see Orion and Lightray together. They while still inside their mother’s womb. In New Gods #11 Darkseid says happen upon a young couple on a rooftop talking about the battles that Orion and Kalibak “have fought each other since childhood!” In between super-beings that have been raging in the city. Orion’s comments their last epic battle in New Gods #11, Orion utters his realization that are typical, “And so it is, with the romantic young, Lightray! Part fantasy, he and Kalibak “must be brothers.” Kalibak’s response is a strong decpart truth... all comedy.” To which Lightray responds, “Not to them, laration of birthright, “Were Darkseid my father, he would have only Orion! It’s reality to them!” Moments later in an elevator the two heroes one true son! Kalibak! Kalibak!” Again, even with these strong parallels meet a young woman. She says, “Er—I’m giving a party in apartment the analogy breaks down. Jacob was a “peaceful man” unlike Orion 5C tonight!! Why don’t you and Isaac favored Esau over Jacob. As mentioned before, Darkseid drop by! Bring Humphrey seems to have favored Orion over Kalibak. It should be noted too that Bogart with you, too!” To Jacob and Esau were non-identical twins while Orion and Kalibak which Lightray says, “If you were born of different mothers. mean Orion I fear your hopes are in doubt.” Orion’s icy reply is “and that means ‘no’ One of the most interesting character studies that Kirby did in the female! Frivolity is far from Fourth World was to contrast Orion and Lightray. In the first issue of my thoughts!!” New Gods we have the assertion that “Orion treads only where danger Later in the apartment threatens!” Lightray exhorts Orion to “forget the sound of battle and of Victor Lanza, the contrast learn to laugh again.” Whereas Lightray says, “to laugh is to feel the beat between Orion and Lightray of life. Live, Orion, live!” Orion declares a fearsome burden of fate when is again striking. When he exclaims, “My destiny is battle. I wield the mighty power of the meeting Lanza’s wife, Lightray Astro-Force. It is a grim and fearful responsibility.” Lightray has nothing bows gallantly while taking A gallant Lightray from New Gods #9. 26

Orion and Lightray

her hand and declares, “...gentle lady—let me assure you that we are pledged to your well-being!” In the same panel, depicted stiffly in heavy shadows, Orion curtly adds, “True enough! We are friends!” Lightray relaxes and further compliments the woman while Orion abruptly yanks up a television set when news of Kalibak is broadcast. Orion is made for battle and is ill at ease in a passive atmosphere. Lightray is much better adjusted and happy with life in all of its aspects, and not just in fighting as is Orion.

generals, lawgivers, statesmen, and true servants to their respective peoples.

Darkseid Darkseid has to rank as one of the quintessential comic book villains of all time. He was the only character to appear in all of the Fourth World books. His menace is the link that binds all of the books together in an epic tapestry. To be a convincing threat that battled super-heroes in four concurrently-published books, Kirby had to invent the ultimate

Highfather Highfather closely parallels Moses of the Old Testament. He’s the leader of his people and wielder of the Wonder-Staff. The WonderStaff is connected to the Source, and the power of the Source flows through it. Moses also had a “Wonder-Staff ” that God used to show His power. God turned Moses’ staff into a serpent and back again (Exodus 4:1-5). Moses’ staff was involved in the dividing of the Red Sea (Ex. 14:16) and giving water from the rock (Ex. 17:5,6; Num. 20:8-11). Highfather’s life remarkably parallels that of Moses. Moses for the first forty years of his life was the adopted son of Pharaoh’s daughter, a very high position of authority and influence. Izaya (soon to be Highfather) is shown to be a New Genesis leader in New Gods #7. In that issue the forces of Apokolips slay his wife Avia, and Izaya in revenge kills Steppenwolf (the actual slayer of Avia), the uncle of Darkseid. In Exodus 2, while seeing an Egyptian mistreating some Hebrews, Moses “took vengeance” and kills the Egyptian. Then he flees for his life to the wilderness where he remains for another forty years. In the wilderness, Moses’ life is changed when he confronts God whose name is I AM THAT I AM in the burning bush (Ex. 3). Izaya, after killing Steppenwolf, goes on a wilderness pilgrimage and renounces his warlike ways and comes to his burning bush; the wall which is the outward manifestation of the Source. Moses in his later years used others to accomplish his purposes. His brother Aaron and Hur helped Moses prevail in battle (Ex. 17:816). Moses also sent Joshua and Caleb to spy out the Promised Land and after Moses’ passing, they lead the invasion and war for Canaan. Highfather used Orion, Lightray and others as his surrogates in the war with Apokolips. Both Highfather and Moses were prophets,

Page 19 pencils from Forever People #6—even a devastated Happyland couldn’t get Darkseid down.

villain. In Forever People #2 Darkseid comments, “Darkseid never rests! His shadow falls everywhere!” Darkseid is the personification of pure evil. In Forever People #3 he says, “But I am the Revelation! The tiger force at the core of all things! When you cry out in your dreams—it is Darkseid that you see!” In the next issue, he said about an elderly man with his grandchild, “And still, the cosmic joke escapes him!! For how can he cope with me—by shunning me—his other face.” Like Kirby’s other great villains, Doctor Doom and Galactus, Darkseid had a sympathetic side. He cared for his son Orion and had

a distaste for sadistic practices. In the letter column in Forever People #5, reader Bob Medcalf delivers a well-written treatise that Darkseid was really noble and compassionate in his motives to deprive mankind of its free will. One could make a case that Hitler had positive qualities, but the dynamic of evil was so strong in him that it totally submerged any good qualities. Hitler had his Himmler as Darkseid had his Desaad to carry out his dirty work. While Darkseid may have had a sympathetic remnant here and there within his psyche, Kirby leaves little or no room for believing that he was just a perverted good guy. Darkseid’s command to Mantis in Forever People #2, “Take Earth! Enslave all of mankind!... Unleash the terrors of the night! Make man cringe! Make him tremble—make him fear!” These are hardly the words of a being with a covert benevolent nature. Darkseid, while not a degenerate like Desaad, was capable of savage killer frenzy. In Forever People #5 he comments reflectively, “We must be what we are! And of course... that’s the pity of it all! It’s the very core of our conflict! To fulfill ourselves—we must kill them!” Then he shouts, “Kill them! Kill Them! And take Sumo!” While Darkseid believed in the hand of “fate” he never tried to go against his foreordained role, but relished it and would seek to bend it to his own will. In Mister Miracle #9 Darkseid declares, “I’ll face Orion wherever fate decrees! And in the end I will ‘shutdown’ this universe of all life!!—except the will of Darkseid.” Darkseid was the patient master planner and philosopher. He was able to detach himself and make cold-blooded observations about the misery and destruction he was causing. In New Gods #4 he ponders, “Oh, how heroes love to flaunt their nobility in the face of death! Yet they know better than most that war is but the cold game of the butcher!” Darkseid reflects in Forever People #2, “Mantis fights hard—and fails hard—he cannot learn to plan! But Darkseid waits like silent stone... waits and plans to flush his prize from its cover...” Even though many of his plans were foiled he never seemed overly disturbed. While walking through the inferno that was Happyland, Darkseid comments, “Don’t fret, Desaad! We’ll attain our goals without complete victories—or defeats!! See what a fine spectacle misfortune provides for us!! Have we truly lost, Desaad—when the power and resources of Apokolips Beware the Omega Effect! Kirby pencils from Forever People #6. are barely scratched?” (Forever 28

People #6) He was the ultimate villain. Darkseid was Satan with a stone face.

a feeling that the sinister power of Apokolips was almost overwhelming and overpowering. There was a sense that the good guys could lose, which is lacking in most comics. What can one say about Jack Kirby’s artwork that has not been said dozens of times before? Massive, monumental, powerful are descriptives that immediately come to mind. Kirby’s art, so much more than his writing, is what carried the series as far as it went. Kirby’s pacing, timing, and sense of drama were at their peak after almost thirty-five years of continuous practice in the comic book medium. Art is problem solving and Kirby had more than paid his dues in that department. Jack Kirby was the master storyteller with his pencil much more than with his typewriter. This article could be at least twice as long if we were to explore more fully other facets of the Fourth World such as Mister Miracle and the Jimmy Olsen stories. As I’ve researched these stories I was constantly amazed at the motherlode of ideas, thoughts, and concepts that Jack Kirby unloaded on the comics reading public. It is one of the great tragedies of comic book history that Kirby was not able to finish this fantastic series. However there were two worse fates than that. One was that Kirby would have never had the chance to do the series, and the other that he would have done even less than he did. Thank you, Jack Kirby. We wish there were more with your heart and imagination. ★

The Source While both Greg Potter and Bob Cosgrove identify the Source as roughly equivalent to the Judeo-Christian concept of God, this writer sees the parallels as very rudimentary at best. Even though the Source has certain attributes of deity (“eternal”—New Gods #1, “omnipotent

and all-knowing”—New Gods #5) it is essentially impersonal and deistic; a god or “Force” who is there but not directly involved in history. The Source is an imperfect representative of the God of the Old Testament. God’s presence was communicated to His people in the Old Testament in various ways. His presence was shown through angels, the burning bush, pillars of fire, clouds, and verbally. It is interesting that Kirby uses a hand to write out the message of the Source on the wall. This is, of course, lifted directly from Old Testament literature. In Exodus 31:18 the tablets of stone that contained the commandments were “written by the finger of God.” In Daniel 5, we are told of a man’s fingers that wrote a message on the wall of the king’s palace. In verse 24 of the same chapter we are told that this hand was sent by God. However, Kirby’s Source was still very impersonal when compared to the God of the Bible. Abraham, Jacob, Moses, Gideon, Isaiah, and others carried on two-way conversations with God and even argued and bargained with Him. The Psalms of David especially suggest an intimate personal closeness that transcends the strongest human relationships. In comparison, the Source could give instruction but not love, and it could give wisdom but does not take responsibility. Also, the God of the Bible is very much active in the history and affairs of men (Daniel 5; Psalms 2; Acts 2,7, etc.).

Evaluation

1980s rear view of Darkseid, done for the Super Powers toy line.

How did Jack Kirby the writer fare on the series? Well, the verdict of this writer is mixed. Jack the wordsmith left quite a lot to be desired. Some of his actual written verbalizing made otherwise sophisticated characters come out sounding like—well, one-dimensional comic book characters. If Jack needed a Stan Lee for no other reason than to help him with his syntax, grammar, and making the characters talk like normal human beings, Lee’s presence would have helped greatly. Jack’s dialogue was stilted, stiff, choppy, and uneven at best. While it might be said that Stan’s writing was somewhat pompous and melodramatic, still his copy had a natural flow and rhythm to it. His people talked and thought like real people, or at least how we would like to perceive them as talking. Lee was able to handle heavy dialogue (Silver Surfer, Thor) in a smooth and consistent way. One might defend Kirby’s writing by saying he is not dealing in the subtleties and intricacies of human emotion but with primal archetypes. Be that as it may, Kirby’s strength as a writer was not his articulation but his ideas, concepts, and execution of dramatic pacing. As we have seen in the section on Orion and Lightray, Kirby was capable of simple, yet good, solid and consistent character development. Kirby’s instincts and concepts were excellent. There was a sense of ominous danger. The atmosphere of these books was charged with 29

Fountain of Youth

did not return for several hours, having completed the entire volume. I rubbed my tired eyes, but I could not get the images out of my mind. Such fun—such wonderful fun! At last, I placed the book down, and as I did the most extraordinary thing happened: A giggle escaped my lips. Not a world-weary twenty-one-year-old giggle, mind you, but the innocent laugh of a child. A great big, infectious ten-year-old giggle— —and I’m a kid again, as I suspect we all are. Kirby keeps us young. Of course, I am only beginning my journey of discovery, but the King’s legacy lives on thanks largely to the ever-increasing volume of Kirby reprint material and the magazine you now hold in your hands. For as we look to the future—indeed, as we all get “older”—it’s nice to know that his stories shall always remain just a few pages away, ready to magically take us back to a more innocent and youthful age of wonder; and that his imaginative characters, possessed with limitless energy, shall continue reaching out… ...reaching out into the next millennium… ...reaching out to us. ★

by Curtis Davis hate getting older. Some people like it—but not me, and I’m not even all that old. In fact, as I approached my twenty-first birthday earlier this year, I seemed to grow more and more upset at the prospect that time, like a strong receding tide, was slowly pulling me away from the shore of my youth. I couldn’t help but believe that I’d peaked at ten years old, and a decade later I now found myself missing some part of my soul which I cherished dearly. I silently cursed the years of pimples and puberty for changing me thus. One day, around Christmastime, I was wandering down the street in an especially downbeat Gen-X funk, when I happened to pass by a small comic book store. The slightly faded window displays took me back to a time when (unbeknownst to my parents) I’d stay up late reading the few four-color wonders I’d owned, hidden safely away under my sheets. Unfortunately, this little tradition of mine ended when the boobs and bazookas on the pages kept getting bigger and bigger, and eventually my comic book days were over—or so I thought. For as I stood in front of the store, I was suddenly greeted with an overwhelming impulse to go in. Indeed, I could almost hear the smelly newsprint calling to me. “Cur-tis… Cur-tis… Come in… Read me.” I shook off this madness and took a deep breath, looked down the street to make certain no one I knew was around to see me, and opened the door. Once inside, I walked zombie-like past the slightly overweight-but-jolly-in-a-Santa-Claus-kind-of-way owner, past the racks of “busty” new releases and boxes of “musty” back issues, and finally stopped in my tracks at the far wall of the store when my eyes caught sight of a name: Jack Kirby. I stretched out my hand and picked up DC’s recent reprint volume of Jack Kirby’s New Gods, and thought curiously to myself, “Hmmm. Kirby… guy’s name sounds familiar—guess he did a few comics.” (How naive of me.) I carefully opened the book up and entered Jack’s world. My eyes opened wide at the sight of his artwork— the shapes, the geometric patterns, the raw energy of it all—it sparked something in me. I turned the page and there was Orion, somehow defying the laws of physics! Here was an impossibly 3-D figure rendered on 2-D paper, exploding out of the panel and reaching out—as only a Kirby character can reach. I quickly checked my wallet to make sure that I had enough money—just barely—and headed back to the front of the store. As Santa took the book from my sweaty hands and noticed the fire in my eyes, he smiled a big jolly grin and nodded his head. He knew. I raced home, clutching the book to my chest to shield it from the rain. The large El Nino-sized droplets pelted my brow, but I didn’t care—and when I finally reached the house where I’d grown up, I bolted inside and unplugged the phones. Still wet, I climbed into my old bed and pulled up my sheets, discovering that I was now too tall to get them completely over my head. I delicately opened the book so as not to crease the binding, and started at the very beginning. The complete original splash to New Gods #1, before it was shortened by 1" to make room for the indicia. In mere moments, I was “boom-tubed” away and 30

—but if I love myths and have reached an understanding of them, it’s thanks to Kirby’s Thor, and his way of showing Norse gods as almost “counterparts” of other pantheons like Greek. That is: “If Odin is to Thor like Zeus is to Hercules...” then you have the beginning of every comparative study on mythology. Going to the root of the different divine archetypes is something Kirby would develop later in his career.

Jack Kirby: Mythmaker by Pedro Angosto “Only by working out myths, only becoming a “subcreator” and forging stories can man aspire to the state of perfection he knew before the Fall...” J.R.R. Tolkien

Beware... The DemiGods With the introduction of the Inhumans, Kirby added another key to his way of thinking: All myths are legends caused by sightings of extraordinary beings like this hidden race, whose members resemble mythic creatures like the medusa, the fauno, the centaur, and the triton.

Promethean Giant ’m not a Kirby fan. Hey, down with those torches! I mean that I’m 28 years old and even with 17 of those devoted to comic book collecting, by the time I “recognized” Kirby as a creator (in an old Fantastic Four reprinted in Spain, completely out of sequence), I was already exposed to George Pérez’s Fantastic Four, so Kirby’s seemed too “old-fashioned” to me—almost “abstract,” with “those eyes” and “strange perspectives.” His work on the ’70s Captain America didn’t help either; I was definitely a Bronze Age fan and I suppose that my first true contact with Kirby’s genius was through Byrne’s run on the Fantastic Four!! I mean, like most readers in the ’80s I was delighted with it. Imagine my surprise when, as time went by, I realized that what my “god” Byrne was doing was “Kirby reprise” again and again. Well, that’s what everybody does, right?

A Time When The Old Gods Died... I don’t like Kirby’s Thor. No, I’m not from the “Kirby Fans’ Syndicate of Earth-3,” but as a lover of mythology, I can’t stand the “technological” look of Asgard and the interpretation of some of the myths and characters by Kirby. It goes beyond the fact of Thor being blond or redhead: What Kirby did in Thor is an interpretation of Norse myth, but under the light of Greco-Roman heroes, Jewish and even Christian traditions. The relationship between Thor and Odin isn’t that of the Norse Eddas—where they are fellow adventurers, together with the trickster Loki—but more like the relationship between Zeus and Herakles, or the Biblical God with Adam, or Christ. The “Father of All” of Norse myth is not the “Kris Kringle” king of gods—that, come to think of it, may be influenced also by warrior kings like The Lord of the Rings’ Theoden—but a mysterious figure that often appears as the Wanderer or other guises, master of the rune magic who speaks in riddles. The Loki of myth is not the stepbrother of Thor, and he’s more a luciferic image than a diabolical one. He’s the nemesis of Tyr in the Ragnarok. The Balder or myth lies in Hel, of course, etc.—and, believe me, there’s no “Queen of the Beehive” in Norse myths! Mixing science-fiction with myths made great stories for Thor, but I think that, although rooting super-heroes with legend and myths is a stroke of genius, this series has been left in history as Kirby’s “general rehearsal” of what later would become New Gods or even The Eternals—the later being almost redundant within Marvel Universe cosmology. I’d rather have Simonson’s take on Asgard as “viking-inspired” constructions, and plots devolving around Asgard, without the Rigelians or the Absorbing Man—

Odin renders judgment on his son in these pencils from Thor #166.

It’s the same idea behind the “asparagus people” from Avengers #4 or the Asgardians, who are not true gods but an extradimensional race. They also live in a hidden city that has ties to Atlantis—like Prester John’s Avalon—with high technology on genetics and ancient history. More on this would be developed with the Eternals.

Fall From Grace Here’s one of the greatest moments of Kirby’s work with myths: Pagan myths are not only “lies” like Tolkien said—as opposed to “true” Biblical myths—but a way of understanding the world and the place of the man in it; a way of thinking in symbolic terms. Tolkien’s works—like Star Wars films—are an excellent example of how artistic, creative works can turn into new myths to the current audience that can understand their world through the characters and events in those works. Surely there have been many lines written over Silver Surfer’s arrival to Earth, his rebellion and Galactus’ role as “God,” and of course about Lee’s take on the character as a new Jesus Christ—but as I was writing an article on the Surfer’s history for “Comics Forum” (the text section in current spanish Marvel editions), I realized that the Surfer was neither Christ nor a fallen angel, but “Adam” himself!! Transfigured into the Surfer by Galactus, sharing with him “the Power Cosmic,” this celestial man soared the spaceways fulfilling the command of his master, without thinking of the moral consequences of destroying planets full of life. It was after entering our “material” world (as opposed to the spiritual space he came from) and meeting a woman (Alicia Masters, who in some ways could be Eve here) that the Silver Surfer—a little part of Galactus/God himself sent to the world—would “taste the Tree of (moral) Knowledge of Good and Evil” and stop with his power the—until then— mechanical, automatic, amoral ways of his “superego” Galactus. “At last I know... beauty”, “I’ve found what men call conscience,” said the Surfer, who “awakening” from the moral dream after meeting Alicia, epitomizes Siegfried (who didn’t know fear) feeling it when he saw at last the face of the sleeping beauty, the valkyrie Brunhilde. But for his rebellion, for his “original sin,” he’s cast out of the space (the Eden), and a barrier—in place of the Biblical angel with Despite this declaration at the end of Silver Surfer #18, we never got to see the new direction it would’ve taken. the flaming sword—keeps him from returning adventure—of quest that drives man—is lost. So he, being—like home. This myth, this symbolic structure of the “prodigal son,” of the Superman or Moses—the “only survivor,” later finds himself trapped “divine spark” sent to the material world for experience which later on Earth where he’s also a pariah, unable to understand the crazy ways had to return to the Absolute through a process of “theosis,” can be of the world. The supreme characterization of Lee gives us an alien, found in many other mythologies and religions, schools of spiritual an angel that just happens to think in another way; his platonic love thinking or, more recently, other modern myths like Disney’s The Lion for Shalla Bal—anima to his animus, Brunhilde to his Siegfried—and King. So the Surfer is here a figure of man, originally of a higher plane remembrances of his original world; and Mephisto, evil incarnated, but trapped in this material world. If the Silver Surfer by his rebellion tempting him. That beautiful scene of him being at peace with wild stopped Galactus—if his turning against the original will of his master animals—just like Adam in Paradise—and last, he being the ultimate resulted in the salvation of Earth—can this be interpreted as a theoexistential hero, who finds himself in a world he never made and, logical statement of the ultimate happy ending to the destiny of man, of floating without will in space, on his knees over his board, cries to God, the Fall being something necessary for man, if not ultimately “good”? to his Father to end his suffering, waiting for a lighting bolt to destroy Certainly, I would love to hear from Stan Lee how much of this was him. (Okay, this is not The Stan Lee Collector, but regardless of who came his idea and how much Kirby’s. By the way these “myths” were produced, up with the original “Fall from Grace” scene, I think Mr. Lee deserves a maybe neither of them had the slightest idea of what they were doing! tip of the hat for working such high concepts out of a Kirby character!) At least we know that later Lee worked perfectly with the Silver Surfer Little suspected the Fantastic Four that they were witnessing the as a “parable” of man, in what I think was his finest writing: Norrin Fall from Grace. How can you improve that?! Radd is an outcast in the hedonistic Zenn-La, where all the spirit of 32

myths as gods, is the origins for the Eternals/Celestials ideas. It’s clear that the Celestials are but “a race of Galactuses,” as they come to bring judgment upon a world. All the fantastic ideas I learned from reading comics, and without doubt my love for ancient myths, comes from Kirby’s work, and what I believe to be a great understanding of symbols and the message of myths that I’ve reached is without doubt thanks to him and his amazing intuition for showing us the divine. So it took me some years, thousands of comics, and a few fine magazines like this to realize the true genius of Kirby and to discover the true depth of his way of working, and the message behind some of his best stories and creations. Even though I’ll never swallow some designs like the Black Racer and other oddities, Kirby has amazed me to the tears of emotion. I’ve realized at last that if those Bronze Age creators reached so high, it was because they were walking over a giant’s shoulders.★

What Is His Inheritance? I’m sorry, but I can’t help but wonder: What if Kirby never left Marvel? What if Stan Lee had written the Fourth World? How’s that for an alternate world, eh?! Because I think that, in part, the difference between the elegance of the Surfer and the bizarreness of the Black Racer (an armored skier—sheesh!), between the legendary Fantastic Four and the ever-cancelled New Gods, is Stan Lee. Too many concepts (not all good), too many characters and, more regretfully, little connection with the DC Universe keeps the Fourth World from shining as the ultimate Kirby epic. Here, Kirby begins showing us the end of the “Old Gods,” which implies a “new age” and successive pantheons. As occurs after Ragnarok in Norse myth, new gods arise. This new pantheon is developed by Kirby following the archetypes of gods in the different mythologies. Where there were Norse, Greek, Egyptian gods, now there are only the New Gods: Highfather (his name says it all; Odin/Zeus), Metron (god of knowledge; Hermes/Thot/Wotan), Orion (god of war; Mars/Thor/Tyr), Lightray (god of light; Apollo/Balder), Big Barda (the Valkyrie/Amazon), etc. There are specific bits of old myths in these stories, such as the pact that had Darkseid’s and Highfather’s sons raised by each other (based on the pact to end the Aesir/ Vanir war in Norse myth), but where a more clearly mythic, symbolic structure arises is in the Mr. Miracle story: The way he’s deprived of identity, raised at the court of his father’s people’s enemies (like Moses); the role of Metron (who asks Scott in mystic apparitions “Who’s Scott Free...?”) and Himon as “initiators” (from here come the similarities between Himon/Obi Wan Kenobi and Scott/ Luke Skywalker); and Mr. Miracle being “initiated” in different “traps” he had to escape before returning to New Genesis (his original home, of course). The other great spiritual moment in New Gods is the transfiguration of the warrior Izaya the Inheritor into Highfather. Finding the Old Gods’ Wall, he breaks his war-staff and then he discovers his true inheritance: The Source, the Word of God (this obviously echoes Moses meeting the Burning Bush and receiving the Ten Commandments carved in stone). Sadly, all these mythic structures were left unfinished with the books’ cancellation, and we only get to see the tip of the iceberg of this new pantheon that would have become with time a modern, working mythology much in the image of Tolkien’s “Valar” gods in The Silmarillion.

Sons of the Fifth Sun Back in Marvel, Kirby reached the next level of abstraction in his understanding of mythologies with his work on the Eternals. If every myth tells the same stories, if every pantheon equals any other, what if all the gods are deformations of only one, old pantheon, as seen by the different cultures? So be it: Zuras, Ikaris, Thena, etc. are members of an immortal race whose adventures originate the different myths. This, and the coming of the Celestial to judge the world, came from the idea of different “ages” of the world—Golden, Silver, Bronze, Iron in Greece, the Yugas of Orient, the Biblical Universal Deluge, Atlantis, etc.—and different “humanities,” the first almost godly in nature and power, which with time led to other, less evolved, civilizations. This is most clearly depicted in Aztec mythology, with speaks of five different human races, that inhabited Earth in five ages of the world or “suns” and ended destroyed by great cataclysms when they fell apart from the gods. This, together with the interpretation of Von Däniken concerning the visits of alien beings remembered in

Unused cover for Eternals #5.

The Fourth World What would a Marvel Comics New Gods have been like? by Gene Popa Thus, it’s logical to assume that Jack had originally created the New ace front, True Believers! It’s not a dream, not a hoax, not an Gods to be a part of the Marvel Universe. How would Jack have inauimaginary story... because it could have happened! gurated his Fourth World under the Marvel banner? The central trilogy As students of Kirby’s career know, his decision to leave Marvel (New Gods, Forever People, Mister Miracle) would probably have Comics for DC in 1970 hit fandom like a bombshell. At the peak of remained relatively intact. To occupy the void that Jimmy Olsen filled— Marvel’s success, fate intervened in the personage of Carmine that of acting as a touchstone to the rest of the company—Jack probably Infantino, the veteran artist who had recently been promoted to would have used Thor, which had the benefit of already having a built-in Publisher at DC. Anxious to boost circulation and give a creative infuaudience for such cosmic spectacles. One can easily imagine Darkseid’s sion to the line, Infantino paid a visit to his old friend, Kirby. They struck a deal: Jack would move to DC, and would create a string of original titles. He would also take on an established book (he chose Superman’s Pal, Jimmy Olsen, which at the time had no regular artist whom he would be taking work away from—an important factor for Jack). There were rumblings of DC establishing a West Coast editorial office, and newly- transplanted Californian Kirby could be put in charge (DC never opened the office, much to Jack’s regret). He would be expected to create new characters and titles on a regular basis, just as he had for Marvel. No part of this deal, however, couldn’t be matched or exceeded by Marvel, if Jack truly wanted to stay with the “House of Ideas.” But Kirby had grown disenchanted with Marvel in general and Editor Stan Lee in particular. Although he made good money for his work and was exalted in the editorial pages by Lee, Kirby resented having no real control over the characters he had created. His frustrations peaked when Lee radically changed Kirby’s original intent for the Silver Surfer; reportedly, Jack envisioned the Surfer as far too noble a being to wallow in the melodramatic self-pity for which Stan’s version was distinguished. Over time, Jack had dramatically reduced his artistic output at Marvel, from an average of 120 pages a month in 1965 to barely 40 by ’69. It must not have come as too much of a shock to Stan when Kirby told him that he was going over to DC full-time, because the signals had been there for months. Suppose, however, that Kirby didn’t go to DC. Imagine instead that he stayed with Marvel. Would the Fourth World have come about as we know it? The earliest known conceptual sketches of Darkseid, Orion and other Fourth World characters [as shown in this issue’s color section–Ed.] date back to 1966, at a time when Jack evidenced no overt intention of leaving Marvel. Jack turned these early drawings over to Bullpen staffers Don Heck and Frank Giacoia for inking, which would have been odd if he were thinking of jumping ship. From the start these “New Gods” were in tune with the cosmic themes which he was currently exploring in the pages of Fantastic Four and The Mighty Thor. Indeed, the New Gods were steeped in a mythology Splash page from Thor #166. Would Jack have begun the Fourth World saga in the Thunder God’s book? which was directly related to Norse legends. 34

earliest machinations menacing the God of Thunder, with this conflict ultimately erupting into the introduction of the Fourth World books themselves. As Marvel was much more concerned about company-wide continuity than DC was, other writers could have incorporated aspects of the Fourth World into their books as well. The Roy Thomas-penned “Kree/Skrull War” in Avengers could have used the New Gods in a supporting role just as easily as it did the lnhumans, another race of super-beings created by Kirby. And books like Silver Surfer, Iron Man, Dr. Strange, Captain Marvel, and Warlock, which had to create such cosmic characters as Thanos and the Titans to be Marvel’s counterparts to the DC New Gods could have had access to the real thing instead. In short, the Fourth World at Marvel would have been much more integral to the entire line than it was at DC, which segregated Kirby’s epic to its own little corner of their universe, cameos by Superman notwithstanding. The real difference, however, would have been the fact that Marvel probably would have let Jack bring the Fourth World to his desired conclusion, whatever it finally may have been. Unlike DC, which almost at once began pressuring Jack to vary the tone and structure of the Fourth World to appeal to younger readers, Marvel was eager to cultivate the college crowd, which appreciated the Fourth World books on higher levels—and to satisfy “King” Kirby, Marvel quite likely would have accepted declining sales for a considerable time, rationalizing it as a trade-off for prestige. Another altered element of a Marvel Fourth World would have been the art. Though Vince Colletta (whom DC hired to handle early issues of the books without consulting Jack) was a Marvel regular, Kirby would also have had access to Joe Sinnott and Chic Stone, two embellishers whom he worked with frequently, as well as such others as Wally Wood, George Tuska, John Verpoorten, Syd Shores, Tom Palmer, and Frank Giacoia. In short, Jack would have had some of the very finest inkers to choose from. One thing that is certain is that Stan Lee would not have been credited as writer on any of the books. Jack had bristled at Smilin’ Stan’s insistence on claiming sole scripting recognition Picture a Marvel Comics masthead on this cover from Mister Miracle #8. Would the series have worked at Marvel? clone saga to share a communal shudder of dread. And, just as DC for their work; he finally got out from under the “Lee & Kirby” banner coerced Jack to insert Deadman—a non-Fourth World character— with the Inhumans series for Amazing Adventures, which credited Jack into a Forever People story, Marvel doubtless would have urged him to as both artist and writer. have Spider-Man or the Hulk cross paths with the New Gods in blatant But if Jack would have been the sole writer of the tales, would he marketing ploys. also have been the only artist? In 1995 John Romita, Sr. told this writer This particular game of “What If...?” remains compelling, mainly that Kirby invited him to come to DC and draw New Gods, possibly because it so easily could have come to pass. It didn’t because Marvel over Jack’s pencil layouts. Out of loyalty to Marvel, Romita reluctantly mismanaged their relations with the creative genius behind so much declined the offer. Had Jack stayed at Marvel, Romita could have had of their success, and because DC was able to make sweeping promises no qualms about working on the series. to Jack (which they were prepared to withdraw at a later date). In Is there a downside to a Marvel Fourth World? Of course. Foremost, short, DC acted boldly, and Marvel reacted insufficiently. There’s no it would have meant that DC would never have had the opportunity to use in wondering whether Jack made the right decision. Either course utilize Kirby’s epic, the result being some very fine later interpretations was fraught with ups and downs. What we fans are left with isn’t a of the characters by other DC creators would not be. Conversely, Marvel wistful wishing of what might have been, but an ingenious (if uncomwould have full access to the characters, regardless of however Jack may pleted) body of work that stands as one of the finest pieces of personal have ended the “Epic for Our Times.” One need only picture Mister vision one man ever brought to popular literature. ’Nuff said! ★ Miracle in Secret Wars or Darkseid as the impetus behind the Spider35

Jack’s pencil depiction of a battle of gods, from Thor #144, page 10.

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Simonson/Austin Thor drawing, originally published in Lone Star Express #125 (1983).

Doing His Damnedest Walter Simonson on Manhunter, and taking the reins of Kirby’s New Gods Interviewed by Christopher Irving (Walter Simonson is no stranger to the comics scene. An accomplished writer, penciler, and inker, Walt has covered most every major character. His work on Marvel’s Thor and X-Factor in the past has won him much acclaim, as well as his contributions to Michael Moorcock’s Multiverse and Batman: Black And White. One of his first works to get noticed, however, was the Manhunter back-up in Detective Comics, which he did with the late, great Archie Goodwin authoring. Having recently completed a new Manhunter story for DC’s new reprint of the series, Walt will be taking over from John Byrne on Jack Kirby’s New Gods for DC Comics. Our thanks to Walter for taking time out to do this interview.) THE JACK KIRBY COLLECTOR: What can you tell me about the new Manhunter story that was just published? WALTER SIMONSON: Archie Goodwin, who was the original writer on the series we did together back in the early ’70s, went back to work at DC around ’91. Shortly after that, DC asked the two of us if we would be willing to do a new eight-page Manhunter story that DC could include in a reprint of the original series. When the series originally came out, it was in a series of eight-page chapters, and this was going to be a new one to go with it. Our feeling was that we wanted to do an appropriate story. The problem was that the original series had a clear beginning, middle, and end. It ends with the death of the Manhunter. TJKC: How was it tied to the original [Paul Kirk] Manhunter? WALTER: When we wrote the original series, we didn’t start off with the idea of making it the same guy as the Kirby character from the ’40s, but we used the same name, Paul Kirk, because why not? “Manhunter” was just a back-up feature in Detective Comics when it was 100 pages long; our series was the last eight pages of a hundredpage comic. I believe it was coming out bi-monthly, so there wasn’t a lot of room to establish a sense of background, a bigger world for the character to operate in. Pretty early on, we decided that we would tie the character in to the ’40s Kirby character as a way of enlarging his world, and giving him a broader background than he would have had otherwise. We established a link in the third chapter. We recapitulated the story from Jack’s version of how Paul Kirk had gone from big game hunter to hunting “The World’s Most Dangerous Game” (one of Archie’s favorite themes) as Manhunter. Then we enlarged the story by telling how Kirk had undertaken a series of jobs for the OSS, doing covert operations during and after World War II. When that was over, he went back to big game hunting, and found that it didn’t mean what it had meant to him—and in a moment of hesitation, he was run down by a charging bull elephant and it seemed to him like he had died. In fact, he was spirited away, almost dead, by some folks who became an organization known as The Council, an group of eminent scientists who decided the world was floating on the brink of disaster with the opening of The Atomic Age. They were going to put together a covert government of the world that would guide humanity through to better times. Paul Kirk was carried off and put into stasis, until such time that he could be repaired and brought back to life, so that the Paul Kirk in the Manhunter strip that Archie and I did, turned out to be the same Paul Kirk that was the Manhunter in the 1940s—retroactively. What The Council also did, since Paul Kirk was such a good manhunter, was envision him as the head of their enforcement division or their “League of Assassins” if you will. These were agents who would

pluck certain humans out of continuity, and human history; it was unfortunate, but occasionally necessary. To do this, they cloned Paul Kirk, and made a series of identical replicas of him to be his company of assassins; the original would be in charge. Except, after they woke him up, he said, “Well, no, really, this isn’t what I want to be doing.” So, then he became the target of his own clones, and of The Council itself. Essentially, the story of Manhunter, in the seven chapters we told, is the story of his rebirth, his existence, and his death, in his battle with The Council. Neither Archie or I wanted to do a new story that would interfere with or screw up the old stories. Our feeling was that anybody could do a Manhunter story (he’s a work-for-hire character, so anyone could pick him up and run with the ball) but, if anyone else does it, it won’t really count—but, if Archie and I did it badly, it would count, and we would screw up the old stuff. Since the original series was so tight with a clear beginning, middle and end, there seemed to be no logical place to put a story. Neither of us wanted to do the kind of insert story you see occasionally where we would have said, “Well, in Chapter Four, page five, between panels seven and eight, Manhunter disappears for a few moments. This is the untold story of those few moments.” (Simonson snores, Irving laughs) We’re all instantly asleep! What happened was we didn’t do a story. Every so often we’d talk about it and couldn’t find any ideas for it. We preferred not to do one rather than doing one and screwing it up and doing a bad job. The original series was one that we were both quite proud of, and liked the way it worked out. In the end, about two years ago, Archie caught me one day, as I was walking in the offices of DC, and said he’d had an idea that he thought might be able to be made into an eight-page story, and ran it by me in his office. I thought it was a really cool idea, 39

so we sat down and shot the breeze for an hour or two. When that was over, I had a page-and-a-half of scribbled notes that essentially was the plot for a new Manhunter story we both thought we could not only live with, but believed appropriate to the series and the character— and it didn’t screw up the original storyline. I went home to do the layouts to it. Archie was going to write the script from my layouts—but I was working on Michael Moorcock’s Multiverse, which was a book from Helix at the time, and a full-time job, month to month. So the plot sat in my desk and, one day, Archie was gone. I wrote the introduction for the collected Manhunter edition, which explains some of this as well. Basically, he’d been ill for a long time; none of us had expected for him to go as abruptly as he did, though, in retrospect, it’s not really surprising; but it was a shock when it happened. There was no script, because I hadn’t yet done the layouts. I thought that was pretty much the end of it and then, sometime a month or two later, my wife Louise suggested that I might be able to do it as a silent story since I didn’t want to write the words. I thought that was a really interesting idea. I talked to DC about it, and they were completely supportive of the idea of my trying it, with the understanding that if I tried it and couldn’t do it, we’d just bag it. It turned out to be extremely difficult to do for a number of reasons: There are the emotional reasons, obviously, but it was also just hard to cover a couple of the plot points silently. I didn’t want the character walking up gesturing ‘sounds like’ as if it were a pantomime. I worked on the layouts last Summer, off and on over a couple of weeks. Eventually, I was able to pound it out into a 23-page silent story. I needed more room, obviously, than I would have had in the original eight-page idea. There are central plot points that I could explain to you in two word balloons, but I needed a couple of pages to show this stuff so that you could read it smoothly, and understand what was happening. I then went to DC and said, “Here’s the problem: This was an eight-page story that’s now 23 pages. Do you still want to do this?” And DC said, “Sure.” So now there’s a collected Manhunter. It has some of the drawings I’ve done with the character over the years, like the DC Who’s Who, and the pin-up I did, whatever they could fit in. Archie’s original idea (without saying (this page and next) Pencils and inks of a spectacular example of the New Gods by Simonson. what the story’s about, because I prefer readers get to read it fresh) was that the new story would act as a framing more realistic adventure strip in look, feel and texture after spending device that you would read first as an introduction to the series. But a long time drawing super-heroes (guys ten heads high that are given that now there are no words, and most readers won’t know who knocking over entire mountains). these characters are, there’s really no way in pictures to imply the Also, one of the ideas in the original series was that it would run characters’ backgrounds the way you could with dialogue. Denny as a counterpoint to Batman. Where Batman was in Gotham City, and O’Neil, who was the editor on the project, suggested that I use the new everything was dark, including Batman’s costume, Manhunter was work as an epilogue, and I think that’s exactly right. What we have is brightly colored and the series took place in real locations. We did stuff the seventy-page run of the original series, and then the new story. in Istanbul, Nepal, Australia; we weren’t using the DC fictional universe. I did the sound effects, because back in the old series, I used to do Manhunter carried deadly weapons, like a broom-handled Mauser, my own sound effects (I used to letter them, as well as write them). throwing stars, and stuff of that sort. In some ways, it was more Normally, in most of the work I do, John Workman letters; because I was action-adventure with a touch of super-hero, and with a worldwide doing “Manhunter” before I met John, I thought it would look more theater of operations. Batman appeared in the original series in the like the old “Manhunter” if I did my own sound effects again. I haven’t last episode; before crossovers were a big deal, we did Batman and done that in a good twenty years! (laughter) I was bordering panels and Manhunter together in that story. And in the new story, Batman makes doing sound effects and I was really nervous about doing them, since I a brief appearance. Because of the way everything worked out, the hadn’t done it in so long, but they actually worked out very well. story actually occurs in Gotham City. So for his last appearance, It was a little intimidating to start with. Everything with this job Manhunter actually shows up in one of the DC fictional cities. has been like that. I’m doing a character I haven’t done in twenty-five TJKC: You and Archie did this book in the early ’70s before cloning was years; I’m doing it without Archie to show it to; I’m going back to a 40

assassins. They were like replicas of Manhunter, minus the soul. None of them became regular characters in the strip, and none of them were explored as characters. They were treated in our stories sort of as identical sets of Manhunter’s “evil twin, Skippy.” They were his mirror image, or doppelgänger (which is a much older idea than cloning, going back to one of the Edgar Allan Poe stories). Back then, it was a way of establishing a more mythic sense of the evil twin—and of course, the evil within a person himself. Some of the thematic material that Archie wrote into the Manhunter strip involved the idea that by being cloned, The Council had robbed Paul Kirk of part of his identity. The destruction of The Council, and of the clones and of himself was, in the end, one way for Manhunter to reclaim the identity that had been taken from him. So cloning was treated thematically in the Manhunter strip, rather than as an ethical problem. TJKC: You mentioned Kirby, and I wanted to ask you about the new Orion of the New Gods book. I understand that Orion will basically inherit the rule of Apokolips from Darkseid? WALTER: I suppose you could put it that way. (laughter) I guess that’s accurate as far as it goes, but I don’t know when it’s regicide. I don’t know if the assassin ‘inherits’ the kingdom; I’d rather say victor. Since he is Darkseid’s son, I suppose you could broadly interpret that as inheriting the kingdom. TJKC: I understand that Kirby had to change the Hunger Dogs Graphic Novel, since they would be doing the Super Powers toy line. I’ve heard that they might be reissuing it in its original sequence. WALTER: I’ve heard that’s a possibility. I think Mark Evanier’s posted some stuff about that on the web, and perhaps in The Jack Kirby Collector. I read the Hunger Dogs, though not for some years; I have to go reread that. I don’t have any idea what Jack had originally done with the Hunger Dogs, but I would be delighted to see it come out again in an unaltered form if there is one, just to see what Jack was doing back then. TJKC: Do you feel any real pressure to compete with Jack’s original launching, with the Orion of the New Gods book, or do you find yourself looking back at his work for any inspiration? WALTER: Probably no and yes. As far as competing with that material, why bother? There’s not a chance in Hell that any of us could compete with that stuff, so that’s not really a question. I had heard that the Fourth World was Jack’s most personal work in mainstream comics, and I agree with that. On that basis, to try to compete with somebody’s personal work—you can’t do it, it’s like apples and oranges. What I am hoping to do is take the original Fourth World stuff, as it is there in print, and jump off and do my own take on the material. I read something on the Web where someone was grousing about some storyline that was recently run involving some of Jack’s characters, because they thought it was “not what Jack would have done,” and every time you do a story with the New Gods, you have to ask yourself, ‘Would Jack have done this?’” I think that’s the wrong way to go about working on this material—or any material for that matter. I certainly will do my damnedest to be as true to Jack’s work as I possibly can. At that same time, I can’t ask Jack what he thinks about the stuff I’m doing; I’m not sure I would if I could. I knew Jack very casually; I was and remain a huge admirer and a huge fan of his—but in the end, the best I can be is a really good Walt Simonson; I can’t be a good (or bad) second-rate

the controversial thing it is now. Now, cloning is commonplace in fiction; it’s kind of a trend. Looking back at “Manhunter,” how do you think it deals with cloning in comparison to today’s use of clones? WALTER: I don’t know how you can make a comparison. At the time we were doing it, the only cloning that I remember in comics was in Kirby’s Jimmy Olsen; The Project was there, and there were clones including a giant clone of Jimmy, and some clones of Superman. That’s pretty much how we treated it in “Manhunter,” as a story device that emphasized themes we wanted to emphasize. It wasn’t quite as “superhero” as Jack’s was, and nowhere near as over-the-top. Basically, it seemed pretty logical. If you have a guy like Paul Kirk who could make the perfect assassin, the idea is that cloning would be a way of replicating the perfect assassin into a whole brigade of perfect assassins. The problem is being, of course, that the original was not as taken with the idea as the clones were. The clones all seemed to be assassins as well, although there was a script not long after “Manhunter” finished up, in the book Secret Society of Super-Villains, where they actually had a Manhunter in there for a bit. He turned out to be a clone and, in the end, turned out to be a good guy. We didn’t have any good-guy clones in this strip: They were all 41

Jack Kirby. So, my job—as I see it—is to take the Jack Kirby Fourth World material, particularly the New Gods work (because I see Orion as an extension of the New Gods material, not of the entire Fourth World that Jack created), and do the best Orion that I can do using Jack’s stuff as a springboard. If the book lasts long enough, I’d be doing stuff with that character that Jack wouldn’t have done simply because I’m not Jack. I certainly hope that I would be true in spirit to what Jack did, because that stuff really excited me; the Fourth World material is probably my favorite Jack Kirby stuff. It may be the personal nature of the work that appeals to me; in a sense, I would like to start off with these concepts, and be as personal with them as I can be. I’ve got new characters to introduce. I don’t want to run around and tell stories of the same eighty-five guys. For all the many characters Jack created, in only about forty-four issues, we’ve been mining that stuff for about twenty-five years now. I want to keep mining it, but I’d also like to add to it. I don’t want people to read this and simply read recombinations of what Jack did. The best I can say for me, is that I’d like to pick up the ball right where it’s been left, and run with it. TJKC: Can you give any hints as to what direction you’re going to run with the ball? WALTER: Absolutely. The broad scenario is that I am doing what I think of as an extension of the New Gods book. A lot of times, when the New Gods have been done, people have tried to do all of Jack’s Fourth World material, but that’s a lot of characters, concepts and stuff. I have limited ambitions: I would like to do a good New Gods book, but I can’t do two books a month, bi-monthly for two years as Jack did. That volume of work is simply more than I can do. What I have done is look over the original eleven issues of the New Gods and analyze what I think makes them really cool. Now I’m going to try to make that the core of the Orion book that I’m going to do. If you read the original New Gods comic, it’s the adventures of Orion and (off-and-on) his buddy Lightray. As important as Darkseid is in the Fourth World mythology, he rarely appears in New Gods. His

(this page) More examples of what we can expect from Walt’s Orion series.

best scenes are over in Forever People, with an occasional appearance in Mister Miracle. He has a very limited screen time in New Gods; mostly Orion is dealing with Darkseid’s lieutenants: The Deep Six, Mantis, Kalibak. Essentially, it’s the story of Orion, who is the touchstone character for me, of New Gods, since he embodies the essence of Apokolips and the essence of New Genesis—as many things are in Jack’s New Gods, a real case of nature versus nurture. I want to do stories which feature Orion as the central character, although I expect other characters to make appearances, Lightray especially. I’ve got a Mister Miracle story that I can’t wait to do. I envision it the way “The Pact” was done in New Gods; an insert issue where you learned a great deal about the broader issues that encompassed the world in which Orion operated. It’s about how things began before the book started, a flashback tale that gave you a deep background for what was going on. I have a story about Scott that I want to do like that. But essentially, the book will be about Orion. The first set of stories that I want to do, I would like to tell the story about Orion’s fall and redemption. I don’t plan to write Orion as the berserker warrior of New Gods. Again, in Kirby’s eleven issues, I think Orion only shows his ‘monster face’ three times; once deliberately when he has Mother Box restore it, once when he was fighting Slig of the Deep Six, and again when he was fighting Kalibak. These were real moments of extreme danger and you need all of your reflexes honed to the max. It wasn’t “Oh, there’s a bank robber. I’ll bring out my evil face!” Such expressions of Orion’s other nature have rarity value. I think it needs to be manifested, but only occasionally. The idea is: “It’s always possible, but you don’t know when it’s going to happen”—and when it happens, it’s really, really dangerous! I don’t want to make him nuts. I do think that Orion, the way Kirby wrote him, was very intelligent and a supreme warrior wrestling with terrible demons. In some ways, I see him embodying the old Pagan warrior virtues of honor and “fighting to the death,” very war-like with no illusions about the actual nature of war; in some ways, I see Lightray as having the Christian virtues of tolerance, forbearance, mercy 42

book for a year, and the way the industry is right now, I have no idea if the book’s going to last any longer then a year. I hope it does, because I just can’t wait to get some of these stories out there. The New Gods are the only characters left in mainstream comics that I haven’t had a crack at at all. I’m just dying to do them. TJKC: The great thing about them is that they haven’t been tinkered with too much. WALTER: My story’s going to pick up right where John Byrne’s story left off. I’m not going back to retcon any stuff; retconning to me is mostly a waste of time. You only get twelve issues a year, at best, at 22 pages a shot. I can’t be bothered going back and explaining somebody else’s story; I like to tell my own stories. So, Highfather will still be dead and off in the Source. Whether or not I ever bring him back depends on how long I get to do the book. It’s always a possibility, but I’m not going to bring him back just to say “Oh, look. Highfather’s back. Everything is just the way it was.” I sort of like the idea that he’s gone. I got rid of Odin [in Thor]. If you’ve got these all-powerful sky gods around your hero, it means that they’re always there to bail your hero out when things get tough. Without them, your hero is essentially on his own recognizance. In fact, the first time we see Orion in my first issue, he’s floating in front of the Source wall where Highfather is part of the decor, and he’s bemoaning the fact that Highfather’s gone. One of the things John did toward the end of his run on Jack Kirby’s Fourth World was to bring Orion’s heritage into question. Tigra had suggested that Darkseid was not Orion’s father. Basically, she says she told Darkseid that she was pregnant because he was clearly going to have her offed after they were married. She got pregnant by a young, handsome captain of the guard so that Darkseid wouldn’t kill her. So there is some question as to exactly who Orion’s parents are. That’s the point at which we’re going to pick up with Orion, where he’s not sure. All this time, knowing that Darkseid’s the father, he Penciled splash page from the “Young Scott Free” back-up in Mister Miracle #5. believes in his evil inheritance and his and pity. In a way, the two of them almost make one individual. That’s power and, all of a sudden “Maybe that’s not true!” Are we the product one reason I think they’re partners and friends: They embody opposite of our world or our inheritance? Nature vs. nurture. sides of the spectrum. I’d like to play off of that some. TJKC: So, basically, he’s been living his life hating Darkseid for a reason I also see in Orion some of the elements of T.H.White’s Lancelot: he doesn’t have to? The ill-made knight. I think Orion is superb fighter, and yet he doesn’t WALTER: Maybe so. I want to open with that uncertainty when Orion’s have a perfect soul—but though his soul is tormented, he’s the greatest floating in front of Highfather’s image on the wall, not knowing the warrior of his age. answers to these questions. Yet, Highfather and his guidance are This is the Orion I want to write. gone. These questions of Orion’s very identity hang in the balance. TJKC: You haven’t been thinking about this at all, have you? There’s no way to get good answers. And only one guy knows the real WALTER: Quite a lot. (laughter) I’ve been writing notes on this stuff answer (besides his mom, of course). since last Summer [1998]. I probably have three or four years’ worth of John very kindly got ahold of me and asked if there were things stories right now. The way I figure it is that DC is willing to go with this I’d want set up before he left the title. I asked John if he’d mind not 43

answering the question of Orion’s parentage, since he did have an answer in mind—but it made a great starting point for me, so he left it up in the air. I was very gratified and pleased; it was really sweet. I’ve got a couple of things to work with right off the bat, such as Kalibak being in prison on Apokolips. At the end of Jack’s last issue of New Gods, Orion looks up and says that “the time has come for the father of Apokolips to meet his banished son by the red light of the fire pits.” If Orion’s not really the son, that means that Kalibak could be the danger, so Darkseid has him thrown in prison. Which means: What is the score with Orion’s parentage? We’ll find out as we go along.

TJKC: Walt, you’ve had runs on books like “Manhunter,” Fantastic Four, and of course, your critically acclaimed run on Thor. Have you ever looked at your older work and realized that you’ve set a precedent for yourself, or is your best work whatever you’re working on at the time? WALTER: I have work that reflects peaks at different times in my career. The idea is that you try to get better as you go along. Whether that’s true or not, I’ll let future generations decide. I like to think it’s true. For example, I did three stories for The Twilight Zone for Gold Key in the early ’70s. The third of the three stories is a fairy tale all inked in Rapidograph, in a Howard Pyle style. Howard Pyle was an illustrator who wrote a couple of Arthurian books that he illustrated back in the 1800s or early 1900s with these very archaic drawings. I didn’t try to draw like that, but I tried to use some of the textures and invoke the sense of what Pyle was doing. I thought that was one of the best jobs I’d ever done. I did a samurai job with Archie in ’75 for Atlas Comics in Thrilling Adventure Stories called “The Temple of the Spider”, and I think that’s one of the best jobs I’ve done. Ten years later, I liked the Thor stuff. I look back and see that I’ve thought about my work in two ways over the years: One is that originally, working very hard on every picture, I saw my stuff piecemeal, panel by panel, drawing by drawing. Time has gone by and I’ve changed paradigms. My career now seems to me like one big drawing, from start to the finish (whenever that comes). There’s not one job where I feel I sloughed it off; every job I’ve done I’ve done the best I could do under the circumstances. So it’s like working on one, really really long drawing. I did a job once for Warren when my wife was the editor there. I inked a Carmine Infantino job in 45 seconds, because Weezie had an issue due out, an artist pooped out on her on a really big job, and she was left with a forty-five page hole in the magazine right before it was published. She pulled out every fill-in job that was sitting in the office and called every inker that owed her a favor, including me, her boyfriend at the time! We got them all done as quickly as possible and she got the magazine out on time. I wouldn’t say it was the best job I’d done, but it was the best I could do under the circumstances. There are things like “Manhunter,” Alien, Thor, Fantastic Four, Robocop vs. The Terminator, and The Star Slammers where I do see things I’ve done as particular high points. I’m pretty proud in general of all my work.★

(left) Kirby’s splash page from Thor #144, still in pencil stage.

The Church of Stan & Jack or “The Bible and Brotherhood, Marvel-Style” by Jerry Boyd n the last few hours of his life, Adolph Hitler’s uncanny political acumen returned to him as he composed his last political testament. He accurately predicted the emergence of “the stronger eastern power (Russia) and England’s heir (America)” as the states that would inherit the future. This future would include the discovery and uses of atomic power, ushering in an age the mad fuhrer could not envision. With the Atomic Age as a part of life, all states, large and small, wisely decided to retreat (somewhat) from saber-rattling, and readdress the problems that had brought on WWII (and other wars); a lack of brotherhood. Real brotherhood could, of course, never happen but the attempts had to be made. The Holy Bible’s last book, Revelation, talks of the conditions that will surround the end of man’s time on Earth. “Wars... and rumors of war” will be part of it. The savior, Jesus Christ, knew this years before when He said this to His disciples. Yet He still demanded, “Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.” (Matthew 23:39) It’s easy for many people to honor their mothers and fathers, to not steal or kill, to acknowledge God as the only god, etc. Loving one another as God wants us to is the tough one. Ethnic, religious, racial, and cultural divisions remain a gulf not easy to transcend (and understandably so) for millions. Want proof? Just look around you.

Pre-Heroes In the relative comfort of the Eisenhower years, EC comics made some of the first (and best) stabs at man’s intolerance this side of the Iron Curtain. They were published within the pages of Shock Suspenstories, an anthology title which concentrated on criminal doings. The stories stunned their readers. Some said they recognized a little of themselves in the bigots the great Wally Wood illustrated while (thankfully) only a few others angrily denounced the whole proceedings and the staff who produced them. Jack Kirby was putting together Fighting American and other books

The scientist-hero, victorious over Spragg, cites the “Divine Master of Destiny” as the real hero in Journey Into Mystery #68.

In this story from Menace #3, Stan’s blurb labels bigotry as a sin.

during the early ’50s but Stan Lee, over at Atlas, apparently had his eye on this “new trend” in social relevance. In Menace #3, Stan, with art by John Romita, Sr., did a take on hooded bigotry. In a story called “Men in Black,” the main character, Jim Horton, angrily decries the number of foreigners coming to America and taking jobs from “real Americans.” Typical of Lee villains, Horton’s bad qualities are repellent to even his friends and spouse. In short order, Jim organizes some similarly disgruntled men into a blackhooded group bent on violent disapproval of foreigners. After beating one man up, they disperse to avoid a police pursuit. Horton returns to his ramshackle home to remove his disguise only to find out hood after hood shows up to frustrate his efforts. (Symbolically, his bigotry cannot be removed.) When the police finally arrive, they stare down at Horton’s bloodstained face. One officer mentions that one hood is laying on the floor. (Well, Horton was sick, right?) It’s an interesting yarn, not as good as the EC stuff, but the type of thing Rod Serling would make a trademark of in his later anthology TV series The Twilight Zone. EC shut down sometime later, but their themes of brotherly tolerance, man’s inhumanity, and being one’s own worst enemy found their way into some of Stan’s writing for the Atlas titles. A lot of them weren’t bad at all, either. By the end of the ’50s, Jack and Stan’s scientist-heroes in the monster books would be like philosophical Frankensteins fortunately released from their living nightmares. Their monstrous creations or alien adversaries having been defeated, these forerunners of Reed Richards, Tony Stark, etc. could sometimes be found under a starry sky delivering summations like “Mankind doesn’t realize how close it came to utter destruction” or “Never again will I attempt to meddle in things man wasn’t meant to...”, etc. You can almost hear the mad doctors of Hollywood’s classic sci-fi/horror films as you read them. Sometimes the simplest things confounded or destroyed Kirby’s 45

and distinguished them from their enemies: Doctor Doom, the Mandarin, Egg-Head, the Wizard, the Radioactive Man, etc. (also scientists with superabilities). With even more powerful characters on the loose in the Marvel Universe (such as Zeus, Dormammu, Odin, and Galactus) some order had to be made in the pecking order the Bullpen had created. In a highly-praised incident, the Watcher puts Jesus Christ at the top of the list of all-powerfuls in FF #72 (and he should know!). Though the Messiah isn’t named (probably to avoid an exodus by some readers), it’s pretty clear from Stan’s dialogue as to Whom the reference belongs. It’s in Thor, though, where most of the team’s religious leanings seem to show up. The Thunder God, Odin’s heavensent son, is sent to Earth to be its protector, to “smite the evildoer” as Thor said once. Jesus prayed to God often. In some early Thor yarns, the prince of vikings prayed to his celestial father for special favors. Christ came to overcome sin, also. He converted sinners, creatures (similar to H.G. Wells’ ending in War of the Worlds in which empowered the righteous, healed, and preached. Like the Prince of God in His wisdom thwarted the Martian invasion with a germ-filled Peace, Thor seems to be above sinful impulses. But the thunderer is a environment they could not long survive). warrior-god, needing battle as much as a Christian needs prayer. Jesus The Comics Code expressly forbade any ridicule or attack on any performed His miracles humbly, asking His followers to not spread religious group, and though Jack and Stan did nothing that could be word of them in the belief that men should be able to branch out on interpreted as such, they probably felt it’d be easier to let “circumstances” faith of the unseen. In His wisdom, He knew that it’s easy for some to win the day rather than offend or alienate any readers who might follow a miracle worker. His Heavenly Father wanted faith in the tandiffer with their notions of God. gible and the intangible. Interestingly, Spragg, Pildorr, Groot, It, Googam, X, and others At least one line of Thor’s came directly from the Lamb of God: were physically larger than the humans they Then said Jesus unto him, Put up again thy sword into his place: for all sought to subjugate, they that take up the sword shall perish with the sword. (Matthew 26:52) but like David and Thor, pummeling a Goliath, the smaller, murderous troll (are there David-like hero, any other kind?) in issue always won. #163 [shown at left], says “For they who live by violence... most surely will Mr. Fantastic, so perish!!” Iron Man, Thor, and Jack’s Asgardians are Ant-Man had less like a legion of angels against humility than their the devilish trolls, storm Atlas counterparts. giants, and fire demons that They were doctors/ occupy the regions beyond scientific marvels theirs. His cosmic celestials wrapped into one and demanded a type of reconput their faith in their ciliation with their Biblical own inventions, influences, and in the team’s powers, and weaponry. plotting (and Stan’s wording), However, it was their the similarities are apparent. good deeds and selfLee and Kirby were of less heroism that course using the Norse legplaced them in the ends complete with their company of angels own “end of the world and 46

The Marvel Age

resurrection” mythology, but it’s interesting they even bothered to present Ragnarok at all. DC was killing Superman all the time in “imaginary stories” but the fall of Asgard was a very real end to the Aesir and I’m sure it was sobering to more than a few readers who weren’t used to seeing their comics heroes die. The concept of “eternal life” given only to those found worthy only goes right along with the afterlife requirements in the Bible. Other similarities abound such as Odin’s pronouncement in Thor #139 [shown on previous page], “Yea, for I am the will, the way, and the wonder!” In John 14:6, the son of God reveals that He is the way, the truth, and the life. Christ performed His miracles on unquestioned faith (coupled with a sin-free life) that gave Him power through His Father. In the early JIMs, Thor beseeched his noble father for help on several occasions. Jesus sometimes dumfounded His disciples by answering them with questions. It’s my humble understanding that He sought to get people to think about their own lack of faith.

the Bible the phrase, “Then Satan entered...” is used to describe the spiritual influence of the “Beast.” Loki, who actually graduates from God of Mischief to God of Evil under Stan and Jack, “spiritually” influences Zarko, Crusher Creel, the Super Skrull, and others in his quest to conquer Thor and the Asgardian “paradise.” Like the Prince of Liars, Loki’s seductive words help to engage the (not-so-innocent) Enchantress, the Executioner,

And He saith unto them, Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith? Then He arose, and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a great calm. –Matthew 8:26 The disciples didn’t question their faithlessness then, the next passage goes on to say, but they did marvel at the greatness of the man they called Master. Jack and Stan’s Iron Man marvelled at an incredible feat of Thor’s in Avengers #4. Thor responded somewhat Biblically, “Why do you sound surprised? Was that not my intention?” With Odin, Thor, Balder, Heimdall, and the others representing Heaven’s hierarchy/ideals, it’s Loki, the God of Mischief, who takes on most of the Devil’s chores. Consumed with jealousy of his half-brother and obsessively covetous of his stepfather’s throne, power, and worshipful status, the scheming son of Laufey’s entire being is thrown into repeated attempts to defeat and destroy the “good forces” of the Aesir and supplant Odin as ruler of the eternal realm.

Revelations 7 And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon (Satan); and the dragon fought and his angels, 8 And prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven. The Devil was cast out of paradise and sought to avenge his defeat and humiliation with the tempting and destruction of God’s children. In

Mangog nearly brought on Armageddon in Thor #154-157. Jack’s margin notes occasionally called him “Magog.”

and others into attacking his noble sibling. Loki’s godly raiment always comes in hues of serpentine green, symbolically linking him with old Lucifer. Loki knows his end (Thor #128). His short-lived triumph can only come with the world-shattering Ragnarok, yet he cannot “repent” and change his ways. The Devil and his fallen angels likewise know they cannot defeat Godliness, but immersed in madness and sin, they cannot retreat from it. Most likely exhausted from constantly having to come up with new machinations for Asgard’s bad boy, the team didn’t bother much with an “ongoing evil god” over in eternal Olympus. Hermes, Atlas, Hercules, and the venerated Zeus are largely left alone to their own pursuits. We know Ares, the Grecian God of War, is trouble, though (for Hercules, if no one else). Pluto (the closest in character to Loki) only wants out of the Netherworld. He’s governed Hell for eons and wisely has had enough. The storyline in Thor #126-130 was one of the team’s all-time best but it (along with the “Tales of Asgard” Ragnarok chapter) probably got Kirby seriously thinking of godly conflicts on a larger scale than who would rule Asgard or a Netherworld. Later, the isolated “devil in paradise” (Loki), and the reluctant

“caretaker of Hell” (Pluto), would meet in Darkseid, a much more sophisticated character than either. The dread lord of Apokolips would embrace his own evil, happily rule his hell, and aspire to subjugate heaven, Earth, and all points beyond! Odin keeps Loki around but banishes a “sinful,” rebellious race away from the golden realm. The embodiment of that rebellion is the Mangog (a play on Revelation’s Magog) who begins a new “war on heaven” (Thor #154-157). Odin’s “sacrifice” is his son (and his armies) who are crushed by the composite power of a billion, billion beings. Odin awakens from his life-giving sleep and forgives the people who warred on him and wrecked his realm. It’s moments like these that makes one wonder how he ever got to be called the All-Wise.

The Gleaming Messiah Despite all of the Thor comics’ similarities to Christ and the Old and New Testaments (Odin is even in on Genesis!), it was clearly the Silver Surfer that Stan looked to as a quasi-messianic figure as the Sixties progressed. With civil rights/anti-war demonstrations/police and Army actions and other situations spilling out into America’s streets (and getting violent at times), Lee may have felt that a Marvel character was needed who directly addressed the muchneeded virtues of tolerance and love. Away from Jack’s influence, the Lee-Buscema Surfer became the Soaring Sermonizer who preached to all he encountered and was constantly under attack from Mephisto, the Bullpen’s other “devil.” Tempted by the Devil (like Christ) in issue #3, Norrin Radd is offered power, women, etc., but nobly refuses to bend his will to the satanic figure before him. Kirby, always the more “cosmic” of the team, probably would’ve taken the character in other directions (as other contributors to this magazine have stated). To be fair to Stan and John, though, their stories were excellent. Jack and Stan were wise enough, however, to not make any of their creations too perfect. Superman seemed incapable of making a mistake. The Surfer and Thor did and made apologies for their actions, keeping them a safe distance from the perfect King of Kings. Kirby was against using comics as a “message medium” as he more or less stated at a convention (see TJKC #5). Stan disagreed. Therein lies the conflict that religious teachers have been wrestling with for centuries. The Christian Bible wants those in “the know” to preach to those who aren’t. At the same time, there are those who are more qualified to be preachers than others. Zealots and fanatics can do as much damage to a sacred cause as a non-believer. (Christ rebuked some so-called “holy people” for their hypocrisy.) It’s possible that Stan felt that it’s never too early to teach good lessons to the young and that comics could help in their own way. It’s also conceivable that Jack felt that the medium (because of its restrictive nature) just wasn’t a suitable replacement for sound, complete instruction in values and a way of reaching kids on a spiritual level. Later, using his own deities, the King would have a chance to finally have a group of gods meet God (the Source) but even then he’d do it in subtle, mysterious ways. Still, on the subject of brotherhood, the team was safe. The Communists would remain comic book menaces throughout the decade and the bomb would keep the nations’ leaders trying at greater understanding of each other, but Kirby and Lee said a lot (together and apart) in the creation and promotion of Gabe Jones, Izzy Cohen, Robbie Robertson, Wyatt Wingfoot, and the first (and arguably, the best) Black super-hero, the Black Panther. And all of those characters and more made me feel a little bit better about our chances for real-life brotherhood.★

A defiant Loki nearly triumphs in Thor #175. Inks by Bill Everett.

Speak of the Devil Lucifer, Mr. Scratch, Beelzebub... Satan. It’s been said many times that Jack worked God into his comics, but he worked the Devil in a lot too. Don’t believe it? Take a look at the devilish instances below, and let us know of any we missed.

(upper left) Kirby Devil from the pulp Complete Detective Cases #1 (July 1941). (top) Warden Frye from the unpublished In The Days of the Mob #2. (second row) The Inspector from Satan’s Six #1, and Pluto from Thor #163. (this row) Mantis (hey, he’s underground!), Surtur (from Thor), Etrigan The Demon, and Annihilus (think about it—he rules the “Negative Zone”). (bottom row) Machine Man fights for his soul in 2001 #10, Kro becomes the Devil in Eternals #4; and then there’s Devil Dinosaur (c’mon, he’s red, and his name’s DEVIL— at least we didn’t list Kliklak from Kamandi #12’s “The Devil and Mr. Sacker”!).

Kirby’s Ockhamistic Twist: Galactus by Javier Lerin ake them fight God!” What a shocking statement this is—but tradition (or legend—you decide) has it that this was precisely what Lee gave Kirby as a plot guideline for Fantastic Four #48, after the quartet had already stood their ground against an astounding array of ever-amazing menaces. Of course there is a, say, “official” and also less extreme version, provided by Lee, according to which he and

Kirby agreed that the FF would face a “seemingly omnipotent being who could destroy planets at will.”1 However, it does not matter in the end whether it was actually one way or the other, as the cause is not as important as the effect: Galactus came to be in Kirby’s mind— and to more than a few of us, Galactus is no ordinary character, standing among Kirby’s “gods” and “god”-like creations as something apart from (or above) them all, as though he seemed to mean more to Kirby than the rest of them—which is not to say the others lacked any kind of background—for just like almost all of his creations, Kirby’s “gods” were always a reflection of something, be it a value, an idea, or a concept; but this seems to be especially true in the case of Galactus. So one cannot but wonder what was in Kirby’s creation of Galactus that would offer this character such a status. In some way it might seem to be the ever-recurrent question fed upon and reflected by the aforementioned tradition: Was Galactus God in Kirby’s eyes? However, things may not be that simple.

“M

A Simple Answer?

Our cover is from page 3 of Thor #134. Jack took a stat of the original, altered the art somewhat, and hand-colored it.

If we were to answer such a question the way it is posed, it would be quite clear Galactus was not God for: God in a mainstream super-hero comic of the mid-Sixties, and as a villain? If not directly blasphemous to any believer like Kirby was, it may sound pretentious at least. On the other hand, it would have completely failed to meet the CCA’s requirements of the time, had Lee ever consented to publish such a thing in the first place— and if all this is not enough, the very end of the so-called “Galactus Trilogy” speaks quite clearly to this respect with independence of one’s being a believer or not: No one may expect that something (not even a device called “the Ultimate Nullifier”2) can pose any threat to God, as omnipotence (all-powerfulness) is one of the essential traits of our cultural notion of godhood. Moreover, a being dependent on something (no matter if it is nothing other than whole planets to feed upon) would equally fail to meet another essential component of this same notion: Self-sufficiency. On the other hand, Kirby himself stated that he resorted at a definite moment to the Bible and came up with Galactus, whom he identified as “being” a Biblical figure that he had

always known, and also explicitly admitted that the Silver Surfer—having sprung from the same source that Galactus did—was no other than the figure of the fallen angel.3 From this and also according to the relationship between Galactus and the Surfer—marked by the latter’s treason to the former—one might conclude that Galactus should be understood as being God, which would be clearly contradictory to our first conclusion. So the answer may not be so simple. However, all of the previous (even those things that seem to contradict each other) can prove that Galactus involved a rather intricate structure, able to set him apart from the rest of Kirby’s “gods,” and it is my point that Kirby’s devisal of this character comprised or implied an implicit reflection on our cultural notion of godhood.

Perfection & Logical Links It is clear that, together with uniqueness, omnipotence is one of the core traits of our cultural concept of godhood. Formed upon the Jewish-Christian religious tradition, this concept is thus monotheistic, unlike the ancient, classical notions of many pre-Christianic Western cultures (Greek, Roman, Iberian, Celtic, Norse, etc.) or those of many Eastern ones. Of course, we may know and understand these (and Kirby himself resorted to them in order to shape some of his “gods”), but they are not what can be called now our cultural notion of godhood. So there has existed for centuries now a, say, common cultural consensus in present Western cultures: Besides being rather (if not totally) different from the inhabitants of the pantheons of old, God is (or would be, from the non-believer’s point of view) a unique being, and this uniqueness is closely related to the fact of being conceived as omnipotent. From this point, many of the remaining elements that shape this notion follow, as—for instance—it is reasonable to think that an omnipotent being should be self-sufficient, have omniscience (the quality of being all-knowing) and omnipresence (the capability of being any and everywhere at any and every time, even at the same moment) as well as many other traits; which leads to the idea of God as a creator of everything and as a perfect being—in fact, the only perfect being in the full sense of the word— Fantastic Four #74, page 15. Notice how Stan Lee expounded upon Kirby’s simple margin notes on this page. and on the ethical side of things, absolute perbeen traditionally named as divine wrath was the “figure” behind Kirby’s fectness is seen as necessarily implying absolute goodness; for once conception of Galactus. For being a believer does not keep one from agreed that a perfect being would be omniscient, it seems logical to wondering what could happen, were we at a definite time to find ourclaim that he must know with absolute certitude what is good, and so selves forced to judge—from our human standards—divine acts that, our cultural image of godhood also includes absolute goodness as one say, do not fully or easily meet our cultural notion of godhood (as of its essential traits, which meets the religious notion of God as an believers and non-believers alike may find the idea of an ever-good, ever-good, ever-forgiving being. However, at a strictly (or merely) logical all-forgiving deity to be not so easily congruent—maybe even inconlevel, knowing what is right or good does not necessarily imply acting sistent—with the presence in the sacred texts of divine acts that accordingly, for one can choose to do otherwise. True, one can be might illustrate this wrath). In a similar way to that in which one can forced to if he is not willing to, but who or what could force an read of the extermination of whole cities at God’s hand—of the omnipotent being if he did not want to? Universal Flood, or of St. John’s advice in the book of Revelation to fear God in the hour of His judgment—Kirby made Galactus come to Earth with the intention of devastating it, and in doing so he put into From this, it could prove not so venturous to say that what has comics images a reflection on the possibility that our cultural notion 51

Power & Goodness

of godhood—despite being derived from texts that believers consider sacred (as having been inspired by God Himself )—may be a not so accurate one at a definite moment; for any and every text needs and demands interpretation (even those considered sacred), and this is always provided at a human level in the end. Due to it all, Kirby’s creation of Galactus might comprise the first and, at the same time, ultimate “What if...?”; namely, what if, judged from our human standards, God could appear to our eyes as an evil being—not because He is necessarily evil at all, but due to the fact that all that lies (or might lie) behind a human scale is hardly measurable by our human standards? In fact, this is but a reflection on the nature of the liking between omnipotence and goodness.

cannot be God by any means, as has already been stated before. However, where is the justification for such a final twist?

An Ockhamistic Turning Point According to Kirby himself, the final twist that we could now call the “de-deification” of Galactus happened as he felt that the subject he was dealing with was having such an impact on him that he had to finally back away, and then confine himself to find a way to end the story as satisfactorily as possible.4 From this, it would seem that he was not able to carry his implicit reflection to any conclusion—but rather on the contrary, it may be said that he did—presenting the same solution that Ockham reached with regard to the theological discussion of the Middle Ages, about a logically irrefutable proof of God’s existence.

Aesthetics Fairly likely, in order to emphasize the implicit presence of this question, Kirby took care in depicting the coming of Galactus as traditionally as possible, starting with strange occurrences in the skies (FF #48, pg. 8) and ending with an Apocalypse-like sequence (FF #49, pg. 9). Keeping this interpretation in mind, if we “read” all these panels—leaving the written copy aside and focusing only on that which permeates through Kirby’s art—it would not be too difficult to spot a clear intention for it to be so here, more than in any other story in which Kirby put his “gods” on stage. The same is valid for faces and expressions, from the sudden change on the typically emotionless visage of the Watcher to one of awe and anguish (FF #48, pg. 16), and the fear and desperation on the FF’s faces (FF #49, pg. 1, for instance), to the impassibility shown by Galactus, and initially by the Surfer. Even when Kirby shows the Watcher confronting Galactus, he seems to be pleading at the same time that the latter seems to answer with the hint of a contemptuous grimace (FF #49, pg. 2). Rather than being the Watcher’s equal as the written copy wants it, Kirby’s art tells us that Galactus surpasses him by far, and if we just “read” the art, nothing in it lets us foresee that Galactus needs to devour planets in order to survive. Such an explanation can only be found in the text, and it appears the art offers no clue at all to such a fact, and only shows Galactus as a likely omnipotent being who—due to reasons beyond our understanding—seems to be judging mankind and deciding to obliterate it (the image of God being merciless rather than ever-forgiving). Together with it all, there is the Surfer, at the beginning depicted in consonance with Galactus, but later presented as the image of the fallen angel who, in carrying out his betrayal and unlike the original figure, acquires the mercifulness and forgiveness that his master lacks. “Reading” Kirby’s art, it is only when we reach the final stages of the drama that we discover that Galactus

Kirby cover pencils to Fantastic Four #175 (Oct. 1976).

The first attempt consisted of trying to logically draw the necessity of it out of His being perfect (St. Anselm), but this intended proof, though it initially met success, was quite rapidly rejected by other Christian theologists, who in turn tried to offer logical arguments of a new sort (based, like those of St. Thomas Aquinas, on the cause-effect principle this time). In turn, these were considered not logically consistent by a new theological current— Ockham being a notorious exponent of it—which instead considered that, due to His very perfection, in the end God will always fall beyond human understanding, and thus faith is the only possible resource.5 Kirby’s backing out can be considered an ockhamistic turning point in which his faith made him reject the idea that God can ever be like Galactus. His convictions were strong enough to pass the test that he had put them through with all this, but not so thoughtless or blind as to keep him from exploring their outer limits. Due to this, getting back to Galactus as Kirby originally conceived and presented him is always refreshing, since the very development of the concept which this character sprang from is as thought-provoking as one can wish. And the fact that it was carried out in a medium such as a super-hero comic book of the mid-Sixties (and the one that then was the flagship title of a main publisher, besides) is something that adds to it all, and also talks of Kirby’s capabilities at any level. To me, a more clever, daring, and true reflection is involved in the evolution of Galactus as Kirby originally conceived him, than the one found in almost any of the pseudo-intellectual pastimes that have filled (and fill) the pages of so many comic books intended for mature audiences, be they produced on this or the other side of the Ocean.★

Notes: 1 Lee, Stan: Son of Origins of Marvel Comics (Simon

& Schuster, New York, 1975), p. 205. This book has been recently reprinted by Marvel. A similar characterization can be found in his introduction to Marvel Masterworks, vol. 25 (Marvel Comics, New York, 1993). 2 It is up to comics history researchers to elucidate

whether it was Lee or Kirby (or both of them) who came up with such an extraordinary and, at the same time, naive name for this artifact. 3 See “Jack Kirby, The Master of Comic Book Art”, a

1987 interview with Kirby by Ken Viola published in The Jack Kirby Collector #7, pg. 6 (reprinted in The Collected Jack Kirby Collector, Vol. 1, p. 130). Galactus prepares to do battle with Ego, The Living Planet in Thor #160. Inks by Colletta, margin notes by Kirby. 4 Ibid.

existence, and there is also no way to prove that existence is any kind of perfection. His “five ways” for proving God’s existence may be vaguely summarized by saying that just as any effect has its originating cause, so does creation (which is to say that there must be a creator: God) unless the existence of a never-ending chain of causes and effects could be plausible. Ockham’s reaction to this controversy is already summarized in the text, and in general and vague terms it might be said that Reformed Churches, which were set in motion by Luther’s way of thinking, are close to it as long as the roles of faith and the individual were among their founding milestones.

5 All of this happened in a relatively short period of time, and though

Theology has kept on developing since then, it might be quite rightfully assessed that the question has always been spinning around variations on these three points of view. Greatly simplified, the so-called ontological argument of St. Anselm (which would be later “reissued” by Descartes) claims that, due to the fact we can conceive the idea of a perfect being, this being (namely God) must exist, for it would not be perfect if it did not. St. Thomas Aquinas considered this argument badly founded since the capability of conceiving something does not necessarily grant its 53

eerily inhuman way. He stood about 15 feet tall, he had eyes which radiated light and energy, and his costume combined the tunic (or toga) of a Greek philosopher with the cape and collar of Count Dracula. He was thin and frail-looking at first, but his appearance and his apparel would (in typical Kirby fashion) evolve with nearly every subsequent appearance. This stoic surveyor of the spaceways came from a race of highlyevolved beings who roamed the universe watching other worlds but never interfering with them or making their presence known. His origin (Tales of Suspense #46, Oct. 1963) and his ‘’real” name, Uatu, will not be addressed here as they were non-Kirby (i.e. Lee-Lieber) concepts. In his debut, the Watcher appears because the FF and the Red Ghost have brought their conflict to his domain, a mysterious oxygen-rich “blue area” of the moon. His living quarters, a fantastically complex domicile of alien architecture, was filled with highly-advanced scientific marvels far too complex for even the mind of Reed Richards to grasp. In his first appearance we learn that the observant one is capable of transforming energy and matter and is empowered with the ability to transport himself and others through time and space; however, any specific boundaries of his abilities (under Kirby’s tenure) were never

Cover art from Tales To Astonish #73, possibly Kirby’s most dramatic depiction ever of the Watcher.

The Wisdom of the Watcher Observations on the omnipotent and omniscient overseer, by Mark Alexander Q: Why are you so fascinated by gods? KIRBY: We all have a kind of feeling that I think we’ve had for thousands of years, that there are higher beings somewhere. I think all our spiritual feelings stem from that. (from TJKC #14) ack Kirby’s infatuation with gods as comic book characters began with “Mercury In The 20th Century” (Red Raven #1, Aug. 1940). Later came “The Magic Hammer” (Tales of the Unexpected #16, Aug. 1957) which was Kirby’s original Thor story. Both were Kirby’s “spin” on a god-legend rather than his creation of one. Kirby’s first total exploitation of a “god-theme” began with Thor’s introduction to the Marvel Universe (Journey Into Mystery #83, Aug. 1962). Two issues later in JIM #85, Jack and Stan brought Loki, Odin, Heimdall, and Tyr into the series, but again, this was Kirby modifying ancient mythology (in this case Nordic) as opposed to fabricating it. Finally, after these brief flirtations with pre-existing mythological gods, Kirby broke the bonds of traditional super-hero characters and created his own totally original demi-god—not in the pages of Thor, but rather in the Fantastic Four. And who was it? Surprise! It was the Watcher. Granted, he was never referred to as a god, a demigod, or a deity, but then neither was Galactus, whom almost everyone views as such. He was billed as “the most dramatic being of all time,” and while this was more Stan’s hucksterism than the truth, he was indeed the prototype and precursor to Kirby’s later day space-spanning techno-pop gods. This moon-based cosmic sage first appeared in a rather lackluster tale called “The FF Versus The Red Ghost And His Indescribable Super-Apes” (FF #13, April 1963) and he was, in this writer’s opinion, the only good thing in the entire story. His appearance was astounding in an

The wondrous Watcher makes his debut in Fantastic Four #13; inks by Steve Ditko.

even vaguely defined, which is fitting; a god should have no such limitations! The story ends when Reed defeats the Ghost with a weapon from the Watcher’s storehouse of scientific marvels. The magnificent alien takes a shine to the quartet, and they part as friends. His next appearance (FF #20, Nov. 1963) was to warn Reed and company of an oncoming omnipotent being who has the power and inclination to destroy the entire planet. Does that sound familiar? No, it wasn’t Galactus, just the Molecule Man, whom the watchful one whisks away after the FF defeat him. These first two tales set a pattern which would be repeated in almost every subsequent Watcher/FF story; the Watcher would either warn the group of an imminent danger and/or provide them with a weapon to neutralize their antagonist. By this time the all-seeing one had his own feature in the back of Tales of Suspense. It was a series of Marvel pre-super-hero type sci-fi stories which he introduced and concluded like a cosmic Rod Serling. More often than not, the stories had nothing to do with him, and (again) they’re irrelevant here, as they were non-Kirby efforts. The next time that Jack revived the Watcher was “It Started On Yancy Street” (FF #29, Aug. 1964) which was basically a rewrite of FF #13. However, Chic Stone’s inks and Kirby’s magnificent cover make this sequel more enjoyable than the original Kirby/Ditko job. Fast-forward to July 1965. Kirby’s next portrayal of the observant alien was on the cover of Strange Tales #134, the Torch’s last appearance in the magazine. Here we find the Watcher has gained a massive amount of weight, and as he looms large (ouch!) over the proceedings, he looks like a toga-clad Alfred Hitchcock. Is it possible that at this juncture (seven months prior to the event) Kirby had already conceived the “Galactus trilogy” and had consciously decided to “bulk-up” the character, knowing that a puny, frail-looking Watcher would look ridiculous standing up to the great Galactus? Unfortunately, we’ll never know. Moving on to November 1965, the Watcher was featured simultaneously in Tales To Astonish #73 (Kirby cover) and in FF Annual #3. On Reed’s wedding day, the FF and their guests are attacked by nearly every menace in the Marvel Universe, under the mind-control of Dr. Doom. The Watcher guides Reed on an indescribable cosmic journey to retrieve a weapon of advanced alien technology, which was used to repel the evil hordes. Less than six months later, the Watcher would again guide a member of the FF (this time the Torch) on a similar journey to acquire yet another weapon of alien origin to defeat Galactus. Although no one realized it at the time (probably due to the aweinspiring nature of the trilogy), Kirby and Lee, even at their peak, were beginning to recycle their own ideas. It was in FF #48-50 that the Watcher played his most decisive role as both the harbinger of doomsday and the ultimate (if indirect) salvation of mankind; it was a role which he was perfectly suited for. In this story, he truly attains his god-like status symbolizing the forces of good, in contrast to the forces of doom (Galactus). In the Galactus tale, the Watcher proved to be Kirby’s metaphor for a benign and distant god who observes but seldom intervenes in the affairs of man; a god who (once in a while) will find an indirect way to help those who help

Splash panel from What If? #11, Kirby’s final published use of the Watcher.

themselves—in other words, pretty much the concept that many of us have of the real God. After the trilogy it was undoubtedly apparent to Kirby and Lee that due to the Watcher’s penchant for non-involvement, his potential was severely limited. How many more times could they use him to warn the FF of danger or provide them with a weapon to defeat a foe before the readers would scream “enough already!”? Unsurprisingly, Kirby’s ubiquitous Watcher was only seen two more times in the pages of the world’s greatest comic magazine. By 1967, the FF had a remarkably rich cast of supporting characters the likes of which comics had never seen. In stories like “The Peril And The Power” (FF #60, March 1967) Kirby utilized this cast and his hopscotching-narrative style to its fullest potential. Although the story is essentially an FF vs. Dr. Doom tale, it features cameos by Wyatt Wingfoot, the Silver Surfer, the Black Panther, the Inhumans, and the whole of page 12 is devoted to the Watcher; boy, those were the days! Here we find him wearing an updated futuristic-looking tunic. In large, panoramic splash-panels, we see his indescribable sanctum in all its Kirbyesque cosmic splendor. The fact that he had nothing to do with the story didn’t stop Jack from throwing him in for good measure! The Watcher’s last hurrah in the Kirby/Lee FF was “Where Soars The Silver Surfer” (FF #72, March 1968) where he appears, predictably, to warn the group that the Surfer is on a rampage. By this time it was sadly apparent that the Watcher’s role as a FF cast-member had pretty much run its course. After this issue, he’d be seen no more; so it was somehow entirely fitting that in the last FF panel which Jack ever drew him, this profound observer would make his most profound observation of all (as shown here). Such was the wisdom of the Watcher! ★ 55

Surfer. Through his selfless sacrifice atonement was made and we were all saved from God’s/Galactus’ wrath. And there you have it. A perfect analogy? No, not by any means, but then if allegory could be perfect it would not be symbolism. Have a little fun, and with my theory in mind, go back and read Fantastic Four #48-50. Now, from all the interviews of Jack about the Galactus Trilogy it is obvious he did not have this in mind. However, is it possible that Jack was being used by Providence to present an age-old story of redemption in a modern setting? Could I be the only one who has ever noticed these symbolisms? Maybe, maybe not. After all, when Stan Lee and John Buscema produced the origin for the Surfer in Silver Surfer #1 (Volume 1) a year or so later, the Christ-like character of the hero is even more obvious. If nothing else it’s fun to speculate, eh? ★

Kirby’s Trinity or “The Gospel According to Saint Jack” by Mark Poe “And somewhere in the deep vastness of outer space, an incredible figure hurtles through the cosmos...! A being whom we shall call the Silver Surfer, for want of a better name!“ –Fantastic Four #48 ith those “imperishable” words, to borrow a typical Stan Lee phrase, began the saga of the Silver Surfer, possibly the greatest character Jack Kirby ever created. Oddly enough the character, which was more of less an afterthought in Jack’s plotting strategy, was literally the herald for Kirby’s most cosmic character. Fantastic Four #48-50 have been called “The Galactus Trilogy.” These three issues ushered in the Cosmic Era for the Marvel Universe which at this time was still in its infancy. Kirby’s idea, presented in issue #48 of the Fantastic Four, was a test of faith for the World’s Greatest Super Team as they would, in that epochal issue, come face-to-face with God. According to Jack, Galactus was his allegorical representation of God. It’s been well documented in the pages of TJKC that Jack used the Bible and his Jewish heritage as a deep well of inspiration which he would draw from over and over again. This three-issue story arc consisting of 46 pages was Kirby’s Magnum Opus, in my opinion. It was Biblically-inspired, and maybe even more so than even Jack realized. A few years ago while on a business trip in a neighboring state I stopped for lunch in a McDonald’s along the way. A couple of days before, I began re-reading FF #48-50 for about the zillionth time. I was up to issue #50 at that particular pit stop and fished the issue out of my briefcase to keep me company as I ate my sandwich and fries. Upon finishing the story a question came to mind: If Galactus was symbolic of God, could the other characters in this story also be allegorical? As I pondered a moment while finishing my fish filet, I began to develop a theory. Now, I don’t present this as anything more than my speculation, so please, don’t anyone get offended. We’re just having some fun here and no disrespect is meant to anyone’s religious or non-religious beliefs. In a nutshell: Galactus was symbolic of the Old Testament God having been betrayed by His creation, man, who was disobedient and had allied himself with God’s worst enemy. God/Galactus had come to pass judgment on the Earth and mankind for that disobedience. The planet Earth and all mankind would face the wrath of God/Galactus for breaking covenant with their creator. The Watcher acted as a teacher and counselor to mankind warning them of things to come and preparing them as best he could without intervening directly, which was forbidden. This places him in the role of The Holy Spirit. Through the Watcher’s/Holy Spirit’s patient, persistent counseling it finally became apparent to all involved that only a supreme sacrifice would atone for mankind’s sins and save Earth and mankind from utter destruction at the hands of a just God— but who was worthy? Who could save mankind? Enter the Son of God/Galactus a.k.a the Silver

Poster art for Marvelmania, circa 1969.

The Inheritance of Highfather Izaya, Scott Free, and the Judeo-Christian doctrine examined by Jerry Boyd Into Paradise slithered the serpent... and he beguiled Eve with temptation. And she in turn coaxed her husband into eating the fruit forbidden to them by the Lord. And thereafter sin was introduced into the world. he first issue of the New Gods begins with a troubled, conflicted god of battle returning to a celestial “paradise” where he’s needed—but not entirely accepted. War is on the wing, and Orion has been summoned to begin the battle for New Genesis against the minions of Apokolips. New Genesis does not seem to be a state in conflict. Its people are happy. Shining spires and heroic sculptures rise proudly above their orbiting city that soars majestically above their sunlit, lush garden planet. Unbeknownst to the readers at this time, this is “paradise regained.” In the classic seventh issue, we would find out it took a massive struggle, a battle at the core of one man’s soul between goodness and sinfulness to make this ‘second’ New Genesis a reality. And rightfully so, for the man in question— Izaya the Inheritor—is the person who “loses” paradise (like Adam and Eve) to begin with.

In The Beginning Study Kirby’s opening splash in New Gods #7. A man—in the type of combat armor we’ve seen often by Jack—sits contentedly with his beautiful young wife. The commander is a warrior. He’s immediately capable to us, even in this relaxed pose, of moving great armies about or crushing a formidable foe by himself. A white dove (of peace, maybe?) symbolically flits away from the scene. The beguiling serpent of this paradise is Steppenwolf, who hovers menacingly behind the couple. In the next three pages, tragic circumstances would bring a ‘sinful state of being’ to the noble scions of Balduur and begin the “trial” of Izaya the Inheritor.

Trial And Error The religious conversion of a man can begin at any time in his life. Job, David, and John the Baptist Splash page to New Gods #7.

Izaya searches for understanding in “The Pact.”

were lifelong servants of God, according to the Holy Bible. Saul, who became the Apostle Paul, began as a vicious persecutor of Christians. On the road to Damascus, he was shaken by a vision of Jesus and spent his remaining years spreading Christ’s teachings in Europe, among the Gentiles. Jesus, Samson, and others were given special missions before their births by God and the angels spoke to their parents about the way they should be nurtured. Then there was Moses. Moses, the Deliverer and the greatest of all God’s prophets, spent his first forty years (according to most theologians) living a lie. He was a pampered prince of the Egyptian court until he killed a ‘true’ Egyptian (who was beating a Jew) and fled. The trappings of his power gone, he was to most people a homeless, uncertain wanderer, searching for answers to the conflicts in his heart. At that time, the wandering Moses wasn’t sure of the god of his people—nor is Izaya aware that there’s something ‘greater’ than the New Gods. Kirby, working on new ground here (befitting his genius), catches his readership unawares as he brings the shaken, war-weary Izaya to grips with his destiny. The commander sadly realizes that he’s locked into a nightmarish situation that only his real enemy, Darkseid, can fully appreciate. As Izaya strips away his war armor and rejects his weaponry, his religious conversion begins. Violent winds batter his body as he asks of anyone listening, “Where is Izaya?!” At 57

this point, he’s lost himself. The general is no longer confident, nor is he comforted by his killing of the evil Steppenwolf. Like Moses, he’s a lost, confused soul, fearful of the events surrounding his downfall. (To Izaya’s credit, he’s also greatly concerned about his people’s future as well.) Like Moses in the desert, the Inheritor is being ‘tried’ in the Biblical sense. Moses’ travels lead him to the burning bush on Mt. Sinai and Izaya’s unsteady, weakened stumblings advance him toward... the Wall. “Ageless! Inscrutable! The Uni-Friend!” Kirby bestows a mysterious but wonderful heritage upon his new “character.” Jack’s next two panels are stirring, even if you’re not a Christian. A beaten, once-proud man stands before a phenomenon never before revealed to any of his race, and sensing its wisdom and power, he screams out his dilemma: “If I am Izaya the Inheritor... what is my inheritance?!!” The Wall explodes and answers in burning fire—the Source!! Brilliant. A cynical examination of this sequence may liken Jack’s Wall to the appearances of Kubrick’s obelisk in 2001: A Space Odyssey. Both of the monuments link man-like creatures to a higher intelligence, but only when the Wall answers the fallen leader in burning letters written by a flaming hand (à la De Mille’s filmed version of The Ten Commandments) does Kirby work in his religious subtext. Throughout the Bible, God brings people closer to Him by damaging their pride.

and prayers upward. Christ the Savior spent forty days and nights in the wilderness before Satan came to tempt Him. Interestingly, Kirby sends our hero into the wilderness to meet the Source. Izaya’s ‘trial’ ends with him being found worthy (of a greater Forever People #7; you can’t fool the young. purpose) to be mandated by the Source/God.

The Name Game What’s in a name? Plenty, if you’re a Christian or a student of the Bible. In Genesis 27, Jacob took his brother Esau’s birthright/inheritance (by tricking their father Isaac), and after realizing the enormity of his actions, fled his parents’ home into the (you guessed it) wilderness. Jacob feared death from his brother’s hands but gained some peace through special dreams and messages from the angels. He prospered, married, and had children but the threat of his brother’s vengeance stayed with him. However, God was with him, also. One night a mysterious stranger assaulted Jacob and they wrestled until the breaking of the day (Genesis 32:24) when Jacob said he wouldn’t release the man (actually an angel) unless he blessed him.

And the loftiness of man shall be bowed down, and the haughtiness of men shall be made low: and the Lord alone shall be exalted in that day.—ISAIAH 2:17 God took His chosen ones (Jacob, Moses, John the Baptist, among others) into the wilderness to remove them from earthly distractions and put them in a frame of mind where they can lift their thoughts

And he said, Thy name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel: for as a prince hast thou power with God and with men, and hast prevailed.—GENESIS 32:28 Israel would be the father of the Lord’s great nation and his sons would be the beginning of that nation’s twelve tribes. Izaya’s new name would mark a turning point for his nation, also. The war seems to favor Darkseid’s nation, however. He is in his element— the quest for total power and total destruction. The ‘pact’ that the Inheritor has consented to rids Darkseid of “his wife’s son (a tiger)” and brings a sacrificial “lamb” (Jesus was the Lamb of God) to his demon’s altar. But the Source is in control now. Orion will be cultivated by a society of friends (Quakers use this term) and eventually become his father’s single most dangerous enemy. On the other hand, Scott Free would prove to be one of the spirits the master of the holocaust cannot break. Kirby skillfully uses comic book conventions to introduce the ‘new’ Izaya. An elder is slumped over a table, his face is not seen, and his hair is completely white. Obviously, he is the man who gently nudged the infant known as Scott Free through the Dimension Threshold but he tells us and Orion that he is Highfather! Highfather meets the savage offspring of his enemy adamantly. His words are forceful but carry hints of compassion and empathy. “Hate is no longer a word here! The hand or the weapon! I, too, had to make that decision once! Decide!” Jack shocks us with the noble, mighty, dark-haired Izaya as this gently robed, non-armored, weaponless Highfather. We knew Supertown’s leader first (in New Gods #1) and

Powerful splash page from Forever People #7.

steeped in evil. Sound familiar? It should, but easing away from blasphemy, Kirby makes Scott Free’s ‘sacrifices’ more geared to his personal nature. Scott simply wants to survive and later, to escape. It can be construed that he wishes to escape wickedness, violence, and oppression as Christ came to conquer hate, confusion, and spiritual faithlessness with love, healing, compassion, and truth. However, Jesus’ life is ‘the ransom for many sins’ whereas Mister Miracle’s survival over Darkseid’s terrors (on Apokolips and Earth) is his eventual triumph. Because of the Savior’s sacrifices, there is a wonderful bridge between proud, sinful man and the Holy Father. By “overcoming the world (sinfulness)”, the Nazarene, following the Crucifixion, is granted “all power in Heaven and on Earth” and ascends into His heavenly kingdom. The Super Escape Artist, with the aid of the New Genesis crowd (he’s not perfect, remember?), “ascends” toward Supertown in the final Kirby issue. (An aside: Reading Mister Miracle #18 was a strange experience for me. On one hand, it was quite a thrill seeing Orion, Metron, Lightray, and Highfather again. On the other, the story demanded more tender moments than it got. The wedding scene is devoid of passion and the good gods seem to just go through the motions as if fulfilling the Source’s prophecy demands a lack of emotion. Scott isn’t tearfully embraced by his father, doesn’t share any great dialogue with Metron, nor is he congratulated on his many triumphs by the others. Worst of all, we don’t get to see his return to his home planet. Perhaps Kirby, in this final moment, was signaling his disappointment and frustration in being unable to finish his most personal, most deeply-realized work. In this ‘temporary ending’, the gods return to their worlds to await the day of ‘Last Battle’.) And Scott Free’s name?! Shouldn’t it have been changed to reflect a new status among the gods? Perhaps even better—shouldn’t Jack have revealed the name Avia and Izaya chose for their tiny infant? Maybe, just maybe, Kirby was deeper than all this. Christ was known for His miracles... Mr. Miracle... (?)... wow. An example of what young Scott Free endured, from the back-up story in Mister Miracle #5.

the transition is meant to jar us and it’s wonderfully done. (Actor Charlton Heston was immediately white-haired after his first meeting with God in The Ten Commandments and it’s possible Kirby whitened Izaya’s hair for the same reasons.) Highfather is the prophet/leader who emerges from the Great Clash. His people will follow him to a regaining-of-sorts of their lost paradise via the power of the Source. Like Moses, he is the “earthly force” that takes them to the “promised land.” Like Jacob/Israel, his new name marks his favor with an omnipotent power. We don’t recognize the ‘new’ Izaya at first as I stated, but like most spiritual followers, he’s more accessible to us and his people as a friend than as a general.

Comics Disciples

“On Earth—Mr. Miracle is gone!!”—but his influence remains. The escape artist goes away but he leaves at least two disciples— Oberon and Shilo Norman. Orion had four (Dave Lincoln’s bunch). The Forever People changed many of the lives they touched—but it was the Inheritor who began his world’s journey toward the Source and the ‘Life Equation’. Jack Kirby disdained ‘preaching’ through the comics medium while writers Al Feldstein, Denny O’Neil, Stan Lee, and Al Hartley (over at Archie Comics) used (beautifully, in my opinion) their many opportunities to inject tolerance, brotherhood, love, etc. into their stories and a world desperately in need of more love. However, in the midst of an all-consuming war of the gods, the King preached without preaching, linking the Judeo-Christian lessons/ scriptures with a new chain of deities, with the most noble and heroic of them being a general-turned-prophet by the name of Izaya.★

In The Name of the Son Near the story’s end, Highfather has saved his world but has had to sacrifice his only son for a reconciliation between himself and a planet 59

Forever Questioning by Bill Meisel

n my opinion, the best of the Fourth World series was Forever People #3-8. Here are some annotated comments on each of those issues.

#3: This is the most Jewish of all of Jack’s comics that I have read. From the chilling Adolf Hitler quote on page one to the “S” painted on a storefront (similar to the yellow stars painted on Jewish businesses during the Holocaust), I have always thought this issue was Jack’s commentary on what happened to the Jews (and millions of other people) during WWII. Human beings are eager to be Justifiers. They are being told that they can act out their most horrid fantasies and they will not be responsible for their actions. Godfrey has given them permission. Is Glorious Godfrey from Apokolips or Earth? The evidence implies he’s from Apokolips, but the idea that he was from Earth and eagerly came to Darkseid’s side always appealed to me. “Live life for others—not against them. In that way, you will always be close to us.” #4: The whole idea of Happyland is brilliant. Desaad is one of the most three-dimensional of all of the Fourth World villains. All of his actions and schemes fit together (so much so that I found it out of character for Darkseid to use the Omega Effect Darkseid and Godfrey from Forever People #3. on him in New Gods #11). The one-page pin-up of Beautiful Dreamer [left] implies that she will have a battle with Darkseid—or that she is perhaps involved in the process that draws the Anti-Life Equation from a human mind and puts it into a form that Darkseid can use. The attempt to kill Mother Box emphasizes that New Genesis technology is alive. #5: It’s hard to believe Sonny Sumo isn’t the one with the Anti-Life Equation—that he can only manifest it with Mother Box’s help. I wonder if this was a changed premise. Was Billion Dollar Bates already in Jack’s mind at this point? It’s pointed out [above] that the Anti-Life Equation is only one of several that exist on New Genesis. What are the others? #6: Here it seems to be clarified that Sumo needs Mother Box’s help to “use” the Anti-Life Equation. Did Jack change premises between issues #5 and #6? The Super Cycle defending itself [right] is delightful. Even the machines on New Genesis cling to life. I thought the visuals of the Omega Effect finder beams were very cool when I first read this issue in the late ’70s, and I still do. 60

mind, or did Gerry Conway come up with this idea when he wrote the Return of the New Gods sequel in the late ’70s? Only after reading eight issues of Forever People do we learn that Mark Moonrider has a super-power of his own. He hasn’t needed to use it until now. (Vykin also has a power we have not seen yet; up to then we assume his power is his particularly strong connection to Mother Box.) ★

The closeness of Darkseid and Desaad (“old friend”) is played up here, again making me doubt that Darkseid would ever use the Omega Effect on him. #7: Throughout the Fourth World series, we see Esak, and are led to believe that he will have some future importance in the war between New Genesis and Apokolips. In the Hunger Dogs Graphic Novel, we see he has been led astray. Was this always the plan Jack had for him? I love the parallel “hand” panels on the bottom of page 17—one the hand of Glorious Godfrey, the man who erases responsibility; the other the hand of Highfather, the man who embraces responsibility. [see above] What is the “chamber of regeneration”? What is its purpose? Sonny Sumo being a sage in Ancient Japan is particularly good plotting on Jack’s part. #8: Is Billion Dollar Bates based on some obvious actual person that I haven’t thought of? Mark’s leadership of the Forever People is beautifully shown when he explains why they can’t just let Mother Box phase them out of the area. Are we supposed to assume that Darkseid’s forces had found Bates earlier and have been helping him complete his mastery of the Anti-Life Equation shortly before #8 begins? (He talks about the work he has done with the Sect.) Of all FP issues, this is the only one where I wish Jack had had a few more pages to fill in some missing details. The irony of the guard shooting Bates is great. A question about this panel from page 23:

Did Jack himself create the idea that once the Anti-Life Equation leaves Bates’ mind, it enters some other human being’s

A 1970s pencil recreation of the right half (!) of the two-page spread from Forever People #1.

Jack was working on this drawing in 1985 when James Van Hise interviewed him, and snapped the photo below. Note how he started in the top left, and worked his way across.

times, the issues of life and God and meaning were intrinsically involved; and unlike many other authors, Jack preferred not to give trite answers and explanations, but to let the questions remain. He knew that life with these unanswered questions is part of what human existence is. To understand death/God/the ‘source’ was to be ‘beyond human’—and since none of us are ‘beyond human’, we cannot write from that point of view, so any story character that is ‘beyond human’ must speak in riddles, answering nothing, or else sound pathetic. (Note the page inserted in Marvel’s Origin of Galactus where

Life As Heroism by Shane Foley

s any reader of his work knows, Jack Kirby loved mysteries—any mystery, but chiefly, the big mysteries of life and the universe.

What’s out there? Places we cannot see! Things we fear to touch! Sounds that do not belong to this world! Riddles of the ages lurking beyond the bridge without a name! Thus began the first Challengers of the Unknown story in 1956. Across the vast distances—where the mysteries deepen and hide and wait with answers not yet known... Thus began New Gods #1 in 1971 (page 3). The name of the game was not ‘Up through the ranks!’ What lures the true Rangers is the never-ending cosmos and its strange concepts of danger in places that challenge the mind!!! The heart!! The personal fears!!!!!! This was from Captain Victory #13, 1984. Nothing had changed. The big mysteries of life and meaning, the infinite universe, the past, and the supernatural were the basis and springboard of much of his work. He appreciated and respected these questions and paradoxes that surround us. Sometimes, fantasy answers were possible. Other 62

Continuity is Tribulation = the best life can be, after resisting evil, is still beset by continuing problems and frustration. “It is life as we live it!” sums up Mr. Mind. Good stuff, I reckon, and sounding to me like Jack putting his thoughts very clearly on paper (as clearly as he can, with his scripting often not flowing as smoothly as the reader would like. Even here, in Captain Victory #7, I missed all this talk the first time I read it because it didn’t seem to fit evenly into the story flow. It’s a problem Jack often had). Then, on page 26, the theme is picked up again. The crew have taken heavy losses but Victory is philosophical, using their slogan “Victory is (takes/requires) sacrifice, and therefore there is continuity.” But Klavus continues with the third part of the slogan: “But to go on means Tribulation (again!). Is conflict all there is? A search? A battle? Discovery after endless discovery? Questions without answers?” Victory’s answer is brilliant. “Yes! It’s terrible! It’s wonderful! It’s life as heroism, Klavus!” (this page) Thibodeaux-inked—but still unlettered—panels from Captain Victory #7. Doesn’t that just sum up all the great Kirby characters? he is being transformed and the Sentience of the Universe speaks. Isn’t that honesty in life in the face of all the big mysteries that terrify Pathetic is too kind a word for this kind of rubbish. Jack’s Galactus origin us and fascinate us at the same time—and whether you believe in was, by his standards, poor, but at least it answered little. He (and God or not, isn’t this a philosophy to do anyone proud—and doesn’t Stan) knew never to put in stuff like that extra page. Odin was probably it sound like Jack talking? the closest they came to overstepping the mark, but note how they conI’m sometimes skeptical of what people ‘find’ in some of Jack’s stantly kept his ways secretive and mysterious.) Jack’s appreciation for work. Many seem driven to try to find deeper ‘meanings’, as though mystery gave him the knack of knowing how to approach a mystery every series was another New Gods, every story was another “Glory (the creatures in Sub-Space, the Source Wall, the Promethean Galaxy, Boat”, and that more work was autobiographical in a deeper way than etc.—all from Jack’s imagination, but dramatizing beautifully the very was ever intended. Sure, there is often a lot of depth there, because of real mysteries that are everywhere around us). He would pause to Jack’s nature, experiences, and genius as a storyteller—that’s why we ponder and feel the awe associated with it, then to back off, having love his writing as well as his drawing—but many go way over the asked the questions with no answers, and leaving the ‘mystery’ intact. top, finding subtext in simple stories that isn’t there. Jack was intrigued by these mysteries precisely because they are I must confess, also, that when I read his interviews, I’m not conreal! They taunt us! They inspire us! vinced he was as much a genius in his thinking and understanding as So what do we do with these ‘mysteries’? How do we live with he was in his graphic storytelling. But here, in these words from them towering threateningly over every human being who dares stop Captain Victory, I feel I hear Jack talking. He was in awe of the big and think a bit? I believe Jack wrote his answer down quite clearly mysteries of life and was perhaps compelled to write of them as often once—and it applies whether you believe in God or not! as he could—and in his gut, it seems he felt the respect and humility (It’s interesting to ponder what Jack really believed about God. that comes with facing life as it really is. He was genuine—honest— Obviously, his real beliefs—his personal adherence—would be best humble—heroic if you like. How else do you lift your head and face it known to those who knew him intimately. For the rest of us, we read all? That’s why his heroes were so good—because he put that part of accounts that say, on the one hand, “I love God” (from Roz Kirby in him there. TJKC #10, pg. 17) and on the other, “There’s no God” (from Mike “It’s wonderful. It’s terrible. (It’s life as we live it.) It’s life as heroism.” Thibodeaux in TJKC #15, pg. 46). Sometimes it sounds like he really could accept a Chariots of the Gods type scenario for our past. Other Amen, Jack! ★ times, his thinking is clearly beyond that.) It’s in Captain Victory and is found in the exchanges between Victory, Klavus, and Mr. Mind in Captain Victory #7, pages 13, 14, 25, and 26. Just listen to this: Mr. Mind speaks of his frustration at not being able to find answers to the meaning of life: “Each answer leads to another question! Forever, another question! I smash through dimensional barriers... and what do I find? Walls! Walls!!! New and endless!!!’’ Klavus gets despondent, saying that if Mr. Mind can’t get an answer, what hope do normal people have? “What’s left?” he asks. Victory is pragmatic: “Keep going until the real answers show.” Then there is a discussion on the meaning of ‘Victory is Sacrifice’. Now Jack must have put some thought into this (or borrowed it from somewhere) and here inspires thinking in his readers, if they’ll take the time. Victory is Sacrifice = to overcome evil, sacrifices must be made. Sacrifice is Continuity = only after the sacrifice necessary for victory can a good quality of life go on—but: 63

KIRBY

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BULLETINS

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KIRBY

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KIRBY

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A GAGGLE OF (GULP!) GODLY GABBING ABOUT A GREAT GUY! ITEM! We’re almost out of copies of ARGOSY Vol. 3, #2, featuring Kirby’s 10-page autobiographical STREET CODE story (printed from his pencils!). Publisher RICHARD KYLE found a couple of forgotten boxes of copies, but they’ve been selling like hotcakes, so please write or call first to make sure we have copies left! Only $12 each postpaid ($14 Canada, $17 elsewhere), from TwoMorrows! ITEM! Now shipping is the 176-page COLLECTED JACK KIRBY COLLECTOR, VOLUME THREE (our third TRADE PAPERBACK collection, reprinting TJKC #13-15 plus over 30 NEW pieces of Jack’s art)! It also features a heartfelt introduction by STEVE BISSETTE, a foreword by JIM AMASH, and a little something extra for folks who’ve been clamoring to see more of Kirby’s unpublished SOUL LOVE magazine from 1970! Plus, VOLUME ONE (240-pages, reprinting TJKC #1-9 plus new material) is only $21.95 postpaid ($24.95 Canada, $34.95 elsewhere), and the 160-page COLLECTED TJKC, VOLUME 2 (reprinting TJKC #10-12 plus new stuff) is only $14.95 postpaid ($16.95 Canada, $24.95 elsewhere). ITEM! Kirby fans: Don’t miss COMIC BOOK ARTIST SPECIAL EDITION #1, which ships in December! Besides spotlighting the great ’70s DC Comics (including NEAL ADAMS’ Superman Vs. Muhammad Ali, and RUSS HEATH’S Sgt. Rock), it’s got a special section focusing on KIRBY’S FOURTH WORLD, plus his SOUL LOVE and TRUE DIVORCE CASES books! There’s also an interview with Mighty MARK EVANIER, plus gobs of unpublished Kirby art—but the SPECIAL EDITION is only available FREE as a special thank-you to CBA subscribers (all new and current subscribers will get a copy in December)—it won’t be sold in stores, or by mail at any price! But you can subscribe for six issues for only $30 in the US (we think you’ll find the SPECIAL EDITION is worth that alone)!

ITEM! Speaking of CBA, COMIC BOOK ARTIST #6 is the sequel to our sold-out second issue, MARVEL COMICS: 1970-77! Behind an unforgettable FRANK BRUNNER cover you’ll find articles, interviews, and rare and unpublished art by the pros who made that era great, like JOHN ROMITA, MARIE SEVERIN, DAVE COCKRUM, FRANK BRUNNER, P. CRAIG RUSSELL, DON MCGREGOR, and more! Back issues of #4-5 are still available for $5.95 each (sorry, the first three issues are SOLD OUT), and as we mentioned above, subs are only $30 for six issues! We’re always looking for rare art, and people to write for CBA, so if you’re interested, contact JON B. COOKE, PO Box 204, W. Kingston, RI 02892-0204, or e-mail him at: jonbcooke@aol.com And starting with our February issue (#7), we go BI-MONTHLY, and we’ll be available nationwide at finer bookstore chains like BARNES & NOBLE, WALDENBOOKS, and others! ITEM! Rascally ROY THOMAS’ classic comics ’zine ALTER EGO is knocking fans off their feet with rare art, new articles, features, and interviews with the greats of the Golden, Silver, and Bronze Ages. ALTER EGO #2 is now shipping, featuring a never-before reprinted SPIRIT story by WILL EISNER, the real genesis of the Silver Age ATOM (with GIL KANE, JULIE SCHWARTZ, and GARDNER FOX), new interviews with LARRY LIEBER and JACK BURNLEY, a FAWCETT COLLECTORS OF AMERICA section (with C.C. BECK and MARK SWAYZE), plus plenty of unpublished art and more! Fans and historians worldwide have spoken: No publication brings comics history to life like ALTER EGO, so look for it at your local comics shop, or subscribe directly from TwoMorrows! (And check

JOHN’S JUKEBOX Are you “religious”? The actual word can apply to an intense devotion to anything—including Kirby comics— but most people associate it with a person’s belief (or lack thereof) in a Supreme Being. I wouldn’t claim to know for certain how anyone else felt on this most personal subject—particularly Jack, since he was Jewish and I’m Christian—but Jack’s stories sparked in many readers a recognition of things they hold sacred, so I decided to assemble this issue about Kirby’s “gods”. Since we’re all filtering Jack’s work through our own belief systems, the best we can do is express our beliefs, and hope others accept the sincerity of what we’ve written, even if our respective philosophies differ. I encourage everyone to read this issue with that mind. Personally, I concur with Jack when he said (as recounted in this issue’s letter column), “I believe the Bible!” But to me, reading the Bible is a lot like reading NEW GODS. When I discovered each of them, I was amazed by their scope, even if the words didn’t seem very conversational and were hard to understand. As I grew older, life experience and religious education helped me better grasp the concepts of both. Still, it doesn’t take a Bible scholar—or even a student of the Fourth World—to see the effect scripture had on Jack’s work. Quasi-Biblical references appear throughout his career, from his earliest uses of Satan as a villain in the 1930s, to “godlike” characters such as Galactus, the New Gods, the Eternals, and beyond; but while Jack created some really great gods (lower case “g”), I must suggest the greatest god is the one true God—our Creator, the omniscient, omnipotent, omnipresent God of our universe. He’s THE God who could knock Galactus from here to the Negative Zone with both hands tied behind His back; THE God who could snuff out Darkseid with a single thought. Thankfully, He’s also the Almighty God of grace and mercy. He knows His children—each and every one of us—fall short of His expectations; and because of His infinite love for us, He provided a path to redemption. He sent His Son to Earth to sacrifice His life, as payment for our sins, so that we can live for eternity with Him. I invite each of you to embrace this very simple concept. To receive God’s mercy, all you have to do is truly believe that Jesus is the Son of God—that He died, was buried, and rose from the dead—and pray for forgiveness. I’m sure you weren’t expecting a sermon in TJKC, but Christ called on His followers to “spread the Word”; since God has blessed me with this forum, I’m compelled to give it a shot. In JOHN 3:16, Jesus said, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” A little faith is all you need to experience love, fulfillment, peace of mind, and a comfort that will help you endure anything life throws at you. Best of all, you’ll be assured that eternal life awaits you—so dig out that Bible! Not only will the Word of God be a valuable handbook for living, you’ll discover the source of inspiration for many of Jack’s concepts! (See? Everything always gets back around to Kirby!) Long Live the King!

John Morrow, Editor TwoMorrows 1812 Park Dr. • Raleigh, NC 27605 • (919) 833-8092 FAX (919) 833-8023 • E-mail: twomorrow@aol.com

out the ad this issue for a peek at the stunning ALEX ROSS cover for ALTER EGO #3 in December — a special issue celebrating the 60th anniversaries of the Human Torch, SubMariner, and Captain Marvel!) ITEM! If you want more bang for your advertising dollar, consider running an ad in COMIC BOOK ARTIST or ALTER EGO! Current rates are: Full-page: $300, Halfpage: $175, and Quarter-page: $100. But right now, when you prepay for two same-size ads in CBA, A/E, or a combination of the two, you’ll get an additional $100 discount on two full-pagers, $50 off two half-pagers, and $25 off two quarter-pagers! If you’re interested in advertising in either or both publications, contact John Morrow at TwoMorrows, and he’ll answer all your questions! (Sorry, display ads aren’t available for THE JACK KIRBY COLLECTOR.) ITEM! TWOMORROWS PUBLISHING is continually updating our Web Site (maintained by RANDY HOPPE) located at www.twomorrows.com which features sample art and articles from each issue of THE JACK KIRBY COLLECTOR, COMIC BOOK ARTIST, and now, the new, solo ALTER EGO! There’s also ordering info for back issues and subscriptions, so check it out—and if you love getting tons of e-mail from fellow Kirby fans, join the KIRBY MAILING LIST by sending an e-mail request to Randy Hoppe at kirby-l@fantasty.com ITEM! What is COMICOLOGY? Only the latest publication from the TwoMorrows Family of comics magazines! If you missed the COMICOLOGY “Kingdom Come” one-shot last year (long out-of-print, and in huge demand in the back issue market), stay tuned this Spring, as editor BRIAN SANER LAMKEN helps TwoMorrows do for modern comic fandom what it’s already done for Golden, Silver, and Bronze Age fans. If you enjoy THE JACK KIRBY COLLECTOR, COMIC BOOK ARTIST, and ALTER EGO, brace yourself for COMICOLOGY; we’re out to prove to you that there are still comics out there worth reading! ITEM! Kirby fans in the United Kingdom got to experience some of Jack’s original work, together with homages painted on the gallery walls at AMERICAN DREAM COMICS, 72 Walcot Street, Bath, UK. This British comics shop features a gallery of original comic art, and they chose a number of Kirby images for their show MARVELMANIA, which celebrated Marvel Silver Age art, and ran from Spring to Summer 1999. Included was original art from JACK KIRBY, JOHN ROMITA, DON HECK, DICK AYERS, GIL KANE, MARIE SEVERIN, GENE COLAN and JOHNNY CRAIG. The Kirby images on their walls came from published comics, and were painted by American Dream owner DAVID CURRIE with help from assistant manager NICK NEWPORT. Even though the exhibit is over, the images will remain on the gallery walls, so be sure to stop by! ITEM! Jack’s grandson JEREMY KIRBY has founded KIRBY COMICS, a new company dedicated to honoring his grandfather. Their first project is a new CAPTAIN VICTORY mini-series, which will be written by Jeremy, and will reuse some of Jack’s original artwork from the 1980s series, plus never-before-published art! The three-issue, 32-page black-&-white mini-series delves into the origin of Captain Victory and the creation of the Insectons, and forces Captain Victory into a fight for his life between himself and his Grandfather Black Mass. Be on the lookout for the first issue in April! ITEM! We’ve got just enough space to offer a special salute to RICHARD HOWELL, RANDY HOPPE, JON KNUTSON, and TOM ZIUKO for their continued invaluable help with our zines. Thanks, guys!

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KIRBY COLLECTOR #21: Interviews with KIRBY, GIL KANE, BRUCE TIMM, LEE’s DIALOGUE vs. KIRBY’s MARGIN NOTES, Jack’s work at TOPPS, SILVER STAR screenplay, unpublished art & more! 68-pages, color Kirby covers. $5.95

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KIRBY COLLECTOR #24: BATTLES! KIRBY interview, Kirby’s original art battle, JIM SHOOTER, SGT. FURY, GLORY BOAT pencils, unpublished art & more! 68-pages, color Kirby/Mignola wraparound cover. $5.95

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Classifieds (10¢ per word, $1 minimum) ______________________________ WANTED: Lower-grade reading copies of STAR SPANGLED COMICS #15-64, for upcoming article for JACK KIRBY COLLECTOR. Will also pay cash or trade TJKC subs for color xeroxes of NEWSBOY LEGION covers & stories from those issues. Contact John Morrow, 1812 Park Dr., Raleigh, NC 27605. 919-833-8092. ______________________________ LOST: Sketchbook at Don Maris’s Big D show in Dallas, July 9-11. Reward offered for its “no questions asked” return. Most pages are dedicated to “Robert,” “Bob” or “Susan.” This black hardcover measures 8-1/2 x 11. Outside spine binding has several layers of two inch wide clear plastic mailing tape on it. Contains sketches and autographs by: Adams, Aragones, Ayers (Sgt Fury), Carl Barks (Uncle Scrooge), Buscema, Caniff, Will Eisner, Craig Flessell (Sandman), Frazetta, Jack Kirby (Capt America), and many more. Contact Robert Beerbohm, PO Box 507, Fremont, NE 60826. (402) 727-4071 or e-mail to: beerbohm@teknetwork.com. ______________________________

MARK PACELLA’S TOOTH AND CLAW reborn to rage this summer from Image. Check out the official website/clubhouse: www.toothandclaw.com contests / art / a plethora of paw printed pandemonium! TOOTH AND CLAW— A masterwork for the millennium. Thanks Jack!! ______________________________

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NEAL ADAMS French “Conan” reprint album wanted, “Super-heroes” poster (Adams also), Bowen “Shadow” bust. Brian Postman, 238 E. 24th St., #2A, NYC, NY 10010. (212)213-6242. ______________________________

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COMIC BOOK, Pro Wrestling and Movie Newsletters. Each published weekly, each only $1.75. Send check or money order to XL Entertainment Inc., PO Box 1737, Bridgeview, IL 60455. ______________________________ WANTED: Kirby Trading cards — Secret City #11 and Satan’s Six #5 and #10. John Kocis, 1005 N. Illinois, Arlington Heights, IL 60004. E-mail: John.Kocis@unilever.com ______________________________

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KIRBY! Various items for sale. No set prices. Make an offer on individual items or group items. Visit http://members.home.net/dpbanks. E-mail: dpbanks@home.com ______________________________

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COMIC BOOK ARTIST SPECIAL EDITION #1, a 68-page comic book-size extravaganza—with an all-new Bruce Timm cover—focuses on the great ’70s DC Comics, with a special section on KIRBY’S FOURTH WORLD, SOUL LOVE, & TRUE DIVORCE CASES (plus Neal Adams’ SUPERMAN VS. MUHAMMAD ALI, Russ Heath’s SGT. ROCK, and more!). Only available FREE by subscribing to COMIC BOOK ARTIST.* Not sold in stores or by mail at any price! 6-issue subs are $30 ($42 Canada, $54 elsewhere).

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THE JACK KIRBY COLLECTOR #26 TWOMORROWS PUBLISHING PRODUCTION IN ASSOCIATION WITH THE KIRBY ESTATE EDITOR: JOHN MORROW ASSISTANT EDITOR: PAMELA MORROW ASSOCIATE EDITOR: JON B. COOKE DESIGN & LAYOUT: TWOMORROWS PROOFREADING: RICHARD HOWELL COLORIST: TOM ZIUKO CONTRIBUTORS: MARK ALEXANDER JIM AMASH PEDRO ANGOSTO D. BRUCE BERRY BOB BIEBER JERRY BOYD LEN CALLO STEFAN CURTZ CURTIS DAVIS DONALD ENSIGN SHANE FOLEY DAVID FOLKMAN MIKE GARTLAND JEFF GELB GLEN GOLD KARL GRAY III ED GREKOSKI DAVID HAMILTON CHRISTOPHER IRVING JEREMY KIRBY PETER KOCH TOM KYLE MARTY LASICK JAVIER LERIN BILL MEISEL MARK POE GENE POPA STEVE ROBERTSON STEVERUDE DAVID SCHWARTZ WALTER SIMONSON MIKE THIBODEAUX KIRK TILLANDER BRUCE TIMM JAMES VAN HISE R.J. VITONE PETER VON SHOLLY CY VORIS CURTIS WONG RAY WYMAN TOM ZIUKO SPECIAL THANKS TO: JON B. COOKE MARK EVANIER MIKE GARTLAND GLEN GOLD D. HAMBONE RANDY HOPPE RICHARD HOWELL ROBERT KATZ JEREMY KIRBY PETER KOCH MARK PACELLA WALTER SIMONSON MIKE THIBODEAUX CY VORIS CURTIS WONG RAY WYMAN TOM ZIUKO AND OF COURSE THE KIRBY ESTATE MAILING CREW: RUSS GARWOOD D. HAMBONE GLEN MUSIAL ED STELLI PATRICK VARKER A

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Collector Comments Send letters to: The Jack Kirby Collector c/o TwoMorrows • 1812 Park Drive Raleigh, NC 27605 or E-mail to: twomorrow@aol.com _____________________________________________ (Let’s dig right into comments on TJKC #25, starting by clarifying a misconception that sneaked into the issue:) _____________________________________________ In THE JACK KIRBY COLLECTOR, it was stated that Mainline Publications went bankrupt. This is incorrect, and troubling—in my entire life I have never resorted to bankruptcy protection. Mainline was simply dissolved and we moved on. Best wishes, Joe Simon _____________________________________________ I wanted to tell you how much I enjoyed your latest issue, #25. I’m not a collector of Jack Kirby’s work but I recognize his importance to the history and growth of the comic book medium. I’ve bought several issues of your magazine in the past and have visited your website because your magazine is very entertaining and informative. The more I study the Simon & Kirby era of comics, the more intriguing it becomes. With the addition of COMIC BOOK ARTIST and ALTER EGO, your company is becoming THE place to explore the history of the comic book field. Thelmon Baggett, Long Beach, CA _____________________________________________ Re: J. Van Hise’s “JK in the Golden Age” interview (TJKC #25); contrary to Jack’s recollection, the parade panel in CAPTAIN AMERICA #4 was NOT the first full-page panel in an original comic book story. That honor belongs to page 12 of CRASH COMICS #3’s Strongman story dated July 1940, a full year earlier. CRASH #3 also features the last of Jack’s three SOLAR LEGION tales, so it’s highly likely that he would have seen it! You’d have to check with Joe, but I believe Jon Henri was a nom de plume for both he and Jack. If you think about it, it makes sense since both men have one-syllable first names that begin with a “J” and two-syllable last names which are also first names! I really enjoyed Joe’s recollections. I wish, though, that he would have gone into a bit more detail on S&K’s reworking of Sandman in the ’40s. For instance, why was the first appearance of the “new” Sandman in ALL-STAR done by Cliff Young and not Jack or Joe? Finally, in R. Beerbohm’s article he questions the Kirby/Simon cover credits of IN LOVE #5. No doubt about it—in fact this cover’s being reprinted by ACG (I believe) in the next few months. As far as IN LOVE #6 is concerned, there doesn’t appear to be any S&K work although the cover, which hints at the next issue name change with a note passing between two lovers, does look like it could’ve been laid out by one of them since it’s remarkably similar to the HI-SCHOOL ROMANCE and FIRST LOVE/KISS covers he would do later. Tom Morehouse, Garfield, NJ _____________________________________________ When I submitted the article “Wahoo!” for TJKC #24, I reported the Lee-Goodman “bet” as the genesis of Fury’s origin; however, in TJKC #25, John Severin shows that once again there are contrasting claims as to who originated this Marvel concept. Is this another instance (like with the FF’s origin) where Jack claims authorship, while the Lee-Goodman Marvel conglomerate disputes Kirby and claims the credit themselves? Well, not exactly. What we have here is John Severin, a totally neutral third-party giving his account of a conversation which he clearly remembers having with Kirby. Mr. Severin, in all likelihood, is totally unaware of Marvel’s claim that FURY was born out of a bet between Lee and Goodman. Since he has nothing to gain by fabricating this incident, it’s highly unlikely that he would do so. Finally, if you look at page 58 of TJKC #25, check out the cover of BOYS’ RANCH #1 (Oct. 1950); in the upperrighthand corner (above the masthead) you’ll find the exclamation “WAHHOO!” in really cool letters. You be the judge. DISMISSED! Mark Alexander, Decatur, IL

TJKC #25 was another nice issue. The BOY EXPLORERS material alone was worth the price of admission, and the centerspread was sort of amazing. How does stuff like this survive? Too bad you had to go over to the cheesier paper. The pencil stuff, especially, just doesn’t seem as sharp on newsprint. I’ve been considering holding off on the magazines and buying the collected editions instead, both because of their greater durability and additional art. The better paper would be another plus. (But don’t worry—I’ll keep buying, in one format or the other.) Readers might want to know that some of the MAINLINE material has been reprinted a little bit more recently than the 1960s. During one of Charlton’s various last gasps as a publisher, they reprinted some FOXHOLE stuff in one or more war titles. Also, Israel Waldman reprinted several BULLSEYE stories in the various Skywald western comics of the 1970s. (Apparently, he held onto those printing mats for a long time!) The Skywalds aren’t easy to find, but they’re dirt cheap. Plus, Roger Broughton’s “new” ACG recently reprinted I LOVE YOU #7, apparently in its entirety, but the only Kirby art there is the poorly reproduced cover. Pierce Askegren, Annandale, VA (A number of readers commented on the newsprint we used for TJKC #25; about two-thirds of the comments were negative. Since it seemed unlikely we’d do another Simon & Kirby issue anytime soon, I wanted to fit in all the best stuff I had in-house. By adding 32 pages to the issue, the only way we could keep from losing money on it was to opt for the cheaper paper—and I figured, if Joe & Jack printed their wonderful work on it originally, why not give it a shot? But we’ll be sticking to the thicker, whiter stock for the foreseeable future. As for only buying TJKC issues when they’re reprinted in the COLLECTED volumes, we only produce those volumes when the originals sell out, and there’s still significant demand for the sold out ones. Our newer issues had higher print runs, so it’s doubtful they’ll ever be reprinted—or at least not for a long time.) _____________________________________________ Just received TJKC #25 and read Collector Comments. In Jim Shooter’s letter, in item 2, he makes the observation: “I seem to recall that Dick Ayers sued Cadence over ownership of copyrights at one point.” That is wrong. I never took legal action over copyright ownership. I did seek compensation for all the reprinting of art I had done and also recognition as an employee, for 90% of my work was for Marvel at that time and I had received a memo telling me I would lose assignments if I worked for another publisher. I sought employee recognition so I might qualify for New York State Unemployment Insurance as would the other artists and writers doing so much work for Marvel at that time. There was never any litigation about copyright ownership by me. Thanks, John. Dick Ayers _____________________________________________ Did Kirby ever contemplate a story featuring the extinction of Galactus? (A situation where Galactus has consumed all the living planets of the universe and now has to await inevitable expiration with the Silver Surfer by his side? Or the scenario—feasible to some theoretical physicists—of a collapsing universe, with Galactus waiting for the ultimate crush with his herald beside him.) Kon Calembakis, Thorngate, AUSTRALIA (I’m not aware of Jack contemplating this, but I wouldn’t doubt that he did. And there is a potential Kirby-related project in the planning stages, and I think this might be a cool concept to tie into it. Are you listening, Erik Larsen?) _____________________________________________ John, here are a few items that you and the readers of TJKC might be interested in: The second issue of DC’s THE KINGDOM mini-series (Feb. 1999) features a Kirby KAMANDI panel as part of the two-page spread illustrating “Hypertime” (pp. 33-34). Marvel’s CAPTAIN AMERICA ASHCAN EDITION (no indicia, but bearing a 1995 copyright notice) features blue and white and red reprints of Kirby art on 9 of its 16 pages. Twentieth-Century Fox has recently released six videotapes of 1960s Marvel cartoons. For the regular release version of the tapes, reprinted Kirby artwork

appears on the clamcase covers of at least three (I haven’t seen all of them). The “special edition collector’s set” for the tapes is a special treat for Kirby fans. Each set features Kirby-inspired box illustrations and signed/ numbered lithographs by Steve Rude; each features a reprint comic featuring Kirby artwork (one set includes a 24-page reprint of AVENGERS #1; the other includes a 24-page flipbook entitled JOURNEY INTO MYSTERY/ AMAZING FANTASY and featuring reprints of the Spidey story from AF #15 and the Thor story from JIM #83). The most unusual feature of these sets, however, is that each contains a silver-dollar-size “collector medallion,” one for Captain America and one for Sub-mariner. Not only does each medallion feature Kirby artwork, but on the front side, the only words that appear are the name of the character and Kirby’s signature. Daryl Coats, Taylorsville, MS (For those of you who missed those videos, check out next issue, where we’ll feature some of Steve Rude’s very Kirbyesque art from them.) _____________________________________________ The Simon & Kirby special was incredible, one of your better issues so far. The greater number of pages was not the only reason for this success; your choice of articles always manages to surprise with their new angles on the King’s career. I’m really impressed by your editorship! The articles about the kid gangs and the Mainline books were very informative. The listing was particularly welcomed. I’ve especially liked your idea of directly asking the readers for more information on specific points. I think it is the best and quickest way for you and us to know the facts, and it gives the magazine a pleasant dialogue-oriented touch on the letters page. I was very surprised about Jon Henri (I didn’t remember this Kirby pseudonym). The Kirby’s text illustrations article was nice but a bit short. I hope you will detail this topic one of these days and cover Jack’s entire work as an illustrator with a complete listing (I remember two missing illustrations from HEADLINE # 33). Nevertheless, the illustration for “The Duel” in WORLD AROUND US # 30 really impressed me for its prefiguration of Frank Miller’s work on SIN CITY. Joe Simon’s panel was very nice as it gives a few details that are missing in his excellent COMIC BOOK MAKERS book. The swipe file article was extremely interesting as well as embarrassing for Kirby fans. The fact that he reused works by other people clearly shows the production rate S&K had to achieve then. (By the way, reading once more the complete run of Alex Raymond on FLASH GORDON, I noticed a strange resemblance between the BOY COMMANDOS #23 cover and the last panel of the 6/7/36 Sunday page.) As if it wasn’t enough, you managed to publish two forgotten Kirby gems!!! Thanks for giving us the ability to read the ultra-rare BOY EXPLORERS #2. And that Gulliver story was a dream come true! Concerning the mysterious page involving the Boy Commandos, it is nowhere to be seen in BC #19. I hope a reader will find its proper home and solve the mystery. Is it conceivable to hope to read the complete run of BOY EXPLORERS in a graphic novel one of these days? A reprint of STUNTMAN could also be done, as it appears some pages from #3 were discovered. Anyway, keep up the wonderful work. Jean Depelley, FRANCE (TwoMorrows would LOVE to print a complete BOY EXPLORERS, STUNTMAN, or BULLSEYE collection, if Joe Simon is up for it, and good stats exist of the art. How about it, Joe?) _____________________________________________ Just had to write after skimming the Simon & Kirby issue which just arrived. I must admit that I am not into his Golden Age work, preferring the Marvel Silver Age that I grew up with—but what really got me going were the letters on the last two pages. First, I am constantly surprised to see such passionate letters from comics professionals disputing articles, interviews, or comments on motivation of those in the 1960s. I suppose if I were there and knew the facts, I also would want to take issue with what is presented incorrectly—but I have to say your response to

Jim Shooter’s letter was everything that I would have expected from a fine publication like yours—sincere, straightforward, apologetic, clarifying, and courteous. High marks, John. Second, the several letters that praised the GLORY BOAT analysis and the fourth part of “A Failure to Communicate” in #24 had me in agreement. I must confess that I am not a fan of the Fourth World, though I have been trying to get into them with the black-&-white compilation books that are coming out from DC, but I find that the flavor that the books lacked in 1971 and kept me from buying them then is still present today. I can’t tell you what it is exactly, but I find them confusing and frenetic. Some may praise the analysis, and I appreciate it, but none of it rings true for me. What does ring true are the comments on FF #66-67, the Him saga, the Inhumans, and Silver Surfer. I have read the series “A Failure To Communicate” with great interest, and have been amazed at how clear Jack’s intent was in the visuals that often times are not supported by Lee’s scripting and dialogue. I agree that the Him saga felt funny (not as funny as the aborted Nega-Man story in FF #108, mind you) and now I know why. I have to nod in agreement with the unspoken gestures the Silver Surfer makes toward a fearful Alicia in the end of FF #49 when Jack intends to have him (The Surfer) move to eradicate her, but is then moved by her beauty and compassion instead. This series has been SO valuable to me, covering and validating ground that, as a kid, I had picked up on inconsistencies, but not acknowledged them until as an adult, I read of them in print. In short, this is what I read TJKC for. The article on Thor vs. Hercules has made me run out and try to buy all the missing Jack Kirby issues, which I have nearly succeeded in doing... in part, because my love for those seminal Hercules and the Netherworld issues has been rekindled. I am having a great time reading them in character to my non-reading daughter of 5-1/2 years. She loves to hear me read, and I can think of no better gift to her than great adventure and mythology. I can only hope that someday she will pick up a copy of Kirby’s THOR and go, “Oh yeah, I remember these great stories... my late dad read them to me. I think I’ll save them for my kids too.” Kirk Groeneveld, Athens, OH (Thanks for the comments, Kirk. And now, a word or three from the writers who actually composed the “tag-team” analysis of “The Glory Boat” for TJKC #24:) _____________________________________________ I’m proud of my part in TJKC #24, and very proud to be in such good company. I thought I should start this letter by telling you that I thought the “tag team” approach to NEW GODS #6 worked out very well. I can see you were thrown a helluva design challenge, given the radically different lengths of the essays by Richard Kyle, Adam McGovern, and myself—but you came through so well, with such terrific deployment of the penciled art, that the finished package looked, and read, top-notch (and that story remains one of my very favorites in Kirby, just a beautiful and insane piece of work. McGovern is right about it being as wild as an underground comic—I feel that way about a lot of great Kirby, like OMAC #1 for instance.). Interesting differences between our pieces. Kyle, for instance, tends to go at this stuff in a more psycho/biographical vein, whereas I consciously tried to stay away from biography in this piece. The “Big Idea” I take away from his essay is that “Glory Boat” has to do with embracing or rejecting change, and that for Kirby the Fourth World means change: Going forward, recognizing new things, and embracing a new time. I guess that’s a biographical notion that helps put things in perspective. McGovern’s essay is very astute. I disagree with him, though, about what he calls editorial “botches” in “Glory Boat.” For example, the changes he wishes Kirby had made in Richard Sheridan’s dialogue would have robbed Richard’s turnaround of any ambiguity, and I really think the story would have been impoverished as a result. (Should Kirby have removed references to Lightray as a “lamb” just because he rigs this techno-active bomb?

Then where would we be? The story’s conflict would be so plain...) I do agree that some of the exposition is tiresome—Kirby wasn’t always graceful with text—but some of the “flaws” McGovern finds are central to my understanding of the way the story works! Still, I think our essays work well together, precisely because of our differences. On other things in #24: The cover and centerfold artwork are splendid. Fine work by Mignola and Ziuko, and smart choice to make it a text-free wraparound. Toothsome! Mike Gartland deserves kudos for the entire “Failure to Communicate” feature. Invaluable documentation of some oft-heard but seldom substantiated claims. I would urge you, in future reprintings, to put these installments together in a larger essay. Charles Hatfield, Storrs, CT _____________________________________________ “Battles” was as epic as the subject matter—your design decision for the cover was quite bold and innovative, emphasizing sheer imagery over text, inviting comicshop owners to place the covers together on the shelf to form a double-size panorama, and daringly putting the magazine title on the “back” cover—that last trait suggested a good conceptual way to do the “Kirby’s Gods” issue; opening from the right like a Hebrew BIBLE! The design challenges posed by the “Glory Boat” symposium must have been formidable, and you met them with great imagination; everything flowed with both animation and lucidity (the very combination we honor!). It was (here’s that word again, but with a mag like this I can’t help it) fascinating to see how my and the other two commentators’ ideas serendipitously converged and stimulatingly diverged—and, in sheer reader mode, to compare Kyle’s approach of fitting the text to a certain theory, to Hatfield’s extraction of surprising associations from the text. It was also a gas to see in the letter from Henry R. Kujawa that my work has something of a fan—albeit one who doesn’t know my name; the classic way in which comics touch all young people’s lives! Adam McGovern, Mt. Tabor, NJ _____________________________________________ My piece didn’t come off as badly as I’d feared—a little thin by comparison with Charles Hatfield’s outstanding feature, but not bad. And although Hatfield’s piece is the strongest, Adam McGovern’s has a number of really penetrating, worthwhile insights. I should have gone into more detail about the relationship of the story to Freudian theory (that interchange between Orion and Lightray, panel 3, page 23, particularly)—but, come on, who would have read it? The thing is, Jack did a fantastically difficult thing. He took a psychological theory, reduced it to its essentials, and then constructed a successful dramatic narrative demonstrating that theory. Jack is repeatedly seen, even by sophisticated people, as being “instinctive” and essentially unlettered. This was an amazing intellectual feat that no instinctive, unlettered man could possibly have achieved. I also discovered something I should have known. Until I quoted from Jack’s dialogue and captions, writing them in standard prose syntax, I didn’t realize quite how good he was. He didn’t need comics-ese. As a writer, his fundamental instincts were literary. (Much of the criticism of Jack as a writer does not take into consideration the time he spent on the dialogue and captions. Stan was able to devote—by Jack’s standards—immense amounts of time to the dialogue, and it showed. If Jack had had that time for his own writing, I’m sure there would be much less criticism and a lot more praise.) Richard Kyle, Long Beach, CA _____________________________________________ #24 was great! I particularly liked FINALLY getting some real facts on the Kirby-Marvel conflict. Mssrs. Morrow and Cooke are to be congratulated on a fine bit of journalism— and Jim Shooter is a gentleman with a lot of forgiveness in his soul. After all the nastiness he’s gotten, taking the bum rap for being an evil capitalist, he opens up and chats without bitterness about what really happened. He reminds me of Stan Lee who also got a bum rap. Both

fellers were assumed to be completely in charge of the corporate behemoth that Marvel became, but such things are often headless beasts, and certainly, a lowly editor doesn’t control a company. Link Yaco, New York, NY _____________________________________________ Re: TJKC #23—Page 50 (TRUE DIVORCE CASES) was just more proof that there ain’t no babe can compare with a Kirby Babe. And with regard to those ten pages of “The Teacher” (from SOUL LOVE)—thanks, they were just awful, and not to be missed. That second panel on page 4 especially; in my lifetime I’ve sat spellbound as Jack paraded alien invaders, giant monsters, and weirdly gifted folks across the page, but that guy with the books on his head has got to be one of the most unbelievable things Kirby ever drew. Ted Krasniewski, Jersey City, NJ (For more of Jack’s “awful, and not to be missed” work from SOUL LOVE, check out our COLLECTED TJKC, VOL. 3 trade paperback, where you can read that classic line of Kirby dialogue: “Leroy seems either constipated or shy”—and this is in a ROMANCE story!) _____________________________________________ I’d thought that my love of super-hero comics had pretty much left me. Then I have to read Mike Gartland’s “A Failure to Communicate: Part Four” in TJKC #24! There I came face to face with it again: Jack’s great philosophical depth—something not nearly enough appreciated by comics fans. To me, Jack’s super-hero stories are just the icing on his philosophical cake. Jack was nothing if not a seeker of truth. He was also compassionate, tolerant, and wise beyond words. I wonder if he had the type of deeply spiritual conversations he had with me with anyone else? (Probably so.) I once (in order to “get to the bottom of things”) asked him about his religious beliefs, and he answered, “I believe the BIBLE!” Knowing what else I did about him and his attitude towards others, that was more than enough for me. To me, Love is what the BIBLE is about, and Jack surely understood that very well. He did believe in Altruism over “Objectivism.” The “evil scientists” (and Objectivists) in FF #65-67 actually believe “they know it all.” However, the BIBLE, in CORINTHIANS 15:56 says, “The sting of (spiritual) death is sin (separation from one’s Creator), and the power of sin is the Law (man’s own worldly ‘reasoning’ through which he serves as his own ‘witness’/’self-justification’).” Further pointing out the sheer futility of man’s attempt to find “truth” bootstrap-fashion by his own powers, I CORINTHIANS 1:27 says, “God has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world (like you and me) to shame the things that are strong.” But God gives all individuals free will, so who am I to abrogate the choice of Objectivists? Jesus came not to judge the world, but to save it. That judgment is something everyone makes for themselves on themselves. No one does it for them! Harry W. Miller, Bowling Green, KY NEXT ISSUE: #27 ships in January, kicking off the year 2000 with an all-star look at the KIRBY INFLUENCE, with color covers inked by BRUCE TIMM and MIKE THIBODEAUX! Inside, we present a previously unpublished interview with JACK, plus a new interview with ALEX ROSS (including unseen Ross art)! Then we’ll talk with the top names in comics about how Kirby influenced them, including NEIL GAIMAN, DAVE GIBBONS, MARK WAID, ERIK LARSEN, BRIAN PULIDO, JOE QUESADA, STEVE BISSETTE, RICK VEITCH, KEITH GIFFEN, RICH BUCKLER, and others! We’ll also explore how the Kirby Family is carrying on Jack’s name (with a sneak peek at upcoming Kirby-inspired projects), a huge photo gallery, fan art, and more! And throughout, we’ll present plenty of rare and unpublished art from JIMMY OLSEN, CAPTAIN AMERICA, FANTASTIC FOUR, and more! Deadline for submissions: 11/1/99.