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Preview: The Newsboy Legion and the Boy Commandos Special #1

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The Newsboy Legion and the Boy Commandos Special #1

(W) Howard Chaykin, Joe Simon (A) Jack Kirby (A/CA) Howard Chaykin
In Shops: Aug 09, 2017
SRP: $4.99

Jack Kirby’s two wartime kid gangs share their first adventure together in a novel-length tale written and illustrated by Howard Chaykin! When the Boy Commandos arrive in New York on the trail of a secret Axis agent, they’re greeted as turf invaders by the crime-fighting Newsboys! Can these kids put aside their rivalry and join forces to protect the home front? This issue also includes the story “Turn on the Heat,” starring the Newsboy Legion, from STAR SPANGLED COMICS #27, written and illustrated by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby.

Review: Mister Miracle #1

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Mister Miracle #1“Yet it was the Lord’s will to crush him and cause him to suffer…”- Isaiah 53:10(NIV)

In honor of the 100th anniversary of Jack Kirby’s birth, writer Tom King and artist Mitch Gerads have teamed up to tell a twelve part saga featuring the New Gods, who are probably the King’s finest creation and an inspiration for Star Wars. But Mister Miracle #1 isn’t just about bright costumes, boom tubes, and the anti-life equation. It’s a story about a man, who although he is the greatest escape artist ever, finds out that cheating death is more painful than he bargained for. The comic opens up with cheerful, carnival barker like narration from King, but Gerads’ close-up of the dying Scott and the distorted blood around him in the bathroom

Mister Miracle #1 effortlessly sets the stage for a final, epic battle between the New Gods and Darkseid with the repeated use of the pitch black “Darkseid is” panel and references to Mister Miracle being a Christ figure: the suffering son of Highfather. Isaiah 53, a famous passage in the Hebrew Bible about the suffering of the Messiah, could easily be used to describes Scott’s experiences in this story. His half-brother Orion, the son of Darkseid who was raised on New Genesis, beats him almost senseless when he gets out of the hospital like some kind of bullying ritual until his wife Barda intervenes and shuts him up with a reminder that she and Scott grew up in the torture pits of Apokolips while he got to chill with the New Gods. Later, Barda slaps him when he hesitates to return to New Genesis to fight Darkseid, and the moments of peace are few and far between as Mister Miracle is either getting hit, trying to escape out of one trap or another, or wandering around sleepless.

In his rare moments of peace, Scott is usually talking with or in the arms of Big Barda. Mister Miracle #1Based on the relationship between Jack Kirby and his wife Roz, Scott Free and Barda are one of the iconic superhero couples and are adorable based on their height difference alone. Early in Mister Miracle #1, King and Gerads use the nine panel grid to show Barda’s grief in the hospital while she waits to see how Scott is. Even though they’re immortal beings, Gerads draws Scott and Barda with lines, wrinkles, and human expressions like when tears stream down Barda’s face when Scott has to stay in recovery longer. He even uses subtle visual shorthand like Scott growing a beard to mark the passage of time, one of many tools in his TARDIS-meets-Batman’s utility belt of storytelling skills. For example, Gerads’ Orion has a similar chin to his estranged father Darkseid that is colored in a more shadowy manner compare to his silver helmet and bright, red suit. He is definitely overcompensating for something, and even Highfather dresses more casually than him.

Before getting cosmic, Tom King and Mitch Gerads probe the psyche of one of the most fearless people in the DC Universe. Throughout Mister Miracle #1, Scott experiences his own mortality and has difficulty coping with it like when he hallucinates his old friend Oberon, who died from throat cancer, smoking and telling an old joke. Until Barda tells Scott that he’s alone, it seems like he is just bantering with his old friend because Gerads doesn’t draw their chat like his hazy flashbacks of a TV interview where Mister Miracle darkly jokes about suicide. Scott is a Chosen One figure as hinted by the “I drew God” joke that repeats in the issue, but he struggles with self-doubt and the fact that maybe death is the one trap he can’t escape. The black “Darkseid is” panels that end up engulfing Gerads’ grid show his stress and fear about the war to come. However, Barda is here for him every step of the way helping him up when they return to New Genesis at the end of the comic.

In Mister Miracle #1, Tom King and Mitch Gerads begin their likely-to-be-classic tale on a micro level honing on Scott Free’s thoughts, feelings, and relationships as he hangs out at his house, walks on the beach with his family before going to the macro level of the conflict between New Genesis and Apokolips.  They give us a power couple to root for in the Biblical battle between light and darkness, life and anti-life, a tyrant and the world’s greatest entertainer, and Gerads’ art makes the nine panel grid fresh and sometimes freaky again.

Mister Miracle #1 is character-driven, visually innovative comics at its finest and continues the time-honored Jack Kirby tradition of giving godlike heroes feet of clay.

Story: Tom King Art: Mitch Gerads
Story: 9.0 Art: 10 Overall: 9.5 Recommendation: Buy

DC Comics provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review

Review: New Gods Special #1

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New Gods Special #1

I dunno — on the one hand, writer/artist Shane Davis seems to “get” Jack Kirby: his recently-released New Gods Special #1 (cover-priced $4.99, which I paid for out-of-pocket) is big, brash, bold, and battle-centric, revolving as it does around a conflict between Orion and his brother, Kalibak, who’s in the business of setting up an “Apokolips Pit” deep beneath the surface of New Genesis and the notice of its residents/protectors, the New Gods. In the worst tradition of his father, the dread Darkseid, however, he’s building his pit utilizing slave labor, and one of his “volunteers,” the ever-intrepid “Bug” known as Forager, escapes to warn the New Gods — who, for the record, have been marginalizing and abusing his people even longer than Kalibak has — that their whole world’s about to come crashing down. I guess he’s just thoughtful like that.

And this is where it starts to become apparent that on anything other than a surface or aesthetic level, Davis doesn’t “get” Kirby at all. There’s no nuance or depth to any of the proceedings in New Gods Special #1 — none of the deep and profound philosophical questions that The King Of Comics was asking with his Fourth World opus (like how can New Genesis be anything other than a deeply flawed “paradise” given that it sustains itself by means of the exploitation of “lesser” races?) are anywhere to be found, no facile nods even thrown in their direction. If you sucked all the actual meaning from Kirby’s work, and filtered it through a distinctly ’90s-Wildstorm-style artistic lens, then what you’d probably end up with is something very much like this. As a result, this comic — even though DC just published it last week — both feels and looks far more dated than any of the original Fourth World books themselves.

New Gods Special #1

Which isn’t to say that Davis, inker Michelle Delecki, and superstar colorist Alex Sinclair didn’t obviously put their “all” into this comic. I contend that the visual evidence, at the very least, is proof positive that they did. It’s just that their “all” isn’t nearly enough to stand in Kirby’s shadow. This is very much an average comic book fisticuffs struggle, albeit one with some cosmic trappings, and while it passes the admittedly low bar set for “competence” by today’s “Big Two” standards, it’s thoroughly devoid of the inspiration that informed every panel that Kirby ever drew and every line he ever scripted. Tonally, Orion, Lightray, Forager, Kalibak, etc. all sound right — but minus the crucial spark of Kirby’s animating genius, none of them feel right. And while it may be inherently unfair to compare anybody to The King, the simple truth is that if you’re going to put out a comic ostensibly intended to honor his legacy, that comic should honor said legacy, rather than merely imitate it.

New Gods Special #1

The legendary Walter Simonson fares somewhat better with his brief backup strip — his lavish art looks as gorgeous as ever, and while the story is also essentially a basic run-around (based on concepts he introduced in his Orion series revolving around New Genesis’ aquatic life), it’s one with at least as much substance as Davis’ much-longer main feature. It’s not a terrific story by any means, or even an especially memorable one, but it’s at least mercifully short and quite pretty to look at.

So — does New Gods Special #1 have anything going for it, then? Well, yeah, it does — buried at the very back of the book are a couple of short-but-oh-so-sweet Young Gods Of Supertown strips by Kirby himself, and while no one’s going to claim that these stories, which originally ran in the pages of The Forever People and feature the character Lonar, were essential components of the overall Fourth World arc, they fleshed out the world of New Genesis nicely and remain prime examples of excellent little adventure yarns.

In fairness, though, those stories are already available in several different reprint collections (and will be in the forthcoming Fourth World Omnibus), and hardly constitute a reason to shell out five bucks for this hollow “tribute” comic.

Story: Shane Davis  Art: Shane Davis
Story: 3.0 Art: 2.0 Overall: 2.5 Recommendation: Pass

Check Out the Interior Art for Fighting American #1, Out October 11

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Titan Comics has released a first look at the interior art from the Fighting American revival which hits stores on October 11 – co-creator Joe Simon’s birthday!

Joe Simon & Jack Kirby’s legendary Cold War hero is back in comics courtesy of writer Gordon Rennie and artist Duke Mighten.

As shown in the first look at interior pages by Duke Mighten, the duo of Fighting American and Speedboy are mysteriously transported to the modern world of 2017 – a far cry from the Cold War era they lived in.

How will they handle what society has become? And what new dangers will this bring?

The first issue features covers by Terry and Rachel Dodson, Art Baltazar, Jack Kirby, Duke Mighten, and a Blair Shedd Action Figure Variant.

Joe Simon & Jack Kirby’s Fighting American Travels To 2017 + Check Out Covers!

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This October 11, Joe Simon and Jack Kirby‘s legendary Cold War hero, Fighting American, returns to comics!

Throughout their long partnership, Simon and Kirby helped revolutionize the comics industry from ground-breaking adventure comics to pioneering romance titles, westerns, crime comics and of course superheroes – a genre they helped to shape and define for generations to come.

With Fighting American, they brought a tongue-in-cheek irreverence to the world of two-fisted action and its mix of outlandish, satirical humor went on to establish Fighting American as a true American hero.

In Titan Comics’ new Fighting American series, written by Gordon Rennie with artwork by Duke Mighten, the story continues after Simon and Kirby’s legendary 1954 series…

When the 1950s heroes find themselves trapped in the modern world, how will they handle what society has become, and what dangers will they face?

With new villains to contend with and enemies from their past pursuing them, what daring adventures could Fighting American and Speedboy find themselves in now?

Titan Comics has released a look at the covers, Cover A by Terry and Rachel Dodson, Cover B by Art Baltazar, Cover C by Jack Kirby, Cover D by Duke Mighten, and Cover E a Blair Shedd Action Figure Variant.

Celebrate Jack Kirby’s 100th Birthday With More Than 1,300 Pages of Original Comic Art

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Next month at San Diego Comic-Con, IDW Publishing will honor both the breadth of Jack Kirby’s imagination, and his unrivaled artistic skill, in a special 100th birthday celebration panel and art show, featuring an incredible 1,300 images of original Kirby art.

Kirby, the visionary artist and creator or co-creator of such characters as the X-Men, Captain America, Silver Surfer, The New Gods, The Avengers, Kamandi, and hundreds more, remains one of the most influential comic artists of all time. Not only do his wildly imagined creations continue to inspire new media properties across the world, but his incredibly drawn pages still stand as a pinnacle of sequential art.

This birthday tribute, hosted by IDW President Greg Goldstein, will feature a multi-media display of more than 1,300 pages of Kirby’s original artwork—the largest showing ever—selected from the eight Jack Kirby Artist’s Edition books IDW has published, as well as additional not-yet-published pages that will be new to fans of the books. “There’s never been a larger or more impressive collection of Kirby visuals in public,” said Goldstein.

Comic legends Walter Simonson (Thor, Alien, Ragnarok) and Kevin Eastman (co-creator of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles) will be on hand to discuss Kirby’s continued influence. Also present will be IDW PDX Creative Director Dirk Wood and IDW Director of Special Projects Scott Dunbier, the editor of IDW’s award-winning Artist’s Editions series.

In addition to his importance, Kirby was also incredibly prolific, penciling 15 pages or more each week during marathon days at his drawing board, lasting upward of 12 hours. Yet, despite the breathtaking rate at which he worked, nearly all the pages he left behind are a master class in design, layout, and imagination, made even more impressive by the fact that Kirby was almost completely self-taught.

Panel attendees will see hundreds of eye-catching pieces from Kirby’s tenure at both DC and Marvel, including selections from Fantastic Four, Mister Miracle, Thor, The Forever People, and more, printed so clearly that the whiteout, eraser marks, and blue-line notes are all visible, giving a behind-the-scenes look at some of Kirby’s biggest hits.

The panel will on Saturday, July 22nd, from 1:00 PM – 2:00 PM in Room 25ABC. Seating is limited, and in addition to a special gift for everyone who attends, two lucky fans will be leaving with their own Kirby Artist’s Edition.

To purchase any of the IDW Jack Kirby Artist’s Edition books, which feature high-quality reproductions of Kirby’s art printed the same size it was originally drawn at, on paper similar to the actual art boards, visit your local comic shop or get them direct from IDW.

You can learn more about Jack Kirby and his amazing legacy by visiting the Kirby Museum.

Jack Kirby Will be Honored at This Year’s D23 Expo

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This July, Jack Kirby will be honored for his remarkable creative achievements as a Disney Legend in a ceremony to be held at D23 Expo: The Ultimate Disney Fan Event in Anaheim, California.  Hosted by Disney Chairman and CEO Bob Iger, the Disney Legends Award ceremony will take place at 10 a.m. on Friday, July 14, in Hall D23 during D23 Expo 2017.

Jack Kirby first grabbed attention in the spring of 1941 with Captain America, a character he created with Joe Simon.  Kirby then followed this debut with a prolific output of comic books in the Western, Romance, and Monster genres–all a prelude to his defining work helping to create the foundations of the Marvel Universe.  For the next decade, Kirby and co-creator Stan Lee would introduce a mind-boggling array of new characters and teams — including the Avengers, Hulk, Thor, Iron Man, Silver Surfer, Ant-Man, Wasp, Black Panther, S.H.I.E.L.D., and the Inhumans.  Kirby was inducted into the Eisner Hall of Fame’s 1987 inaugural class and continued creating comics throughout the ’90s before passing away in 1994.

Other honorees of this year’s Legends Award are Carrie Fisher, Clyde “Gerry” Geronimi, Manuel Gonzales, Mark Hamill, Stan Lee, Garry Marshall, Julie Taymor, and Oprah Winfrey.

Preview: Jack Kirby’s Forever People Artist’s Edition HC

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Jack Kirby’s Forever People Artist’s Edition HC

Jack Kirby (w & a & c)

Continuing IDW’s yearlong celebration of the centennial of Jack “King” Kirby’s birth! Jack Kirby’s classic Fourth World Epic told the story of a group of New Gods sent to Earth to oppose Darkseid. Featuring Beautiful dreamer, Big Bear, Moonrider, and others, this was Kirby’s take on super-powered flower children!

Included in this volume are issues, 1, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8, with nearly all pages scanned from the originals. Presented in IDW’s award-winning Artist’s Edition format—the next best thing to owning the original art!

HC • BW • $125.00 • 144 pages • 12” x 17”  • ISBN: 978-1-63140-896-0

Underrated: Creators Of Yesteryear I

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This is a column that focuses on something or some things from the comic book sphere of influence that may not get the credit and recognition it deserves. Whether that’s a list of comic book movies, ongoing comics, or a set of stories featuring a certain character. The columns may take the form of a bullet pointed list, or a slightly longer thinkpiece – there’s really no formula for this other than whether the things being covered are Underrated in some way. This week: Creators Of Yesteryear I.

This week I wanted to take a step away from sales numbers, movies, and comics (for the most part), and instead look at some of the creators who had a huge hand in shaping the industry as we know it today. These are names that, hopefully, you already know, but to the average non-comics fan these names may be met with a bit of a shrug or a blank face. The word underrated isn’t a strong enough word for the recognition that these creators should receive from the wider world, but that’s the name of this column… so there we go.

Before I start, one disclaimer: this is in no way shape or form a complete list, hence the Roman numeral at the end of the title. There will be multiple parts to this list in the future in unscheduled installments. Do not expect extensive biographies here, this is just enough to (hopefully) encourage you to do a bit of extra reading yourself.

Shall we get to it?

simon and kirby.jpg

Joe Simon and Jack Kirby

Jack Kirby
I bet you weren’t expecting to see this name here, were you? Jack Kirby is one of the more famous names within the comic book industry, and his contributions to the medium we know and love are legendary. His influence can be felt in just about every issue, so why have I included him on this list? Because if you ask the general public who created the X-Men they’d only answer one name, and Jack Kirby deserves to be as revered, if not more so, than Stan Lee. 

Joe Simon
You’ve heard of Captain America, right? Who hasn’t, really. Well as I’m sure you know he’s the product of Simon and Kirby. The team also created the romance comics genre, and contributed killer runs on some of Marvel and DC’s biggest comics during the middle of the last century. Joe Simon’s comics resume may not be as extensive as his frequent collaborator, but Simon is also the founder of Sick a Mad magazine competitor. He also worked

bill finger

One of the rare photos of Bill Finger

extensively in advertising, serving as the art director for Burstein, Phillips and Newman from 1964 to 1967. There’s an excellent coffee table book featuring the work of the Simon Kirby Studio that I can’t recommend highly enough to you.

 Bill Finger
I swear to the gods if you don’t know who this man is, and what he’s done, then I will happily sit down and tell you all about it – but not here. Suffice it to say Bill Finger gave the world almost everything we know about Batman… and only recently received credit for his work in co-creating Batman. There’s a fantastic documentary on Hulu if you’re interested in learning more about this man.

steve ditko.PNG Steve Ditko
So who created Spider-Man? Not just Stan Lee. Steve Ditko is the co-creator of Marvel’s most bankable star, but there’s a good chance your non comics people wouldn’t know that. The artist also created or co-created a good number of other characters for Marvel and DC including Doctor Strange, The Question, the Creeper, and a revamp of Blue Beetle. Ditko has famously refused almost all interview requests since the 60’s, allowing his work to speak for itself. His Wikipedia entry is full of interesting tidbits.

 Jerry Robinson
The co-creator of Robin and the Joker (Bill Finger was the other half of the writer/artist duo), Jerry Robinson, along with Neal Adams, was also instrumental in the fight for creators rights in the 70’s, but his proudest body of work wasn’t in a traditional comic, accoding to an interview with the Daily Telegraph: “I did 32 years of political cartoons, one every day for six days a week. That body of work is the one I’m proudest of. While my time on Batman was important and exciting and notable considering the characters that came out of it, it was really just the start of my life.”jerry robinson.jpg

 

Like I said above, there is no way that this is an inclusive list. This is merely a column that will hopefully get you, dear reader, talking about thee creators to non comics people.

In the meantime, I’ll see you next week.

 

All images were found via Google search and snipped from the image results.

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