Doctor Bong
Reservist Avenger
Master of belly dancing (no, really...)!
Posts: 167
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Post by Doctor Bong on May 25, 2008 12:23:05 GMT -5
As a kid I loved Kirby on both Kamandi and the Demon; in fact I'm pretty sure both of them were by far my favorite DC titles, and it was mostly because of the art (whereas now, if I have to choose, the story's mainly more important to me than the art) although I did like the stories as well, if memory serves me right; but what remains clear on my mind after all those years is Kirby's art: powerful, hyperkinetic and epic. That being said, these are my 3 all-time favorite comic book artists: 1) George Perez 2) Neal Adams 3) Jack Kirby. By the way, does anybody know if DC still keeps the Kamandi character around, one way or another...?
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Post by Shiryu on May 25, 2008 13:34:55 GMT -5
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Post by Doctor Doom on May 25, 2008 13:35:09 GMT -5
That being said, these are my 3 all-time favorite comic book artists: 1) George Perez 2) Neal Adams 3) Jack Kirby. Well, if anyone tops out Kirby, I'll agree it's PĂ©rez! Yup. He'd been in limbo for years but recently his world resurfaced as part of the climax of "Countdown". Sadly, that plot sucked but basically, the world of Kamandi has been re-established on a parallel Earth. He's also slated to be appering in Final Crisis along with Everyone Else Ever.
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Post by dlw66 on May 25, 2008 20:01:08 GMT -5
Bong -- Kamandi appeared a few years ago in a Superman/Batman arc. It's been collected in a tpb called "Absolute Power", I believe. Really a fun story. Doom -- no need to apologize earlier. By the way, I would heartily recommend, if you only can buy two issues, that you get The Jack Kirby Collector #'s 33 and 36 twomorrows.com/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=98_57&sort=20a&page=3-- the FF and Thor issues. As usual in this magazine, lots and lots of Kirby pencils, Mark Evanier's column, and other interesting anecdotes. Since these are my two favorite Kirby titles, I have really been happy in having purchased these two books!!
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Post by sharkar on May 26, 2008 22:20:39 GMT -5
Interesting. I wonder if this sudden change was due to artistic reasons, or if Lee hoped that Kirby would bring more readers since he usually drew the Surfer on FF. While Jack was finishing up the Surfer saga in FF #74-77, he was shocked to learn that Stan had already tapped Buscema to draw the new Silver Surfer series (which was slated to debut when the FF story concluded). This was the straw that broke the camel's back...Jack was so upset that he essentially "shut down"...refused to create any new characters and/or his typically imaginative plots for Marvel. He basically started "phoning it in." IMO, you can really see a difference in Kirby's quality after, say, FF Annual #6. For the most part, the FF's plots became retreads of TV shows and movies, while Cap's book (which Kirby was also drawing) also resorted to old villains like the Red Skull and re-tellings of Cap's origin. Except for the first issue, the Surfer book--despite the really gorgeous art by Buscema--was a dismal failure sales-wise. Stan just went overboard (no pun intended) on the philosophizing and moralizing. There were some interesting touches (Al B. Harper, Mephisto) but overall, the Surfer became just another Marvel angst-ridden hero- -a real departure from the childlike alien whom Kirby had created. Plus the book's price --25 cents--didn't help (most comics were 12 cents and then, 15 cents, back then). The giant-size bi-monthly book didn't capture an audience, so by issue #18 Stan called in Jack to rescue the book. By this time Jack was just about to leave Marvel (unbeknownst to Stan) and while it's true Kirby's work here can't be described as his best, Herb Trimpe's inks certainly didn't help! Then Jack announced his departure, and Stan declared in a Bullpen Bulletin that Trimpe would take over as the regular penciler on the SS book. But it was too late...the book was canceled after #18. Though he'd already made up his mind to leave Marvel, I hope Jack felt some sort of satisfaction that he was called in to revive the dying book.
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Post by sharkar on May 27, 2008 22:42:34 GMT -5
As a similar example, there's an old Tales of Suspense, back when Gene Colan was doing the Iron Man feature, where IM is battling Namor. Stan's note in the front of the book states that Gentleman Gene took ill shortly after beginning the ish, and Kirby ably stepped in to complete it and meet the deadline. When the reader turns from page 3 to page 4, it's as if one has stepped into a different reality altogether. That's right...at the time (1966), Gene the Dean was the regular penciler for both the Subby feature in Tales to Astonish and the Shellhead feature in Tales of Suspense. In what may be the first true Marvel crossover, the story dlw refers to appeared in Astonish #82...the conclusion to a Namor-IM storyline that began in Namor's feature in Astonish #81, crossed over to IM's feature in Suspense #79-80, and then finished up in Astonish #82. One wonders why Stan didn't just have Jack re-do the couple of Colan pages in the Astonish #82 story, since the abrupt switch to Kirby was-- as dlw states--jarring. Kirby was a speed demon and could have pumped out the extra pages, but I guess Stan didn't want the Colan pages to go to waste. Unfortunately, Gene is not in the best of health these days. I've read that his family is auctioning off some of his art to help raise funds for medical expenses. Let's all keep him in our hearts and prayers.
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Post by Shiryu on May 28, 2008 18:25:35 GMT -5
Thanks for the background info on Kirby and the Surfer Sharkar, I didn't know any of it! The story also highlights the importance of Kirby's contribution to the plot of the stories, and not just to the art. A bit like Ditko and then Romita Sr for Spidey, they did more than just drawing. While I never really liked Ditko's idea of Peter's social life, sticking to Kirby could have saved the Surfer's book.
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Post by dlw66 on May 31, 2008 8:37:16 GMT -5
In regard to Doctor Bong's question about the Thing and the Hulk on the previous page:
The May Back Issue features a lengthy article on Thing/Hulk battles. Following that story is a nice article about the career of Ron Wilson, noted Thing artist in the '70's. Pictured are a couple of interesting Wilson art commissions. He does a thing called "One Minute Later!" and draws a scene based on a cover he'd done 30 years ago. Fantastic Four #165 (FF vs. the Crusader (nee Marvel Boy) and Marvel Two-In-One (with the Liberty Legion) are shown. Pretty neat idea, Ron!
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Post by sharkar on Jun 2, 2008 19:22:52 GMT -5
Unfortunately, Gene is not in the best of health these days. I've read that his family is auctioning off some of his art to help raise funds for medical expenses. Let's all keep him in our hearts and prayers. Regarding Gene Colan, here's a link to a joint project from the Hero Initiative and Marvel: www.actorcomicfund.org/NewsDetail.asp?NewsId=134
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Post by scottharris on Jun 28, 2009 16:54:36 GMT -5
I never realized as a kid that this cool Byrne cover is an homage to Action Comics #1:
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