Jack Kirby’s Fourth World

Comic fans are set for a real treat this year. Originally released in 1971, Jack Kirby‘s most ambitious project is finally getting the deluxe treatment it has always deserved (36 years late).

Collected in oversized hardcover editions (thankfully printed in newsprint as opposed to the shiny stock commonly used), the series of collections will represent the entire Fourth World saga, including the elusive finale, ‘The Hunger Dogs’ graphic novel.

After leaving Marvel Comics in one of the most famous professional rows of comicdom next to the Ditko/Lee bout in the 60′s, Jack Kirby was anxious to move on to the next big thing. A veritable 15 year old youth in the body of a fifty year old man, Kirby was rife with creative energy. Who can blame him? After a record making 100 straight issues of the Fantastic Four with Stan Lee, I’m sure he was anxious to try something new. He wasn’t the only one.

So after he slammed his cigar into his quitting notice to Stan and company (which read ‘I QUIT!’), King Kirby was almost immediately courted by DC Comics, who were desperately trying to enliven their staid image.

The story goes that Kirby had an almost bottomless mental drawer of ideas to draw from. He walked in to talk to DC Editorial with one idea followed by another in such quick succession that he could have easily gone on all day. Here was a sci-fi idea. No? OK, how about a romance series? No? No problem… it went on and on.

Then he unveiled the Fourth World concept.

Kirby had already taken over Superman’s Pal, Jimmy Olsen (in a show that he could take their worst selling series and make it a hit) and introduced the evil Darkseid and the whimsical Forever People, so the stage was already set. But brother what a crowded stage it was!

Kirby had it all worked out in his head.

Four separate series (New Gods, The Forever People, Mister Miracle and Jimmy Olsen) with interlocking themes.

It remains the most ambitious project ever undertaken by a single comic creator… and given the amount of time passed and books published since then, that’s saying something.

Defined by DC Comics President Paul Levitz, The Fourth World is “the first deliberately constructed universe of fiction in comics that was not confined to a single character or a single title at birth. All of that became models for ways that you could develop comics and ways in which comics influenced other media to develop.”

Kirby intended the series to be written and drawn by other creators with himself as a editor in chief, but it was never to be. DC Comics was in love with the idea that they had nabbed one of the fathers of the Marvel Universe and wanted Kirby’s artwork and madcap writing in every issue. The creator of the Hulk, Fantastic Four, Thor, Captain America and the rest was sitting at a DC Comics drawing table.

Given that DC Comics Editorial insisted in redrawing certain any appearance of Superman in a Kirby comic still boggles the mind, but it was the 70′s. People made wacky decisions.

The ideas behind the Fourth World saga were incredibly epic. After the death of the ‘old gods,’ there was the creation of a single world.

What once was one became two, the beautiful and shining New Genesis and the dark pit of evil, Apokolips.

After years of bloody conflict, a pact was formed. High Father, the leader of New Genesis and Darkseid, the despot of Apokolips, exchanged their first born sons. This insured that war could not be waged without one side spilling their own blood.

The two children grew up to be the fiercest opponents to Darkseid‘s quest for cosmic domination, Mister Miracle and Orion.

But after the discovery of Earth, Darkseid found a new battleground and laboratory to renew his search for the ‘Anti-Life Equation.’

This remarkable series ran throughout all four comics for 11 issues per title before an untimely cancellation. A painted graphic novel depicting the final defeat of Darkseid by the very underlings he viewed as his loyal worshipers, The Hunger Dogs, was published in 1985 following a brand new lead in story printed in issue #6 of the New Gods Baxter Paper reprint series.

The New Gods saw print again with longtime Kirby collaborator Mark Evanier at the helm, and again with Tom Peyer, Rachel Pollack and John Byrne writing the series, but the characters ultimately took up supporting roles in the DC Universe.

The New Gods story line was condensed in the stunning 2-parter Superman Animated tale ‘Apopokolips… Now,’ which was dedicated to the memory of Jack Kirby. Animator Bruce Timm has talked at length of his desire to create an animated film version of the New Gods and rumor has it that storyboards and designs hang on his studio walls. With the advent of the direct-to-DVD DC Comics Animated line, that may be more of a possibility than originally thought.

The Forever People starred in a mini series in 1988 before disappearing almost entirely from the annals of comic books.

Mister Miracle became a member of the Justice League in the 1984 series, but in time disappeared into obscurity only to be brought back to life by Kirby enthusiast Grant Morrison as part of a grand interlinking series much like the Fourth World saga called ‘Seven Soldiers of Victory.’

Jimmy Olsen still works a modest job at a major metropolitan newspaper.

After the cancellation of the Fourth World saga, Kirby left his other DC Comics creation, Kamandi, in the hands of Gerry Conway and returned to Marvel Comics. Ironically, he developed a series much like the New Gods for Marvel called the Eternals.

But this new Fourth world Omnibus series is perhaps the best way to experience the Jack Kirby’s extravaganza. One massive sprawling saga told large as life and twice as loud. If you are not familiar with the series, this is the perfect opportunity to enjoy the ultimate comics experience.

Just make sure you have an extra pair of sock ready.

Recommended reading/viewing list:

Jack Kirby’s Fourth World Omnibus, Vol. 1
Jack Kirby’s Fourth World Omnibus, Vol. 2
Jimmy Olsen: Adventures by Jack Kirby – Volume 1
Jimmy Olsen: Adventures by Jack Kirby – Volume 2 (Jimmy Olsen)
Kamandi Archives, Volume 1 (DC Archive Editions)
Kamandi Archives, Vol. 2
The Eternals Omnibus
Superman – The Animated Series, Volume Two (DC Comics Classic Collection)
The Seven Soldiers of Victory Vol. 4
Seven Soldiers of Victory: Vol. 3
Seven Soldiers of Victory: Vol. 2
Seven Soldiers of Victory: Vol. 1

Doctor Who rumors

Rumor is that Martha Jones, the companion that only joined the Doctor a scant 12 weeks ago, will be taking a rest.

The story is a bit complicated (possibly due to the fact that while rumors abound for next year no one, not even the BBC Director-General, have seen this Saturday’s episode, the thrilling ‘Last of the Time Lords.’

The BBC has adopted this strangely secretive policy in regards to Doctor Who finales since the new program returned. Last year, the final shot of episode 12′s surprise villain was kept from the press entirely.

Piecing together what I’ve read, there will be a new companion introduced in the Kylie Minogue-fueled Christmas Day episode (already holding my sides in anticipation).

The BBC is making a big deal about this changing everything, so that probably means it’ll be a male companion. Not a first by a long shot, but the last true recurring companion (aside from the colorful Captain Jack or the wonderful Mickey) was Vislor Turlough back in 1983.

Many would say that’ll keep the will they/won’t they angle out of the program and I say ‘don’t hold your breath.’ I’m not being coy when I say that there is no reason to believe that the Doctor is heterosexual or any sexual orientation… he is after all an alien. The way he views relationships and sexuality is probably very different to a human beings… no matter how modern he or she is. As long as it furthers the plot, I’m okay with it.

The new companion will take the main focus of the show, leaving Martha to meet up with the Doctor as a recurring character, not a traveling companion. Apparently this is due to the fact that her love for the Doctor is not reciprocated so rather than hang about as she has all season looking mopey, she’s moving on.

You go, Martha. But we’ll miss you.

The rumor mill goes on to confirm (as much as rumors can) that both producer/writer Russel T. Davies will be moving on as will Doctor #10, David Tennant. In all my harshness of this year (mainly the Dalek 2-parter and this drawn out finale), I will say it is a stronger season than 2006′s stories. I have nothing but hope that 2008 will give David the send off that he deserves.

But I cannot lie that I’m anxious to hear about who’s next… that’s always the way, isn’t it?

Recommended viewing/reading:
Turlough and the Earthlink Dilemma (The Companions of Doctor Who)
Doctor Who A Celebration
Doctor Who – The Hand of Fear (Episode 87)

Batman Dark Knight footage

As many of you know, fans of the newly revived Batman film franchise (thanks to the Christopher Nolan helmed Batman Begins) have been stalking the streets of Chicago to catch the film crew of the highly anticipated 2008 sequel ‘The Dark Knight.’

Putting together the rumors I’ve heard so far… the film will closely follow the events of the 2005 smash flick, further developing Batman‘s relationship with Jim Gordan in their fight on crime. Public Defender Harvey Dent enters the story and the three of them come up with a hard-nosed attack on the new criminal element plaguing the streets of Gotham. The new horrifically defaced crime boss known as the Joker, has other plans.

Exclusive filming footage from Mancow
(excuse the bizarre club music and strange racy intro)

To even the odds, here’s a classic Batman ’66 trailer on equal opportunity for women

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Suggested reading:
Absolute Batman: The Long Halloween
Batman: The Dark Knight Returns
Batman: Year One
Batman: Detective

JSA Classified #29-Mister Horrific

Finally my favorite JSA character, Mister Terrific, is getting the attention he deserves in the JSA Classified story ‘Mister Horrific.’

The story is loosely based on the United States pardoning Nazi war criminals in WWII to work on projects such as the space program. Since the JSA were the super hero team in DC’s WWII timeline, writer Arvid Nelson (creator of Rex Mundi)has the team smuggling Nazis out of the theater of war to work for Uncle Sam.

“The Justice Society and a team of US Army Rangers worked together to smuggle von Braun out of Germany before Russian agents could get their hands on him. Flash-forward to present day, and the son of the Ranger captain responsible for nabbing von Braun has become a United States senator, just like his father did after World War II,” Nelson explained to ComicBookResources.com. “It turns out they might have some very un-American political beliefs beneath the veneer of their blandly optimistic campaign speeches.”

The story involves political intrigue and a murder mystery with Mister Terrific the most likely suspect. This leads the smartest man alive on a quest across the globe to clear his name. In his search, he uncovers the truth behind the actions taken by his predecessor of the JSA back in the 40′s.

Mister Terrific is one of those characters that DC Comics introduces into a series that is so terribly cool I’m convinced he had his own series. Both a thinker and a fighter, Michael Holt was once a world class athelete and scientist. After his wife died in a car crash, he was left with nothing in the world to comfort him. An atheist by nature, he contemplated suicide. He would have gone through with it if not for the intervention of the Spectre, who told Holt about the career of Terry Sloane, a talented man who saw the world as crooked and decided to stand for ‘Fair Play’ as the first Mister Terrific.

The Spectre‘s speech convinced Holt that his extraordinary abilities demanded that he perform a duty to the world as the new Mister Terrific in the newly formed Justice Society of America.

It was a good thing too, because this new Mister Terrific has become a staple of the DC Universe and alongside his fellow heroes, carved out a place for himself as a modern day icon (sorely needed with all the ancient characters that continue to sit on the page since their inception in the 30′s, such as Wonder Woman, the Flash, Batman, Superman… etc).

The story, Mister Horrific, will be told with numerous flashback sequences (giving readers the opportunity of seeing the Justice Society in their war time element) and so many exciting locales readers will think they’re watching a James Bond movie!

The action begins in the August 2007 issue #29 of JSA: Classified!

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Suggested reading:
Justice Be Done (JSA: Justice Society of America, Book 1)
JSA Classified: Honor Among Thieves
JSA: Black Reign (Book 8 )
JSA: Fair Play (Book 4)
JSA: All Stars
Rex Mundi Volume 1: The Guardian Of The Temple (Rex Mundi)
Rex Mundi Volume 2: The River Underground (Rex Mundi)
Rex Mundi Volume 3: The Lost Kings (Rex Mundi)

Mass Effect for X-Box 360

Video Game developer Bioware exploded in 2003 with Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic. Based on the Wizards of the Coast’s Star Wars RPG system, KOTOR was the most elaborate and mind-blowing RPG seen for the X-Box platform. Winner of the Game Developer’s Choice Award, BAFTA Games Award and numerous others, it firmly established the name of Bioware in the minds of every gamer from that point onward.

This year, Bioware enters the next gen platform world with the anxiously anticipated sci-fi RPG game, Mass Effect.

The first in a trilogy, Mass Effect is an epic set 200 years in the future. The player controls an elite team seeking to halt the resurgence of an ancient evil which threatens to consume the galaxy.

As the leader Set 200 years in the future in an epic universe, Mass Effect places gamers in a vast galactic community in danger of being conquered by a legendary agent gone rogue. A spectacular new vision from legendary developers BioWare, Mass Effect challenges players to lead a squad of freedom fighters as they struggle against threatening armies to restore peace in the land.

Players have an enormous sandbox to play in. Several planetary systems, space stations full of strange and outrageous aliens litter the game’s world. Characters are fully customizable using the most advanced interactive systems and gameplay techniques. Featuring eye-poppingly gorgeous in game graphics and cinematics that the player is in full control of (as seen in the videos below), this is sure to once again redefine the platform RPG video game.

2006 Trailer

Gameplay video

Gamers have been patiently waiting for this game since it was first announced. With a loose release date of 2007, it looks like they’re going to have to start learning some really intense meditation techniques.

Judging from the videos, one things for sure, though. The wait will be worth it.

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Doctor Who Last of the Timelords trailer

Doctor Who episode 3.13 ‘Last of the Timelords’ trailer

With the Doctor captured and humanity enslaved, the Master now rules the Earth. As a new Time Lord empire dawns, it’s up to Martha Jones to save the Earth in the last part of the third season finale.

… this Saturday.

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Top Master stories at Amazon:
Doctor Who – Logopolis (Episode 116)
Doctor Who – Castrovalva (Episode 117)
Doctor Who – The Mark of the Rani (Episode 140)
Doctor Who – Survival (Episode 159)

Tim Sale Profile

Comic book artist extraordinaire, Tim Sale, began his career drawing the comic book adaptation of Robert Aspirin’s Thieves’ World way back in 1983.

A stylish and thick line, perhaps more cartoony than Frank Miller or less detailed than George Perez (both giants of comic art at the time), Sale‘s art might have looked a little odd to readers at the time. This is difficult to imagine today since his artwork has become so familiar that you can be sure of the quality of the story that his artwork accompanies.

An SVA Graduate (I keep meeting amazing artists from SVA), Sale also studied under the late John Buscema in his comics workshop. It was after meeting Matt Wagner that he got the golden opportunity that made many a fantastic artist shine in the comic book spotlight, Grendel.

Working on the outrageously complicated and ambitious final chapter of the Comico Grendel series (issues 34-40 in 1989-90), Tim Sale refined many of the stylish brush strokes that he is known for today.

The storyline consisted of numerous narratives, strange landscapes, futuristic technology and clothing design and more characters than you could find in a Shakespeare play.

Chronicling the rise of power of Orion Assante into the Grendel Khan, I have to think that Sale must have felt an enormous sense of accomplishment. I hope so because he certainly deserved it.

Eight years later he worked with Jeph Loeb on what was to become the first of many collaborative projects, Superman for All Seasons. This book has the unusual reputation of establishing both writer and artist in the comic community.

A tale of Superman‘s early years told through four point of view narrations (including Superman‘s arch nemesis, Lex Luthor), the book is as touching and dynamic as a motion picture (far moreso than than the recent cinematic effort).

It is the delicate yet firm line work seen in Superman for All Seasons that conveys the awe and majesty of the character. Broad explosive splash pages throughout the book take the reader’s breath away with their power.

Almost poetically, his next work was the polar opposite to the bright and sunny innocence of Superman.

Loeb and Sale began work on what would be their most ambitious (and to date most famous) work, Batman: The Long Halloween, with a shorter story, the three part Batman: Haunted Knight. In both stories, Loeb and Sale spread the world of Batman before themselves like a rich canvas of sweets for their readers.

Long Halloween told story set early on in the Batman‘s career. A string of brutal murders takes place throughout an entire year, always set on a holiday. Batman battles each and every one of his villains searching for clues but in the end is baffled by the answers he finds.

The artwork is almost entirely the antithesis of his work on the Superman book which was set in the wide fields of Smallville and expansive skies over Metropolis. Here the reader is cramped into dark corners and alleys as the caped crusader darts across the page like an ebony angel.

The book was so successful that work began almost immediately on a sequel, Batman: Dark Victory, which continued to develop the Batman‘s early years and introduced the characters of Robin and Two-Face.

The team of Loeb and Sale moved to Marvel Comics to work on their ‘color trilogy’ consisting of Daredevil: Yellow , Spider-Man: Blue, and Hulk: Gray. Each series developed the characters in key moments in the beginning of their super heroic lives.

A love letter to the creators of the Marvel Universe (Bill Everett, Jack Kirby and John Romita to be specific), the color trilogy was a set of continuity tales as well as emotional stories.

Each story deals with loss, grief and hardship in the period setting of the late sixties. Using the narrative techniques of flashbacks, the stories develop the characters in the past and present. It’s a neat trick that works very well and plays to the benefit of the Marvel Universe, character.

Whereas the DC characters are defined by set pieces, Marvel characters have always been about character interplay. Spider-Man is defined by his love life (with Gwen Stacy and Mary Jane), friends (Flash Thompson and Harry Osborn) and his ailing Aunt May for instance. Daredevil is defined by his friendship with Foggy Nelson or unrequited love for Karen Page. The Hulk by the hatred of General Ross and unending love of his daughter Betty.

Delving into the depths of these characters, Yellow, Gray and Blue remain highly recommended primers on the characters themselves and high water marks for Sale and Loeb‘s story telling abilities.

In 2005, Jeph Loeb lost his 17 year old son Sam to cancer.

In their most touching and poignant collaboration, Loeb and Sale created ‘Sam’s Story’ for Superman/Batman #26 (which also saw Sam Loeb‘s own story ‘The Boys are Back in Town‘ in print). Full of life-affirming defiance and laughter, Sam’s Story tells the tale of Jeph’s son by putting him into the world of Clark Kent’s childhood. In the comic story, Clark struggles with feelings of helplessness while Sam deals with his affliction with courage and dignity.

If you haven’t read it, I cannot recommend it enough.

Last year, Darwyn Cooke and Tim Sale began work on the new series Superman Confidential which develops the background cast of the Superman world. Mainly concerned with the Daily Planet staff, the series contains many of the strengths of Sale’s work that readers have come to expect.

Currently, Tim Sale and Jeph Loeb are still working together, but in an all new medium, television. Sale has been providing artwork for the TV series Heroes for the precognitive artist Isaac Mendez 9th Wonders! comic book.

This time around, Jeph Loeb is both writer and producer.

An innovator and modern master of the comic art form, Tim Sale embraces the innocence and ambition of the medium.

Personally, I look at what he has accomplished so far and cannot wait to see what he does next.

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First Hitman trailer

The film based on the insanely popular Eidos/IO Interactive video game franchise Hitman (which creeps the hell out of my wife) is finally viewable in trailer form.

The lead role of Agent 47 is being played by Timothy Olyphant, whom you may remember from his appearances on Deadwood as Sheriff Seth Bullock or more recently in Live Free or Die Hard.

The film follows the trails and tribulations of the perfect man-made assassin on the run from an intricately planned set up. The hero, Agent 47, is engineered from the DNA of the world’s five most dangerous criminals. Stronger, faster and smarter than the average man or bear, Agent 47 has starred in video games since 2000. Moving to the multi-platform market in 2002 with Silent Assassin, the character gained new notoriety, earning two sequels; Contracts and Blood Money.

Of particular note to the Hitman franchise appeal is the unique blend of stealth game and first person shooter (or FPS) game. Also, while the game can be terribly violent and bloody, players are discouraged from spreading death in their wake. A perfect score involves only the elimination of the target subject only without alerting a soul that you were ever there.

It’s a wicked hard game. I’ve played it through a few times and am very good at alerting characters that aren’t even part of the game that I’m there.

In one scene Agent 47 is in a train depot. I play so badly that the train conductor asks me what I’m doing there. He’s not even supposed to be in the game! Then my mom shows up and nothing can kill her!
Here’s hoping this guy in the movie is better than me.

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Matt Wagner Profile

Pennsylvania-born artist Matt Wagner is a true maverick of the comic book world.

Early on in his career, while working on both Mage and Grendel for Comico, he chose to leave his art school studies to become a full time artist. I’ve always felt that it’s his self-assuredness that allowed him to make that leap and it’s this core of his persona that has continued to make him the ground-breaking creator that he is today.

The introduction of Grendel in Comico’s 1982 Primer series joined what was, at the time, a sea of black and white independent comics that were washing up in the shore of many a consumer.
The ‘origin story’ collected in ‘Devil by the Deed’ is a narrated tale accompanied y gorgeously painted panels leading up to the cataclysmic battle between the articulate and dashing Grendel (aka Hunter Rose in this first story) and the cursed beat Silverback, a kind of werewolf that works with the police.

I doubt many knew what to make of the story at the time as it followed the adventures of a self-made man who chose to be a socialite novelist by day and cruel mobster by night.

Grendel was such a unique creation that at first glance it appears to be a knock-off.

The reader quickly sees the comparisons to Batman‘s origin and ignores the strokes of inspiration that would develop over time into a full blown miniature franchise that is still running to this day.

Mage: The Hero Discovered was Wagner’s auto-biographical masterpiece of sorts. A series lovingly produced with Rich Rankin on painted colors, Mage was a triumph. The storyline concerning a quartet of societal drop-outs dueling with the forces of darkness was so unusual that it made sense in the end when we found out that our hero, the slump-shouldered Kevin Matchstick, was the reincarnation of King Arthur.

I broke my teeth in reading independent comics on Mage as a teenager. Almost impossible to find in my town, I had to hunt issues down at conventions in the city and obscure comic shops in nearby towns. It wasn’t until later that I read Wagner was writing a comic book mirror to his real life. My eyes popped out of my head when I saw pictures from his wedding and there was Sean, the ghost, as Matt’s best man!

A terrific series, it was also a chance for Matt Wagner to grow as an artist. It begins awkwardly, but by the end of the 5th issue you can already see a gigantic improvement in page composition and line work. By issue 8, it’s a completely different comic as Wagner trues out tricks with perspective, visual effects and movement. By the time issue 15 is in your hands, you are looking at a matured artist eagerly awaiting his next project.

And what a doozy it was!

My buddy Sean and I used to joke about how difficult it was to explain what the Grendel series was about. It certainly wasn’t as easy as ‘there’s this dude who has a sword that kills people. It usually involved a long sit down.

A non-traditional comic book series, the author cruelly tricks us into thinking that it is a straight-forward sequel to Devil by the Deed reprinted shortly before this new series was released. But it’s something far more complex.

Wagner decided on a different attack this time around (compared to his one man show with Mage) and recruited artists that he was now meeting on the convention trail.

The Pander Brothers lend a hand for the thrilling and very underrated (mainly because I used to hate it) first 12 issues collectively known as ‘the Devil’s Legacy.’

The experiment that Wagner and the Pander Bros. try here is truly thrilling. The series opens with a nearly Jetsons-esque future of flying cars, pastels and best selling Novelist and survivor of the initial Grendel tale of Hunter Rose, Christine Spar‘s dating troubles. Yet by the time it reaches issue 8 the art has transformed into a dark and disturbing metropolis of crooked cops with lie-detector eyes and a deranged Christine Spar dressed in a stolen Grendel mask on the hunt for her blood nemesis, Silverback.

The next four issues known as ‘the Devil Inside’ ( still a personal fave of mine) features Spar‘s boyfriend Brian Li Sung going over the edge thinking that he has somehow inherited the mantle of Grendel from his deceased lover, Spar.

Li Sung is driven insane when Detective Inspector Wiggins investigates Spar’s death and connection to the recently resurfaced Grendel. Artist Bernie Mireault‘s arts is absolutely stunning, disjointed and disturbing throughout, creating an unforgettable chapter in the Grendel mythos that on first glance is just a stop-over but is in actuality a lesson in the cycle of violence.

The series then jumped forward several years, following the aging Detective Wiggins as he watches the world around him turn more and more into a reflection of the insanity and violence that he used to see inhabited in the Grendel persona. It is this key set of issues (loving illustrated by Hannibal King) that set the groundwork for the rest of the series.

The ‘incubation years’ go one to jump even further in time, showing a world on the verge of extinction, struggling to survive in a futuristic wasteland.

Artist team JK Snyder III and Jay Geldof joined Wagner in presenting the finished product of the years of social decay with a Eppy Thatcher‘s tale of mayhem and anarchy called ‘God and the Devil.’ The series had further developed both stylistically and thematically to include a runner strip at the bottom of the page featuring darkly comedic exploits of a duo of plumbers while Eppy Thatcher gummed up the plans of the evil Pope Innocent XLII.

One of the most inspired and imaginative eras of the Grendel mythos, God and the Devil also confused me into wondering why I had never heard of John K. Snyder III or Jay Geldoff before. This was part of Wagner’s plan. By working with relatively unknown artists, his collaborators would gain street cred and a kind of professional rep that would allow them to further their career.

This ‘street cred’ plan certainly paid off for the next collaborator of ‘Devil’s Reign,’ Tim Sale. The final Grendel storyline for Comico before it disappeared into bankruptcy, Devil’s Reign follows the rise of Orion Assante into a kind of Caesar of Grendels. After the destruction and confusion of the previous chapter’s duel between the Pope and Eppy Thatcher, Assante introduces order and turns a force for destruction and chaos into the base of an empire.

Orion Assante uses the Grendel symbol as the basis of a new government that rises from the ashes of the past into the birth of a new tomorrow. An ambitious and unusual tale, the Devil’s Reign chapter also introduced readers to Tim Sale, who they would be seeing more from in later years (Superman for All Seasons, Batman: The Long Halloween, Hulk: Grey, Daredevil: Yellow).
It would be 14 years before Matt Wagner revisited Grendel with the new series from Dark Horse Comics called ‘War Child’ with Pat McEown.

A veritable action epic that races across a new futuristic world that has come after the death of Orion Assante, War Child is the blockbuster movie of the Grendel franchise.

Full of explosions, laser swords, political coups, a super robot version of Grendel and monstrous vampires, War Child is a thrilling tale that is a little out of place when looked at in the context of Eppy Thatcher and Brian Li Sung. This was a Grendel story for the 90′s that presented a kick ass action hero as the lead and even featured covers by Simon Bisley.

It also spawned the new series Devil Tales.

Devil Tales once again brought forward Wagner’s plan to work with up and coming talent to present the best stories while at the same time giving the creators a chance to earn their street cred.

It’s interesting to note here that not a single artist missed an issue while working with Wagner. When you look at modern comics by DC and Marvel you will not see this as the case. I’m not sure what kind of power Wagner had over his collaborators, but it certainly worked!

From Terry Le Ban to Edwin Biukovic to Steve Lieber to Teddy Kristiansen, Grendel Tales was the first chance for many readers to witness the artistic stylings of these amazing artists. The stories themselves are strange in some cases (Rob Walton’s God’s Hammer) and touching in others (such as Homecoming).

One story in particular that I enjoyed was the six part story Devils and Deaths by Darko Macan and Edwin Biukovic (also artist of Peter Milligan’s Human Target). The almost global war zone created in the Grendel series was horrific enough, but to have it drawn by a native Serbian a few city blocks away from real warfare added a level of importance to the work.

For 5 years and 60 issues, Matt Wagner chronicled the adventures of Wesley Dodds, at DC Comics’ Vertigo imprint with the original Sandman in Sandman Mystery Theatre. Artist Guy Davis carefully sculpted a vision of urban sprawl that is so stunning and visceral that it clings to the reader. The series developed not just the career of the Sandman but also functioned as a sophisticated period piece of Americana.
Quiet and meek Wesley Dodds has nightmares that will not let him free. He sees people in pain, murder, and torture. Only by entering the night as the Sandman, concealed under the very gas mask he wore as a soldier can he confront the monsters that stalk the city and end their reign of terror. Tell tale poems litter the bodies of his victims like flags of victory and warning signs to those who would dare to harm another under the Sandman‘s watch.

Featuring hate crimes, crimes of passion and even crimes on a grand scale a la super criminals of the later super hero age, the series was a triumph of storytelling that single-handedly re-established the early age of the mystery man in DC Comics Universe.

In 1995, Wagner collaborated with Neil Gaiman, author of his own revision of the Jack Kirby super hero Sandman in Sandman Midnite Theatre, featuring a unique meeting of the two characters.

In 1996, Matt Wagner contributed a short story for the Batman: Black & White series called ‘Heist.’ It was here that he caught the DC Comics ‘bug’ that lead to the 2003 series ‘Trinity.’

Trinity followed the initial meeting of the trio of DC Comics’ strongest iconic characters Wonder Woman, Superman and Batman. Set roughly 1 and a half years into the careers of both Superman and Batman, it was a chance for Wagner to work with the big three of DC Comics in large scale. All of the pages are large scale and as iconic as the characters themselves.

In 2006, Wagner continued his DC Year 1.5 concept with Batman ‘Dark Moon Rising’ in the mini series ‘The Monster Men’ and ‘The Mad Monk.’ Set in the early years of Batman’s career, Dark Moon Rising sees a very different version of the Dark Knight Detective (he even has a steady girlfriend!).

Set against a corrupt Gotham police force, the blood-hungry mob and the creations of mad scientists, this is a fun and inventive series that has not been done since the 40′s Batman comics that the series emulates.
This year marks the 25th Anniversary of Wagner’s first comic creation, Grendel. To celebrate, Dark Horse Comics is finally releasing the earliest (and long out of print) black and white Grendel stories from Comico Primer and Grendel 1-3 (1983).

It’s clear that Wagner is still busy exploring new opportunities, but he is not afraid to revisit old ideas.Despite the length of this post (possibly my longest) I’ve only touched upon Wagner’s professional work.

With his Batman series still coming out , and another chapter in the life of Kevin Matchstick (rumored to be called ‘the Hero Denied’) in the works, one can never be too sure what he will do next.

As a reader of his work, he makes my life easy. I just open up his books and smile.

Thanks, Matt.

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McSweeney’s Fire Sale

Begun in 1998 by Dave Eggers, McSweeney’s began  its publishing history by printing only works rejected by other magazines.

Yet in almost no time at all, McSweeney’s built up a strong reputation with contributers such as; Denis Johnson, William T. Vollmann, Rick Moody, Joyce Carol Oates, Heidi Julavits, Jonathan Lethem, Michael Chabon, Ben Marcus, Susan Straight, Roddy Doyle, T.C. Boyle, Steven Millhauser, Gabe Hudson, Robert Coover, Ann Beattie, and many others, including the Chris Ware designed comics special (pictured left).

With rave reviews, a fan following and awards heaped in their name including Best American Poetry, Best American Travel Writing, the O. Henry Awards, and the Best American Short Stories, McSweeney’s has become a modern day literature institution for the hip.

Due to a complication with their distributer, there is now an opportunity for those of you who have been reluctant to pick up one of their lovely books. So I urge you to head on over to McSweeney’s Store to take advantage of their fire sale!

You won’t regret it!

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