The Super Powers series by DC in combination with Kenner Toys was Jack "King" Kirby's final comics work as a regular contributor. His skills had diminished from those halcyon days of his youth in the Golden Age when his pages bristled with so energy the panels could barely contain it, and sometimes did not. His mature storytelling of the Atomic Age is somewhat lost in the melee of bodies which overrun this title, which admittedly had the hybrid mission to sell merchandise and so had to display same as much as possible. And even his later mature style evident in his later Silver Age work and his Bronze Age work is less than it was, as his figures feel less mighty and somehow weirdly stunted. Still it's Kirby and it's Kirby drawing the Justice League of America no less, though I don't think they are ever called that in this series. And they are fighting the denizens of the Fourth World. That's something to take note of, something indeed!
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I wonder why the changes on the faces of Superman and Darkseid; the originals were so much better. It reminds me of the Curt Swan changes on Jack Kirby's earlier Superman work, which are so jarring swimming in an environment that is all Kirby.
ReplyDeleteI think in one of your posts from a few years ago, you showed how John Romita had to redo the face of Captain Marvel for Jim Starlin. Starlin's faces could get real distorted, and Romita's almost perfect forms were a nice finish on that cover, but Kirby's cover here didn't need such doctoring. As a matter of fact, I feel the pencil drawing is one of Kirby's best depictions of Superman (at least more faithful to the character than some of the others I have seen).
Hard to say. It might be just the inker expressing himself or editorial involvement. I agree the pencils are a bit more dignified. Darkseid in this series in particular look downright odd, too emotive for my tastes.
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I'm always suprised as to how much the inker in american comics can alter the original artists vision so much,often for the worse.
ReplyDeleteI say this as a u.k reader who grew up on the likes of 2000ad were the art was completed mainly by the one person.
The kirby original art here would definatly have made me buy the comic from the paper shop if i'd have seen it for sale,the art as produced would've made me pass on to something with a little more power to it.