It was a really big deal when Jack "King" Kirby quit Marvel in 1971 to go to the "Distinguished Competition", and it was likewise a pretty big deal when five years later he returned to the "House of Ideas" in 1975. He was given plenty of work to do (Captain America, Black Panther,The Eternals and a little something called 2001: A Space Odyssey) and plenty of latitude to do it, but despite all those titles and pages, he seemed to have time on his hands as he produced a hefty number of covers for the company in 1975 and 1976. Here are a cool fifty plus of those vintage delights.
Kirby hung around Marvel for a few more years. We'll take a look at the covers from 1977 and 1978 next month. Adios for now fellow Kirby aficionados.
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Thanks for these. They were great! I had (or still have) several of these. Looking at them as a kid, you knew right away they were Kirby (though a few of the faces seem altered by Romita).
ReplyDeleteI see signs of other diverse hands in a few of them. Frankly I'm surprised that Kirby was given as much latitude at the time. He wasn't universally respected at Bronze Age Marvel by all the kids who were taking over the place. It's a shame.
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And where are those young guys today? When you look back at both the Bronze Age and the Silver, how many artists transcend their time? The incredible thing about Kirby is the older I get, the more I love his work on so many levels. For example, I grew up in that time when Frank Miller was rising with the Daredevil comics. I was there when it all happened. For decades, everything for me was Miller, and I would have placed him above any other comic creator. I don't know if that gritty realism was only for its time, or ultimately in superhero comics, such realism has short staying power, but today, I know who was the more relevant creator. The reason Kirby was the very best in superhero comics was that he hit that sweet spot of reality without too much fuss (or in the case of Miller, too much specific time and place), superheroes with just enough humanity to help feel for them and still allow the story to hurtle forward. It was the finest balance you could get in the genre. And especially in the 1970s, Kirby was doing it with his strong style becoming more idiosyncratic - a signature set of dynamics in figures and action that no one could handle. I apologize because I'm rambling, but I can't harp enough about how in awe I am of his work.
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