The Black Knight Rides!

The Black Knight was getting a push with a Marvelmania poster all his own back in 1971. The poster featured the art of Howard Purcell. Since the poster captures a scene from the story which focused on the Knight, I'd imagine the scene was a rejected cover. 

 

There was something about the stories of the Black Knight which were special, and that was the artwork of Joe Maneely. I first fell in love with the original Black Knight in the pages of Fantasy Masterpieces and Marvel Super-Heroes when the Atlas-era adventures of Sir Percy of Scandia were reprinted alongside those of other Marvel heroes. Joe Maneely was immediately one of my favorite artists, as his nearly glowing pages, filled with detail told stories with economy and potency. He was a deft hand, and I wondered why he was not doing more, then I read of his tragic accidental death. He was reputedly Stan Lee's favorite artist and if he had not passed away, it's entirely likely that instead of Jack Kirby, Stan might've gone a different way when he decided to give the world of superheroes another shot. 

When the Black Knight as a hero was revived by Roy Thomas in the pages of Marvel Super-Heroes Howard Purcell was selected as the artist. Purcell an artist from the Golden Age of comics who had spent most of his time at DC on things like the original Green Lantern and later the Sea Devils. He co-created Sargon the Sorcerer and the Enchantress so he was a good pick to handle the heavily mystical yarn about the legacy of Dane Whitman. The Black Knight's legacy was further developed in the pages of The Avengers as Roy Thomas brought the character back as a hero. The Black Knight had been a villain, but Thomas gave us a scientist who became a practitioner of sorcery when got the ebony blade of his ancestor Sir Percy. 

The Black Knight always seemed to be on the perimeter of the Marvel Universe, an Avenger but rarely seen. He was even turned to stone for several years. He eventually became a mainstay, and I have to say I usually liked his appearances.

When he is transformed to stone by the Enchantress only to become the impetus for the great Avengers-Defenders Clash, then gets trapped in time during the Crusades, later appearing in British comics getting involved with Captain Britain, and even journeys across dimensions to lead Malibu's Ultraforce. Here are some key covers from across the decades featuring the Black Knight.

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