FANTAGRAPHICS AT 50! The title Lost Marvels may be something of a misnomer (forgotten, obscure, rare… yes… lost? Not so much) but Fantagraphics’ reprint series of some of the hidden corners of Marvel history has certainly given new audiences the opportunity to discover work they may never even have realised existed. The fourth volume in the series takes something of a different approach. Instead of reprinting a run of a book, or complete storylines, it instead compiles a selection of Silver and Bronze Age legend Gil Kane’s non-super-hero Marvel work.
As a result this is a collection to read and enjoy as a tribute to the incredible artwork of Kane – a man comfortable in any genre of fiction – rather than those looking for a satisfying narrative. There’s the two ‘Gullivar Jones, Warrior of Mars’ stories from Creatures on the Loose he illustrated, for example. They end on a cliffhanger before another artist took over but in isolation they display Kane’s visual world-building skills in a fun, pulpy, sci-fi fantasy.
Then there are two issues of Astonishing Tales featuring Ka-Zar (above) which, again, are to be enjoyed as a foray into lost ERB-style worlds, here interestingly contrasted with a very different urban setting for the character. Again, they do not constitute a complete story in themselves. And, finally in terms of comics strips, we also are treated to the The Jungle Book back-ups from 1980s issues of Marvel Fanfare where P. Craig Russell’s inks prove to be the perfect complement to Kane’s pencils.
It’s all representative of Kane’s sinewy visual characterisation, signature use of perspective, dynamic action sequences and, yes, even a flared nostril or two. But what stands out in this collection are the 80 or so covers from the Bronze Age which Kane drew for Marvel books like Man-Thing and The Frankenstein Monster. Also for Marvel’s many reprint titles of the era in genres like horror, sci-fi, fantasy and Western. They’re all brilliant pieces of composition, drawing the reader’s eye and doing the hard work of selling issues that often contained some fairly pedestrian material inside.
An introductory essay by Jon B. Cooke gives further insight into Kane’s background, personal life and career in comics, including the artist’s own admission that he perhaps missed out on greater recognition for never being closely associated with one specific character. As mentioned, this is more to be appreciated as a coffee table or art book than a comics anthology collection. But for fans of Gil Kane, or those wanting an introduction to his style and versatility, it’s a gorgeous and lovingly restored collection of his art.
Gil Kane (A/W), Roy Thomas, Mike Friedrich (W), Bill Everett, Sam Grainger, P. Craig Russell, Frank Giacoia, Tom Sutton (I), Christie Scheele, Petra Goldberg, (C) Jon Costa, Jim Novak, Sam Rosen (L) et al. Dr. Michael Dean (E), Dana Collins (D), Paul Baresh & Kaz Strzepek (Restoration), Jon B. Cooke (Introduction) • Fantagraphics Books, $39.99
Review by Andy Oliver
Fantagraphics at 50 Month runs through August at Broken Frontier. You can see articles as they’re published in one tagged list here.
