World Famous Comics: Jack Kirby's Fourth World: Featuring: Mister Miracle
Jack Kirby's Fourth World: Featuring: Mister Miracle
By: Jack Kirby Publisher: DC Comics Average Rating: Binding: Paperback Number of Items: 1 Number of Pages: 187 Publication Date: July 01, 2001 Release Date: July 01, 2001 Studio: DC Comics
A Lovely Fourth World Sunset: The New God as Superhero ^ In this volume, you will find the second half of the original Mr. Miracle. As the rest of his "Fourth World" saga was being shut down by the powers that be at DC, Jack Kirby tried in vain to keep "Mr. Miracle" afloat. With the exception of the last issue, the comics included in this collection follow the more traditional comic book stories as opposed to the epic mythology of the Fourth World adventures. This is a fun collection despite the conclusion of the series. Mr. Miracle develops as a character and so does his love interest Big Barda and his sidekick Oberon. Kirby's inclusion of a young boy to help Mr. Miracle's adventures, while having consequences down the road in the DC universe, does not particularly help the book along. The series concludes with one of the most powerful endings in comics as characters face love, cheer, sorrow and fear in the course of a few pages. While there are a few conventional superhero stories included here, what stands out is the closing of Kirby's Fourth World. Be warned. This book is black and white. If you want to see this saga in color, you will have to pay a bit more and take a look at the Fourth World Omnibus that DC released. I can not say this took away from my enjoyment of this excellent collection but I focus more on plot and character development than comic art so I can not speak for everyone.
Mister Miracle from Fourth World To Super Hero ^ This is the second volume from DC that reprints Kirby's Mister Miracle (in black and white with gray tones). Mister Miracle is Jack Kirby's super-escape artist character.
The first volume was tied more tightly with his "Fourth World Series" (New Gods, Mister Miracle, Forever People and to a much lesser degree his run on Jimmy Olsen).
By the time most of the stories for this second volume came out the other Fourth World titles were cancelled or on the verge of being so. The Demon and Kamandi were in the works.
Mister Miracle was being aimed at more conventional super hero fare (or at least as conventional as Kirby could make it). This is not to say the stories are bad, just different from the earlier part of the run.
Of note is the introduction of Shiloh Norman who would become Mister Miracle's apprentice and latter in the comics assume the role of Mister Miracle (as he may do again this year, 2005, in a Grant Morrison Maxi Series).
Mike Royer provides the inking for the stories in this volume and his stong line compliments Kirby's pencils rather well.
Why only four stars, its the black and white. These books were meant for color, but then again the price can't be beat.
But don't worry too much, the last story in the volume is the wedding of Scott (Mister Miracle) Free and Barda and the entire cast of the New Gods shows up to make it a wedding slug fest in the grand tradition of Kirby's Fantastic Four Wedding. The very last panels are like something out of Shakesphere and are well worth reading and rereading.
FOUR PART SERIES ENDS ON A HIGH NOTE ^ This is the final part of a four-part series of black and white trades collecting Jack Kirby's New Gods, Forever People and Mister Miracle. The three titles, which Kirby was writing, drawing and editing himself, where meant to be a grand space opera concluding with a great showdown between Orion and and his father Darkseid. But after the first two series were cancelled by DC, only Mister Miracle was left and the story was simplified so that it focused more on Mister Miracle's life on earth. This trade collects the second half of the Mister Miracle title which Kirby did. Dispite a simpler story, I think its better that the Mister Miracle trade but not as good as the Forever People and New Gods, which is clearly the best.
Some new villains are introduceed and Darkseid and his gang make an appearance, but clearly the most important part is the blossoming of the relationship between Big Barda and Mister Miracle. It seems that Kirby was planning to develop this relationship slowly but wasn't given enough time. Still, it wasn't a bad issue at all.
One fourth of Kirby's Fourth World ... ^ I am waiting for Mark Evanier and the folk's at DC to realize Jack Kirby's Fourth World isn't complete without the DNA Project, Intergang, Dabney Donovan, the Evil Factory and ... well, the list goes on. Give us Superman's Pal, Jimmy Olsen! Granted, the 1st half of Kirby's run on the title wasn't the flagship for Kirby's Fourth World. The series really took off with the second half during the '25-cent, Bigger&Better' phase. So, come on DC, complete the reprinting of Kirby's Fourth World and introduce readers to some dynamite storytelling, Kirby style!
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