I love Marvel/Miracleman. It's still one of my favourite comics ever. I just hope I live long enough to see the story finally completed. Does anyone know what the damn holdup with that is? You'd think four years would have been enough lead time.

(Also, it's Leach, not Leech)

Edited to correct (as well as typos).  I double-checked some stuff on Wikipedia; but, a raging cold has dulled my senses.

I have two suspicions, as far as Marvel and finishing Gaiman's books.  One is that they were talking out their Asgard and didn't have a firm deal set up with Gaiman to continue The Silver Age and write The Dark Age and that they haven't come to an agreement yet; or, that Gaiman's schedule is too heavily loaded, especially with American Gods and he hasn't had the time to devote to it and Marvel basically left it up to him to work in his own time.  Either way, it strikes of bad publishing, which is nothing new at DC and Marvel, in recent years.  Not that publishing even seems to matter anymore (that's another rant).

Big Ben! I quite agree, I always loved "the man with no time for crime".
Eclipse also reprinted The Spiral Path, but nobody seems to remember that.

Did you ever see Paul Neary's Batman spoof, The Crusader? Or Alan Moore's Daredevil satire, Dourdevil?

ps I just found Dourdevil on the internet; funny stuff! I especially like how all of the black guys with boom boxes use Luke Cage's catchphrases. Only found a couple of panels of The Crusader, though.

I love this stuff, when done well, like Mad's Super-Duper Man and Black N Blue Hawks, the Roach, in Cerebus, the Tick, Damage Control, etc, etc.

By the by, this has nothing to do with Miracleman or parodies; but, I stumbled across this and had to share...



I mean, you can't pass up a photo of Neal Adams looking like Elvis!

Miracleman #2



When we last left Mike Moran, he had been reunited with former sidekick Johnny Bates. However, he quickly realizes that Bates is more than human and has, in fact, grown up in his Kid Miracleman form. He was a teenager with the power of a god and no moral compass. As an adult, he is the head of a major conglomerate; with a magnetic attraction and power resonating from him. However, he sees the threat in Mike and decides to act. As Bates floats in the air, Liz is starting to lose it, questioning why he doesn't fall. Mike tells her to run. Johnny chases after her; but, an office assistant gets in the way and gets vaporized by energy beams emitted from Johnny's eyes. He tells Miky he did that to show he wasn't squeamish about such things and to imagine what he will do to Liz. He tells Mike that he had been content to accumulate wealth and power quietly, until Miracleman returned to the scene. Then he decided to contact him to see if he was a threat and Mike saw the truth. Now all bets are off.

Mike has no choice and utters, "Kimota!" and Miracleman appears and the battle begins; but, Kid Miracleman cleans his clock without breaking a sweat. johnny tells MM that he had 21 years to develop his powers, while Mike was Miracleman for only 9 years. He hadn't even begun to stretch his boundaries. A small child witnesses the fight and thinks Johnny is Superman and runs to meet him. Johnny eyes him like a cat playing with a mouse and asks the boy if he wants to fly and hurls him into the sky. Miracleman flies after and rescues the child, breaking his ribs due to impact. He returns the child to the horrified mother.

Johnny goes after Liz, taunting the wounded Miracleman. He catches up with her, fleeing in a car and puts himself in its path, smashing it around his body. he confronts Liz and she is terrified.



Miracleman arrives in time; but, is still no threat to Johnny. KM is poised for the kill, when he gloats and says his own name, which includes Miracleman, his change word. Suddenly, he is nothing more than a scared little boy, crying and in shock over what has occurred. MM just picks up Liz and leaves Johnny to his fate.

While the battle raged, police come on scene. reports are monitored and a call is made to a secret government department and a man named Sir Dennis Archer. He makes a call to a man named Cream. We learn that Archer headed something called the Spookshow, which in 1963 activated something called Dragonslayer and ended Project Zarathustra.

Mike and Liz are next seen somewhere in the country, as Liz brings out a stack of comics and they begin testing what Miracleman can do. liz offers theories that Mike and Miracleman are two different people, sharing a mind. mike retorts that Miracleman is cleverer, purer, without human neuroses. Liz theorizes that the two bodies exist in different dimensions and switch places, noting that MM repaired his torn uniform, but his wounds hadn't totally healed, though they were rapidly doing so. She observes that the laws of physics seem bent by what MM can do, noting that a huge boulder that he hurls and lets shatter on his skull doesn't force his feet deeper into the soft earth. She notes he doesn't have the muscle development for the physical strength required and suggests that his power is all mental in nature.

While this goes on, Mr Cream visits a hospital and finds one of the terrorists wounded by Miracleman, at the nuclear station. The man is burnt and deaf, so Cream writes his questions on paper, promising to spare the man for the info. The terrorist tells him about the attack and the sick journalist, which prompts a question about his appearance. Cream circles the name Moran on a list, after crossing out others. He departs by telling the terrorist that he lied about not killing him, smiling with a mouth full of ble sapphire teeth. He smothers the man and walks out.

Mike and Liz leave their testing site and Liz tells mike that she has missed her period and is pregnant and Miracleman is the father. The next day, Mike is an emotional mess. he doesn't know what to think. he heads off to his job, where he learns that the paper have been hit with a D-Notice (government censorship, via the Official Secrets Act) about their MM-related story. Mike leaves the office and gets on an elvator, where a woman is having trouble with a fussy infant. she hands him to Mike to hold, while she gets his bottle out of her bag. While he holds the baby, Mr Cream, who is standing behind him, asks how he will change into Miracleman, without frying the baby and then fires several suppressed shots into Mike's body. Mike starts to lose consciousness when he wonders why the man has blue sapphire teeth?



After the astonishing first issue (the US edition actually reprinted 2-3 stories from the Warrior originals, as they were shorter pieces) we see the game upped. Alan Moore has created a real villain. Johnny Bates is a twisted child trapped in an adult body; but with the power of an adult god. he has tested and grown, while Miracleman was trapped in limbo and Mike Moran grew middle-aged and soft. Miracleman is no match for him in power or experience. Bates cares nothing for human lives and will destroy anyone in his path, for expediency or just as a demonstration. The assistant's frying is horrific enough until you see him toss the child in the air. Now he is heading for Liz. We have seen him do something worse with each victim and can only dread what he will do if he catches Liz We also see that standard superhero rescues have hidden dangers, thanks to real world physics, as the child, who is traveling at great speed, impacts with Miracleman's invulnerable arms. he is as gentle as he can be, but still breaks the child's ribs. Johnny is only stopped by chance, with a dark twist on the old Captain Marvel gag of tricking Black Adam into saying "Shazam!" We then see the real boy, who has been trapped for 21 years.

Moore tantalizes us with more of the mysterious past of Miracleman and Johnny, as we see it is related to a secret Air Force intelligence department and project. We get a flashback to a weapon detonating, mirroring Mike's dreams of alien ships and nuclear explosions. This Sir Dennis Archer holds the key to Miracleman's past and he has dispatched Evelyn Cream, (male, as in Evelyn Waugh) to tie up loose ends and track down the mysterious figures. Cream is a deadly and clever hunter, as he is able to shoot Mike, by contriving his holding an innocent child and planting the suggestion that if he changes, he will vaporize the child.

This is a horror title, not a superhero book.

Gary Leach's tenure ends and Alan Davis begins, between chapters 5 and 6. Davis brings more of a superhero look to things, though Leach inks him, keeping things consistent. By Chapter 7 (I think) Davis is on his own. He continues the realistic look of things, while adding his own sinister touches, via Evelyn Cream, the dead body of the terrorist, the facial expressions. There is a looming sense of dread, visually, as chapter 8 moves from the emotional mess that is now Mike and Liz's life and Cream confronting Mike on the elevator and shooting him.

One of the brilliant elements of this series is Moore's use of psychology, tapping into real fears of humans and how people might react to comic book situations, if they encountered them in the real world. Gods fighting is seens as a holocaust and people are terrified even of the "hero." Mike is all twisted inside as he tries to cope with his lost past, Johnny's psychotic growth, his growing understanding of his true power and the danger of it, and Liz's pregnancy, by the god. This was so beyond everything in comics, at the time and has been strip-mined by lesser writers ever since. Consider if Dr Manhattan had come up against someone who could do everything he could and more, while trying to hold onto his human identity. This is deconstruction on a more psychological and philosophical level. Even with only two issues in, we get the sense that this will not have a happy ending.

Miracleman #3



I love Howard Chaykin; but, I never thought the character looked right, on that cover. Still better than the cover for #8, though.

The pacing of the first chapter is exquisite! Alans Moore & Davis jump back and forth between scenes of Miracleman advancing upon a location, with men and weapons attacking him and his complete lack of acknowledgement of any threat, and scenes of Evelyn Cream filling Mike Moran in with background detail about Project Zarathustra. Sandwiched in between is a running conversation between Sir Dennis Archer, head of the Spookshow, and contemporaries, filling in some of the gaps.



Miracleman advances forward and doesn't react to balaclava-masked men attacking him from the shadows. They fall with their hands smoking. Back in time, Mike Moran wakes up and Evelyn Cream tells him he shot him with tranquilizer bullets. Mike is gagged, so he can't trigger the change to Miracleman. Cream tells him that he received his powers in 1954, under project Zarathustra, which was run by the Spookshow. In 1963, the Spookshow decided to close down the experiment and used an A-bomb to try to destroy the three subjects. It failed. Miracleman reappeared in 1982 and Cream was dispatched to learn his identity. However, he has double-crossed his employers.



Flame throwers and rocket launchers do not stop Miracleman and soldiers burn instead. Miracleman continues to advance. In the past, Cream strikes a bargain with Mike, to lead him to the Project Zarathustra bunker (and answers to his past) and releases him. Mike says "Kimota!" and transforms and Cream is impressed.

Miracleman shreds fencing and men and Sir Dennis tells us a large bomb was planted, as the next line of defense. It detonates and Miracleman advances. Sir Dennis speaks of why Zarathustra wasn't burned to the ground. The creator of the project disappeared with his files; but, there had been advancements and Sir Dennis wanted to recoup some of the massive budget. There were other experiments. Miracleman comes face to face with one.



Evelyn Cream follows Miracleman's trail, littered with the dead bodies of soldiers and signs of destruction. Miracleman is attacked by the agent code named: Big Ben, The Man with No Time for Crime! He has been dispatched by Sir Dennis Archer and believes Miracleman is a Soviet Agent, Major Molotov. Big Ben fought alongside Doc Thunderbolt, against Menace. he defeated a string of villains. He hits Miracleman with a boulder and Miracleman just stairs at him. he uproots a tree and smashes it into an indifferent Miracleman. MM eyes Big Ben and thinks the whole thing is absurd. BB isn't as powerful and he thinks his mind is damaged. The bowler hat and umbrella are straight out of a comic book. he finally loses patience and just swats Big ben away, who eventually comes crashing down near Evelyn Cream.

Cream catches up and they reach the bunker doors. Cream, sets explosives to blow the door and Miracleman takes care of it.



Inside, Miracleman sees the remains of the project that spawned him...



Inside are skeletons. One is marked Young Miracleman and features two skeletons fused together. there is another skeleton that is obviously not human, or like anything else on the planet. There are computer banks and monitor screens, some more akin to a sci-fi movie. Cream is able to activate the record files on the monitor and Miracleman watches as his past unfurls. Alien technology and an alien's corpse gave the Spookshow the means to create a clone. They genetically engineered it to unleash the untapped potential in mankind. However, the clone doesn't have an independent consciousness. It is tied to a human subject. Trigger implants are inserted in both human and clone brains, then one is dispatched to "Infra-space" where it is able to co-exist, without being on the same plane. A post-hypnotic trigger command activates the switch and the bodies trade place. The tapes skip ahead and we see the subjects being tested. Their human hosts were all orphans of Air Force personnel. The tapes skip further ahead. Other experiments were tried, but without the genius behind the creation of the project. The result was Big ben, who is impressive, though vastly inferior to Miracleman and the para-reality processing has left him with a damaged mid. Unknown to Miracleman and Cream, BB is awake and has come inside the bunker and see s the data about himself.

Checking further back, Miracleman sees how his body was subjected to virtual reality scenarios, inspired by comic book stories. We see some of the fantasy adventures and learn how MM was programmed to believe they were his life. Miracleman grows agitated and then hears a familiar voice and sees the face of Dr Emil Gargunza, who speaks of the programming and the scenarios derived from comic books. MM explodes and smashes equipment in a rage and leaves the bunker with Cream. Big Ben is left behind, nearly catatonic as his brain can't deal with the reality. Two Spookshow operatives arrive and take him away in a straight-jacket, though he sees them as Jack Ketch and Owl Woman, who use a Hyper-Vest, to drain away the mind-clouding radiation that is feeding him the false images.

So much stuff here. We see just how powerful MM is, as he proves impervious to knives, bullets, explosives, fire, and everything short of a nuclear weapon. Sir Dennis reminds us that he survived a nuclear explosion, in 1963. He shows no regard for the soldiers and brushes them away like ants. Big Ben adds some black comedy, as he acts like a typical superhero, as written in the 50s. He is not enough to even slow Miracleman.

The project is astounding and we see how alien technology made the creation of this fantastic being possible. There had to be a genius at the center and we are teased with that until we see the image of Dr Gargunza, who Miracleman believes was his enemy, due to the para-reality programming (more on that in coming issues). Moore moves this along like a train heading for a cliff, gaining speed along the way. The conversations from Cream and Sir Dennis, and Spookshow reports act like color commentary in a sporting event. Moore strips away fantasy and gives us a twisted reality. The Air Force found alien remains and technology and experimented on orphaned children, as no one could object to their disappearance. The project created weapons that could outdo every other weapon on the planet; but, could they control them? Apparently, they thought not and used a nuke to destroy them. It didn't work. Imagine what that means when Miracleman is no longer distracted by learning his past? That is what we can anticipate, for the future.

Alan Davis is in full bloom here, cutting between scenes of silhouetted desperate and argumentative men. He has only body language to tell their story, matching Moore's words. The scenes of Cream and Mike show a scared and hurt Mike who is slowly realizing what Cream is telling him, juxtaposed by the delight in Cream's face, yet his straight-forward, logical delivery of background facts. The path of destruction up to the bunker is chilling, as Davis keeps an impassive look on Miracleman's face, while soldiers attack and are brushed off. The fight with Big Ben is straight out of a comic book textbook, except MM doesn't react. the, he just swings his hand and knocks him away, like a gnat. He draws anger on MM's face, as he views the tapes and pure rage, when Gargunza comes on screen. Big Ben is drawn as massively bruised and his eyes are wide, yet you see the emptiness behind them. You can see that he can't deal with reality. Gargunza looms in the video monitor like some kind of haunted house figure.



This issue is just amazing. the writing is so far above what was being done in comics and still stands above most created since. The art is in perfect sync with the words. Miracleman and Mike Moran's reality has come crashing down and we know a reckoning is coming.