KAMANDI: The Early Years

After Kirby’s New Gods comics had run their course, he came up with a few more ideas for DC, and Kamandi was one of these new comic books unleashed by Jack’s fertile Kirby-Brain!

(I’ve never read this particular issue, but it sure looks cool!)

To summarize, Kamandi was the Last Boy on Earth! He lived in an era far in the future, a period that Kirby called EARTH, A.D.! Or EARTH, AFTER DISASTER! Something terrible had happened and the beasts ruled the Earth, treating the animal-like humans as pets or slaves or bothersome creatures that need to be wiped out.

Kamndi got his name from Command D, the underground bunker where he had been raised by his grandfather. He had learned a lot of things about Earth before the disaster by watching old films and reading books and looking at maps. When he had learned everything useful and was still a boy but not quite a man, his grandfather was killed by scavenging wolves, and Kamandi went out into the ravaged world to see what he could do to reclaim it for his degraded human brethren.

For 59 issues, from 1972 to 1978, Kamandi faced a chaotic array of tigers, wolves and gorillas, all with vaguely man-like forms and all contemptuous of the primitive humans infesting Earth, A.D. Also, leopards, coyotes and alligators. And crabs and killer whales and toucans. And giant mutant insects.

There was even a map so you wouldn’t get confused:

His best friend is a dog, a brilliant but cowardly scientist named Dr. Canus. He gathers other allies along the way, like Prince Tuftan, heir to the Tiger Empire, and Ben Boxer, a mutant human who pushes a button over his heart and turns into living metal.

With its wild concepts and expansive art (lots of full-page panels and two-page spreads) and a buttload of fascinating eccentrics as a supporting cast (I haven’t even mentioned Pyra yet! She’s a kook!), I find Kamandi to be endlessly mesmerizing. It may be Kirby’s last great creation. I sometimes think it might be a candidate for best comic book series ever.

 I’ve already written about my favorite issue on another thread. (My favorite so far. I’ve only read about 60% of the issues.) That’s #7, where Kamandi meets a giant ape named Tiny. He also talks, and he refers to Kamandi as “Toy.”

Another good one is Kamandi #14. The Last Boy on Earth has somehow gotten involved in the biggest race that Earth A.D. has to offer for entertainment. The big event is sponsored by Sacker Department Store and is held at Hialeah Park.

(I should add that Sacker is a gigantic snake who runs a department store. Quite a wheeler-dealer, that one. He shows up a lot. Kamandi is not one of his biggest fans.)

The participants in the race, humans and animals, all ride mutant animals, and Kamandi is riding a gigantic grasshopper named Kliklak. His nemesis is a fellow named Bull Bantam, and he races around on an American bison. Issue #14 begins with a moment near the end of the race, and Kamand and Bull Bantam are the only two left!

And the track has taken quite a beating:

Kliklak isn’t in such great shape either, but Kamandi spurs his steed to one last effort, and Kamandi wins the race, despite a grenade and a last-minute fistfight with Bull Bantam.

But Kliklak is too badly hurt to survive, and the leopards who manage the races for Sacker walk up to put the beast of it of its misery. Kamandi puts up a fight, but he realizes it must be done and puts Kliklak away himself with a shot to the head.

I find it to be a touching moment in the midst of the Kirby-created chaos. Kamandi has won the contest despite horrible odds, and it was an event he didn’t want to have anything to do with. And now, with his mutant insect friend dead, he is dragged to the winner’s circle and given gifts for his deeds. And there is no time for mourning.

Among the prizes is Spirit, a beautiful girl with long, black hair who never wears a top. Spirit is a recurring character who took over as the main love interest when her twin sister was killed. Spirit is a little smarter than most of the humans that Kamandi meets and she can even speak in broken sentences. Her English is a little better than Bizarro English. But not by much.

She says:

Kamandi has had a pretty bad day, and the idea that women can be treated like possessions and given away as prizes makes him angry. He raises a fuss and is knocked unconscious by the leopards.

When Kamandi awakes, he is in a metal cell, but Tuftan and Canus have shown up to get him out. They hurry Kamandi along and tell him how lucky he is. They had to pull some strings to convince Sacker and the leopards to let him go free, even in their custody.

As the leave the cell and walk quickly down the corridor, we find out that Kamandi was in a cell labeled “Gas Chamber” and he was about to be destroyed as a dangerous animal.

 
Gulp.

NEXT ISSUE:

TAROT MOUNTAIN!!!
Don’t ask Kirby what it is! He doesn’t know yet!
JUST BUY IT!

"The Secret History of Wonder Woman"

by Jill Lepore

I just picked this up at the library today and I've already read the first five or six chapters. Very compelling.

So far, it's a biography of Wonder Woman creator William Moulton Marston. Most of us on this site know the short version of his story, that he was a well-known psychologist that created Wonder Woman and wrote most of her stories from 1941 to 1947. Also, we know he was a feminist with a view of feminism that some might consider eccentric and some might consider kinky.

But this book provides a lot of details that I had no idea I ever wanted to know. Marston's ties to feminism, the suffragette movement, early psychological testing and military intelligence (circa 1910 to 1920) all combine for a fascinating trip through American history in the Woodrow Wilson years.

He wrote a few scenarios for movie studios that were turned into one-reel films. He started working on his "lie detector" technique while an undergraduate at Harvard. He met J. Edgar Hoover when he was trying to convince the government that his techniques could be used in crime detecting.

And I haven't even gotten to his private life!

I haven't really read that much of the book but I feel very confident recommending it based on what I've read so far. Especially for people who like social and cultural history along with their funnybooks!