Chapter 3, "The Resurrection of Paul Kirk."



First off, this is one of the best covers of the 100-pg Detective issues and features one of the best Batman stories, from Steve Engelhart and Sal Amendola. Greg Hatcher, at the CSBG blog (RIP {the blog, not Greg, who is at the Atomic Junk Shop}), covered this quite well, which led to contact from Sal Amendola, which he shared here: www.cbr.com/more-deja-vu-with-sal-amendola-and-the-night-of-the-stalker/ I got a tremendous ego boost when I made a comment about Greg and his teaching work, which Sal seconded. It's pretty cool when someone whose work you have admired affirms your opinion of something. Anyway...

Here's the reason we are here:



How's that for an intro page? Great Kirby, that's awesome! It's not just the art, check out Archie's narration. "Marrakech! to its night-shadowed byways, Interpol agent Christine St Clair has come in her worldwide pursuit of the enigma known as Manhunter! From a whisper overheard in Rangoon, to a chance word dropped in Capetown, she has followed a chain of information gathered piece by scant piece, until the trail of her mysterious quarry brings her to this sprawling maze of connecting alleyways, courtyards, and rooftops...where suddenly..it ends!" We don't see any of this happen; but, Archie paints the picture in our minds, via the names of exotic locales. We can imagine Christine in dingy saloons, back alleys, wharfs, run-down hotels, searching for the barest trace of her quarry. We can imagine her trading money for information, or based on Walt's image of her holding a pistol, decked out in her action gear, beating it out of them. This tells us much about this very capable lady.

Walt isn't slacking off here, either. We get a tight shot of Christine's eyes, with a hint of the close quarters in the background. We then see her in an archway, a hint of light behind her, as she surveys up an alley, littered with bodies in blue and white uniforms (leading us to a barrel, with a body slumped in it, which features the story credits, on the side). Finally, we get a 4 panel progression: close-up on Christine, holding a pistol; long shot of a slumped body,leaning against a wall; close-up of the wounded Manhunter, appearing to be dead; tight close-up on Manhunter's face as he responds "Miss St. Clair....been wondering when you'd arrive....forgive me if I don't stand up..."

The cinematic storytelling is on full display here. Archie and Walt are telling us everything we need to know about the battle that happened here, without showing it. We have 5,(apparently) dead bodies along a wall, a view of bodies, creating a path of death that leads to Manhunter and a shot of a man who looks like he has fought the forces of hell and is still, amazingly, alive. This must have been an epic fight; but, Archie, a cunning storyteller if there ever was one, aided by Walt, who is no slouch in that department, wisely leave this to our imaginations, where it is greater than any pen could ever do justice. That's confidence. Most writers and artists would have shown this, to say to the readers, "See what I can create?" Archie knows this will make the story more intriguing and keep you reading. The mark of a good storyteller is knowing how to get the audience to say, "And then what happened?"

The story moves forward, as Christine wants to get Manhunter a doctor; but, he says he just needs time to heal. Take that Logan! He proceeds to give his Mauser to Christine, telling her more men will be coming, then offers to tell Christin all she has been searching to understand. He takes us back to the late 1930s, when he was a big game hunter, the best of the breed. He had grown tired of hunting animals and decided to pursue a deadlier game, man! Following the lead of the emerging mystery men, he dons a costume and stalks criminals as the masked Manhunter. This is where we have our art shifts, between the original Detective #439 and the later Baxter-format reprint. But, in the words of Peter David, I digress...
Kirk tells Christine that his costumed adventures were sidelined by the war, where he became a special operative of the government, working behind enemy lines, performing the most violent and ugly jobs. Walt just gives us a hint of all of this in a montage; but, it is enough. We can imagine the nasty things Paul did in the war, in service to stopping the Nazis. We believe he was an effective hunter, as we have already seen him defeat men and animals, with his previous slaying of a tiger.

Paul goes on to say, after the war, he returned to hunt in Africa; but, his heart wasn't in it. He had seen too much death and violence. He was tired and weary . he deliberately misses his shot, and it brings and enraged bull elephant charging through the brush, leaving Paul with only his rifle to try and stop the charge. he doesn't fire. he basically tries to commit suicide via elephant. It nearly succeeds. Walt gives us an amazing image as we see a close-up of Paul's eyes, as he sees the elephant rampaging towards him; but, there is a sadness in his eyes, more than fear. This is followed by the elephant, with red eyes, crashing into Kirk, his body flying, bent across the massive tusks. We see his battered body face down on the ground, while Archie's narration speaks of a sound, "like the wings of the Angel of Death."

This page tells us that Paul Kirk, a man who had seen far to much death and destruction, should have died and known the peace of the grave. This is then juxtaposed by a new wave of blue and white-clad men attacking the alleyway, as Christine guns them down, a pistol in each hand. Manhunter compliments her, telling her she is very good. She replies that she is trained to be. In 4 panels, we learn that Christine is a very deadly woman, not just a lowly investigator. This is someone who is on par with the hero.

Paul continues the story, telling us that the angel turned out to be a helicopter that came and found him and whisked him away. We learn of advanced medical treatments that saved his life, while keeping him in stasis, as time passes. he awakes to find himself whole and healed. An older man tells him of what has occurred and presents him with a red and white uniform. He explains that the fantastic sights Paul is seeing is the headquarters of a mysterious Council. The speaker is Dr Mykros, a man who Paul rescued from the Nazis, in 1945. Paul asks about the Council and Dr Mykros explains that they are ten of the best minds in the world, who at the end of the war banded together to save the world from itself, in the wake of the atomic bomb. They saw the potential for ultimate destruction and decided to act.

These two pages feature a dizzying array of images. We see an almost monstrous image that morphs into a helicopter, carrying the limp body of Paul Kirk, reminding us of the opening of MASH. We see science fiction machinery used to keep Paul alive. In a single panel, we see the progression of history, from atomic bombs, to Kennedy, to Vietnam and the shooting at Kent State. We see Paul awake from decades of slumber and a complex right out of a James Bond film. We learn of a secret society, dedicated to protecting the world. Again, pulp storytelling at its finest.

We are left with questions; how did the Council know where Paul was? How did they achieve this miracle? If they are society' s protectors, who are the men attacking Manhunter, who bear his face and a similar uniform?

Christine kills more attackers, musing that the Council must have a rival faction, who set their opponents against them. Paul tells her to look closer at them. They are like brothers.  He explains that they are the Council's enforcers. Walt gives us a perfect piece of shorthand to describe the relationship, as we see a tight close-up of Paul's face, racked with pain, and a side bar of repeated faces, connected by a frame, reminding us of pieces in a plastic model kit. He describes what these men are: clones of his own body. They are genetic duplicates, creating an army to serve the Council. Paul was selected to lead them. Paul questions the use of the men and wonders what happens if they are used wrongly. Mykros says they have the best minds of the era and that can't happen. Paul is more cynical, citing the nature of human beings. His concerns are dismissed and he is introduced to an older Japanese man, Asano Nitobe, master ninja.

Again, Walt uses a montage of images to convey the vastness of the complex, the depth of the clone army (as they train in hand-to-hand and weapon combat), and his relationship to his would-be assassins.

The scene returns to Christine firing at their attackers, remarking that Nitobe was supposed to be dead, killed in the atomic bomb blast at Nagasaki. Kirk informs her that he actually survived, secretly acting as bodyguard to Dr Oka, a geneticist who became a member of the Council. After relaying this information, Christine finds that she is out of ammo. We see a trail of bodies leading up steps, to where Christine and Paul are fortified. Paul continues, talking of his training. Walt gives us silhouetted snapshots of men in battle, emphasizing martial skills.  He then gives us quiet moments, between Paul and Asano. Then, we see Asano tell Paul that he is ready, then he fires an arrow into Paul's shoulder. He yanks it out and tells Paul to concentrate on the wound. It heals itself. Asano tells him about the abilities, a product of Dr Oka's work, as were the clone enforcers. He then briefs Paul on his first mission: the elimination of an Interpol officer. Paul is stunned and questions the choice of words. he is troubled and wishes to address the Council. Asano tells him to do so; but warns him that he is in the Council's hands, using a proverb: "In the tiger's lair, the only justice belongs to the tiger."

The attack seems to have ceased and Paul is standing, apparently healed of his deadly wounds. A voice cries out not to shoot, that he is coming up. Christine recognizes it as her boss Damon Nostrand. Christine is happy to see him, until she sees his gun pointed at them and listens as he tells them how foolish they are. manhunter reacts, throwing his knife into Nostrand's arm, forcing him to drop his pistol and flee. Christine then puts two and two together and says that the assassination mission was to replace Damon with an imposter. Paul tells her that there is more to the story and he will relate it, while they pursue Nostrand.

So, we have another thrilling chapter, with some of the blanks filled in. Manhunter IS Paul Kirk, a former hunter, mystery man, and spy/commando.  He was a man tired of killing, who sought the peace of death, only to be saved by a mysterious group of scientists, dedicated to saving the world from itself. We learn that the other Manhunters, who have tried to carry out assassinations and kidnappings are his clones, an army created for him to lead. We learn that this Council thinks themselves unfailable, yet Paul had doubts.  We learn he was trained by the world's greatest martial artist and master ninja. And, we learn that Christine's boss is connected to the Council, or at least impersonated by one of their agents. Yet, there is more to know.

This chapter mixes in elements of the great pulp heroes, like the Shadow and the Spider, and the cinematic pulp of James Bond, with secret complexes, mysterious global organizations, and armies of men training for battle. In the middle of it is a guy dressed like a superhero, with a woman who could be a sister to Emma Peel and Modesty Blaise. Again, 8 pages have given us an epic tale; but, it is only a chapter in a bigger story. 8 pages, not 8 issues. Archie knows less is far more. Give us a taste and we will come back for more. Walt gives us the important shots, plays with time, and lets our minds fill in the gaps. He gives us breathtaking action, without wallowing in gore or gratuitous violence. We get the impact; but, are spared the gore. Walt gets to show us Africa, with its wild savannahs and wondrous animals. We see dark and mysterious Marrakech, fabled city of intrigues and murder. We see science fiction installations and machinery, and the simple, brutal martial arts. We see violent and quiet moments. And, as we look over this, over 40 years later, we remember that Walt was just starting out! This is where the legend of Walt Simonson began. This is where Archie Goodwin put his already lauded stamp. This is a back-up tale that was outshining the lead feature and the lead had one of his best stories of the decade. Now that's a comic book!

Well, maybe concise was a bit of a stretch. This will be shorter. The second Manhunter tale from Detective #440 is the Simon & Kirby classic, "Cobras of the Deep."



A German submarine is hiding off the Eastern US coast, about to undertake a special mission. The men have been tasked to destroy Manhunter, before he can sabotage their operations in and off the coast of the United States. they release balloons with messages attached, addressed to Manhunter. Children catch the balloons and one makes its way into Paul Kirk's hands. He calls a phone number listed in the message and is told to come to a lifeguard tower, on a nearby beach. he suspects a trap and goes and narrowly misses being blown up on the tower. he finds diving helmets, used by the sub crew to come ashore, secretly. After dispatching the Germans, he dons the diving helmet and heads underwater. he discovers the large submarine and tries to sneak aboard; but, is trapped in a net. he is dragged aboard and told that the sub is a tanker, to refuel other subs for attacks on shipping and coastal installations. he's locked ina compartment to await his fate. Manhunter takes things into his own hands, pouring bags of flower into the oil lines, then breaking out of his prison, wreaking havoc across the ship. he is able to sabotage the subs and, with the help of Navy, is able to capture the German subs.

This story is a lot of fun, filled with the dynamic action you expect from Simon and Kirby. You can see the influence of their earlier Captain America stories. The tale would inspire later, modern stories with Paul Kirk, in his younger days, when he teams up with Dan Richards, the Quality Comics Manhunter, and the All-Star Squadron to attack a Nazi base in Africa. James Robinson then used Kirk as a key character in The Golden Age, and in the JSA mini-series, that set up the return of the regular series, where Manhunter and Huntress/Tigress attack the Nazi African base (from the Young All Stars story), while the JSA members come across them, in an attempt to stop the Stalker's henchmen. These were all bang-up stories and I would love to see someone take a crack at more war time Manhunter stories; preferably Robinson.

Chapter 6, "To Duel the Master."



Jim Aparo gives us a hum-dinger of a cover, though I have to wonder how the lady's body is leaning that far out (nice stems, too). This issue features the seminal Batman story "Death Flies The Haunted Sky," by Archie Goodwin and Alex Toth, which was reprinted in the first Greatest Batman Stories Ever Told, Batman in the 70s, the Archie Goodwin Tales of the Batman, and the 75th Anniversary Batman retrospective book. That's some pretty heavy company. Manhunter is pretty good, too.



In this chapter, Manhunter is in Japan, chasing Dr Mykros, hoping to find the secret Sanctuary of the Council. While Manhunter stalks Mykros' group, he encounters his mentor, Asano Nitobe. he is there to delay Paul from stopping Dr Mykros, and kill him, if he must. They square off for a fight. Meanwhile, Christine is on the Orient Express, headed for Zurich, when she encounters her father, who tries to convince her to give up the audio recording of Dr Mykros talking about the Council's plans and the death of Dr Oka. He tries to make her believe he can smooth things over and save her; but, she refuses to believe him, forcing him to turn a gun on his daughter. She stares him down and he falters, letting her leave. We see him depart the train, in Sofia, Bulgaria, where he is gunned down..



The scene reverts to Paul and Asano, who begin their epic battle. Walt gives us panel after panel of strikes and counter-strikes, weapon against weapon, bare hands and feat against the same. Manhunter is outclassed and finds himself at Asano's mercy, who is about to deliver a mercy-granting killing stroke, when a helicopter, with Christine in it, blasts Dr Mykros confession out a loudspeaker. Asano learns the truth about the Council and how Mykros had his master, Dr Oka, murdered. His duty to the Council at and end, Asano vows to help Christine and Paul destroy the Council.



This is almost all action and Walt really gets to shine, with martial arts, acrobatics, and shots of weapons flying to and fro. he plays up the atmosphere, on the train sequences, while giving us the desperation of Manhunter's fight with his teacher.. This is probably the best action of the series. The ending is a little convenient; but, Archie has only one more issue to wrap up the tale. And, it will be a spectacular one.

Of an interesting note is Asano's fightin gear. He wears mostly what we have come to think of as ninja attire; but, with a demonic mask. These style of face masks were often used as part of a samurai's armor, protecting their face, while also inducing fear in an opponent. It works well here and gives Asano a unique look. It's also interesting to see the hero entirely outclassed, even with his healing abilities and formidable weapons. for all of his training, Asano is still the master. this is a rare battle, for comics.

I was going to get to that; but, I'l just do it now.  The Academy of Comic Book Arts was formed in 1970, as a professional organization, dedicated to promoting the art form of comic books.  It was made up of comics pros from across the industry.  Their goal was to be to comics what the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is to Hollywood.  Their "Oscars" were the Shazam Awards.  The first chapter of Manhunter, "The Himalayan Incident," won "Best Individual Short Story (Dramatic)" and Archie won "Best Writer (Dramatic Division)."  Walt Simonson tied with Jim Starlin for "Outstanding New Talent."  That was for the 1973 awards (presented in 1974).

The next year, Manhunter was back for more.  "Cathedral Perilous" won "Best Individual Short Story (Dramatic)," "Gotterdamerung" won "Best Individual Story (Dramatic)," Archie again won "Best Writer (Dramatic Division)."  Of note is that Archie was nominated twice for "Best Individual Short Story:"  for "Cathedral Perilous," and for "Burma Sky," with Alex Toth, in Our Fighting Forces #146.  Archie beat out Roy Thomas in both `1973 and 1974, when both of these writers were cooking (Roy on Conan).

The Shazam Awards were the Eisners of their day; but, the ACBA ceased operations in 1977.

Archie was a known talent, having garnered attention at Warren with great story after great story (especially in Blazing Combat, in which he wrote nearly everything); but, he was really doing some outstanding work here.  After he went to Marvel, he spent more and more time as an editor and less as a writer, so it's often overlooked how great a writer he really was.  Then, he'd do a story here or there and remind you of his brilliance.  Probably his biggest contribution at Marvel, from a writing standpoint, was Star Wars.  Archie gave that series life, after a somewhat jokey start from Roy Thomas (after the adaptation).  Archie really played with the universe that George Lucas gave us and presented the biggest and most consistent body of work, outside the films, for the time, between the comic books and the newspaper strip.  For my money, he is the best Star Wars writer, even better than Allen Dean Foster.

Walt was a young turk and he set everyone on notice here.  He hadn't done that many assignments.  It took time, as he produced great comic after great comic in the 70s, then became WALT SIMONSON, in the 80s, with Thor.  One of the joys of the Bronze Age is seeing young talent like Walt, Howard Chaykin, Bernie Wrightson, Mike Kaluta, or Jim Starlin do great single issues of a comic, which you enjoyed more than the regular teams, then start to get more high profile assignments, then become superstars, by the 80s.  They really helped bring some new life into comics, which got their best platform in the dynamic period of the 80s, when the Direct Market opened up new publishing avenues and even old companies, like DC, really stepped up their game and took chances.  Archie was a big part of that, via his stewardship of Epic, giving these young talents and even some older ones, a platform for doing more mature work and a chance at ownership.  Archie's greatest legacy is probably not his writing, as great as it is; but, his time as a guide and mentor to a lot of talented people.  He helped make the good great and the great awe-inspiring; and he did it without ever seeming to make an enemy.  That's a heck of a legacy for an editor at DC or Marvel and he did it at both.

Two years after the end of the Manhunter saga, we see a new Manhunter appear, looking like Paul Kirk. however, it is quickly made clear it is a clone. it occurs in the new Secret Society of Super-Villains, from Gerry Conway and Pablo Marcos. We get the interesting concept that a group of villains are brought together, complete with a secret headquarters (inside a high-rise) by the mysterious Manhunter, at the behest of another. This group is convinced that by uniting their skills and abilities, they can defeat their enemies and rule. However, their benefactor remains hidden. He is revealed to be Darkseid, who plans to use the Society to launch attacks on Earth, discarding the previous Intergang. However, Manhunter convinces the Society that they will only be pawns of Darkseid and will never share in the conquest. he is able to turn them against Darkseid and his minions. In a climactic fight, we learn that the Manhunter clone carries a special secret: he is a living booby trap. he sacrifices himself to seal up Darkseid's Boom Tube and prevent further attack on Earth.

It started with a nice idea; but, as with many DC books of the era, it quickly lost its way. Gerry Conway only did the first couple of stories and it switched between writers, creating a bit of literary schizophrenia. The book was all over the place. It had moments; but, it never really came together. It did bring back Captain Comet, who ends yup as a sort of enemy/ally.

Unfortunately, this was the end of the Manhunter clone. It's just as well as he wasn't the same in other hands. Gerry Conway was busy playing with other people's toys, in this era, on the revived New Gods and the JLA. Quite frankly, he usually didn't measure up. He had some good JLA stories; but, his New Gods was a pale imitation. Steve Engelhart did a far more interesting job on Mister Miracle, with Marshal Rogers and Michael Golden. Conway had Don Newton, for some nice art, on Return of the New Gods; but, it never quite rose to epic. It's kind of the same here. Pablo Marcos provides decent, if unremarkable art. However, Conway left early and it seemed like no one knew where to go with this. It's not quite epic, though it has moments.

It's just as well that the clone is sacrificed. manhunter was a unique series and I think most at DC respected the work Archie did and left well enough alone.

Years later, Kurt Busiek returned to the idea of a surviving clone, in Power Company, with Kirk DePaul).





Busiek cleared the idea with Archie Goodwin, who told him to go for it. The idea of a Manhunter clone is better explored here, as one of the elements is the clone's attempt to live up to the legacy of his genetic father, Paul Kirk. It made for a far more unique character. Unfortunately, he was sacrificed in the later Mark Andreko Manhunter series, carrying on DC's then-tactic of killing off interesting characters to launch new versions. I like the Kate Spencer stories; but, losing Kirk DePaul was a bad idea. Mark Shaw does continue; but, I'm not much of a fan of how he was used beyond John Ostrander. Kurt Busiek was on to something, something that Conway must have seen; but, couldn't quite execute. It does leave us with the question, did more clones survive the original series? Well, Archie and Walt would address that, in our next installment.

Oh, I have some ideas for more reviews/discussions.  I was particularly thinking about taking a look at my namesake and his forefathers/cousins/descendants.  Gives me a reason to re-read some classic Howard Chaykin.