Ironically, considering I just finished a novel by Edgar Rice Burroughs last week, I've never read any of Kubert's prolific work on Tarzan, and hardly any of his legendary Sgt. Rock stories. In fact, I've probably read more of his son Andy's work on the 90s X-Men! Like many of the greats, Joe Kubert's gritty, expressive style is only something I've come to appreciate in later life.
Hawkman and Hawkgirl are Burroughsian heroes, often fighting winged monsters on other worlds or in lost lands. The original, wingless version of the Silver Age hawk-helm has now become one of my favourites.
I may have come to this comic before Marvel's Conan and yet it shares many of the same qualities-apart from the savagery of REH's barbarian. I think the dream-like elements of Kubert's imagery informed Barry Smith's work.
None of the three issues of Weird Worlds that I read as a kid actually had Kubert covers -again, Anderson drew John Carter in the first one- but I would have loved to see an adaptation of Swords of Mars.
This was the first Burroughs book I ever read, from Strathaven Library in 1978 or '79. It's a repetitious and predictable Carter adventure in which, while trying to wipe out the Guild of Assassins, he visits the Martian moon Phobos and encounters a race of mentalists (a lot like the Lotharians of Thuvia, Maid of Mars). Aside from the robot spaceship, which sounds a lot like Wonder Woman's invisible plane, the book is uninspired. However I bet Kubert could have livened it up, especially with the grotesque "cat-man", Umka. Back to the comics:
Again, there were no Kubert pencils within this issue. I've discovered today that I've been pronouncing the Son of Tarzan's name wrongly as "Kaw-rak" -it should be "Koh-rak"- my entire life.
This comic from my early days in Secondary School established a startling new visual style for the Wonder Wizard by Walt Simonson. However. Kubert's cover suggests how comfortable he was with magic-users (having drawn Zatara and Sargon the Sorceror).
I was disappointed in All-Star Squadron in my late teens. I really wanted a JSA roster with Dr. Fate, Starman, Sandman, et al. Certainly not Robotman or the Shining Knight. But look at how dynamic and exciting Hawman, Johnny Quick and Plas are here.
I got more of the JSA I wanted in this summer crossover from 1982, which we've discussed before. Kubert makes the Kirbyesque and somewhat silly Firestorm vibrant and youthful.
Kubert's Sgt. Rock serial in Wednesday Comics - one of my Desert Island books of the last five years- led me to more of an appreciation of his work and to this gorgeous DC Special from the winter of 1969. it reprints adventures of Rock, Hawkman and Prince Jon, plus a gallery of 40s heroes like Vigilante and Wildcat and a teaser for the Western series Firehair.
Delightfully, Kubert's sons Adam and Andy teach classes at the Kubert School, all part of the legacy he left the comics world. Another part of that legacy is the body of work in so many genres. I look forward to becoming re-acquainted with the Lord of the Jungle soon.
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Another one bites the dust, eh? We know we're getting old ourselves when our heroes from childhood (whether artists, writers, actors, etc.) seem to die with increasing frequency. I may dig out my DC Tarzan and Hawkman comics and re-read them - just for old time's sake. As you'll know, Steve Ditko's last Spider-Man tale was entitled "Just a Guy named Joe!". Your post title is therefore rather apt, considering that I always felt there was a similarity between Kubert's and Ditko's '50s work.
ReplyDeleteYes, it was precisely the Ditko story I was thinking of.
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