Eulogies to Wein online have focused on his creation of Wolverine and Swamp Thing, two characters for whom I've had had only short-lived enthusiasms in the past. Of course, he scripted the first issue of G-S X-Men, moulding heroes from Dave Cockrum's sketchbook into a mutant Blackhawks team. Wein also wrote Spider-Man, the Soul Survivors/Starjammers quest for Thor and a lengthy Hulk sequence with the Gremlin and killed off Jarella. It surprises me that he never had a run on the Avengers.
However, it's Wein's DC work that really stays with me, specifically his Justice League assignment. Among the first really committed nostalgia buffs to write for DC in the early 70s, Wein revived several of the JLA's bizarre antagonists from the Sixties, He introduced Elongated Man and Red Tornado as Leaguers and showcased Golden Age obscurities such as the Seven Soldiers of Victory and the Freedom Fighters aka the Quality Comics heroes.
I always imagined if he hadn't moved to Marvel, Wein would have revived the Teen Titans in a summer Crisis and inducted Dr. Fate to the League. Wein really defined the Satellite Era and Gerry Conway refined it. The World's Finest team-up of Superman and Doctor Fate captures that majestic kozmic feel of Bronze Age DC in an apocalyptic story about Space Lamas. Wein was one of the first writers whose name I learned to recognise as a kid.
His greatest success might have been his early -80s collaboration with Marv Wolfman on New Teen Titans as editor (ditto Watchmen) but his later DC writing work has much to recommend it, too. For example, the Secret Origins spotlight on Blue Beetle: a gorgeous collaboration with Gil Kane, folding the Charlton hero into the Post- Crisis DCU as a kind of analogue of Spidey.
In this century, Wein wrote DC Universe: Legacies, a 2010-11 limited series which explored the DCU in a not-dissimilar way to Marvels, the landmark Busiek and Ross series from 1994. An Everyman character's life is viewed through the prism of a universe where super-powered crusaders emerge throughout the 20th century.
Most recently, Wein scripted another beautiful comic: Batman'66 The Lost Episode, which introduced Two- Face to the kitschy Adam West continuity, It's sad to think that he won't produce any more seemingly-effortless homages to the convoluted history of the DCU.
Speaking of legacies, DC has honoured Jack Kirby perhaps even more creatively than Marvel with its slew of reprints from the early 60s to late 70s. The oversized specials from DCs satisfyingly blend new material about Kirby's Kreations with quirky reprints.
Perhaps the most often revived and revamped Fourth World title, New Gods was, surprisingly, my least favourite. A 90s style retelling of the conflicts between Orion, Lightray and Kalibak, it also featured a short by Walt Simonson and the two Lonar stories from Forever People. Thor's helmet is clearly and cheekily seen in what we must surmise are the ruins of Asgard.
Newsboy Legion and Boy Commandos by Howard Chaykin is a genuinely mature piece with cameos by Papa Hemingway and Damon Runyon. The Newsboy Legion reprint by Simon and Kirby "Cabbages and Comics" is delightful.
Jurgens and Bogdanov evoke Simonson on Sandman, the Master of Dreams whom I first encountered while I was on holiday in Port William in 1976.It amuses me that this gaudy version is more strange really than the celebrated Gaiman/Goth character.Five vignettes of the DNA project from Jimmy Olsen are reprinted, including "Arin the Armored Man".
The Simon and Kirby Sandman of the Golden Age, with Sandy the Golden Boy, takes on Manhunter in a story by Giffen, Buckingham and Didio, The self-assured ruthlessness of Paul Kirk is counterpointed with this dynamic duo's approach in a first encounter with the nefarious Council. This pulpy reading of Manhunter would be interesting to see again.
There's also a new tale of Etrigan the Demon, plus a bizarre story of alchemy and romance "The face Behind the Mask" and two shorts about the technology of the World of Tomorrow.
Finally, a multi-racial team headed by Hudlin and Cowan investigate the origins of The Black Racer and pit Shilo Norman against Donald Trump. Omac cameos and the reprints feature Vykin the Black and the very obscure speedster Fastbak from New Gods. This gutsy, Milestone-style comic about death and escape was my favourite, although it was a close run thing ( no pun intended)
I wish there had been a Forever People special; that was the title that really propelled me, as a kid, into the Fourth World after a creepy, intimidating start with Jimmy Olsen and the Evil Factory. Perhaps the Darkseid Special features the space hippies? I don't know- it's prohibitively expensive on ebay. The other specials are highly recommended, however- with the possible exception of New Gods, which feels quite unoriginal and very typical of the bulk of DC's mainstream.
Other Kirby Kreations are actually ongoing at DC: when complete, I'll probably blog about Tom King's bleak, mesmeric Mr. Miracle, a ground- breaking comic that ought to be part of the Young Animal imprint, like Allred's joyous Bug. Similarly, the graphic horror and violence of Kamandi Challenge reminds me of the title's later years under Ayers and Alcala with DC's modern spin of body horror- but I don't want to comment further until I've read it all.
Upcoming posts may feature Jamie McCrimmon, James Bond, James Blish and the dawn of the Mighty World of Marvel. Take care and stay aware.
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