Captain America, Issue #193

The blurb on the cover shouts “KING KIRBY IS BACK – AND GREATER THAN EVER!”

But all was not rosy. The King had indeed returned to Marvel Comics, but despite the fanfare on the cover, it doesn’t seem like he was welcomed with open arms. Perhaps some resented his departure. Others may have thought the medium had passed him by.

Once again, although he was out of step, it wasn’t because he was past his sell-by date, it was because he was ahead of his time. Kirby’s work in this period reflected another amazing evolution for the constantly developing genius, whose thousands of accumulated hours at the drawing table, ostensibly creating much of the visual language of comics, meant he could take his design and draftsmanship to levels of abstraction and pure joy no one had ever attempted—and no one else ever really has. You may not like his line, or see what all the fuss is about, but ponder this: Comics are meant to tell stories with pictures.

Sounds simple.

But the reality is that most pencilers don’t tell stories all that well. There are many that can draw beautiful pictures and there are some that can even “show” a story competently. In contrast, you can grab any Kirby comic, remove all the words and still know what’s going on throughout. The action flows from panel to panel and page to page, perfectly paced and harmoniously rendered. And mind you—it is action. Kirby’s resting poses aren’t truly static, let alone stiff. Standing figures crackle with barely contained energy, waiting to spring into dynamic movement.