Super Powers v1#1

The first SUPER POWERS mini-series was five issues, with Kirby doing all the covers, plotting the first four and writing and pencilling the last issue. In a bit of an coincidence, when this series came out, Kenner released a line of action figures that had the same eight heroes and four villains that are featured in this book. What are the odds.

In addition to the cover of this issue, Kirby also drew an ad for the series that, kind of reduntantly, appears in the first issue. Both cover and ad are inked by Mike Royer.



I like how the play it coy about who the master villain is in the ad and in this first issue. It's pretty subtle, that shadowing figure in blue and grey whose minions appear with a loud "Boom".

I'd be curious to read what Kirby's actual plot for this issue was. It's not a bad first issue, given the extended ad nature of the book. Pretty much just Darkseid sending his minions to give extra powers to various Earth villiansThe art by Adrian Gonzales and Pablo Marcos is nice, except that there's too much of an attempt to make it look like Kirby on the surface elements. Lots of squiqqles and cosmic energy dots, while shades of their own style seem to bubble through at times.

Worth a look, but not too long a look.

Published 1984