Day 105: The Real Orion

One of the central tenets of the Fourth World saga is the fundamental dual nature of Orion, the depth of which we do not fully understand until the end of the regular series, though hints abound from the very first issue. To the point: Though raised as the charge of Highfather on New Genesis, Orion is born of Apokolips and is the son of his great nemesis Darkseid. His normal appearance is that of a beautiful, auburn-haired Adonis. We know, early on, that he is a particularly fierce warrior, more brutal than his New Genesis allies and we understand, too, that Metron is privy to Orion’s mysterious background. What we only learn as the story unfolds is the gentle visage we first encounter of Orion the Tiger is, in fact, not his real face.

This writer would be doing a great disservice to you folks if I were to short-shrift this absolutely essential entry and not dig deep into the text to real the complex and intriguing duality of Orion, so I need to beg your indulgence and allow me to catch up with subsequent entries. I will, in short order — as soon as possible, anyway — return to this subject and give it my fullest attention. My thanks and apologies…

One thought on “Day 105: The Real Orion

  1. Gary Leach

    This is one moment in the saga when the art didn’t quite deliver. While I could discern that a transformation had taken place in Orion’s appearance in panel 5, it just wasn’t as stark or dramatic as I felt it needed to be. This, perhaps, was a failing on the part of Colletta’s finishes—a moment that really needed Royer’s deft hand.

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