This issue features the last chapter of Kirby’s last Doctor Doom story, as the FF have escaped Doom’s latest trap thanks to a rescue from Sue, but still have to get out of Latveria. Isn’t that a great looking castle?

The rest of the story involves the various battles to get to Doom, including undercover SHIELD agents, former Nazi minions and Doom sacrificing his plans against the FF to save his art treasures. Definitely the off-beat ending that the cover promised. Along the way there are two great splash pages of Doom. This storyline definitely delivered some of the definitive images of the villain.

Cover and 20-page story inks by Joe Sinnott.

Published 1969

Kirby just did one entry in this issue, Lightray of the New Gods. I like the main pose a lot, it really shows the sunny optimism that Lightray brought to the original comics in general, contrasting with Orion.

Greg Theakston inks.

Published 1986

A reprint from TALES OF SUSPENSE #93 (1967), showcasing some of the great Kirby/Sinnott artwork of the era. Beautiful splash page of Cap swimming with a SHIELD-issue long distance mini-cruiser, the type of beautiful mechanical devices Kirby would casually throw in his work. Anyway, Cap goes off to rescue the still-nameless female SHIELD agent (oh, let’s just call her Sharon) from AIM, who have been reborn under the leadership of the mysterious MODOK.

Much action ensues, leading to Cap being captured and Sharon being taken before MODOK.

As usual, love the AIM losers, and the various gadgets, all of which really some alive under Sinnott’s brush.

Various bits of action are cut to make the original 10-page story fit in 9 pages (that page in the scan was actually bits of two pages in the original). The cover is a bit of an oddity, as it’s based on the cover for what was originally the next issue, ToS #94. Same layout, but clearly redrawn with some major changes (most notably removing MODOK from the background). The updated Kirby checklist lists the cover as a Kirby/Giacoia piece, but I don’t know about that. I doubt Kirby had anything to do with the re-drawing, and the inking doesn’t seem much like the other Giacoia of the era (including some other MDF covers not traced from older versions).

Published 1976

The debut issue of MISTER MIRACLE, “Murder Missile Trap” has young Scott Free come across Thaddeus Brown, the original Mister Miracle, a retired escape artist on the comeback trail, and his assistant Oberon. Scott gets drawn into their world, and shows he has a few tricks up his sleeves as well, thanks to his mysterious orphanage past and inexhaustible supply of gadgets. Unfortunately, Brown isn’t long for the world, as he gets killed by mobster Steel Hand, leaving Scott to take his place.

I’m not terribly fond of this story (which, as it happened, was the last issue of the series I read, some years after finding the rest), although it does have many good features, especially in the art, and it would have been nice to find out more about Thaddeus. I thought the series didn’t really pick up until the Apokolips elements were introduced (including and especially Barda).

Colletta inks the 22 page story and cover. Marv Wolfman writes the text page (used in all the Fourth World first issues), about a visit he and Len Wein had with Kirby some years earlier, where among other things they heard of some ideas that would eventually evolve into Kirby’s then-current work.

Published 1971

Probably the most obscure of the characters Kirby was tapped to draw a cover for in the 1970s. I have no idea what “Woodgod” is, either. Not a great cover, but I do like the villains and their ships.

Frank Giacoia inks.

Published 1976

A reprint of “The Startling Saga of the Silver Surfer” from FF #50 [1966] here, the conclusion of the Galactus trilogy. Lots of fun and grand cosmic adventure in the first half, as the Torch returns with the Ultimate Nullifier, allowing the FF to get Galactus to leave.

The second half of the issue sets up some of the future stories and effects of the events of this story, including Ben’s melancholy and the Torch starting college.

Joe Sinnott inked the 20-page story. The cover is a non-Kirby new cover.

Published 1972

“The People-Breeders” is reprinted from THOR #134 (1966), leading off with the wrap-up of the Ego/Rigel storyline, as Thor has fulfilled his mission and sends Tana Nile packing (and narrowly missing a meeting with Galactus, making a pulse-pounding cameo a few months after his first story in FF). Thor then goes to find Jane Foster, which leads him to the High Evolutionary and his New-Men.

Lots of neat stuff in here. The New-Men obviously kind of remind you of the later creatures of Kamandi’s world, and frequent other uses of accelerated evolution in Kirby’s work.

One page is edited out of here, mostly the page with Quicksilver and the Scarlet Witch, between stories in AVENGERS, so it’s a 15-page story here.

Meanwhile, from JOURNEY INTO MYSTERY #120 (1965) comes “Set Sail”, the departure of the heroes of Asgard on their grand quest in the 5-page “Tales of Asgard” story. As usual, lots of grandeur in the form of Odin’s send-off and intrigue in the form of Loki’s plots (foiled by Hogun), with some comic relief provided by Volstagg (including a cameo by the rarely seen but often mentioned bride of Volstagg).

Colletta inks throughout, including the cover reprint from THOR #134.

Published 1974

Big time cosmic goings-on up in Olympia, home of the Eternals, as Thena returns with the Deviants Karkas and the Reject. The Reject attracts the attention of some of the female Eternals, but that’s interrupted when Zuras summons his people for the Uni-Mind ritual.

After a brief catch-up with Ajax in the Andes, we return to Olympia and the Eternals joining to form the Uni-Mind, a massive group-mind, to study the return of the Celestials to Earth. Very weird, in a trippy cosmic way, not something that makes a lot of sense, but certainly pretty to look at and think about.

Mike Royer inked the cover and 17-page story.

Published 1977

As usual, Jack Kirby does the cover for this issue, inked by Greg Theakston. Nice overall, but a bit of weird anatomy around Superman’s legs.

Kirby also plots the issue, which has an attack on Brainiac’s ship, finally bringing the heroes to Apokolips and face to face with Darkseid, who has been using the time the heroes have been distracted by the villains to prepare an invasion of Earth, setting up the Kirby written and drawn final issue.

Published 1984

No, I’m not entirely sure what the deal with the Black Racer is either. I’m sure Kirby had something unrealized planned for the character/concept, but we’ll never know. Anyway, in this story the Racer, an envoy of death, pursues Lightray, but is redirected to Earth by Metron, where he’s drawn to paralyzed Vietnam vet Willie Walker, who takes his role as an aspect of the Black Racer.

I may not understand it, but that’s some pretty art. Elsewhere on Earth, Orion and Dave Lincoln pursue the local gangs that have been recruited into the plots of Apokolips.

Colletta inks the 23-page story and cover (which features a photo background of a cityscape).

Published 1971