Why Jack Kirby Left Marvel Comics For DC

Why Jack Kirby Left Marvel Comics For DC

Though Jack Kirby made a career as a celebrated artist for Marvel Comics, the larger-than-life creator inevitably landed at rival DC Comics.

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Why Jack Kirby Left Marvel Comics For DC

With Stan Lee’s ear for authentic dialogue and Kirby’s expertly drawn heroes and villains, Marvel Comics helped reinvigorate the faltering comic genre of the early 1960s. Kirby served as for writer Joe Simon’s original Captain America series before helping the nephew of publisher Martin Goodman launch a new team book equivalent to DC’s well admired Justice League of America. Together, Jack and Goodman’s nephew Stanley Lieber (Stan Lee) would launch Fantastic Four #1 in November of 1961. Becoming widely popular with fans, Fantastic Four allowed Jack and Stan to move full steam ahead on classic heroes Ant-Man, the Incredible Hulk, and the X-Men. Kirby and Lee’s time on the books that followed the Fantastic Four would see the duo tied to the Marvel ship for nearly a decade before the superhero-sized team-up would come to an abrupt finish.

Stan Lee and Jack Kirby were a match made in heaven for which their contemporaries could not match. Unlike other comic publishers, Marvel’s method of storytelling saw the artist sketch the contents of the book while the writer would fill in adjoining word bubbles at a later date in time. Receiving an artist credit was important for Jack and Marvel’s other artists of the time, including Spider-Man and Dr. Strange co-creator Steve Ditko. That credit not only equaled payroll but ownership between himself and rising comics spokesman Stan Lee. Though the money was a prerequisite for Kirby, an equal acknowledgment from not only his peers but masses was the ideal reward for all his contributions to the expansive world of Marvel. While it cannot be denied that both Jack Kirby and Lee were critical components in the creation of the modern Marvel Universe, the exact involvement from both parties remains unclear. Unstoppable in their heyday, Kirby and Lee were a partnership that ultimately wasn’t meant to last.

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Kirby’s final issue for Marvel would come in September of 1970 with Fantastic Four #102. As Fantastic Four was the first original collaboration between Kirby and Lee, it was only fitting that Kirby’s time with Marvel ended there. Kirby’s 70s departure from Marvel left a major dent in the company which would only prompt the publisher to scramble to find new artists on an equal level for their premiere titles.

While Kirby’s final days at Marvel would be riddled with creative differences and conflicts over payroll, DC initially promised complete creative freedom on all of the artists’ future projects. During his first few years at DC, Jack created The Demon and Kamandi: The Last Boy on Earth, as he began to expand on story threads left over from his run on The Mighty Thor. Kirby’s cosmic Fourth World series, which featured comics The New Gods and Mister Miracle, was an epic saga detailing the century-long battle between the gods of New Genesis and Apokolips. Though Fourth World and Kamandi were evolving the artistry and scale of the comics medium, the books failed to sell, which complicated Kirby’s image with the publisher. After finding himself disillusioned once again, Jack returned to Marvel for a short period as the 1970s was nearing its end. Remaining within the realm of cosmic epics, Kirby gave birth to Marvel’s superpowered team of immortals known as the Eternals.

Jack Kirby’s distinguished works at Marvel and DC are still being celebrated to this day, with his enormous impact likely to leave a significant mark on both booming companies for centuries to come.

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