New Gods #3 (1971)
by Jack Kirby
I’ve said many times that I don’t like Kirby’s use of collages, especially on the cover.
There is SOME defense when it’s trying to show some otherworldy thing, but using a picture to depict a regular skyline? That’s a bit much, right?
We begin with a splash page (because of course we do), with Lightray escaping Black Racer.
Lightray escapes him by hiding behind diamond asteroids…
…and “thus the principle of the laser is invoked”.
Well of course. We all know that lasers are fire.
That was almost interesting, so we better return to Orion and his amazingly boring friends.
And what better use for a splash page than Orion holding a suitcase?
This is the first time the humans Orion rescued in the first issue are left to themselves, after witnessing the most amazing things they’ve ever seen.
It’s the perfect opportunity to give them anything, ANYTHING even remotely interesting to say or do.
Perfect supporting cast, no notes.
Left alone to ponder, Orion reflects on his duality as being from both New Genesis and Apokolips.
Alright, now we might go somewhere! Orion only LOOKS like a god, but beneath the façade there’s something truly disturbing…
…which looks exactly the same but with a slightly more pronounced brow and some eyeshadow?
THAT’S supposed to be Orion’s big driving theme!?
Once Orion puts on some human clothes, he then shows himself naked in front of the humans because… uhm… I’ve got nothing.
And I hope that Orion fanservice was enough for you, because he BARELY shows up in the rest of the story.
Which goes back to Lightray trying to escape Black Racer, and managing to do so only thanks to Metron.
No wonder he’s Orion’s best friend, they both get saved by Metron in anticlimactic moments.
So the rest of the issue… about half of it… will now focus on Black Racer.
Which is a welcome change, don’t get me wrong, since at least he’s got SOME interesting elements… but Kirby had BARELY started working on Orion and now he’s already moved on.
Serious question, but did Kirby have ADHD? It would explain a lot.
Now that he’s on Earth, Black Racer just drops by a crime scene.
Credit where it’s due, Kirby does a good job giving subtle hints about Black Racer being an embodiment of death: it’s not being screamed in your face like so much else of his mythology.
And it’s quite effective.
The criminal shoots a cop next to ha window where he’s watched by a veteran who is paralyzed.
I’m not criticizing him for not reacting since he’s paralyzed, but it’s a bit awkward.
Black Racer has decided that the veteran’s destiny is to become his avatar.
That’s a neat idea, although I think it’s a bit underwhelmed by having Black Racer already having almost the same face.
You’d expect them to merge, but it’s a bit more complex: Black Racer turns into dust and the veteran has to wear his armor.
Good news: you’re no longer paralyzed.
Bad news: your new job is being an avatar of death.
Worst news: you have to wear this.
I like Black Racer a lot. Even though I’m not a fan of his earliest color scheme.
But we can all agree he looks silly, right? I don’t know why… Silver Surfer looks cool with his surfboard, there’s no reason why skis would be inherently sillier.
For me, what makes him ridiculous is the fact that he’s using poles (or sticks, if anyone’s reading from the UK). I don’t know what it is, but the idea that he needs them is funny to me.
You’d expect this to be disconnected from the Apokolips stuff, but Darkseid is supplying weapons to common criminals.
Orion smashes through their headquarters, wearing the suit from earlier. So I don’t know why he decided to strip in that scene.
And this fight scene ALSO sucks. Which I can’t believe is something that keeps happening in a story penciled by Jack Kirby, that should be physically impossible!
But that’s not the focus. Instead, it’s on Black Racer following one of the criminals.
It’s not entirely out of nowhere… the criminal is the one who tried to kill the veteran earlier.
To be fair, the poles DO serve a purpose. I don’t think it makes their use less ridiculous, but they do.
Black Racer takes care of the bomb, meaning it’s ANOTHER case of Orion not accomplishing anything on his own.
Honestly at this point the Mother Box™ is more of a protagonist than Orion.
Time for the Black Racer to turn into the veteran again. Notice that, according to his wording, there should be more than one Black Racer avatar active at all times… which is a great idea that I’m not sure is ever followed.
Easily the best part of Black Racer is the idea that you have this paralyzed guy who is secretly the avatar of death as a side job.
Historical significance: 6/10
The introduction of Black Racer is important to the Fourth World mythos. I don’t think he interacts too much with the rest of the cast, which is a good idea to avoid ruining the mystique.
Silver Age-ness: 4/10
Black Racer’s design is inherently silly enough. My favorite joke of all time on the subject is on the pages of Young Justice, by Peter David.
Does it stand the test of time? 6/10
Definitely an improvement over the previous issues. The plot is still BARELY anything and Orion is just uninteresting, but at least Black Racer is a great concept.
I don’t think Kirby does enough with that concept in this story, but at least Black Racer is interesting. And at this point he would have been a MUCH better lead than Orion.
The humans are still completely useless and what little plot there is keeps stalling for time.
I can’t get over that scene with Orion at the mirror. Did Kirby want us to think Orion is really a barely contained rage monster beneath the façade of a regular god? That would have been a great idea, and some depictions of Orion do go in that direction… but it’s just so underwhelming when he reveals “his true face” and it’s just the same guy.
Splash pages: 3 out of 23 (13%)
Most Kirby panel
Most WTF panel
No, seriously, why does he strip?
