Jack Kirby will scare the hell out of you

[seriousfic.insanejournal.com]

Of the three Fourth World titles, the Forever People was probably the least of them... basically a reworking of the Golden Guardian concept with space hippies replacing the Newsboy Legion. Still, Jack Kirby is like pizza. Even when there's space hippies, it's still pretty awesome. And one issue of the Forever People easily out-fucked-up anything the Saw franchise tiredness has ever come up with.

I know the idea is unworkable, as people screaming for help don't really look anything like people laughing with joy, but I think it's so messed up that that can be excused. Still, next time maybe a Halloween-themed haunted house or something?

So it's all basically one big excuse for sadism as Darkseid looks for the Anti-Life Equation on Earth, because when you're the dark emperor of the universe, why not have a little fun with it and indulge your minions' creativity?



Does Darkseid calling that guy "Grandpa" remind anyone else of the Kurgan calling someone "Mom"?

Comments

[volksjager.insanejournal.com]

Darkseid stumbles around a rave on Ecstasy.

[stig.insanejournal.com]

Very subtle, how Kirby expresses Darkseid's nature as a dark reflection of man's evil by having him repeat the descriptive terms he hears. Imagine him striding through New York.

"Hey, get off the road, motherfuck!"

"Darkseid shall walk upon all dwellings of the craven and sickly, his horrors to bestow...motherfuck."

[seriousfic.insanejournal.com]

"Double dumbass on you!... as the horrors of the universe slowly close in on your pitiful awareness of its true nature."

[selenesue.insanejournal.com]

The laughter of Darkseid is much scarier than the laughter of Galactus. My opinion, your mileage may vary, etc.

[icon_uk.insanejournal.com]

Oh much, Galactus isn't actively EVIL, he's just... being a trans-galactic level jerk because he's older than everyone else in the entire universe and enjoys giving planets the equivalent of big brother noogies. He probably enjoys a good 8 dimensional knock-knock joke when he's not busy.

[selenesue.insanejournal.com]

Knock Knock
Who's there?
Super
Super Who?
Super Nova

BLAMMMMMM!!!!!

Comedy gold!

[rickvs.insanejournal.com]

I prefer to imagine that Darkseid has a honking, goober laugh -- like Robert Carradine's in _Revenge of the Nerds_...

[halloweenjack.insanejournal.com]

This almost as good as Darkseid taking a gig as a department-store Santa. Imagine how David Sedaris' story would have turned out if he had.

[khamelea.insanejournal.com]

"So it's all basically one big excuse for sadism[...]"

Don't you mean... Desaadism?

[icon_uk.insanejournal.com]

You mean that Kirby might have been DELIBERATELY intending some comparison between the Marquis DeSade and DeSaad? What a thought! ;)

I wonder how many perfectly innocent and delightful Marquis De Sade are now permanently tarnished with comparisons to their distinctly pervy ancestor/descendant?

It must be like being give the previously perfectly decent and ordinary name Adolf in 1920's Austria, by the time you're old enough to realise you now share a name with the human embodiment in insane evil, it's sort of too late to change it.

[seriousfic.insanejournal.com]

"Why should I change? He's the one who sucks."

[selenesue.insanejournal.com]

A lot of innocent Adolfs and Adolphs changed their names anyway. Notably one Adolph Marx, variously yclept Arthur and Harpo.


[Am I pushing my luck by using the obscure word "yclept"? I'm hoping not.]

[icon_uk.insanejournal.com]

Heh, my Cypher-sense is tingling... no, yclept is fine to use, it's a perfectly cromulent word.

[icon_uk.insanejournal.com]

I know the idea is unworkable, as people screaming for help don't really look anything like people laughing with joy, but I think it's so messed up that that can be excused.

Or the visual component is scrambled too, so othe viewers can only see them laughing

Still, next time maybe a Halloween-themed haunted house or something?

That would lose the irony though. You expect to get scared at a haunted house, this is reversing the expectation.

[rab62.insanejournal.com]

Or the visual component is scrambled too, so the viewers can only see them laughing

Which is explicitly stated in the story, as a matter of fact, because it happens to be a major plot point!

[dr_hermes.insanejournal.com]

Yes, as I recall, the next page has the people in the boat see Mark as a gesturing skeleton. It's quite a nightmarish sequence if you think about it.

[zechs27.insanejournal.com]

Yes, I am totally hearing Michael Ironside say "Grandpa." In a big scary voice. *shudders*

[qob.insanejournal.com]

man... Michael Ironsides! Yea, he would BE Darkseid

[cmdr_zoom.insanejournal.com]

Has been, in Superman TAS and Justice League. And it was good.

[stig.insanejournal.com]

I've a notion that Doug Mahnke drew inspiration from that "Cosmic Joke" panel for his portrayal of Darkseid cackling in Final Crisis #7. You'll notice that the angle and subject of both panels are very similar...wish my scanner were working, I'd show you.

Or maybe Morrison asked for it as a deliberate reference. Who knows.

[silverzeo.insanejournal.com]

If they modernize this comic, through in that the hot dogs are made from people, this would be one big MIND-FREAK!

[psychop_rex.insanejournal.com]

If you fleshed it out a bit, this would make for a REALLY creepy movie.
That being said, I can't quite wrap my head around the concept of pizza with a Space Hippy topping...