Before I talk more about Scott Free, I think I have to mention Jack Kirby's "Fourth World" saga. The saga was a metaseries that connected three titles of Kirby's creation: The New Gods, The Forever People, and Mister Miracle's own ongoing series. Kirby was inspired by the beginnings of the end of the newsstand method of distributing comics to create the metaseries. The metaseries was intended to be a complete story with a beginning, middle and end, that could be collected later on into a single book. Huh. Kirby predicted the trade collection.
He attempted to do the metaseries in Thor and The Inhumans at Marvel, but things did not work out. Combined that with his unhappiness at Marvel for not being what he felt was properly compensated for his co-creations, he took the idea to DC Comics. The three series that came from this didn't last very long. Forever People and New Gods lasted 11 issues, but Mister Miracle lasted 18. The Fourth World became a part of the DC Universe, interacting with DC's other superheroes and villains. It ended up preventing Kirby from really doing the end of the saga he wanted to. In the 1980s, Kirby supposedly ended the saga with the DC graphic novel The Hunger Dogs, but it didn't stick.
The Fourth World saga would go on to be regarded as one of Kirby's greatest works, and the New Gods mythos would go on to be a part of DC's projects in other media, like the last season of the Super Friends cartoon in the 1980s, and Superman: The Animated Series, and even DC's cinematic universe.
So, who is Mister Miracle? Well, Mister Miracle is Scott Free, the son of Highfather, the head of the beautiful world known as New Genesis. As a baby, he was traded with another baby, this one the son of Darkseid, monarch of the planet Apokolips. If New Genesis was a Heaven, Apokolips was a hell. The son Darkseid traded to New Genesis would grow to become the warrior known as Orion, the wielder of the amazing Astro-Force. Free would grow up in one of Apokolips's horrific orphanages run by the living embodiment of child abuse known as Granny Goodness. But despite this, Scott still retained his good nature, becoming part of an Apokoliptian resistance group led by Himon.
Scott Free, like many other New Gods, is an immortal being with superhuman physical abilities (strength, stamina, speed, reflexes, etc.) and is immune to all diseases and illnesses. He's also a talented inventor, devising many of the gadgets he used in his superhero career. He is also a talented warrior, despite his preference for pacifism.
As for why I chose this comic to review? Well, last year celebrated what would have been his 100th birthday, and I discovered that I should review more DC stuff.
So, with all that out of the way, let's take a look at Mister Miracle #1!
The cover is pretty cool! We got Mister Miracle strapped to a rocket that is taking off. The men below say he's lost his wager, and with that, his life. But the World's Greatest Escape Artist has a surprise for them. It's a great cover. The cover promised the creation of a legend, and boy did we get that.
"Murder Missile Trap!"
Writer: Jack Kirby
Penciller: Jack Kirby
Inker: Vince Colletta
Colorist: Jack Kirby
Editor: Jack Kirby
Assistant Editor: Steve Sherman
The story begins with what appears to be the man himself preparing an escape stunt.
The trap is being checked over by Oberon, Miracle's dwarf assistant. This is being observed by a young man behind a fence. Oberon takes his cape, and pleads with the escape artist to not do this stunt, but Miracle insists. He orders Oberon to bolt him into a cabinet. Oberon reluctantly agrees. He then, to the shock of the young man, grabs a flamethrower and sets it ablaze. Horrified, the young man leaps the fence in an attempt to help the trapped Miracle, but Oberon stops him. I think they knew what they were doing, buddy.
The young man ignores the dwarf's pleas makes to attempt the rescue, but Miracle easily breaks out. The young man asks how he did it, and Miracle says that is just part of the escape artist trade. Oberon insists that age has dulled his reflexes. Miracle takes off his hood, revealing himself to be...
Wait...that's not Scott Free! Nope, it's Thaddeus Brown, escape artist extraordinaire. He thanks the young man for the attempt at heroism, and the young man reveals that his name is Scott Free, which amuses Brown to no end. Get it? "Scot free"? Free explains he grew up in an orphanage and he was given the name to promote individuality. Scott says he should be going, but Brown asks him to stick around as a guest for a while. However, some other guests would come say hello. With guns.
Meet Intergang. They are essentially a Mafia-type criminal organization with connections to Apokolips. If you've watched Superman: The Animated Series, you'd be familiar with these guys. One of the Intergangsters waves a gun at Thaddeus and Scott, and Scott attacks the men with his bag. The two men are able to dispatch the men, and Scott is left wondering why these men would be after Thaddeus. He explains he knew the head of Intergang in the area, a man called Steel Hand.
Meanwhile, in Metropolis, the named criminal has his hand in what looks like a clear box with an engine inside it. He's getting a radiation treatment of some kind. He gets a call on his TV, and it's one of the men sent to deal with Thaddeus Brown. The man reports that they couldn't deal with him, and Steel Hand is incredulous. They were men with guns going up against an old man and a dwarf. Hand then is told about the young Scott Free. Hand then grumbles that he'll deal with it himself, pulling his hand out of the box, showing that "Steel Hand" is not just a nickname.
And in classic Silver Age style, he rants out his origins. Steel Hand was once an ordinary man...who got his hand shot up by a Tommy gun. And evidently, in the hospital, he became a test subject for an experimental prosthetic. And radiation treatments were involved somehow (presumably to reduce rejection), and he ended up gaining super strength in his metal hand, powerful enough to easily smash a block of titanium. He used his new power to make his way into Intergang. He decides to personally take care of Brown and Free. His boys tell him they'll get their best sniper.
Back at Thaddeus Brown's home, Scott is settling into the spare room. He likes the room, as he feels it's a young man's room. Okay. Thaddeus explains that it was his son Ted's room once upon a time. Sadly, Ted died in the Korean War, and Thaddeus is also a widower. Ted was a devoted son, keeping a scrapbook of his father's exploits and helping Oberon prepare the various tricks and traps that Thaddeus would thrill audiences by escaping from. In fact, Ted was the one who came up with the whole "Mister Miracle" gimmick.
Thaddeus reveals to Scott that he plans a big new stunt, one very dangerous. It's so dangerous that even if he manages to pull everything off perfectly, he could still die. Terrific. In a rather...awkward sequence, Thaddeus and Oberon somehow get the idea Scott is a genius, and tests him by locking him in some chains. Scott just calmly stands there and closes his eyes as if he's meditating. And then...
Thaddeus and Oberon are amazed, wondering how he did that. Scott holds up a tiny device and explains that it caused the chains' links to magnetically repel each other. Thaddeus is curious about Scott's bag, and Scott tells him it contains some...keepsakes that were left with him at the orphanage he grew up with. Oberon pleads with Thaddeus to let Scott help him use his gadget to help keep him safe with the upcoming stunt. Thaddeus refuses, saying a professional must live of die by their own methods. ...God's sake, Thaddeus.
Thaddeus explains that he knows that Steel Hand is worried about him. You see, the two men made a wager long ago, and Steel Hand fears that Thaddeus could win. Wait, this local crimelord is this worried over losing a wager to an escape artist? Over whether the escape artist can make an escape?! Steel Hand is a moron. A petty moron. The next day, a sniper is getting into position.
The oblivious Oberon, Scott, and Thaddeus are preparing their latest stunt. Oberon prepares to send a large metal sphere rolling down a ramp towards Thaddeus. Scott hears a crack, and his heart grows cold. Thaddeus grunts in pain, and Scott realizes that something has gone wrong. He rushes to the great steel ball in the middle of its run, and puts out an energy blast that diverts it. Scott realizes Thaddeus has been shot, and he's dying. The young man frees the elder man and lays him down. A dying Thaddeus pleads for Scott to stay with him, and Scott obeys. The young alien man pulls out a small box from under his sleeve, and puts it to Thaddeus's head.
Folks, this is a Mother Box. And this is often the form they are in in the comics. They more resemble smartphones or PDAs than the giant cubes seen in the Justice League movie. They're pretty neat little gadgets, can do many things. Thaddeus hears a comforting sound from the Mother Box, and Scott is saying it's giving him comfort so he can die without pain.
Oberon is heartbroken over his old friend being gone. Thaddeus was also needing to make a comeback, as he was in some financial trouble. That's where Steel Hand came in. The two were in a hospital together, and they got to talking. They ended up making a wager. The future Steel Hand bet $10,000 dollars that he could device a trap that Thaddeus could not escape from. The wager was forgotten about until Steel Hand appeared in the paper. By then, he had become a notable figure in crime, and Steel Hand feared that he would lose face if he lost the wager. I can imagine Intergang makes tons of money from their criminal activities. If Steel Hand was one of the big moneymakers for them, would they really think that less of him over a wager he made before becoming one of their big moneymakers?
A few days later, Steel Hand is checking out something new.
Steel Hand is in the mood for a bit of a workout, so he tells the operator of the remote-controlled robot to make the robot arm-wrestle him. The robot is strong, but the crime boss is able to smash its arm to pieces with his namesake prosthetic. Much to his surprise, what appears to be an alive and well Thaddeus Brown, in his Mister Miracle costume, leaps into the room. Steel Hand is understandably shocked, as he's supposed to be dead. Miracle taunts him by reminding that the Age of Miracles is far from over! Steel Hand demands that Miracle forget the wager.
Miracle refuses, as it's not about money anymore. He wants Steel Hand to go to the police and confess his role in Brown's shooting. Steel Hand just summons some guards with a hidden panic button. The guards are able to overwhelm the costumed man and knock him out. One of the guards wonders why Steel Hand didn't just kill him by...maybe, just punching him with his metal hand. Steel Hand answers since Mister Miracle wanted an escape-proof trap, he'll get one.
He makes a call to Intergang's secret missile site. Yes, Intergang has one of those. I don't know how, it's comics. Steel Hand reveals this was the trap he had prepared for Thaddeus Brown. Maybe this was why he was afraid of losing the wager? He was using Intergang resources for his trap? I think they would be unhappy with him using their resources for his little trap regardless of whether he won or lost the wager. Miracle gets to work trying to escape the trap.
The rocket lifts off, Steel Hand tipping his hat to him. After all, not many men get to die twice. The rocket explodes, and Steel Hand is convinced that the Age of Miracles has come to an end. After all, Mister Miracle was...merely human. He heads back to his office and finds that the lights have dimmed. A voice invites him in.
Duh-duh-DUNNNNNNNNNNN! Yup, Mister Miracle is back, much to the horror of Steel Hand. The gangster is fed up, and decides to crush the escape artist himself. Steel Hand tries to break Mister Miracle's face with his invincible metal fist, while wondering how Miracle escaped. Turns out, the escape artist had a pair of "hyper-sound intensifiers" hidden in his gloves, which he demonstrates, damaging Steel Hand's prosthetic hand. He then uses some small retro jets in his suit (the same ones that let him flee from the exploding rocket) to give Steel Hand a big ol' Mighty Punch to the mouth.
He then uses one last gadget: A "compact cocoon spinner", a small gizmo that can produce lots of plastic/cloth-like material in moments. He then wraps up Steel Hand in the material like a Christmas present for the cops. Oberon and the police enter the room. The story ends with the police carting away Steel Hand, and Thaddeus Brown being avenged. Oberon jokes that Scott Free had one hack of an act, and he'd be happy to assist him like he had with Brown before. Scott agrees, and formally takes the name of Mister Miracle, to honor the Earthman who gave him a place to belong.
This issue...is a fun little tale. I do have one big complaint about it, though. I know it's almost blasphemous to criticize Jack Kirby, but I'm going to have to say it. I think Steel Hand's motivations here were kind of stupid. He killed a man simply because he was afraid of losing a blasted wager. That's kind of dumb. There's also a few rather awkward moments in the dialogue and pace. I also would have liked to have seen Thaddeus stick around a little longer and mentor Scott in the fine art of escape artistry.
But those negatives are minor. This was a fun issue that used Scott Free's gadgetry to hint that there was more to him than just an ordinary young man. His tech was a clever way of hinting at his origins. It also was a fun tale, and helped establish Scott Free as a cool new hero to keep an eye on. If you want to read this issue, DC recently put out a trade collecting the entire Mister Miracle series. And Kirby's art is just...worthy of a King. It's powerful and dynamic, fun to look at.
Next time, we'll stay in the DC Universe as the Crisis on Infinite Earths rages on...
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