Since February is Black History Month, I thought it would be appropriate to give some spotlight to a Black superhero that has gotten a bit of a profile boost recently thanks to a certain TV show.
John Henry Irons was not the first superhero in the DCU to use the name "Steel", but he arguably is the most famous. The first superhero to use the name Steel was Henry "Hank" Heywood, a WWII-era superhero that first appeared in Steel: The Indestructible Man #1 (March 1978), created by Gerry Conway and Don Heck. This Steel, later referred to as Commander Steel, was briefly associated with the WWII-era superhero team the All-Star Squadron.
The second Steel was Hank Heywood III, the grandson of Commander Steel. Created by Conway and Chuck Patton, he debuted in Justice League of America Annual #2 (1984), this Steel was a member of the Justice League during its notorious "Detroit Era". Like his grandfather, he was a cyborg. And in Justice Society of America #1 (February 2007), Heywood III's cousin Nathan would become Citizen Steel. This version of Steel gained his powers when exposed to the blood of a Nazi supervillain.
John Henry Irons, the most famous Steel, is not connected to the Heywoods. He debuted in The Adventures of Superman #500 (June 1993). Created by Louise Simonson and Jon Bogdanove, the character drew some inspiration from the folk hero John Henry, like having a large hammer as his signature weapon. Early on, he was established as a construction worker in Metropolis who felt inspired to become a superhero after Superman's fatal battle against Doomsday, constructing his first suit of armor.
Irons would go on to be a long-time part of Superman's mythos. The character would also go on to join the Justice League under Grant Morrison's pen, as they wanted an Iron Man-type hero on the team (and in-universe, Batman felt that the team needed more brainy types to balance out the powerhouses). Steel would also go on to appear in media outside of comics, including an infamous 1997 film with basketball legend Shaquille O'Neil as Irons. Most recently, Wole Parks portrays him in Superman and Lois.
The comic we're looking at is the first issue of the Steel's ongoing comic from the 90s. The Hank Heywood Commander Steel did have his own comic in the 1970s, but it only lasted five issues. Irons's Steel series was significantly more successful, lasting 52 issues and two annuals from 1994-1998. So, with that out of the way, let's look at Steel #1!
The cover is a Jon Bogdanove, Dennis Janke, and Les Dorscheid piece. It's pretty good, if a bit basic. It shows our man John flying, with the Washington Monument behind it. It's a fairly standard first issue cover, showing who it's going to be about.
"Wrought Iron"
Writers: Louise Simonson, Jon Bogdanove
Penciler: Chris Batista
Inker: Rich Faber
Colorist: Gina Going
Letterer: Pat Brosseau
Editor: Frank Pittarese
The story begins in Washington DC. It's a bright sunny day in the United States' capitol city. And this story is going to have a very special brand-new resident as a bus pulls up to a station from Metropolis. The bus stops, and the passengers disembark. Among them is a rather large man.
Meet John Henry Irons. And he has come home. Our man John is met with a big enthusiastic hug from his niece Natasha. Yes, this issue is also the debut of Natasha Irons, who would in the future go on to fight crime as Steel herself. But that's years off. The bus explodes.
Yup, just decides to pull a big ol' kablooie.
The perpetrators are a group of gang members doing a drive-by. And they are armed with some very heavy artillery: The Toastmaster BG-80, a very powerful gun. This was why Steel had come here to Washington, DC. He wanted to trace these weapons to their source after he tried to remove them from Metropolis during his time operating there as the Man of Steel while Superman was supposedly dead. John leaps into action, tossing his heavy duffel bag at the gang members' car. The contents are heavy enough to not only dent the car, but also make it crash.
It also says a lot about how physically strong John is. The big man tries to interrogate the gang members, but he gets ambushed by another group of toughs.
These kids drink a substance that basically makes them into Hulks. Evidently, gamma radiation is a liquid in the DCU. Who knew?
The Toastmaster-wielders' weapons do little against the powerhouses. It's here we learn the substance they drink to make them into steroid monsters is called "Tar". John notices one of the fighting kids (neither using Tar nor wielding a Toastmaster) and recognizes him. He calls out to the boy, but gets knocked out.
John wakes up a while later. The fighting is over, and he's got his head bandaged up. The EMTs there compliment Nat's help, saying she has a future if she wants to be one. Even though Nat claims that John has a serious concussion, they decide to not go the hospital and head to his home.
Anyway, it's here we meet Steel's other family.
Meet his grandparents Bess and Butter, his sister-in-law Blondell, and his nephews and niece Darlene, Paco and Tyke. They're happy to see him, as according to the comic, he's been in hiding for five years. But John couldn't stay away from his family. Unbeknownst to them, a man makes a phone call, reporting that Steel is in town. The Irons family sit down for dinner together, revealing that they know that John has been adventuring around in his Superman-based suit of armor. It's here that John's nephew Jemahl returns home. Jemahl was the fleeing boy that John thought he saw earlier. He asks Bess if there's been any problems. Bess says that even though he's doing well in school, he likes to claim he's out studying even though he's out with friends. But that gets tabled when a bunch of armored goons burst in.
Unfortunately, they're not here because they want to try some Irons family home-cooking. They shoot at them, injuring Butter. John uses the dinner table as a shield so his family can flee. John realizes that they're from Amertek, his former employer. John tries to fight them, but they have armor, and he's got himself...and a frying pan from Bess. And the frying pan is all he needs. He manages to take town the Amertek goons easily.
John blames himself for this mess. As he sees this, his work in Amertek led to this entire mess. Bess tries to assure him, but he feels no better. He takes the Amertek goons' armor and makes the basement into a new workshop. It's then we learn what he kept in his bag: the remains of his old Steel armor, which had been destroyed during Superman's return.
Over the next few days, John gets to work, rebuilding his suit of armor. Bess notes that the new suit lacks the "S" icon from his original armor. John explains that his crusade against Amertek may have to cause him to go outside the law, and he doesn't want Superman's symbol to be tarnished that way. The story ends with him flying into action with a new look.
This comic…well, I enjoyed it. As a first issue, it does its job. It establishes John's new status quo for this series. He's situated in DC, and he is about to face another old demon from his past. And he even gets a nifty suit of armor. It also reinforces a theme of the character early on: redemption. John's work for Amertek in the past led to the Toastmasters being on the streets, used by kids to kill each other. And now that war is heading to his family's home. One can argue that there is some stereotyping going on with this story, and that's understandable. The theme of gangs and street violence in a comic with a Black lead...yeah, I can see why it would be seen as stereotypical at worst and cliche at best.
Chris Batista's art is nice...although he seems to think that John's abs can show through a t-shirt. I will admit, his art does seem a bit...cartoony for a story like this to me. I mean, if you're going to do a story of a superhero battling street gangs, I'd think a bit of a gritter art style would be appropriate.
I got the scans for this from the actual comic. I found it in the back issue bin of a comic shop. I know it was collected in a 1997 trade paperback Steel: The Forging of a Hero. I don't know if it was collected in any newer trades, sadly.
Thanks for reading this blog entry! If you liked it, show it off! Take care of yourselves and each other! Stay safe, stay healthy, stay home, wash your hands often, wear a mask, and get vaccinated! See you next time!
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