Tuesday, June 15, 2010

Little Soldier Syndrome!


The double-page spread above is from Joe Simon's and Jack Kirby's Win a Prize comics, a very brief two-issue run from Charlton. I like Gullivar images when I come across them, and this is a great one.


It's from issue one I think.

Jack Kirby though was really intrigued by this idea of an army of tiny soldiers. He popped it up a few times later that I know of in his independent work.


The first time I saw the concept from him were the "Scrapper Troopers" in The Adventures of Jimmy Olsen, debuting in issue #136 of that run.



These little fellows were clones of the original Newsboy Legionnaire Scrapper, but had intentionally been made pint sized for strategic purposes.


The idea shows up again in Kirby's work in Captain Victory and the Galactic Rangers from Pacific Comics. This time the little soldiers are called "Micro Troops". That's one of my favorite Kirby covers, it's so wacky.

Kirby wasn't a tall fellow by any means, so perhaps that explains his fascination with tiny but ferocious warriors.

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1 comment:

  1. Kirby's use of mini-soldiers is one of those recurring themes that hardcore Kirby fans like us love to analyze and dissect...but having heard endless theories over the years, I think you may just have found the real explanation!

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