Throughout 2017 DC Comics will pay tribute to the great Jack Kirby with The Kamandi Challenge. This special miniseries, bursting with some of comics’ best creatives, will bring the long-dormant Kamandi comic series back in a very interesting manner.
If you’re not familiar with Kamandi then don’t worry. He’s a character who has seldom been used since the late 70’s, apart from the occasional reference over the years. That’s not to say that he’s bad, but by being so separate from the rest of the DC Universe he had fallen into obscurity. Known as the “Last Boy on Earth”, this teenage boy lives in an alternative-future in which an event know as “The Great Disaster” turned the world to a more primitive state, but ruled by intelligent animals. The series, full of action and adventure, ran for 59 issues between 1972 and 1978. Of those 59 issues, Jack Kirby (the series creator) worked on the first 40.
While he many great creations, Kamandi is one of Jack Kirby’s most loved during his tenure at DC Comics. As a result, DC Comics will publish the Kamandi Challenge in 2017 – the year that would be his 100th birthday if he were still alive today. Kirby is one of the most loved comic book creators of all time, best known for creating many of Marvel’s classic heroes. Over at DC Comics he was given free-reign which allowed his creative juices to follow creating some of the wildest and creative comics of the time.
So, what makes the Kamandi Challenge a challenge? Well, it’s less of a challenge for the readers and more for the creators with the inclusion of an interesting premise. Over the space of 12 issues each issue will be made by a different creative team. They will end their allocated issue with a cliffhanger which the next team will have to resolve. As a result this series will be unpredictable as well as being big, fun and full of adventure.
So you can have everything in order I have created the The Kamandi Challenge Reading Guide. This simple guide gives you everything you need to know from release dates to creative teams and more.
What Do I Need To Read Beforehand?
Nothing.
But, if you want to get an idea of what Jack Kirby’s Kamandi was like before reading the Kamandi Challenge then DC has recently released The Kamandi Challenge Special one-shot. This reprints Kamandi #32 from 1975, which includes background on characters and a map of the world.
The Kamandi Challenge #1
Written by Dan Abnett and Dan Didio (Epilogue only). Art by Dale Eaglesham and Keith Giffen (Epilogue only).
Available January 25th.
The Kamandi Challenge #2
Written by Peter J. Tomasi. Art by Neal Adams.
Available February 22nd.
The Kamandi Challenge #3
Written by Jimmy Palmiotti. Art by Amanda Conner.
Available March 29th.
The Kamandi Challenge #4
Written by James Tynion. Art by Carlos D’Anda.
The Kamandi Challenge #5
Written by Bill Willingham. Art by Ivan Reis.
The Kamandi Challenge #6
Written by Steve Orlando. Art by Philip Tan.
The Kamandi Challenge #7
Written by Marguerite Bennett. Art by Dan Jurgens.
The Kamandi Challenge #8
Written by Keith Giffen. Art by Steve Rude.
The Kamandi Challenge #9
Written by Tom King. Art by Kevin Eastman.
The Kamandi Challenge #10
Written by Greg Pak. Art by Joe Prado.
The Kamandi Challenge #11
Written by Rob Williams. Art by Walter Simonson.
The Kamandi Challenge #12
Written by Gail Simone and Len Wein (Prologue only). Art by Ryan Sook and Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez (Prologue only).
Have Your Say!
Will you be reading the Kamandi Challenge? Let me know in the comments below or via Facebook or Twitter.
Have your say!