The Spirit
Suspended Animation Classic #60
Originally published February 18, 1990 (#7)
The Spirit
By Michael Vance
For more than 10 years, “The Spirit” comics tabloid was inserted every week into newspapers as their challenge to the increasing popularity of newsstand comic books.
Its seven page lead feature followed the adventures of Denny Colt who, as The Spirit, fought crime with his fists instead of super powers. “The Spirit” comic book now reprints four of these stories each month with historical insights supplied by Spirit creator, Will Eisner.
“The Spirit” is famous for the great diversity of its themes, genres, and story-telling methods. In the sixty-first issue, Denny Colt takes a vacation to Cape Cod and becomes embroiled in a kidnapping, and stops the theft of an industrial formula. He also follows the ‘life’ of a common coffee saucer, and uncovers the murder of a cartoonist by his assistant.
Eisner’s art is reminiscent of Disney’s best animation work of the 1930s and ‘40s. There is an added film noir quality that heightens its effectiveness through the use of black against white, and often odd scene angles. This art and Eisner’s visual story-telling techniques have strongly influenced generations of artists who’ve used “The Spirit” as a textbook.
Although limited by the feature’s seven page format, he is also adept at concentrated, clear plots and at creating well-defined and interesting characters. Eisner is particularly well known for his women villains, many of whom were visually based on famous actresses.
In fact, many consider Eisner to be one of the few geniuses of comics, and one of the first to believe comics an artform. Eisner, however, was not quite as innovative as held by critics. He is the first to admit heavy influences from earlier works including “Prince Valiant”, “Flash Gordon”, and “Terry and the Pirates”, all newspaper comic strips.
“The Spirit” does suffer from the formulas required to produce a weekly comic book for over a decade. But, taken in small doses, it’s an entertaining, even occasionally thought-provoking work that deserves to be read and enjoyed.
“The Spirit”/$2, 32 pages/Kitchen Sink Press/available in comic shops.
The Spirit
Suspended Animation Classic #60
Originally published February 18, 1990 (#7)
The Spirit
By Michael Vance
For more than 10 years, “The Spirit” comics tabloid was inserted every week into newspapers as their challenge to the increasing popularity of newsstand comic books.
Its seven page lead feature followed the adventures of Denny Colt who, as The Spirit, fought crime with his fists instead of super powers. “The Spirit” comic book now reprints four of these stories each month with historical insights supplied by Spirit creator, Will Eisner.
“The Spirit” is famous for the great diversity of its themes, genres, and story-telling methods. In the sixty-first issue, Denny Colt takes a vacation to Cape Cod and becomes embroiled in a kidnapping, and stops the theft of an industrial formula. He also follows the ‘life’ of a common coffee saucer, and uncovers the murder of a cartoonist by his assistant.
Eisner’s art is reminiscent of Disney’s best animation work of the 1930s and ‘40s. There is an added film noir quality that heightens its effectiveness through the use of black against white, and often odd scene angles. This art and Eisner’s visual story-telling techniques have strongly influenced generations of artists who’ve used “The Spirit” as a textbook.
Although limited by the feature’s seven page format, he is also adept at concentrated, clear plots and at creating well-defined and interesting characters. Eisner is particularly well known for his women villains, many of whom were visually based on famous actresses.
In fact, many consider Eisner to be one of the few geniuses of comics, and one of the first to believe comics an artform. Eisner, however, was not quite as innovative as held by critics. He is the first to admit heavy influences from earlier works including “Prince Valiant”, “Flash Gordon”, and “Terry and the Pirates”, all newspaper comic strips.
“The Spirit” does suffer from the formulas required to produce a weekly comic book for over a decade. But, taken in small doses, it’s an entertaining, even occasionally thought-provoking work that deserves to be read and enjoyed.
“The Spirit”/$2, 32 pages/Kitchen Sink Press/available in comic shops.