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by Robert Greenberger
Black Lightning SC
Tony Isabella is a very talented writer who hasn’t written nearly enough comic book material. After beginning his profession in fandom and then marvel Comics, he moved over to DC Comics where he worked briefly on staff. While there, he conceived of the company’s first Black super-hero, Black Lightning, and finally, that initial run is being collected.
DC was slow to integrate their universe, adding Jackie Johnson to Sgt. Rock’s easy company in 1961, during the Civil Rights Movement. August Durant was the next significant player in 1968’s secret six just before Marv Wolfman and Len Wein tried to add Jericho, an African-American hero to teen Titans in 1969 before the story was scuttled (See Comic book artist #1 for the details). even after Mal Duncan finally joined the team later that year it was a while before the company’s management felt comfortable with spotlighting an African-American in his own title.
In 1977, Robert Kanigher, who already gave us Jackie and Mal, sold Editor Gerry Conway on a character named the Black Bomber. “The bomber was this racist soldier who participated in biological camouflage experiments during the Vietnam War. He was given drugs to enable him to blend in to the jungles of Southeastern Asia. However, the test yielded no discernable effects and was pronounced a failure. America lost the war, and the bomber came home. but now, in times of stress, the soldier’s body would undergo an amazing change. He would transform into a figure of super-human strength,” Isabella wrote in The Comics Buyer’s guide #921, and 1093.
Conway returned to marvel and the series was in limbo until Paul Levitz suggested Isabella revamp the idea. He read Kanigher’s two scripts and chose he needed to start from scratch. He went with Jefferson Pierce, a former Olympian, now working in Metropolis’ suicide Slum to make it a better place. When it became clear that organized crime, run by Tobias Whale, was beyond local law-enforcement, Pierce developed a lightning-generating belt, asked tailor Peter Gambi (whose brother Paul developed all of the rogues of central City’s outfits) to help him design an outfit, and hit the streets as Black Lightning.
The series was rapidly sold and fourteen year old wunderkind artist Trevor Von Eeden made his debut with the book. It ran 11 issues prior to the DC Implosion and the character remained a important part of the DCU ever since.
Black Lightning #10
Isabella and DC, though, had a falling out mostly over his feeling the company did not honor a distinct ownership agreement in the early days of Jenette Kahn’s tenure as publisher. He wrote on his blog, “In my case, my creation of Black Lightning was not work-for-hire. I created the character and formed a partnership with DC Comics. That DC violated that partnership agreement is the major bone of contention between me and the company. Back in 1976, I thought the agreement was fair for both DC and myself. I still feel that way and would honor it today…if DC would honor it.”
Since then, Isabella has been very vocal at what he felt was a systematic effort to decrease the character and his participation in profiting from his exploitation in animation, games, and other merchandise.
That bitterness evaporated in June when Geoff Johns reached out to Isabella and began an overdue dialogue. That has resulted in the compilation now available.
“As of my last conversation with them, my understanding is that the book will contain Black Lightning #1-11 from the first series. It will also include the Denny O’Neil/Mike Nasser story scheduled for issue #12. That story was included in Cancelled Comics Cavalcade and also published in an issue of World’s Finest,” he wrote on his blog in July. “I’m alright with the inclusion of the non-Isabella stories in Black Lightning volume One because I appreciate a fan’s desire to have the entire run in one book and also because I don’t want to deny Denny O’Neil, Trevor Von Eeden and Mike Nasser whatever royalties they’ll receive from the reprinting of those stories.”
So, what’s in here to read? The first eight issues, much more or less, comprise the origin and first adventure for Black Lightning as he concerns recognize the risk of the 100 (an organization created in the Superman family of titles, right away connecting Pierce to the DCU) and their local leader, Whale. The second issue adds in Merlyn and Talia from the league of Assassins.
Black Lightning #4
It takes four issues, but finally Black Lightning meets the Metropolis Marvel, after setting up Clark Kent’s awareness of his activities in issue 3. They come to an understanding, of course, because their goals are mostly the same with Lightning looking after those Superman is too busy for. After their two-issue team-up, Isabella introduces Syonide, a costumed villain to really challenge Black Lightning. all of which leads to the climactic confrontation with Whale in issue #8.
The second phase of the series kicks off with a new foe, the Annihilist, looking a bit like Deathlok and combating for a cause like Marvel’s Firebrand, he didn’t pose too much of a threat. Instead, #10’s Trickster appearance shown much more challenging, complicated by the arrival of a wanna-be hero, a shield-carrying dude named Jocko.
The final issue came from Denny O’Neil and then the series was canceled. It ought to be noted that the first two issues were inked by Frank Springer who did a good job with Von Eeden’s early pencils. He was replaced by Vince Colletta who masked some of the penciller’s developing talent.
This overdue collection is well worth a look at a time when DC was finally stretching its creative wings and was welcoming to new talents and characters.
Purchase
Black Lightning SC
Classic covers from the Grand Comics Database.