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Miracleman (Michael ("Micky" / "Mike") Moran), originally known as Marvelman, is a
fictional Fiction is any creative work, chiefly any narrative work, portraying individuals, events, or places Place may refer to: Geography * Place (United States Census Bureau), defined as any concentration of population ** Census-designated place, ...
superhero A superhero or superheroine is a stock character that typically possesses ''superpowers'', abilities beyond those of ordinary people, and fits the role of the hero, typically using his or her powers to help the world become a better place, ...
appearing in comic books first published by L. Miller & Son, Ltd. Created in 1954 by writer-artist Mick Anglo for publisher L. Miller & Son as a United Kingdom home-grown substitute for the American character Captain Marvel, the original series ran until 1963. It was revived in 1982 in a dark, post-modern reboot by writer Alan Moore, with later contributions by
Neil Gaiman Neil Richard MacKinnon GaimanBorn as Neil Richard Gaiman, with "MacKinnon" added on the occasion of his marriage to Amanda Palmer. ; ( Neil Richard Gaiman; born 10 November 1960) is an English author of short fiction, novels, comic books, gr ...
.


Publication history


The Mick Anglo years

In 1953, the American company Fawcett Comics, which was the US publisher of '' Captain Marvel'', discontinued the title because of a lawsuit from DC Comics. Len Miller and his company L. Miller & Son, Ltd. had been publishing black-and-white reprints of the series, along with other Fawcett titles, in the UK. Rather than stopping, he turned to comic packager Mick Anglo for help continuing or replacing the comic. They transformed Captain Marvel into Marvelman while Miller continued his other Fawcett reprint titles and used logos and trademarks that looked significantly like Fawcett's. This added to the appearance that the Fawcett line was continuing, and that Marvelman was still Captain Marvel, in order to retain the audience. Marvelman was similar to Captain Marvel: a young reporter named Micky Moran encounters an astrophysicist, instead of a wizard, who gives him superpowers based on atomic energy instead of magic. To transform into Marvelman, he speaks the word "Kimota", which is phonetically "atomic" backwards, rather than "Shazam". Instead of Captain Marvel Jr. and Mary Marvel, Marvelman was joined by Dicky Dauntless, a teenage messenger boy who became Young Marvelman, and young Johnny Bates, who became Kid Marvelman; both of their magic words were "Marvelman". ''Captain Marvel'' #19 and ''Captain Marvel, Jr.'' #19 announced the forthcoming replacement of these heroes, and with issue number 25 of each title (both cover-dated 3 February 1954), they were retitled as ''Marvelman'' and ''Young Marvelman''. ''Marvelman Family'' was added to the lineup two years later. Among the studio artists Anglo assembled to produce the comics were Denis Gifford and Don Lawrence. ''Marvelman'' and ''Young Marvelman'' each had 346 issues (#25–370), published weekly, except for the final 36 issues, which were monthly, reprinting old stories. ''Marvelman Family'' was a monthly that usually featured Marvelman, Young Marvelman and Kid Marvelman together, from October 1956 to November 1959. A variety of ''Marvelman'' and ''Young Marvelman'' albums were printed annually from 1954 to 1963. Mick Anglo's association with Len Miller ended in 1960. A disgruntled Anglo then recycled some of his Marvelman stories as ''Captain Miracle'', published under his Anglo Comics imprint, which folded in 1961. Anglo always claimed ownership of Marvelman, and although creator's rights were almost unheard of in the British comics industry of the 1950s and 1960s, at least some of Anglo's Marvelman stories do have a tiny "© Mick Anglo" in the margins, lending a measure of credibility to Anglo's claim. At the height of their success, the British "Marvels" saw a series of Italian reprints. Gordon and Gotch, one of Australia's largest comics publishers, also published reprint editions. In Brazil, British Marvelman stories were reprinted in the same titles as Fawcett's original Captain Marvel. However, in Brazil, Marvelman became Jack Marvel. Though the Marvelman titles were successful for a considerable time, this changed abruptly in 1959 when changes in British law allowed comics to be imported from the US.Chibnall, Steve. "The Sign of the Tee Pee: The Story of Thorpe & Porter," ''Paperback, Pulp and Comic Collector'' Vol. 1: "SF Crime Horror Westerns & Comics" (Wilts, UK: Zeon Publishing / Zardoz Books, 1993), pp. 16–29
Archived
at Box.com. Retrieved 28 December 2020.
The black-and-white Marvelman books were unable to compete with the full color imports, forcing Miller to cancel ''Marvelman Family'', downgrade the other two titles to monthly status, and use reprinted adventures for their content. The two series survived until 1963, when Miller filed for bankruptcy. The company ceased publishing altogether in 1966.


The Alan Moore years


Marvelman (in ''Warrior'')

A new British monthly black-and-white anthology comic, '' Warrior'', was launched in March 1982. Editor/publisher Dez Skinn had decided from the beginning to revive Marvelman as one of its features, explaining: Skinn's first two choices to write Marvelman were Steve Parkhouse and Steve Moore. Both expressed a lack of interest, and when Moore told Skinn that his friend Alan Moore (no relation to Steve) would "give his
eye teeth In mammalian oral anatomy, the canine teeth, also called cuspids, dog teeth, or (in the context of the upper jaw) fangs, eye teeth, vampire teeth, or vampire fangs, are the relatively long, pointed teeth. They can appear more flattened however, ...
" to write Marvelman, Skinn agreed to let him submit a pitch for the series. Skinn's first picks for artist were Dave Gibbons and
Brian Bolland Brian Bolland (; born 26 March 1951)Salisbury, Mark, ''Artists on Comic Art'' (Titan Books, 2000) , p. 11 is a British comics artist. Best known in the United Kingdom as one of the definitive Judge Dredd artists for British comics anthology '' 2 ...
, but again both declined, leaving Skinn to reluctantly give the assignment to Garry Leach, the one artist he could find with interest in the project. Leach used actor
Paul Newman Paul Leonard Newman (January 26, 1925 – September 26, 2008) was an American actor, film director, race car driver, philanthropist, and entrepreneur. He was the recipient of numerous awards, including an Academy Award, a BAFTA Award, three ...
as the model for his rendition of Marvelman. ''Warrior'' featured a new, darker version of Marvelman, written by Alan Moore, illustrated by Garry Leach (soon replaced by
Alan Davis Alan Davis (born 18 June 1956) is an English artist and writer of comic books, known for his work on titles such as ''Captain Britain'', ''The Uncanny X-Men'', ''ClanDestine'', ''Detective Comics'', ''Excalibur'', '' JLA: The Nail'' and '' JLA: ...
when Leach's laborious and perfectionist approach threatened deadlines), and lettered by
Annie Parkhouse Annie Parkhouse (née Halfacree) has been one of the leading letterers in British comics for over 30 years. Biography Beginning her career working on '' Lion'' for IPC magazines, she has since provided dialogue for many DC Comics titles and '' ...
. In the first issue of ''Warrior'', Michael Moran is presented as married, plagued by
migraine Migraine (, ) is a common neurological disorder characterized by recurrent headaches. Typically, the associated headache affects one side of the head, is pulsating in nature, may be moderate to severe in intensity, and could last from a few hou ...
s, having dreams of flying, and unable to remember a word that had such significance in his dreams. In his initial run of Marvelman stories, Moore touches on many themes of his later work, including the superhero as a source of terror, the sympathetic villain and exploring the mythology of an established fictional character. ''Warrior'' published a ''Marvelman Special'' collecting Mick Anglo stories within a frame story by Moore. The former Atlas Comics, renamed Marvel Comics shortly before the original ''Marvelman'' was cancelled, objected to the use of the word Marvel in the series title. This was used as the publisher's official explanation for why Marvelman ended on a cliffhanger with ''Warrior'' #21 (August 1984) while the anthology itself went on for another five issues, but the actual reason was a series of bitter financial arguments between Skinn and Moore. With the series discontinued, Skinn licensed the material to American publishers, first to Pacific Comics, and after Pacific's collapse, to Eclipse Comics.


Name change to Miracleman

In August 1985, Eclipse began reprinting the Marvelman stories from ''Warrior'', coloured and re-sized. They were renamed and re-lettered throughout as ''Miracleman'' to avoid further problems with Marvel Comics. Issues 1–6 reprinted all the ''Warrior'' content, after which Eclipse began publishing new Miracleman stories from Moore and new artist Chuck Beckum (now known as Chuck Austen), soon replaced by Rick Veitch and then John Totleben. Eclipse split the rights to the character, with 2/3 going to Eclipse and 1/3 split between the current writer and artist of the series. Moore wrote the series until issue 16. A glimpse of how Moore originally meant the story to continue is presented in ''Warrior'' issue 4 (also called the ''Warrior Summer Special''), which features Marvelman and Aza Chorn gathering energy for the final battle with Kid Marvelman.


The Neil Gaiman years

Miracleman was a featured character in the mini-series '' Total Eclipse'' (1988–89). "Screaming", a short story by
Neil Gaiman Neil Richard MacKinnon GaimanBorn as Neil Richard Gaiman, with "MacKinnon" added on the occasion of his marriage to Amanda Palmer. ; ( Neil Richard Gaiman; born 10 November 1960) is an English author of short fiction, novels, comic books, gr ...
and Mark Buckingham, appeared in ''Total Eclipse'' #4. This was Gaiman's first published Miracleman story. This story was reprinted in issue #21 and in "The Golden Age" trade paperback. Gaiman and Buckingham picked up the series at #17, which was published in June 1990. Three volumes were planned, consisting of six issues each: "The Golden Age," "The Silver Age" and "The Dark Age." "The Golden Age" showed the world some years later: a utopia gradually being transformed by alien technologies, and benignly ruled by Miracleman and other parahumans, though he has nagging doubts about whether he has done the right thing by taking power. Gaiman's focus in "The Golden Age" is less the heroes themselves than the people who live in this new world, including a lonely man who becomes one of Miraclewoman's lovers, a former spy (whose tale recalls J. G. Ballard's short story "War Fever"), and several duplicates of Andy Warhol. Eclipse followed up "The Golden Age" by publishing the standalone, three-issue mini-series ''Miracleman: Apocrypha'', written and illustrated by a variety of other creators, with framing pages by Gaiman and Buckingham. These stories did not form part of the main narrative, but instead further fleshed out the world of "The Golden Age". Two issues of "The Silver Age" appeared, but Eclipse went bankrupt in 1994, ceasing publication of Miracleman with issue #24. Issue #25 was completed but never published. Gaiman had approved a spin-off series, ''Miracleman: Triumphant'', written by Fred Burke, penciled by Mike Deodato Jr and inked by
Jason Temujin Minor Jason Temujin Minor is an American artist, writer, and comic book artist. Biography Artist Jason Temujin Minor has worked in the Graphic Arts field for over twenty years. He attended the Joe Kubert School of Cartoon and Graphic Art in 1990 and s ...
. Most of the first issue of ''Miracleman: Triumphant'' was complete and ready for printing, and the second was scripted, but like ''Miracleman'' #25, the two issues remained in publishing limbo after Eclipse collapsed. Issues #23 and #24 saw the resurrection of Young Miracleman and described the beginnings of trouble in Miracleman's idyllic world. A few pages of issue #25 were leaked to various websites, and appear in George Khoury's book ''Kimota! The Miracleman Companion''. "The Dark Age" would have seen the full return of Kid Miracleman and completed the story.


Ownership battle

In 1996, Todd McFarlane purchased Eclipse's creative assets, including the purported Miracleman rights, for a total of $25,000. In 2001, McFarlane said that he owned all rights related to Miracleman, dismissing Neil Gaiman's claims of co-ownership, and announced that the character would appear in '' Hellspawn''. McFarlane introduced Mike Moran (Miracleman's alter ego) in ''Hellspawn'' #6, with the alleged intention of returning Miracleman himself in ''Hellspawn'' #13. McFarlane included Miracleman in his section of what was then the long-delayed Image 10th Anniversary Book. He released a Miracleman cold-cast statue as well as a scale action figure that was partnered with Spawn in a San Diego Comicon exclusive two-pack. It had been McFarlane's intention to use the character in his core title. Since the Hardcover story became a direct tie-in to the events of ''Spawn'' #150 and beyond, Miracleman was changed into a mysterious new character known as the
Man of Miracles ''Man of Miracles'' is the fourth album by Styx, released on November 8, 1974. This would be the band's last original album on the independent Chicago-based label Wooden Nickel Records before moving to the major label A&M. Background The ...
. His appearance as Miracleman is explained by Man of Miracles' ability to shape-shift and the fact that people see him as they wish. In 2001, Gaiman formed Marvels and Miracles LLC, a company whose goal was to clear up the ownership of Miracleman long-term. In 2002 Gaiman sued McFarlane over his unauthorised use of Miracleman and the characters he had created for ''Spawn''. According to Gaiman, the evidence presented in the course of the lawsuit revealed that the rights for Miracleman were not included in McFarlane's purchase of Eclipse Comics assets. Also in 2002, Gaiman wrote the ''
1602 Events January–June * January 3 – Battle of Kinsale: The English defeat Irish rebels and their Spanish allies. (The battle happens on this date according to the Gregorian calendar used by the Irish and Spanish but on Thursday, 24 Dec ...
'' series for Marvel. Gaiman's profits from this series went to Marvels and Miracles LLC to aid his legal fight over Miracleman. Gaiman's dedication in the collected editions of ''1602'' reads, in part, "To Todd, for making it necessary". It emerged in 2009 that original creator Mick Anglo had retained the rights to Marvelman from the beginning, meaning that the purchase of those rights by Quality Communications, Eclipse and McFarlane was illegitimate. At the San Diego Comic Con in 2009, Marvel Comics announced they had purchased the rights to Marvelman, "one of the most important comic book characters in decades", from Mick Anglo. In June 2010, a "Marvelman Classic Primer" one-shot was published, featuring new art and interviews with Mick Anglo and others involved in Marvelman's history. In July 2010, a new ongoing series called ''Marvelman Family’s Finest'' launched reprinting "Marvelman’s greatest adventures." A hardcover reprint edition, ''Marvelman Classic Vol. 1'', was released in August 2010. These reprints contain only early material. Alan Moore has stated that he would donate some of his royalties from any Marvel reprints of his Marvelman stories to Mick Anglo.


Marvel Comics

At New York Comic Con 2013, Marvel announced that they had solidified their rights to Miracleman and that Neil Gaiman would finish the story he had started 25 years earlier. The series adopted a giant-sized format, with each issue containing a reprint of the corresponding issue of the Eclipse Comics series, reprints of select Mick Anglo Marvelman stories, and non-fiction material such as essays, photos and Marvelman design sketches. The first issue, reprinting the recolored and relettered stories from ''Warrior'' #1 & 2/''Miracleman'' #1, was released on January 15, 2014. The reprints continued, collecting remastered and recolored work of the original run, with hardcover collections following. In September 2014, the first new Miracleman material under the Marvel Comics banner was announced. Featuring a 'lost' story that was written in the 1980s by Grant Morrison, and illustrated in 2014 by Joe Quesada, it was joined by a brand new story by Peter Milligan and Mike Allred. The reprints proceeded through #16 when the series was retitled ''Miracleman: The Golden Age'', which reprinted issues 17–22. ''Miracleman by Gaiman & Buckingham: The Silver Age'' issues 1 to 3 were announced for release in 2017 but those solicitations were cancelled shortly thereafter. At the 2018 San Diego Comic Con at a retailer only event Marvel announced legal hurdles causing the cancellation had been resolved and the new series was supposed to begin publication in 2019 with the previously announced creative team of Gaiman and Buckingham on board. On December 29, 2021, the ''Timeless'' one-shot was released, featuring the Miracleman "MM" logo on the final page. Later ads by Marvel confirmed that Miracleman would appear in the Marvel universe going forward. On June 24, 2022, Marvel Comics announced that Neil Gaiman and Mark Buckingham would complete ''Miracleman: The Silver Age'', beginning in October of the same year. "We're back! And after thirty years away it is both thrilling and terrifying,” Buckingham said. “Neil and I have had these stories in our heads since 1989 so it is amazing to finally be on the verge of sharing them with our readers." ''Miracleman: The Silver Age'' issues 1 & 2 shipped in October and November 2022 respectively, with issue 3, which will contain the story originally planned for issue 25 in 1993, scheduled to ship December 28, 2022. All three issues feature new art by Buckingham but the original plots created by Gaiman in 1993.


Fictional character biography


Alan Moore version

Michael Moran is working as a freelance reporter when he gets caught up in a terrorist raid on a new atomic power plant. Seeing the word "atomic" backwards ("cimota") while he was carried past a door with the word written on glass, he remembers the word "Kimota"; Marvelman is reborn and saves the day. As Marvelman, Moran remembers his early life as a superhero, and explains to his wife Liz that he lost his memories when all of the Marvelman family were caught in an atomic explosion. Marvelman's reappearance catches the attention of Johnny Bates ( Kid Marvelman), who not only survived, but lived on with his memories and superpowers intact. Bates, however, was corrupted by his power and became a bitter sociopath. After a brutal confrontation, Kid Marvelman says his magic word ("Marvelman") by mistake and reverts to his alter-ego, the 13-year-old Johnny Bates. The boy, innocent but aware of the evil he committed as Kid Marvelman, mentally recoils in shock and falls into a
catatonic state Catatonia is a complex neuropsychiatric behavioral syndrome that is characterized by abnormal movements, immobility, abnormal behaviors, and withdrawal. The onset of catatonia can be acute or subtle and symptoms can wax, wane, or change during ...
. With the aid of renegade British Secret Service agent Evelyn Cream, and after a short fight with a new British superhero called
Big Ben Big Ben is the nickname for the Great Bell of the Great Clock of Westminster, at the north end of the Palace of Westminster in London, England, and the name is frequently extended to refer also to the clock and the clock tower. The officia ...
, Marvelman makes his way to a top-secret military bunker. There, he discovers the remains of an alien spacecraft and two non-human skeletons fused together. Marvelman views a file that reveals his entire experience as a superhero was a simulation as part of a military research project, codename "Project Zarathustra", attempting to enhance the human body using the alien technology. Moran and the other subjects had been kept unconscious, their minds fed with stories and villains plucked from comic books (which comprised the original stories) by the researchers, for fear of what they could do if they awoke. As a result, it was decided that the project was to be terminated, and so were Marvelman and his two companions: in a final, real adventure they were sent into a trap where a nuclear device was meant to annihilate them. Moran survived, his memory erased, and Young Miracleman died. In the meantime, it's revealed that Liz had conceived a child with Marvelman, which has the potential of being the first naturally-born superhuman on Earth. In issue #21 of ''Warrior'', Moran meets his dream-world nemesis Dr. Gargunza (loosely based on
Doctor Sivana Doctor Thaddeus Bodog Sivana is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by Bill Parker (comics), Bill Parker and C. C. Beck, the character is a recurring enemy of the superhero Captain Marvel (DC Comics), C ...
). In "reality", Gargunza was the scientific genius behind the experiment that created Marvelman. Gargunza, after working as a geneticist for the
Nazis Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Na ...
, had been recruited by the British after World War II. Unable to keep pace with the U.S. and Soviet nuclear arms race, the British had backed Gargunza to use genetics to develop a new superweapon. By coincidence, an alien spacecraft crashed in the UK around 1947 and Gargunza was able to reverse-engineer enough technology to create the Marveldog. The alien technology, and thus the Zarathustra project, consisted of growing an advanced second body, which was stored in an extradimensional pocket of space when not in use. When a special word was spoken, the two bodies switched place in space and the consciousness was transferred. After the project's cancellation, Gargunza escaped to South America. It's revealed that Gargunza has a deeper purpose: after the death of his mother, he has a mortality complex and intends that the child of Marvelman will host his own consciousness. Moran's daughter is born in ''Miracleman'' #9 (which became controversial due to a highly graphic birth scene, based on medical illustrations of the process); two races of aliens, one called Warpsmiths, the other called ''Qys'' (who were behind the original body-swapping technology) come to Earth;
Miraclewoman Miraclewoman (also known as Avril Lear) is a superheroine appearing in the Eclipse Comics comic book '' Miracleman''. Created by Alan Moore, the character first appeared in ''Miracleman'' #10 (September 2014). Fictional character biography Mira ...
emerges; and certain native super-humans are revealed to already be living on Earth, such as Firedrake. Now out of his catatonia, the small and spindly Johnny Bates is repeatedly beaten by older bullies at his group home. When one of them goes so far as to try to rape him, Johnny transforms into Kid Miracleman and unleashes a murderous holocaust on London. When the Miracles discover what is happening, they and their alien allies collectively challenge Bates. One of the Warpsmiths, Aza Chorn, realizes that they cannot go through Bates' personal force field, and instead teleports some wreckage into his body, forcing him to transform into his mortal form to escape the horrific pain. His rampage is stopped, but Bates kills Aza Chorn as his last act. Unwilling to risk another chance for repeating this horror and out of mercy for his former charge, Miracleman quietly kills Johnny Bates, knowing that it is the only way to be certain it will never happen again. The heart of London, however, has been destroyed, 40,000 people are dead, Aza Chorn lies dead, and the world now knows that gods walk among them. Moore's last issue, number 16 ("Olympus") ends with a depiction of Miracleman's
apotheosis Apotheosis (, ), also called divinization or deification (), is the glorification of a subject to divine levels and, commonly, the treatment of a human being, any other living thing, or an abstract idea in the likeness of a deity. The term has ...
, as he and his superhuman allies bring the entire planet under their totalitarian control. Miracleman and his companions, explicitly compared to gods, now rule the planet as they see fit, though they are ineffectively opposed by groups such as an alliance of
Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...
and
Islamic Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God (or '' Allah'') as it was revealed to Muhammad, the mai ...
fundamentalists Fundamentalism is a tendency among certain groups and individuals that is characterized by the application of a strict literal interpretation to scriptures, dogmas, or ideologies, along with a strong belief in the importance of distinguishing ...
. The "age of miracles" is ostensibly benevolent, but in scenes such as the final conversation between Miracleman and Liz, Moore suggests that Miracleman has lost his humanity and that his utopia will ultimately be harmful to mankind. The issue ends with Miracleman sitting in Aza Chorn Memorial Park, thinking about everything that has happened in his life up to this point and wondering if he has done the right thing. Neil Gaiman's run begins with issue #17.


Reception


Volumes


''Warrior'' - 1982

Tim Callahan of '' Tor.com'' ranked the ''Marvelman'' stories from '' Warrior'' 3rd in their "10 Best Comics Written by Alan Moore" list, stating, "''Marvelman'' is based on a Captain Marvel analogue, with the cynicism of the 1980s and a dose of real-world logic smashed into its innocent shell. The opening few chapters provide a blueprint that revisionist superhero comics would follow forever after—the revelation that everything the hero thought he knew was wrong, and he may not even really be a hero to begin with—and the inky realism of Garry Leach’s drawings only helped Moore make his stand on behalf of smart, relevant, devastatingly powerful superhero comics. The fact that everyone who came after Moore took the faux-realism and the hyper-violence of ''Marvelman'' as its primary lesson isn’t Moore’s fault. He did it right, and they just missed the point." Jason Rhode of '' Paste'' ranked the ''Marvelman'' stories from '' Warrior'' 7th in their "10 Best Alan Moore Comics of All Time" list, asserting, "All Moore ever did was take comics seriously. Their premises, their possibilities, their audiences. It’s strange to say this about a man who got kicked out high school for dealing LSD, but nobody has ever been a more faithful student than Alan Moore. Imagine a radical doctor who made their patients immortal. That’s Moore. The story of Michael Moran, who remembers that he is a superman, begins as a whimsical take-off on Captain Marvel, and ends as the story of a living god. Along the way, Moore reckons with issues of morality, humanity and the fragility of our world. After ''Marvelman'', everything was possible."


''Miracleman'' - 2014

According to
Diamond Comic Distributors Diamond Comic Distributors, Inc. (often called Diamond Comics, DCD, or casually Diamond) is an American comic book distributor serving retailers in North America and worldwide. They transport comic books and graphic novels, as well as other po ...
, ''Miracleman'' #1 was the 23rd best selling comic book in January 2014. Corey Schroeder of '' Comic Vine'' gave ''Miracleman'' #1 a grade of 4 out of 5 stars, saying, "This issue really defines a “mixed bag” in terms of what you get. On the one hand, it’s very cool to see the original stories and, for me, very, very fascinating peering behind the curtain at exactly what went on behind the scenes with this character (the interview with Anglo by Joe Quesada is especially interesting, especially since very little of it focuses on the comic and a great deal focuses on the man himself) but I could see someone who couldn’t care less feeling like they’re paying extra for nothing. Buyer beware, in that case, but the core story here is as rock solid and resonant now as it was thirty years ago." Jesse Schedeen of '' IGN'' gave ''Miracleman'' #1 a grade of 7 out of 10, writing, "As long as you don't come into ''Miracleman'' immediately expecting the same caliber of work from Moore that he delivered on Watchmen or Swamp Thing, you'll find a thoughtful, intelligent look at a once-campy superhero. It's just a shame that Marvel insisted on cramming the issue with supplemental content and driving up the price accordingly. Wait for the trade, perhaps, but don't miss this chance to finally experience a classic."


''Miracleman'' - 2022

Sayantan Gayen of ''
CBR.com ''Comic Book Resources'', also known by the initialism CBR, is a website dedicated to the coverage of comic book–related news and discussion. History Comic Book Resources was founded by Jonah Weiland in 1995 as a development of the Kingdom Co ...
'' called ''Miracleman'' #0 a "shining example of the trajectory the franchise can head toward in the future," stating, "''Miracleman'' #0 is an anthology of stories and comic strips that bring together unique styles and sensibilities thanks to industry stalwarts, writers, and artists alike, who have come out to commemorate an important piece of comic book history. As brief as these tales are, they are remarkably bold and ambitious, making the most of their limited page counts. Some stories take Miracleman on a journey of death and rebirth, while others are bitter reunions in harsh environments. But whatever the situation, the limelight is always shining on the titular character and his chequered past." Joe Grunenwald of '' Comics Beat'' described ''Miracleman'' #0 as a "mixture of entertaining, thought-provoking, and just plain fun" asserting, "''Miracleman'' #0 is set up to be for everyone. Readers who aren’t familiar with the character can still enjoy the stories present on a surface level, while those who are aware of Miracleman and his history will appreciate the metatextual levels present in all of the offerings. And as an introduction to the actual Miracleman, Gaiman and Buckingham’s framing story presents a man, albeit one with god-like powers, who is essentially bored and looking for escape in fiction. Who can’t relate to that?"


Alternative versions

An alternative version of Marvelman is briefly seen in the British comic '' The Daredevils'' #7 (1983) (owned by Marvel UK) in the Captain Britain story. Actually called Miracleman (the first time the name was attached to the character), he is killed by
the Fury Fury or FURY may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Comics * ''Fury'' (2001 series) Fictional entities * Fury (DC Comics), the name of three characters * Fury (Marvel Comics), an android * Fury, in ''Power Rangers Dino Charge'' and ''Powe ...
. His junior partner, named 'Rick' and never explicitly identified as Young Miracleman, is married to the superheroin Captain UK, that world's Captain Britain. Rick is seen to be killed by the Fury, though he is rescued by Roma who goes back in time to save him and reunite him with his wife. The '' A1 Sketchbook'', released in late 2004 by Atomeka Press, included four Miracleman-related pin-ups (although the pin-ups were not labelled as Miracleman, likely to avoid further legal entanglements) by original Miracleman artist Garry Leach. A variant of the sketchbook was also produced, with a "Miracleman" front cover and "Kid Miracleman" back cover by Leach.


Collected editions


Eclipse

The Miracleman comics published by Eclipse were collected into a number of individual volumes in the 1990s. All of these books are currently
out of print __NOTOC__ An out-of-print (OOP) or out-of-commerce item or work is something that is no longer being published. The term applies to all types of printed matter, visual media, sound recordings, and video recordings. An out-of-print book is a book ...
. * ''Miracleman Book One: A Dream of Flying'', by Alan Moore, Garry Leach, Alan Davis. Collects ''Miracleman'' #1–3, (which in turn reprinted stories from ''Warrior'' #1–11). **Paperback: Eclipse Books, 1990. . **Hardcover: Eclipse Books, 1990. . * ''Miracleman Book Two: The Red King Syndrome'', by Alan Moore, Alan Davis, John Ridgeway, Chuck Beckum, Rick Veitch. Collects ''Miracleman'' #4–6, (which in turn reprinted stories from ''Warrior'' #12–21) and ''Miracleman'' #7, 9, and 10. 8, containing 1950s reprint material, was omitted **Paperback: Eclipse Books, 1990. . **Hardcover: Eclipse Books, 1991. . * ''Miracleman Book Three: Olympus'', by Alan Moore and John Totleben. Collects #11–16. **Paperback: Eclipse Books, 1991. . **Hardcover: Eclipse Books, 1991. . * ''Miracleman Book Four: The Golden Age'', by Neil Gaiman and Mark Buckingham. Collects #17–22, but does not contain the "Retrieval" storyline published in those issues. **Paperback: Eclipse Books, 1992. . **Paperback: HarperCollins, 1993. . * ''Miracleman: Apocrypha'', by various. **Paperback: Eclipse Books, 1992. .


Marvel

In August 2010 Marvel began reprinting the original Mick Anglo Marvelman and Young Marvelman stories, beginning with the character's first appearance in issue #25. Marvel began collecting their recolored reprints of the Miracleman comics originally published by Eclipse. Alan Moore was credited as "The Original Writer".


References


Further reading

*''The Origin of Marvelman'', by
Matthew H. Gore Matthew H. Gore (born 1962) is a British historian, popular culturist, and educator residing in Memphis, Tennessee. He is best known for his book ''The History of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church in Kentucky to 1988'' (2000), but has published ...
, ''Comic Book Marketplace'' #22 *''Boardman Comics Monographs #1: The Origin of Marvelman'', by
Matthew H. Gore Matthew H. Gore (born 1962) is a British historian, popular culturist, and educator residing in Memphis, Tennessee. He is best known for his book ''The History of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church in Kentucky to 1988'' (2000), but has published ...
, 48 pages,
Boardman Books T.V. Boardman, Ltd. (Boardman Books) was a London publishing houses that turned out both paperback and hardcover books, pulp magazines, and comic books. Founded by Thomas Volney Boardman in the 1930s, Boardman Books is best known for publishing ...
, 2006


External links


Why ''Miracleman'' Matters
by
Julian Darius Julian may refer to: People * Julian (emperor) (331–363), Roman emperor from 361 to 363 * Julian (Rome), referring to the Roman gens Julia, with imperial dynasty offshoots * Saint Julian (disambiguation), several Christian saints * Julian (gi ...

Reference article on Marvelman
by ''Encyclopædia Britannica''
Captain Marvel Culture
A history of the many Captain Marvels and their social and historical significance *

at the International Catalogue of Superheroes * * * {{GoldenAge 1954 comics debuts 1963 comics endings 1982 comics debuts British comics characters Comics by Neil Gaiman Comics characters introduced in 1954 Eclipse Comics superheroes Eclipse Comics titles Marvel Comics characters who can move at superhuman speeds Marvel Comics characters with superhuman strength Marvel Comics superheroes Marvel Comics telekinetics Marvel Comics telepaths Marvel Comics titles Fictional characters with energy-manipulation abilities Fictional characters with superhuman senses Horror comics Warrior characters Warrior titles