MOVIE MUSINGS

A few days ago, I selected at random one of my many long boxes full of back issue comics. The comics in the box were arranged in alphabetical order and this box happened to begin with "K" comics. First up, several issues of KAMANDI, THE LAST BOY ON EARTH.

KAMANDI was edited, written and drawn by the immortal Jack Kirby (have I mentioned here before that he's my all-time favorite comic book creator?). When Kirby's Fourth World magnum opus was canceled, Kirby was still contractually obligated to provide DC Comics with a certain number of pages per month. To make up for the loss of NEW GODS and FOREVER PEOPLE and the soon to be canceled MISTER MIRACLE, Kirby delivered two brand new series, KAMANDI and THE DEMON while taking over the long running LOSERS series in OUR FIGHTING FORCES.

KAMANDI, which debuted in 1972, ran for 59 issues, before cancellation in 1978. Kirby was in complete control of the book for the first 37 issues. He illustrated scripts written by Gerry Conway in issues 38-40 before bowing out of DC Comics and returning to Marvel.

KAMANDI, is at first glance, a comic book derivative of the then popular PLANET OF THE APES film series. Yes, there are intelligent, talking apes in the series and most of the humans that Kamandi meets in his adventures can barely speak. But there's much more to this exhilarating science fiction adventure series than a mere riff on POTA.

 In the world A.D. (After the Great Disaster), Kamandi emerges from the safety of the Command-D bunker in New York City to find a landscape populated with intelligent, talking animals of all species. Many of them are hostile towards the young adventurer, but Kamandi establishes friendships with some of the animals including Dr. Canus (a dog) and Prince Tuftan (a tiger). He also encounters Ben Boxer, a human mutant who can transmute his body into atomic powered steel. There's more, much more in this wild and woolly comic book series that gets my highest recommendation. If you're a Kirby fan, you already know about the wonder and awe contained within these pages. If you're wondering what all the fuss over Kirby is about, check it out. KAMANDI is available in hardcover collections from DC Comics.

I'd really like to see this material adapted to the big screen. It would work on so many levels. There's disaster porn, a bizarre post apocalyptic landscape to explore, plenty of opportunities for CGI wonders of all shapes and sizes, a plucky young hero and his brave companions and mysteries to be solved.

Granted, DC hasn't fared so well with their cinematic universe so far. With the exception of WONDER WOMAN, all of the other DC Comics films of the past few years have all been met with shrugs and a general "meh" attitude. Can anyone really claim that SUPERMAN RETURNS, CATWOMAN, JONAH HEX, GREEN LANTERN, MAN OF STEEL, BATMAN VS. SUPERMAN: DAWN OF JUSTICE, SUICIDE SQUAD and JUSTICE LEAGUE were good movies? Granted, only the last four have taken place in a shared cinematic universe but even the most die hard DC comics fan has to admit that the movies, especially compared to the Marvel films, have been disappointments. In fact, it's on the small screen where DC has done the best job of bringing their characters to life in the shared "Arrowverse" consisting of ARROW, THE FLASH, SUPERGIRL and LEGENDS OF TOMORROW. And, while not part of the "Arrowverse" the new BLACK LIGHTNING series shows promise.

I propose that DC roll the dice and produce a KAMANDI film that stands on it's own. It doesn't have to be shoe-horned into any existing cinematic continuity. Just tell a rock 'em, sock 'em big screen SF adventure film on a par with the recent PLANET OF THE APES series: RISE OF THE PLANET OF THE APES, DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES and WAR FOR THE PLANET OF THE APES. We know that talking, intelligent apes can be done with breathtaking accuracy and believability. Let's see what the digital demons can do with some of Jack Kirby's most entertaining material.