The Zeitgeist of Manly Do-Goodery: The Man of Bronze and DC's "First Wave"

His name is Clark. He’s got a Fortress of Solitude. Some consider him the world’s first superhero. But this ain’t Metropolis, boys and girls. Allow me to introduce you to the exploits of Clark Savage Jr., aka The Man of Bronze…but you can call him “Doc.” Since his inception as a pulp hero in 1933, the so-called Man of Bronze has appeared in hundreds of adventures in a variety of media, and is easily one of the most endearing (and enduring) characters in the four color pantheon. You want sidekicks? He’s got 5 (6 counting his damsel-in-distress cousin Pat). You want gadgets? Out of the way, Bruce Wayne.  Oh, and his brain trills when he thinks because he’s the pinnacle of human development. So you know, if you tried REAL REAL REAL hard, you could maybe be as cool as Doc Savage. But it’s unlikely.

So Doc, in all his torn cargo-shirted glory and his cronies are bursting forth this spring as part of the “First Wave” Line. Now, DC is awfully fond of it’s pocket universes and alternate earths, but as far as that kind of thing goes, you can’t go very wrong pairing such street-level classics as The Spirit and Batman with Doc, in my opinion. Brian Azzarello (“100 Bullets,” “Batman”) penned not only the one-shot “Batman/Doc Savage Special”, but is also handling the main “First Wave” book as well, and both pop with his characteristic knack for dialogue. And you know? Jungle Robots and a dual .45 weilding Year One style Batman? Good for the soul. Were that not enough Doc gets his own book, this one helmed by Paul Malmont, who has a penchant for pulpy goodness (‘The Chinatown Death Cloud Peril,” “Jack London in Paradise”). Based on issue #1, which is burdened with introducing Doc’s supporting cast as well as introducing a tangential set of events to those featured in the “First Wave” book is a little uneven, and I’m curious to see where the book goes. But there is some solid action in those first few pages that left me wanting more, at the very least, and Howard Porter’s art suits Doc’s exploits and the scope of his world.

This isn’t his first time in DC Comics. As a matter of fact, DC is publishing not one but TWO compilations of Doc’s comic adventures, including Denny O’Neil’s “The Silver Pyramid” and reprints of material originally distributed by Marvel, if the cover on DC’s website is to be believed. There’s also talk of a new movie (here’s a peek at the old one)  from Columbia Pictures, but I’ll believe it when I see it. Why the overwhelming upswing in Doc Savage’s visibility now? Hard to say, but it’s just as hard to deny his influence on the comics genre (homages of note: Alan Moore’s “Tom Strong” and Planetary’s Axel Brass), and if the Man of Bronze gets a few more minutes in the spotlight, that’s a-ok with me. Because really, who doesn’t enjoy good old fashioned two-fisted super science beat-em-ups?

Jungle Robots, that’s who.