{"id":33508,"date":"2025-08-09T08:00:32","date_gmt":"2025-08-09T08:00:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/?p=33508"},"modified":"2025-08-08T12:55:12","modified_gmt":"2025-08-08T12:55:12","slug":"ka-zar-marvel-masterworks-volume-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/2025\/08\/09\/ka-zar-marvel-masterworks-volume-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Ka-Zar Marvel Masterworks volume 2"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\" \"\" \"\"
\nBy Mike Friedrich<\/strong>, Steve Gerber<\/strong>, Carol Seuling<\/strong>, Ross Andru<\/strong>, Don Heck<\/strong>, Dan Adkins<\/strong>, Jim Starlin<\/strong>, Marie Severin<\/strong>, Werner Roth<\/strong>, George<\/strong> Tuska<\/strong>, Paul Reinman<\/strong>, Mike Royer<\/strong>, Bob Brown<\/strong>, Sal Buscema<\/strong>, Gene Colan<\/strong> & various (Marvel)
\nISBN: 978-1-3029-0966-6 (HB\/Digital edition)<\/p>\n

This book includes Discriminatory Content<\/strong> produced in less enlightened times.<\/em><\/p>\n

There are quite a few comics anniversaries this year. Some of the most significant will be rightly celebrated, but a few are going to be unjustly ignored. As a feverish fanboy wedged firmly in the past, I\u2019m again abusing my privileges and advising an encounter with something old, nigh forgotten but definitely worth a soup\u00e7on of your time and energies\u2026<\/em><\/p>\n

IT\u2019S A JUNGLE OUT THERE! …and apparently everywhere else, too…<\/p>\n

Retconned from a pulp hero and latterly comics B-Lister from the early days of Timely comics, primal white jungle god Ka-Zar<\/strong> most accurately stems from 1965 where he stole the show in a dinosaurs & mutants yarn in X-Men<\/strong> #10.<\/p>\n

Beginning as a cheeky Tarzan<\/strong> tribute act relocated to a lost world in a realm of swamp-men and dinosaurs, Ka-Zar<\/strong> eventually evolved into one of Marvel\u2019s more complex – if variable – characters. Fabulously wealthy heir to one of Britain\u2019s oldest noble families, his bestest friend is \u201csabretooth tiger\u201d Zabu<\/em> and his wife is feisty environmental-crusader Shanna the She-Devil<\/strong>. His dad was apparently a mad scientist, his brother a homicidal super-scientific modern day pirate. Kevin Reginald, Lord Plunder<\/em> is perpetually torn between the clean life-or-death simplicity of the wilds and bewildering constant compromises of modern civilisation.<\/p>\n

The primordial paragon is arguably Marvel\u2019s oldest star, having begun life as a prose star, boasting three issues of his own pulp magazine between October 1936 and June 1937. They were authored by Bob Byrd – a pseudonym for publisher Martin Goodman or one of his retinue of staff writers. Goodman latterly shoehorned him into his speculative venture: new-fangled comic book Marvel Comics<\/strong> #1 (October 1939), where he lurked alongside fellow pulp line graduate The Angel<\/strong><\/em>, Masked Raider,<\/strong> Human Torch <\/strong>and Sub-Mariner<\/strong>\u2026<\/p>\n

In the sixties, when Ka-Zar reappeared he was all rowdy, reimagined and renovated by Jack Kirby for X-Men<\/strong> #10 (cover-dated March but actually on sale from January 5th<\/sup>), and it was clear the uncrowned Sovereign of the Savage Land was destined for bigger and better things. However, for years all we got was guest shots as a misunderstood foe du jour<\/em> for Daredevil<\/strong>, Sub-Mariner<\/strong>, Spider-Man<\/strong>, and The Hulk<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

In 1969 he got his shot as a lone wolf starring in Marvel Super-Heroes<\/strong>.<\/strong> Later that year – after Roy Thomas & Neal Adams used him so effectively in their X-Men<\/strong> run (issues #62-63) – Ka-Zar was awarded his own giant-sized title, reprinting most of his previous appearances. However, the reruns oddly bracketed all-new stories of Hercules<\/strong><\/em> and The Angel<\/strong><\/em> (<\/em>the new one from X-Men <\/strong>not the costumed detective of the 1940s<\/em>)<\/em>.<\/em> That same month, his first solo series began in a split book entitled Astonishing Tales<\/strong>\u2026<\/p>\n

Gathering material from Astonishing Tales<\/strong> #17-20, Shanna the She-Devil<\/strong> #1-5, Ka-Zar<\/strong> (volume 2) #1-5 and Daredevil<\/strong> #110-112, spanning cover-dates December 1972 through August 1974, this sequel compilation volume begins with reminiscences from Mike Friedrich and Carole Petersen-Sueling in two separate (but equal) Introductions<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Previously, Ka-Zar & Zabu\u2019s idyllically brutal lives hunting dinosaurs and battling aliens, gods, wizards and lost civilisations in the Savage Land had been turned on its head with the arrival of apparently irresistible S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Barbra \u201cBobbi\u201d Morse<\/em> (who becomes costumed spy\/Avenger Mockingbird<\/strong> many years from now) and aging biologist Dr. Wilma Calvin<\/em>. Their quest for a Super-soldier formula dragged the wild man across continents to Florida and into conflict with Advanced Idea Mechanics<\/em> (A.I.M.<\/em>), the Man-Thing<\/strong>, super-mercenary Gemini<\/em> and, on reaching New York City, drug lord dope peddler The Pusher…<\/em><\/p>\n

Increasingly enamoured of Morse, Ka-Zar opts to give the modern world another go, but increasingly comes to despise the greed, the dirt, the greed, the callous brutality and the sheer greed of civilisation, especially after encountering the drug crisis first hand…<\/p>\n

Culture clash conflict resumes with \u2018Target: Ka-Zar!\u2019<\/em> as crafted by Friedrich, Dan Adkins & Frank Chiaramonte for April 1973\u2019s Astonishing Tales<\/strong> #17. Here, the Jungle Lord\u2019s impatience and discontent are magnified when AIM again tries to snatch Calvin\u2019s prototype serum, employing gunmen on the ground and ultimately super-mercenary Gemini to humiliatingly grab the formula from S.H.I.E.L.D.\u2019s helicarrier and making Ka-Zar and Zabu look like idiots in the process…<\/p>\n

Pride stung and mad as hell, the wild man follows Gemini to earth and falls into an ambush laid by his brother Parnival<\/em> and backed up by his pet alien monster. Hired by AIM to secure the serum the Plunderer<\/em> has the upper hand when \u2018Gog Cometh!\u2019 <\/em>since the childlike colossus is lethally loyal and can teleport on command. He\/it is also growing larger every minute…
\n\"\"
\nThe saga spirals out of control as Ka-Zar wins a rematch with Gemini but loses the serum sample to The Plunderer who heads for Manhattan whilst in Land\u2019s End, England, another strand of the search for super-soldiers culminates with AIM scientist Professor Victor Conrad<\/em> surviving a gun battle with S.H.I.E.L.D. agents by taking his own medicine…<\/p>\n

Back in the USA, late-arriving Bobbi Morse and Zabu give the blonde barbarian a lift to Manhattan in time to channel the end of King Kong, as the ever-enlarging Gog runs amok with the local landmarks before confronting its destiny on top of the city\u2019s tallest building, even as, far below, the strictly human clashes result in triumph for the forces of right and wonders of chemistry…<\/p>\n

With the serum recovered and his honour upheld, the Noble Savage realises that – other than Bobbi – there is nothing about civilisation that please him, but as he ponders that and pines for the Savage Land, one last loose thread needs tying off as a new threat seizes control of AIM and seeks redress for past sins. Inked by Jack Abel, and with Jim Starlin stepping in to complete the episode begun by Adkins, AT<\/strong> #19 reveals \u2018…And Men Shall Name Him… Victorius!\u2019<\/em> as Conrad abducts agent Morse to obtain S.H.I.E.L.D.\u2019s version of the formula that made him an unstoppable warrior. When Ka-Zar & Zabu track him down he rejects taking the serum himself and attacks the scientist, Gemini and brother Parnival in all his purely human might and main\u2026<\/p>\n

Marie Severin, Werner Roth & Frank Giacoia wrap up the run as Astonishing Tales<\/strong> # 20 (October 1973) depicts \u2018The Final Battle!\u2019<\/em> before Ka-Zar returns to his (un)natural environment and a new solo title, pausing only to crush his assembled foes turn down a job with Nick Fury<\/strong> and briefly regret losing Bobbi to the Big City….<\/p>\n

Before that new beginning though, there\u2019s a slight chronological sidestep to introduce a soon-to-be-crucial character who came and went with little fanfare a few months previously. As the costumed cohort craze subsided with the close of the Sixties, Stan Lee & Roy Thomas looked into creating a girl-friendly boutique of female stars written by women.<\/p>\n

Opening shots in this act of liberation were Claws of the Cat<\/strong> by Linda Fite, Marie Severin & Wally Wood (who at least knew how to draw them) and Night Nurse<\/strong> by Jean Thomas & Win Mortimer. Both #1\u2019s were cover-dated November 1972 and despite impressive creative teams none of these fascinating experiments lasted beyond a fifth issue, although a third shot was kept from limbo by some judicious teamwork. The caregiver vanished for decades and the feline fury<\/strong> mutated into Tigra, the Were-Woman<\/strong> in Giant-Size Creatures <\/strong>#1 (July 1974), and even though their experimental comrade stuck around, the general editorial position was upheld… \u201cbooks starring chicks don\u2019t sell\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n

Contemporary jungle queen – possibly the last hurrah of an extremely popular genre subset in Fifties comic books – Shanna the She-Devil<\/strong> #1 was created by Carole Seuling, Steve Gerber & George Tuska, and on sale from 29th<\/sup> August with a December 1972 cover date.<\/p>\n

Inked by Vince Colletta, Shanna the She-Devil<\/strong> #1 debuted in a touching and troubled tale, detailing how the gun-hating daughter of Africa-based American game warden Gerald O\u2019Hara <\/em>became a vet in Manhattan. Wrapped in a contemporary framing sequence, \u2018Shanna the She-Devil!\u2019<\/em> recalls her origin whilst stalking ruthless poachers ravaging a game preserve in modern-day Africa.<\/p>\n

The clash and her capture prompt memories of how, decades previously, she had fled that verdant world of casual slaughter to save lives… and how a moment of casual atrocity by \u201cfun-loving\u201d American gun nuts in the zoo where she worked led to the death of all its big cats bar two panther cubs she saved and fled to Africa with…<\/p>\n

Recreating herself as guardian of nature, rearing the kittens Ina & Biri<\/em> and training her body to the peak of physical readiness and unarmed combat prowess, Shanna O\u2019Hara<\/em> became a legend to the local peoples, a trusted and valuable ally to game warden Patrick McShane<\/em> and a nemesis to all interlopers endangering the balance of nature or disrupting its uncompromising harmony…<\/p>\n

Two months later Sueling, Ross Andru & Colletta exposed \u2018The Sahara Connection!\u2019<\/em> as Shanna acquiesces to the desperate requests of S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Jakuna Singh<\/em> and uses her gifts and cats to crush drug-peddling human traffickers El Montano<\/em> and Abdullah<\/em> after which \u2018The Moon of the Fear-Bulls!\u2019<\/em> finds her fighting the murderous thralls of a lost Minoan colony sacrificing entire African villages to their lost gods and current chief Phobotauros<\/em>: a maniac with an unsavoury secret…<\/p>\n

Gerber scripted Seuling\u2019s plot for #4 as \u2018Cry… Mandrill!\u2019<\/em> introduced one of Marvel\u2019s wildest mutants. Searching for her vanished father, Shanna inadvertently unravels a conquest plot to subjugate three emerging African nations by the ape-visaged maniac with the power to control women – except apparently Shanna… usurped and captured, Mandrill scores one minor victory by admitting Gerald O\u2019Hara is his hostage…<\/p>\n

The series abruptly folded with #5 cover-dated August 1973, but as we\u2019ll see here later, the She-Devil carried on via judicious team-ups and eventually scored a continuance of solo sagas in matured-themed monochrome magazine Savage Tales<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Here and now, Gerber, Andru & Colletta reveal \u2018Where Nekra Walks – Death Must Follow!\u2019<\/em> as Jakuna Singh, S.H.I.E.L.D. and FBI agent Amos Duncan<\/em> request Shanna\u2019s participation in dismantling the still-active organisation of Mandrill\u2019s enthralled women: a task necessitating a quick consult with mutant advisor Professor Charles Xavier<\/em>…<\/p>\n

The trail then leads to barbarous ceremonies held by the villain\u2019s top subordinate, a brutal superstrong mutant who stokes hatred to feed on the emotion and augment her powers. Directing all her loathing at Shanna makes Nekra physically unbeatable, but being angry all the time is no help if your opponent can stay calm and clear-headed…
\n\"\"
\nCover dated January 1974, Ka-Zar <\/strong>#1, (volume 2, and on sale from September 25th<\/sup> 1973) boasted the adventurer\u2019s \u2018Return to the Savage Land!\u2019<\/em>, courtesy of Friedrich, Paul Reinman & Mike Royer, and teasingly saw Shanna in a cameo as the victim du jour.<\/p>\n

Being parachuted in by S.H.I.E.L.D. was the last modern convenience Kevin Plunder would stomach. Within minutes he was back battling behemoths in his furry underwear and announcing his return to all the primitive tribes, but Ka-Zar was blithely unaware that a new menace lurked. Evil necromancer Malgato, the Red Wizard<\/em> sought power and control and used the Jungle Lord\u2019s most despised enemy Maa-Gor the Man-Ape<\/em> to carry out his schemes. These almost come together after a brief history of Ka-Zar\u2019s kingdom, when a pteranosaur ambush leads to our stalwart hero being held for sacrifice beside a strikingly beautiful red-headed woman in a leopard-skin bikini…
\n\"\"
\nDon Heck & Jack Abel limned the catastrophic conclusion and \u2018The Fall of the Red Wizard!\u2019<\/em> as faithful Zabu comes to the rescue, unleashing utter chaos, routing the wizard and latterly proving the mage and his mission were never what they seemed…<\/p>\n

Issue #3 played out on the \u2018Night of the Man-God!\u2019<\/em> as Maa-Gor, humiliated again by the puny human, undertakes a trek to the mutagenic Region of Mists and gets boosted far up the evolutionary ladder. Transformed into a telepathic wonder, he still clings to his hatred of Ka-Zar and psychically connects to old X-Men villain El Tigre<\/em>, drawing him to the Savage Land to trap his foe. The ambush succeeds, but only until Bobbi Morse shows up intent on settling unresolved issues. Battling the villains and stopping Man-God\u2019s plans to despoil the wild sanctuary is a welcome break for both unhappy lovers but the battle carries over into #4, albeit broken here by a fabulous maps section entitled \u2018Ka-Zar Presents The Savage Land\u2019<\/em>…<\/p>\n

Plotted by \u201cBullpen West\u201d, written by Friedrich and illustrated by Heck & Royer, \u2018Into the Shadows of Chaos!\u2019<\/em> sees Ka-Zar and all his allies crushed as the Man-God broadcasts global threats of extinction, before distracting himself by resurrecting his dead Man-Ape kin to destroy his most despised foe. The issue concludes with a Royer pin-up of \u2018Ka-Zar\u2019s Lair!\u2019 <\/em>before Mike Esposito inks the epic downfall of the monster in #5\u2019s \u2018A Man-God Unleashed!\u2019 <\/em>wherein a desperate Jungle monarch – and Bobbi – trash the anthropoidal zombies and Maa-Gor falls victim to his own doubts…<\/p>\n

Ka-Zar would soon experience a complete change of outlook and genre, but the saga of Shanna and Mandrill carried on in series scripted by Gerber. Here, an excerpt from Daredevil <\/strong>#109 and longer extract from Marvel Two-in-One<\/strong> #3, bring DD<\/strong>, Black Widow<\/strong>, The Thing<\/strong> and, briefly, Captain America<\/strong> into the ongoing war with a sinister terrorist group…<\/p>\n

In DD <\/strong>#109 (by Gerber, Bob Brown & Heck), Foggy Nelson<\/em>\u2019s radical student sister Candace<\/em> tells Matt Murdock<\/em> of a plot by criminal gang Black Spectre<\/em> to steal government printing plates. En route to stop the raid the Scarlet Swashbuckler is intercepted by The Beetle and this brutal interference allows the sinister plotters to abscond with the prize. Even as the exoskeleton-clad thugs break away in Manhattan, in San Francisco Natasha Romanova<\/em> is attacked by Nekra, Priestess of Darkness<\/em>, who tries to forcibly recruit her into Black Spectre.<\/p>\n

After defeating the Beetle, DD meets Africa-based champion Shanna O\u2019Hara, unaware the fiery American ex-pat is seeking bloody vengeance against enemies who have attacked Foggy, Natasha and the US economy\u2026 and murdered her father…<\/p>\n

Marvel Two-in-One<\/strong> #3 (Gerber, Sal Buscema & Joe Sinnott) peeped \u2018Inside Black Spectre!\u2019<\/em> as destabilising attacks on prosperity and culture foment riot in the streets of the beleaguered nation. Following separate clue trails, Ben Grimm<\/em> joins the Man Without Fear to invade the cabal\u2019s aerial HQ, before they are improbably overcome soon after discovering the Black Widow has defected to the rebels\u2026<\/p>\n

Reprinted in full, DD<\/strong> #110 (Gerber, Gene Colan & Frank Chiaramonte) sees perfidious plot \u2018Birthright!\u2019<\/em> expose Black Spectre as an exclusively female-staffed group, personally led by pheromone-emitting male mutant Jerome Beechman<\/em> AKA Mandrill. One of the earliest \u201cChildren of the Atom\u201d, he endured years of appalling abuse and rejection until he met equally ostracised Nekra. Once they realised their combined power, they swore to make America pay\u2026
\n\"\"
\nBrown & Jim Mooney drew \u2018Sword of the Samurai!\u2019<\/em> in #111, with DD & Shanna attacked by a formidable Japanese warrior, even as the She-Devil discloses her tragic reasons for hunting Nekra and Mandrill. When she too is taken by Black Spectre – who want to dissect her to discover how she can resist Mandrill\u2019s influence – DD is attacked again by an outrageously powerful sword-wielding Silver Samurai<\/em>\u2026<\/p>\n

Triumphing over impossible odds, the Man Without Fear infiltrates the cabal\u2019s flying fortress in #112 to spectacularly conclude the insurrection in \u2018Death of a Nation?\u2019<\/em> (Colan & Frank Giacoia), which finds the mutant duo seemingly achieving their ultimate goal by desecrating the White House and temporarily taking (symbolic) control of America\u2026 But only until Shanna, freshly-liberated Natasha and the fighting mad Man Without Fear marshal their utmost resources\u2026<\/p>\n

With covers throughout by Adkins, John Romita, John Buscema, Gil Kane, Frank Brunner, Frank Giacoia, Jim Steranko, Joe Sinnott, Ron Wilson and Colan, this remarkably collegiate collection concludes with tantalising treats including house ads, cover sketches by Romita, original art by Brunner, Heck, Abel and Royer plus a truly copious creator biographies section…<\/p>\n

Boldly bombastic if sometimes madly muddled, brilliantly escapist and crafted by some of the biggest and best in comics, these wild rides and riotous romps are timeless fun from the borderlands of Marvel\u2019s endless universe: a fabulous excursion to forgotten worlds you\u2019ll want to treasure forever\u2026
\n\u00a9 2018 Marvel Characters, Inc. All rights reserved.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Mike Friedrich, Steve Gerber, Carol Seuling, Ross Andru, Don Heck, Dan Adkins, Jim Starlin, Marie Severin, Werner Roth, George Tuska, Paul Reinman, Mike Royer, Bob Brown, Sal Buscema, Gene Colan & various (Marvel) ISBN: 978-1-3029-0966-6 (HB\/Digital edition) This book includes Discriminatory Content produced in less enlightened times. There are quite a few comics anniversaries … <\/p>\n

Continue reading “Ka-Zar Marvel Masterworks volume 2”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[191,280,351,237,74,85,290,102,292,293,72,79,174,219,169,70],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-33508","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-adventure","category-animal-antics","category-apes-monkeys","category-black-widow","category-captain-america","category-daredevil","category-dinosaurs","category-fantasy","category-ka-zar","category-man-thing","category-marvel-masters-masterworks","category-marvel-superheroes","category-nick-fury","category-s-h-i-e-l-d","category-spy-stories","category-x-men"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p4AFj-8Is","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33508","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=33508"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33508\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":33516,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33508\/revisions\/33516"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=33508"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=33508"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=33508"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}