Top 5: Jack Kirby Creations Outside of Marvel & DC

5. Fighting American (with Joe Simon)

What does the pair that created Marvel’s Captain America do when they have ideas of their own that Cap’s owners won’t allow? Go their own way, and that’s just what Kirby and Simon did in 1954. Initially designed as Cold War-era Captain America-type, Fighting American soon veered into super-hero satire of sorts, sending up the superhero industry as well as the charged political climate of the time.

4. Captain Victory & the Galactic Rangers

Considered by most to be one of Kirby’s last great published characters, Captain Victory & the Galactic Rangers saw Kirby return to space with a rollicking tale that melded elements of Flash Gordon with his DC creation, the New Gods. Although short-lived, it delivered some great unrestrained Kirby animism.

3. The Fly (with Joe Simon)

Long before Marvel’s web-crawling hero, Joe Simon and Jack Kirby created the Fly for Archie’s Red Circle imprint in the late 50s. In a way, the Fly bridged the gap between colorful heroes like the Flash and Superman with older, pistol-brandishing heroes like the Shadow and the Phantom. Although Kirby and Simon only did a handful of issues, Archie has continued to reinvigorate the character time and time again.

2. Satan’s Six

Overlooked by most during Kirby’s latter years, Satan’s Six is a concept Kirby originally created in the 70s but never saw publication until the mid-90s. It featured a odd group of heroes who jumped through history in an attempt to win their way out of Purgatory and the clutches of Satan himself. It’s Kriby playing with various action comics archetypes and pushing them into adventure, and something I wouldn’t be surprised gets a second shot at fame down the road.

1. Young Romance (with Joe Simon)

Jack Kirby was good at more than just super-heroes; much more. Created in 1947 with his long-time collaborator Joe Simon, it is a product of the aftermath of World War 2 as people veered away from action stories in search of something else. This anthology series ran for sixteen years with Simon and Kirby contributing a story in each issue for the first five years, before being weighed down by other work to just overseeing the book’s continued success. DC eventually licensed the series, carrying on its simple premise of first-person love stories  for twelve more years. People attribute Jack Kirby for being part of the team that made super-hero comics successful, but he also was a key part in a 20+ year plus run for a romance comic to be one of the best selling comics in America.