For the Luvva Jack: A Caveat Single

by Elliot S. Maggin

Where was the captain all those years ... really?

50 pages, Paperback

Published August 27, 2017

About the author

Elliot S. Maggin, also spelled Elliot S! Maggin, is an American writer of comic books, film, television and novels. He was a main writer for DC Comics during the Bronze and early Modern ages of comics in the 1970s and 1980s. He is particularly associated with the character of Superman.

Reviews

[J. Kevin · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's hard to talk about this story without giving it all away, but it's basically Maggin's homage to a classic adventure character (and not the one he's usually associated with), as well as the man who created him. It's a clever spin on a familiar story, with lots of action and surprises packed into a few pages. And it makes me wish Maggin would get a chance to handle this character "for real" in an extended run of comics or novels. Maybe someday...

[Dave · Rating 5 out of 5]

Full disclosure: I'm a big fan of author Elliot S! Maggin's work, from his stories in Superman comics to his novels, Superman Last Son of Krypton, Miracle Monday, and Not My Closet. This piece is billed as a "single", I think because it's more of a short novella or long short story, and I believe it will be included in a larger collection to be published later.
This story is told from the point of view of a man named Steve, who was a "super soldier"(with the rank of captain) during World War II, and who has lived into the 21st Century without aging, physically, much, if at all. It toggles back and forth between the present day and Steve's life during the war, fighting Nazis, meeting Werner Heisenberg, and helping prisoners escape from a "work camp". A truly noble man, and his nobility continues into the present day, as he does right by one of his comrades from the war. Let me leave you with a quote from the story, in which the captain is describing a moment at a Jewish funeral:

"When Jack’s grandson Jonathan got up to speak the first thing he said almost apologetically was, “The thing you’ve got to understand about Grampa is that he just hated Nazis,” and everyone in the room practically fell out of their seats laughing."

I enjoyed this one immensely, and I look forward to more from Mr. Maggin.

[Scott Rowland · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Don't ask, Just Buy it!"

You may recognize the above as a quote by the late great comic creator Jack Kirby. It is appropriate because this story is an action-packed adventure story that also pays tribute to Kirby in other ways. Author Elliot S! Maggin is known as a Superman writer, including the wonderful novel MIRACLE MONDAY, also available on Amazon. Here he shows similiar chops, with a narrator who will remind you of another classic hero.

Don't ask. Just buy it.