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Blackmark
The groundbreaking paperback sees print for the first time in 25 years, with a never-before-published second volume by the late artist. In 1974, Gil Kane created Blackmark as a paperback series for Bantam Books. Kane was a comics artist specializing in super-heroes who had drawn every major character from Superman to Spider-Man. Blackmark was his attempt to go "independent" and create a series which he would own and whose creative direction he could control. The first volume of this sword & sorcery/heroic fantasy narrative, designed and published in the paperback format, has been out of print for over 25 years, and the completed second volume was never published. Fantagraphics Books is proud to collect both volumes in a single trade book format, larger than the original paperback size to better showcase Kane's elegant art.
128 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1971
2 people are currently reading
93 people want to read
About the author
Gil Kane
1,582 books28 followersGil Kane (/dʒɪl keɪn/; born Eli Katz /kæts/) was a Latvian-born American comics artist whose career spanned the 1940s to the 1990s and virtually every major comics company and character.
Kane co-created the modern-day versions of the superheroes Green Lantern and the Atom for DC Comics, and co-created Iron Fist with Roy Thomas for Marvel Comics. He was involved in such major storylines as that of The Amazing Spider-Man #96–98, which, at the behest of the U.S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare, bucked the then-prevalent Comics Code Authority to depict drug abuse, and ultimately spurred an update of the Code. Kane additionally pioneered an early graphic novel prototype, His Name Is... Savage, in 1968, and a seminal graphic novel, Blackmark, in 1971.
In 1997, he was inducted into both the Will Eisner Comic Book Hall of Fame and the Harvey Award Jack Kirby Hall of Fame.
Kane co-created the modern-day versions of the superheroes Green Lantern and the Atom for DC Comics, and co-created Iron Fist with Roy Thomas for Marvel Comics. He was involved in such major storylines as that of The Amazing Spider-Man #96–98, which, at the behest of the U.S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare, bucked the then-prevalent Comics Code Authority to depict drug abuse, and ultimately spurred an update of the Code. Kane additionally pioneered an early graphic novel prototype, His Name Is... Savage, in 1968, and a seminal graphic novel, Blackmark, in 1971.
In 1997, he was inducted into both the Will Eisner Comic Book Hall of Fame and the Harvey Award Jack Kirby Hall of Fame.
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
April 7, 2018
Love this book. I'd never heard of it until recently. It's considered one of the very first graphic novels. Each page has an illustration or two with squares of story around them. The idea was conceived apparently by Gil Kane, and he did the drawings and provided an outline of the script to Archie Goodwin. The art is great but the script is just wonderful. It's way over the top sword and sorcery prose and I enjoyed it so much! Listen:
"Then, almost as though Blackmark's seizing of the swords was a signal, the thunderous rumble of stone scraping stone drowned out all sound, even his cry of vengeance. The section of wall beneath the royal box became a yawning cavern of Stygian blackness. And in the blackness, SOMETHING stirred."
Now that is good fun.
From what I'm reading, a series of 8 books were originally conceived but only the first was produced in this paperback format because it didn't sell well. I guess they couldn't figure out how to market it. Some of the later books appeared in more traditional comic book format apparently, but I would love to have seen this whole series in paperback. Highly recommended.
"Then, almost as though Blackmark's seizing of the swords was a signal, the thunderous rumble of stone scraping stone drowned out all sound, even his cry of vengeance. The section of wall beneath the royal box became a yawning cavern of Stygian blackness. And in the blackness, SOMETHING stirred."
Now that is good fun.
From what I'm reading, a series of 8 books were originally conceived but only the first was produced in this paperback format because it didn't sell well. I guess they couldn't figure out how to market it. Some of the later books appeared in more traditional comic book format apparently, but I would love to have seen this whole series in paperback. Highly recommended.
March 15, 2023
I purchased this book for next to nothing compared to what most are trying to get out of it. I was interested in the historical value. This is one of the first, if not the first, true graphic novel. An actual 1971 book from Bantam with well laid out artwork from Gil Kane. The story is pretty good standard fare in a post nuclear war world. Kind of swords and science. The layout is key. A fun read, and a crying shame they cancelled the series. There were rumors of potentially having up to 8 books. Unfortunately, not enough were sold. Fans of Sword and Sorcery, Sword and Planet, and historical comics should like this.
June 29, 2022
Published in January of 1971, this paperback is considered one of the first American graphic novels, written in a combination of prose, word balloons, and artwork by the inestimable Gil Kane. Kane, an already established comics artist had helped usher in the Silver Age of comic books with his role in revamping the DC Comics characters Green Lantern and the Atom, and who drew The Amazing Spider-Man during a particularly important 1970s run. However, this isn’t his first graphic novel, having experimented with the form with his 1968 black-and-white comics magazine His Name is... Savage.
Rather than enlarging on a pre-existing idea or character for this paperback book, Kane chose to develop an original story, setting, and character. In a post-nuclear-holocaust Earth, now devastated and devoid of all technology, mankind has been fractured into tribes. Mutated beasts abound and to the north, a race of malformed men with strange mental powers plot the eventual conquest of the planet from the fortress of Psi-Keep.
Into this world, a baby is conceived between a tinker’s barren wife and a dying wizard-king named Amarix. Amarix has the knowledge of science from before the wars and is able to magically transfer this knowledge into his spawn. The child is named Blackmark and, much like Conan, eventually sees his family and village slaughtered, is captured and raised as a slave. He vows revenge and to one day become King of all Earth. But first he must compete in the gladiator arena.
I enjoyed the story but what puts this over the top is Gil Kane’s artwork. It’s too bad initial sales of the book didn’t meet expectations (largely due to some marketing mistakes), and no further books in the series were ever published. Kane, however had already completed a second book worth of material. This would later be published as “The Mind Flayers” in the 62-page Marvel Comics magazine Marvel Preview #17 (Winter 1979).
This one is worth tracking down, not just for its historical contribution to the graphic novel format, but for the story and artwork itself.
Rather than enlarging on a pre-existing idea or character for this paperback book, Kane chose to develop an original story, setting, and character. In a post-nuclear-holocaust Earth, now devastated and devoid of all technology, mankind has been fractured into tribes. Mutated beasts abound and to the north, a race of malformed men with strange mental powers plot the eventual conquest of the planet from the fortress of Psi-Keep.
Into this world, a baby is conceived between a tinker’s barren wife and a dying wizard-king named Amarix. Amarix has the knowledge of science from before the wars and is able to magically transfer this knowledge into his spawn. The child is named Blackmark and, much like Conan, eventually sees his family and village slaughtered, is captured and raised as a slave. He vows revenge and to one day become King of all Earth. But first he must compete in the gladiator arena.
I enjoyed the story but what puts this over the top is Gil Kane’s artwork. It’s too bad initial sales of the book didn’t meet expectations (largely due to some marketing mistakes), and no further books in the series were ever published. Kane, however had already completed a second book worth of material. This would later be published as “The Mind Flayers” in the 62-page Marvel Comics magazine Marvel Preview #17 (Winter 1979).
This one is worth tracking down, not just for its historical contribution to the graphic novel format, but for the story and artwork itself.
May 31, 2018
Libro con textos e ilustraciones difícilmente clasificable como historieta.
July 28, 2024
Okay, so there’re a few factors when talking about this book.
1. Its historical significance to American graphic novels as some argue that this is the first ever GN.
2. Its price. If you find this book at a store or online, don’t buy it if it’s more than $10. Anything more is just a waste of money and to be honest it’s not worth anything higher. Let them keep it sitting on their shelf with a $50 price tag.
3. It’s only the first story arc and doesn’t contain its sequel The Mind Demons, which was featured in Marvel Preview #17 from 1979. If you want the complete story, you’ll have to buy the 30th Anniversary Edition for $50+ or find scans of Marvel Preview #17 online with a good ad blocker (ublock Origin).
As for the book itself, it’s a solid 3 or 3.5 stars. It’s a competently written science-fantasy/sword and sandal/heroic fantasy story. The best way to describe it is that it’s on the same level as a Lin Carter or L. Sprague DeCamp Conan story or a Roy Thomas Conan issue.
It has all the tropes: a kid’s parents getting brutally killed by raiders, Blackmark being a destined ruler and a liberator, mutated/horrific monsters, and gladiatorial fighting. It is pretty heavy with prose and the artwork is as good as other works by Gil Kane. You could probably finish this book within a day if you powered through it, but it’s best to savor this book over a period of time and to admire the artwork.
Overall, it’s a solid book that’s meant to be savored, but it’s not worth blowing more than $15 unless you’re one of the following:
A. A collector of Sword and Sorcery, Sword and Planet/Planetary Romance books.
B. A hardcore comics collector or a Gil Kane fan.
C. You just like the novelty of having it.
1. Its historical significance to American graphic novels as some argue that this is the first ever GN.
2. Its price. If you find this book at a store or online, don’t buy it if it’s more than $10. Anything more is just a waste of money and to be honest it’s not worth anything higher. Let them keep it sitting on their shelf with a $50 price tag.
3. It’s only the first story arc and doesn’t contain its sequel The Mind Demons, which was featured in Marvel Preview #17 from 1979. If you want the complete story, you’ll have to buy the 30th Anniversary Edition for $50+ or find scans of Marvel Preview #17 online with a good ad blocker (ublock Origin).
As for the book itself, it’s a solid 3 or 3.5 stars. It’s a competently written science-fantasy/sword and sandal/heroic fantasy story. The best way to describe it is that it’s on the same level as a Lin Carter or L. Sprague DeCamp Conan story or a Roy Thomas Conan issue.
It has all the tropes: a kid’s parents getting brutally killed by raiders, Blackmark being a destined ruler and a liberator, mutated/horrific monsters, and gladiatorial fighting. It is pretty heavy with prose and the artwork is as good as other works by Gil Kane. You could probably finish this book within a day if you powered through it, but it’s best to savor this book over a period of time and to admire the artwork.
Overall, it’s a solid book that’s meant to be savored, but it’s not worth blowing more than $15 unless you’re one of the following:
A. A collector of Sword and Sorcery, Sword and Planet/Planetary Romance books.
B. A hardcore comics collector or a Gil Kane fan.
C. You just like the novelty of having it.
February 4, 2025
Dos palabras: Gil Kane. Solo eso, merece cuatro estrellas.
Pero es que, además, estamos hablando de una obra experimental, en la que Kane arriesgó como en ninguna otra, con el formato, con la densidad del texto, con la violencia, los tacos, etc. Estamos hablando de una época en la que todo el mundo, absolutamente todo el mundo, consideraba que el cómic era, o bien para críos, o bien para porreros. Y se planta el tío y crea esto, una perfecta combinación de imágenes y palabras que cuenta una historia de ciencia-ficción competente, bastante pulp, cierto, pero imaginativa e interesante, muy al estilo de Burroughs, por ejemplo. Ciertamente, para ello contó con la ayuda inestimable de Archie Goodwin, pero eso no le resta mérito alguno al señor Kane, muy al contrario: demuestra la humildad de un maestro del medio que no se acompleja de reconocer que, aunque como narrador no tiene rival, como guionista le faltan tablas.
En fin, muy recomendable. De segunda mano, cuesta sus dineros, pero los merece.
Pero es que, además, estamos hablando de una obra experimental, en la que Kane arriesgó como en ninguna otra, con el formato, con la densidad del texto, con la violencia, los tacos, etc. Estamos hablando de una época en la que todo el mundo, absolutamente todo el mundo, consideraba que el cómic era, o bien para críos, o bien para porreros. Y se planta el tío y crea esto, una perfecta combinación de imágenes y palabras que cuenta una historia de ciencia-ficción competente, bastante pulp, cierto, pero imaginativa e interesante, muy al estilo de Burroughs, por ejemplo. Ciertamente, para ello contó con la ayuda inestimable de Archie Goodwin, pero eso no le resta mérito alguno al señor Kane, muy al contrario: demuestra la humildad de un maestro del medio que no se acompleja de reconocer que, aunque como narrador no tiene rival, como guionista le faltan tablas.
En fin, muy recomendable. De segunda mano, cuesta sus dineros, pero los merece.
April 2, 2018
I like the format - Kane published two (of eight books that he'd planned for) 120-page graphic novels in the late 60s, plotted and drawn by himself, scripted by Goodwin. Most pages have large blocks of text alongside the comic book-style storytelling, so there's a lot of impetus on the words and narrative. It's a format I wouldn't mind seeing more of. Too bad, it doesn't help this cliche turd at all. Every fantasy, with a dash of sci-fi, trope is run out here - destined-for-greatness slave, whose parents were killed by a future rival, sacred sword, lost knowledge, etc. etc. Absolutely boring. Looks nice, sure, but that'll only keep you interested for so long.
January 17, 2023
I'll be honest, while I've been drooling over Kane's anatomy sketches since comics I've never found anything by Kane that I actually unabashedly loved. I've finally found it here. Kane's art is fantastic and bursting at the seams with energy. I was expecting the weird overbearing presence of text to be more of a problem, but Kane really laid everything out the best he could and it never bothered me too much. The story itself is kind of generic, but it's drawn in a way that adds an incredible amount of weight behind everything. I genuinely love this book, and I'm glad I can now point to something truly great that Kane has done.
February 7, 2025
3.5 stars. Blackmark is The Chosen One or something in a post-apocalyptic world that is a cross between a fantasy world and a world populated by various monsters and horrific beings. He starts and finishes a quest to find and avenge the murderer of his parents. After only 20-25 years he does just that, but tragically has the murderer abscond and then mortally would Blackmark's wife.
It seems that this illustrated novel, billed as one of the first graphic novels, could use some polish in the form of continuous storytelling. Overall, the general dialog is entertaining, even melodramatic, but the story seems to move in fits.
It seems that this illustrated novel, billed as one of the first graphic novels, could use some polish in the form of continuous storytelling. Overall, the general dialog is entertaining, even melodramatic, but the story seems to move in fits.
July 16, 2017
I read this simply for its historical value. I must say that I was pleasantly surprised.
First off, I quite liked the composition. The narrations reminds me of Prince Valiant or Miyazaki's People of the Desert, but a bit more developed.
The story was horrifically cheesy, but it knows it. This is a pulp fiction and it reads like one. I must admit, it felt a bit like a guilty pleasure and I enjoyed it quite a bit.
First off, I quite liked the composition. The narrations reminds me of Prince Valiant or Miyazaki's People of the Desert, but a bit more developed.
The story was horrifically cheesy, but it knows it. This is a pulp fiction and it reads like one. I must admit, it felt a bit like a guilty pleasure and I enjoyed it quite a bit.
October 23, 2018
This oddity from famed comic book illustrator Gil Kane is a testament to his talent as an artist, and his lack of skill as a writer. It seems he plotted the story and Archie Goodwin scripted it, but if 70% of the text were removed, it would have been a far superior work. Got to love the illustrations, though!
November 15, 2021
Truly a classic. I see the seeds for both Ralph Bakshi's Wizards and Heavy Metal.
January 10, 2016
Más conocido por dibujar superhéroes, el artista Gil Kane sorprende en 1971 con un trabajo que traza las vías transitadas más tarde por Will Eisner, Richard Corben, Steranko y otros en la llamada Novela Gráfica. Y lo hace con este pastiche Sword & Planet que bebe de la historieta y el Pulp para narrar la historia de un niño predestinado a alzarse entre la miseria y la venganza hasta regir un mundo post-apocalíptico; premisa gastada por el género fantástico que en las diestras manos de Kane impacta por su enfoque adulto e interesante propuesta gráfica, antecediendo por años a un formato explotado hasta la saciedad con resultados irregulares que no siempre hacen justicia a esta obra pionera.
August 24, 2012
Pretty interesting stuff - more so as a relic, maybe, than as a "graphic novel," but it's fairly entertaining as that too... Not too original, but from reading the backmatter it wasn't really intended to be, but there's some nice illustrations that really do work with the text in a pretty unique way. This could maybe have been a game changer when it was published (even though it wasn't), and while it lacks that kind of impact today, it's worth checking out - interesting in a swords-and-sorcery genre kind of way...
May 24, 2009
In terms of story this is not my sort of thing (John Carter/sword and sorcery-ish) but any chance to see Gil Kane's art, self-inked, is not to be passed up. Also noteworthy as a fairly early attempt to weld graphics to non-word balloon prose and as a creator-owned project.
Want to read
July 2, 2009From what I understand this is credited as the first graphic novel, so I wanted to check it out. I started reading it last year and stuck a bookmark in it. Obviously it didn't really grab me, but it looks like it should be good.
April 2, 2013
This book was groundbreaking. The first true graphic novel. The art was splendid and the mix of art and words was amazing. The layout was interesting in a good way. The history behind this book is almost as good as the book itself. All in all I say at least go give it a try.
January 24, 2016
Gil Kane is one of my top 5 favorite comic book artists. With this book he combines his awesome art with a great Fantasy/SiFi story he wrote. Highly recommended
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews