Fourth World by Jack Kirby Omnibus

Jack Kirby's Fourth World #Omnibus #1-4

by Jack Kirby

These are the legendary tales written and illustrated by Jack "King" Kirby that introduced mythical new worlds and iconic characters with sweeping excitement!

Inside the warring worlds of Apokolips and New Genesis, Darkseid and Highfather, along with countless heroes and villains exist. Follow the triumps and struggles of Orion, Lightray, Kalibak, Granny Goodness, and more in Fourth World by Jack Kirby Omnibus!

Genres: Comics, Dc Comics, Graphic Novels, Science Fiction, Comic Book, Fantasy, Superheroes

1536 pages, Hardcover

First published March 1, 1985

About the author

Jack Kirby (born Jacob Kurtzberg) was one of the most influential, recognizable, and prolific artists in American comic books, and the co-creator of such enduring characters and popular culture icons as the Fantastic Four, the X-Men, the Hulk, Captain America, and hundreds of others stretching back to the earliest days of the medium. He was also a comic book writer and editor. His most common nickname is "The King."

Reviews

[Shannon Appelcline · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jack Kirby's Fourth World was a wonder of creativity. Given free-reign on Jimmy Olsen and three new books, Kirby created a whole new world. Or rather several new worlds, including Apokolips, New Genesis, and the Cadmus (DNA) Project. What Kirby did is absolutely amazing and still very readable and very exciting in the modern day.

Today it feels like DC's Fourth World has gotten pretty calcified. We can expect to see the same relatively small group of major characters, the same several artefacts, and some of the same major plots. That totally wasn't the case in Kirby's original comics. Particularly in New Gods and The Forever People, Kirby was constantly adding new elements to the Fourth World, pretty much in every issue. Many of them are those recurring elements in modern Fourth World comics, but there's many more that we just don't see any more.

With that all said, there was quite a bit of variety among the comics.

New Gods is clearly the flagship and also the most interesting of the comics. It was originally to be called "Orion", but it does its best when it explores a wider world by also giving attention to Lightray, Black Racer, and others. The history issue of "The Pact" gives great depth to the whole universe. This is where Kirby created most extensively, and when we talk about the Fourth World that's survived for all these decades since, we mainly mean the contents of New Gods.

Forever People is just as creative and in many ways more charming because it's a book about a group of Hippie-like younger Gods. Mind you, there's still some big stories too, like a throwdown with Darkseid that's the only place that the Omega effect is really explained (and which was obviously an influence on Batman RIP in the '10s). The biggest problem that I've always had with the Forever People, and it obviously starts here, is insufficient integration with the rest of the New Gods.

Jimmy Olsen focuses on the DNA Project instead of the main Fourth World. That makes it the most expendable of these books. Still, it's fill of intriguing material even if it's uneven, with some of the encounters being a little silly, and the Newsboys being weaker characters than anyone in the other books.

Mister Miracle has always been to me the weakest of these books. The problem is that Scott is an escape artist, and so most issues involve a villain ridiculously trapping him in some escape-proof trap that he of course escapes from. Kirby also insists on telling us how he escaped, even though the answer every time is "technological magic". There are good issues in Mister Miracle, such as when he meets Barda and travels to Apokolips. Generally, it's when the comic becomes more focused on the Fourth World and less on escape artistry that it excels.

Jimmy Olsen has a 16-issue run and it ends pretty abruptly. But, it didn't have as much of a continuous story as the other comics, so it's only surprising when you realize that it abruptly disappeared half a year before the others. New Gods and Forever People each ran 11 issues and they both have very solid endings. Oh, not the end of all things, but clearly the end of the current storyline. They're great reads as a result. When Mister Miracle hit issue #11, it was already repeating itself, with a second appearance by Doctor Bedlam. But then it rather surprisingly ran until issue #18. (The stories were more of the same, other than the rather abrupt #18, where a whole bunch of New Gods appear, making it the only latter-day book much worth reading.)

Though this volume understandably skips over the non-Kirby New Gods writing of the late '70s (Return of the New Gods, Adventure Comics, Super-Team Family, and JLA), it thankfully gives us Kirby's two finales immediately afterward.

The New Gods deluxe #6 story is a bit disappointing. It's a long Orion battle muddied by Darkseid semi-resurrecting everyone major killed during the previous New Gods run, taking a lot of the series' sting away and putting the New Gods onto an endless treadmill of death and rebirth under future hands. Its only saving grace is its shocking ending.

The other finale, in The Hunger Dogs, is certainly denser and more intriguing. It looks at the larger worlds of the New Gods and brings in a larger cast of characters (delightfully including some lesser known New Gods like Himon and Lonar). Parts of the story is muddy, and the variable sizing of the artwork is frustrating; it's all around obvious that something went wrong in the production of this story. Still, it's got elements that make it a nice finale to the New Gods story (and it's great to see Kirby's New Gods artwork one last time, in this prestige format).

Overall, this omnibus is one of DC's best a must read that goes far beyond normal superhero stories.

[Alex Robinson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Once I realized Kirby was kind of making it up as he went and the plot is pretty much incomprehensible I was able to appreciate this amazing volume for the insane torrent of creativity it is. Bold cartooning, a cast of thousands and enough ideas to fuel fifty summer blockbusters!

[Rick · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ah, Kirby! Whenever I'm down and need some lifting up, I know I can always revisit one of Jack Kirby's innovative creations and the long lost joy of youth and sense of unashamed wonderment will be restored. Kirby was one of a kind. His record for creating new characters, concepts and even genres in the comic book industry is unparalleled. This omnibus volume of the Fourth World introduces more new characters in the first half dozen issues than most comic book artists create in their entire careers, and the next half dozen introduce at least as many more again. Kirby did this while delivering 15 completed comic book pages a week that he wrote, drew and edited when most artists often struggle to get 15 pages done in a month! While Kirby's work isn't for everyone, his contributions to the industry are undeniable. He's characters are fueling the Marvel Studios films and I hope it's only a matter of time before some one makes a series of films based on these Fourth World characters (rumors are out there). I'm not holding my breath, but there's always hope. (And don't get me started on Kirby's prescience with the similarities between the villainous Glorious Godfrey and the worst President in American history - and I don't mean Richard Nixon or George W. Bush.) 

Don't miss The Glory Boat, the arrival of Big Barda, the all-too-short appearance of Sonny Sumo, Superman vs. a 20th century twist on the vampire, the destructive music of the six man San Diego Five String Mob, the New Newsboy Legion on the trail of loch monster in Scotland, a parody of Stan Lee and Roy Thomas in the questionable characterizations of Funky Flashman and his toady Houseroy, the wildly bizarre menace of Mad Harriet, Stompa, Lashina & Burnadeth, the introduction of Angry Charlie, more mischief from Mokkari & Simyan and all this only scratches the surface. It's one thrilling chapter after another at a pace that is as relentless as it is explosive. Read it and see why Jack Kirby is called the King of Comics.

As Mark Evanier noted in an Afterword, this volume contains the two stories that Kirby would point to as his personal favorites: The Pact & The Death Wish of Terrible Turpin (he also noted that before these stories, Kirby's personal favorite had been Mother Delilah from the The Kid Cowboys of Boys' Ranch series from 20 years earlier). And while these are some of the most powerful stories, there are others worthy of note also in this collection as well. The Battle of the Id, Earth - the Doomed Dominion, The Bug & Himon are also excellent examples of Kirby at his peak and doing what he does best. 

This is a massive epic and this omnibus also illustrates how The Forever People, New Gods & Mister Miracle were abruptly (and rudely) cancelled by the powers that be at DC Comics after he'd been given virtual carte blance to create his tapestry of 4 interlocking series. Mark Evanier has previously commented on how this was a devastating blow to Kirby at the time. Also included is the quick, and all too brief, graphic novel, The Hunger Dogs, in which Kirby attempted to wrap-up the story. It's a little disappointing as it does more to tease the reader about what isn't included, than it delivers on what is included. Still, it's Kirby and any fan of the King-of-Comics knows it worth gold. So, even if these stories didn't sell well when first published (the general audience wasn't ready for something as ground breaking as this experiment was at the time), we can look back on them with admiration today. Enjoy, I certainly do. 

My one gripe is that this edition, at over 1500 pages, is rather difficult to actually read. But it is what it is.

[blake · Rating 4 out of 5]

I started reading this because I had picked up Tom King's Mr. Miracle series based on the recommendation of yaboi Zack (of the Comics MATTER YouTube channel) which, by the end of the run, Zack had turned on. Mr. King seems to have openly admitted at this point that he's using Mr. Miracle, Batman and all the superheroes to work through his depression, but at the time we were unaware of this and expecting a boffo breakout ending to his series.

So I stopped reading that and pick up this massive volume, which I then read very slowly because it is not "cat friendly". (It and my cat could not co-exist on my lap, and for whatever reason, my cat decided this was the year to get attention from me.)

As someone who read comics as a kid, stopped, then picked up "Dark Knight Returns" and loved it but really didn't start reading comics again, only to many years later look again at the area, I will say: The limits of the traditional comic floppy are out in spades here, but once you learn the language there's a good, mythic story done in the (at-the-time ground-breaking) fashion of being spread over many different but interlocking titles.

The cons (at least from the viewpoint of someone trying to read this as a cohesive narrative nearly 50! years later) are the constant stage-direction dialog ("Oh, no, I'm falling into this pit!"), reintroducing characters every time ("I'm Bob Robinson, the accountant!"), the ruthless sacrifice of great scenes because other stuff has to be handled before the page count is up ("Good thing we were able to defeat that army and redirected the power lines in time!" with none of that being shown) and the perceived need of the 55-year-old author and the 30-year-old company to "connect with the youth" by larding everything up with the slang of the day.

This book is chock full of hippies and their groovy lingo. There is a literal group of people called "The Hairies" that are a painfully dead-on analog of hippies and underground culture. The plus side, sorta, is that the styles of the time, with the garish colors and the scanty clothing actually require very little modification to fit into a comic book. So, by the end of the run Big Barda seems to be auditioning for Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill! which is actually pretty appropriate.

It's worth noting that the final 100 pages of the book are from the era of graphic novels and is much better on all of these points. Kirby (and presumably DC editors) was able to adapt his concept to a new generation even at nearly 70. (On the one hand, Kriby seems like a cranky old man railing against the age of computers in the 1980s, but on the other, much of what he describes back then—a panopticon world of spying drones—applies really well today!)

Charmingly, you can see a lot of efforts to create black superheroes, with the affectation that they have "black" in their name: "Black Racer" and "Black Vykin". Oh, and the black newsboy Flippa Dippa, who constantly wears scuba gear. By the end of Mr. Miracle's run, however, Scott and Barda have adopted a black child who is learning the tricks of the trade, and this is much less forced feeling.

Less charmingly, the limits of Kirby's (formidable) artistic talent are here, too. It doesn't take long to realize he has one primary female face and body type (my daughter says this is true of most male artists for a variety of reasons), and not a big range of male faces either. (Though I've heard this is a limitation of the comic medium as well, in terms of what will read, it is nonetheless apparent.)

As cons go, not that bad really, though insurmountable, I'm sure, to some.

For pros, there are many. Kirby's sense of composition, scale and wonder is tremendous and comes through reliably, with every issue delivering some sort of punch in its two-dozen page span. He had no problem bringing the New Gods to us through Jimmy Olsen, giving Olsen the genuine scrappy character that keeps him from seeming like a mere adjunct to Superman. Olsen (in one form or another) gets to whoop Superman a couple of times and saves the day pretty reliably, along with his '30s throwback pals the Newsboys. (It's probably indicative of my biases that I enjoy the relatively archaic style of the Newsboys in contrast to contemporaneous grooviness that pervades the stories.)

Not all comic characters are equally memorable, however. In the case of the New Gods, the villains trump the heroes, generally speaking, with Darkseid, Steppenwolf, Granny Goodness and DeSaad being more memorable than Lightray or the Forever People. Kanto, a villain-who-may-not-be-all-that-villainous is another good one. The Forever People have a deal where they switch places with Infinity Man who is so darn mysterious as to be competely unmemorable.

But there are dozens, if not hundreds of characters, and to have even a handful stand out is quite a feat for any run of comics. On the heroic side, the most memorable characters are Orion, the atypically violent warrior of New Genesis, and of course Mr. Miracle, Big Barda and Oberon. The two story lines of Orion vs. Darkseid and Mr. Miracle & Barda's return to Apokalips are the standouts in the book.

Orion's storyline gets closure, of sorts, in the graphic novel but Mr. Miracle & Barda don't show up again as their own deal (AFAIK) until King's run, and now I'm sure I'm going to be depressed by reading it through. But the tragic story of star-crossed lovers—the ever-tormented "Scott Free" and the Female Furie Barda—who find their way out of Apokalips only to have to figure out what it means to live in a world that isn't Hell, is one that really should have its own run.

One thing Kirby does well, and first as far as I know (though Denny O'Neil/Neal Adams' R'as al Ghul pushes in the same direction at the same time) is to create the sense of what is now called An Event. Weaving together 3-4 different books (Olsen, New Gods, Mr. Miracle...maybe others, I can't recall) to create an interlocking tale of Earth being pulled into a celestial war with all its machinations and mysteries: It's not something that had been done, and Kirby once again saw into the future.

The strains of commercial necessity may have inhibited him, but in the long run, he came very close to his goal.

[Niko · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautiful, creative, classic. Not much else to say. I loved it.

Would be 5 stars if the Jimmy Olsen issues didn't drag as much sometimes and if all the initial series didn't have such abrupt endings.

[Nate]

Mind-blowing. Jack Kirby’s Fourth World saga is a torrent of creativity and imagination that has rarely, if ever, been equaled in mainstream American comics. Kirby penciled and wrote all 55 issues that constitute the saga, creating an entire mythology in the process. The caliber of ideas in every issue - on every page - is astounding. I audibly gasped many times while reading this. Kirby’s art leaps off the panels, and you can feel the creative energy at every turn. The Fourth World is littered with insane concepts and characters, all wrapped in a classic story of good and evil. Mark Evanier notes in his introduction that Kirby was influenced by Lord of the Rings when conceiving the Fourth World. I can definitely see the similarities: the epic scope, dozens of characters, armies, several plotlines, and battle for the fate of the universe.

Kirby began the Fourth World in Superman’s Pal Jimmy Olsen, before expanding to three new titles: The Forever People, The New Gods, and Mister Miracle. Many concepts he introduced became mainstays in the DC universe. There’s the New Gods, of course, plus Cadmus Project, Intergang, and more. I’ve loved the New Gods in other books, and was thrilled to finally read their beginnings. I love how Kirby introduces this stuff. Along with the good vs. evil aspect, he touches prominently on the idea of legacy: of fathers and sons, adults and youth, even legacies of comic characters. This gives way to many touching and introspective moments. That’s partly what makes this book so great: amidst the crazy cosmic war, most of which takes place on Earth, there’s always an underlying current of humanity.

Each of the four titles are relatively self-contained, and you could conceivably read them on their own (I’d previously read Mister Miracle). But reading them in publication order, in this omnibus or elsewhere, is the way to go. Kirby interweaves and teases plotlines throughout the run, so that as the story progresses you come to sense an overarching story. Still, the Fourth World isn’t perfect; the final Mister Miracle issues lose some steam (terrific issue 18 notwithstanding), and the narrative is clunky at times. But it’s pure comics through and through. It’s all the more amazing when you learn that Kirby was improvising much of the plot as he went along. The guy’s imagination was off the charts. Reading this book is literally like visiting another person’s mind. Sometimes it’s overwhelming because of the sheer amount of ideas flung at you, but mostly it’s incredible.

I didn’t know that the Fourth World was unfinished at the end of the original run. Kirby wrote two codas a decade later, both collected here. “Even Gods Must Die” picks up right where New Gods 11 left off. It’s essentially one big fight, but offers a great look at Orion’s relationship with Darkseid. The ending is fantastic. “The Hunger Dogs”, on the other hand, is more philosophical and wandering. I do like the ideas about rebellion and change presented in this story, and how Kirby leaves doors open for future stories. It’s let down a bit by inconsistent lettering and shaky coloring. While these stories lose some of the freshness of the original run, they’re still worth reading.

It goes without saying that the Fourth World is dated by modern standards. If you have trouble reading comics from this time period, I wouldn’t push you to try it. It’s dense, complex, and contains the trademark style choices of the era. But I think it holds up very well. The writing and art burst with a timeless vitality. For anyone interested in the New Gods, or Jack Kirby, this is a must-read. Not only is the Fourth World a foundational DC story, but it’s overflowing with ideas and awe-inspiring from beginning to end.

As is probably clear by now, I absolutely loved this. I have no qualms calling the Fourth World a masterpiece.

[Gus Casals · Rating 5 out of 5]

Much has been written about Kirby and his masterwork at DC, I don't belieive I'm able to add anything to that, I just want to comment on the way the book is presented, telling the full Fourth World saga as it was published, and it makes a different kind of universal sense from reading each one of the collected titles separately.
The scope of what Kirby was trying to achieve (and yes, sometimes falling short from) is overwhelming: new concepts and ideas are thrown every other panel, new, fully formed characters introduced in everyone of these 50-odd issues, world shattering, undoubtly in the DC Universe, but far beyond it.
The book is comprehensive, including also the eighties return, with obvious diminishing returns (Kirby was no longer a young man and there is a bitter outlook in all the material on top of that).
Something that every comics reader should read at least one, in probably the best format possible.

[Zoey Selwyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

gargantuan in length, density, and influence...the gold standard for epics in any medium as far as i'm concerned, so relentlessly creative in its world-building and multifaceted symbolism, operating on an intuitive level that draws from the best aspects of Kirby's off-kilter 60s kitsch even as it plays on grand archetypes in a game of fathers and sons and destiny and determination...our friendships define our path even as fate remains impossible to ever truly evade

of course, even the thorniest elements of the multi-faceted, slowly unspooling overall saga (looking at most of the Jimmy Olsen issues here) contain singular art and inventiveness that always remains compelling, supplementing the inessential nature of any given issue...i'm struck by how few of the dozens and dozens of issues really moved the plot along...instead, the focus is nearly always on worldbuilding, teasing out small ideas and tertiary characters that gradually build into a universe inside of another

it cannot be overstated how unparalleled, how genuinely uncanny Kirby's ability was to integrate his own ideas into a greater established world...he essentially doubled the size of a DC universe that was already rather large at the time, introducing an overall mythos that casts a shadow over the history of the universe both before and after...the closest comparison is maybe Gaiman's Sandman, and that's honestly nowhere near as influential over the wider properties, as seamlessly woven into the fabric of everything else in a way that makes it feel like it was always there...it's impossible to imagine a DC universe without the New Gods, both the characters and the thematic weight that they lend to the metatext, the ongoing supersaga

Kirby's opus is a work of holocaust and escape, of fascism and dreamers, rebellion and the rising surveillance state, mutual annihilation and its liberatory potential...it's as potent as it is often contradictory, straightforward, elemental, but somehow knotty and elusive in its thesis...Darkseid's ultimate loneliness, Scott Free's liberation and indomitable spirit, Orion's actualization and ultimate decision to make his own destiny...it's some of the greatest work in any medium in terms of the marriage of form and function, the use of sturdy language and episodic plotting as the vehicle of genuinely wild, profound emotionally-driven beats that land like rockets...honestly, it's maybe most comparable to Hideo Kojima's games or a film like Southland Tales in the straightforward embrace of silliness and dated elements in the service of insight beyond easy articulation

[Rick Ray · Rating 4 out of 5]

The sprawling worlds birthed from the creative genius of Jack Kirby has never been more well realized than his "Fourth World" project during his time working at DC. Starting off with the challenge of making DC's lowest selling title, Superman's Pal Jimmy Olsen, a hit, Kirby unraveled a tapestry of loosely connected comic titles that would serve as a foundational rock for DC in the long run. I re-read stretches of Kirby's "Fourth World" every now and then, but this is a review coming off the back of a recent read of the entirety of the series as collected in this all-in-one omnibus edition.

My thoughts on the four series that comprise the "Fourth World" haven't shifted as much, but I do feel that my love of The Forever People grows with each reading. As the title that feels more disconnected than the rest, I appreciate the fine balance of whimsy and epic scale that Kirby threads here. New Gods still remains my favorite for its grandiose telling of space gods and their ancient rivalries, while Mister Miracle is a fun little tie-in to the more ambitious subplots found in New Gods. I still don't really enjoy the Jimmy Olsen stories much outside of the great art, as much of the stories feel quite repetitive. The tail end of Kirby's time on the "Fourth World" was also truncated by DC editorial, meaning that several threads were left hanging. Kirby would return to some of it for a half-baked final entitled The Hunger Dogs, but it's unfortunately a forgettable mess of a story with some artwork that wouldn't be considered Kirby's better efforts.

Nonetheless, Kirby's ambitious project all laid out in a single volume is of immense appeal to me, and though not every title here resonated with me, I'm glad that Kirby was able to exert his own choices for as long as he could (minus some odd finishing choices on Superman).

Individual volume reviews:
Jimmy Olsen Adventures, Vol. 1 - ★★
Jimmy Olsen Adventures, Vol. 2 - ★★
Mister Miracle, Vol. 1 - ★★★
The Forever People - ★★★★
New Gods - ★★★★
Mister Miracle, Vol. 2 - ★★★

[Shane Perry · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’ve been wanting to dive into this for quite some time, and I’m glad this Omnibus finally gave me the chance to do so in one Volume. The Fourth World is unlike anything else in the history of comics. Jack Kirby left Marvel and some of his biggest creations to craft an entirely new universe at DC. We have comic artists today that can hardly crank out 4 issues a year. Meanwhile, Kirby was writing, drawing, and inking 4 comics at the same time. I love how each comic told their own stories, but were clearly connected in a larger sense.

The New Gods and The Forever People were probably my favorite books, but I love the characters in Mister Miracle. Superman’s Pal Jimmy Olsen had some decent moments, but overall just never felt as great as the other three. There are several standout issues in here, in particular The Pact. I love that this gorgeous, oversized Omnibus is collected in the order these books came out. It only helps to show just how massive a scale Kirby was working on.

The final two stories in this were published 10 years later and it’s interesting to see how Kirby adapted to a changed comics landscape in that time. I loved the new ideas it brought to how Darkseid was changing Apokolips, but I wish more than just Orion played a major role. Mister Miracle and Big Barda are nowhere to be seen in the final two stories.

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this. If you ever get the chance to check out this collection, I highly recommend it. This is probably the best way to experience the Fourth World, a saga which truly lives up to the oft-used adjective, “epic.” Kirby’s writing is great and his art rivals some of the best you’ll find in comics today. I don’t think we’ll ever see anything like this or on this scale ever again in comics.

[John Pistelli · Rating 3 out of 5]

Please read my complete review here. A sample:

Kirby's actual drawing style, though, blunted his composition's putative power, at least in my youthful experience. Among my dad's stacks of old comics from the 1960s and '70s, I much preferred the cinematic experiments of Steranko and John Buscema's magazine-ad elegance, Neal Adams's attempts at trompe l'oeil and the cross-hatched grotesqueries of Bernie Wrightson, not to mention Heavy Metal, with Moebius's grainy Euro-delirium and Richard Corben's high-porn magic airbrush. Naively seeking the mimetic in visual art, I found Kirby's supposedly vigorous compositions to be immobilized by the near-abstraction of his rendering. He built his heroes' and villains' colliding bodies from slabs of thickly-outlined shape, decorated but not textured by what in other artists would have been modeling lines but in Kirby granted adornment without the illusion of depth. I felt like I was reading stories about plastic rocks in combat. Kirby's work was notionally three-dimensional, but without a hint of sensuality; an anticipation of CGI, his was not a world I could inhabit.

Read more...

[James Ryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

There's a boundless imagination found in these pages, incredibly constructed worlds and colourful characters, Kirby was a truly talented cartoonist. Not the greatest writer though, and by he all accounts he didn't want to write this so I suppose one should be surprised that a lot of this can be quite meandering, a bit of a slog and never fully comes together in a satisfying way. It's a shame because the good stuff here can be pretty great, as he mixes space opera family drama with sci fi war action as our heroes fight against the looming threat of total fascist control in the form of Darkseid's pursuit of the anti-life equation. But Kirby is clearly taking it issue by issue,making it up as he goes, an approach that can work out sometimes but not so much here.
This is probably my biggest binge of Kirby material so it's neat to really look at how one of the most revered comics artist approached the board. His panel layouts are very simple, sticking to either 4 or 6 panel grids but he makes them work with some real dynamic designs that are all solely Kirby. In this massive cast no character looks alike, some a little silly like the Black Rider, but all pretty memorable. I'm Not an artist myself so I don't think I can articulate further than that but reading this you get why he's the king.

[Dan Prestwich · Rating 4 out of 5]

Unmistakably the work of a man who started in an earlier, much different era of comic books, and filled with signifiers that tag it as something hopelessly old fashioned. And yet this all feels, contradictorily, of its moment AND ahead of its time. At its best, it's an unfiltered blast of pure creativity, throwing whatever wild or silly idea it has for a new character or gizmo or sci-fi conceit at the wall to see what sticks, while also slowly doling out a suitably grandiose mythology. Unfortunately truncated (despite how big it already is) due to early cancellation, which leaves a frustrating feeling that it never quite got to the best stuff. A couple of (apparently compromised) comics that Kirby got to do in the '80s are neat but don't quite tie it all off satisfactorily; however, the final issue of Mister Miracle from the original run does at least provide a bittersweet farewell.

B+

[David Smith · Rating 3 out of 5]

Man these stories were all over the place. I've always kind of enjoyed these characters but I've never had to digest so many of their stories in such a compressed space. The story-telling quality was pretty lacking overall.

My favorite was New Gods #7 because it pulled itself out of the rather boring story line and told a story from the past. It was interesting. I've also always enjoyed Mr. Miracle since I was a kid, but I much prefer the second Incarnation that came along later in the seventies. And the new stuff with Tom King is just great.

Jack Kirby has a well-deserved reputation as a legend, but this is definitely not his best work. Three stars

[J.W. Wright · Rating 5 out of 5]

Earth is about to be rocked by the conflict between new cosmic gods of light and darkness. It is prophesied in Norse legend that when the Earth is reborn, new and strange gods shall emerge. This prophecy is fulfilled as Earth is embroiled in the war between beings from the idyllic world of New Genesis, and the demonic, dark world of Apokolips……

When I was a kid growing up in the ’80s, I was fascinated by a particular cartoon series called Super Powers and its accompanying toyline. This series featured all the legendary DC superheroes and villains. I was particularly impressed by the villains from the planet Apokolips in this cartoon; the particularly demonic Darkseid; his son, the brutish Kalibak; the sadistic and maniacal Desaad, the warmongering Steppenwolf, and the diabolical armies of parademons that served them. I also later, while in high school, through the WB animated series, Superman, discovered the heroes of New Genesis that opposed Darkseid; the wise and mystical Highfather, the brave and somewhat berserkerish Orion, the valiant Lightray, and the refugees from Apokilips; the alien escape artist Mister Miracle a.k.a Scott Free, the amazon-like Big Barda, and their dwarfish companion Oberon. Still later, I would find out that these villains were all creations of the legendary comic book writer and artist Jack Kirby, and debuted in an epic series for DC Comics that began in the ’70s which is collectively referred to as The Fourth World.
Back around 2015/2016, I tried with much resilience to track down the four collected paperback omnibus editions of Kirby’s Fourth World that had been released for a while. But sadly, they were all out of print and the surviving copies that could be bought used were rather pricy. Then in 2017, my patience finally paid off. A gargantuan hardback version of Jack Kirby’s Fourth World, clocking in at a whopping 1536 pages. I ordered the massive, unwieldy tome from Amazon just as soon as I found it, and paid around $75 for it and it was worth every red cent.
Within is Jack Kirby’s epic, monumental, cosmic storytelling and artwork in vivid color. This massive hardback is hard on the wrists and is like a baby elephant sitting on your legs when you try to read it from your lap, so it is best read while being placed on a table or an ottoman/footstool. Believe me, I learned the hard way from about grinding my thighbones/knees to dust beneath this monster. Not only did I get to revisit my favorite DC villains and heroes from Apokolips and New Genesis from my childhood in their original debut, but discovered new characters that I didn’t even know about before, such as the merry motley crew of cosmic heroes known as the Forever People; the militaristic, authoritarian old crone from Apokolips named Granny Goodness and her fierce female elite force of Furies, composed of the vicious Lashina, the brutish Stompa, the brooding Bernadeth, and the feral Mad Harriet; Glorious Godfrey, the satanic equivalent to Jimmy Swaggart who is in Darkseid’s employ and dedicated to spreading the demented gospel of Anti-Life; the bestial and bloodlusting entity known as Mantis; these and a lot more characters I discovered and enjoyed.
The stories within are for the most part top-notch and epic, absolutely grand in scale. Completely action-packed tales filled with a sense of the weird, the bizarre, the heroic, and the cosmic. Superman even makes an appearance in some of the stories as it was the much-pooh-poohed comic, Superman’s Pal Jimmy Olsen that originally introduced the cosmic villain Darkseid; a comic that somewhat improved from its place in the dregs of campy corniness once Jack Kirby took the helm.
There were a few stories that, yes, I’ll admit, were rather ridiculous and bordered on laughable, but on the whole, the good far outweighs the bad in this mammoth collection. It’s definitely a keeper in my personal library.
I give The Fourth World Omnibus by Jack Kirby a 5 out of 5.

[Seth Cordle · Rating 4 out of 5]

I started reading Fourth World as a secondary read next to the book series I was currently reading. But by the end, I was really flying through it.

I had been meaning to read the series for years & finally received it as a Christmas present last year.

Long story short: this is the most I’ve ever enjoy a Bronze Age comic series. Granted, this is the defining series of the age. It begins & ends with Fourth World.

It wasn’t perfect by any means. Those early issues of Jimmy Olsen & the beginning of Mister Miracle were ROUGH. But the series was held up in the beginning by Forever People & New Gods. The former started to slack just as Mister Miracle picked up & became very interesting.

In a lot of ways, Fourth World was a product of its time. I have a hard time not cringing when an issue starts off with characters having far-too-detailed conversation of exposition with other characters that already know the information being given, but for the most part, this is just a really fun read! It has aged far better than most books for the same time period!

Fourth World is a series that every single comic book reader should check off their list. I’ll be stepping directly John Byrne’s run & complete it with Walt Simonson’s Orion series. I’m definitely not burnt out from 59 issues of pure ‘70s campiness & that’s saying something!

[Samantha · Rating 5 out of 5]

What an incredible work!!! Kirby’s art is like no other and brings imagination to life. Kirby’s tale of good and evil is as wild as his artwork, taking our characters to new dimensions near and far, our heats pumping with fear and excitement. Compromised by DC admin Kirby still delivers a rousing finale. The overtaking of machines and numbers in Darkseid’s reign terror instead of raw emotions feels like a pointed critique at comics industry (though i dont know my precise history that well) but its also just a really great twist for the villain. The original run of interconnected comics are top notch stories, working beautifully with a monster of the week, but allowing the abilities and personalities to attack each one in a unique way. After each one i would be like “mister miracle is my fav” and then “wait forever people are the best” etc. Even Gods Must Die is a triumphant return. You’re plunged into the battle the comics had danced towards. And then the Hunger Dogs finds an out against an all out battle and embraces uncertainty over destruction!! It’s incredible.

[Fraser Macdonald · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jack Kirby clearly saw the future of comics. Interlocking stories across multiple titles, stories being collected as part of a larger whole and characters with complex personalities, goals and backstories.

The only way I can fault these stories is that they are a product of their time. If you're not a fan of the old style of comics where there's lots of exposition dropped in narrative boxes on most panels then this may be a bit of a tough read for you, even I struggled with the Jimmy Olsen sections of the Omnibus and I quite like it.

If you're interested in the history of comics and how they've evolved over the years then I'd say this is a serious turning point for the medium as a whole. By himself, Kirby crafted universes down to the fine details and while I enjoyed the more grandiose adventures of New Gods and The Forever People, the absolute highlight will always be Mister Miracle. Him and Barda easily stand in my top ten DC characters ever after this read.

[Tyrone · Rating 5 out of 5]

Any comic book lover who doesn't read this at some point in their life is missing out on a wonderful story and some of the most incredible art the medium has ever seen. This HUGE tome collects all of Jack Kirby's Fourth World saga in the one place, and while it can be difficult to read (both physically and the Jimmy Olsen stuff is a bit rough), it is a rewarding experience. Characters that have since gone on to have significant impact on the DC multiverse are introduced here, and it is wonderful to finally have it all in the one place.
The omnibus' presentation is top notch, too. Much better binding than earlier DC efforts, and the paper stock is excellent. Minimal gutter loss due to the physical size, and it is only noticeable on splash pages.

[Tim · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a Christmas present from my wife, and I was finally able to complete this massive undertaking (1500+ pages). I have most of the original comics but not all of them and this finalized a long-time dream to experience this saga.
Jack Kirby had a magnificent career, creating or co-creating with Stan Lee (depending on your outlook), characters as diverse as Captain America, the Fantastic Four, and Thor, to name a few. I have always felt that while not as popularly known that his Fourth World was the pinnacle of his creativity and I enjoyed immersing myself anew in his magnificent opus. While some will feel that the series is dated (it was published in 1970-1973), I believe that it holds up well fifty-five years later. Five-stars, without question.

[Angelo · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an absolute roller coaster ride of insanity. Nearly every page is full of this raw uncut creativity, be it through the art or Jack Kirby's batshit crazy story ideas. Because Kirby was just pulling ideas out of his ass it tended to be inconsistent and hard to follow at times, some of it is dumb as hell, but for every dumb idea, there's a dozen examples of absolute brilliance. It's at it's best when it's a big space opera, going all out with the mythology. Sure it's dated nowadays, but it's still essential reading.

[Jeff Lewonczyk · Rating 4 out of 5]

I spent a year and a half working through this, and, well, it's completely insane. The amount of sheer invention is staggering, if occasionally incoherent, and the result is nothing resembling a cohesive story. Still, you can't fault Kirby for being unambitious - he created his own entire mythology, which is moving at times, maddening at others, always moving at full throttle. Having only seen dribs and drabs of this material before, it was fascinating to read it all together - I won't be forgetting it any time soon.

[Eric · Rating 3 out of 5]

One of the earliest attempts at long-form superhero storytelling, this is not quite the sum of its parts. Kirby is much loved for his wild designs and dynamic poses, But that often comes at the expense of a sensical plot. Compared to both his earlier work with the Fantastic Four and the work of his peers at the time, this series is big on ideas but short on character and plot. It's a fun part of history that has definitely had a large impact on the DC Comics world and comic book storytelling in general.

[Jon · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm calling this early! Kirby is a top tier 'idea guy' and groundbreaking artist, but the reading experience as a whole is really draining and I dread every time I pick it up to spend 15 mins flicking through an issue! The influence is there and I can appreciate the impact he had on other cartoonists, but this one just isn't a great experience in The Current Year! The insane use of punctuation, faces always glaring into the camera, and women just being slightly reworked men are all pretty hilarious!

Three stars out of respect!

[Victor · Rating 5 out of 5]

This, to me, despite its quirks--the pomposity of so much of the language, the dated ties to a barely-understood hippiedom, the fact that there are probably ten times more two page spreads than pages with more than six panels on them, the depressing lack of creativity regarding the names of the characters--is a master craftsman's true masterpiece. Everybody with any interest in comics should read this. Carefully, because it's a book that could easily kill small creatures.

[Cameron (camzcollection) Skip]

This collection spans a story too big to give an all encompassing rating to, in my humble opinion, so I'll just say that holy crap I've finally finished reading all of Jack Kirby's The Fourth World.
It was really good. I liked some parts more than others. The ending wasn't super satisfying, but I knew it wasn't going to be going into it.
Maybe Final Crisis will make a little more sense now.

[Andrew Seaton · Rating 3 out of 5]

So I’m probably being a little too harsh in my rating. Don’t get me wrong, I certainly enjoyed the book. But part of me wonders of I would have been better off picking up individual trades of the four books, rather than trading them chronologically as presented in this book.

Still, I did enjoy it. And Kirby is definitely as good as advertised here.

[Matt · Rating 2 out of 5]

Audiobook.

Just kidding.

Whew. Comic book history, am I right? “Not my darkseid”

Mr. Miracle is ridiculous on paper. I never really got the allure of Jack Kirby’s art. I figured it was of the time. But the last few pages have his pencils and they are stunning. Shame on these colorists and shaders. Worth it just to see those.

King Kirby indeed. 2.5/5

[Sadiel Giron · Rating 4 out of 5]

Took me a very long time to finish this book, silver age reading can be difficult to read. But I am glad I was able to finally finish The Fourth World by Jack Kirby. Every series was interesting to read besides the Jimmy Olsen issues, they were a chore to read up to the point where I decided to skip reading them. My favorite issues to read were the New Gods and Mister Miracle.

[Carlos · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jack "The King" Kirby, after he left Marvel he moved onto DC and wrote one of the greatest mythological stories I have ever read it's an epic battle between Gods and a must read for DC and Jack Kirby fans