Ironjaw #1
Published and © by Atlas (Seaboard), January 1975
Title: “The Saga of Iron Jaw”
Synopsis: Ironjaw saves a wench – to use for his own “companionship” – but the duo falls prey to betrayal and royal intrigue.
Writer: Michael Fleisher
Penciler: Mike Sekowsky
Inker: Jack Abel
Review: Ironjaw reads like a parody of a ’70s barbarian comic: Post-apocalyptic setting that seems strangely like the past? Check. Buff antihero of questionable moral fiber? Certainly. Misogynistic and sexist dialogue that gives winking approval to rape? Indeed. In fact, Michael Fleisher’s dialogue is so over the top that it’s hard not to enjoy it in that cheesy, exploitation way. (“There’s nothing so pretty as a wench in a net!”) On the art side of the equation, Mike Sekowsky’s storytelling is clean and effective, but his normally stylized renderings are neutralized a bit by Jack Abel’s overly generic inks.
Grade: C+
Cool factor: One of the first Atlas (Seaboard) comics!
Not-so-cool factor: The over-the-top sexism. Sure, it’s laughable, but you still feel the need to shower when done reading this one.
Notable: First appearance of Ironjaw … Includes a one-page text feature, “The World of Ironjaw.”
Character quotable: “I am strong and you are weak! So it does not matter what you want!” – Ironjaw, who spouts more quotables per issue than perhaps any character
Editor’s note: This review was originally published by Comics Bronze Age on Sept. 24, 2010.
