Iron Fist 1970s John Byrne pin-up!

Came across this nifty pin-up by John Byrne...

...classic 1970s Iron Fist! Misty Knight! Colleen Wing! Looks like it was a gift to Chris Claremont? Nuff Said!

Steve Rude commissions: Iron Fist, Gwen Stacy, Ronan the Accuser!

Some recent commissions from Steve Rude (the Dude) Facebook page!

Iron Fist, dodging some arrows.

Gwen Stacy shaking it in a go-go discotheque, similar pose / clothes to Mary Jane from a 60s Spider-Man comic.

Ronan the Accuser, looking menacing. Nuff Said!

Iron Fist versus Wolverine by Lee Weeks

They first met in Iron Fist #15 in 1977 and their first skirmish was a brief one.  We never got to see the K'un L'un kid unleash his weapon on Wolverine.

A brilliant commission by Lee Weeks.  Nuff Said!

John Byrne Power Man and Iron Fist in the style of Mad Magazine's Don Martin

Here's a big laugh courtesy of John Byrne, from The Comic Reader 143, circa 1977.  It was around this period when Iron Fist was set to become Luke Cage's best buddy--and share the masthead when Power Man was re-titled Power Man and Iron Fist with issue #50.  Claremont and Byrne were the creators behind this odd couple pairing.

The signature reads: John Byrne, from an idea by Roger Stern, with apologies to Don Martin.  Don Martin was one of the premiere artists from Mad Magazine, who drew funny characters with elongated features.  Why not take a visit to the Don Martin Shrine today?  Nuff Said!

Enter the Deadly Hands of Kung Fu

When characters like Spider-Man, Conan, X-Men, Punisher, and Wolverine become popular, what's the next step for Mighty Marvel to take?

 

Spin them off into a number of books to maximize their profit!  Soon after Shang-Chi appeared in Special Marvel Edition #15, Bullpen Bulletins announced the launch of a brand new black and white magazine...The Deadly Hands of Kung Fu!

The cover to issue #1 featured a dynamic cover by Neal Adams, which depicted a Kung Fu character kicking the shit out of a much larger opponent.  The character looked like Bruce Lee and the scene looked like it was ripped from his most famous movie, Enter the Dragon.  This cover was so popular that Marvel sold it as a poster.

Neal Adams covers really helped sell DHKF magazine.  He executed a series of them inspired by TV/Movies, including David Carradine's Kung Fu series, Roger Moore as James Bond (from a scene in The Man With the Golden Gun), and the Trial of Billy Jack. 

Deadly Hands of Kung Fu actually had the least story content of any Marvel magazine.  Kung Fu was a new genre and there were no reprints Marvel could use.  Their writers and artists were straining just to fill Master of Kung Fu and Iron Fist with new stories in the color comics.  Each issue of Deadly Hands would feature a lead Shang-Chi story and a back-end story with the Sons of the Tiger.  In-between these stories would be a number of articles on Kung Fu inspired TV shows and movies, articles on actors like Bruce Lee or Chuck Norris, or articles about the practice of martial arts.  The articles are quite good, especially if you are fan of 70s Kung Fu movies, as they interviewed many actors who starred in them.

Iron Fist smashed his way into Deadly Hands in issue #10, in a story originally meant for his own black and white magazine.  Iron Fist was always drawn by Rudy Nebres when he appeared in DHKF.  He displaced Shang-Chi as the lead character for six issues (19-24).

The Sons of the Tiger backup strip was clearly inspired by the three lead characters in Enter the Dragon.  Take three Kung Fu guys--an Asian dude who looks like Bruce Lee, a butt kicking Black dude, and a white guy who is also a movie actor--give them mystical Tiger amulets that triples their power when joined together--and you've got a Kung Fu super-team.  This series floundered for a while, but when Bill Mantlo and George Perez took it over, it started to be more interesting.  Perez was early in his career and just starting to develop his skills.  Mantlo and Perez introduced the White Tiger in Deadly Hands #20, a Puerto Rican guy who got a hold of all three tiger amulets after the Sons disbanded.

The funny thing about Deadly Hands is that I remember only a handful of stories.  The first two Shang-Chi stories clearly stand out, as they were written by Steve Englehart.  The only Iron Fist story that stands out was in DHKF #18, by Mantlo with Pat Broderick, and Terry Austin, who did a terrific job on the art.  Iron Fist teams up with the Sons of the Tiger and stops a subway train from running over Abe using his glowing hand.  Chris Claremont and Marshall Rogers' Daughters of the Dragon story in DHKF #32-33, that took Iron Fist supporting characters Colleen Wing and Misty Knight to lead roles as butt kicking heroines, was another standout.

The supreme Deadly Hands moment occurred in issue #21, when I saw this terrific splash page by George Perez featuring the White Tiger.  I couldn't--and still cannot--get over the the painstaking detail of the buildings in the cityscape and the clever use of the White Tiger logo on the buildings.  From this moment on, I knew Perez was an artist with enormous potential, and followed him to any comic that he drew.  I also admired the design of the White Tiger's costume.  He was a mysterious character. 

DHKF even had its own version of a King-Sized Annual, a Special Album Edition in 1974.  It really cost a heckuva lot more.  Whereas the regular mag cost 75 cents, the Album was a quarter extra!  It was mostly reprint material from previous issues.

Deadly Hands of Kung Fu lasted only 33 issues and less than 3 years, but it clearly made on impact on fans who later become professional writers.  I couldn't have been more surprised when Hector Ayala, the White Tiger, appeared in Brian Bendis' Daredevil as a defendant represented by Matt Murdock.  (Of course, I was disappointed when Bendis killed him off!)  Jason Aaron brought the Sons of the Tiger back in the Wolverine Manifest Destiny series.  Nuff said.

Enter the Iron Fist

There was no doubt about it--the Kung Fu craze had taken over Mighty Marvel in 1973-75.  A few months after Shang-Chi premiered, we saw this teaser in the Bullpen Bulletins page:

Iron Fist is coming!  There was also a secret coded message that had to be decoded using a key found in FOOM.  It was a tantalizing image, and he looked very different from Shang-Chi.

On a cold winter day in February 1974, I picked up Marvel Premiere #15 in a store called "The Book Cache" in Anchorage, Alaska.  The origin of Daniel Rand was beautifully executed by Roy Thomas and Gil Kane.  Whereas Shang-Chi broke the Marvel mold of a superhero (becoming a straight action hero), Iron Fist was a hero in the classic Marvel manner, as Iron Fist he:

• Wore a mask and had a secret identity.
• Had a Super-Power, the Iron Fist.
• Was an orphan who watched his parents die.
• Came from a secret hidden city called K'un L'un.
• Teamed up with Marvel Super-Heroes regularly.

Thomas has said in an interview that the origin of Iron Fist was inspired by the Amazing Man character (created by Bill Everett).  Danny Rand's training in K'un L'un that culminates in him fighting Shou-Lao the Undying and attaining the power of the Iron Fist is very much akin to Amazing Man acquiring the power of the Green Mist.  Gil Kane came up with the idea of using this origin structure for Iron Fist.

Unfortunately, Thomas and Kane only worked on the debut issue of Iron Fist.  A number of writers handled the character from Marvel Premiere #16 to issue 22: Len Wein (1 issue), Doug Moench (3 issues), and Tony Isabella (3 issues).  The stories basically involved Danny Rand coming to the United States, confronting Harold Meachum (the man who killed his father), and meeting Colleen Wing.

It wasn't until Chris Claremont took over as the writer of Iron Fist (in Marvel Premiere #23) that the character started to shine.  Claremont was given a clean slate and able to put Iron Fist in action against super-villains.  In 1975, Iron Fist #1 was published, and Claremont was joined by his magically talented artist-partner: John Byrne.  Together, they made Iron Fist come alive in a way we had never seen before.  Danny Rand fought Iron Man in issue #1, took on the Wrecking Crew, and beat down SabreTooth, who made his first appearance in Iron Fist #14. 

Iron Fist lost his own color comic after issue 15, with a memorable guest appearance by the X-Men, where Danny proved he could hold his own against Wolverine.  When the X-Men later took off in popularity, the back issue prices for Iron Fist #14 and #15 went through the roof. 

Claremont developed all the elements that make Iron Fist a great character for the Marvel universe.  He introduced Misty Knight, the cyborg arm wielding woman who later became Danny's girlfriend.  He also added to the mythology surrounding K'un L'un, suggesting that ruler Yu Ti had ulterior motives that weren't so honorable.  Claremont also showed that the Iron Fist power could be used for more than just smashing things--Danny used it to heal himself in issue 4.  Ed Brubaker and Matt Fraction took these story elements and developed them further in the 2007 Immortal Iron Fist series.

Iron Fist even leaped into Marvel's black and white magazine line.  Marvel initially announced that a black and white "Iron Fist #1" magazine would be published in September 1974.  I saw an advertisement for the cover of this magazine, but was unable to find a picture of it for this article.  In FOOM, there was an interview with Tony Isabella about the co-feature, titled "Dragons Two" about a brother-sister team with Kung Fu abilities.

Iron Fist #1 (the magazine) was never published.  Marvel reconsidered, either thinking that the magazine market would not support two Kung Fu titles, or perhaps that Iron Fist's color comic sales weren't as great as Master of Kung Fu.

In Deadly Hands of Kung Fu #9, we saw this beautiful Iron Fist pin-up by Rudy Nebres.  The "movie-length saga" by Nebres and Tony Isabella, intended for Iron Fist #1, was published in Deadly Hands of Kung Fu #10 (1975).  Iron Fist returned in Deadly Hands of Kung Fu issues 19 to 24, in a six part epic by Chris Claremont, with Nebres on the art as well.  Doing the research for this article, I discovered a new appreciation for Rudy Nebres art.

Iron Fist survived into the 1980s by teaming up with Luke Cage in Power Man/Iron Fist, but was lost from the Marvel universe after a pointless death at the end of that series.  Thankfully, he was revived by John Byrne in Namor and restored back to glory by Brubaker, Fraction, and Aja in 2007.  Nuff said.