Marvel Masterworks: Atlas Era Black Night/Yellow Claw - Volume 1 [Hardcover]

Marvel Comics (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 2, 2009

Written by STAN LEE, AL FELDSTEIN & VARIOUS Penciled by JOE MANEELY, JACK KIRBY, JOHN SEVERIN, FRED KIDA & VARIOUS Cover by JOE MANEELY From the heroic times of King Arthur to the dangers of the Cold War, the Atlas Era brings you the greatest adventure stories from the 1950s. Presenting the original series of two legendary characters that have bridged the decades - all the way from the Atlas Era to the Avengers and Agents of Atlas - Black Knight and Yellow Claw are must-haves for every Marvel maniac! Sir Percy of Scandia may appear to be a foppish weakling, too timid to fight and the scorn of Camelot, but only Merlin knows the truth: Sir Percy is the gallant Black Knight! Come to drive Modred de Monfort from King Arthur's court, he wields the ebony blade against Norman invaders, dragons, imposters and usurpers to the throne. With the pencil of Atlas great, Joe Maneely, delineating the action,Black Knight is a sure-fire classic! Then comes Cold War tales of mystery, espionage and world domination from the pages of Yellow Claw! Illustrated by the incomparable trio of Joe Maneely, John Severin and -in a rare mid-50s Atlas appearance- Jack Kirby, F.B.I. Agent Jimmy Woo's mission to capture the century-old mystic from the root of the Himalayas is packed with gritty crime and unimaginable adversaries, from mind-bending mutants and UFO the Lightning Man to Temujai the Golden Goliath and the Living Shadows! Collecting BLACK KNIGHT #1-5 & YELLOW CLAW #1-4. 256 PGS./All Ages

Product Details

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: Marvel (September 2, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0785135154
• ISBN-13: 978-0785135159
• Product Dimensions: 6 x 4 x 8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #940,816 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Black Knight Review by Michael T. Gilbert, December 28, 2009

By 

Michael T. Gilbert (Oregon USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Marvel Masterworks: Atlas Era Black Night/Yellow Claw - Volume 1 (Hardcover)

If you're a fan of either cartoonist Joe Maneely or Jack Kirby, you definitely don't want to miss this volume! Joe drew the first three issues of the 1955 series in his extremely detailed style, and it's lovely indeed. The entire five-issue series is reprinted here, with the ads removed. Reproduction is quite nice (I believe they were shot from rare decades-old stats). Atlas era experts Michael Vassallo and Roy Thomas provide invaluable background on the two series.
But the real reason I picked up the book was for the four-issue Yellow Claw series, also included in the volume. The first issue was drawn by Maneely and scripted by EC writer/editor Al Feldstein, his only work for Atlas. But the final three were written and drawn by Jack Kirby, and features some of his most imaginative art. The stories, only four or five pages each, are quite silly as only Gold or Silver Age comics can be. But the art is stunning, and the final issue features some incredible inks by EC veteran John Severin. For my money, this is one of the best Atlas Era Masterworks yet, up there with the equally great Bill Everett Sub-Mariner volume.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Joe Maneely artistic showcase, October 1, 2009

By 

Jim Davis (St. Charles, MO USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Marvel Masterworks: Atlas Era Black Night/Yellow Claw - Volume 1 (Hardcover)

When the Atlas Era Marvel Masterworks were announced the Black Knight comics were high on most everyone's list of desired volumes. The reason was that it showcased the artistic talents of the prolific Joe Maneely. The Black Knight stories were reprinted in the late '60s so these were almost the only examples of Maneely's art that was familiar to most comic fans. Maneely died in the late '50s. The Yellow Claw book was another short run book begun by Maneely so combining these two books into one Masterwork seemed logical from an artistic viewpoint even though from very different genres.

The reproduction is superb. Maneely's art really shines in this volume. The Black Knight stories themselves are really too short for modern tastes, no more than 5 pages apiece. It's difficult to work up much plot sophistication in that amount of space. Still, it all seems to work as Merlin's agent, the Black Knight, the secret identity of the foppish Sir Percy, foils plots against Camelot. A strange twist to Arthurian legend is Morgana as Modred's wife, instead of his mother. There is also an undistinguished back up feature, the Crusader. The follow on artists in Black Knight #4 and #5 are also excellent.

Yellow Claw is a less satisfactory book. Maneely did only the first issue and the covers before turning the book over to Jack Kirby. Kirby did the scripting also and the stories are just all over the place with elements of cold war intrigue, horror, science fiction, fantasy, etc. The contrast between Maneely and Kirby art is interesting. Maneely always did his own inking whereas Kirby never did his.

The book is topped off with a 12 page Maneely biography by Dr. Michael J. Vassallo. This is a superb text piece and adds tremendously to what is in effect a Joe Maneely tribute book.

The stories don't age well like most Atlas stories from this period but the art is timeless.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Celebrating the work of Joe Maneely, October 11, 2009

A Kid's Review

This review is from: Marvel Masterworks: Atlas Era Black Night/Yellow Claw - Volume 1 (Hardcover)

The Black Knight/Yellow Claw Masterworks showcases the work of two comics masters: Joe Maneely; the Timely-Atlas workhorse and right hand man to Stan Lee, whose versatility and attractive style was cut short when he died in an accident at an early age; and Jack Kirby, the legendary creator who returned to Marvel shortly after Maneely's death. Maneely's work is seen in both the Black Knight and the first issue of the Yellow Claw. Kirby took over the writing and art with the second issue, turning a spy/mystery thriller to a sci-fi extravaganza.

Comics historian Michael J. Vassallo tops it off with a detailed essay on the life and work of Joe Maneeely. The book is sharply reproduced and well worth seeking out for the comics afficianado.

Nick C.