I think my first exposure to Man-Thing was probably jokes about the title for Giant Size Man-Thing. That sounds awful, but the eight year old child brain in my head still gets a chuckle out of it. More practicably, the first stories I can remember with Man-Thing in them were likely the beginning of Marvel Comics Presents. Long after his debut and series in the ’70s.
Created by Roy Thomas, Gerry Conway, and Gray Morrow, appearing first in Savage Tales #1, Man-Thing actually predated Swamp Thing’s first appearance by a couple of months. Though there are many surface similarities between the two, especially the tragedy of their origins, they are two radically different muck monsters. Man-Thing being an eerie, silent presence reacting to the emotions of mankind more than anything else.
Unlike Swamp Thing, my attachment to Man-Thing was more incidental. I liked the character when he popped up, especially in Generation X and the late ’90s series from JM DeMatteis and Liam Sharp, but I didn’t track down back issues in the same way. Even though I did go back issue bin diving for Steve Gerber’s other work like Howard the Duck. It wasn’t until Marvel released the relatively recent complete collections that I finally dove into the back catalogue of Man-Thing stories. Discovering that I’d been missing out. Certainly with Gerber’s clever writing and gorgeous artwork from the likes of Mike Ploog, Ed Hannigan, Alfredo Alcala, Val Mayerik, Jim Starlin, and the legendary John Buscema.
“No. The monster seeks only to touch him. That’s all he need do. For whatever knows fear–burns at the Man-Thing’s touch!”
The Man-Thing #12 by Steve Gerber, John Buscema, Klaus Jansen, Glynis Wein, and John Costanza is a bit of a standout for the series. This one is a mix of psychological horror and social commentary, starting out in what could probably be considered the Swamp Gothic feel. Which would be familiar to readers of Len Wein and Bernie Wrightson’s Swamp Thing. It tells the story of an advertising man, haunted by the pressures of society, and a lifetime of selling lies.
The social commentary isn’t something new for Gerber’s stories, with earlier issues in his run dealing with fallout from the Vietnam war, looks at counter culture, class structure, and more. Nor really is a Southern Gothic style horror or the amount of humour and tongue-in-cheek references made, but what comes together in this story is almost a perfect storm of Gerber’s work on the character. Mixed genres and even storytelling techniques as this incorporates some in-story text inserts. You get a critique of manipulative language to get people to buy things and a lesson on the power of love.
John Buscema’s tenure on Man-Thing was brief, only an issue of Giant Size and three issues of the main series, but it was highly impactful. To me it feels right that he’d illustrate a story or two of a character that debuted in a book devoted originally to Conan. (Even more so in that he had a Ka-Zar story in that same first issue). With an added edge here through Klaus Jansen finishing the line art. It’s a wonderful mix of Buscema’s fluid work with the gritty textures of Jansen’s style and Glynis Wein’s moody, atmospheric colours, that results in a story that’s just a visual pleasure to read. Added to that some pre-Swamp Thing lettering work from John Costanza.
“A man’s–any man’–grasp on sanity is tenuous at best.”
The Man-Thing #12 by Gerber, Buscema, Jansen, Wein, and Costanza is a wonderful confluence of all of Gerber’s Man-Thing storytelling in one tight package. A moody Southern Gothic story that incorporates a commentary on social ills and overcoming emotional obstacles through varied storytelling methods. Setting forth an interesting moral lesson that still seems applicable today. All with some gorgeous line art from Buscema and Jansen.
Classic Comic Compendium: THE MAN-THING #12
The Man-Thing #12 – “Song-Cry…of the Living Dead Man”
Writer: Steve Gerber
Layouts: John Buscema
Finished Art: Klaus Jansen
Colourist: Glynis Wein
Letterer: John Costanza
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Release Date: September 17 1974
Available collected in The Infernal Man-Thing and Man-Thing by Steve Gerber: The Complete Collection – Volume 2
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