Superheroes of the round table comics connections to Medieval and Renaissance literature

249 Pages·2011·15.429 MB·English

by  Tondro, Jason

Superheroes of the
Round Table
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Superheroes of the
Round Table
Comics Connections to Medieval and
Renaissance Literature
J T
ASON ONDRO
McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers
Jefferson, North Carolina, and London
LIBRARYOFCONGRESSCATALOGUING-IN-PUBLICATIONDATA
Tondro, Jason, 1968–
Superheroes of the Round Table : comics connections to
Medieval and Renaissance literature / Jason Tondro.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-7864-6068-7
softcover : 50# alkaline paper
1. Comic books, strips, etc.—History and criticism.
2. Heroes in art. 3. English literature—Early modern,
1500–1700—History and criticism. 4. Renaissance—England.
5. Art and literature. I. Title.
PN67414.T66 2011
741.5'352—dc23 2011036579
BRITISHLIBRARYCATALOGUINGDATAAREAVAILABLE
© 2011Jason Tondro. All rights reserved
No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form
or by any means, electronic or mechanical, i ncluding photocopying
or recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system,
without p ermission in writing from the publisher.
Front cover design by David K. Landis (Shake It Loose Graphics)
Manufactured in the United States of America
McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers
Box 611, Je›erson, North Carolina 28640
www.mcfarlandpub.com
For Nicole
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Table of Contents
Acknowledgments viii
Introduction 1
One • Double Identities and Arthegall’s Yron Man 19
Two • Kirby’s Masque 51
Three • “By My So Potent Art” 91
Four • Arthur, the Four-Color King 142
Five • Grant Morrison’s Grail Quest 189
Notes 227
Bibliography 232
Index 237
vii
Acknowledgments
When Dante wrote himself into the company of great poets, he showed them
welcoming him as one of their own. I think I prefer Chaucer’s version: in the
House of Fame he looks up and sees his role models on pillars so far above him
that they look tiny, their features inscrutable. We stand almost imperceptible in
the shadows of those who came before, yet we would never have made it even this
far without the help of so many.
Scholarship requires research, and I would have been lost without the aid
of my good friend and colleague Jess Nevins, who became my go-to reference
librarian. The staff of the Eaton Collection at the University of California River-
side, home to one of the world’s largest comic collections, was patient, gracious
and helpful. Michigan State University is fortunate indeed to boast the presence
of librarian Randy Scott, who delved into MSU’s extensive comic collection to
provide me with last minute help that went above and beyond the call of duty.
Pete Coogan and the Institute for Comic Studies provided me with legal assis-
tance in an era when academic fair use is perpetually under siege.
This project grew out of my Ph.D. dissertation, and for their patient guid-
ance, enthusiasm, and open minds I am obliged to my professors at the Uni-
versity of California Riverside. I will never forget the day I went into the office
of Stanley Stewart, whom I had long known to be a peerless scholar of the
English Renaissance, only for him to suddenly start quoting Luke Cage, Power
Man. Likewise, John Ganim was the first to remind me that I should not be
afraid to write a comic book dissertation rather than a book which was ashamed
to be given such a label. To John Briggs I owe my love of Spenser and my appre-
ciation for the rhetoric of a well-crafted line.
The Comic and Comic Arts area of the Popular Culture Association has
been the cauldron out of which so many of my thoughts on comics have crawled
over the years. I would like to express my friendship and gratitude to Amy
Nyberg, John Lent, Marc Singer, Gene Kannenberg, Randy Duncan, A. David
Lewis, and all the other scholars and critics of the Area who have embarrassed
me by the profundity of their insights, who have challenged me by the rigor of
their arguments, and who have inspired me by the soaring language of their
prose.
And most of all, I am thankful for the constant and loving support of my
wife, Nicole Freim. I have long thought that only a writer can understand the
life of another writer, but she has gone so far beyond any hope or expectation
in her unwavering care for me that I can only count the day she danced into
my life as a blessing I was lucky enough to recognize.
To everyone, thank you.
viii
Introduction
Aleister Crowley, the Great Beast of the Victorian occult revival, had a
favorite joke. He claimed that this joke contained within it the secret of all
magic. It went like this:
A young Englishman decided to take the train north to visit the country. When
he boarded, however, there were very few seats remaining, so he took a spot on a
bench opposite a middle-aged gentleman with a curiously large box on his lap.
The young man noticed that this box had several holes pierced through its lid;
in time his curiosity got the better of him and he asked, “Excuse me sir. I hate
to interrupt, but you wouldn’t happen to have some sort of animal in that box?”
His fellow traveler smiled, nodded amiably, and confirmed that the box did
indeed contain an animal.
“Is it a small dog?” inquired the younger man. “Or a kitten? Perhaps it is a
bird.”
But the other man shook his head and said matter-of-factly that no, in fact,
the animal in the box was a mongoose.
This revelation took our young man by surprise, and he started and
exclaimed, “A mongoose! Why, that is a very unusual creature to have on a train,
sir. What are you doing with it?”
At this, his companion sighed heavily with despair, and he related the sad
truth. He was on the train to visit his brother, who lived alone no small distance
away. This brother had become a terrible drug addict, and now saw terrifying
hallucinations around every corner. Even now, the poor fellow believed his house
was infested with poisonous snakes, and he was so frightened of them that he
could not even make it to the front door of his house and safety. The traveler
was on an errand of mercy and would rescue his brother; he brought the mon-
goose to kill the snakes.
Now the young man was at first puzzled by this, and then he felt ashamed for
his new friend, and he kept silent for as long as he could because he did not
want to make the other fellow feel foolish. But at last he blurted out, “But sir,
they are imaginary snakes!”
Whereupon the other man smiled, nodded, and patted the top of his box.
“But this,” he said, “is an imaginary mongoose.”1
1