I love the way kirby draws hands, always these big slabs of blocky fingers, and when they punch its like swinging a cinderblock

Jack Kirby was an Alien that helped humanity advance and use the imagination.

Galactus, Darkseid, Doctor Doom , Silver Surfer and many more. Jack Kirby was a genius! I hope one day they make a movie of his life and career.

Genetic manipulation can probably be a Kirby trope in itself. I know it's used a lot in comics, but Kirby really expored the hell out of the concept. Characters shaped people's genome like it was playdoh. The kree's genetic experiments on Inhumans. The Celestial's genetics experiment on Deviants and Eternals. Silver Star "Homo Geneticus".

Without Kirby we would have nothing

Kirby might be comparable to H. P. Lovecraft in the creation of a personal mythology.

It's so crazy how you said that you didn't care for Kirbys art at first but it ended up growing on you eventually because I felt the exact same way. I thought it was sub-par and almost amateurish at first but the more I read of his and started to enjoy his stories the more I grew to love his artwork. I'm so glad I continued to read his material instead of giving up on it right away. Now Kirby is a huge inspiration of mine, almost shaping entirely how I draw something. It blows my mind how many "comic book fans" there are who either don't know Kirby at all or have no idea how influential Kirby is to the comic book industry. He truly was an actual living super hero! R I P Mr. Kirby, your art and story telling will live on forever!

Kirby was a force of nature. Inspired, hard working, influential. You could make half a dozen programmes and still only scratch the surface of his legacy. But this was a great analysis. Thanks.

He passed away a day after I was born. Such an inspiration from both artistic and human stand points. Thank you for everything you created, King Kirby.

I had a similar experience to you. When I first saw Kirby's art, I thought of it as generic, with stock poses. Then when I read a lot of his 60s Marvel stories, I found them easy to read, fun to look at, and had crazy dynamic action despite it being PG13. I fucking LOVE when he draws outer space. It even got me to like John Romita Jr a lot more who is the closest thing to Kirby nowadays.

Kirby was the greatest talent over a long haul ever to appear in the comic-book medium. I remember where I was when I heard he passed away (driving down Pensacola Avenue in Tallahassee) and I used to change my password on his birthday (I have a very good memory for dates). Anyway, here we are, and his legend continues. Thank you, Tropester, for your insights into his work!

Kirby was getting frostbite on the frontline while Stan Lee was comfy at Headquarters doing safe-sex adds for GI's...

Yeah, Kirby's style was mesmerizing. I remember going thru his pages just looking at the artwork in the panels and then going back to read the stories.

Thanks so much. I'm a huge Jack Kirby fan. He was The King of Comics, alright!

I’m in the back catalogue of your content and man YOUR STUFF IS AWESOME. My dad is a huge comic collector, I was 10 years old in 2008 when my dad handed me Frank Miller’s daredevil run and watchmen and told me “you’re ready” lmaooo. I’m so glad that there’s youtubers like you that are keeping the history and passion for comics alive.

You've truly honored the king with this tribute. And gotta love the Kirby Krackle!

Kirby had a lot of influence from National Geographic and science mags, he had such a great imagination. This is something the majority of comics is missing today.

He was a genius and I mean a GENIUS! I hated his art as a kid but only because I wasn’t mature enough to understand the genius. The wall behind our host could go in any fine art gallery.

I was a kid in the 1960's, and the first time I saw Jack Kirby's work on the Fantastic Four I knew I was seeing a new level of artwork. Kirby's work made the FF stories much more believable, and that the incredibly detailed weird technology you saw in it just might work. Kirby was a must for FF stories. Kirby was head and shoulders above any other comic book artists, and he pioneered a lot of the techniques comics artists are using today. To add to the unkind cuts that Kirby endured, when he went to get his original art pages from Marvel, which artists were entitled to when they leave a company, they only returned a few dozen pages to him; out of several thousand that he had drawn. It turns out that sleazebag artists at the company had stolen them over the years. He should have sued Marvel for damages, but he didn't; proving that Kirby was so much better than the company he worked for.

i had a similar relationship with kirby and his art. grew to love him

A great tribute Chris, thank you. I saw Alan Moore interviewed at a live event a couple of years ago and he described Kirby as a "bona fide genius". How true. For me, his early work with Stan Lee on Fantastic Four shows everything that's great about him.

10:15 After they had run out of Kirby backlog, they had other artists emulate his style and put Kirby's credit on. One of those artists was Gil Kane. ... Still enjoying your series.

Thanks for the tribute. I like best"The Hunger Dogs". Kirby did it all, including the lettering. It's worth a read.:)

I totally agree with you that Jack Kirby is the complete foundation of comics. His work draws you into it as if you were there. There will never be another. Thanks for the great video

Kirby was amazing. Absolutely amazing. His art was iconic (though I had the same love/dislike attitude toward Kirby work you did), and his creativity and sheer output was nonpareil.

You can easily identify comic book noobies. They usually can't appreciate the genius of Kirby. I've been that.

Jack deserves his own movie.

Jack Kirby, the man, the myth, the legend. I can't get enough of his artwork.

What I love about Kirby is how reading most of his work as an adult, I feel like an enthusiastic kid. The Kirby Crackle, the extreme dynamic poses, the slang from the era of the long haired troublemakers...all essential to keeping your inner child fed and happy.

Kirby was the absolute best!!!👍🏽👍🏽👍🏽👍🏽👍🏽

I grew up reading his comics and now I collect them. He was a master of his craft.

This is a wonderful analysis of the King's work! I never heard the term 'trope' until watching this video, but they way you presented it not only expertly described his art, but clarified the new (to me) term as well. Well done in every respect!

TBH Jack Kirby is one of the comic artists who inspired me to do my own comics

I love Mark Evanier’s biography of Kirby. Such a good read. I acted the way you did at first to his art but the more you learn about comics and visual storytelling, the more you see how he shaped the entire industry into what it is today.

I thought Kirby's art was crude too. "His figures are always dancing the watusi," I'd say. "And what's with all the man-faced women?" Then I sat down and tried to draw comics myself and Kirby became a genius to me overnight. His compositions, use of perspective, and even his shadow placement are amazing. He is the best.

I didn't know anything about Kirby Krackle when I was first reading Fantastic Four via the Essentials volumes back in the early 2000s, but it quickly became a favorite visual element I looked forward to seeing more of across just about every comic I could find. It's an amazing design motif that looks equally at home as chemical byproducts inside a test tube or cosmic pulsations bubbling all over an outer space background, and of course, as leftover discharge from an advanced gun or other such weapon. It just looks like it could do some mighty impressive stuff of any kind you could possibly need. The king of all visual effects from the King of Comics!

Great vid. The King is 1 of my fav artists of all time. Definitely undervalued in terms of salary or pay for what he contributed & the pace he put his creations into the universe. I loved his artwork from day 1, when I 1st saw it, new gods & the demon 4 dc & fantastic four & captain America 4 marvel.

Another idiosyncratic, yet insightful and entertaining exploration of comics. Great work!

Jack was awesome ! I didn't know much about him until I watched this. Awesome video man keep it up.

My face is now in a maximum state after watching this fine video.

Your videos: *They're groovy! I love them all!*

Thanks! You did such a great job of describing Kirby’s genius, and helped me see some things I hadn’t noticed before.

Hey Chris! I've been following you over the years and I just gotta say, I really appreciate your work. You have such a kind, genuine presentation without an ounce of cynicism- it's lighthearted without trying too hard to be snarky. As a comic artist and fan, I love your histories and retrospectives like this. It's the perfect material to work to. Cheers!

I found your channel some weeks ago and i cant stop watching your videos, this one left my heart beating a little stronger with the passion that i have for kirbys work Thank you so much

"2 thousand subscribers" LoL 100 times that now. Thank you! You make comics fun, thank you. I've learned a ton from you

Jack Kirby was a God of Comics!

I have always been a Kirby fan. But I found that the older I get to more a am in awe of his creativity and skills as a dynamic story teller. I just recently reread the dc comics the Demon original run from the 70’s and I found myself getting lost in his work. It is masterful and breathtaking. No one “ for me “ will ever surpass the awesome works of yes the true king of comics Jack Kirby.

Wow--- randomly stumbled across this in a tube search-- nice presentation and analysis of key elements of Kirby's work. Regardless of whomever he worked for at any given time, Kirby effectively and successfully used repeating themes throughout his entire career. Thanks for putting this together-- subbing your channel now-- looks like I have a bit of back-episode viewing to do!

I forgot that Kirby worked on the Argo movie. That's cool.

Loved this, thanks. I learned so much about Kirby that I've not heard before. Great work!

Wow Chris...terrific exploration of Jack Kirby's tropes, and thank you btw for all the additional history. He was with doubt a superlative human being in many areas. Like you, it took me a few years to appreciate the King's work but I now realize that he offered a foundation for art appreciation in me that's profound and to this day continuing to unfold. And my son and I truly appreciate the fun and humor you bring to your subjects and will continue to delve into your backlog of videos as well as follow the current goodies. Peace.

thank you skunkape for the always entertaining and informative content... I'll always be a big fan, Chris!

Thanks much for the video. It's great to see all the wonderful creations by Jack 'King' Kirby. Keep up the awesome videos!

There's a story that was/is going around about how it was Jack Kirby, not Stan Lee, who was the real mastermind behind Marvel's rise in those early days of yesteryear. Lee was the better salesman and frontman, so he was able to dominate the spotlight while Kirby toiled in the background. Lee stood on the shoulders of a giant to bring us heroes that were created by Kirby. I forget who was the bearer of that tale. At any rate, I feel the amount of praise and respect Kirby commands is not enough to equate the true magnitude of his contributions to the industry.

Nice! I was hoping for this episode!

This was great I actually learned a few things I didn't know about Kirby! Thank you!

I can’t get enough of this channel , I always find a great video in the archives , I like this channel as much as comicsexplained.

king kirby , up there with dali and picasso genius

Thoroughly enjoyed this video. Nice job!

Great video. Thank you. The most amazing thing about Jack Kirby was that he didn't really have to be that good. Comics at the time were considered a "throwaway" medium and referred to as "funny books" for kids. And yet he put his all into the work, never cutting corners. He was also asked to produce very quickly for relatively low pay. So he didn't have to draw every brick and every cornice and ledge in the architecture. Yet he did, and with breathtaking results. As someone who was there at the time (the 1960s on), I can tell you that his art was so advanced it pulverized the competition and stunned the comic reading community month after month. Ridiculously, he reached his artistic zenith in his 50s, when most people are slowing down and thinking about retirement. I'm not religious, but I thank God for Jack Kirby. For I believe his abilities could have only come from a higher source...perhaps The Source?

One of your finest episodes

Thank you Chris for this fantastic tribute. Jack was my hero as a teen. I found a copy of Kamandi #13 and was hooked. Had to go back and find his past titles through the letters pages and mail ordered the DC titles old style; waiting with anticipation for the post to come. I bought if for the art and realized what an amazing writer Jack was. Critics now realize Jack's work influenced people like Lucas in adapting major aspects of the SW sagas to reflect many of Jack's concepts seen throughout his works. He heralded the issues of comic creators deserving a better shake in the biz. You've captured the sense of his influence on the design of what made comics great. I'm glad you mentioned his commitment to family. Behind that truth is Jack Kirby's developed moral underpinning in a business like entertainment where so many of it's adherents do not possess much truth, integrity, honor and faithfulness. It's those qualities I see in your submissions here at ComicTropes. It's really the first time I've subscribed to a youtube channel after being a viewer for many years.

Your channel is the best comic-based channel. I love this and learn so many new things about the comics I loved as a kid

I also want to say that I love your videos very much! The way you present your ideas and explain them out is very well put together, very informative but most of all you make it entertaining for the audience. I really appreciate what you do! Keep up the great work! I make sure to watch all your videos and I've recommended your channel to a lot of my friends and almost all, if not all of them love your channel as well. Honestly I am super glad to have found your channel and again I want to say KEEP UP THE GREAT WORK! I hope you have a great holiday and an excellent New Year!!

The Kirby Crackle. Never knew there was a term for that awesome energy look

This is a very well researched and put together video! Impressive. Well done!

Just came across your channel. Your closing comments about Kirbys artwork not being appealing at first yet growing on you, etc. mirror my feelings and experiences EXACTLY. Im 55 and grew up on comics, and am thoroughly enjoying your videos. This is like finding a video version of a forgotten long box with great reading to do! I am subscribed, hope you can continue this for as long as you have the desire. Two thumbs up :)

Wish there were a love button for this video. Thanks so much for posting this.

i love Jack Kirby. love those 60's-70's comics.

Great video! Watched this like 2 hours ago and keep laughing at the bit with Maximus’ favorite scent.

Thanks very much for that video! Your style is very endearing for history lessons :)

I knew Kirby, but I didn't know Kirby that well until I saw your video. So awesome. I am amazed at his art and his creation genius. Thank you for sharing.

Thanks for the Jack Kirby Summary ... he's still the KING !

Hey man! Love what u do with the " tropes " series & i hope that ur channel grows n makes more progress ...Beautiful Tribute to THE KING ..Cheers !

You impressed me! I really liked this video! 1800th subscriber. You deserved it.

dude i love your channel!!! its my new addiction. kudos brother

JACK THE KING KIRBY

A couple other Kirby tropes. Designs where angular lines connect circles, and overly ornate helmets.

Every time I hear your entrance theme I expect the Buggles to start playing

ITS HIS SENCE OF DESIGN!!!! His art could have hung on walls man! It was beautiful at a distance as well as up close!

Jack Kirby, now we're talking.

Dude, you brought up something I'd never thought of: the connection between the New Gods and the Eternals. Stuff has been written about how Jack began hoarding his ideas at Marvel, as evidenced by the sudden drop in new characters and concepts heading into the late 60s. How he wanted to do Ragnarok in Thor and wipe everything out and from the ashes of the Old Gods would rise...need I say more? And that led into the Captain Victory series where the main character's grandfather was a corrupting, shadowy presence named Blackmass who appealed to his...DARK SIDE. But Celestials as the Old Gods judging the New Gods? NEVER occurred to me. And someone here compared Kirby to Lovecraft. Gotta agree there. And even more so I'd say Robert E. Howard, and just for the hell of it, Bruce Lee. Wait...what? Here's the thing: All those men tapped into some sort of, for lack of a better word, "universal consciousness." Even if you've never encountered their work before, there's a familiarity to it because it accesses and distills things down to their raw, primal essence: fear that melts your mind, expressionistic anatomy that almost punches through the panels, fistic fury and savage swordplay that literally get your blood pumping. Maybe with Kirby's stuff it might take time to develop an appreciation for it (although I'm proud to say I went apeshit from the get-go), but regardless of your initial reaction there’s something about it: the power, the passion, the sheer originality that, love it or hate it, you can’t ignore. And a big reason is that he and those others BELIEVED what they were expressing on paper or film. They fucking LIVED it. And in Jack's case, his life both inside and outside comics was truly one to admire. Excellent video, sir.

Interesting last segment. When I was a teen first collecting, my first reaction was what all the fuss was about. Everyone seemed stocky, and that's probably the reason Stan Lee wanted Steve Ditko to draw Spider-Man rather than Jack. But it was his imagination that stands out for me. No one else could utilize those ideas, and anyone today is just copying him. Also, the mood he projected could make my hair stand on end. The closest thing to him was when John Byrne helmed the FF in the eighties.

This is a pretty old upload but I just wanted to say I just got into your channel (and comics in general) recently and I love your videos. Thanks for making this great content.

Thanks so much sir Jack for the poses.

I seem to remember that Inhumans story, would have been reprinted in the UK in black and white, but the confrontation with the soldiers is so familiar. Thank you 😊

I had no idea Kirby actually did his to fight evil in real life. R-E-S-P-E-C-T

Amazing stuff

Wow!!!awesome sauce in triple scoops!!

Hope there'll be an episode for the late Bill Everett. He was an interesting character in real life and created probably the most interesting character in comics, especially for that time period, Namor the Sub-Mariner(Very Biased Personal Opnion :P ).

Great tribute!

Kirby Krackle/Kirby Particles are so awesome. they're my favorite special effects in comics. also i believe (though correct me if i'm wrong) it even influenced the effects patterns in 3D animation programs like Autodesk Maya. i've made fire on maya before and it was also depicted as flowing orbs.

Thanks ❤

Excellent all of it. This contact was spot on. I am so in love with the king.

He is the king of comics!

thank you for this !!!!!!!

Amazing and very informative good job

Such a beutiful video and content! I can see your passion on the matter.

I would strongly suggest that people make an effort to check out Jack's work from the mid-1960's. This was arguably not only his most creative period but also the time of his best drawing. If you can suffer thru Stan Lee's insufferable self-promotion.

His art had an abstract design element that is just beautiful. Great art should look good at a distance without even knowing what it is, his art is beautiful up close and afar.