Black Panther Epic Collection: Panther's Rage Paperback – 27 Sept. 2016

Collects black panthers first two appearances in fantastic four and then what I believe is all the issues don mcgregor wrote of the character in jungle action.The jungle action stuff is mindblowingly great, wo intelligent and ahead of its time. Amazing

The issues collected here begin with BP's intro in FF 52 which is a classic. The remainder of this collection collects Jungle Action 6-24 which pit BP against Venomm, The Clan and dinosaurs galore along with Baron Macabre and The Soul Strangler. The artwork is spot on and crisp. Another great collection from Marvel of one of their most under-used and unsung heroes in the Marvel universe.

One of the few collections which really do live up to the "Essential" billing. The two-partner from the Fantastic Four which introduces T'Challah is completely out of step with McGregor's 70s social sensibilities, but it's a soaring example of Kirby and Lee at top form. They take one issue to introduce the Panther, Wakanda and Klaw, story elements which have continued into the cinematic universe today."Panther's Rage" was one of the first extended story arcs in comics, and still one of the best. I'm a huge fan of Rich Buckler (his Deathlok is also a character well-served by Marvel's collections) and Don McGregor's florid, discursive style works well over 13 issues.The five issue Klan story which rounds out the collection was cut short for Kirby's return to the character, but again shows McGregor exploring issues of culture and race in a way that's rare even today.

Finally the Black Panther gets in on the Epic Collection action, and they're starting with volume one! The book opens with the Fantastic Four two-parter that introduced the character in 1966. It's Lee and Kirby on fine form, with the FF travelling to the secretive, spectacularly advanced nation of Wakanda at the behest of its king, T'Challa. Fights, monsters and action ensue.Then the Epic skips straight to the Panther's first solo series, in the pages of Jungle Action in 1973. In the intervening seven years, T'Challa had travelled to America and served as an Avenger, but now he returns to Wakanda and finds it a country gripped by unrest. So begins the titular Panther's Rage story, which unfolds over thirteen issues and over two years of real time. It's the kind of sprawling, glorious story that the format seems made for.Black Panther takes on Killmonger, the tyrant that seeks to seize Wakanda for his own, in an episodic format that sees a whole range of Killmonger's allies test the hero, grotesques such as King Cadaver, Baron Macabre, Venomm and many more. Along the way, the jet-clad monarch also confronts his people's resistance to change and attitudes to his American girlfriend Monica, and his staff themselves deal with rocky marriages and the rigours of pacifism. It's an enormously ambitious series.Don McGregor writes the whole thing, with a style so purple that it makes Stan Lee look restrained; he has a poetic turn of phrase that is fascinating when it works, although sometimes clunky when it doesn't. Art is provided first by Rich Buckler, with his classic Bronze Age style, and then by Billy Graham, who has a sketchier, more evocative take that works well for the more febrile issues of the saga.After the grand storyline concludes, the Panther returns to the States where he clashes with the Klan as well as with a seemingly related secret society. It seems to be the start of another ambitious long run, but sadly it is cut short after only five instalments; Jack Kirby was returning to the character, and so McGregor had to hand the book over. It makes for an abrupt end to this volume, although threads would be picked up again down the line.The Epic is dripping with extras; original, alternate, art by Kirby, plots and scripts by McGregor, an editorial on the launch of the title, more original art by Graham, photos of McGregor and Graham at work, and unused art pages from Buckler showing what would have been the next issue before the title was handed over.It's a bumper ending to a bumper volume; interesting and brilliant long-form storytelling that really works best in this chunky format. Recommended!

great 1970's comic

Panther's Rage is an almost poetic series. The story-telling is excellent and re-reading it again in this collected edition is a joy

One of the Greatest Black Panther story ever

This collection basically collects the 'Panther's Rage' multi-parter from Jungle Action and a few others.As a child I owned JA 15 which I thought was one of the most different, engaging and interesting comics I had read at the time with beautifully detailed artwork. I never saw any of the other issues for decades.I have always kind of thought the entire story would be amazing!However......I found the artwork for the rest not quite so good and the entire book is overwritten, immensely wordy and ...dare I say...disappointing.?Sometimes reality fails to live up to expectations.The extras are interesting and even as a less-than-perfect middle-of-the-road 1970s adventure - it knocks the socks off most modern books.