Tag Archives: jack kirby

August 8, 2025

The Fantastic Four: First Steps

By Joe

As a kid, I did a lot of my comic reading in the early 90s and as a kid in the early 90s that largely meant X-Men. The X-Men were the “it” team of the moment and seemed so far and above the rest of the pack in terms of coolness. Batman was still in style on the strength of the Burton films and the animated series and Spider-Man (and Venom) was also pretty hot. When it came to comic and comic card trading with friends, those all commanded top dollar. One franchise that did not was The Fantastic Four.

It could have just been my little corner of the world, but The Fantastic Four were regarded as your dad’s comic book franchise. They were pretty lame. If you went to Toys R Us hoping to score a Venom, Spider-Man, or Punisher action figure there was a decent chance you would have to settle for the Fantastic Four instead. I personally never settled, though I was a little interested in The Human Torch. Even though I didn’t particularly care about the franchise, my earliest Cartoon Network memory is becoming aware of the channel by seeing a listing for a Fantastic Four cartoon in TV Guide airing on the network. We didn’t have access to the channel in my market, but it was about a year later that we did and I wanted to check out that damn cartoon. Too bad it was pretty bad, but not as bad as those lone cartoons based on The Thing where the character was a kid who activated his Thing power via a magic ring: Thing Ring do your thing!

I will say they have a good tailor.

Despite my feelings on The Fantastic Four growing up, it’s hard to argue that they’re not Marvel royalty. Created by Jack Kirby and Stan Lee, the group is one of the oldest superhero teams with a memorable rogues gallery headlined by Dr. Doom. When comic book movies exploded in popularity, 20th Century Fox threw The Fantastic Four into the mix with a pair of films in the 2000s that made money, but didn’t seem to make a huge cultural impact. Fox decided a reboot was necessary and the franchise returned in 2015. Again, it made money, but not the kind of money that gets studio executives excited. Fox was reportedly still kicking the tires on more movies, but the acquisition of 20th Century Fox by Disney in 2019 put an end to that. Now, Marvel and Disney are back with what it hopes will be the definitive take on the franchise in film. Ever since Avengers: Endgame basically put a bow on the massive story begun with 2007’s Iron Man, Marvel has been searching for that massive hit that catapults them into the next big event film. Attempts via Disney+ and other films have been met with mixed results, but can The Fantastic Four get audiences as hyped as Avengers did back in 2012?

The setting is practically a character on its own.

The Fantastic Four: First Steps is a film that has been in the works basically ever since Disney acquired 20th Century Fox. It took some time to get right, but once it did we ended up with a picture helmed by Matt Shakman with a screenplay by Josh Friedman, Eric Pearson, Jeff Kaplan, and Ian Springer. The film stars Pedro Pascal as Reed Richards/Mr. Fantastic, Vanessa Kirby as Sue Storm/The Invisible Woman, Joseph Quinn as Johnny Storm/The Human Torch, and Ebon Moss-Bachrach as Ben Grimm/The Thing. The film is set in 1964, but a futuristic take on the era. This is a world where technology has advanced by leaps and bounds thanks to incredibly smart people like Richards. When we find him early in the film he’s working on teleportation just to give you an idea where we are as a society. As such, it doesn’t look like 1964 other than some design cues and the setting is really it’s own character. The closest example I can think of is Batman (1989) and it’s not 1940s setting that also kind of looks like 1940s America.

She does not bring tidings of great joy.

When we meet The Fantastic Four we’re informed right away that this film starts with their fourth anniversary as a team. Their origin is relayed via montage delivered by an in-universe television special and includes some cameos of their more famous adversaries though with one notable omission. When we actually meet the team, we learn right away that Sue and Reed are expecting a child, something they had been trying for with little success for years. This also sets off massive amounts of anxiety for the father-to-be who can’t help but wonder what effect their cosmic-induced mutations will have on his unborn child. Concerns have to be dismissed for an unusual individual soon reveals themself to the world: Shalla-Bal (Julia Garner), aka The Silver Surfer. She comes baring the unfortunate news that Galactus (Ralph Ineson) has marked Earth for consumption. This naturally comes as a surprise to all involved and it falls on The Fantastic Four to journey into space and barter with the world-devouring entity in hopes of sparing the Earth. They do manage to make it all the way to where Galactus dwells for a face-to-face with the massive entity and find a being who actually is willing to make a deal. The only problem is Galactus desires but one thing: the unborn son of Reed and Sue.

The shadow of Galactus looms large.

That becomes the central conflict of the film: would a parent give away their own child to save the world? It’s a pretty unfair question to ask, but I’m sure you can guess what Reed and Sue want to do and also guess that the rest of the world has a different opinion. The film mostly keeps its focus on that, but also finds time to show Ben trying to find his place in the world and Johnny’s obsession with trying to uncover more information on Shalla-Bal. The film is a tidy 114 minutes and never loses sight of the fact that this is The Fantastic Four’s film. It sounds cliche, but they do a great job of maintaining that family element without resorting to terrible sitcom tropes. This isn’t Full House, but it’s also not some anti-Full House either. There’s conflict between members of the family, but it’s organic. These characters know each other extremely well and love each other. They can annoy each other, but they also rely on each other. And I like that the film remembers that these are all super smart astronauts. Johnny isn’t some dumb jock spending all of his time trying to pick up chicks and The Thing isn’t a big grump who just wants to smash stuff. There’s nuance to all of them and I found it really gratifying to see them rally around a young Franklin Richards (Ada Scott and what Wikipedia refers to as “several other babies”) because that’s what The Fantastic Four should do.

Putting young Franklin at the center of the plot works well for a film emphasizing the family element.

When you have a cast that includes a rock man, a silver woman, and a planet devouring god-being you’re going to need some special effects. Marvel Studios does a solid job bringing characters like The Thing to life. You’re not going to forget that he’s a CGi being, but he doesn’t look out of place. Silver Surfer is also handled rather well and the film is pretty confident about placing this ridiculous being into the film and not making a big deal out of it. Galactus hews pretty close to his classic design with some modern embellishments, but the film definitely doesn’t shy away from showing the being. The colors are muted, but not removed or replaced and I suppose he looks as good as he probably could. The sets look like real sets in many places which is a nice touch over the green screen sets the MCU traditionally relies upon. H.E.R.B.I.E., the resident helper robot, looks like a mix of practical and CG elements and will likely be a crowd pleaser. Maybe not on the same level as Krypto, but kids will enjoy the little robot.

Your kids are going to want one of these.

The film does move fast which may have some questioning if it should have been longer. It’s a bit of a double-edged sword as I think audiences have superhero fatigue and the two and a half hour movies have become exhausting. I very much like how the film gives you the cliff notes version of the origin, though I can also understand some people wondering just what exactly Sue Storm’s powers are? Mr. Fantastic doesn’t get to show off his powers much and the crew really doesn’t get to engage with villains for much of the film. It’s a more procedural film with most of the action reserved for the last act. For action buffs, that’s a bad thing. For me personally, I wasn’t bothered by it. I think it helps set The Fantastic Four apart from more action-heavy franchises. I’m interested in these characters more as characters than as superheroes. It’s an approach that I think will serve the X-Men well whenever they finally get to run wild over the MCU.

The film decided to go the CG route for The Thing and the results are mostly fine.

One final point of criticism I have for the film resides with the ending. If you want zero spoilers about that ending (i.e. when we can expect to see The Fantastic Four again) then skip the rest of this paragraph as I’m going to talk about the mid-credits stinger. Yes, this film has a scene during the credits meant to hype the next adventure. Throughout the film I was quite content with how contained it was. There wasn’t any homework and I didn’t feel like Marvel was setting up another movie. Nothing felt sacrificed or incomplete for the sake of a larger narrative. Then came that mid-credits scene. I won’t actually spoil wht happens in the scene, but it concludes with “The Fantastic Four will return in Avengers: Dooms Day.” I don’t know if I let out an audible groan, but I felt like it. This film did such a good job of making me care about these characters that I don’t want to see them quickly thrust into an even larger ensemble. Now, the scene did follow a “Four years later,” message so it gives Marvel Studios a chunk of unexplored time they can go back to for later films, if they want, but I’d much rather see another Fantastic Four film before seeing them integrated with the Avengers. I know this Dooms Day thing is what the studio is hoping will do Infinity War/Endgame dollars, but I think Marvel and Disney are chasing a dragon there.

Hopefully we get to see a lot more from this group. There are always issues for The Fantastic Four to deal with.

Such concerns could be all for nothing. We’ll see. It also doesn’t really harm First Steps as a movie experience which is one I had a lot of fun with. I don’t think it’s in contention for best comic book adaptation or anything, but it’s a solid B+ theater experience. For the first time in my life I actually care about The Fantastic Four. I want to see more of these characters, this cast, and this really fun setting. Hopefully we do get more of that and hopefully this movie kicks off a new era for The Fantastic Four. The devoted fans have certainly waited a long time for this.

To my surprise, I don’t have any MCU reviews on this blog so here’s the best I can do for related posts:

Superman (2025)

James Gunn’s highly anticipated Superman has finally arrived in theaters. Is this the film Superman fans have been waiting for? The start of a mega franchise executives are hoping for? Or is it just a nice movie about a super guy and his super dog? Read on to find out!

by Joe

Dark Phoenix (2019)

What is it with the X-Men film franchise and its aversion to simple titles? We couldn’t just have X-Men 2, we had to have X2. The third film was billed as X-Men: The Last Stand in some places, but the theatrical poster seemed to imply it was X3: The Last Stand. At least the reboot…

by Joe

Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse

Over the years, the comic book movie has changed immeasurably. Prior to the year 2000, you could basically count the successful superhero movies on one hand and the only heroes able to really break through were Superman and Batman. This meant Marvel was completely shut out despite feeling like the hotter publication for a long…

by Joe

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April 9, 2024

NECA TMNT Mirage Studios Kirby

By Joe
Hail to the King, baby!

Say the name “The King” to a comic book fan and they will immediately know of whom you speak. Jack Kirby is a titan in the world of comics. Creator or co-creator of a great many characters known throughout the world today, it’s hard to imagine what a comic book would look like without his influence. It was probably around the 1980s when the kids who grew up reading his work themselves broke into comics when his legacy and influence really started to shine. Two of his biggest fans also happened to be the co-creators of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird. Such big fans of Kirby were they that they essentially wrote him into an issue of one of their comics. The Donatello one-shot, “Kirby and the Warp Crystal,” sees the brainy turtle pulled into an another dimension where he has to work with a comic book artist by the name of Kirby to save the native inhabitants of this world and make it home. Kirby, with his pencil that has a magic stone affixed to it, is able to bring to life whatever he draws on his pad of paper. The issue has been re-released multiple times and included in trade paperbacks and was even adapted into an episode of the 2003 cartoon series where it was simply titled “The King.”

It’s impressive how detailed the sketch of Donatello turned out.

Through NECA’s line of action figures based on the Mirage Studios version of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles we now have Jack Kirby – the action figure. Technically, it’s just Kirby and he is based on Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird’s caricature of Jack Kirby himself. It’s a release done with the blessing of Kirby’s estate and the credits on the bottom of the box reference the Kirby for Hero’s program and The Jack Kirby Museum & Research Center. Jack Kirby is mostly known for being an incredible artist, but he’s also known as a strong advocate for creator’s rights. Kirby, like a great many comic book artists, created their work under work-for-hire contracts that gave the publisher sole, creative, control over anything the artist came up with. It’s an unjust and unfair practice that has at least improved since the 1960s, but is hardly perfect.

“Thanks for the hardware, Kirby!”

The Kirby action figure isn’t one that is necessarily meant to “wow” those who buy it. It is, after all, an action figure of a middle-aged man with a pencil and paper, but it’s Jack Kirby! It comes in the standard trapezoidal box with brand new artwork on the front and sides by Kevin Eastman with product shots featured on the back. There is a cross-sell that would seem to indicate a new Triceraton infantryman character is on the way which makes sense since it would allow NECA to get more use out of the tools created for Zog. The other characters on the cross-sell are the Mirage-colors Foot Enforcer (coming soon) and the much awaited Rat King, a figure that was shown off last year at San Diego Comic Con.

“Ok, I’ll give it a try, but I can only draw stick figures.”

Out of the box, Kirby stands just a tick over the 6″ mark. He’s featured in a green sweater over a pale yellow, collared, shirt with blue slacks and brown loafers. It’s a simple figure, but it’s brightly painted with liberal use of black linework to give it that comic “pop” the line is known for. Kirby’s face is a mixture of excitement and concentration like his mind is working in overdrive to come up with something imaginative to capture on his pad of paper. The likeness to the artwork is very well done and, in turn, the likeness to the actual Jack Kirby is pretty solid as well. It’s a comic book version of Kirby and I think it works pretty well to capture how he probably looked in the 60s and 70s. There aren’t any obvious paint blemishes on my figure and everything appears to be in order.

The blaster doesn’t really fit the new turtle bodies all that well. It gets hung-up on the elbow pad.

What do you give an action figure of a comic book artist for accessories? Why, a pencil and paper, of course! Kirby has his pencil affixed with the magic stone. It’s this teeny, tiny, little item that is exceptionally painted for something so small. I’m not seeing any slop on the black thread holding the purple stone in place which is really impressive. Kirby has a set of fists, but he also has a right hand that is fixed into a pencil holding position to accept the accessory. I do question the wisdom of doing it this way. While it’s impressive how well the little pencil turned out, making it part of the hand mold might have made more sense as I fear this item getting lost. Kirby also has a wide gripping, left, hand and he’ll need it to hold his pad of paper. It’s a spiral-bound notebook and on one side is a sketch of Donatello from that issue with the special arm canon Kirby conjures up for him and on the rear is a demonic-looking character. Kirby also has a set of more standard gripping hands should you wish to give him some weapons or something, but I don’t know why you would.

This new version of the Gravitic Equalizer also lacks a lot of the paint hits as the one that came with the Fugitoid.

Also included in the box is a familiar accessory. It’s the blue arm canon (dubbed the Gravitic Equalizer by Kirby) from the Donatello one-shot which was previously released with Fugitoid. This time it has considerably less paint as it’s just all blue with black linework. The back of the box shows Kirby paired with the more recent, Jim Lawson, Donatello, but this accessory is meant for the original Eastman/Laird turtles that NECA did way back in 2008. I had no success getting this thing onto the newer turtles as they have bigger arms. Maybe some heat and persistence could cure that? The biggest accessory though is this little, red and gray demon from that very same issue. This little guy was created by Eastman and Laird, but very much looks like something Jack Kirby would have dreamt up. He’s about 3.125″ tall and features basic articulation at the head, shoulders, and hips. There’s more paint on this guy than a whole wave of Marvel Legends and he has this little hammer accessory. It’s gray with black shading and looks pretty neat. His hands aren’t the most pliable so you may want to heat them up if you want him to get a real good grip on it.

Kirby also comes with a little buddy.

Articulation for Kirby is pretty solid and typical of the more human characters we see in NECA’s cartoon TMNT line. He’s got a ball-jointed head, hinged pegs at the shoulders, double-elbows that feature a hinged ball peg at the top and bottom, forearm swivel, wrists that swivel and hinge horizontally, ball-jointed waist, ball-socket hips, thigh swivel, double-jointed knees, ankle swivel, ball-hinged feet, and an ankle rocker. The shirt overlay will limit his movement in the torso, but his arm range is a plus and he won’t have any issue sketching on that notepad. The NECA double elbows are in effect and I know some people hate how these look. I’ve always maintained I think they look okay on sleeved arms like this so I’m fine with their use here. I like the extra forearm swivel they provide and I like that the hinged ball at the ankle pegs into the shin so we get a little extra swivel there. The only thing I don’t love is the “diaper” at the crotch which restricts leg movement. I can see a lot of collectors wanting to pair this figure with a 1:12 scale chair and desk and getting him to sit might be a problem.

And when I say little I do mean little.

A figure of a comic book artist isn’t as exciting as that of a ninja or a cyborg, but the fact that it’s Jack Kirby certainly adds a tantalizing layer to it. I can’t tell if this is a figure NECA will have a hard time moving a lot of units for or if it’s the type of figure that’s going to do very well as non-TMNT collectors may jump at the chance of owning a small version of The King. It’s a tremendously fun homage and I think my only true critique is I do wish it could have come with a chair and drafting table. Even if it upped the cost or we had to drop the little demon guy, I would have done it. I can see people creating displays of Kirby at a desk drawing away with a shelf over his head of his many creations in dramatic action poses. This is a fun one and I’m sure it was a dream come true for Kevin Eastman to make this figure a reality.

Kirby is going to hang out on my shelf with the O.G. turtles

Kirby is currently hitting Target stores as part of the NECA Haulathon event, but expect him to be made available at other retailers in the not too distant future. At Target, he’ll set you back $35 which I think is a pretty good price for this one.

Check out more from NECA’s line of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles pulled from the pages of Mirage Studios:

NECA TMNT Mirage Studios Triceraton Zog

Haulathon 2023 has brought some pretty big releases to NECA’s line of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles action figures. And I mean big in a literal sense. REX-1 was tall and hefty and the multi-armed clone of Shredder was no slouch either. Those two seem to pale in comparison to Zog, the Triceraton warrior from NECA’s…

Keep reading
by Joe

NECA TMNT Mirage Studios Fugitoid

I’m having a hard time coming up with an action figure line that has had retail releases separated by more than a decade. I don’t mean long-running lines of figures like G.I. Joe or Marvel Legends which have been around for decades, I mean a line that was started, ended, then re-started like NECA’s line…

Keep reading
by Joe

NECA Mirage Studios Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 4-Pack

When it comes to the popularity of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles a lot of the credit goes to Playmates Toys. Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird created the characters born out of a joke. Credit them for having the vision to think this joke had appeal beyond their small circle as they self-published Teenage Mutant Ninja…

Keep reading
by Joe

Leave a comment   |  tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , | posted in Comics, toys

October 11, 2019

The New Batman Adventures – “The Demon Within”

By Joe

the demon withinEpisode Number:  18 (103)

Original Air Date:  May 9, 1998

Directed by:  Atsuko Tanaka

Written by:  Stan Berkowitz

First Appearance:  Etrigan the Demon, Jason Blood, Klarion

Don’t get too excited by that title, this isn’t the reintroduction of Ras al Ghul you may be anticipating (and if you are, you’re just setting yourself up for disappointment). The demon in this title actually refers to the character Etrigan the Demon who was created by famed comic artist Jack Kirby in the 1970s. He’s been a semi-popular character in the books for his frequent team-ups with Batman as he canonically lived in Gotham City for much of his fictional existence. I assume he’s included because there’s enough support for the character from the comic fanbase, because if he’s included as a tribute to Kirby then it’s an odd choice. Kirby created the character for DC basically because the publisher insisted. He wasn’t really into it and reportedly he was annoyed when the character was well received because it meant he had to do a series of books based around Etrigan.

As someone who largely consumes Batman media outside of comics, Etrigan was not known to me when I first saw this episode. What I know of him is what is presented here and on various wiki sites out there. This episode is somewhat notable because it was moved up to air as part of broadcast season one, despite being 18th in production order. That was probably easy to do because it was one of the handful done by TMS Entertainment, which may have delivered the episode early. It’s the last TMS episode we’re going to have the pleasure of covering for this series, so even if you’re not particularly thrilled by Etrigan’s presence, at least enjoy this one for the visuals.

klarion with cat

Klarion, who would appreciate it if you ignored his ridiculous horned hair.

The episode opens with Bruce Wayne and Tim Drake visiting an auction house. On the docket – a branding iron once owned by the apparently not fictional Morgan Le Fay. It doesn’t seem too interesting, but appearances can be deceiving. Tim runs into a young boy carrying a cat in a rather sinister manner. The boy is named Klarion (Stephen Wolfe Smith) and the cat (let’s be honest, you’re more interested in the cat) is Teekl. The kid’s hair is pointed like devil horns and the cat takes a swipe, so obviously this odd child is a villain. When the auction begins, Klarion makes a big for one-hundred grand, but he’s soon topped by another man. His name is Jason Blood (Billy Zane) and he has interesting hair of his own – black and red with a white lightning bolt down the middle.

Bruce Wayne can’t sit by and let a bidding war pass without him having his say. Despite only being there to keep Tim away from video games for one night, Bruce ends up winning the iron with a bid of one million dollars, far surpassing the bids of Klarion and Blood. After the item is won and paid for, Tim asks Bruce what interest he has in that thing and Bruce remarks it’s for a friend. Klarion then approaches to issue a warning to Bruce, but is soon interrupted by “uncle” Jason. He’s not surprised to see Klarion’s interest in the item, and Klarion departs by suggesting they’ll meet again soon and next time it will be on purpose. It’s then revealed that Bruce and Jason are friends, and he won the item to help out Jason. Jason also tells them that Klarion isn’t really related to him and refers to him as a witch boy. He also tosses in the fact that he turned his own parents into mice in case we weren’t weirded out by the kid enough.

jason blood auction

Jason Blood, who has some weird hair of his own.

Jason invites Time and Bruce to his apartment which is full of occult-like objects. He there tells Bruce he can pay him back for the iron, though it will take some time. Bruce basically tells him that won’t be necessary, rubbing his richness in our faces once again. Tim then takes note of a freaky looking bust that Jason informs him is of a demon once owned by Merlin himself. Tim turns the bust around to regard the other side which depicts a man who looks exactly like Jason. Jason acts flattered when Tim points out the likeness, but before the ruse can continue they’re interrupted by the cat, Teekl.

teekl transforms

The kitty has a surprise in store for Bruce.

Teekl was able to enter the apartment via an open window and quickly grabbed the branding iron between its jaws. As it tried to leave, the iron knocked over an object on Blood’s desk and the three spring into action to try and prevent the cat from making off with the million dollar item. The cat then displays why TMS was likely handed this episode as it transforms into a human-cat hybrid. Teekl’s new form is reminiscent of Catwoman’s from the episode “Tiger Tiger.” She’s quite formidable and Bruce basically gets his clock cleaned by the beast. This forces Jason into action as he quickly transforms into Etrigan the Demon. He engages with Teekl and forces the cat to lose her grip on the iron. Bruce reaches out and grabs it, but Teekl turns her attention to him. She quickly retrieves it and is able to set the apartment on fire around Bruce and Tim. Etrigan issues her a warning that a reckoning will be coming, as he turns his attention towards his friends allowing Teekl to escape with the iron.

Klarion is shown seated in a darkened room as Teekl approaches. She gifts him the branding iron and returns to her cat form. A delighted Klarion begins an incantation that will likely have dire consequences. At Jason’s apartment, Tim is seated in a chair and Jason is tending to some minor cuts or burns he sustained in the scuffle. He uses magic to heal Tim, but soon is felled by Klarion’s spell. He displays an anguished face as Etrigan is forcefully removed from his body. The demon at first appears ghost-like, but then takes on a solid state. He leaves the apartment informing the onlookers it has a new master now. When Bruce tries to stop him he’s tossed aside and the demon leaves.

demon removed

Apparently, having a demon ripped out of your body after 1,500 years hurts quite a bit.

Etrigan returns to Klarion, and Klarion seems to delight in the fact that the demon hates him but is powerless to resist him. As was probably assumed by this point, the branding iron gives Klarion control of the demon and while in control the demon has an “M” brand on its forehead. He orders the demon to open his door for him as they’re heading out for some fun. In perhaps a small act of defiance, Etrigan doesn’t open the door conventionally, but instead smashes it down.

At Jason’s apartment, Blood informs Bruce and Tim what happened. He also drops the detail that with Etrigan and he split apart he will soon begin rapidly aging to make up for the 1,500 years or so he’s gone without aging. He’s also lost the red stripe in his hair – a pity. Bruce volunteers to go after Klarion and Tim wants to go too, but Bruce wants him to stay with Jason. Tim argues he should go with since he’s a kid and it might take a kid to find Klarion. Jason informs him that probably won’t be necessary as he has a suspicion Klarion will be quite easy to find.

klarion in control

Klarion is looking to have some fun with his new demon buddy.

Klarion is then shown exiting a movie with Etrigan as the other patrons run away screaming. The film appears to be a Terminator parody called Devastator 3 starring Donald Shaltenpepper. Klarion declares he hates sequels and has Etrigan set fire to the theater’s marque with some impressive laser eyes. Klarion is then alerted to the sounds of the rare ice cream patrolling the streets in the dead of night. Etrigan stops the truck forcefully and dumps the ice cream at its master’s feet, but is dismayed to inform Klarion that no strawberry remain. Declaring that nothing is better than strawberry, Klarion then turns his attention to a cake shop. Kirby Cake Company, an obvious nod to Etrigan’s creator, is smashed in by Etrigan and Klarion gleefully scoops up handfuls of cake to devour. He’s then irritated by the noise of a passing train, so he has Etrigan knock it off its rails. He then declares an abandoned building to be ugly, so Etrigan knocks it down. It would seem Jason was right about Klarion being easy to find.

Batman finally shows up to put a stop to this destructive and childish rampage. He begins by talking down to Klarion, apparently forgetting this kid is some kind of witch with a powerful demon and cat monster under his control. Klarion doesn’t even need Etrigan or Teekl’s help when Batman is just standing in front of him demanding he cease his devilish ways, he simply uses his own magic to make thorns burst out of Batman’s body. Jason and Tim watch from the apartment via a crystal ball and when Tim declares they have to do something Jason calmly begins a spell. The thorns soon vanish, somewhat alarming both Klarion and Batman, and Klarion turns to yet another spell that turns Batman into a tree-like being. He has a good laugh at Batman’s expense, until he gets swatted by Batman’s branch-arm. Jason, now looking considerably older, undoes this spell and Klarion then calls in Etrigan.

many batmen

When one Batman isn’t enough…

Batman is really no match for the demon in a one on one fight, so Jason conjures up many Batmen to aid him. The dummy Batmen make it hard for Etrigan to target the proper one, and the Batmen start circling Etrigan. This is apparently all a feint as the real Batman is off to the side. Klarion notices him as he takes off and orders Etrigan after him, but the illusion Batmen get in his way. Batman winds up ducking into an alley that appears to be a dead end. By now Jason’s body is failing him, but he has enough magic left to make Batman turn invisible and he blends in with the brick wall.

Thinking Batman has escaped, Klarion decides it would be best to remove his uncle’s influence over the fight. He orders Etrigan to kill Jason and sends the beast away. Jason, looking withered and near death, orders Tim to spread a blue powder around them in a circle. The stupid kid wastes time expressing a disbelief in such a tactic, but ends up doing as he’s told. The circle, along with some help from Jason, creates a forcefield around the two as Etrigan comes barging in. The demon can’t get through it, but Klarion apparently seeing through Etrigan’s eyes, orders his demon to not be discouraged. Etrigan starts blasting the field with its laser eyes while Jason tries to remain focused inside. He soon slumps over, succumbing to the rapid onset of age, as Etrigan breaks through.

klarion eerie

Klarion doesn’t necessarily need a demon to win a fight.

With Jason apparently nearing his end, Klarion allows himself to savor the moment despite the protests of Teekl. Batman closes in and knocks the kid down retrieving the branding iron in the process. Teekl takes on her human form and goes after the Dark Knight, but Batman is able to stamp her head with the branding iron gaining control over her. He uses his dominance over the beast to return her to her less fearsome feline form. Klarion then apparently forgets he’s a witch boy as he just runs at Batman and tries to retrieve the iron, but he’s much too short. Batman utters some spell that makes Etrigan and Jason whole once again, and not a moment too soon as the demon was about to finish the job.

With his plan foiled, Klarion apparently remembers he’s pretty damn powerful on his own. He starts blasting Batman with green, glowing, orbs that Batman really has no answer for. If he was counting on Etrigan to save him then he placed his faith in the right person…demon, as Etrigan shows up, alongside Robin, to make the save. He blasts Klarion into some nearby crates, then utters an incantation of his own. When Batman asks what the spell will do, Etrigan replies that he’s sending Klarion to his room.

With the crisis averted, Etrigan takes his leave. Robin is then left to ask Batman just what went down tonight, but Batman rebukes him with a “Don’t ask.” Klarion is then shown from behind seated in a chair with his shoulders slumped. The camera pans back to reveal he’s been imprisoned in Jason Blood’s crystal ball and placed on a shelf in Blood’s apartment. He apparently poses little threat there, as Jason is shown nearby casually reading a newspaper.

jason victorious

Jason appears to lead a rather mundane life when Klarion isn’t on the loose.

“The Demon Within” is obviously an atypical episode of Batman as it deals with a lot of mysticism and magic mumbo jumbo. I like fantasy as much as the next person, maybe even more so, but I’ve never liked it when it crosses paths with Batman. It’s why I’m not that into the Ras al Ghul stuff and I like it even less here. This episode feels like a backdoor pilot for an Etrigan series, and if that was the aim well then it failed as no series came to pass. The demon would make a future appearance in an episode of Justice League, but that’s all.

teekl

We can probably thank Teekl and Etrigan’s transformation powers for the presence of TMS on this one.

The animation and vibrant colors of this episode can certainly be appreciated by anyone, even in spite of the silly plot material. The transformation animations are likely why TMS was chosen to handle this one, and while they’re neat, they don’t come close to matching what the studio did with Clayface. Etrigan himself has never appealed to me though from a visual standpoint. He’s big, and kind of menacing to behold, but he wears a rather conventional super hero costume of red spandex and blue cape. He looks like a bulgy Under Dog, and his fingers are shaped like rectangles with rectangular claws in several shots. He also has this weird thing going on with his feet where he apparently has a large middle toe or his shoes just have extra material that makes them look like elf stockings. Basically everything below his neck is rather dumb looking.

What it comes down to is this is an episode you’ll probably enjoy if you’re a fan of the Etrigan character from the comics. I would imagine seeing him would have been exciting for such a fan, just like the Jonah Hex episode from the last season. If you don’t care about Etrigan though, or if you don’t like him, then unlike the Hex episode this one probably won’t do anything for you. Klarion is a bit amusing in a bratty kid who gets his comeuppance always is kind of way, but beyond that there isn’t much happening here. Even the great TMS can’t really make this one a must see episode strictly from a visual standpoint. And with so few episodes remaining, this one just feels like a waste of precious space.

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