This weekend’s escapist, light-hearted superhero post here at Balladeer’s Blog looks at Marvel’s short-lived dystopian sci-fi series Deathlok the Demolisher.
ASTONISHING TALES Vol 1 #25 (Aug 1974)
Title: A Cold Knight’s Frenzy
Villain: Simon Ryker
Synopsis: This was another of Marvel’s inventive but short-lived sci-fi series of the 1970s and it introduced the character Deathlok (spelled without the “c” for style points I guess). This was the original Deathlok, Colonel Luther Manning, a slain American army officer brought back to life as part-cyborg, part preserved corpse.
Manning is brought back in this tormented form by Simon Ryker, one of the oppressive rulers of 1990s America. Remember, in 1974 the 1990s were still in the future. The premise of this Deathlok series was that a failed corporate coup during the 1980s had caused America to splinter into rival factions, some ruled by the military, some by the C.I.A. and some by other groups we meet as the series progresses.
Luther Manning as Deathlok is an antihero fighting the many forces of evil in the dystopian America of his time period. He uses his military savvy, high-tech weapons and cyborg abilities in that struggle. Continue reading
Balladeer's Blog 