Radiohead's 2001 classic "The Pyramid Song"-
the future Atlantis in a year of Revelation.
Not so much stylistic influences that I want to emulate, but artists who completely changed the filters on my life-lens. And both of whom deeply explored Astronaut Theology (aka "Ancient Astronaut Theory") to the point that it's a fair bet that they believed in it. So what does that say about me?
Well, I'm going to come right out and say it: I don't think that ancient astronauts necessarily have anything to do with Big "G" God -- the Universal Mind/Force/Ground of Being -- but I do believe that human evolution was intruded upon and tampered with by forces from off this planet, probably not that long ago either.
Whether that means extraterrestrial or extradimensional or something else entirely, I don't know. All I know - besides the anomalies in the historical record - is that we really don't seem to adapt to our environment in any way that other species do, nor do we have a terribly overwhelming love for the Earth.
In fact, no matter the self-righteous rhetoric of some people, many act as if environmentalism as some sort of betrayal to humanity. And we all instinctually think that our cosmic daddy is "up there" somewhere and we also seem to be in a hurry to get up there and find him.
So the question is raised, do I believe this because of outside influences or because of a gut feeling?
The latter, actually. I've been exposed to a lot of ideas in my time, and somehow AAT just clicks into place. I admit it's not a terribly warm and fuzzy idea, and doesn't really offer anyone much comfort. Well, aside from the fact that I've always had this powerful vision of something landing on a beach at sunrise, coming to change the fate of this planet.
Maybe it was Chariots of the Gods hitting me when I was very young, or maybe it was because of Jack Kirby's bugf*ck take on it, The Eternals.
I finally got my hands on the out-of-print Eternals Omnibus and was riven with mixed feelings. The story definitely takes on added power in collected form, since it seemed that Kirby was hitting on a lot of bases throughout the series. But that doesn't mean the series ever fulfilled the promise of its incandescent first three issues.
Kirby was an idea guy and a great plotter, but wasn't overly concerned with continuity. Too many of his 70s series drifted from one concept to another with no common thread, except nuttiness and cool visuals.
I realize the economics of reprinting this work, but I do really wish that this stuff was recolored. Kirby's art was becoming increasingly abstract at this point and Mike Royer's clock-puncher inking never served Kirby's pencils as well as more skilled and thoughtful draftsmen like Joe Sinnott or Frank Giacoia did. Some nice recoloring would have tempered some of the harshness and unprettiness of this artwork.
Beauty is not a extravagance in art, it's a necessity.
Marvel continuity prevented Kirby from calling it Atlantis,
I also wonder what would have been if Kirby wasn't tied to down to such onerous production commitments in his contracts.
Marvel continuity prevented Kirby from calling it Atlantis, but here the doomed city dies again at the literal hand of God.
Kirby was required to produce 60 pages of art and story a month at DC, and 45 a month at Marvel. This is an insane requirement, especially considering that Jack was pushing 60 by this time. There are well-regarded cartoonists today who can't manage to produce 45 pages in a year, never mind in a month. Most pencillers today are lucky if they can manage 20 pages a month.
That being said, I feel like The Eternals seems much more relevant today than it had during the mid-70s. Seeing these stories back to back gives the feeling of chapters in an epic, rather than random episodes like it had in the 70s. In that way it reminds me of the X-Files' mytharc- you need to watch the stories in sequence to understand and appreciate them.
And there's a grab-bag of pop occultism here- pyramid power, UFOs, ancient astronauts, Bermuda Triangle, Atlantis, the Apocalypse, the Collective Unconscious, you name it. Kirby was on a mission- to depict the way the things are the way he saw them. And the way he saw them was weird.
Another Kirby title bites the dust, but goes out with a bang.
Though it lacked the mystique of its predecessor, I always thought in some ways The Eternals was more coherent and immediate than The New Gods.
Another Kirby title bites the dust, but goes out with a bang.
Apokolips and New Genesis were off in another dimension- the drama in The Eternals was playing itself out here. The New Gods and its sister titles make you feel like an observer; the early issues of The Eternals make you feel like a participant. It's just a shame Kirby wasn't able to harmonize his explosive visions with the strong editorial guidance Stan Lee provided.
Can I recommend this to the neophyte? Not really. It probably hasn't aged well in the grand scheme of things, the art isn't very pretty and it's expensive. Any comic-reading conspiracy buffs or Synchromystics may find plenty of grist for the mill, however.
Need more Knowledge?
Come enroll at the Secret Sun Institute of Advanced Synchromysticism.
Don't forget: the legendary Secret Sun Facebook group is back in action, after a three year hiatus.
