‘Reincarnators’ is the weak link in a generally strong series featuring a cast of memorable characters. Later double page spreads show Kirby was equally masterful at portraying moments of quiet as well as action. Overall, The Demon provided Kirby with greater artistic inspiration than Kamandi and the visuals tend to be far more arresting, beginning with the double-page spread of Camelot’s fall. The Old World is about to invade the New, and Kirby is there, poised to take advantage of it all. Merlin’s summons is given, and Jason unleashes the one who waits within himself: the demon Etrigan.
The story leaps forward to 1972 where the demon’s human counterpart, demonologist, Jason Blood is on the hunt for a demon. The sequence ends with Etrigan turning into a human, and walking off into history until he is once more summoned by Merlin. Kirby opens with a six page prologue depicting the fall of Camelot acting both as origin story and catalyst for the series, introducing us to Merlin, Etrigan, the demon, and their immortal enemy, Morgaine Le Fey. The Demon delivers a breath of fiery fresh air with exciting takes on werewolves, witches, phantoms, mad scientists and their monsters that shines light in the darkness, and overcomes the most supernatural of evils. If he were to draw a horror comic, it would have to reflect his own life affirming philosophy. Kirby wasn’t entirely comfortable with the style and mood of the then-current horror material like Swamp Thing. Vampires, werewolves and ghosts were outta sight! So when DC requested some new concepts from Jack Kirby in late 1971, it was a no-brainer to ask for a horror comic. The Counter Culture had made it official: Horror was groovy, man. Saturday morning’s 1969 lineup heralded the debut of Scooby-Doo and the gang.
Superheroes were on the wane and people were ready for a good scare again.
By the end of the 1960s, however, culture’s mood was darkening. By the time the world had popped the champagne cork on New Year’s Eve, 1970, it had been fifteen years since EC’s line of horror comics had been forced from the stands as too gruesome.
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