2012 OMAC color art by Ramon Villalobos

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"They’ll pay for this, Lila. They’ve done more than trifle with human life… they’ve made a mockery of the spirit.

Daaaang, Kirby wasn’t playing around. I love the crazy social commentary in OMAC."

Me too. I also dig Villalobos' 2009 OMAC effort.

Ramon Villalobos

• Aquaman @ Justice League Detroit
• The Atom @ Power of the Atom
• JLA @ The Idol-Head of Diabolu
• Wonder Woman @ Diana Prince

The Top 10 OMAC Covers

It's funny how delays work. I started developing this list before the launch of the New 52, and I fretted over the lack of diversity in the covers. I had the bare bones down around the time the third issue of the relaunched series was released. Now that I'm finally getting ready to publish over a year later, the New 52 series has already ended, a slew of guest appearances related to membership in the new defunct Justice League International have come and gone, and Kevin Cho still made little impact on the list as completed in 2011. Well, at least this'll be relatively stable for the foreseeable future.



Speaking of which, after the failure of Jack Kirby's Fourth World Saga, the King scaled back his ambitions considerably. His one success at DC was Kamandi, a riff on Planet of the Apes, so he seemed to riffle through his junk drawer looking for self-contained ideas that could be similarly commercial. One was an unpublished idea for a Captain America legacy hero in the future that he'd decided not to give to Marvel. Fueled by the socially conscious science fiction of the day, Kirby offered DC the One Man Army Corps. A schlimazel appropriately named Buddy Blank is picked by the seemingly omniscient satellite computer Brother Eye to receive an instant surgery that turns him into a superhuman powerhouse with wicked fighting skills. This gift is bestowed in service to keeping a world on the brink from collapsing into war and chaos. OMAC was always pitted against superior forces, in numbers and/or raw power, that he could pulverize into submission to the positive New World Order. It was decidedly blue collar speculative fiction, but ended up being surprisingly prescient. Still, the world is hard on prophets, and OMAC wasn't selling well enough to bother continuing with it after Kirby left DC with the eighth issue.

Very little of note was done with the concept over the years, surely in part due to DC's shying away from alternate futures after they streamlined their continuity in the 1980s. In the 00s, elements were recycled into a new, contemporary concept wherein forces of a shadow government infected unsuspecting citizens with nanites that turned them into sleeper agent T-1000s. It was an okay if highly derivative premise (a summation of writer Greg Rucka's entire career,) and was more successfully implemented thanks to ties to several major company events. What heat there was cooled down though, and an attempt to offer comics a single prime OMAC came to nothing. A new Asian OMAC hewing closer to Kirby's original, as a hero but not as a world building prediction engine, bit the dust after exactly eight issues.

10) Kamandi, The Last Boy On Earth #50 (May, 1977)

I have to confess that there are any number of better covers that I could have put in the #10 spot. The truth is, I couldn't be bothered to strain over deciding who rated highest in last place. Meanwhile, this cover was my introduction to OMAC, tied the two Kirby properties together, and was inked by the underrated Alfredo Alcala. So there.

9) OMAC #8 (April, 2007)

Renato Guedes did some very attractive work on this series, including detailed, cinematic covers. Unfortunately, it's hard to get excited over robots smashing cars on the Las Vegas strip when Kirby was draining whole oceans and scooping out the brains of America's unsuspecting youth decades prior. Even here, with OMAC battling a Brother Eye built out of space junk, it's hard not to notice our hero looks like the Tick after getting punched in the face by a Megadeth album cover.


8) O.M.A.C. #1 (November, 2011)

Doom was predicted for this one right out of the gate, and I find an OMAC set in the world that is misses the point entirely. Still, I've heard the book was fun while it lasted, and it was nice to see a new Asian hero who didn't fit any sort of comic book ethnic mold. Keith Giffen seemed to be having a good time, but his simplistic covers paled against Kirby's, or even reference happy Renato Guedes.


7) Countdown Special: OMAC #1 (April, 2008)

This is a little more Magnus Robot Fighter than OMAC, but it's also a nice Ryan Sook image in the iconic Steranko mold. Okay, I'll admit that there are only six great(ish) OMAC covers, and this is where the line gets drawn between relevant (below) and merely pretty.


6) OMAC #4 (March/April, 1975)

What a difference the lack of a colored border makes. Kirby doesn't draw one damned thing once the logo barrage kicks in, but by simply allowing for breathing room under the clear blue sky, the world expands. It tricks you into thinking that monstrosity fills the entire cover, and really sells OMAC as David to its Goliath. Those are OMAC odds!


5) Firestorm #18 (December, 2005)

Yeah, this Borginess is very much divorced from the Kirby original, but it's creepily effective, and has the Nuclear Man ever had a cooler look? You will be assimilated!


4) OMAC #3 (January/February, 1975)

So here's OMAC in his goofy little Kirby flying machine with the suggestively placed stick, coasting out of the sun against a lemon yellow sky, tra-la-la. But wait, what about that semicircle of cannons as he is confronted by A HUNDRED-THOUSAND FOES! So, so OMAC.


3) The OMAC Project #5 (October, 2005)

For me, one of the defining characteristics of a great OMAC cover is to have as much stuff going on as possible. The future is coming so fast and hard that our puny 21st century brains should struggle to process it. Here we have a central figure generating multiple weapons amidst an explosion of pieces on a chessboard that's being written in binary code. Yeah, that's about blipvert enough for me.


2) OMAC #6 (July/August, 1975)

This one is awesome because of how it goes whole hog. OMAC isn't just bounding at the reader, but carrying a bound woman with him. They aren't just leaping off a wrecked train; you've got three cars of shattered windows and wrenched wheels. You know it's a dilapidated subway station because it's covered in battered signage and platform docks. You know the place is crawling with mutants, because the ones not reaching for our heroes amidst the wreckage are grasping from outside the frame. The only major flaw is that nearly half the image is taken up by clumsy, flat negative space drowning in bad copy and obese logos.


1) OMAC #1 (September/October, 1974)

This is actually kind of a terrible cover. There's an absolute vacuum for background, there's all manner of copy everywhere, the layout is awkward, the hero is a tiny figure, and there appears to be some question as to whether he is in fact a "One Man Army." On the other hand, was there a more twisted vision of sexuality in the Bronze Age (anticipating Realdoll by decades) than Lila the "Build-A-Friend?" Was there a more deliciously hyperbolic come-on than "A Startling Look Into... The World That's Coming!?" It's all so off, it's somehow on.

Honorable Mentions
OMAC #2 (1974)
OMAC Book One (1991)
Wonder Woman #221


Cornucopia of Top Comic Covers

• Zatanna's Top 20 @ Justice League Detroit
• Doctor Poison, Queen Clea and Veronica Cale @ Diana Prince is the New Wonder Woman
• Peacemaker @ Power of the Atom
• Triumph @ The Idol-Head of Diabolu
• Ragman @ DC Bloodlines
• DC75: Top Character Covers of the Dodranscentennial

Who's Dat: Mister Big

PERSONAL DATA
Real Name:
Other Aliases:
Occupation: Super-Rich
Group Affiliation:
Base of Operations: Electric City, The World To Come
Height/Build: Approximately 6'0", thin
Eyes: Blue
Hair: White
First Appearance: OMAC #2 (November-December 1974)

HISTORY
Mister Big was among the "Super-Rich" of The World To Come, but lusted for greater power. To this end, he rented the entirety of Electric City for one night under the guise of hosting a street party for his invited friends. The true purpose was to locate Professor Myron Forest and destroy Project: OMAC. Agents of Mister Big escorted OMAC into the city, then followed him to the lab of Professor Forest, whom they assassinated in a hail of bullets. OMAC himself was eventually believed shot and killed, with his body brought to Mister Big's personal physician for inspection. OMAC's death was a ruse facilitated by the satellite Brother Eye, which remained an unknown factor in Project: OMAC to Mister Big. The Mayor of Electric City had been working with the Global Peace Agency to ensnare Mister Big, who was taken into custody by Peace Agents.

POWERS & WEAPONS:
Mister Big had his own private security force armed with conventional weapons who wore militaristic green uniforms. Big also had special agents prone to disguises who sometimes wore costumes wired to deliver electrical shocks on contact. They had access to hovering aircraft that could carry about three men.

Quote:
"Hmmmm-- I can't help thinking about those rumors-- that Project OMAC included something else, besides this one-man army--- there was something else, I tell you!"

Created by: Jack Kirby

OMAC in DCU: Brave New World #1 (August, 2006)

Michael Costner was asleep in the bed of a dingy apartment when an attractive young woman woke him up with a kiss. Vienna understood that Mike had these memory lapses, but didn't have time to jog it further. Superheroes or supervillains, both were on Mike's tail, so it was time to run. An OMAC burst through the wall, so the couple fled down a fire escape. Jumping for freedom, they landed in a convenient transport truck for chickens that drove off. Two other OMACs joined the first in being unable to figure out this impossibly clever turn of events.

Vienna explained that the OMACs were trying to take over the world, and saw Mike as their key to conquest. The OMACs had somehow erased Mike's memory, so his girlfriend had to be handy to remind him of the score. Mike's last memory was "trippin'" in Gotham, where he robbed people and bought drugs. Now he was in Las Vegas with an unfamiliar girlfriend who had helped him kick months earlier and flying robots in pursuit that could hide within any human being they encountered.

Several OMAC run-ins later, Superman showed up to hold off a pack until the JLA could arrive. Mike and Vienna caught a moment alone, in which Mike expressed his appreciation for finally finding someone who cared about him whom he could trust. Surprise! Vienna turned out to be an OMAC, erased Mike's identity, and dude woke up to find it was only a dream. Gah, not that old saw. Mike took a hit, and I could use one myself.

"OMAC" was by Bruce Jones and Renato Guedes. Whatever happened to Guedes, anyway? Every other artist in this book is still working-- well, except Justiniano, and that's a subject I'd rather not broach. Guedes was one of the prettiest and most fluid of the obvious photo-referencing crowd, and I can't remember his name coming up in a long time. It's also the only selling point of this story of the Keystone OMACs, turned from T-1000s for the super-hero set into clueless geeks outpaced by a nothing protagonist and his exposition dumping girlfriend. I'd say Kirby was rolling in his grave, but more likely the King couldn't even be bothered with a shrug in the afterlife over so slight an indignity, what with the thousands of others in the dust. Hope he liked Captain America: The First Avenger, at least.

Brave New World

• Aquaman: Sword of Atlantis #52 (July, 2007) @ Justice League Detroit
• The All New Atom #9 (May, 2007) @ The Mighty Mite
• Breach #8 (October, 2005) @ Power of the Atom
• Martian Manhunter #8 (May, 2007) @ The Idol-Head of Diabolu
• Wonder Woman #8 (Late June, 2007) @ Diana Prince

Who's Dat: The Godmother

PERSONAL DATA
Real Name: Unknown
Occupation: Mobster
Marital Status: Unknown
Known Relatives: None
Group Affiliation: Crime Cabal
Base of Operations: Electric City
Height/Build: Approximately 5'6", morbidly obese
Eyes: Black
Hair: Black
First Appearance: OMAC #5 (May-June 1975)

HISTORY
The Godmother was a high ranking member of the Crime Cabal in The World To Come who operated out of a large sun-palace in Electric City. She attempted to purchase a beautiful girl into whose body the Godmother's mind would be placed, but the deal was quashed by the arrival of OMAC. The Global Police Agency took the Godmother into their custody.

POWERS & WEAPONS:
The Godmother presumably had the resources of the Crime Cabal at her disposal, which included manpower, weapons and vehicles.

Quote:
"Hah! It's nuthin' money can't solve! ...and I've got plenty, Freddy! I want to be young again! ...and look like that!"

Created by: Jack Kirby

2011 DCU Movie Fan Casting: John Cena as OMAC

Typically, I'm loathe to cast professional wrestlers in super-hero roles, as it seems to compound negative associations toward both entertainment vehicles. However, OMAC is a laconic sort whose actor needs to be able to show the One Man Army Core more than the Buddy Blank. Kirby's OMAC also reminded me of the old school old man bad asses like the Duke, Eastwood, and Bronson, so I almost went with Paul Lévesque, who's in his forties. Looking over the recent acting work of Triple H, he comes off a bit stiff in his movements. Stiff acting is one thing, but I figured it best to go younger, and John Cena had the best moves of the obvious choices.



Diabolic Movie Fan Casting

• Bel Juz 2011 @ The Idol-Head of Diabolu
• Breach 2011 @ Power of the Atom
• Doctor Psycho 2011 @ Diana Prince
• Steel: The Indestructible Man II 2011 @ Justice League Detroit

OMAC #8 (November-December, 1975)

Brother Eye created a new “structure print” to restore OMAC, but before a corrective beam could reach Buddy Blank, the nebbish sunk immaterially through the rock upon which he stood. The great eye of the thinking machine closed, as Brother Eye calculated its next steps.

Through the same process used to create his hidden base, Doctor Skuba “thinned out” then solidified Buddy Blank’s atoms within the volcanic rock. Seaweed thought Buddy was cute, but Apollo still wanted to ice the “twerp.” Instead, Buddy was given the ten cent tour, and learned Apollo was only the most recent beau of Seaweed to experience atomic manipulations. Skuba had turned her past boyfriends into horrific creatures stored in a “Chamber of Monsters.” Apollo clearly loathed his “feather-brain” bride, and respected the courage of the poor men.

Meanwhile, Skuba had learned that the enemy he faced was an artificial intelligence, and attempted to gun down Buddy Blank to insure OMAC could not be revived. His pistol exploded, as Brother Eye managed to turn Skuba’s base’s defenses against him. Barely surviving to reach safety, Doctor Skuba traced Brother Eye’s transmission back to its orbit in space. Using a powerful beam, Skuba bombarded Brother Eye with meteors and space debris, turning it into something of a magnet. Encased, Brother Eye was further impaired by a solar beam that turned the debris into “ a prison on slag.” However, the effort had caused Dr. Skuba’s equipment to explode “in a gigantic fireball,” bringing “destruction to the evil Skuba!”

“The Place of Fear” was by Jack Kirby with Mike Royer. According to Mark Evanier’s introduction to the 2008 hardcover collection of the OMAC series, Jack Kirby had been “setting up something big for #9,” but then decided to return to Marvel Comics. The sales on OMAC were not such that DC saw a future in it under other hands, so they inserted a new final panel by a different artist “to remove the immediate cliffhanger. Many other story points were left unresolved… and since Jack wasn’t around when it came time to draw the cover, Joe Kubert did the honors.” A few years later, OMAC’s continuity was incorporated into Kamandi, The Last Boy on Earth, and a back-up series was added in the final issue of that book before the DC Implosion wiped it out. The back-up was revived by Jim Starlin for about a year in The Warlord, until Kirby’s conception of OMAC fell into the obscurity of very random and spaced out guest appearances.

OMAC #7 (September-October, 1975)

Wearing darling little red sled shoes, OMAC walked across a lake bed newly bereft of water or surviving aquatic life. Among the dead fish and drooping coral, OMAC found a small opaque rectangular bar sinking into the soft earth. When he tried to pull it out, the weight was too much for him. Even with his strength increased tenfold by Brother Eye, OMAC could barely lift the bar, and began sinking himself. With the last of his vitality, OMAC managed to leap to firmer ground, but the impact collapsed the lake wall and knocked him unconscious.

Over Madras Bay, a clear bar was dropped from a flying red contraption. On contact with water, the bar began collapsing the entire bay into itself. Marine life was crushed “by its own atoms… which cannot reduce as fast as the water.” The filled bar was picked up by the red ship, and hauled into a “weight neutralizer.” The scientific mind behind all of this, Doctor Skuba, was assisted in donning “neutron-gloves” by his fawning daughter and son-in-law, which allowed him to pick up and store the bar by hand.

OMAC awoke at the rest center of the Global Peace Agency, where he was briefed by Peace Agent 430 about Doctor Skuba and his bars. OMAC had managed to carry the compressed atoms of Lake Aragon, which was then left “where it belonged” at the insistence of Brother Eye. Although not explicitly stated, the satellite presumably restored Lake Aragon before aiding OMAC in locating Dr. Skuba’s secret lair.

Upon approaching a large volcanic rock isolated by the sea, OMAC’s flying vessel was suddenly twisted into debris. OMAC dove a thousand feet into the drink, while Skuba watched him through a viewing monitor. Apollo, Skuba’s son-in-law, wanted to kill OMAC before he got any closer. Seaweed, Skuba’s daughter, took a shine to OMAC. “This man looks so… interesting! So… deliciously dangerous.” Skuba had determined from OMAC’s craft that he was with the GPA, and recognized the atom-manipulation that created OMAC as similar to a process he had employed on his children to make them more attractive and virile. Skuba knew how to reverse the effect, and while OMAC stood upon the rocky plateau of his base, a beam stranded him as Buddy Blank once more. Unaware of his new life as OMAC, Buddy began calling for help…

“The Ocean Stealers!” was by Jack Kirby with D. Bruce Berry.

OMAC #6 (July-August, 1975)

FLESH and BLOOD MONSTERS in the world that’s coming! An evil phenomenon that arises in the shadows cast by the mysterious and powerful Crime Cabal!! …But this menace that lurks and pounces isn’t nearly as frightening as the objective sought by…

OMAC
THE ONE MAN ARMY CORPS

“Sickies” were deformed green-skinned humanoids that were subjected to radiation and hormone treatments before being used to guard tunnels leading to the Terminal. Suddenly, a voice from space alerted OMAC that he should be prepared to receive transmission beams from Brother Eye to gird him for the upcoming combat. The beams passed under Electric City, through the outlawed subway system, to OMAC’s belt. Buck Blue saw a flash, and was told “It’s like taking your vitamins, Buck… all of them… in one big barrel!”

The pair reached “Mugger’s Stop,” a station where kidnap victims were transferred to the “Gang Train” once the Crime Cabal were alerted by “Pocket Phone.” OMAC freed one such captive, who was escorted to safety by Peace Agents tailing OMAC. “I know… you’re not allowed to fight.” Buck borrowed a “heater” from one downed mugger shortly before the Gang Train arrived. Buck tried to back out, but OMAC dragged him aboard.

Once the train started moving, poison gas was released into the speeding car. OMAC found the noxious emission canister, ripped it from the floor, tore open a side wall, and began airing out the car. However, train cars began detonating one by one from the caboose forward, as the Crime Cabal were intent on keeping OMAC out of the Terminal. Rolling into the Terminal, the last remaining car was fired upon by a squad armed with automatic weapons. Next, a laser rifle blew the remains to bits, all except a “Molecular Cocoon” created by Brother Eye to protect the passengers, which hurled at the assailants. Thugs flew like tenpins, until OMAC ripped free to continue his own assault.

Tough Tully Morgan was set to become the first recipient of a new body through the Medi-Mind, a stolen miracle computer that worked automatically to perform the operation… if not for OMAC, who put a stop to the travesty. Every young prospect was saved, including Buck Blue’s girlfriend, while Peace Agents delicately mopped up any remaining resistance without resorting to violence.

“The Body Bank!” was by Jack Kirby with D. Bruce Berry.

OMAC #5 (May-June, 1975)

A brave Peace Agent uncovered video evidence of the Crime Cabal’s plans to offer old racket bosses the chance to transplant their brains into the bodies of helpless trafficked humans at substantial expense. So far, only dry runs had been done using fibroid dummies, but it was only a matter of time before the true atrocity would begin. OMAC would have to put a stop to that, with his target being regional manager Fancy Freddy Sparga. However, the Peace Agent had himself been detected and targeted, as a missile struck the building where OMAC was receiving his orientation.

Slightly dense, OMAC had to be asked to remove the debris that trapped the still intact Peace Agent. “Thanks… my chances of survival have greatly improved.” Aware that sarcasm was alive and well in the world to come, OMAC chastised, “Don’t gripe, friend.” After all, Brother Eye’s protection of OMAC from the rocket had extended to the agent. “We are linked as one, OMAC. I was created to react when danger threatens you. I threw a heavy element beam shield around you both when the missile struck…” Brother Eye also created fake bodies and “solarized” the room to provide OMAC +1 with a cover story. OMAC could continue his investigation unimpeded by the immediate threat of Sparga, supplied with the information that the “body-snatchers” held their victims at a location dubbed “the Terminal.”

OMAC visited a 3-D video arcade to bust the suspect Buck Blue, but his fellow gamers were all in on the racket, and tried to gang-up on “Brush-Head.” That worked about as well as one would expect, the last assailant turned into a human skeeball. “Bull’s-eye! You win a hernia! As for you, Buck, I’ll recite your constitutional rights on the way to our destination! We’re going to the scene of a crime!”



Buck mugged people, and OMAC wanted to see where they ended up. The combustion engine had been discarded following the energy crisis, so the pair made off in a two-seat “magnetic flyer with computer drive.” From a distance, GPA field agents followed in a larger carrier, wearing protective equipment and loaded with “all non-violent containment gear,” as they were “in the course of any action… never to harm a human being.” Their craft was “timed in step with OMAC’s movements. Success will depend on how well OMAC handles this.”

The sublimely obese Godmother maintained an expensive sun-palace where she was visited by Fancy Freddy Sparga, selling his wares. Buck Blue was horrified to learn his own girlfriend had been kidnapped to serve as a prospective host body for the Godmother’s brain. At first, Buck expressed his outrage to Sparga, but when offered a quarter cut of a two million dollar fee, his tone changed. Now it was OMAC’s turned to be outraged, as he tossed Buck around the room, chastising him about the rights he had gained as an informant that would be utterly denied his soon to be deceased girlfriend. “But… f-five hundred grand…! That’s money, man!! …Don’t lecture me! It’s a jungle out there! It’s everyone for himself!! Nobody’s gonna cry for Buck Blue!”

Blue knew where the Terminal was, and there was no way the Crime Cabal would allow him to live with that knowledge, so his safety was dependent on spilling to OMAC. Fancy Freddy tried to ice the kid right there and then, but he was gassed by a Peace Agent. “This gas is harmless, painless and odorless. It’s only a mild inconvenience. He’s asleep OMAC.” The troop following OMAC took the Godmother and Sparga into custody, while Buck and OMAC continued on…

“New Bodies For Old!!” was by Jack Kirby with D. Bruce Berry.

OMAC #4 (March-April, 1975)

OMAC needed to lift “70 tons of death-dealing steel,” a tall enough order to require the help of Brother Eye. The power was granted through a beam to OMAC’s belt, which conducted throughout his body. When Marshal Kafka released a bomb, OMAC flipped the mobile bunker on its back to provide himself cover from the blast. “No matter what happens, I’m taking you in!!! Do you hear that? You’ll pay for your crimes!” OMAC survived the detonation and an ensuing rockslide, but he had expended fantastic amounts of energy in the process. OMAC still managed to rip a hatch off the bunker and arrest Kafka.

Gone were the lawmen of old, replaced by the “quiet, faceless men known as Peace Agents,” to whom OMAC turned over Marshal Kirovan Kafka for the “Super-Court.” Held at a remote mountain headquarters at “the top of the world,” the Global Peace Agency yet feared Kafka’s biologically engineered avenger, which had already been loosed. A report came in from Peace Agent 5 that the purple, multi-limbed abomination was headed their way. OMAC outranked every agent present, so even though there was great fear that their most precious asset might be lost in battle, no one could order OMAC not to confront the avenger.

OMAC flew in a one-man jet toward the “Multi-Killer,” which he could not determine as being “Animal, mineral, or vegetable? It could be all three!!” Moving like a flying octopus, conventional rounds could not pierce its armored purple hide. The Multi-Killer emitted sonic waves that shook OMAC’s plane to pieces. “Brother Eye! My fate is in your hands!” The satellite had command of OMAC’s every atom, and made him light as a bird to survive the impact of his fall onto a snowy mountain. OMAC evaded shooting flames, but was nearly crushed by a dislodged mountain peak, but for Brother Eye enabling his astonishing leap to safety. A second bound put OMAC atop the avenger, where he deduced that it “eats matter and spits energy” and that “Its eyes are cyclotrons… reaching critical mass… This animal can fission like a hydrogen bomb!!” OMAC broke a horn off the creature, which through means that make not one lick of sense and without even an attempt at offering an explanation, the avenger streaked off to explode in space. Maybe it had something to do with air jets on the Court of Justice that allowed OMAC a soft landing? The best defense is a good table hockey board?

“The Busting of a Conqueror” was by Jack Kirby with D. Bruce Berry.

OMAC #3 (January-February, 1975)

In the world that’s coming, movies will be interactive experiences fed directly into the brain, as OMAC experienced while agents of the Global Peace Agency arranged for his credentials to stop "’flare-ups’" which endanger world peace. Once OMAC was done fighting a giant monster in the ‘70s version of the Matrix, he was awarded the rank of a “five star” general in a time that could not afford any army for him to lead but his left and right. “I’ve got an awesome responsibility… that’s for sure. Like the Peace Agents, my life must be one of dedication… They say I was once someone else… someone who was changed by electronic surgery… into a sort of… god of war!! Now… even the memories of that former life… are gone…”

In THE WORLD THAT’S COMING, even lost memories can be replaced by all the necessities of a new life… What began as “computer dating” will flower into complete “packaged living”! Computers will pick ideal families and backgrounds for those who lack the total human relationship… The Peace Agency will do this for OMAC…

True enough, a female Peace Agent (251, and they let her keep her long brown hair) presented OMAC with “test parents,” kindly elders Mr. and Mrs. Barker. The couple’s lives had been empty without a son, and compatibility had already been calculated, so OMAC gave them the chance they wanted so dearly. Peace Agent 251 found OMAC to be “a person of compassion and warmth,” but a massacre and other border skirmishes orchestrated by the central European dictator Marshal Kafka necessitated he take a break from domesticity. A “capsule plane” launched into orbit, allowed OMAC to make the trip (presumably from the U.S.) in just ten minutes. This very same technology, which opened any part of the world to immediate attack, is exactly the sort of complication OMAC was created to oversee.

Over troubled airspace smart bombs “guided by television” pursued the capsule plane, until OMAC detached his engines to detonate the missiles. This triggered a chute on the capsule, which was targeted by tank fire. OMAC ejected before the capsule was obliterated, and his seat doubled as a “hovering assault chair!!!” Through a mounted microphone, OMAC demanded, “For the sake of world peace, I order you to pull back your forces!” His pleas ignored, OMAC evaded weapons of many stripes to reach a line of tanks to treat them with a chemical nitrogen mixture that resulted in “a frozen wasteland.” Marshal Kafka then launched a fleet of single man Vertical Take-Off planes, which fell to pieces in midair thanks to a highly corrosive spray from OMAC’s chair. Sonic shock from the speed of OMAC’s chair sent mobile artillery falling into a crater. A barrage of barbed cannonballs finally smashed the assault chair, so OMAC continued on foot.

Before another shot could be fired, OMAC ripped apart the gun current like plywood. A “human wave attack” of soldiers followed, but was easily beaten back. OMAC commandeered an “armored golf-cart” and with hood-mounted guns blazing made his way to Kafka’s wheeled bunker. “Halt! In the name of the Global Peace Agency! …You’re a war criminal, Kafka! Surrender to me… and I’ll promise you a fair trial…” Nothing doing, as secret weapon hatches opened and OMAC would have to contend with one very heavily armored structure… next issue!

“A Hundred Thousand Foes!” was by Jack Kirby with D. Bruce Berry.

OMAC #2 (November-December, 1974)

OMAC
One-Man Army Corps…
Is a fighting force in The World That’s Coming! His decade is riddled with new and dangerous innovations…

It is the era of the SUPER-RICH! When money, like technology, reaches complex proportions, complex situations arise--- and this one could spell death---

Armed private military troops refused OMAC entry into a city that had been rented for the night by a high-roller. “I’m OMAC! No city is closed to me!!” Gruffly refused entry due to a lack of party invitation, OMAC began tearing through the soldiers, and when all opposition was smashed, he was surprised by a car horn. Two revelers dressed as a grim reaper and a dunce offered OMAC a ride to Mister Big’s party. “Why did the guards try to stop you? That costume’s a dandy!” OMAC was the strong silent type who didn’t respond to banter en route, but he did learn that the city’s population had agreed to vacate for the night to avoid paying taxes for a year. Of course, the partiers were really agents of Mr. Big, and tailed OMAC after dropping him off on a deserted street.

Professor Myron Forest worked a unit of NASA on his own atop a skyscraper in Electric City. with the help of advanced machines. OMAC learned that he had been guided to this lab by Brother Eye. “You were changed--- by remote-controlled hormone surgery--- from space!” The satellite had accomplished this “With almost instantaneous precision! Brother Eye is the most sophisticated machine ever devised--- Forget who you were. The world needs you as you are--- a force of peace!! …The nations dare not use large armies. Large armies lead to large wars-! That’s why you exist, OMAC. To contain conflict before it grows…” Brother Eye would supply all the power OMAC needed, as he needed it, to meet his goals.

Mr. Big’s men burst into the room with guns blazing, killing Prof. Forest. OMAC struck back, but the creeps’ costumes were wired with electrical current, which tazed OMAC until they could escape via hovering aircraft. OMAC accused Brother Eye of failing him, but the satellite had rerouted its power in an effort to keep Prof. Forest alive just long enough for OMAC to vow revenge. Brother Eye urged OMAC to go on the offensive, taking the battle to Mr. Big that very night. Recognizing Forest’s lab could not fall into evil hands, Brother Eye destroyed it from space as soon as OMAC reached a safe distance.



Major Domo ordered that the city be left as it was found by revelers once dawn arrived, and made sure to keep them back from Mr. Big. The party was merely a cover for the destruction of "Project OMAC," so Big was disgruntled when his agents had only managed to murder its architect. “OMAC must be dead by dawn-- or you two shall die in his place!!”

OMAC walked the streets of Electric City, hoping to stand out amidst the madness of the costume party rocking the metropolis. Assassins didn’t keep him waiting long, as OMAC evaded a spear gun before using one of its missiles to burst a hot air balloon carrying the killers. The first pair was joined by a second, the murderers of Prof. Forrest, who led an effective ambush. While OMAC was held down, a round was fired into his chest, seeming to kill him. OMAC’s body was brought back to be inspected by Mister Big’s personal physician and pronounced dead. Big couldn’t believe Project OMAC was finished, as he suspected that there was a mysterious second component.

Electric City’s mayor and two Global Peace Agency agents arrived to arrest Mr. Big, based on evidence gathered by that unknown factor. Big knew that none of the officers were armed, but before his men could kill them, their weapons were destroyed through the concealed actions of Brother Eye. These same machinations allowed Brother Eye to dissolve the bullet fired at OMAC with a laser beam and use “computed molecules” and remote control of OMAC’s life functions to fake his death. The revived OMAC thanked a faceless peace agent, whose identity must remain concealed to help patrol the world without any hint of nationalism. “It’s a rough job-- keeping the peace in a world stacked with atom bombs--“ OMAC was grateful for “the most fantastic helper man ever made” while Brother Eye’s beams remained at the ready whenever action was required.

“Rent A City!” was by Jack Kirby with Mike Royer. Keeping in line with its origins as a “future Captain America” project for Marvel, the parallel between meek Buddy Blank being the sole individual given the abilities of a one man army core before his scientist maker is assassinated and the first Steve Rogers adventure are pretty hard to miss.

OMAC #1 (September-October 1974)

OMAC
One-Man Army Corps...
is the story of a young man in THE WORLD THAT'S COMING!! In that strange place, the common objects of today... may become the terrors that we never bargained for... like the one below!




No kidding! Terror is a Kirby woman with her head protruding from foam packing with her nude legs dangling on either side, as if she were giving birth to her own face! The pair of creepy, wiry hands severed at the wrists and laid near each cheek is nightmare fuel f'shur. This is Lila, a "Build-A-Friend" automatronic mate ready for assembly in a factory full of them. However, OMAC had arrived, ordering an evacuation before he destroys the lot. Some workers thought they could take him, but they thought wrong, and scurried like cockroaches from the scene. OMAC spoke with Lila for a moment from her shipping box. "Where does humanity stop and technology begin? We no longer know, Lila... I'm no longer who I was... and you, Lila... you... you and all these other... things... must be.... destroyed! Goodbye... Lila..." OMAC calmly started a "chain of blow-ups," then walked through the maelstrom untouched.

Flashback to a lab where once stood NASA. Professor Myron Forest had created a form of remote controlled computer hormone operation-- electronic surgery! Forest worked with the Global Peace Agency, whose agents used a cosmetic spray to conceal their features and wore matching uniforms, so that any expression of national identity was completely suppressed. Any little dispute could lead to nuclear eradication of all life on Earth, and the GPA were tasked with preventing such an eventuality. The GPA searched for the perfect candidate for Prof. Forest's process, and found it in Buddy Blank. Forest linked up with the satellite Brother Eye, sleeping for such a long time in a faithful orbit. The eye awoke, and prepared. "He and I shall become as brothers..."



At Pseudo-People, Inc., Buddy Blank was a skinny schlimazel jerked around by every creep in the office. His "Super-V" was completely unsympathetic about the harassment, laying the blame on Blank and his persecution complex. Blank was ordered to the Psychology Section to vent. One girl recommended the Crying Room, but Buddy tried the Destruct Room instead. Inside were people ripping and smashing and stabbing and burning. One guy recommended Buddy kick a pseudo-person down a rail, but Blank found them too lifelike to batter in good conscience.

Outside, Buddy ran into his friendly acquaintance Lila, who helped him feel better. Two technicians were watching from afar, as Lila's "friendship" was just a test run for their nefarious purposes. They eventually led Lila back to their lab, and though Buddy was written off as too timid to break the rules, he did indeed follow the trio. Blank was captured and held at gunpoint, then learned the Pseudo-People were being armed with explosives and used in assassinations. Buddy was horrified to learn Lila was one of them, and fought against her makers. Suddenly, an eye appeared on Buddy's chest, and energy emanating from it engulfed his body. The electronic surgery turned Blank into OMAC, whose body "rejected" bullets, and whose strength allowed him to break down steel doors. OMAC was nearly dropped into a fire vat, but his extraordinary agility would not allow it. OMAC fought his way through to destroy the factory, as recounted earlier. "OMAC LIVES... SO THAT MAN MAY LIVE..."

OMAC had accomplished his first mission, having been fed knowledge with his physical attributes. "Very good, OMAC. You've heard everything I've told you..."
"I've also used the powers you gave me when I needed them... Brother Eye..."
"I shall always help you. We are linked by the eye symbol on your chest... We are like brothers... I transmit beams... Some of them bring you my voice... others feed you instant information..."
"I start here... in Electric City... with Professor Myron Forest... then on to Mister Big!"

"Brother Eye and Buddy Blank" was by Jack Kirby with Mike Royer

Who's Dat: Fancy Freddy Sparga

PERSONAL DATA
Real Name: Freddy Sparga
Occupation: Regional Manager for the Crime Cabal
Marital Status: Unknown
Known Relatives: None
Group Affiliation: Crime Cabal
Base of Operations: Electric City
Height/Build: Approximately 5'9", overweight
Eyes: Black
Hair: Black
First Appearance: OMAC #5 (May-June 1975)

HISTORY
The Crime Cabal was one of the major mob outfits in The World To Come, and Fancy Freddy Sparga was their regional manager in Electric City. This placed him in charge of "The Terminal," an underground operation where kidnap victims would have their minds evacuated and replaced by the highest bidding "body-buyer." This computer brain transplant was still in the planning stages when it was discovered by an undercover Peace Agent and reported to OMAC. Sparga was alerted to the double agent, and ordered his and OMAC's assassination via a new missile rifle. However, both men were saved by the satellite Brother Eye, and evidence of their seeming demise was planted to allow OMAC a free hand in investigating. With the help of mugger Buck Blue, OMAC caught Sparga while he was negotiating a sale to the Godmother, and Fancy Freddy was arrested by Peace Agents.

POWERS & WEAPONS:
Fancy Freddy Sparga presumably had the resources of the Crime Cabal at his disposal, which included manpower, weapons and vehicles.

Quote:
"That'll teach the Peace Agents ta poke in Fancy Freddy's apple pie!!"

Created by: Jack Kirby

Who's Dat: Marshal Kafka

PERSONAL DATA
Real Name: Kirovan Kafka
Occupation: Bandit Marshal
Marital Status: Unknown
Known Relatives: None
Group Affiliation: Leader of his own mercenary army
Base of Operations: Central Europe, The World To Come
Height/Build: Approximately 6'0" and stocky
Eyes: Blue
Hair: Black
First Appearance: OMAC #3 (January-February, 1975)

HISTORY
Marshal Kirovan Kafka commanded his 100,000 strong mercenary army within his own unnamed Central European nation and against territorial neighbors. Massacre was their specialty, as Kafka played out his dream of becoming a Caesar. Those dreams were crushed by the One Man Army Corps, who used his own advanced weaponry and the incredible resources of Brother Eye to demolish the bandits and capture their leader. Kafka was turned over to the Global Peace Agency to be tried for war crimes at the Court of Justice. Kafka was charged with the following:

• Mass Homicide: 3 Counts
• Execution of Prisoners: 9 Counts
• Conspiracy to Invade: 2 Counts
• Intent to Subjugate and Enslave: 12 Counts
• Design and Execution of Mass Terror upon Civilians: 3 Counts
• Use of Weapons Outlawed by International Agreement: 2 Counts

Kafka was unrepentant, laughing at the charges and threatening more deaths when his avenger arrived at the super-court. True to his word, a doomsday creation had been unleashed against the court, but was redirected into space by OMAC. Kafka was last seen being escorted to confinement.

POWERS & WEAPONS:
Marshal Kafka had an enormous army and spectacularly advanced arsenal at his disposal. These included remote guided rockets, massive tanks, vertical take-off planes, barrages of barbed cannonballs, armored golf-carts, and a heavily armed mobile bunker weighing seventy tons. All of Kafka's forces were geared for mobility, so that all of his resources could be redirected on short notice to overwhelm any opposition. Kafka also had a bioengineering program with which he created an astonishing creature of unidentified construction with a nigh-impervious exterior that could project intense flames and sonic waves.

Quote:
"I'm not impressed by your gimmicks or speeches... Marshal Kafka will dictate peace! ...By the power of his weapons!"

Created by: Jack Kirby

Who's Dat: Doctor Skuba

PERSONAL DATA
Real Name: Sandor Skuba
Occupation: Rogue Scientist
Marital Status: Unknown
Known Relatives: Seaweed (daughter,) Apollo (son-in-law)
Group Affiliation: None
Base of Operations: Secret lair
Height/Build: Approximately 5'10" with slight build
Eyes: Black
Hair: None
First Appearance: OMAC #7 (September-October, 1975)

HISTORY
Sandor Skuba was a genius "lone wolf" atomic researcher. As noted by the infallible Brother Eye intelligent satellite, "Skuba has mastered the atom. He can literally manipulate the form of matter." Among his accomplishments was the ability to reform human life to the shape of his wishes, developing beings of "manipulated, unstable atoms," such as his aesthetically superior daughter and son-in-law. Later, Skuba devised a means of compressing millions of tons of water into a foot long rectangular "bar," then neutralize the weight so that it could be carried and stored with relative ease. Aided by his daughter and son-in-law, Doctor Skuba began stealing The World To Come's natural bodies of water, in a bid for global influence.

OMAC was sent to investigate Doctor Skuba, and with the direction of Brother Eye, located his hidden base within a large volcanic rock island. OMAC was remotely observed by Doctor Skuba, who determined his allegiance to the Global Peace Agency, and recognized OMAC as having benefited from the same matter manipulation process as his children. Using a specialized weapon, Skuba was able to revert OMAC back to his original form of Buddy Blank, leaving him powerless. Skuba then focused his attentions on locating and combating Brother Eye. In the conflict that followed, Brother Eye was imprisoned in slag metal by Doctor Skuba's equipment, which was explosively demolished by the strain. Skuba's entire island was destroyed, and presumably the doctor with it.

POWERS & WEAPONS:
Doctor Skuba was responsible for a slew of inventions, including the Weight Neutralizer, Neutro-Gloves, small bars into which the atoms of entire oceans could be compressed, a flying ship capable of carrying enormous weight, dematerializing rays, and a mountain headquarters with formidable automated defenses.

Quote:
"You can be made into a powerful instrument for what I detest most! --The law and order of lesser men!"

Created by: Jack Kirby

Who's Dat: Buck Blue

PERSONAL DATA
Real Name: Buck Blue
Occupation: Mugger
Marital Status: Single
Known Relatives: None
Group Affiliation: Crime Cabal
Base of Operations: Electric City
Height/Build: Approximately 6'2", average
Eyes: Blue
Hair: Brown
First Appearance: OMAC #5 (May-June 1975)

HISTORY
Buck Blue was a mugger who kidnapped people to turn over to the Crime Cabal. Blue was captured at a video arcade by OMAC, and forced to lead him to "the Terminal," where the kidnap victims were sold as surrogate bodies to the highest bidder. Unbeknownst to Buck Blue, his own girlfriend was taken by Fancy Freddy Sparga for use by the Godmother. Buck Blue was outraged at the offense at first, but was tempted to look the other way for a substantial fee. OMAC took the decision out of Buck Blue's hands, pressing him to lead a trek through abandoned subway tunnels against mutated guards and heavily armed resistance from the Crime Cabal. Finally, the pair smashed their way to the Terminal, where Buck Blue turned on OMAC. However, a Peace Agent disarmed Blue, and his girlfriend was liberated. Buck Blue was then taken into custody by the Global Peace Agency.

POWERS & WEAPONS:
Buck Blue could handle a firearm, as available.

Quote:
"I can use this bird's heater."

Created by: Jack Kirby

OMAC in "Battle Cry" (November, 1980)

"3:54 A.M. St. Louis, Missouri. The IC&C (International Communication and Commerce) jet fighters came in under radar detection range." Before anything could be done, the jets fired on the city, causing widespread destruction. "5:59 A.M. Verner Bros., Inc. fighters came streaking to the rescue." Battles raging in the skies were followed by a 6 A.M. signal for IC&C ground forces to continue the assault, led by the One Man Army Corps. "The battle into the city is quick, fierce, and bloody. Already 563 IC&C soldiers and 973 Verner Bros. mercenaries have died."

Body counts continued to be tallied as IC&C fighters would hold ground until OMAC arrived on a given scene to insure victory. OMAC's abilities were impressive, as he survived while others fell, taking down military vehicles with whatever weapons or heavy debris were on hand. OMAC also served as an inspirational speaker. "All right, you killers, it's time to do or die!! Tear into them!" His lack of eloquence was made up by his delivery, one supposes.

By 4:34 P.M., IC&C had secured the city, losing 15,352 men to the Verner Brothers' 41,343. OMAC was dismayed by the casualties on both sides, their loves lost "So Wiley Quixote can give a favorable report to his board of directors, about new territories gained?" Things weren't going as OMAC had planned, and sighed to a sergeant while sitting atop a meters high pile of the dead, "...it's been one hell of a day."

This harrowing but brief back-up story from Warlord #39 was written and laid out by Jim Starlin, with tepid finished art by Romeo Tanghal.