SPACE GHOST #5

[MattBrady]

It’s Space Ghost, but like you’ve never seen him, either in his original Hanna Barbera cartoon series, or on Cartoon Network’s Space Ghost: Coast to Coast.

Joe Kelly and Ariel Olivetti’s story of Space Ghost’s origin is far from an all-ages cartoon, and not anything near an oddball late-night interview show. It’s dark, bloody, grim, and, in the end, heroic.

But how does it al work, and where did he get those cool powers?

Issue #5 hits this week, and we spoke with Kelly to get everything you need to be Up to Date.

Kelly’s story opened with Space…er, Peacekeeper Thaddeus Bach doing his duty, and working for The Commandment – the organization charged with keeping law and order throughout the planetary systems. While serving, Bach showed himself to be an exemplary officer, and was tapped to serve with The Commandment’s elite corps, The Wrath.

Within the Wrath though, Bach found that corruption ran deep under its leader, Temple. After refusing to follow Temple’s leadership philosophy of acting as judge, jury, and executioners, Bach opted to leave the elite group. Temple didn’t take the news well, killing Bach’s wife and unborn son, and, ultimately, Bach, when he attempted his escape.

Yup – the comic book version of Space Ghost’s origin starts with corruption, deception, and murder. What may come as a surprise to some is that Kelly had virtually no opposition to his story when he pitched it to DC.

“I’ve been incredibly lucky with this,” Kelly said. “It was one of these characters where DC realized that they had the license to it, and wanted to do a comic book, they kind of forgot about it. [Editor] Joey Cavaleri knew what I wanted to do from the beginning, so it was always laid out. It wasn’t so much that I wanted to bring Space Ghost into the ‘real world’ so much, but more of looking at it, from what I remembered of the character, and how he made me feel as a kid. Even in the original cartons, I thought he was al little scary.

“So, in creating the story around his origin, it was pretty much analyzing aspects of him – he’s called a ‘ghost,’ and he wears a black hood. There’s got to be something dark to the creation of that character. Yeah, he runs around with these kids who are in bright uniforms, but he’s not. Where does it all come from? I also wanted to hit on this pulp, film-noir origin story for him as well. That’s always been laid out up front – that there was going to be the murder of his wife, and he would be betrayed.

“DC was fine with it – the only notes really came in when it was felt that certain things were too violent, such as in issue #1 when you see Hammer coming out of the bedroom where he’s just murdered Thaddeus’ wife, and he’s cleaning off his blades, and telling him their baby was a boy. That shot is actually super cropped from what was really there. Originally, we had her dead in the background – not bloody, but lying there with her eyes open. They decided that was too much. That was the only real editorial focus, just keeping the violence away from a hard R rating, and making the story good. It was never a concern that we had gone too far into the dark material.”

Kelly’s other safety net – this story takes place roughly ten years before the cartoon continuity. “The idea there is that the world into which ‘Space Ghost’ was born is a much darker place, and then it gets better as they take over The Commandment, and clean up the system. So, by the time you see Space Ghost, Jayce and Jayna in the cartoon, it can believably be a much more gung-ho action oriented adventure with a brighter undercurrent.

“Some of it was based loosely on the organization that Space Ghost was with in the cartoon in that there was a larger organization, but the cartoon’s group was a little corny, so that’s where I put in The Commandment, which has a name that sounds a little more grim. And of course, Zorak comes from the series, but I changed what he was about, and give his species a structure.”

So – back to the storyline, Temple and his crew left Bach to die on a barren planet known as the “Planet of the Dead,” and went on their merry way. Thaddeus, however, refused to die, his motivation fueled at first by memories of his wife, and then later, by the desire for revenge against Temple.

But – he wasn’t alone on the Planet of the Dead. Another cast off from society, Salomon was there as well. A former weaponsmith of the world that was consumed by war, Salomon still had a cache of weapons and the ship, things he hoped Bach would use to return to civilization and restart a normal, peaceful life, foregoing his path of vengeance.

Bach took the implements, but, to Salomon’s despair, he didn’t forego his oath of vengeance at all.

By issue #3, the influence of Temple and his cadre had all but overtaken The Commandment, and Bach began his hunt. He moved through Temple’s lieutenants quickly, but, just as he was about to kill his nemesis, the Zorathians, an insectoid species long thought to be nothing more than a myth, invaded. Their leader, of course, Zorak.

As Kelly explains: “’Zorak’ is the leader of the tribe of Zorathians all the time. If Zorak is killed, everything that is in him just goes to the next in line, and the next highest in rank becomes Zorak. It’s not so much that it’s a collective mind, but the pheromone transmission of his essence just transfers to the next, with all the former’s memories. There’s no stopping Zorak as long as a Zorathian is alive.”

Keeping his focus on killing Temple, Bach killed any Zorathian in his way, attracting the invaders’ attention. Bad thing.

During his pursuit of Temple, Bach was distracted by young cries for help from the woods. Following them, Bach found tow children, orphaned in the attack, fighting against the Zorathians for their lives. The twin kids’ names: Jan and Jayce.

The two gave Bach his name, by the way, going on his appearance.

At this point though, Bach is less than thrilled to be encumbered by the children, and was basically making plans to leave them until they were captured by Zorathians, and pulled underground. Without stopping to think, Bach pursues, and rescues them.

“The kids definitely mitigate his point of view,” Kelly said. “The moment where he gives up the chance to get Temple, and chooses to help the kids is the moment when he starts to reclaim his humanity, which he’d totally put on hold at that point. He’s starting to kind of get his humanity back, which at the same time, he feels is a weakness in regards to his mission, which will play out a lot in issue #5.

“But – remember, even at the scene with the kids, where he’s taken his mask off, and has let them sleep next to him in a very paternal way, he’s still hearing the voice of his wife in his head, and loses any hint of a smile or good feeling he had. It’s the classic dynamic – the kids starting to bring humanity back to the cold, unfeeling hero, but the goal was to show that that’s a real struggle for him, and ultimately, it will turn out to be kind of a problem for him.”

In the meantime, Temple has used Bach’s temporary pause in pursuing him to his advantage, allying with the Zorathians. To do so, he had to let a giant worm burrow into his skull, but it beats being dead.

“The worm that’s on Temple’s head allows him to translate, and turns his thoughts and voice into pheromones so everyone can understand each other,” Kelly said. “He’s struck a deal with them at the end of #4 – he hasn’t been mind-controlled, but he is under their control just the same, which is why they strapped a bomb to his chest. They are looking at him, and see powerful weapons that they don’t own that he can get for them – that’s anathema to them – there can’t be a planet that can resist them, because that’s not their way. Space Ghost has stopped them cold, and they’re not going to let that stand.

“So, in Temple, they see a guy who’s connected to the Ghost, and so they want to use him as bait to bring the Ghost to them, while Temple sees this as an opportunity to save his own skin.”

Catching up then, with this week’s issue, as Kelly said, the kids prove to be chink in Space Ghost’s armor, but that weakness isn’t exploited by Temple or Zorak, necessarily.

“It’s more of Thaddeus hurting himself than anyone attacking the kids,” Kelly said. “It’s a private struggle for him whether or not he cares about anybody other than Temple – that’s where it comes in as an issue for him. He ends up being faced with choices between helping the kids, and chasing Temple, and when confronted with that, it really tears him apart. That schism within him ultimately starts to weaken him, until he can reconcile it.”

And of course, there’s lots of fighting.

“We’ve got Zorak and Space Ghost, we’ve got Temple and Space Ghost, so yeah, there are some big fights coming up in the next couple of episodes,” Kelly said. “Thaddeus gets to use his technology a little more, and Ariel is doing such an incredible job with it all. Let me tell you, finally getting to see the swarm of Zorathians is really cool from my perspective. Temple also gets to start kicking his plans into action as well. All the various storylines start to come together and interweave in the final two issues.

“All in all, it’s a redemption story for Space Ghost, and one of the themes that I tend to revisit a lot is how does someone walk a just path when there are other forces working against them, and especially something that hits so close to home as someone murdering your wife and unborn child – how do you recover from that? Though there are pulp trappings or a little bit more violence, and a bit of an edge, Space Ghost is a solid hero. He goes through his darker phase, and comes out of it a stronger person.”

Something that has been somewhat of a persistent question since the miniseries was announced though – does the DC comic book story of his origin mean that Space Ghost has been folded into the cosmic side of the DC Universe?

Even for Kelly, it’s a good question.

“I honestly don’t know. That’s really up to DC. I’ve thought of it as his own universe, or at the very least, the Hanna Barbera universe, so if we get to do other characters, there would be the potential for them to meet.

“Honestly, the original impetus for this whole project goes way, way, way back to Our Worlds at War, which was our big, cosmic event that had all the space characters attacking earth. I so wanted to have Space Ghost make a cameo in the Superman story of the larger storyline, just for two pages, you’d see Space Ghost kicking ass. At the time, Coast to Coast was still going strong, so that got nixed at the time, but now – I don’t know exactly where he is.”

One thing Kelly does know is that there is more Space Ghost coming.

“We’re talking about the next story right now, and I’m pretty sure I know who the villains are, and I’m hammering out the basics of the story,” the writer said. “Ariel is working on something else right now, but he’ll be ready to go in a little while, so the impetus is on me right now to get him to his next adventure, which will be cool. I’d like to think this would go on forever, but there are three stories that I’d like to do – this one, set pre-cartoon, the second, which would be our ‘version’ set during the cartoon era, and then something that would take place after the cartoon continuity. Those are the three stories I’d like to write. That way, if people would come later, they could jump into any era and tell more stories where and whenever they wanted. We’ll see how it all works out.”

[algertman]

this comics is badass, also like how they gave the 2 sidekicks an origin that doesn't come off stupid. Very good book.

[Arnout]

Haven't tried it, as there's just too much other stuff on my plate, and Kelly's JLA underwhelmed me a bit.
I have no affinity, history or knowledge of the character either, so that wasn't something that could grab me.
If & when this is traded, I'll certainly give it a look, as this piece is very interesting & I want to like Kelly's newer work. JLE for instance is very captivating, if a little hermetic at times.

Go Joe

[Sean Walsh]

#1 and 2 are virtually non-existant in my area - that's what I get for not buying them up front.

So I *really* hope there's a TPB of this miniseries. With news that there'll be a follow-up, I'm hopeful of this....

[Mike Cruz]

Joe is sooo dependable when it comes to delivering a great story!! I'm just hoping that DC does decide to incorporate Space Ghost into the DCU. I think that a great kickoff point would be the new Green Lantern series. Personally, I'd love to see Space Ghost caught inbetween a clash between The Commandment and the Green Lantern Corps where there might be an overlap of jurisdictions with Thanagar and Rann somehow caught in the middle.

Anyway, I really enjoy Space Ghost and look forward to other offerings from DC on the subject. (Frankly, I'd love to see Joe and cosmic artist Jim Starlin work together on Space Ghost!)

-Mike

[Kish]

We had a good amount of Space Ghost #1 till a customer rolled in and bought every last copy, he then orderd all of our #2s the very next day.

[skeletorjr]

I really wanted to like it, but I was very turned off of the whole thing by the truly sick scene regarding the murder of the wife and child. I read that issue and threw it in the trash. It was disgusting, and the 'it was a boy' bit with the baby was just too much. I can't believe Kelly thought that such a scene was necessary, and I can't believe DC would allow the Space Ghost property to be treated this way. This could have been a fun ride, like DC's Adam Strange series, but it went way too dark. No thanks.

[FIG]

Originally posted by Sean Walsh
#1 and 2 are virtually non-existant in my area - that's what I get for not buying them up front.

So I *really* hope there's a TPB of this miniseries. With news that there'll be a follow-up, I'm hopeful of this....

#1 was sold out when I went to buy it 2 days after it came out. This series has some of the coolest painted artwork I've seen in a while.

[DCON]

this is got to be one of the best comic book series of the year so far, i really recomend it ... this is a must read and the art work is awesome

[wilee4]

this is one of my favorite books out there right now!!!

and i agree with whoever said it above - DC PLEASE put Space Ghost into the regular continuity.

Or at least a Space Ghost/Green Lantern one-shot!!!

please

[James Seals]

Space Ghost vs. Superman anyone?

I say, why the hell not!

Space Ghost in the DCU would be really neat.

This series has rocked, and this is coming from a guy who is a bit put off by Kelly's work in the past. The art is amazing, and the story is compelling. A solid read from all departments. And I can't wait for more.

Keep up the good work.

James

PS: Shame SG didn't get that cameo, even a one panel shot would've been the ultimate in cool.

[Ret]

I need to see Space Ghost in the DCU. It's gone beyond wanting it.

[Kolimar]

Way to go, Ariel! Good stuff.

[goofball814]

I really wanted to be pysched when they first announced this mini-series, as I loved the Hanna Barbera as a kid (I mean, who wasn't, he had a monkey for crying out loud) but I was so worried that it would have too much of the crapfest Cartoon Network Space Ghost feel to it, so I passed on issue #1 when it first came out. I really wanted to try it, but I just don't care for Ariel's stuff, and Joe's stuff is so hit and miss. And as it turns out, LCS sold out of #1. They got some in when #2 hit the stands, and I more or less picked up #1 & #2 cause I was stupid.

Now, I'm really enjoying to store (still not loving the art, though) and with #5 out today, it is top on my stack of stuff to read tonight, even though the origin really does have the "been there, done that" feel to it. I'd say that is a real compliment to Joe's ability to tell a good story.

[EmeraldGuy32]

This series is awsome!! If you haven't picked it up yet ur missin out. Gotta love dem covers!

[muikane]

my god? too dark? that's a strong statement to make. that means either you cant handle tragic stuff in your own life, or you have strong ideas on how myopic the comic industry should be.

People that empathize too much freeze whenever bad things happen to others or to themselves.

Good literature would be easier to appreciate if we were all pyschologically sound, methinks.

Ever read, Of Human Bondage?

That should be required reading.

[Batmite79]

Originally posted by skeletorjr
I really wanted to like it, but I was very turned off of the whole thing by the truly sick scene regarding the murder of the wife and child. I read that issue and threw it in the trash. It was disgusting, and the 'it was a boy' bit with the baby was just too much. I can't believe Kelly thought that such a scene was necessary, and I can't believe DC would allow the Space Ghost property to be treated this way. This could have been a fun ride, like DC's Adam Strange series, but it went way too dark. No thanks.

It's a reimagining of the character, for older audiences. People who dug the cartoon, and have since grown up.

I didn't think that scene was "sick" per se, but it was harsh. It's not a scene that people were meant to like, but rather be upset by. That particular scene with Hammer truly showed us how horrible he is, and what heinous crimes he's capable of. If he was to just kill Mrs Ghost ( ), the audience wouldn't feel as strongly for Thaddeus.

[Batmite79]

I am really digging this series. When I saw the solicitation, I was thinking it sounded like a serious, mature take on the character, but I couldn't be sure.

Firstly, Joe Kelly can write some hilarious stuff. Secondly, Space Ghost is a character mocked in SGC2C (though I still own the DVDs of it ), and stems from a corny cartoon.

Now, I dig the old toons, and I enjoy SGC2V, but I am loving this updated version.

A few quick bits:

It'd be nice to see him as part of the DCU, but it's not necessary - he works well on his own.

I want them DC to follow this up with an ongoing series, by the same team.

And I wanna see a big screen Space Ghost movie based on this miniseries.

Is that really too much to ask?

[skeletorjr]

Originally posted by muikane
my god? too dark? that's a strong statement to make. that means either you cant handle tragic stuff in your own life, or you have strong ideas on how myopic the comic industry should be.

People that empathize too much freeze whenever bad things happen to others or to themselves.

Good literature would be easier to appreciate if we were all pyschologically sound, methinks.

Ever read, Of Human Bondage?

That should be required reading.

uhhhhhh, overanalyze much? Sweet Jesus. I just don't want to open a comic book with Space Ghost on the cover and find out that somebody's cut open a pregnant woman. I love that someone finding a comic book too dark means they over-empathize and they're psychologically unsound. Put down the textbook, kid.

[muikane]

there's overanalyzing and then there's extro and introspectiveness.

when you underanalyze, you are plain ignoring things and plumb just not usin' what god gave you.

When you overanalyze, your conclusions are false because you are running on false givens--your intuition has failed you.

Maybe I am overthinking it. Maybe I'm not. The fact that I know the difference between overanalyzing and intuitive deduction gives me some small comfort that I ain't guessin' wrong. Nuff said, pops.

And now to discredit myself completely, I have grave doubts about the art/writing. There's a logic gap between issue 1 and 2. It's a major logic gap and takes away the whole of the piece. On the implementation/art end, the art does not stay consistent. It first goes for pseudo Euro then to full Euro still art then to cheerful Hanna animation art.

In the interview, the writer said this art transistion was intentional. I severely doubt it. Even if you disregard the choice, Space Ghost looks like a wrestler and yet his body is non-heavy, and that effect is pronounced even greater by his environment (still-art).

It doesnt quite have an impact. The villain is a bad guy for bad guy's sake. There's no hidden motivation. Nothing to make you think. It is a children's story, through and through, right down to the...I wont spoil it.

Very dissapointing.

Compare it to Adam Strange. At least Strange is upfront about being a Space-hero flick. Space ghost pretends to be interesting and that sortah pretending throws the whole book out of context.

[skeletorjr]

Well, let's agree on that, at least. Adam Strange is unashamedly a space-hero flick. I personally think it's a very good one, and I wish Space Ghost had left me with a grin on my face like Adam Strange has so far.

[stlfan79]

Great series thus far.

[fumetti]

Originally posted by muikane
my god? too dark? that's a strong statement to make. that means either you cant handle tragic stuff in your own life, or you have strong ideas on how myopic the comic industry should be.

People that empathize too much freeze whenever bad things happen to others or to themselves.

Good literature would be easier to appreciate if we were all pyschologically sound, methinks.

Ever read, Of Human Bondage?

That should be required reading.

LOL! Somebody comparing Of Human Bondage to a kid's cartoon character! LOL, again!

How about this: some of us grew up watching Space Ghost. "Dark" he isn't. A "tragic tale" he isn't. Saying this series is outside the scope of the character isn't "myopia." Not every character has to be turned into some kind of Punisher concept. The only "myopia" here is that DC can't let any old character keep their purity.

The idea that Space Ghost must have a dark past because he wears a dark hood is just plain stupid. By that logic, he must have a pristine past because he wears mostly white on his body. Or that he must also have a whimsical past because he wears a goofy picture of his own head on his chest!

Maybe some folks don't want tragedy artificially retconned into characters because it comes off as arbitrary, heavy-handed, and unnecessary.

[Batmite79]

Originally posted by fumetti
LOL! Somebody comparing Of Human Bondage to a kid's cartoon character! LOL, again!

How about this: some of us grew up watching Space Ghost. "Dark" he isn't. A "tragic tale" he isn't. Saying this series is outside the scope of the character isn't "myopia." Not every character has to be turned into some kind of Punisher concept. The only "myopia" here is that DC can't let any old character keep their purity.

The idea that Space Ghost must have a dark past because he wears a dark hood is just plain stupid. By that logic, he must have a pristine past because he wears mostly white on his body. Or that he must also have a whimsical past because he wears a goofy picture of his own head on his chest!

Maybe some folks don't want tragedy artificially retconned into characters because it comes off as arbitrary, heavy-handed, and unnecessary.

I don't really see it as a retcon per se, it's an update of a cartoon inside the comics, and isn't meant to replace anything.

I think of it as a different interpretation of the character - a more mature take for people who grew up with him as a kid...

[skywatcher]

Why no updates to "Up To Date", MattB?