Chamber of Darkness #4
Published and © by Marvel, April 1970
Title: “The Monster!”
Synopsis: A pair of witches sets a tragic tale in motion, as a monstrous outsider falls prey to mob violence.
Writer: Jack Kirby
Penciler: Kirby
Inker: John Verpoorten
Review: This issue features a stunning mix of established pros and up-and-coming talent. This lead story treads familiar tragic turf, but Jack Kirby has a knack for parables. On the art side, the King is at the peak of his plentiful powers. A strong opening salvo!
•••
Title: “The Man Who Owned the World!”
Synopsis: One of the world’s richest men tries to leverage his future fortune, irregardless of his plan’s impact on the world.
Writer (plot): Tom Sutton
Writer (plot): Denny O’Neil
Artist: Sutton
Review: This tale has a prescient vibe and offers a surprising twist. Tom Sutton’s page designs range from chaotic to striking.
•••
Title: “The Sword and the Sorcerers!”
Synopsis: A writer haunted by dreams of his character comes face to face with the very creation he plans to end.
Writer: Roy Thomas
Artist: Barry Windsor-Smith (as Barry Smith)
Review: Roy Thomas delivers a twisty treat of a tale. Barry Windsor-Smith’s work is quite raw but bristles with potential retroactively.
Grade (for the entire issue): A-
Second opinion: “ There was some very nice stuff here.” – Frank Plowright, FantaCo’s Chronicle’s Series Annual #1, 1983 … “(Smith’s) art now showed a quantum leap in evolution from its previous Kirby/Steranko inspired roots.” – Pierre Comtois, “Marvel Comics in the 1970s: An Issue By Issue Field Guide to a Pop Culture Phenomenon: Expanded Edition,” 2021 … “The first Marvel Conan strip in all that name.” – The Slings & Arrows Comic Guide (second edition), 2003
Cool factor: Peak-era Kirby. A Sutton horror joint. Thomas and Windsor-Smith with a proto-Conan story. Topped off by a Marie Severin/Bill Everett collaboration on the cover. What more could the discerning comics fan ask for circa 1970?
Character quotable: “It is Starr the Slayer who stands before you! He whom you mean to destroy – but who shall slay you instead!” – Conan the Bar … umm, wait, no, that’s Starr the Slayer
Editor’s note: This review was written Sept. 10, 2025.
