Content Warning: The Most Violent, Brutal, Gory, Vicious Fight in Superhero Comics!

[@linknlog]

Miracleman doesn’t actually snap the kid’s neck. If you look at the previous panel, you see he’s balled his hand into a fist. He punches his fist into his other hand straight through his head. Brutal.

[@rumo510]

This may have been the day Garth Ennis realized he needed to write comics.

[@alanmorton3672]

I'm old, so I bought Warrior from my local newsagents back in the day (still have them!) and Marvelman was my favourite strip! Got these later Eclipse issues too. Often imitated, never bettered.

[@andybrining]

I really wish there was a comprehensive Totleben Artist's Edition covering his entire body of work.

[@randywhitehair5403]

I always found it puzzling that Miracleman never got the recognition that Watchmen received. True, this wasn't published by big bad DC, but even amongst comic fans it seems like this work is underappreciated.

[@androod6211]

I think most of us guessed what this was going to be. I read Marvelman in Warrior, back in the day (one of the few comics-related advantages of living in the UK), and my belief is that Marvelman changed comics long before Watchmen. Marvelman is the grittier older brother, and easily my favourite Moore work. Like Halo Jones before it, it's a crime against creativity that we never saw the story through to its conclusion. By the way, a Marvel Omnibus of Miracleman is due for publication 18th October this year. Buy Moore comix!

[@changvasejarik62]

I saw the title and glimpsed the picture and knew there can be only one. That checkerboard and clothesline still haunts me. Poor Johnny. Also gaiman & marvel please finish silver age, I know I’m probably the only person asking but I just have to know what happens to young miracle man/Richard dauntless.

[@KC-fi6rk]

It’s been a while since I read it but it seems like grant Morrison “Zenith” had some vicious battles. Also many issues of invincible had huge epic bloody battles. Always love taking a look at Miracle Man again though.

[@royradich2048]

A God Somewhere by John Arcudi and Peter Snejbjerg is pretty gruesome. A good natured fellow gets super powers, becomes a celebrity, grows alienated and things just go downhill from there. The mayhem never reaches Totleben levels, but is appropriate to the more grounded themes of the book. It has more than a little Miracle Man DNA

[@septillion2501]

Imagine if poor Alan Davis had stuck around and got asked to pencil THIS script 😂

[@rigopeligro]

No way. Tottleben was perfect for this. His work on Miracleman was next level. Compare his art to Davis.

[@billstorie5161]

The IDW artifact edition has Alan's original art side by side with John's and whilst it's hard to imagine him agreeing to draw this story (Alan isn't a fan of "blood n guts" art - even his Wolverine and Conan art is relatively restrained) you can't underestimate the power and majesty he gives the character of MM. You have to remember also that Warrior magazine was quite a bit larger than the standard US comic so Alan's originals are very large and consequently lost a lot of detail and impact when reduced by such a degree to fit the US reprint size so I often feel his work on this title, albeit early in his career, deserves much more credit.

[@keithveronese5415]

@@rigopeligro This. A million times this.

[@giovanniricci4369]

Through the whole Moore’s run this issue has been prepared, like a “crescendo” symphony: all the little pieces of Bates being tormented by his alter ego were leading the reader to this very issue. We were waiting for the worst to happen and eventually it was worse than we expected.

[@dalfonzowilliams4792]

This series had such great battles in it. The fight from issue 2 for me has always been my favorite superhero battle. I remember finding that issue in a back issue bin as a kid and reading it over and over. That 'You dropped the coffee, Stephanie' line is still terrifying to this day! Sadly it was years before I could find any more issues.

[@giovanniricci4369]

You got it! It stills makes me shiver

[@joshuaperry5991]

Yo you just gave me shivers with that line. Came flooding back.

[@shidiwen9329]

I read this issue once just after my son was born. Page where Johnny dies just broke my heart and I remember ugly crying, finishing the issue and resolving never to read it again. It was that good. Maybe the best single issue of comics ever produced, and I’m happy it had such a strong influence on my taste and appreciation for the medium.

[@dwaynemuth8775]

Alan Moore set the bar very high for writers back in the 80’s and in my opinion especially to this day! Swamp Thing 20&21 blew me away back in ‘83! Alan can tell a short story or a long story! I’ve met John Totleben many times over the years and he would have his artwork at shows! Fn amazing! Miracleman 11-16, still holds up and I’m gonna sit down in the next couple days and deep dive into it again! John is underrated for his beautiful work! Alan has a gift for writing and it’s amplified by all the great artists he has worked with over the years! John definitely shows that! Keep reading and making MOORE Comix!

[@donaldpriola1807]

I bought it when it was released, and let me tell you, this had a major impact, even with its small print run. My copy is one of my treasures.

[@giovanniricci4369]

Looking at the title, I already knew what it was going to be about. Amazing series and really impressive reading. I just hope rumors it's going to be finished are real. Cheers !

[@specificityarchives9920]

Alan is simply a genius.

[@philiphopkins9034]

Ha! When I saw the title to this clip, my immediate reaction was, "Well, if it's anything other than Miracleman #15, I'm going to have to call b.s." I remember picking up a copy at a flea market many years ago for only a buck! Excellent condition, too.

[@GreenGoblet22]

What an intense issue, that final Hieronymus Bosch looking splash page is something that never leaves you the first time you see it. The fight between Colossus and Sieglinde in Uber #5 by Kieron Gillen is definitely in my top 5 most brutal supe fights.

[@GeorgeIsaacsZzz]

The final Sons Of The Tiger story in Deadly Hands Of Kung Fu, a Marvel black and white magazine was it for me. The 3 heroes (including heroine) beat the absolute living crap out of each other before going their separate ways and discarding the amulets that would later end up with White Tiger. I was "a children" at the time and despite seeing both 5 Fingers of Death (King Boxer) and Enter The Dragon in the theatre, was not prepared for the violence in this comicbook. Haven't looked at it since, so can't say how it holds up to adult eyes.

[@haydar8364]

I also guessed the final Miracleman battle when I saw the thumbnail in the feed. Pro tip: much of this fight is featured in the Miracleman Artifact edition; there’s a book that’s microscope-worthy!

[@ProtomanButCallMeBlues]

Miracleman for sure is always the one I come back to when I consider how to do a climax correctly. Even with foresight that Miracleman wins the fight, Moore treats it right, he has you pondering "how the hell did he do it?" because it's just been imprinted on the reader that they can not beat Bates. He's just stronger than them, and that really never changes either. You read it, they didn't really beat Bates, they got incredibly lucky, so there is a a sense of relief and dread when Miracleman kills a young Johnny.

[@parvelshunk241]

I remember being a teen when this came out and reading another kid's copy on the long bus ride home from school one afternoon. My little mind was utterly blown. Man, the late '80s were a GLORIOUS time for comics.

[@detective29]

How much of this final scene do you think was influenced by the last scene with Lenny and George from Of Mice and Men. George is telling Lenny about the farm they are going to have and how they will all be safe there to reassure him after Denny killed the girl as he raises the gun behind Lennys head to shoot him. Just a thought...

[@kevinbarry6441]

Crazy great comic! Legitimately upsetting.

[@wallacelovecraft8942]

So much destruction, so much death. It must have taken so much time to do each page.

[@thomasorley4849]

I appreciate your showcase of this issue. This issue reminds me of what the world would have descended to if Doctor Destiny had prevailed over Morpheus in the Sandman comics. I can easily see Dr. D tra-la-lolling down avenues of such wanton destruction. But for the most violent comic mention, I propose Hardboiled. Darrow's compulsion to fine detail is akin to taking the horrific scenes in this issue, and then bringing the pages under a spot lit magnifying glass.

[@DiekuGames]

Flash #341 (1985) following a pummeling by Big Sir. The damage to his face was so extensive, Barry received high-tech plastic surgery from his intelligent gorilla friend Solovar. That image stuck with me as a kid.

[@deerclops8184]

miracleman is defiantly on my radar now. thanks for the video guys!

[@sammajkrzak8887]

Great video. Dark Knight Returns or Invincible had the most violent stuff I first saw. As far as massive destruction The Authority has many moments. In Snyder and Capullo's Batman, the issue where Batman and Joker kill each other is probably the most gory mainstream DC Comic.

[@snowqueen_8958]

Y'all are so underrated and this channel is amazing

[@cybernautadventurer]

I have been wondering for 30 years how they could possibly ever bring Kid Miracleman back after a savage injury like that. Hopefully soon that question will finally be answered.

[@DJJunkfoodJay]

It might just be an old rumor, but I heard Totleben was legally blind.

[@keithveronese5415]

You are right - retinitis pigmentosa.

[@seanstewart302]

Yes. His field of vision is so narrow that he cannot see the entire page as he is drawing it.

[@richardramjohn1590]

This run by moore is an amazing moment in comic

[@chegorilla1468]

I don't remember if MM was this gory out the gate. I remember it feeling weird, so by the time shit hits the fan I truly felt a sense of shock.

[@GreenGoblet22]

It definitely wasn't, the entire story builds to this moment of brutality.

[@bigsonny45]

When I saw the thumbnail, I knew it would be Miracle Man!

[@keithveronese5415]

Two masters at the top of their game.

[@jimvalentine8952]

Ah think I always remember this issue and then the images from the birth issue - Warrior was quite the read in the day

[@jonathankociuba8288]

Thor Vikings MAX comic I think maybe the most violent Marvel book. Maybe

[@bettyconfettii]

Glad I found your channel I love it!

[@jamiesmith864]

Pretty much any fight in the Invincible comics is beautifully violent and mind bogglingly grotesque.

[@beermarshal2070]

It's hard to remember exactly what I was thinking at the time, over 30 years ago, but I believe that Alan Moore's work in the 80s - this and Watchmen particularly, I only read a handful of his Swamp Things - and Miller's Dark Knight are what mostly killed my interest in superhero comics. Because very little else that was out there that could compare to them, and also because they were largely self-contained. Sure Miracleman is 20-odd issues (counting the Gaiman stuff) but still - fairly short and accessible. I just had no interest any more in reading a dozen different X-Men/related titles a month, and also in knowing that they'd bring back Jean Grey, that Magneto would become a hero - then a villain again - then a hero again, they'd kill Xavier, bring him back, etc, etc etc. That's what all the mainstream superhero comics did and for me it wasn't enough to maintain interest. Re-booting and changing everything around at the whim of a new editor, or of corporate profits. So I moved over mostly to indie/non-superhero stuff and what little I've read since has continued to be outside of the mainstream. So thanks Alan Moore and John Totleben for helping me to move on to other things that I've generally liked more and that feel more - mature? - adult? - well, more like what I want in stories anyway.

[@Pork_Hunt]

It is interesting that Moore didn't do his version of Doomsday/Death of Superman in Supreme. Who wouldn't want to see that? Actually, how has no artist done a fanfic/bootleg Death of Superman portraying a Bisley-style Death of Superman? Can we get some artists on that immediately for sharing on the channel?

[@kirtburdick]

What a great issue. It would be awesome to somehow get a hold of the Warrior issues and compare them to the reprints.

[@billstorie5161]

Warrior never actually got as far into the story I'm afraid - the final original MM episode was the one where Marveldog appeared (I'm British and recall buying the original pre-Moore MM comics back in the day so he'll always be Marvelman to me ) but after that episode Marvel Comics did the nastiest thing in comics history (from the reader's viewpoint that is) and MM came to a grinding halt, closely followed by Warrior itself. Thing is, Warrior was by US standards probably not much more than a small independent fanzine and we only got 6 or 8 pages of each strip per month but we weren't complaining - it was definitely a question of Quality over quantity - if Dez Skinn is reading this he'll hopefully appreciate that hehe.

[@jonosiascorfina9763]

As far as competition for “most gory superhero battle” goes, Sentry ripping apart Ares in the Marvel event Siege was about as brutal as it got for a Big 2 mainstream comic event. That was Sentry’s signature move. He also ripped Carnage in half the same way.

[@joshuaperry5991]

“Marvel” don’t be ridiculous.

[@garytucker3563]

Damn. Like what did I miss?!?

[@idm850]

Some comments comparing the violence of this comic to some other comics are losing the point of this story, I think. It is not about the violence potential of a superhuman fight, but the sudden and brutal trauma to normal humans when they realize that they are utterly defenseless against the godly power of these beings. Bates reappearing shatters any possibility of a gradual evolution of the relations between humans and superhumans. After London's destruction the "good" superhumans simply take over the world.

[@ElArlequin]

Has this been compiled into a TPB or HC?

[@frankstrysik1558]

When I bought that issue new, the printing was messed up and I think some of the print run got sent back.

[@bernardorojas91]

Hey love your Channel! Sorry that more adults are too ashamed to read comic books anymore. They think that this art form belongs to an adolescence stage of life and it is more important than seeing comics as just a phase .

[@susieuziandanne75]

Well today is my birthday and I'm happy I get to watch you guys love you by susie

[@themalcontent100]

Crossed.

[@seanvolk4202]

Brilliant

[@jonasb7253]

Gore... but not as much as berserk.

[@ludonymous526]

You say it. "Berserk" is absolutely off-the-charts brutal, making this and "Invincible" look like "Sesame Street".

[@ericferguson6099]

Clicked on this link to double check it was Miracleman. Not disappointed.

[@danielaslan50]

Read MOORE Comix. Thanks for All the Kayfabe Content!