Writer – Jack Kirby
Artist – Jack Kirby
Inker – Mike Royer
Letters – Mike Royer

In the final issue of Jack Kirby’s The Demon, it finds the monster facing his greatest foe – Morgaine Le Fay. It is not just Morgaine though that the Demon squares off against, but all of those that serve her, including a number of monsters that seem almost impossible to defeat. As it is, the Demon ends up being subjugated to Morgaine’s will and it falls to Glenda of all people, to save him. Like Kamandi, another series from DC, Kirby’s The Demon seemed cut short without the man being able to wrap up whatever overall story he was trying to tell. Though the ending of this tale concluded the story within, the series feels unfinished. It was only in this issue that Jason Blood revealed that he was indeed the Demon to Glenda without any real time given to explore that revelation. Where was Merlin throughout everything that was taking place? The mage has been absent from the title for quite some time and that too felt like something that needed exploring. Additionally, there was also the fact that the Demon himself seemed to be gaining in magical power, not to mention a little humanity from the creature that he once was. Was it due to the Philosopher’s Stone or something else? There were still many questions that were essentially left in a state of limbo and it was a bit of a shame that Kirby would be unable to answer them. What was really nice to see though, was the man cutting loose once again, his creativity which was boundless, manifesting itself upon the page in the form of fascinating new monsters for the Demon to test himself against and an adventure packed with action. From the first to the last, the Demon would find himself in combat and with Glenda soon joining him, it only got better. What was most surprising was the fact that the Demon would not be the one to best Morgaine, but there was a finality about her defeat that would see her unable to return to pester Blood and Glenda ever again. If there is one thing that this series makes the reader realize, it is that there was not enough Glenda present throughout, especially given what she does in this issue. She was definitely an underused character and it was good to see Kirby give her a bit of the limelight this issue. Overall, this was a really good story, with the usual fantastic art from Kirby, highlighted by inks from Mike Royer and a good note to conclude things on, if a little disappointing, knowing that it is the end.

4 out of 5