Mighty Samson Archives Volume 1

Mighty Samson

by Otto Binder, Frank Thorne (Artist), Jack Sparling (Artist)

In a radioactive, nuclear-ravaged future, Samson is born into a tribe of peaceful yet desperate people struggling to survive in the desolate city of N'Yark. Surrounded by hungry, wild creatures - creatively mutated and brought to life by Thorne and subsequent artists - and the more savage, selfish remnants of humanity, life is precarious at best for the tribe until Samson displays amazing powers. Discovering that young Samson is a mutant himself, his mother trains Samson to value life, and on her deathbed Samson vows "to protect the weak from the powerful, the good from the evil!" After being mauled by a vicious beast, Samson is later nursed to health by the beautiful Sharmaine, and he joins her and her scientist father, Mindor, in trying to unveil the powerful secrets of their past while surviving in a future filled with ridiculously transformed animals and hostile barbarians. Want a little Herbie with your Mad Max? These apocalyptic tales have more than a little humor mixed in with their themes of destruction and human folly.

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels

200 pages, Hardcover

First published September 7, 2010

About the author

Otto Oscar Binder. Used these alternate names: Eando Binder (together with his brother Earl Binder -E and O Binder-), John Coleridge, Gordon A. Giles, Will Garth, Ian Francis Turek, Ione Frances Turek and Otto O. Binder.

Reviews

[Little Timmy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice collection of this 60's era comic. Good Read. Recommended

[Bart Hill · Rating 3 out of 5]

Samson lives at a time when nuclear war long ago devastated the United States. Samson is the strongest person on earth and is the primary defender of the remaining people of New York against monsters(both plant and animal) created through nuclear adaptation and would-be-tyrants. These stories may not be masterpieces of great art, or of storytelling, but I found them to be delightful escapism.

[Travis · Rating 4 out of 5]

After WW3, the earth is reduced to a primitive ruin and the two kingdoms of NaYrk and Jerzy are constantly on the brink of war.
Not to mention the giant, mutated animals roaming the streets.

Into this, comes Samson, the mighty warrior!
For no explained reason ( but, probably, radiation) Samson is super strong and just a nice guy.
He is taken in by Mindar, an eccentric scientist and his daughter and in-between monster fights, he helps them to try and rebuild civilization.

Loved this kind of stuff as a kid, and even now, knowing how messed up the science is, it's still a great read.
Fun adventures, a likable hero and cast, cool monsters, great art and a nice sense of humor.
The stories can be a little formulaic, and they never seem to explain Samson, but otherwise a fun time waster of a series.

[Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

Die Zeichnungen im ersten Archivband von Mighty Samson sind recht einfach gehalten, man sollte sich da von der tollen Cover-Art nicht täuschen lassen. Und ähnlich einfach gestrickt und heiterkeitserregend sind die Geschichten, die Otto Binder seinen Helden im postapokalyptischen New York erleben lässt. Die Menschheit ist nach einem verheerenden Atomkrieg kulturell und technisch ins Zeitalter der Höhlenmenschen zurückgefallen, dafür hat es Riesenwuchs und Kreuzungen zwischen allen möglichen Tierrassen gegeben. Man kann bei Mighty Samson alles Mögliche erwarten, nur keine Logik oder Glaubwürdigkeit. Es sind wild draufloserzählte Geschichtchen, die man gerne seinen nicht mehr allzu jungen (Enkel)Kindern vorlesen würde, um zu zeigen, wie in den prähistorischen 60er Jahren des letzten Jahrtausends Unterhaltung aussehen konnte. Und doch, und doch… so ganz ohne Charme sind die Storys nicht. Manches ist so absurd, dass es schon wieder lustig ist, und manches kleine Detail verleitet tatsächlich auch heute noch zum vom Autoren beabsichtigten Schmunzeln. Ein cooler Retro-Spaß, allerdings sind die Archivbände dafür doch fast schon etwas teuer. Aber egal, soviel kostet eben die Reise mit der Zeitmaschine in die Vergangenheit…

[Christopher · Rating 5 out of 5]

I did not know this book existed until a month ago whilst googling Otto Binder and what a happy accident.This is kind of his "bad" Kamandi but Binder and Frank Thorn are 100% in on the joke. The book, in true Binder form is absurd but Binder never lets on that he knows it. Like his work on Herbie the Fat Fury he approaches it with a wonderful, unrelenting deadpan and the result is a lost masterpiece by two of comics great masters. Try and imaging Hammer and Public did a Kamandi spoof instead of Johnny Quest when the created Venture Brothers and this very well could have been the end product. I wish I could give it 8 stars.

[Kym Masera Taborn · Rating 5 out of 5]

I took this with me to the Xenite Retreat this year and it was a pleasure to re-read. Mighty Samson is the earliest memory I have of reading comic books. Made a big impression on me as a tyke and it still does re-reading it. Highly entertaining.

[Morbus Iff · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not bad, but nothing I'm interested in continuing.