Gigantor missed his train.
Gigantor #2
Antarctic Press (February, 2000)
“Heart Of Steel, Soul Of Iron” STORY/ART: Ben Dunn COLORISTS: Jochen Weltjens, Nathan Lumm, & Lee Duning EDITOR: Doug Dlin
General “Thunderbolt” Reese isn’t happy that the giant robot is in the hands of a 12-year-old, and asks Tuxedo Steed to talk Bob out of it. Emma (that’s actually her name) asks Bob why Jimmy Sparks is the one to control Gigantor, so he tells the story of how 9-year-old Jimmy seemed to bond with the robot, having lost his mother and his father disappeared on a mission for the WJL. His grandfather even allowed him to test the robot out when they showed off the robot. But Prince Mecha is actually a spy for the Iron Army (which won’t surprise anyone who saw the previous issue when Lord Jim and Emma were fighting him…forgot to mention that) and tries to take Gigantor. While Dick Strong (he’s actually from the show, sort of Bob & Jimmy’s Race Bannon) keeps the invaders at bay, Dr. Sparks is killed in an explosion, and his grandson has a giant robot!
What they got right: The art is again cool. This isn’t just a good explanation of why Jimmy is the one to command Gigantor, but how the control box works (off the operator’s aura, but he reacts best to Jimmy’s).
What they got wrong: I said the cute homages were going to get distracting. In addition to not General Ross, there are a group of agents that are so obviously the Fantastic Four they were even called the Four. And who is leading the attack? Grand Doom. Yes, he’s ripping off exactly who you think.
Recommendation: Nitpick aside this is a cool origin for Jimmy and Gigantor. We’ll resume this next week, but check this out.
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