The Best Captain Marvel Series Wasn’t Published by Marvel Comics

by

When people hear “Captain Marvel” today, they usually think of the Marvel Comics character Carol Danvers. But she’s actually the newest hero to carry that title. The original Captain Marvel didn’t come from Marvel at all – he first appeared in comics published by Fawcett Publications, a company that no longer exists. Back in the Golden Age of comics, Captain Marvel – really a boy named Billy Batson who transformed with the magic word “Shazam!” – was incredibly popular, even outselling Superman. Eventually, DC Comics successfully sued Fawcett and acquired all their characters. This brought Captain Marvel into the DC universe, where he became a fan favorite and starred in what many consider the best series ever featuring that name.

Captain Marvel often felt like a less prominent version of Superman, but he was a long-time favorite among veteran comic book creators, including Jerry Ordway. Ordway gained recognition in the early 1980s with DC’s Earth-Two series like All-Star Squadron and Infinity, Inc. He became a highly respected artist for the publisher, contributing to Crisis and becoming the main artist for Earth-Two stories, eventually writing Superman comics as well. He was the driving force behind the famous “Death of Superman” storyline. In the 1990s, at the peak of his career, Ordway successfully pitched his dream project to DC: The Power of Shazam!

The Power of Shazam! Didn’t Follow the Trends of the ’90s and Was Better for It

As a comic book fan who’s seen a lot, let me tell you, the ’90s were a rough patch. It feels like Marvel and Image spent the whole decade chasing trends instead of telling good stories. They threw every flashy gimmick they could think of at us, desperately trying to boost sales, and honestly, it almost killed the industry. The thoughtful storytelling of the ’80s just vanished, replaced by a kind of surface-level “edginess” – comics that tried to be mature, but mostly just relied on violence. Now, DC wasn’t completely immune, and even though they valued their writers and their Vertigo line was doing genuinely sophisticated work, they still fell prey to some of those decade’s worst habits.

Jerry Ordway was a bit of an anomaly in 1990s comics. He began his career with older DC titles and his traditional art style stood out from the trends of the time. He represented a classic approach to comics, and his 1994 series, The Power of Shazam!, really highlighted that. This series reimagined the origins of Billy and Mary Batson, the orphaned siblings who become the core of the Shazam family. It connected the death of their parents to the history of Black Adam, introducing Theo Adam, a descendant of the original Mighty Adam. The series also featured Shazam’s first showdown with his longtime enemy, Doctor Sivana. In many ways, it felt like a comic book from the Bronze Age, published in the 1990s.

Ordway revamped Billy’s world by creating Fawcett City, a classic American town that fit the book’s vintage style. The graphic novel was popular with readers and launched a series in 1995. This series expanded the Captain Marvel universe within DC Comics after the Crisis event, introducing characters like Mary Marvel, Tawky Tawny, Captain Marvel Jr., Mister Mind, and the Monster Society of Evil, among others. It even received positive attention in Wizard magazine, a popular publication for fans of 1990s pop culture.

The Power of Shazam! stood out from other comics of its time, and that’s a big reason why it was so popular during its 40-issue run. It captured the fun, lighthearted spirit of the Silver Age—which was artist Ordway’s preference—at a time when most comics were becoming very dark and serious. While DC published many excellent superhero titles in the late ’90s, none had the same retro appeal as The Power of Shazam! It felt like a refreshing change of pace. Ordway’s strong artwork and writing, combined with contributions from talented artists like Peter Krause and comic book legend Gil Kane, successfully blended nostalgia with a fresh perspective, making it a standout title in a period already filled with great DC comics.

The Power of Shazam! Is ’90s DC Best-Kept Secret

Marvel has some excellent Captain Marvel stories. The original series featuring Mar-Vell from the 1960s and 70s is a classic, and the graphic novel The Death of Captain Marvel is considered one of Marvel’s best. More recent series, with Genis-Vell by Peter David, and Carol Danvers by Kelly Sue DeConnick and Kelly Thompson, have also been fantastic. But even those are overshadowed by The Power of Shazam!, which is truly a phenomenal comic.

As a lifelong comic and cinema devotee, I’ve always considered Ordway a true gem. He came up reading classic comics, and that love really shines through in everything he does. There aren’t many creators who can both write and draw as skillfully, and he’s managed to stay fresh and exciting for years. His run on The Power of Shazam! especially stands out to me – it’s a testament to his talent. At a time when comics were leaning towards gritty, hyper-sexualized content, he delivered those wonderful, old-school superhero stories with a real retro charm. It’s a shame more people don’t know about this fantastic series, and I think it deserves a lot more recognition.

Read More

2026-05-22 21:13