Groove's Faves: "Duel" by Jim Starlin

There's no way we can have a week of Groove's Faves without including some Jim Starlin. For almost 40 years Ol' Groove has remained awestruck by his awesome artistry and ka-razee kosmik trippiness. (And oh, yeah, by the way, BREED III rocks! You are still the man, Jim!)  We've visited his Darklon the Mystic before, digging on the gut-wrenching, in-your-face, deeper than the ocean mix of sci-fi, fantasy, and semi-autobiographical comix here and here. Now it's time for Starlin's grand finale, the shocking end of Darklon from Eerie #100 (cover-dated March 1979). It's Judo Jim undergoing public therapy, dealing with his father-issues in a way only he can. Besides all of the expected Starlinesque flourishes like the cosmic setting, the face-to-face close-up/longshot, philosophical debate (complete with finger-pointing), a psychedelic battle, robed death, and the total destruction of an entire world, we also get lush wash/graytones, three-dimensional cross-hatching, Alex Nino-influenced inks, and even ties to his Warlock series (Barry Bauman, aka the Star-Thief and his "home", Wildwood Hospital in New England on the planet Tellus). Not to mention the ending. Oh, that ending!