IT

Real Name: Roger Kirk

Identity/Class: Reanimated human corpse/vegetation mutate

Occupation: Swamp monster

Group Membership: None

Affiliations: None

Enemies: Alton Drew, Babe Drew, Clissa Drew, Cory Drew, Kimbo, "Little Man in Black"

Known Relatives: Thaddeus Kirk (grandson, see comments)

Aliases: "The Thing That Couldn't Die"

Base of Operations: Unrevealed, a rural community somewhere in the U.S. (see comments)

First Appearance: Supernatural Thrillers#1 (December, 1972); (adapted from short story "It" by Theodore Sturgeon)

Powers/Abilities: It was a composite being, of nothing but mud, mold and other foliage from a forest bottom surrounding a human skeleton. It had some sentience, and could learn from experience. It's body was somewhat shapeless, within the confines of its host skeleton, and could adjust its shape as needed.

Height: (Kirk) 5'5"; (It) 5'6" (by estimation)
Weight: (both) unrevealed
Eyes: (Kirk) Unrevealed; (It) Brown (no visible pupils or iris)
Hair: (Kirk) Unrevealed; (It) none
Vegetation: (Kirk) none; (It) purple-brown (see comments)

History: (Supernatural Thrillers#1 (fb)-BTS) - Sometime in 1929, around the time of the stock market crash, Roger Kirk died of unknown causes in a forest thicket.

(Supernatural Thrillers#1 (fb)-BTS) - Before he died, Kirk's grandson wrote a will granting his family's fortune to whomever could find Kirk's body.

(Supernatural Thrillers#1) - Under unrevealed circumstances, the growth around Kirk's skeleton formed into the shape of a being, and became "somewhat" alive. Shortly after coming into existence, It began to kill things around it, first plants and trees, then small animals. Soon, it crossed paths with a dog named Kimbo, and ripped it to shreds. When night came, It did not understand the concept, thinking it was dead again, and tried to re-merge with the ground. During that time, Alton Drew walked over it searching for his dog, Kimbo. At morning, It realized it was not dead, and in its odd thinking, went to see if the dog too was not dead anymore. When it returned to the scene, it encountered Alton, who was waiting for whatever had killed his pet. Shots proved futile against the creature, and It killed Alton as well. Shortly after, it came across a little man in black who had been searching for the remains of Kirk, and scared him off. Cory Drew, Alton's brother, found his remains, and began searching for the killer, only to realize at the same time that it was following the footsteps of Cory's daughter, Babe. While out playing, Babe was confronted by the creature, and tried to hide in a small cul-de-sac in a rock wall. It pulled her from it, interested in her screams, but soon lost concern, and went on to explore other things. Babe took the opportunity to run, diving into a stream. She grabbed a rock and hurled it at the monster, knocking it too into the water. Perplexed by its new surroundings, It lay at the bottom of the stream, attempting to learn more about it. The rushing water, though, began to wash the muck from the skeleton, returning it to lifelessness. A posse hunting Alton's killer eventually found it, and Cory Drew's family received the money promised in the will.

Comments: Created by Theodore Sturgeon, adapted by Roy Thomas, Marie Severin and Frank Giacoia.

   Based on a short novelette by acclaimed writer Theodore Sturgeon, which was originally published in August 1940 in the magazine Unknown, "It" is obviously the basis for Man-Thing, DC's Swamp Thing, and just about every other muck monster; more directly, it was likely the inspiration for the Heap, which first appeared in Air Fighters Comics#3 (December 1942 - published by Hillman) only two years later, and perhaps also Solomon Grundy, who first appeared in All-American Comics#61 (1944, revived by DC).

   Also, because this story is adapted from an original story, it is not necessarily contained within the Earth-616 reality. Perhaps it is, and was a precursor for the Man-Thing. I'm not sure where the story is set, the comic never says (If anyone knows if the story does, let me know, I'll revise this).
   We're not told where the story is set, but there are some clues, including a few extra that can be gleaned from the prose version - it's wooded and mountainous, with pine trees, black bears and blue jays. Since the latter are more common in the central and northeastern United States, the Appalachians are a likely spot. - Loki

   The original prose tale makes it clearer than the comic that It doesn't kill Kimbo out of any sense of malice or anger at being attacked, but rather curiosity, which seems to be the creature's only real emotion. The novelette also provides the name of Roger Kirk's grandson, Thaddeus; since it's not given in the comic, it could in theory be different there, but the story is otherwise very faithfully adapted, so a name change isn't likely.

   It is purple-brown inside the comic, but green on the cover. The creature's eyes are hard to spot on the interior version, as they are frequently colored the same as the body, but the prose confirms them to be mud-brown. - Loki

   The alias "the Thing That Couldn't Die" is only used on the cover of the comic.

   The story was reprinted in the black-and-white magazine Masters of Terror#1 in 1975.


It as the creature was depicted in Unknown, drawn by Edd Cartier


It as it appeared on the cover of Supernatural Thrillers#1, drawn by Jim Steranko


It as it appeared on the cover of Masters of Terror#1, drawn by Gray Morrow

Profile by Madison Carter

Clarifications:

It has no known connection to:

Alton Drew

Alton Drew was a farmer who employed his brother, Cory. After Alton's dog, Kimbo was killed by It, he went into the forest to find it, and was killed as well.

--Supernatural Thrillers#1

 

 

 

 

 

Babe Drew

The daughter of Cory Drew, Babe frolicked in the forest until encountering it. Believing it to be the boogeyman, she tried to run from it, and caused it to fall into a creek. Afterwards, she spent much time recovering from the shock, but never fully.

Comments: Per the prose tale, Babe is nine years old during the events of the story.

--Supernatural Thrillers#1

 

 

 

Clissa Drew

Clissa was Babe's mother and Cory's wife.

--Supernatural Thrillers#1

 

 

 

 

Cory Drew

Cory lived on his brother's farm, and secretly resented working for him. After the skeleton of Roger Kirk was found, his family received a large sum of money.

--Supernatural Thrillers#1

 

 

 

 

Kimbo

Kimbo was Alton Drew's pet dog, and was killed in a confrontation with It.

--Supernatural Thrillers#1

 

 

 

 

"Little Man in Black"

"The Little Man in Black" arrived in the area to try to locate Kirk's remains and claim his family's fortune. He was accidentally shot in the arm by Cory Drew. He was later confronted by It, and ran screaming.

--Supernatural Thrillers#1

 

 

 

 

 

images:

Supernatural Thrillers#1, page 21, panel 1 (It)
Supernatural Thrillers#1, page 30, panel 6 (Kirk's skeleton)
Unknown v3n06, p104 (original depiction of It)
Supernatural Thrillers#1 cover (cover depiction of It)
Masters of Terror#1 cover (cover depiction of It in reprint issu)
Supernatural Thrillers#1, page 5, panel 2 (Alton)
Supernatural Thrillers#1, page 12, panel 2 (Babe)
Supernatural Thrillers#1, page 5, panel 6 (Clissa)
Supernatural Thrillers#1, page 5, panel 1 (Cory)
Supernatural Thrillers#1, page 3, panel 5 (Kimbo)
Supernatural Thrillers#1, page 15, panel 2 (Little Man in Black)

Appearances:
Unknown v3no06 (August 1940) - Theodore Sturgeon (writer), Edd Cartier (art), John W. Campbell (editor)
Supernatural Thrillers#1 (December 1972) - Roy Thomas (writer), Marie Severin & Frank Giacoma (art), Stan Lee (editor)

First Posted: 05/10/2005
Last updated: 02/28/2025

Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.

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