Monolith (comics)

Last updated
The Monolith
Publication information
Publisher PaperFilms
ScheduleMonthly
Publication dateApril 2004 - March 2005
No. of issues12
Creative team
Written by Justin Gray
Jimmy Palmiotti
Artist(s) Phil Winslade
Tomm Coker
Peter Snejbjerg

The Monolith is a DC Comics comic book series whose title character is a superheroic golem. The Monolith is guided in his actions by Alice Cohen, a recovering drug addict whose grandmother was one of those responsible for the Monolith's creation in the 1930s.

Contents

In 2013, the publication rights reverted to the creators, Jimmy Palmiotti and Justin Gray of PaperFilms Inc.

Publication history

The Monolith was published for a total of 12 issues before being cancelled due to poor sales. The issues were cover dated April 2004 to March 2005, and were all written by Justin Gray and Jimmy Palmiotti. Phil Winslade was the penciller/inker for most issues with Tomm Coker and Peter Snejbjerg acting as replacements for a total of four issues.

The stories take place in the present (of the publication dates), with flashbacks to the events surrounding The Monolith during the Depression Era.

Characters

2004

1930s

Plot synopsis (issues #1-12)

Issues #1-3: Introduction

In the present the reader is introduced to Alice Cohen as she receives her inheritance from her recently deceased grandmother. This inheritance consists of a lone house in an area of Brooklyn where all the other buildings have been torn down. One of the first things that Alice discovers is a walled off section in the basement from which a voice calls to her to read stories. Alice's first choice for this is her grandmother's diary.

Alice owes money to Prince, a violent drug dealer who is determined to find and make an example out of her. Using violent methods Prince finds out Alice's location from Tilt (a friend of Alice's) who races to warn Alice that Prince is coming for her. Not long after Tilt's warning Prince arrives and breaks into the house. In desperation Alice and Tilt break down the brick wall in the basement and release The Monolith. The resulting fight is short.

The depression era portions of these issues show how and why The Monolith was created. Alice's grandmother (also named Alice) is a factory worker who rooms with others trying to get through those tough times. Her closest friends are Rabbi Rava, Han, and Peter.

The events leading to The Monolith's creation begin when the textile factory that Alice works in is firebombed by the Mafia. Peter, who also works on the side in organized crime, confronts those responsible and is murdered. Deciding that Peter's death should not be in vain Alice and her friends create a golem using knowledge Rabbi Rava has learned. Peter's blood is one of the ingredients used in its creation and as a result his personality is the basis for The Monolith's. They send their creation to hunt down those responsible for Peter's murder.

After a time The Monolith begins to hunt down and kill all criminals with no distinction made for the degree of their crime. Seeing their creation is out of control Alice, Rabbi Rava, and Han seal The Monolith in a bootlegger tunnel located beneath the house they live in.

Issues #4-5: Battle with a demon

In the present the lawyer overseeing Alice's grandmother's will gets her a job working for NYCAT (the New York Citizen's Assistance Team). NYCAT is a non-profit organization that helps lower income people in the New York area.

While Alice is dealing with her first day at this job, The Monolith leaves the house to seek out a demon that lies hidden beneath a church. This demon is named L'ono Nero and has remained in its place of hiding for decades. The Zavatinni family has been cursed all that time to guard and protect it. Giovanni Zavatinni (the current guardian) is seeking to rid himself of this curse and aides The Monolith in the fight against L'ono Nero.

In 1935 the Rocco Family is seeking revenge for the deaths of their fellow mobsters at the hands of The Monolith. Having learned the truth of its creation they seek out The Monolith's creators. Rabbi Rava is kidnapped, beaten and dropped off at the church that hides L'ono Nero. The mobsters tell the current guardian to give the Rabbi to L'ono Nero. The guardian doesn't do this but the Rabbi dies of his injuries anyway. Their brief conversation reveals that the Rocco Family has already killed Han. Alice is also taken to the church but is set free by the guardian

Issues #6-8: Batman

An arsonist calling himself the Incinerator begins to target the Arab-American and Muslim American community of New York City. His first target is a home for recent Arab Muslim immigrants in Bedford-Stuyvesant that was built through the efforts of NYCAT and the Wayne Foundation. This event gets the attention of Batman and he begins to investigate.

Both Batman and The Monolith track the Incinerator to his next target. In the resulting fight Batman is injured and The Monolith brings him back to the house. There Alice tells Batman the Monolith's origin. Batman's reaction is to tell Alice and The Monolith not to get in his way.

After a time Batman comes to the realization that he needs The Monolith to find The Incinerator. The two of them locate The Incinerator's next bomb in the New York Mosque where he has tied an Imam to the bomb to make it harder to disarm. After dealing with the bomb both The Monolith and Batman track The Incinerator to the World Trade Center site. The Incinerator is planning to blow himself up but is stopped and arrested for his crimes.

Issues #9-10: Iron golem

In 1934 mobsters kidnap Alice and Rabbi Rava. The Rabbi is forced to create a golem made of iron for these mobsters after they threaten to kill Alice if he doesn't. Rabbi Rava performs the ceremony but purposely misspeaks the words. The golem awakens anyway, but is nearly mindless and kills the mobsters.

It is at this point that The Monolith arrives to rescue his creators. During the fight the iron golem is covered in molten steel and frozen when the steel hardens. It is then thrown into the East River by The Monolith. In 1987 the iron golem is found by scuba diving salvagers and sold.

In the present Tilt has just been diagnosed as being HIV positive. Alice takes her to a dance club to take her mind off of this. In the middle of this club is a statue that is actually the iron golem still encased in its steel prison. When a gang fight starts in the club, blood is spilled on the iron golem, causing it to awaken. During its resulting rampage The Monolith arrives to protect Alice and Tilt.

Issues #11-12: The end

Alice gets a call from a woman NYCAT helped into a woman's shelter saying that the shelter isn't a shelter. This call leads Alice to a modern slave ring headed by a group of corrupt police officers. The leader of this group turns out to be Orlando Ruiz (a man Alice has just started to date) who captures Alice. Ruiz injects Alice with heroin to keep her compliant and puts her on the slave block.

Knowing that Alice is in trouble Tilt and the Monolith track her to the warehouse where she and the other women are being held. They rescue Alice and bring her back to the house to recover.

The final pages of issue twelve show Alice, Tilt and the Monolith celebrating Christmas. They engage in a snowball fight and then go back inside the house. The series ends with The Monolith remembering who he was in life and saying "My name was Peter".

Other appearances

While The Monolith was still being published, Gray and Palmiotti were also writing Hawkman . In issue #33 of that series, the Monolith and Alice guest starred in a story featuring the Monolith joining with Hawkman and Hawkgirl to defeat Solomon Grundy.

In 2006 in Crisis Aftermath: The Battle for Blüdhaven, one of the One Year Later titles, the Monolith is shown protecting the innocent in refugee camps that spring up around Blüdhaven after that city's destruction in Infinite Crisis . [1]

In 2019, Monolith, Alice and Tilt were used in PaperFilm's graphic novel Painkiller Jane: Trust The Universe, where they team up to rescue a friend's little sister from a human trafficking ring.

Film adaptation

Lionsgate announced in August 2016 that an adaptation is in development with visual effects director Dave Wilson as director. [2]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Golem</span> Being in Jewish folklore made from clay

A golem is an animated, anthropomorphic being in Jewish folklore, which is entirely created from inanimate matter, usually clay or mud. The most famous golem narrative involves Judah Loew ben Bezalel, the late 16th-century rabbi of Prague. According to Moment magazine, "the golem is a highly mutable metaphor with seemingly limitless symbolism. It can be a victim or villain, man or woman—or sometimes both. Over the centuries, it has been used to connote war, community, isolation, hope, and despair."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Harley Quinn</span> Comic book character

Harley Quinn is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Quinn was created by Paul Dini and Bruce Timm as a henchwoman for the supervillain Joker in Batman: The Animated Series, and debuted in its 22nd episode, "Joker's Favor", on September 11, 1992. While intended to appear in one episode, Quinn became a recurring character within the DC Animated Universe as the Joker's sidekick and love interest, and was adapted into DC Comics' Batman comic book canon seven years later, beginning with the one-shot Batman: Harley Quinn #1. Quinn's origin story features her as a former psychiatrist at Gotham City's Arkham Asylum named Dr. Harleen Quinzel who has fallen in love with the Joker, her patient, eventually becoming his accomplice and lover. The character's alias is a play on the stock character Harlequin from the 16th-century Italian theater commedia dell'arte.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nightwing</span> DC Comics superhero

Nightwing is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character has appeared in various incarnations; the identity is adopted by Dick Grayson when he leaves his role as Batman's partner and sidekick Robin.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hawkman</span> Fictional superhero in DC Comics

Hawkman is the name of several superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by writer Gardner Fox and artist Dennis Neville, the original Hawkman first appeared in Flash Comics #1, published by All-American Publications in 1940.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jonah Hex</span> American comic book character by DC Comics

Jonah Woodson Hex is a fictional antihero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by writer John Albano and artist Tony DeZuniga. Hex is a surly and cynical bounty hunter whose face is scarred on the right side. Despite his poor reputation and personality, Hex is bound by a personal code of honor to protect and avenge the innocent.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hawkgirl</span> Name of several female fictional superhero characters, all owned by DC Comics

Hawkgirl is the name of several superheroines appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The original Hawkgirl, Shiera Sanders Hall, was created by writer Gardner Fox and artist Dennis Neville, and first appeared in Flash Comics #1. Shayera Hol was created by writer Gardner Fox and artist Joe Kubert, and first appeared in The Brave and the Bold #34. Kendra Saunders was created by writer David S. Goyer and artist Stephen Sadowski, and first appeared in JSA: Secret Files and Origins #1. One of DC's earliest super-heroines, Hawkgirl has appeared in many of the company's flagship team-up titles including Justice Society of America and Justice League of America.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mad Hatter (DC Comics)</span> Fictional DC Comics character

The Mad Hatter is a supervillain appearing in comic books published by DC Comics, commonly as an adversary of the superhero Batman. He is modeled after the Hatter from Lewis Carroll's novel Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, a character often called the "Mad Hatter" in adaptations of Carroll. He is also a scientist who invents and uses technological mind control devices to influence and manipulate the minds of his victims. He is one of Batman's most enduring enemies and belongs to the collective of adversaries that make up Batman's rogues gallery.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Human Bomb</span> Comics character

The Human Bomb is a fictional superhero published by DC Comics. He first appeared in Police Comics #1, and was created by writer and artist Paul Gustavson.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Infinite Crisis</span> 2005–2006 comic book limited miniseries by DC Comics

"Infinite Crisis" is a 2005–2006 comic book storyline published by DC Comics, consisting of an eponymous, seven-issue comic book limited series written by Geoff Johns and illustrated by Phil Jimenez, George Pérez, Ivan Reis, and Jerry Ordway, and a number of tie-in books. The main miniseries debuted in October 2005, and each issue was released with two variant covers: one by Pérez and one by Jim Lee and Sandra Hope.

Blockbuster is the name of four supervillains and a criminal organization appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The first one was primarily a foe of Batman and Robin, while the second was the archenemy to Nightwing. The latest version first appeared in the pages of the series 52 wherein he is directed into battle against Lex Luthor's team of superheroes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jimmy Palmiotti</span> American writer

James Palmiotti is an American writer and inker of comic books, who also does writing for games, television and film.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">OMAC (comics)</span> Fictional type of cyborg in DC Comics

The OMACs are a fictional type of cyborg appearing in comic books published by DC Comics. They are based on the Jack Kirby character of the same name.

Anthony Zucco is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. First appearing in Detective Comics #38, Zucco is a mobster responsible for murdering the parents of Dick Grayson, which leads to Grayson's adoption by Bruce Wayne a.k.a. Batman and becoming the latter's sidekick and original Robin and Nightwing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">One Year Later</span> 2006 comic book storyline event running through the books published by DC Comics

"One Year Later" is a 2006 comic book storyline running through the books published by DC Comics. As the title suggests, it involves a narrative jump exactly one year into the future of the DC Universe following the events of the “Infinite Crisis” storyline, to explore major changes within the continuities of the many different comic books within the DC Comics range.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kite Man</span> Comics character

Kite Man is a supervillain appearing in comic books published by DC Comics. He is commonly depicted as an adversary of Batman who uses kite-based weapons to commit crimes. His name is a homage to Peanuts protagonist Charlie Brown. The character has been generally regarded as a joke in comparison with other supervillains, due to his lack of super-powers, dimwitted personality, and laughable gimmick.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hawkman (Carter Hall)</span> Character from the DC-Universe

Hawkman is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. He is the first character to use the name Hawkman. There are two separate origins of Carter Hall; the Golden Age origin and the Post-Hawkworld origin.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shayera Hol</span> DC comics character

Shayera Thal, later married with the name Shayera Hol, is a fictional superheroine appearing in American comic books during the Silver Age of Comics published by DC Comics. The character was created by writer Gardner Fox and artist Joe Kubert, and first appeared in The Brave and the Bold #34. She is the second Hawkgirl and first Hawkwoman.

Justin Gray is an American comic book writer working mostly for DC Comics.

References

  1. Battle for Blüdhaven #1-2 (June 2006)
  2. Mueller, Matthew. "The Monolith Movie In The Works". Comicbook.com. Retrieved 24 August 2016.