The bizarre resurrection of Ka-Zar uncovered in new Lord of Savage Land series

Ka-Zar: Lord of the Savage Land — (Image credit: Juann Cabal (Marvel Comics))

Ka-Zar's bizarre death and resurrection will be explored with the jungle hero getting all-new powers and all-new enemies in the upcoming limited series Ka-Zar: Lord of the Savage Land.

When last readers saw Ka-Zar, he was murdered by the plant-like aliens Cotati during 2020's Empyre event, then promptly revived in a soul-merging process with Shanna the She-Devil thanks to the sorcerer Brother Voodoo. The effects of that resurrection and more will play out in what series writer Zac Thompson calls "an evolution that channels something like Immortal Hulk…"

"The alien Cotati murdered him. The Savage Land brought him back. Lord Plunder has returned - with a vastly new perspective!" reads Marvel's description of Ka-Zar: Lord of the Savage Land #1. "Now united with Shanna the She-Devil in a mystical merging of life energies, Ka-Zar has new abilities, new needs… and new enemies. An ancient evil has surfaced in the Savage Land - one that is rapidly reshaping the forgotten world and its inhabitants. Ka-Zar and Shanna must fight together to protect their home and family! But their son Matthew has plans of his own…"

Thompson will be joined by artist Germán Garcia, who has drawn portions of the aforementioned Immortal Hulk. They'll be joined by colorist Matheus Lopes, who is also coloring Superman: Woman of Tomorrow.

Here's a three-page unlettered preview of Ka-Zar: Lord of the Savage Land #1:

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Ka-Zar: Lord of the Savage Land #1 preview

"There's nothing better than having the opportunity to explore a classic Marvel character under a new light, and this is what we're doing here," Garcia says. "And it's not just Ka-Zar, but the whole family, and as important as them, the Savage Land itself! It's unreal and fantastic and I'm having a great time trying to portray the way I imagine it."

Jesus Siaz has drawn the cover to Ka-Zar: Lord of the Savage Land #1, with a variant cover by Juann Cabal.

"Ka-Zar: Lord of the Savage Land is the book I've always wanted to write," Thompson says in the announcement. "It's an absolute dream-come-true to take a character created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby and propel them into the modern Marvel universe with a whole host of horrifying new powers!"

This will be Ka-Zar's sixth volume of stories since his 1965 debut in X-Men #10.

"It's been years since Ka-Zar had his own series and we wanted to mark the occasion with an evolution that channels something like Immortal Hulk but with a distinct throwback to the old adventure pulps that inspired the character's creation 65 years ago," Thompson says, referring to the Timely era character Ka-Zar who, while a different character, bore the same name.

Ka-Zar: Lord of the Savage Land #1 (of 5) goes on sale on September 8.

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Chris Arrant covered comic book news for Newsarama from 2003 to 2022 (and as editor/senior editor from 2015 to 2022) and has also written for USA Today, Life, Entertainment Weekly, Publisher's Weekly, Marvel Entertainment, TOKYOPOP, AdHouse Books, Cartoon Brew, Bleeding Cool, Comic Shop News, and CBR. He is the author of the book Modern: Masters Cliff Chiang, co-authored Art of Spider-Man Classic, and contributed to Dark Horse/Bedside Press' anthology Pros and (Comic) Cons. He has acted as a judge for the Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards, the Harvey Awards, and the Stan Lee Awards. Chris is a member of the American Library Association's Graphic Novel & Comics Round Table. (He/him)