God

A satirical divine figure appearing in William Gropper's politically charged strips for the radical labor publication New Masses, this depiction of God emerged from the Worker's Party press alongside biblical figures like Jesus, Moses, Adam, and Eve as a subject of sharp social commentary.

Few figures in comics carry the weight of this one — God made their four-color debut in the pages of New Masses back in 1926, courtesy of artist William Gropper, making this one of the genuine Platinum Age rarities in any serious collector's catalog. Emerging from the radical labor press of the Worker's Party of America, this character arrived in a context as far from superhero escapism as comics get, sharing those early pages with the likes of Jesus, Moses, Adam, Eve, and Noah. What makes the publishing history so fascinatingly strange is the leap across decades and genres — from leftist political cartooning all the way to appearances in Howard the Duck and Neil Gaiman's landmark Death: The High Cost of Living, a span of nearly 87 years that speaks to just how broadly comics have reached for the divine. Twenty catalog appearances may sound modest, but the range of contexts here tells a richer story than raw numbers ever could.