Cover: Jim Starlin

DC Comics Presents #27

Nov 1980 · DC · 0.50 USD

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“The Key That Unlocked Chaos!”

★ 1st appearance — Mongul

About this Issue

DC Comics Presents #27 is the debut of Mongul, one of the most formidable physical threats Superman would face in the Bronze Age — a villain conceived specifically to match the Man of Steel blow for blow. Writer Len Wein designed Mongul to fill a gap in Superman's rogues gallery: an adversary who could overwhelm him through raw power rather than tricks, and the character's very first appearance introduced both the concept of Warworld and the hostage mechanics that would recur across decades. That origin story seeded Alan Moore's landmark Superman Annual #11, 'For the Man Who Has Everything,' making this issue the narrative root of one of the most celebrated Superman stories ever published. The issue is also a key early installment of the 'Whatever Happened to…?' backup feature, which DC Comics Presents used to give overlooked characters — here Congo Bill and Congorilla — a moment of renewed visibility.

writer Len Wein · artist Jim Starlin · inker Dick Giordano · inker Frank McLaughlin · colorist Jerry Serpe · letterer Todd Klein · cover Jim Starlin

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GD · Newsstand $11.91 FN $18 NM- $21.27 FINE $22.39 VF+ · Newsstand $23.49 VG $26 VG $26 VG $26

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History

DC Comics Presents was launched in 1978 under the editorial stewardship of Julius Schwartz as a Superman team-up series, modeled on the Batman-centric Brave and the Bold format; Schwartz oversaw the title throughout its entire 97-issue run. Issue #27 arrived just two issues after the 'Whatever Happened to…?' backup feature debuted in #25, meaning Congorilla's spotlight came very early in that recurring strand. Len Wein conceived Mongul from scratch as a villain who could physically challenge Superman, while artist Jim Starlin — who had recently co-created Thanos at Marvel — gave the character his distinctive hulking visual design; both men have acknowledged the Thanos parallel publicly, with Starlin describing Mongul as his intentional DC counterpart to that character. The Mongul storyline ran across three issues (#27, #28, and #29, with a follow-up in #36), making this debut chapter the opening move of a multi-part Bronze Age cosmic epic.

Trivia · 8 facts

First appearance of Mongul (villain), created by writer Len Wein and penciler Jim Starlin; published November 1980 (cover date), released November 5, 1980.
Lead story title: 'The Key That Unlocked Chaos!' — Superman and Martian Manhunter (J'Onn J'Onzz) vs. Mongul; inkers Dick Giordano and Frank McLaughlin, colorist Jerry Serpe, letterer Todd Klein, editor Julius Schwartz.
Mongul's first-appearance plot: he kidnaps Lois Lane, Jimmy Olsen, and Steve Lombard to coerce Superman into retrieving a crystal key that activates the artificial planet Warworld — establishing both Warworld and the hostage-leverage dynamic central to the character's early stories.
Jim Starlin also drew the cover; his visual design for Mongul — a massively built, yellow-skinned figure with no visible neck — was acknowledged by Starlin himself as a deliberate DC counterpart to Thanos, a character he had co-created at Marvel.
Len Wein stated in interviews that Mongul was his original concept: he wanted a villain capable of matching Superman physically, not just outwitting him.
Backup story: 'Whatever Happened to Congorilla?' — written by Bob Rozakis, art by Romeo Tanghal and Frank Chiaramonte; one of the earliest installments of the 'Whatever Happened to…?' recurring feature that debuted in DC Comics Presents #25 (September 1980).
The Mongul storyline continued across DC Comics Presents #28, #29, and #36, making issue #27 the first chapter of a multi-issue arc.
The lead story has been reprinted multiple times: in Superman vs. Mongul (2013), Showcase Presents: DC Comics Presents Superman Team-Ups Vol. 2 (2013), and The DC Universe by Len Wein (2019).