OMAC was created by writer-artistJack Kirby towards the end of his contract with the publisher following the cancellation of hisNew Gods series; it was reportedly developed strictly due to Kirby needing to fill his contractual quota of 15 pages a week.[2][3] The character is inspired byCaptain America, but lives in the future, an idea Kirby had conceived years earlier while atMarvel Comics but had never realized.[3]
Set in the near future ("The World That's Coming"),[4] OMAC is a corporate nobody namedBuddy Blank who is changed via a "computer-hormonal operation done by remote control" by an A.I. satellite called "Brother Eye" into the super-poweredOne-Man Army Corps (OMAC).[5]
OMAC works for theGlobal Peace Agency (GPA), a group of faceless people who police the world using pacifistic weapons.[6] The world balance is too dangerous for large armies, so OMAC is used as the main field enforcement agent for the Global Peace Agency. The character initially uses his abilities to save a female coworker at the Pseudo-People factory (manufacturers of androids initially intended as companions but later developed as assassins). The coworker is revealed to be in actuality a bomb, and Blank is left in the employ of the GPA, sacrificing his identity in their relentless war, with faux parents his only consolation and companions.[5]
The originalOMAC series ended with its eighth issue (December 1975),[7] canceled before the last storyline could be completed, and Kirby wrote an abrupt ending to the series. InKamandi #50 (May 1977), by other creators, OMAC is revealed to be Kamandi's grandfather.[8] An "OMAC" back-up feature byJim Starlin began in issue #59 (October 1978), butKamandi was cancelled after its first appearance. The story was later printed inTheWarlord, and led to a new OMAC back-up series in that title (#37–39, 42–47). OMAC appeared withSuperman inDC Comics Presents #61.[9]
A contemporary incarnation of Buddy Blank appears inCountdown to Final Crisis.[10][11][12][13][14] Following the release of theMorticoccus virus, Blank and his grandson flee to the scientific facility "Command D", where Brother Eye rescues them and transforms Blank into a prototype OMAC.[15]
As OMAC, Buddy Blank possesses various abilities derived from Brother Eye. For example, an increase in his density grantssuperhuman strength and enhanced durability, and a decrease in his density allows flight and super-speed. Brother Eye could provide other abilities as well, such as self-repair functions and energy generation.
The character and the Brother Eye satellite werereimagined for theInfinite Crisis storyline. OMACs are portrayed as humans whose bodies have been corrupted by a nano-virus. Theacronym has multiple meanings throughout the series: "Observational Meta-human Activity Construct",[16] "One-Man Army Corps",[17] and "Omni Mind and Community".[18]
^Cowsill, Alan; Irvine, Alex; Korte, Steve; Manning, Matt; Wiacek, Win; Wilson, Sven (2016).The DC Comics Encyclopedia: The Definitive Guide to the Characters of the DC Universe. DK Publishing. p. 222.ISBN978-1-4654-5357-0.
^McAvennie, Michael; Dolan, Hannah, ed. (2010). "1970s".DC Comics Year By Year A Visual Chronicle. London, United Kingdom:Dorling Kindersley. p. 161.ISBN978-0-7566-6742-9.InOMAC's first issue, editor/writer/artist Jack Kirby warned readers of "The World That's Coming!", a future world containing wild concepts that are almost frighteningly real today.{{cite book}}:|first2= has generic name (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
^abKirby, Jack (w), Kirby, Jack (p), Royer, Mike (i). "Brother Eye and Buddy Blank" OMAC, no. 1 (October 1974).
^Dini, Paul:Bedard, Tony (w), Barrionuevo, Al (p), Thibert, Art (i). "Now, Forager" Countdown to Final Crisis, no. 28 (December 2007 (October 17, 2007)).
^Dini, Paul; McKeever, Sean (w), Magno, Carlos (p), Ramos, Rodney (i). "Disasters Great & Otherwise" Countdown to Final Crisis, no. 29 (December 2007 (October 24, 2007)).
^"OMAC Voice -Batman: The Brave and the Bold (TV Show)". Behind The Voice Actors. RetrievedApril 27, 2024. A green check mark indicates that a role has been confirmed using a screenshot (or collage of screenshots) of a title's list of voice actors and their respective characters found in its credits or other reliable sources of information.
