Arak (comics)

Arak
Arak, Son of Thunder #21 featuring Arak Valda and Angelica Art by Adrian Gonzales and Alfredo Alcala.
Publication information
Publisher	DC Comics
First appearance	The Warlord #48, (August 1981)
Created by	Roy Thomas (writer) Ernie Colón (artist)
In-story information
Full name	Bright-Sky-After-Storm
Team affiliations	Quontauka Tribe
Notable aliases	Son of Thunder
Abilities	Expert swordsman, archer, and tracker, Earth Manipulation, Illusion Casting, Longevity, Magic, Marksmanship, Wind Bursts
Arak, Son of Thunder
Series publication information
Publisher	DC Comics
Schedule	Monthly
Format	Ongoing series
Genre	Adventure
Publication date	Sept. 1981 – Nov. 1985
Number of issues	50
Main character(s)	Arak
Creative team
Writer(s)	Roy Thomas, Dann Thomas
Artist(s)	Tony DeZuniga
Penciller(s)	Ernie Colón, Adrian Gonzales, Ron Randall, Gerald Forton
Inker(s)	Alfredo Alcala, Tony DeZuniga
Colorist(s)	Adrienne Roy

Arak is a fictional comic book character published by DC Comics. He first appeared in a special insert in The Warlord #48 (August 1981) and was created by Roy Thomas and Ernie Colón. Arak (Bright-Sky-After-Storm) is depicted very much as a Conan knock-off in early appearances. Later, after encountering the Moirai, who explain his destiny to him, he takes on a more Native American appearance, including leather-fringed pants and a Mohawk hairstyle. Unlike Conan (a character Roy Thomas also wrote during his tenure at Marvel Comics), who usually fought against H. P. Lovecraftian monsters and entities, Arak encounters figures and creatures from myth and legends, including Greek, Norse, Judeo-Christian, Muslim, Oriental, and others.

Arak was relatively culturally sensitive for the time when it debuted. Unlike other Native American heroes, like Apache Chief, who took a cartoonish view of Native Americans similar to the old western movie Natives, Arak did not have broken speech or other stereotypical Native traits. Also, the Vikings looked more like real Vikings and were not illustrated wearing the stereotypical horned helmets and fur clothing.

After his debut in The Warlord #48, Arak starred in a monthly DC Comics series, Arak, Son of Thunder, which ran 50 issues (and one 1984 annual) from Sept. 1981 to Nov. 1985. After a few token appearances in other stories, Arak has not appeared in any new adventures since 1988.