Kalimán or Kalimán, the Incredible Man is a popular Mexican adventurer superhero, created by Rafael Cutberto Navarro and Modesto Vázquez González in 1963. He is the main character of the radio drama bearing his name, which depicts the adventures of Kalimán, a descendant of the Egyptian Pharaohs, and his young companion, Solín. Kalimán is very well known and popular across Spanish America, and the radio series spawned a comic book series and two film adaptations. The adventures of Kalimán were published as a serialized weekly comic, and printed for twenty-six consecutive years, with the series reaching its highest popularity in 1965; it is still quite popular today in reprints and in paperback format. Kalimán himself is considered as a Mexican pop culture icon and one of the first and most representative examples of Mexican superheroes.
Origin and powers Kalimán's true origin is unknown, and never revealed in any media, which adds to the sense of mystery that surrounds his character. He is supposedly an Indian orphan, who was found abandoned in a river and adopted by Prince Abul Pasha, who hails from one of the kingdoms in the Valley of Kalimantan.Gravett, Paul, "1001 Comics You Should Read Before You Die", Universe, 2011, page 267. He is the fifth in a dynasty of men dedicated to preserving justice in the world, and the seventh man of the goddess Kali's dynasty. He swore an oath to Kali to wander the world fighting for justice, and must return to India in order to renew the oath every seven years. However, Kalimán not only has Caucasian features, but also intense blue eyes, one of his most notorious characteristics, which only adds more mystery to his true identity. It is also frequently mentioned that he has a vast knowledge of science and the arts, including the fine arts, engineering, architecture, chemistry, and biology.
Kalimán wears an all-white outfit (except for the reverse of his cloak, which is dark red), with just one mark: a jeweled-encased "K" in front of his turban. Being a master of all martial arts, he does not use any kind of weapons, except a blow-gun with tranquilizer darts, and a ceremonial dagger that complements his costume. He also possesses extraordinary mental powers: levitation, telepathy, remote viewing, telekinesis, astral projection, control of the involuntary functions of the body (which allows him to feign being dead), hypnosis, ESP, and self-healing, among others. He makes clear that he does nothing that any other men would not be able to do through self-discipline, study, and hard work. It is assumed that his apprentice, Solín, a common boy, will eventually take his place as he learns from him.
Kalimán's dramas were a combination of Sherlock Holmes, Tintin, and James Bond-style adventures, with him acting as a skilled detective, and using his incredible mental abilities to solve the ongoing mysteries; however, he also fights spirits, monsters, supervillain organizations, and supernatural threats with magic and martial arts. Kalimán himself refused to use any kind of gun, continuously insisting that firearms in general were the last resource of the weak, although he eventually used arrows, swords, or daggers to disarm his enemies.
If compared with modern-day superheroes, Kalimán could be described as a combination of Marvel Comics' Doctor Strange and Iron Fist.
Main characters Heroes
Kalimán, the Incredible Man: Initially, it is stated that Kalimán is just Solín's protector and tutor, but as the series progresses, Kalimán gradually replaces Solín as the main character. Kalimán had several popular catchphrases often used to explain his actions, but the two most relevant were "Serenity and Patience", often told to his disciple, Solín, to prevent him from rushing to action without thinking; and "Whoever dominates the mind, dominates the world", frequently used after he succeeded in realizing an impossible feat.
Solín: An eleven-year-old boy, rescued from the streets of Cairo in Kalimán's first adventure. It is initially stated that he is "incredibly valuable" to restoring the Pharaoh's just and fair rule to Egypt. However, he needs to be trained both physically and mentally prior to reconstructing his kingdom, in order to become a great ruler, hence the reason why Kalimán was sent to locate and protect him until the day he is ready to fulfill his destiny.
Villains
Every adventure had its respective villains, who usually only appeared in that specific story and never came back, being killed, imprisoned, defeated, or vanished at the end; however, three of them made a notorious difference in Kalimán's universe: Black Spider, Karma, and Namilak. Count Bartok, as well as battling Kaliman, also served as the host in his own title, presenting one-off horror stories, akin to Cain and Abel in DC Comics or The Crypt-keeper in Tales from the Crypt.
Black Spider: He was the most notorious exception, since he is the only one who came back regularly, both in the comic and the radio drama. He returned so frequently that, at some point, he was present in two different stories published at the same time. He is a super spy, like an evil James Bond, full of gadgets and mischievous plans. He is extremely skilled, able to escape from the most desperate situations, and possessing an enormous talent to avoid being incarcerated.
Karma: Originally, he was Kalimán's rival for the Red Dragon title, which is granted by Tibetan monks to the most perfect incarnation of a man of peace on Earth, who will become the official Protector of the World. It is stated that Karma is almost equal to Kalimán in every aspect and sense, but fails due to a minor flaw in his soul. Angered after being rejected for such an insignificant detail, Karma decides to embrace that flaw and falls into darkness, becoming Kalimán's nemesis. The character was so popular that he was the only one who died and resurrected in three different occasions (all other characters that died in the series remained dead), and is considered Kalimán's most fearsome foe.
Namilak: He is initially presented as "the reverse Kalimán", an enemy so similar to him that they even have the same costume, face, voice, and attitude, but everything Namilak does is wrong, negative, and impure. He is the exact opposite of the Incredible Man (even his name is Kalimán spelled backwards), and is always dressed in a black version of the hero's costume. It is later revealed that he is the respective negative flaw of Kalimán's soul. However, instead of falling to it, like Karma did at Red Dragon's trial, he expelled it from his body a long time ago. Unfortunately, as a result of this decision, the evil in his soul embodied and become a full, living being, as a twisted, maniacal version of his host. Namilak's existence also explains why Kalimán is so perfect, since there's no evil or malice left in his body. Namilak's story arc is a representation of Kalimán fighting his own obscure, repressed desires.
Radio play The Kalimán radio series started in 1963. It was transmitted by Radio Cadena Nacional (1110 AM in Mexico City, currently known as Radio Red), a radio station dedicated to broadcast radio dramas, soap operas in the mornings, and adventure plays at afternoon. The show was an immediate hit, and soon was broadcast throughout the Mexican Republic. Due to its success, the radio play was redone in Colombia, broadcast by Todelar with Colombian actors.
In addition to being a co-creator of Kaliman, Navarro was also the founder of its flagship network, Radio Cadena Nacional.
To spice up the mystery of Kalimán's true identity, the voice of the Mexican version of the radio play was done by actor Luis Manuel Pelayo, but the credit always went to "Kalimán himself", avoiding any mention of an actor behind the radio character. At some point, many fans truly believed he was a real person, now retired, who was narrating his personal experiences with the assistance of the radio station. In Colombia, Kalimán was played by Gaspar Ospina. The radio drama has been continuously on air several times along the years in different regions of Mexico and Spanish America.
In October 2015, as part of the celebration of the fiftieth anniversary of the first published comic book, the last recorded adventure "The Nefertti Necklace", never aired before on radio, began airing in MVS 102.5 FM in Mexico City, with a mix of modern production from the original recording (which presents more modern technology than the first adventures, recorded over twenty years earlier), along with the most modern radio production technology of the time (2015).
Main players
Kalimán, the Incredible Man: Luis Manuel Pelayo
Solín: Luis de Alba
Narrator: Isidro Olace
Director: Marcos Ortiz
Scripts by Víctor Fox (Héctor Gonzalez pseudonym)
List of Kalimán's radio drama episodes 1. "The Tomb Raiders" 2. "The Mystery of the Astronauts" 3. "The Tiger of Hong-Kong" 4. "The Mysteries of Bonampak" 5. "The Valley of the Vampires" 6. "The Mummies of Machu Pichu" 7. "The Queen of the Gorillas" 8. "The Strange Doctor Death" 9. "Atlantis, the Lost City" 10. "The Diabolical Warlocks" 11. "The Black Spider" 12. "The Living Corpses" 13. "The Invisible Terror" 14. "The Black Panthers of Istanbul" 15. "The Red Mask Assassins" 16. "The Genius from beyond the Grave" 17. "The Game of Death" 18. "Werewolves" (literal translation: "The Human Wolves") 19. "The Sons of the Sun" 20. "The Idols Vengeance" 21. "The White Witch of Kilimanjaro" 22. "Sons of Satan" 23. "The Space Pirates" 24. "Samurais, Messengers of Death" 25. "Terror from the Grey Planet" 26. "Beyond the Beyond" 27. "The Castle of the Monsters" 28. "Invasion of the Satanic Worshipers" 29. "The Octopus with the Golden Tentacles" 30. "Death in the Fourth Dimension" 31. "Magicians of Crime" 32. "The Terrible Miklos" 33. "The Demon of Tibet" 34. "The Sinister World of Humanon" 35. "Malevolent Power"
Comic book adaptation Two years after his radio debut, Kalimán's popularity grew so much that the decision was made for Promotora K to publish his adventures in comic book format. In order to preserve the same aura of mystery as presented by the original radio play, the comic strictly stuck to its established story; it never mentioned any details about Kalimán not previously mentioned in the radio drama, nor added additional information about the main character. The first issue of Kalimán, written by Clemente Uribe Ugarte, was published on December 4, 1965, with the first to tenth parts of the story "Los Profanadores de Tumbas" ("The Tomb Raiders"). 100,000 copies were sold within that week, and due to excessive demand, the issue had to be reprinted. The original series ran until 1991, with a total of 1,348 weekly issues.
The comic book was printed in sepia tones, with an artistic watercolor effect on every page, like most of the Mexican comics of that time, instead of the CMYK printing technique used in American comics. Only the cover, painted with acrylics, was done in full color. Later, the special editions "Kalicolor" and "Kalimán de Lujo" were done in full color, using the same printing process as in America, but they were less popular than the original magazine and never sold well. The reprints give the scriptwriting credits to Víctor Fox, who had purchased the rights to the comic, instead of the comics' original writer, Clemente Uribe.
The Kalimán comic book was published in Colombia as well, starting with the eleventh issue of the Mexican run, the beginning of the second story, "The Valley of the Vampires". The Colombian run of the comic book lasted for more than 1,206 issues. From Colombia, the comic was also exported to most South American countries, contributing to the expansion of Kalimán's popularity across Latin America.