Saturday, July 8, 2023

Space Hero Saturdays CAPTAIN VIDEO "Dark Side of the Moon" Conclusion

Aliens operating on the Dark Side of the Moon plan to attack Earth, and only Captain Video (with the Video Ranger) can stop them...

You may ask, "What's so special about this? It's typical sci-fi."
And you'd be right.
Except, due to their extremely low-budget nature, the Captain Video TV show and movie serial showed aliens who looked like this...

The "alien invasion force" from Captain Video; the Serial.
Note Captain Video (Judd Holdren) and the Ranger on the left in "clever" disguises.

Only in the comic, unencumbered by financial or special effect restrictions, was the full, unfettered potential of the concept realized.

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Friday, July 7, 2023

Friday Fun DUNC AND LOO "Loo and Strongboy Stoop in 'Muscle Bound' "

Let's return to an unusually-urban humor comic series...

...with this never-reprinted short from Dell's Dunc and Loo #8 (1963)!

Trivia: The book was originally-titled Around the Block with Dunc and Loo, but was shortened to just Dunc and Loo as of #4.
(Apparently suburban and rural readers use "corner" or "street" instead of "block" when referring to addresses, so the original title confused them!)
You'll note two major differences from most teen humor tales we present here...
1) the art doesn't mimic the Archie Comics "house" art style, which became synonymous with "teen humor" in the late 1950s!
2) the series is set in a big city with apartment houses and other urban elements.
(Most "teen humor" series are set in suburbs/small towns!)
Written by John Stanley and illustrated by Bill Williams (the series' co-creators).
It was one of three "teen humor" series created for Dell by Stanley, including Kookie and Thirteen (Going on Eighteen) for Dell.
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Thursday, July 6, 2023

Reading Room MYSTICAL TALES "Lair of the Thunder Lizard!"

Bernie Krigstein was one of the most under-appreciated artists of the 1950s...
...and this kool tale he illustrated just begged to be unearthed for the first time in almost 70 years!
Scripted by Carl Wessler and rendered by Bernie Krigstein, this never-reprinted piece from Atlas' Mystical Tales #8 (1957) is a low-key character study enhanced by Krigstein's naturalistic art.
Bernie was already phasing out of comics and into mainstream commercial art (including book and magazine illustration).
This tale was one of his last stories before leaving the comics field altogether.
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Wednesday, July 5, 2023

Wednesday Worlds of Wonder SILVER SURFER: THE ULTIMATE COSMIC EXPERIENCE Part 6

...actually, we haven't seen this, since it's an unused pencil page by Jack (King) Kirby from the sequence you're about to read.
Galactus' creation, Ardina, attempts to sway the Silver Surfer from defending Earth (and humanity) against the Planet Devourer.
But, if anything, she strengthens his resolve and he attempts to break through the barrier Galactus has placed around Earth to once more do battle with the towering alien!
However, the force field is too strong, and the Skyrider of the Spaceways plummets, drained, back to the planet's surface...
Who has saved the Surfer...and why?
Find out next Wednesday as we present the thrilling conclusion!
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Tuesday, July 4, 2023

Holiday Reading Room: EVERY DAY IS A HOLLY DAY: "Independence Day"

From 1956, here's a never-reprinted tale from a unique comic...
...produced to promote, of all things, sugar!
Why is the Brevity, Inc comic entitled "Every Day is a Holly Day" instead of "Every Day is a Holiday"?
Because it was given away to kids by grocers who sold Holly Sugar!
Illustrated by John Rosenberger, it's a unique pamphlet covering a number of American holidays, including both Lincoln and Washington's Birthdays (before they were combined into "Presidents' Day"), Mothers' Day (though not Fathers' Day), Flag Day, Labor Day, Columbus Day, Thanksgiving, and a couple of holidays we've largely abandoned...Pan-American Day and American Indian Day!
We'll be presenting the other chapters on the dates they fall upon.
Watch for them!

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Monday, July 3, 2023

Monday Mars Madness MARS ATTACKS "Saucers Blast Our Jets"

We Have Already Seen...

Art by Wally Wood, Bob Powell, and Norm Saunders

...the inhabitants of Mars decide to invade the Earth.
They send an armada of flying saucers who promptly destroy satellites (both manned and unmanned), then attack a military base!
but the fun's only starting...
Sadly, we never got to see our country's capitol immolated, since this was the final issue of the series!
This advertisement from the back cover is all the public ever saw of the next two issues!
The artist round-robin continued with this issue as John Hebert illustrates what turns out to be the series' swan-song!
With the similarity in art style, Hebert might have been the previous issue's "John Green", but there's no way to verify that theory!

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