Frankenstein Reading Room: ADVENTURES INTO THE UNKNOWN Spirit of Frankenstein "A Monster is Born"

There have been several ongoing series that combined horror and sci-fi...

...such as the series which premiered with this tale from ACG's Adventures into the Unknown #5 (1949)!

The "monster" here is not Frankenstein's Monster, nor are any of the scientists members of the Frankenstein clan.

Writer Richard Hughes and artist Charles Sultan invoked the "spirit" of the Frankenstein Monster concept with a creation run amok and ran amuck with it for several issues from #5 to #16!

Note: We originally ran this back in 2013, but since we'll be running some more chapters of the series as part of our Frankenstein-themed October posts, we thought it best to re-run this one to bring new readers up to speed!

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Reading Room COMMANDER BATTLE AND THE ATOMIC SUB "Day in the Life of an Atomic Commando"

How could we follow up going to the Moon and recruiting a new Atomic Commando?

How about a Cold War spy thriller?

How was that for a taste of hard-boiled Cold War paranoia?

This never-reprinted tale from ACG's Commander Battle and the Atomic Sub #3 (1954) was produced by series creators Richard Hughes (writer) and Sheldon Moldoff (illustrator).

Reading Room COMMANDER BATTLE AND THE ATOMIC SUB "Death of the H-Bomb!"

We Have Already Seen...

When an atomic bomb launched from the Moon hits Earth, the Atomic Sub is hastily converted to an atomic spaceship.
The Atomic Commandos journey to the Moon, where they discover a race of humanoids angry at Earthmen since other Earthmen (Russians) built an atomic missile base there, while killing curious moonpeople who tried to communicate with them!
Sentenced to death by the leader of the Moonmen, the unarmed Commandos face a huge lizard, while the sub is about to be destroyed by atomic plasma fire.
However, aboard the sub is a young "Become a Junior Atomic Commando Contest" winner...who's developed a telepathic transmitter/receiver...

So now the kid's a full-time member...
This never-reprinted tale from ACG's Commander Battle and the Atomic Sub #3 (1954) was produced by series creators Richard Hughes (writer) and Sheldon Moldoff (illustrator).

Tomorrow, a special feature about one of the Atomic Commandos!

Reading Room COMMANDER BATTLE AND THE ATOMIC SUB "Journey to the Moon!"

Once more the Atomic Commandos guard democracy from any threat...

...below the ocean's surface, and well beyond...

Be Here TOMORROW for the suprising conclusion...

I'm surprised Irwin Allen never did a Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea episode like this!
Making a submarine into a spaceship seems like the sort of thing he would've loved to do.
Adding a kid sidekick, though, is never a good idea.
They end up taking over the spotlight, and the series' emphasis goes from soft sci-fi to kid-show.
But I digress...
This never-reprinted tale from ACG's Commander Battle and the Atomic Sub #3 (1954) was produced by series creators Richard Hughes (writer) and Sheldon Moldoff (illustrator).

Commander Battle and the Atomic Sub are Returning!

Here's a taste of what's to come...

...from ACG's Commander Battle and the Atomic Sub #2 (1954)!

Written by Richard Hughes and illustrated by Ogden Whitney and Sheldon Moldoff, this page holds a clue as to the exciting adventure you'll be seeing starting tomorrow!

Best of Reading Room: COMMANDER BATTLE AND HIS ATOMIC SUB "Battle Beneath the Earth"

We Have Already Seen...

...now that you've read the built-in synopsis, let's proceed, but with one caveat: this part of the story (despite being Comics Code-approved) is possibly NSFW due to politically-incorrect racial attitudes.

SPOILER: The "new, exciting mystery character" will quickly replace one of the original four Atomic Commandos.

Is he...

• 1) an alien?
• 2) a teen sidekick?
• 3) an alien teen?

You'll find out when Commander Battle and the Atomic Sub return in a previously-unreprinted tale in two weeks!

Two points:

1) You'd think the giants would find blonde and red-headed Belotti just a bit out-of-place.

2) I wonder if Irwin Allen saw this series, years before either the movie or tv versions of Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea.

Besides the similar plots to several episodes of the tv series, Allen's use of a submarine-berthed aircraft (the Flying Sub) seems more than coincidental.

Just sayin'...

The script for Commander Battle and the Atomic Sub #2 (1954) by Richard Hughes, the Stan Lee of ACG who wrote practically everything at the company during his tenure as editor/writer!

Pencils by Sheldon Moldoff, inks by Al Camy, Odgen Whitney and others.

Best of Reading Room: COMMANDER BATTLE AND THE ATOMIC SUB "Fight for Survival"

When Last We Left Commander Bill Battle and His Crew...

...and with that succinct synopsis, let the mayhem ensue!

Tomorrow:

The Fearsome Finale!

The pseudo 3-D created by Craft-Tint tones used in the first issue was eliminated for #2 of ACG's Commander Battle and the Atomic Sub (1954), although it looks like the pages were initially-conceived to utilize the Craft-Tint effects to create depth.
Script by Richard Hughes, the Stan Lee of ACG who wrote practically everything at the company during his tenure as editor/writer!

Pencils by Sheldon Moldoff, inks by Al Camy, Odgen Whitney and others.