Space Hero Saturdays ZANY "Buck Dodgers" and "Flush Gordon"

A couple of comic strip parodies from one of the many MAD Magazine imitators...

From Candar's Zany #3 (1959), illustrated by Carl (Golden Age Human Torch) Burgos, writer unknown, though it might have been Burgos himself.

From Candar's Zany #2 (1958), artist and writer unknown.

Note: "Max Oboy" is a spoof of Mac Raboy, Golden Age Captain Marvel Jr and Green Lama comic artist who replaced Alex Raymond on the Flash Gordon Sunday strip from 1948 to his passing in 1967.

These HTF (and never-reprinted) space adventure parodies, were from Candar, which published risque titles like French Cartoons and Cuties and College Laughs.

Though Zany only ran four issues, it had a pretty damn good lineup of writers and artists including the aformentioned Burgos (who was also the editor for the first two issues), Bill Everett (who also painted all four front covers), Joe Sinnott, Dick Briefer, John Forte, Don Orehek, Morris Waldinger, Paul Reinman, and Pete Costanza!

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Space Hero Saturdays FLASH GORDON "Even Legends May Die"

I'm a fan of literally everything relating to Flash Gordon...

...and this never-reprinted short from the HTF fanzine Heritage (1971) is one of the best Flash stories ever!

You can tell writer/artist Estaban Maroto is a serious Alex Raymond fan, right?

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On the Planet Mongo

Compete Flash Gordon Library

Volume 1

Happy 40th, Flash!

Before we end 2020, we wanted to acknowledge that it's the 40th Anniversary of Flash Gordon.

Though critically-reviled when it came out, the movie has attained cult-classic status, primarily due to the soundtrack by Queen...

...and over-the-top performances by (among others) Brian Blessed (Hawkman Prince Vultan), Topol (Dr Zarkoff) and Max Von Sydow (Ming the Merciless).

The adaptation was written by Bruce Jones and illustrated by legendary artist Al Williamson (who, ironically, was also doing the equally-magnificent graphic novel version of The Empire Strikes Back at the same time)!

Interestingly, Williamson inked the entire Flash adaptation, while allowing the talented Carlos Garzon (himself, no slouch) to ink the bulk of Empire.
Read it, from the beginning...HERE!

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Flash Gordon

2-Disk Limited-Edition BluRay

Monday Madness WHACK "Flush Jordan"

Yes, it's a Flash Gordon spoof...

..but it has a cultural reference most readers won't recognize!
Ming the Merciless usually looks like this...

...so who's "Bing", the golf-playing guy in the Hawaiian shirt and porkpie hat?

He's Bing Crosby, singer, comedian, obsessive golfer, and (when this comic was published) a pop culture icon!
With that in mind, please read...

The guy at the end, whining about "Thanks for the Memory" is comedian Bob Hope...

...Bing's co-star/rival in the 1940s-50s "Road to..." movie series as well as a pop culture legend in his own right!

Note: Thanks for the Memory" was Hope's personal theme song, used primarily to close his radio show, live appearances, and TV specials!

This never-reprinted story from #2 of St John's MAD clone WHACK was illustrated by William Overgard for 3-D use, but the collapse of the 3-D comic market forced St John to publish it in regular color comic format!

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Reading Room FLASH GORDON "and the Space Pirates" Conclusion

When Last We Left Flash Gordon (ahh-ahh!)...

...there's more to the plot, but it's easier for you to just read Part 1 & Part 2 than have me explain it.

BTW, Patch has her silver/white hair and original clothes from Part 1 back, while Flash is in a new uniform!

Sadly, we've never seen the follow-up confrontation.
The tale, illustrated by Gil Kane, appeared in the back of The Phantom #20 (1966) and the writer is unknown.
The storyline wasn't concluded in Flash's King Comics title and neither Patch nor Straker have ever appeared anywhere else.

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Reading Room FLASH GORDON "and the Space Pirates" Part 2

When Last We Left Flash Gordon (ahh-ahhh!)...

...wow, the opening caption covered the plotline perfectly!

You'll note Flash is wearing a more ornate outfit while Patch's clothes are the same, but mis-colored (as is her hair, which was silver/white in the previous chapter)!

The story concludes tomorrow!

Illustrated by Gil Kane, replacing Wally Wood.

The writer is unknown.

Though Flash had his own comic at this time, this three-parter appeared in the back of The Phantom's title from the same publisher, King Comics.
(All the King Comics books did this, presumably to expose their target audience to other titles they might not otherwise read.)

The particular tale appeared in the back of The Phantom #19 (1966).

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Reading Room FLASH GORDON "and the Space Pirates" Part 1

Ya want space opera?

Now here's SPACE OPERA!

...starring the one-and-only Flash Gordon as rendered by EC Comics legend Wally Wood!

The story continues tomorrow...with a different artist!

Illustrated by Wally Wood and his studio.

Wood (and writer Harvey Kurtzman) had previously-done the hysterical MAD parody "Flesh Garden" (which you can read HERE), but this is his only "official" Flash Gordon work.

The writer is unknown.

Though Flash had his own comic at this time, this three-parter appeared in the back of The Phantom's title from the same publisher, King Comics.

The particular tale appeared in the back of The Phantom #18 (1966), which was actually the first issue of the series from King Comics.

(They just continued the numbering from the previous publisher, Gold Key!)

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Reading Room: FLASH GORDON "Chapter 4.1: the Man Who Would be Ming!"

We Have Already Seen...

...all you really need to know is Flash Gordon and Ming the Merciless are finally about to meet face-to-face!

A classic high-adventure tale by writer Mark Schultz and illustrator Al Williamson, little-seen in either its' first publication in Marvel's Flash Gordon #2 (1995) or the reprint in the HTF Flesk Publications' Al Williamson's Flash Gordon: a Lifelong Vision of the Heroic (2009).
We have more rarities coming up, so watch for them!

Reading Room: FLASH GORDON "Chapter Four: Showdown in Syk"

With the repressed memory of their decades-earlier encounter with Queen Azura restored...

...Flash and Zarkov, along with Dale, spring into action!

Next Week:

It's the thrilling conclusion that we just had to call...

The Man Who Would be Ming!