Tales Twice Told STRANGE WORLDS "Lost Kingdom of Athala"

Here's a tale that would make a great "popcorn" CGI action flick!

It's hokey, doesn't make much sense, but boy, it's loaded with action and it looks great!

Written by Gardner Fox, penciled by Joe Orlando & Wally Wood, and inked by Wood, this fast-paced story from Avon's Strange Worlds #4 (1951), would make a great Saturday afternoon flick, thanks to current state-of-the-art special effects!

EXTRA: Here's the b/w inside cover for this issue, which featured an illustrated preview of all the stories in the issue by Wally Wood.

Note the heavy use of "craftint" texturing which Wood used to create a distinctive "look" for his art...

The script was re-used, almost verbatim, in 1970 by Eerie Publications, but the artwork for the retelling was nowhere near as good.

You'll see that version on Thursday!

Reading Room SENSATION MYSTERY "Vengeance of the Invisible Men!"

Here's a kool, never-reprinted, 1950s sci-fi tale...

...using a combination of different genre cliches!

Illustrated by the legendary Murphy Anderson, this story from DC's Sensation Mystery #110 (1952) combines the following cliches:

Glasses that enable somone to see things nobody else can see!

Creatures from the center of the Earth rising up to attack up!

A heroic human in alien/creature form stopping the enemy from destroying/enslaving humanity!

All of which leads me to believe the unknown writer of this tale is Gardner Fox, who was also working for DC as well as being well-versed in such concepts because he was both an established pulp and paperback novelist and an avid sci-fi fan!

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Mysteries in Space

The Best of DC Science Fiction Comics

Reading Room STRANGE ADVENTURES "Radioactive Invasion of Earth!"

Remember when obsessed sci-fi toy collectors almost doomed the Earth...

...and only rock and roll music could save us?
No?
Good thing we're here to remind you...

Writer Gardner Fox was noted for his scientific accuracy and meticulously-plotted stories.

So why did he have scientists handling radioactive material without protective clothing or shielding?

Otherwise, this tale from DC's Strange Adventures #84 (1957) makes total, logical, sense!

Note: the story, penciled by Sid Greene and inked by Bernard Sachs has only been reprinted once, in Showcase Presents Strange Adventures Volume 2 (2013), and only in black and white!

Wonder why they're keeping it so well hidden?

Think about that next time you're ordering toys from Sideshow or some other vendor...and note if the toys give off a weird, unearthly glow...

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Showcase Presents
Strange Adventures
Volume 2
(which reprints this tale...but in black and white!)

Monday Mars Madness STRANGE ADVENTURES "Science-Fiction Convention on Mars!"

You gotta ask: how can three of the best creatives of the Silver Age of Comics...

...make such an exciting concept so dull?

Writer Gardner Fox, penciler Gil Kane, and inker Joe Giella (together and separately) produced some of the koolest tales of the Silver Age!

Yet, this story from DC's Strange Adventures #73 (1956) almost put me to sleep!

The premise is great, the concepts are well-thought out, but the rendering of it is...well...drab!

Why aren't the Martians more visually-interesting?

They're just bald guys!

Couldn't they be using disguises (either masks or holograms) while on Earth and then reveal themselves to be Martians when the convention-goers arrive on Mars?

It's not like penciler Gil Kane has any problem with rendering kool-looking humanoid aliens, as shown HERE!

And would it have killed them to give the creatives an extra page?

Jamming in all that exposition into the last page really limited Gil into what he could present.

(Remember, DC worked "full script", so Kane knew how much room the captions and dialogue balloons needed to take!)

Using two pages for that last sequence would've helped enormously!

And what about the weird rays that destroy any spaceships?

Natural?

Artificial?

We'll never know...

In comparison, this tale from Dell's Four Color #1288: Twilight Zone has a less-epic, but much more "fun" feel to it!

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Showcase Presents

Strange Adventures

Volume 1

(which reprints this tale...but in black and white)

Reading Room STRANGE ADVENTURES "Secret of the Cosmic Bullet!"

"Golden Gladiator"?
"Star Amazon"?

You'd think this story should be in our brother RetroBlog, Hero Histories!

But...you'd be wrong...

This never-reprinted tale from DC's Strange Adventures #119 (1960) by writer Gardner Fox and artist Sid Greene plays on the concept that beings from other worlds could take our writings, both fictional and non-fictional, and implement them in "real life"!
BTW, note the house ad at the end for three other sci-fi anthologies!
Man, those were the good old days...

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Showcase presents Strange Adventures Volume 1

Showcase presents Strange Adventures Volume 2

CoronaVirus Comics ACTION COMICS "Three Aces vs the Serum Stealer"

Not every feature in DC's Action Comics has been Superman-caliber material...

...including this series featuring middle-aged aviators!

This never-reprinted tale about opportunism during a medical emergency from DC's Action Comics #39 (1941) resonates today since some individuals and businesses are taking advantage of shortages of equipment (like masks and hand sanitizer) and medications during the Covid-19 pandemic!
Written by Gardner Fox and illustrated by Chad Grothkopf, it's a solid, simple tale, just not very "flashy" as compared to the lead feature (You-Know-Who).
Despite that, they had a fairly long run in Action from #16 through #63.

BTW, The Three Aces constantly-state (as in this tale) that they flew in "the World War".

Since America hadn't entered World War II as of the time of publication, it was a clear reference to World War I (15 years earlier), which would have made the youngest of them in their late-30s, at least!

As of Action #47 (1942) they rejoined the military, serving aboard the aircraft carrier USS Roosevelt (Theodore, not Franklin).
Note: there wouldn't be a real aircraft carrier named "USS Theodore Roosevelt" until 1986!

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10¢ War

Comic Books, Propaganda, and World War II

Wednesday Worlds of Wonder ZANGAR "Lost Beyond the Bog of Darkness!"

We Have Already Seen...

...read through the synopsis on the title page below and see if you follow the rather confused narrative which mentions characters like Narcor whom we haven't seen previously!

Plus, who is...Koalrack?

Was this never-reprinted Bronze Age tale from Skywald's Jungle Adventures #3 (1971), penciled by Jack Katz, and inked by Frank Giacoia, a lead-in to an unexpected change in direction?
Conan the Barbarian had been introduced by Marvel less than a year earlier, and was selling amazingly-well!
Was Zangar going to go the barbarian-adventurer route, instead of staying a jungle lord?
And what of Tellana?
Was she going to be an ongoing villainess/love interest?
The writing is confusing, so it's unlikely co-creator Gardner Fox, noted for his precise, logical storylines, scripted this tale.
Sadly, this was the final issue of Jungle Adventures as Skywald phased out the color comics line to concentrate on their better-selling b/w horror magazines!

Next Week: the High Adventure Tales of a Different, Rarely-Seen Character Begin!

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Skywald

The Complete Illustrated History of the Horror-Mood!

(which covers the company's b/w magazines and color comics!)