Halloween Reading Room JOURNEY INTO MYSTERY "Shadow from the Steeple!"

We Have Already Seen...

...in this case, the splash page narration covers the matter pretty succinctly!

Writer (and noted pulp/comics historian) Ron Goulart adapted all three tales in this Cthuthu Mythos trilogy!
(The earlier two appeared HERE and HERE)!

Penciler Rich Buckler and inker Frank Giacoia handled the artwork in this tale from Marvel's Journey into Mystery V2N5 (1973) which orgiinally appeared in prose form in Weird Tales V42N6 (1950), fifteen years after the previous two parts of the trilogy.
Interestingly, Marvel's never-reprinted these three stories as part of an anthology of adaptations of famous fantasy/sci-fi authors' works!

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Tales of the Cthulhu Mythos by HP Lovecraft and Others

(Which features all three of the prose stories adapted into this graphic trilogy!)

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Halloween Reading Room JOURNEY INTO MYSTERY "Shambler From the Stars!"

This is the First Part of a Horrifying Trilogy by Two Legendary Authors!

It's also part of one of the first fictional "shared universe" series featuring related/linked characters, concepts and history by various authors!

Adapted by writer Ron Goulart, penciler Jim Starlin and inker/colorist Tom Palmer from legendary horror author Robert Bloch's novelette originally-published in Weird Tales V26N03 (1935), this story from Marvel's Journey into Mystery V2N3 (1973) sets up a sequel which would appear several months later in Weird Tales, scripted by Bloch's friend...H P Lovecraft!
Sadly, it was Lovecraft's final story.
You'll see that tale, which appeared in the next issue of Journey into Mystery, tomorrow in Wednesday Worlds of Wonder!
But remember, we mentioned this is part of a trilogy!
You'll see the final part in the Halloween Reading Room on Thursday!

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Tales of the Cthulhu Mythos by HP Lovecraft and Others
(Which features all three of the prose stories adapted into this graphic trilogy!)
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Best of Wednesday Worlds of Wonder TALOS OF THE WILDERNESS SEA

It was Going to be an Epic 12-Issue Mini-Series...

...but cutbacks at DC dictated that the already-penciled and scripted first two issues Jan Strnad & Gil Kane (the guys who had revamped The Atom into a high-adventure/barbarian hero in two Sword of the Atom mini-series) be combined into a double-length one-shot whose sales would determine if the project would continue.

Unfortunately, despite the genre pedigree both creatives had, the unknown character didn't attract a large enough audience (as The Atom had), and only the single, open-ended, never-reprinted issue exists!

Here are links to the almost 40-year old "lost" project!
Part One
Part Two
Part Three
Part Four

Space Force Saturdays WORLDS UNKNOWN "Black Destroyer" Conclusion

We Have Already Seen...

While exploring an alien world, the crew of the exploratory vessel Space Beagle encounter Coerl, who looks like a Terrestrial panther or lion...with the addition of tentacles!

But this is not a friendly housecat!

It's a primitive, but sentient, being who can not only reason, but kill and deceive...

Trivia: The announced adaptation of Day of the Triffids ended up as the cover-featured tale in the premiere issue of Worlds Unknown's b/w magazine successor, Unknown Worlds of Science Fiction...

...under a misleading, but undeniably-kool cover by Kelly Freas!
In fact, an adaptation of Theodore Sturgeon's KillDozer ran in the next issue of Worlds Unknown...

Meanwhile, back with Black Destroyer...

Roy Thomas was concerned that the finale as shown in the adaptation wasn't clear enough, so he included an explanation on the letters page...

Bonus #1: You can read the complete original short story HERE.

Feel free to compare and contrast!
Bonus #2: here are the illustrations from the original pulp magazine, so you can see how closely Dan Adkins and Jim Mooney kept to the pulp magazine "feel" of the tale!

"Black Destroyer" was later incorporated with other short stories about the exploratory vessel Space Beagle into the novel Voyage of the Space Beagle, the title of which is a tribute to Charles Darwin's scientific exploratory ship, "The Beagle".

BTW, Van Vogt sued 20th Century Fox over the 1979 movie Alien, claiming that it ripped off elements of "Black Destroyer" and "Discord in Scarlet", both of which were adapted into Voyage of the Space Beagle.

Fox settled out of court for #50,000!

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Voyage of the Space Beagle

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Wednesday Worlds of Wonder SUPERNATURAL THRILLERS "Valley of the Worm!" Conclusion

We Have Already Witnessed...

James Allison lies on his deathbed, re-living a past life.

A millennia or more ago, he was Niord, a barbarian prince and warrior, defending his people, the Aesir, from all manner of threats, both human and inhuman.

Aided by Gorm, a Pict he defeated in battle but refused to kill, who then became an ally, he guides his people to a new home...

Note: Though Niord says his people are of "Asgard", it's doubtful, even though this tale is now canon in the Marvel Multiverse, that he refers to the mystical Asgard of Norse legend.

Bonus: Here's the title page from the story's first publication in Weird Tales V23N02 (1934), featuring both Niord and the "Worm", illustrated by Hugh Rankin.

Next Week:

A New World of Wonder

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