Spooky Space Force Saturdays JOURNEY INTO UNKNOWN WORLDS "Planet of Terror!"

 Our Final Halloween-Horror Themed Tale is Illustrated by Basil Wolverton...

...but likely not scripted by him!

Even the Grand Comics Database, which normally attributes scripting of Basil's tales to him is uncertain what to make of this somewhat disorienting ending! of this sinister story from Atlas' Journey into Unknown Worlds #7 (1951)!

You'll note the inset art for the story on the cover, by an unknown artist, has none of the elements of the tale itself!

What's the truth?

We'll likely never know...

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Brain Bats of Venus

Life and Comics of Basil Wolverton

Volume Two

1942-1952
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Space Force Saturdays PERIMETER PATROL SERVICE "Space Pirates on Xarpot"

Space police/military organizations were ubiquitous in 1950s sci-fi...

...and this story was the second one featuring the short-lived Perimeter Patrol Service.

You can read their premiere tale HERE!

BTW, note the painted cover is by the story's illustrator, Bernie Krigstein...who rarely did painted covers!

Considering the three tales were done by the artists who also did SpaceBusters, we wonder if this was intended as a backup series for that title.

This never-reprinted story from Ziff-Davis' Amazing Adventures #6 (1952) is a superb example of pulp/comic space opera of the era with all the classic elements:

Scantly-clad women!

Square-jawed heroes!

Rockets & ray-guns!

And, instead of bug-eyed monsters...space pirates!

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Trump's Space Force

(either for yourself, or as a gift for a con friend/relative)

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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Space Force Saturdays WORLDS UNKNOWN "Black Destroyer" Part 1

 In Space, No One Can Hear You MEOW...

 ...as in this 1940s pulp story that's a clear inspiration for aspects of movie and tv science fiction ranging from Forbidden Planet and Alien to Star Trek and Space: 1999 (among many others)!

Will Coeurl deceive the crew and return with them to Earth?
Or will he simply kill the humans and commandeer the ship?
Find out...Next Saturday!
Plus: read some kool background info about the comic adaptation!

This never-reprinted tale from issue 5 (1974) of Marvel's short-lived science fiction anthology Worlds Unknown was adapted by Roy Thomas and illustrated by Dan Adkins & Jim Mooney.

The story is based on "Black Destroyer", A E Van Vogt's first published story, which appeared as the cover story (a rare honor for a writer's premiere tale) in Astounding Science Fiction (July 1939).

It was later expanded in Vogt's novel Voyage of the Space Beagle, which continued the voyages of the starship and crew!
(BTW, it would make an absolutely dynamite feature film or streaming service mini-series!)
Unlike many other sci-fi stories of the era, it has never been directly-adapted to any other medium, not even radio!
However, the similarities plot elements in the movie Alien to both "Black Destroyer" and "Discord in Scarlet" (which involved an alien who laid eggs in humans) caused Van Vogt to sue 20th Century-Fox, which settled out-of-court for $50,000, with the whole matter sealed with an NDA!

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Voyage of the Space Beagle
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Space Force Saturdays ATOM-AGE COMBAT "Third Element"

Is This What Don (da Con) Trump had in Mind...

...when he plagiarized the concept from 1950s sci-fi to create his inane Space Force?

Illustrated by longtime comics veteran Dick Ayers and scripted by an unknown writer, this never-reprinted tale from Fago's Atom-Age Combat #3 (1959) is typical of the sci-fi of the era.

Oddly, it shows us and the (unnamed, but obviously Russkie) enemy dropping everything to unite against extraterrestrials, then agreeing to work together, with no hint of treachery, despite the fact a "Space Race" was on between Americans and Soviets to get men into space and even to the Moon ASAP!

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Science Fiction Comics

Taylor History of Comics

Vol 3

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