Reading Room INVINCIBLE IRON MAN "Frenzy in a Far-Flung Future!" Conclusion

We Have Already Seen...

...teleported to a future Earth where his invention, an artificial intelligence system called Cerebrus, has taken control of humanity, Tony Stark is sentenced to death by rebels who believe if they kill him before he creates Cerebrus, the future will be changed!

Before the sentence can be carried out, drones sent by the AI invade the rebels' refuge and Stark, along with Krylla (a scientist who disagreed with killing Tony), escape in the confusion.
In the ruins of a nearby museum, the duo discover an intact set of Iron Man armor which Tony's chestplate battery charges just in time...as...

The idea of Tony Stark creating an AI like Cerebrus was utilized in the movie Avengers: Age of Ultron, where Ultron (created in Avengers comics around the same time as this story, but by Henry [Goliath] Pym) was also devised to help mankind, but went rogue.

This never-referenced-since story from Marvel's Invincible Iron Man #5 (1968), written by Archie Godwin, penciled by George Tuska, and inked by Johnny Craig is one of several "pocket universe" stories that occurred around this time at Marvel. which didn't usually do alternate universe tales like DC's Earth-One/Earth-Two/etc. multiverse to explain contradictory continuity elements.

Of course, all that's currently gone out the window with both DC and Marvel rebooting everything on an annual basis...

Support Atomic Kommie Comics

Visit Amazon and Buy...

Epic Collection

Invincible Iron Man

Volume 3

Man Who Killed Tony Stark

Paid Link

Reading Room INVINCIBLE IRON MAN "Frenzy in a Far-Flung Future!" Part 1

As Artificial Intelligence (AI) Threatens to Dominate Everyday Life...

...let's have a look at how popular fiction dealt with this concept in the pre-digital era of the Swinging '60s!

To Be Concluded on Thursday!

The idea of Tony Stark creating an AI like Cerebrus was utilized in the movie Avengers: Age of Ultron, where Ultron (created in Avengers comics around the same time as this story, but by Henry [Goliath] Pym) was also devised to help mankind, but went rogue.
This never-referenced story from Marvel's Invincible Iron Man #5 (1968), written by Archie Godwin, penciled by George Tuska, and inked by Johnny Craig is one of several "pocket universe" stories that occurred around this time at Marvel. which didn't usually do alternate universe tales like DC's Earth-One/Earth-Two/etc. multiverse to explain contradictory continuity elements.
Of course, all that's currently gone out the window with both DC and Marvel rebooting everything on an annual basis...

Support Atomic Kommie Comics

Visit Amazon and Buy...

Epic Collection

Invincible Iron Man

Volume 3

Man Who Killed Tony Stark

Paid Link

Reading Room DO YOU BELIEVE IN NIGHTMARES? "Man Who Crashed into Another Era"

Here's a short story featuring dinosaurs, illustrated by Steve Ditko...

...just before his stint on Charlton's Gorgo!

Ok, so it was the old "It's only a dream" scenario.

You got to admit, it's well-done!

From St John's Do You Believe in Nightmares? #1 (1957), a short-lived anthology produced just before St John went out of business.

Support Atomic Kommie Comics!

Visit Amazon and Order...

Unexplored Worlds

Steve Ditko Archives, Vol 2

Reading Room OUT OF THIS WORLD "Antique Collectors"

What's "antique" really depends on your point of view...

...as this tiny tale (from 1959) demonstrates!

Cars from 1959 are extremely collectible now, and it's only 66 years later!

Both the writer and artist of this story from Charlton's Out of This World #13 (1959) are, sadly, unknown.

Support Atomic Kommie Comics!

Visit Amazon and Order...

Taylor Illustrated History

Science Fiction Comics 

Monday Madness STUART TAYLOR IN WEIRD STORIES OF THE SUPERNATURAL "Faustus"

Despite the title, the series is actually sci-fi about a time traveler and his machine...

...who occasionally run into mystical menaces.

IIRC, The Time Tunnel TV series did the same thing, encountering Merlin, the ghost of Nero, and others along with the usual silver-skinned Irwin Allen aliens...

This series started in Jumbo Comics #1 (1939) as Diary of Dr Hayward, illustrated by Jack Kirby under the house pseudonym "Curt Davis" (which was used for every story in the series).

With #5, Lou Fine assumed the art chores, and several issues later the title changed to Weird Stories of the Supernatural as lab assistant Stuart Taylor took center stage and old Doc Hayward became a supporting character.

(In fact, the series title sometimes listed "Stuart Taylor" above the "Weird Stories..." logo, playing up the action-hero aspect, as it does here.)

As of #15, a rotating lineup of artists contributed art but no other "big names" worked on the series which continued for almost the entire run of Jumbo, ending at #140 (1950).

This particular never-reprinted story is from Jumbo Comics #111 (1948) and was produced by the Iger Studio, which supplied almost all of Fiction House's comic material during this period!

Reading Room ROCKET SHIP X "Robot Rebellion"

We're DOOMED, do you hear me?

DOOMED, because tomorrow will bring a...

...as shown in this never-reprinted tale from Fox's Rocket Ship X #1 (1951).

It's actually a decent little tale whose creators, regrettably, are anonymous.

Think James Cameron read it as a kid?

Support Atomic Kommie Comics!

Visit Amazon and Buy...

Science Fiction Comics

Taylor History of Comics

Vol 3
Paid Link

Reading Room STARSTREAM "City"

Here's a tangled tale of time travel...

...based on the prose short story "A Nice Place to Visit" by Stephen Goldin.

Adapted by Silver Age comics veteran Arnold Drake and illustrated by Jose Delbo, this story was part of the 1976 anthology mini-series Starstream, Western Publishing's move away from the Gold Key imprint and branding to create a less-juvenile presence in newsstands, supermarket magazine racks, and bookstores.

Note: there were less than a dozen dedicated comic book shops in America in 1976!

The 64-page anthologies featured comic adaptations of short stories by noted (and marketable) authors like Isaac Asimov, Jack Williamson, Theodore Sturgeon, A E van Vogt, and Anne McCaffrey, with a couple of non-adaptation stories by Arnold Drake and series editor Roger Elwood to fill out the page count.

Sadly, the project, which came out a year before Star Wars was released, disappeared within six months.

Support Atomic Kommie Comics
Visit Amazon and Buy...

Questar
OOP 1979 Trade Paperback Reprinting Most (but not all) of the Material from the Starstream Mini-Series
Paid Link