Monday Mars Madness WAR OF THE WORLDS "Part I: The Coming of the Martians"

In October 1976, Marvel's sequel series to HG Wells' War of the Worlds had just been cancelled...

...and the publisher released this adaptation of the original novel just in time for Halloween!

To Be Continued...
Next Monday!

Adapted by Chris Claremont, penciled by Yong Montano, and inked by Dino Castrillo, this never-reprinted (in America) 45-year old tale is a pretty straightforward adaptation of the original novel, which was the basis for Marvel's just-cancelled KillRaven: Warrior of the Worlds series!

Note: it's not meant as a tie-in to the series, so Dave Cockrum, who was aiding Art Director John Romita as his Associate while also drawing X-Men, deliberately designed the tripods and Martians to look different from the ones in KillRaven!

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Essential KillRaven

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Martians! Martians! Martians! (Or what Jan Brady said when she saw War of the Worlds)

Halloween is coming up fast, so what do I think of?

Martians!

I've always been a big fan of War of the Worlds, whether it's the H.G. Wells novel, Orson Welles' radio adaptation, the '53 movie, the 80s tv series (Year One or Year Two), Jeff Wayne's remarkable concept album, or the many variations, sequels, and pastiches (like my favorite: Sherlock Holmes' War of the Worlds!)
So, I added a line of shirts. mugs, messenger bags, and tchochkes to Atomic Kommie Comics' already bulging sci-fi collectibles section entitled Martians! Martians! Martians! (Or: what Jan Brady said when she saw The War of the Worlds!)
From benevolent visitors to arrogant invaders to an EarthMan turned Martian, we have them all! See The Devil Girl from Mars, Lars of Mars, Man O' Mars, John Carter: WarLord of Mars, and of course, the War of the Worlds' various incarnations!
(BTW, the Tote Bags make great trick-or-treat bags!)
We even have a three-way battle between Earth, Mars, and Venus as well as the campy cult classic Santa Claus Conquers the Martians!
So whether it's for Halloween, Christmas, a birthday, or anytime you feel the urge for alien antics, choose Martians! Martians! Martians!™
As the Martians in Mars Attacks! would say..."Ack! Ack! Ack!"

Best of Reading Room: RACE FOR THE MOON "Invasion"

Some people called early television "just radio with pictures"...

...a premise taken to an obvious extreme in this tale...

Unfortunately, the technological level of tv fx in 1958, when this story was published in Race for the Moon #1, make the events of the story highly unlikely.
The primary reason the inspiration for this story, the 1938 War of the Worlds radio hoax by Orson Welles and the Mercury Theatre of the Air, worked was because peoples' imaginations ran wild, fueled by sound effects and well-written dialogue!
The "visuals" were in their heads!
Nonetheless, the unknown writer and artist Bob Powell did their best in only five pages.
And, the comic's intended audience, kids aged 9-15, could accept the premise, especially if they had no knowledge of the Welles radio show, which wasn't often rebroadcast until old radio show reruns made a comeback in the mid-1960s on college radio stations and lp albums.

NOTE: This story is a radically toned-down version of a tale that appeared a decade earlier!
Tomorrow we'll show you how it ORIGINALLY looked...pre-Comics Code, which has NEVER been reprinted!

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The Future WAS Fantastic!

Comics Collectibles Store!

75 Years Ago Today...the World was Destroyed...

...by Invaders from Mars!

Art by Francesco Francavilla

You can hear the original October 30, 1938 radio broadcast HERE!

And a 10-minute funky dance remix of the radio show HERE!

BONUS: Here's a kool documentary from the radio show's 60th Anniversary, narrated by James (Avatar) Cameron...

Earth Attacks!

We've landed on Mars...

...or at least a laser-armed nuclear-powered robot vehicle has landed on Mars!
Really!

 What would happen if Martians sent laser-armed, nuclear-powered vehicles to Earth?

Much MORE Fun Bunny action HERE!

Oh...

Visit Our

Martians, Martians, Martians!™

Collectibles Shop

(before those guys from the Red Planet show up!)

YouTube Wednesday: War of the Worlds

While only the 1938 radio version of War of the Worlds (available HERE) incorporates Halloween...

...the George Pal movie holds a place in my Halloween viewing schedule, primarily for this scene featuring Oscar-winning special effects that still pack a punch today...

or, if you want your alien invasion as portrayed by cute bunnies...

Much MORE Fun Bunny action HERE!

Check out the
War of the Worlds goodies at the...

MARTIANS! MARTIANS! MARTIANS!
Virtual Store!

Reading Room: RACE FOR THE MOON "Invasion"

Some people called early television "just radio with pictures"...

Click on the art to enlarge

...a premise taken to an obvious extreme in this tale...

Unfortunately, the technological level of tv fx in 1958, when this story was published in Race for the Moon #1, make the events of the story highly unlikely.
The primary reason the inspiration for this story, the 1938 War of the Worlds radio hoax by Orson Welles and the Mercury Theatre of the Air, worked was because peoples' imaginations ran wild, fueled by sound effects and well-written dialogue!
The "visuals" were in their heads!
Nonetheless, the unknown writer and artist Bob Powell did their best in only five pages.
And, the comic's intended audience, kids aged 9-15, could accept the premise, especially if they had no knowledge of the Welles radio show, which wasn't often rebroadcast until old radio show reruns made a comeback in the mid-1960s on college radio stations and lp albums.

NOTE: We've just discovered that this story is a radically toned-down version of a tale that appeared a decade earlier!
Tomorrow we'll show you how it ORIGINALLY looked...pre-Comics Code, which has NEVER been reprinted!

Check out

The Future WAS Fantastic!

Comics Collectibles Store!

YouTube Wednesday: BATTLE: LA Alien Invasion Special!

Continuing our weekly feature "YouTube Wednesday" (A day late)...

 To celebrate the coming of the newest alien invasion epic, here's a retro look at previous extraterrestrial incursions...

UFO tv series (1973)

War of the Worlds (1953)

Quatermass and the Pit aka Five Million Years to Earth

Plan 9 from Outer Space

Mars Attacks!

Earth vs the Flying Saucers

V the original miniseries

Green Slime

Daleks Invasion Earth: 2150 AD

The X-Files

Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons
and last, but not least...

Godzilla Final Wars: Godzilla vs alien-controlled "American Godzilla" aka Zilla!

Check out our kool

Alien Invasion

kollectibles including...

at
Seduction of the Innocent!™
Martians! Martians! Martians!™
Quatermass
and
The Future WAS Fantastic!™

New Graphic Novel about the Radio "War of the Worlds"

As most readers of this blog know, I'm a big fan of 1920s-1950s dramatic radio.
I'm also a fan of artist Francesco Francavilla (Green Hornet / Zorro / Lone Ranger)
Now there's a new graphic novel about everyday people's reactions to the October 30, 1938 broadcast that terrified the nation with an evocative cover by Francavilla!

FREE BONUS: the ACTUAL 1938 War of the Worlds Radio Show!
Listen to it while reading the book!
And, of course, you can read the book and listen to the radio show while drinking from your War of the Worlds mug or Amazing Martian Stories mug! from our Martians! Martians! Martians!™ kool kollectibles kollection!