Tuesday, September 24, 2013

Reading Room: UNEARTHLY SPECTACULARS "How the 3 Rocketeers Teamed Up!"

Everybody who reads comics likes a good origin story...
...unfortunately, this particular tale ain't one of them, bunky!
Uhhh...yeah...OK...
Written by noted sci fi novelist Otto Binder (who wrote over 3,000 comics scripts) and illustrated by Golden and Silver Age workhorses Mike Sekowsky and Frank Giacoia, this reboot of the series in Harvey's UnEarthly Spectaculars #2 (1967) was not inventory from unpublished 1950s Race for the Moon material, but a new tale commissioned during Harvey's brief 1960s fling with non-humor comics.
Be here tomorrow for the final tale in our re-presentation of the 3 Rocketeers saga...

Monday, September 23, 2013

It's Almost Halloween: TIme for Horror (Horror Comics, that is)...

 
Before videogames came along, comics (and tv...and movies) were said to be the contributing factors to JUVENILE DELINQUENCY!
I say...CELEBRATE the stuff your grandparents said would warp your parents' minds!
After all, they turned out OK, didn't they?
Didn't they?
Oh, well...
What could be more appropriate for Halloween than the frightening images of Horror Comics of the 1950s on t-shirt, hoodies, mugs, and other kool kollectibles?
Are you ready to be scared? Click Now...if you dare!

Sunday, September 22, 2013

Reading Room: CLASSIC COMICS "Legend of Sleepy Hollow" Conclusion

It's 1790 in Sleepy Hollow, a secluded glen in upstate New York.
Ichabod Crane, a lanky, intelligent (but extremely superstitious) schoolmaster, competes with Abraham "Brom Bones" Van Brunt, the handsome and athletic town rowdy, for the hand of 18-year-old Katrina Van Tassel, the daughter and sole child of wealthy farmer, Baltus Van Tassel.
When Ichabod and Brom both attend a party at the Van Tassels, Brom prepares to deal with his rival...
Did a ghostly Headless Horseman abscond with Ichabod?
Or did Brom Bones simply scare him away?
We will probably never know...

You'll note from the cover at the top of the post, that the Headless Horseman took second billing to the tale of Rip Van Winkle.
When the book was reprinted as part of the Classics Illustrated line with a painted cover (as most Classic Comics were), the Headless Horseman wasn't even mentioned, although his tale was still in the book!
And don't miss the new Fox TV series on Monday nights...
It's kool!

Saturday, September 21, 2013

Reading Room: CLASSIC COMICS "Legend of Sleepy Hollow" Part 1

Though it doesn't actually take place on Halloween...
..., let's look at one of the most famous ghost tales of all, as told in Classic Comics, the predecessor to Classics Illustrated, in a story adapted by Dan Levin and illustrated by Rolland H Livingstone.
What does Brom have in mind for Ichabod?
Be here tomorrow for the answer!

Friday, September 20, 2013

Reading Room: CRUSADER FROM MARS "Night of Terror"

Ziff-Davis had two short-lived titles about visitors from the Red Planet...
...Lars of Mars (which we covered HERE) and this one, about a pair of Martian criminals sent to dispense justice on Earth.
Yeah, you read that right...
You thought maybe they were a husband-and-wife alien police officer team like Katar and Shayera Hol, the Silver Age Hawkman and Hawkgirl?
Nope!
Tarka murdered his rival for the love of a woman and committed the first felony on Mars in 50 years. The Martian government branded his arm and sentenced him to exile.
Together with his fellow criminal Zira, they were sent to Earth to rid it of crime.
If they failed, then they would be destroyed--and so would Earth.
Using their advanced technology, they battled evil both on Earth, and occasionally in outer space.
The writer for this tale from Crusader from Mars #2 (1952) is unknown, but may be the book's editor, Jerry (Superman) Siegel.
The penciler appears to be Marvin Stein, but the inker is unknown.