Monday, August 22, 2016

Reading Room CAPTAIN JOHNER AND THE ALIENS "Rescue"

...the Aliens take the lead to rescue their friend, Johner...
Out of the frying pan and into, not just a fire, but a raging bonfire, eh?
In Gold Key's Magnus, Robot Fighter #16 (1966) creator/writer/artist Russ Manning takes us from a hidden alien conspiracy on Earth to the alien stronghold on Venus!
Several friendly aliens, a former girlfriend (whose brother is one of the leaders of the conspiracy) and Johner, trapped on a hostile world where the nearest Earth forces don't know where they are!
What could go wrong?
Find out next Monday!
Support Atomic Kommie Comics

Sunday, August 21, 2016

Last Week on RetroBlogs...

The blue-and-green costumed 1960s version of The Shadow...

True Love Comics Tales presents the perfect "beach read"...

And Phantom Lady's most notorious tale gets a kinder, gentler redo...
What's Coming Up?
Check in next week to find out!

Saturday, August 20, 2016

Reading Room WEIRD MEN'S ADVENTURES "I Walked on the Moon"

In the early 1950s, EC Comics set the pace for other companies...
...as this hybrid sci-fi/horror tale from Atlas' Men's Adventure #26 (1954) demonstrates!
You'll note the post's header reads Weird Men's Adventures, but I mentioned earlier the book was  just Men's Adventures.
It's not a typo.
The indicia title was Men's Adventures, and from 1-20 it featured war and high adventure tales.
But, with #21, it became a horror title and "Weird" was added in a graphic burst to the logo (but not the indicia).
Six issues later, the brief revival of the Golden Age Human Torch and Toro took over the book for two issues before it was cancelled.
Though the writer for this tale from is unknown, the artist (doing a credible Wally Wood imitation) is Gene Colan!
Trivia: When the story was reprinted in Marvel's Weird Wonder Tales #17 (1976), it was retitled and the splash panel was rewritten (including removing the "Weird Men's Adventure" blurb)...
Considering that, in 1976, it was over five years since the first Moon landing, I'm not certain why the editor made the change...
BTW, note the "originally-presented" caption references the wrong issue!

Friday, August 19, 2016

Reading Room BUZZY BEAN AND HIS FLYING SAUCER "Secret of Planet 5"

...are they saved, or out of the frying pan and into the fire?
Buzzy and Betty's adventures ended with this never-reprinted story from Good Comics' Johnny Law: Sky Ranger #4 (1955) since the company went out of business after the book was printed and distributed.
Trivia: After Good Comics folded, Publisher/Editor/Art Director Edmond Good became Art Director of Tupperware and remained in the post until he retired in the 1970s!
Support Atomic Kommie Comics!
Visit Amazon and order...

Thursday, August 18, 2016

Reading Room TALES CALCULATED TO DRIVE YOU BATS! "Rocky the Stone Man"

It's summertime, so let's go to the beach...
...and see how it's not best to change to please others!
While the artist of this tale from Archie's Tales Calculated to Drive You Bats #6 (1962) is unknown, the writer is George Gladir.
Archie Comics kept at least one MAD-style humor anthology going from the late 1950s (after MAD switched from four-color comic to black-and-white magazine) through the 1960s.
Though Tales Calculated to Drive You Bats! expired after only seven issues, it's sister title, Archie's Mad House (which initially-featured various Archie characters as hosts of the stories), survived to 1981!
Support Atomic Kommie Comics
Visit Amazon and order...