Saturday, February 8, 2025

Space Force Saturdays OUTER SPACE "Incredible Giants"

Though pioneering Black artist Matt Baker was best known for good-girl/cheesecake art...
...he could work in any genre, including action-packed space opera!
Inker Vince Colletta employed a number of excellent, detail-oriented pencilers like Matt Baker and Joe Sinnott to work for his studio, which "packaged" stories, series, and even book-length tales for publishers.
Unfortunately, when dealing with smaller publishers like Charlton (who didn't pay as much as DCMarvelHarvey, etc) in order to save maximize profit, Vince inked most of the work himself, usually rushing to meet deadlines!
Compare with another story, inked by long-time Baker collaborator Ray Osrin, and you see the difference inkers can make!
The same level of page layout and storytelling is obvious in both tales...but the rendering...hoo boy!
BTW, Joe Gill wrote this story from Charlton's Outer Space #23 (1959).
One important plot point was that the giant children thought the scout ship was a seed pod due to it's design...


...an element cover artists Charles Nicholas and Rocke Mastroserio didn't follow though on with their re-do of the story's splash panel for the cover!
Were they not informed, or did the editor deliberately insist on a more traditional ship design?
We'll never know the answer!

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Friday, February 7, 2025

Friday Fun YAK YAK "Romance vs Realism"

...now here's the second, and sadly, final part of the series!
Dell gave MAD mainstay Jack Davis his own title, to do with as he pleased.
The series, Yak Yak (subtitled "A Pathology of Humor") only ran two issues, but they were pure Davis, who wrote, penciled, inked, and colored the whole project as well as providing painted covers for both issues!

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Thursday, February 6, 2025

Baker Reading Room "Behind the Scenes of 'Half Man-Half What' "

...but from the original Matt Baker/Al Williamson art!
Take particular note of the areas "whited out", probably at the request of the Comics Code Authority!
BTW, note that in the story, Dr Talbot's right side is altered, but on the cover, his left side is affected!
Let's look closely at that final panel...
Dr Talbot's right side has been totally-whited out.
Was it still metallic?
And his face originally wasn't happy!
Did the original ending show him at the beginning of the process, wondering if it would succeed, and leaving the door open for a sequel if it didn't?
Was the Comics Code Authority responsible for the odd changes?
We'll never know...
Penciler Matt Baker was one of the few Black comic book artists of the Golden and Silver Ages, and was easily the most prolific of them!
Though known for his "good girl" art, including the famous (and infamous) Phantom Girl stories, he handled every genre with ease, including horror, war, sci-fi, and romance!
Sadly, though, few of his stories featured Black characters...who were rare in comics until the mid-1960s!
You can read a short, but complete bio HERE!
He'll be our featured artist this month in the Baker Reading Room at Atomic Kommie Comics, spotlighting his amazing cross-genre versatility!
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Wednesday, February 5, 2025

Wednesday Worlds of Wonder AIRSHIP ENTERPRISE "Infernal Machine" Part 3a

...Responding to a distress call from a research vessel, the Enterprise encounters a belt of living, sentient, and aggressive matter that forces two scoutships down to the surface of largest of the rock-like beings, where a number of the crew (but not all) are now mind-controlled by a humanoid entity calling itself Aido Querdo...which claims to serve an unseen "SkyFather Dambalah"...
As the valiant crew prepare for battle, we take our leave until
Next Wednesday!
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Graphic Novel re-presenting the mini-series along with additional goodies
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Tuesday, February 4, 2025

Baker Reading Room ALARMING TALES "Half Man-Half What"

"Scientists Tampering with Things Man Should Not Meddle In!" is an old cliche...
Art by John Severin
...given a new look by a most unusual assortment of artists...at least four, along with the writer...
Art by the Bob Powell Studio
OK.
Let's identify the talents involved in this never-reprinted tale from Harvey's Alarming Tales #5 (1958)...
Cover art by John Severin
Script by Dick Wood.
Opening page (which was actually the lower part of the contents page) by the Bob Powell Studio.
Story pencils by Matt Baker (who's the reason this is included in Black History Month).
Story inks by Al Williamson.
Thursday:
the entire story (and cover) in original art form, with some revealing alterations and footnotes!
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