Monday, December 20, 2021

Christmas Creepiness SPELLBOUND "When You Believe..."

Considering A Christmas Story was directed by the guy who did Black Christmas (1974)..
...it's almost a miracle the holiday classic about a kid and his toy gun didn't end up like this Xmas tale of a kid and his toy gun!
Rendered beautifully by Bill Everett, this Yuletide tale from Atlas' Spellbound #16 (1953) appeared during the height of the horror comics craze of the early 1950s.
The identity of the writer is, sadly, unknown.
When the story was reprinted in Marvel's Weird Wonder Tales #3 (1974), the first panel of the opening page was slightly-modified, eliminating almost all the text!
I have no idea why!
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Monday, October 18, 2021

It's ALWAYS Halloween! CHILLING ADVENTURES IN SORCERY AS TOLD BY SABRINA "Boy Who Cried Vampire"

The recent Chilling Adventures of Sabrina was not the first time the "Teenage Witch" did actual horror...
... in 1972, she hosted her own series of horror stories told in the Archie "vein" as you can see in this never-reprinted (in color) terror-tale...
Now there's an ambiguous ending if ever I heard one...
In 1971, the Comics Code Authority loosened its' regulations regarding monsters, allowing limited use of "classic" creatures including vampires, werewolves, and zombies.
While DC and Marvel went monster-happy, unleashing new strips and several new titles, Archie Comics' response was this book with an unsual combination of horror writing, but Archie house-style art, which tended to conflict with the theme of the stories!
To be fair, writer Frank Doyle, penciler Dan DeCarlo, and inker Rudy Lapick tried their best with this tale from Chilling Adventures in Sorcery as Told by Sabrina #1 (1972), but it just doesn't work.
After two issues, the series was revamped (pun intended) into a more traditional title with non-cartoony art by Gray Morrow and associates, dropping Sabrina as the hostess.
It survived nine more issues.
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Chilling Adventures in Sorcery
(which reprints this story...but in black-and-white)

Saturday, October 2, 2021

It's ALWAYS Halloween! DOCTOR HORROR

No, not Doctor Horrible, played by Neil Patrick Harris...
...but a much weirder character who made only one appearance...but what an appearance!

If this had been produced in the 1960s, I'd say the artist had gotten some bad weed before producing the latest issue of his underground comix.
In fact, it appeared in 1941's Captain Battle Comics #2, illustrated (and probably written) by Don Rico and read by impressionable young kids throughout America!
Publisher Lev Gleason had already introduced comics' first major super-villain, The Claw, in Silver Streak Comics, and it's possible he posed the suggestion to his artists that they come up with something to top The Claw.
Or, it's possible that with a deadline looming and pages to fill, Gleason assigned Rico to come up with a story in a very brief time frame!
We'll never know the answer.
But that shouldn't stop you from enjoying this startling story!

Join us during the Halloween season as we present tales your grandparents didn't want your parents to see!

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Wednesday, August 4, 2021

HOUSE OF SECRETS "Taste of Dark Fire!"

Rarely do comics from two different genres crossover...

...but this terror tale from DC's House of Secrets #89 (1970-71) actually leads-in to...a romance comic!
Read it and we'll explain at the end...
This story by writer Gerry Conway and artist Don Heck appears to be the pilot/intro to an ongoing series, but no other tales about the disparate duo ever appeared!
But, that wasn't the end of their Battle Against Satanic Evil!
The interfaith avengers next appear in DC's Sinister House of Secret Love #2 (1971-72), where they save the rabbi's niece from being sacrificed in a demonic wedding ceremony!
You can read that story by clicking HERE!
It wouldn't be until years later that the Pugnacious Priest and Rambunctious Rabbi would appear once more, this time as the cover-featured heroes in a book-length story in DC's House of Secrets #150 (1978) which teamed them with the Phantom Stranger and Dr 13 to battle a mystical menace in both the past and the present!
Sadly, they haven't been seen in new stories on this plane of existence since... 
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Friday, June 4, 2021

Asian Antagonists MASK OF DR FU MANCHU Part 4/Conclusion

We Have Already Seen...

Does that recap the story in style or what?
Avon Comics pioneered the concept of using the inside front cover to present background info and/or recaps which is so prevalent today.
What's really kool is that they used a page of new art, instead of a cut-and paste of text and already-used art!
And now, the conclusion...
Interesting to note that Dr Fu Manchu is shown to be honorable, and wouldn't attempt to retaliate after his defeat, simply to assuage his ego/vanity.
It goes against the usual "Yellow Peril" stereotype of Asians being without morals and ethics, doing anything, no matter how loathsome or inhuman to achieve their goals!
Though the adaptor of the Sax Rohmer-penned novel is unknown, the comic is illustrated by then-young up-and-comers Wally Wood and Joe Orlando (who split the penciling and inking almost on a panel-by-panel basis)!
Though Fu's comic book appearances were infrequent, he became an ongoing character at Marvel as the father of their resident martial arts master, Shang-Chi, who turned against his father when he discovered he was not the altruistic and benign person he deceived his son into believing!
The "Devil Doctor" battled not only his wayward son, but other martial arts heroes as shown HERE!
You'll note there's no mention of Fu in the upcoming movie Shang Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings!, though Shang's father does appear!
When Marvel lost the licensing rights to Fu, they modified the character of Shang's father in comics to become Zheng Zu, an immortal sorcerer, and in the Marvel Cinematic Universe as The Mandarin, based on a "Yellow Peril"-type supervillain dating back to the 1960s, who was Iron Man's arch-enemy.
(The movie Iron Man 3 introduced a false Mandarin, an imposter played by an out-of-work actor, into the movie continuity.
This one is the real character, heading the Ten Rings terrorist/criminal group which wounded and kidnapped Tony Stark, forcing him to become Iron Man.)

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Friday, May 28, 2021

Asian Antagonists MASK OF DR FU MANCHU Part 3

When Last We Left Our Protaganist...Who's Also Our Antagonist...

...under a flag of truce, Sir Denis Nayland Smith and Shan Greville meet with Dr Fu Manchu to make an exchange...Shan's kidnapped fiance Rima Barton for the artifacts Fu covets!
It's Always Darkest Before the Dawn...
Though the adaptor is unknown, the tale is illustrated by young up-and-comers Wally Wood and Joe Orlando (who split the penciling and inking almost on a panel-by-panel basis)!
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Serial Fu Manchu