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Post by brutalis on Apr 7, 2020 7:49:28 GMT -5
Web of Mystery: now here is a comic worth every penny I would have spent on it. Intriguing cover to draw you into purchasing. 1st story Moon was Red has that Marvel giant monster trope and just crying for a Kirby monster because that hairy yellow spotted thing is a monstrosity of a totally different kind. But I do admire a fellow who chops his way through a monster and keeps a finger hanging upon his wall.
True Tales of Unexplained Mystery #35: great one pager (shows what can be done if you try) and proof that tattoo's are not to be trusted!
Out of the Blackness They Come was some creative writing and well done. Reminder that every day items we take for granted (the flashlight) have a magic and mystery all their own. I can't but wonder what Ditko would with this story?!?
True Tale of Unexplained Mystery #36. Another splendid one pager of morality.
Corpses on Cue. Now this is a ZOMBIE story that delivers some shivers and chills and even includes some Zombie true love. Rather cool that it respects the Zombie civil rights and that it is more than the typical shuffling around scaring folks Zombie tales (though there is plenty of that within the story) and that the bad guy gets his just dessert's in the end.
Didn't read the Wail of Ice Dead.
Evil Twangs the Harp was another moralistic tale of somebody trying to get something for nothing and bending the rules only to have it all end up slamming back in their face. I do wonder though, how the guy got his head stuck in the harp strings without slicing his face up? And yet another string is added to the harp, while the next owner goes on ahead planning her own scheme to use it for her own designs. Fun story.
This is the kind of book I would have gladly spent my pennies upon every chance of finding it on the shelves. Clever, horrific, morals and creative stories full of creepy and eerie (copyrighted) artistry. Really shows how horror stories have changed over the years and that blood and gore doesn't have to sell a story. Quite a pleasure...
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Post by wildfire2099 on Apr 7, 2020 8:07:48 GMT -5
Assignment #4...  Web of Mystery #18 (May 1953)Taking a deep dive into a more obscure corner of the public domain! There are better known horror titles out there, but I thought it would be interesting to try something no one here has ever seen before. It's nice to take a break from the 1940s as well. April 6th thru April 7thA free and legal public domain scan can be found hereI'll let Shax do his thing and post pics and such.... I'm not a horror fan at all, so I don't want to be a negative nelly. I did like the art style though, the various monsters were weird, but cool. That font, though! Someone call Todd Klein, stat! I good one could have definitely helped the mood that was attempting to be created.. this one looked like someone literally just used a typewriter. |
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Post by shaxper on Apr 7, 2020 9:02:53 GMT -5
I'll let Shax do his thing and post pics and such.... And here I'm always hoping someone else will beat me to it  |
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Post by electricmastro on Apr 7, 2020 10:01:18 GMT -5
It's been a while since I read any Lev Gleason Comics. I used to have a handful of issues of Crime Does Not Pay. They are so AWESOME! The only Crime Buster story I ever read was the one where he fought Iron Jaw that was reprinted in Golden Age Great. Also AWESOME! Yeah, that story about the amputees was BONKERS! But also pretty great! I'll read the rest later. COMIC BOOK PLUS is great! I usually use it to read Fiction House. I usually skip around and read a little Sheena or a little Tiger Girl. But I've also used it to read all of Sky Girl and all of Futura! Crime Does Not Pay #57 (November, 1947) had a rather bonkers splash page as well, from the same comic that boasted was being read by more than 5 million readers monthly:  |
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Post by shaxper on Apr 7, 2020 10:04:19 GMT -5
Thoughts on The Moon Was Red: On the one hand, I'm impressed with the quality of writing on this one, as well as the penciler's ability to create visual drama, even in scenes when people are just talking:  BUT...  The monster itself looks pretty ridiculous and is hard to take seriously at first.  I don't know how to explain why I have a problem with it -- maybe it's just such a departure from the Kirby'-influenced style I've come to expect of Post-Marvel Age comics, or maybe it's that long, silky, carefully parted hair that the monster has got to be brushing regularly in order to keep it from frizzing in such a humid environment. BUT... The art really comes alive at the climax, where the penciler uses intense close-ups that take the focus away from the monster's ridiculous appearance and capture the terror and intensity instead:  And that coloring rocks too! So, by the conclusion, we have great writing AND great art BUT... the ending is a total disappointment. No twist, no oddly fitting irony. The story provides an epilogue of sorts, but there's nothing clever, poignant, nor meaningful about it. A generally entertaining story, but nothing memorable. |
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Post by shaxper on Apr 7, 2020 10:18:49 GMT -5
Thoughts on True Tales of Unexplained Mystery # 35: Actually, I only have one thought about this one-pager:  Dumb. Not even especially cliche. Just dumb. |
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Post by shaxper on Apr 7, 2020 10:32:20 GMT -5
Thoughts on Out of Blackness They Come!How interesting that two of these three stories thus far have ended in victory. I'm not used to horror comics ending with the main character(s) victorious. Anyway... What an imaginative concept for a mere 7 page horror tale -- creating Absolute Blackness, and the ramifications that might hold:   It's a little ridiculous, but it's wild and different. Someone really threw themselves into this plot, not just rehashing the old cliches. And the art is strong too. Heck, how do you show someone fighting a color? Artist Dick Beck finds his own solution, and it works:  Defeating Satan with a flashlight? That might have been a tad ridicuous, but I have to say I really enjoyed the wild creativity of this one overall. Out of the Blackness They Come was some creative writing and well done. Reminder that every day items we take for granted (the flashlight) have a magic and mystery all their own. I can't but wonder what Ditko would with this story?!? Oh wow would that have been a treat to see! |
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Post by shaxper on Apr 7, 2020 10:51:08 GMT -5
Thoughts on True Tales of Unexplained Mystery # 36: One of the older cliches of the horror genre, it's really just a page of this playing out, with no unique spin added to it whatsoever.  And, of course, this is.a "true tale" so the protagonist survives but conveniently cannot recall which temple it was or where it was located afterward. Groan. |
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Post by shaxper on Apr 7, 2020 11:04:01 GMT -5
Thoughts on Corpses on Cue: Well that stunk. A Circus sideshow barker somehow (this never gets explained) gets his hand on a genuine zombie and decides the best thing to do with this awesome power is...put him on stage. It's stupid and cliche, but it's hardly the most disappointing part of this story. There's the utterly unenthusiastic art that makes a hoard of the undead look...boring:  But even worse than that is the writing, in which characters over-explain every detail of the convoluted plot in a way that never feels even remotely natural:  Yeesh. |
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Post by shaxper on Apr 7, 2020 11:12:26 GMT -5
Thoughts on Wall of the Ice Dead
Surprisingly strong prose-work for a piece that's only here to get the publisher a discount on shipping subscription books through the U.S. Mail. The story borrows bits from both Robert E. Howard and H.P. Lovecraft, even if it ends up with a generic horror formula about a proud, stubborn man failing to heed superstitious warnings until it is too late.
And, once again, the protagonist survives. That's happening a lot in these stories.
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Post by shaxper on Apr 7, 2020 11:27:51 GMT -5
Thoughts on Evil Twangs the Devil's HarpOdd that this is the only comic in this issue that was never reprinted anywhere, as it may very well be my favorite of the bunch. It seems like such a generic beginning, with a two bit thug who discovers a demonic harp that can summon Satan:  But this might be the coolest depiction of Satan I've ever seen. I almost want her as a member of Neal Gaiman's The Endless:  And then the story takes a truly unexpected turn, fast-forwarding many years to reveal that the criminal has reformed and used his devilish instrument to create a new life for himself as a famous musician. You know he will get his comeuppance, and you know how, but it's still exciting to see a story with this kind of breadth to it:  And, of course, having his companion be the one who kills him, repeating the very same crime he committed against the store owner in the beginning, is cute and makes a fitting end to this piece. Really really enjoyed this one! |
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Post by shaxper on Apr 7, 2020 11:30:15 GMT -5
This is the kind of book I would have gladly spent my pennies upon every chance of finding it on the shelves. Clever, horrific, morals and creative stories full of creepy and eerie (copyrighted) artistry. Totally agreed! You raise an interesting point about the lack of gore. I wonder if that, combined with the fact that every character in this story who hadn't done something truly evil ended up living, suggests that the publisher was concerned about backlash from the morality police. Seduction of the Innocent is still a year away, but perhaps Ace already saw the writing on the wall. |
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Post by MDG on Apr 7, 2020 12:07:17 GMT -5
Is there a list anywhere of publishers/books that used Leroy lettering? I'm surprised to see it here, but I seem to see more and more examples of it outside of EC and Wonder Woman.
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Post by wildfire2099 on Apr 7, 2020 12:47:15 GMT -5
Is there a list anywhere of publishers/books that used Leroy lettering? I'm surprised to see it here, but I seem to see more and more examples of it outside of EC and Wonder Woman. If there is, we can use to to stay away from it! I liked the first monster... why can his hair just be naturally fabulous? Maybe it's his mutant power. |
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Post by electricmastro on Apr 7, 2020 13:42:13 GMT -5
This is the kind of book I would have gladly spent my pennies upon every chance of finding it on the shelves. Clever, horrific, morals and creative stories full of creepy and eerie (copyrighted) artistry. Totally agreed! You raise an interesting point about the lack of gore. I wonder if that, combined with the fact that every character in this story who hadn't done something truly evil ended up living, suggests that the publisher was concerned about backlash from the morality police. Seduction of the Innocent is still a year away, but perhaps Ace already saw the writing on the wall. Harvey was definitely one of the companies that ramped up the blood/gore for as long as they could, particularly with their Chamber of Chills Magazine (like issues 8, 14, and 16). |
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