Featuring special guest star, John Scoleri! |
The EC Reign Month by Month 1950-1956
7: February 1951
Craig |
"A Biting Finish!" ★★
Story by Al Feldstein
Art by Graham Ingels
"Horror in the Freak Tent!" ★★★
Story by Al Feldstein
Art by Wally Wood
"A Tasty Morsel!" ★★
Story by Al Feldstein
Art by Jack Davis
"Seeds of Death!" ★★★
Story and Art by Johnny Craig
"A Biting Finish!" |
"Horror in the Freak Tent" |
That feeling only intensifies with "A Tasty Morsel!," the first real EC horror story illustrated by Jack Davis (no, I don't count HoF #4's substandard "The Living Mummy," sorry), the artist who will become second only to Ghastly in the hearts of EC horror fans. The story, again by Al, is rubbish (man stays at creepy old inn for the night and discovers the innkeeper is a vampire . . . no, he was only dreaming . . . no, when he wakes up it's all true!) but Jack's rotund, sharp-toothed ogre could almost be seen as the blueprint for his future nightmares.
"Seeds of Death!" |
"A Tasty Morsel!" |
Jose: Graham Ingels demonstrates with “A Biting Finish” that his art is the standard representative of pre-code horror comics. Even his captions drip like blood on the page! Jack’s correct in stating that the scanned pages for this particular issue are not very complementary to the artists, but we’re still able to see some of the craft shine through, most notably Wood’s work on “ . . . Freak Tent.” Feldstein shows his hand in “A Tasty Morsel” by reusing the second-person-dreaming-of-ghouls shtick that he tried already with “The Strange Couple” (VoH #14), but I found Davis’s rough-around-the-edges compositions endearing. “Seeds of Death” is ample proof that Craig is really starting to come into his own. His rendition of the Vault-Keeper here feels especially right, and his talent for those evocative, silent panels continues to work quiet wonders. Of all the E.C. artists, I think it’s Craig’s influence that you can find in a lot of modern graphic storytelling.
"A Biting Finish!" |
Feldstein |
"Child of Tomorrow" ★
Story and Art by Al Feldstein
"The Time Machine and The Shmoe" ★★★
Story and Art by Harvey Kurtzman
"Deadlock!" ★★ 1/2
Story and Art by Wally Wood
"Prediction of Disaster" ★★
Story by Al Feldstein
Art by Jack Kamen
It’s just dust bunnies and dustpans for Donald Yubyutch, a harebrained cleaning man who wants nothing more than to hop along with employer Professor Serutane and his pals on Serutane’s newly-finished time machine. Donald’s request is naturally laughed off by the stuffy scientists, but the cleaner has his own bright ideas. Why, conquering the Middle Ages with his superior intellect is a simple matter, so long as he has the right materials. Racing to the store, Donny buys a toy gun and model airplane to use as blueprints when he builds the real things in the 9th century. To further charm the local peasants, he purchases a transistor radio whose music will surely astound the masses. Back in the lab, Donald plugs in the time-top and throws the switch on his journey. He’s excited to find that the machine works, but the King’s royal entourage presses the happy fool for his business on the castle grounds. Donny's talk of weapon molds and airplane glue draws blank stares. The shmoe starts to realize that the materials he needs to wow his new friends haven’t been created yet. Same for the radio stations and the electric outlet needed to return him back to his century. Deemed a double-talking scullion, Donny is assigned to sweep the King’s dungeon.
"The Time Machine and the Shmoe" |
As Peter notes below, “The Time Machine and the Shmoe” is a kind of companion piece to Kurtzman’s earlier “Henry and His . . . Goon Child,” but it also bears the humorous streak found in “The Mysterious Ray from Another Dimension” (WF #16), showing that Kurtzman was intent on having a little fun with his science fictional premises. That’s certainly for our benefit, as Kurtzman’s irreverent tone and punchline endings act as nice refreshers from the doom-and-gloom stories that sometimes fall victim to unintentional parody.
Oops, Part 1 ("Child of Tomorrow") |
Oops, Part 2 ("Child of Tomorrow") |
"Deadlock!" |
"Prediction of Disaster" |
Jack: I really liked “Child of Tomorrow!” Feldstein’s art is very good, and I appreciate how Linda survives nuclear devastation and still manages to fix her hair in a most fetching way to go with the low-cut blouse and tight skirt. Now, that’s the kind of gal you want with you in a post-apocalyptic world! Kutzman’s story would fit right into Mad and Wood’s space saga looks forward to the classic work he would do on The Spirit the next year. I thought Kamen’s piece was the weakest, as usual, though I laughed out loud at the ending.
John: I also enjoyed "Child of Tomorrow" and the comical renditions of post-apocalyptic mutants. And I appreciate that they didn't shy away from showing the dead, two-headed Jerry's kid(s). "The Time Machine and The Shmoe" might have been more entertaining in MAD. It was a letdown for a WF story. "Deadlock!" was my favorite in this issue, thanks to the fine art of Wally Wood, and the return of our favorite alien languages. Squa Trunt, everyone! While "Prediction of Disaster!" ends well, it is otherwise completely forgettable.
Kurtzman |
"War Story!" ★★ 1/2
Story by Harvey Kurtzman
Art by John Severin and Will Elder
"Jivaro Death!" ★★★ 1/2
Story and Art by Harvey Kurtzman
"Flight from Danger!" ★ 1/2
Story and Art by Johnny Craig
"Brutal Capt. Bull!" ★★★
Story by Harvey Kurtzman
Art by Wally Wood
Slick Charlie is a smooth customer and a savvy criminal to boot. Even when he’s held up after killing a bodyguard’s charge and stealing the dead man’s credentials, Charlie’s got something up his sleeve. Or rather, his cohort Garcia does, who makes short work of the bodyguard with a flip of his trusty dagger. The partners take their stolen credentials and enter the city on Manaos on the Amazon coast, posing as two delegates from an American diamond company. They leave the South American facility with a cool half million in jewels, but instead of boarding the ship back to the States the crooks chill in a local tavern where Garcia, sensing a double-cross, goes for his knife but gets it stuck in his own ribs when Charlie’s secret partner Smitty intercepts at the last minute. The duo leaves the tavern and cannily plans to cut a meandering path through the untamed jungle to throw the authorities off their tails. There’s only one snag in their scheme: their path cuts straight through Jivaro territory, and Smitty explains that the tribe is infamous for prolonged torture and shrinking heads. And who should our heroes meet immediately afterward? Charlie and Smitty are easily overpowered, and later Charlie listens as his partner’s pained cries carry on for hours. But Charlie’s always got something planned. Telling the tribe’s translator that he’s an all-powerful god whose impervious skin will destroy any weapon that touches it, Charlie is brought to the chopping block and, at his request, is given a quick whack of the machete upon his neck. The tribe is pissed by the treachery and Charlie’s grinning shrunken head is the final affirmation of his victory.
"Jivaro Death" |
“War Story” has a climax that’s just as grim. A hardened sergeant relates a tale from his past to a young rookie facing death on the Korean battlefield for the first time, a WWII fable where a sadistic troop accidentally knifed his own twin brother to death after thinking he was ambushing a wounded Japanese general in the medical tent. Severin has some striking layouts, and though I couldn’t quite get myself into the story’s groove on the first read it becomes more impressive upon reflection.
Oh, brother ("Flight from Danger") |
Picking up the slack is the utterly fun “Brutal Capt. Bull!”, a salty seafaring adventure if there ever was one. Peter might be laughing over how much of a “masculine romp” the story really is, but I think Wood’s art packs as much of a brawny punch here as anything we’ve seen from him. This is another instance where I was actually surprised by the turn of events, suspecting that shanghaied do-gooder Jeremiah Pringle would offer his other cheek—the one on his face, Peter—in a show of good faith to the cruel Captain Bull after saving the tyrant from a marauding cannon, but Pringle proceeded to show Bull that they don’t call this rag Two-Fisted Tales fer nuthin’! You can see Kurtzman’s comedic side showing through in the climax that finds Pringle beating some sense into Bull, the ubiquitous “THUDS!” and “WHACKS!” following them throughout their struggle across the ship and ending with the captain’s face getting punched through a window. Arrgh! - Jose
"Brutal Capt. Bull!" |
Whereas most of the war comics being published in 1950 were of the "War is, yes, a Nuisance" variety, ignoring the mental anguish and immoral acts on all sides, and heavily accenting the "America the Beautiful" mantra, you really get the sense, sixty years on, that EC war comics were written by scribes who didn't buy into the notion that war is essential. First up in that history lesson is Harvey Kurtzman's "War Story," which deftly blends conflict and crime, climaxing with a dialogue-free panel of exposition that says more than a hundred words in a caption box. This is the first we've seen of John Severin and I'm looking forward to more. My story for the month is "Jivaro Death," again by Harvey (who is fast becoming my favorite EC bullpenner) with that old chestnut, the jungle expedition populated by greedy cutthroats. Can someone out there name me a funny book story that has a more unrelentingly grim finale?
"War Story" |
"Flight from Danger" |
“Jivaro Death!” has a clever twist and Kurtzman’s expressionistic art is growing on me just as it is on Jose and Peter. I always thought of him as the “Little Annie Fanny” artist but we’re seeing that there was much more going on with Harvey. Craig’s “Flight From Danger!” is a straightforward yarn with lovely art, though we’ve come to expect a twist ending and it’s a surprise when one doesn’t appear. Wood wrings all he can out of “Brutal Capt. Bull!” and makes it more entertaining than it probably should be.
John: Two issues in, and I'm getting the sense that Two-Fisted Tales may just not be for me. “War Story!” has a powerful climax, but was otherwise nothing special. I found Kurtzman's art to be particularly unappealing in "Jivaro Death!" While "Flight from Danger!" benefits from great Johnny Craig art, it has little else to offer readers. And “Brutal Capt. Bull!” is also nothing particularly special. Maybe I had better stick with the horror and Sci-Fi/Fantasy books.
"War Story" |
Feldstein |
"Made of the Future"★★★
Story and Art by Al Feldstein
"Return"★★★
Story by Al Feldstein
Art by Wally Wood
"The Last War on Earth"★★★
Story and Art by Harvey Kurtzman
"The Man Who Was Killed in Time!"★★
Story by Al Feldsetin
Art by Jack Kamen
Sign us up! |
“Return” finds Earthmen and women coming back to the planet they abandoned 500,000 years before to find that nothing has changed. In “The Last War on Earth,” Kurtzman anticipates Watchmen by a few decades when a scientist figures that the best way to unite the people of Earth is to fake an attack by Martians. Finally, there is another Kamen story. ‘Nuff said. -Jack
Peter: "The Man Who Was Killed In Time" (or just plain "Killed in Time" according to some sources) takes the time travel gimmick that, so far, the EC writers had been aces on and pushes it just a bit too far. It's got a hokey premise (even for a science fiction story) and any story that needs a final page diagram to explain the contrived plot to the reader probably isn't worth publishing in the first place. "Made of the Future" doesn't fare much better but at least there are no Step A - Step C charts; Al seems to take his time setting up the plot and then squeezes a whole lot of story into the final page. "Return" has wonderful Wood art but a predictable twist. Hell, who cares? It's got wonderful Wood art! Leaving Best Story of the Issue honors to Harvey Kurtzman's "The Last War on Earth" which, like most of Kurtzman's mini-essays so far, simultaneously tugs at your funny bone and makes you realize that either Harvey was a seer or politics and human nature really haven't changed much in sixty years. Probably six of one and half dozen of t'other.
Now we get it! |
John: I liked the premise of stumbling upon a time-travel tour group, as well as the 'Construct-A-Wife' kit, but felt both were wasted in the uninspired "Made of the Future." Fortunately, since EC has already demonstrated a willingness to rehash old plots, perhaps we'll see these used more effectively in the future. When I saw the Flash Gordon headgear, I was hoping "Return" was going to be a classic Wally Wood space-jockey adventure. While it's a decent story, most of it takes place in contemporary times via flashback. "The Last War on Earth" is a great story, but I still have trouble warming up to Kurtzman's artwork. I also thought "The Man Who Was Killed in Time!" was a fun if predictable time-travel tale, but I honestly can't believe they felt they needed a diagram to explain it. A good rule of thumb: if you have to explain the punchline, it's probably not a very funny joke...
Next Week! Sgt Rock vs...... The Vikings? |
Even though I've hardly ever read a thing by him, I can recognize the inspiration for "Jivaro Death" as a short story by Jack London called "Lost Face." The main difference is that that story was about Russian (?) pirates and Alaskan Indians or Eskimos who'd captured them.
ReplyDeleteGood catch, Grant! Another example of "creative borrowing" by the EC staff.
ReplyDelete