ShareThisBy ANDREW A. SMITH
Thursday, November 02, 2006
The best comic book coming out in October is 56 years old. Follow me now to those thrilling days of yesteryear ...
In 1950, a young man named Bill Gaines was unhappily running the comic-book company left to him by his father Max C. Gaines, who had died in an accident in 1947. With books like "Picture Stories From Science" and "Tiny Tot Comics," what William thought he had inherited, according to historian Grant Geissman, was "a line of comic-book titles that seemed as though they were in competition to see which one could lose the most money."
With nothing to lose, and at the urging of a talented staffer named Al Feldstein, Gaines tried some different genres _ horror, primarily, but also science fiction, crime, war and satire.
And began a revolution.
"Weird Science," "Tales From the Crypt," "Two-Fisted Tales," "Vault of Horror," "Weird Fantasy," "Mad" _ these books didn't ape other genres, they created or re-created them. Especially with the talented crew that Gaines hired, and then let run amok. Creators whose names became legends: Harvey Kurtzman, Johnny Craig, Graham Ingles, Wally Wood and Al Williamson, among them. And these men and their stories, in turn, made a legend of Bill Gaines's little company: EC Comics.
Naturally, all the other comic-book companies began aping EC. And, while EC's horror and crime stories were often gory, they were also extremely well-written and well-drawn _ almost admirable in their way, especially with the O. Henry twist at the end that usually carried moral retribution. Not so the imitators, whose stories were often irredeemable ... and all of it taken together stirred up a hornet's nest.
By the mid-'50s a nation already paranoid about Commies became terrified, too, of juvenile delinquency _ and was looking for a scapegoat. And Americans found an easy, almost laughably helpless target: the hapless comic book. So, after various bonfires, fiery sermons, alarming magazine articles and other attacks on the industry, the publishers created a "comics code" to protect themselves _ and to shut down EC Comics. The company was out of the funnybook business by 1956, an early death that only added luster to the legend.
And, no, EC Comics weren't perfect. And they were created more than 50 years ago, and undoubtedly have gotten a bit dated. But they inspired a generation of kids, the Baby Boom generation, whose own work as adults echoes EC Comics to this day.
Like "Tales from the Crypt," the TV show. And George Lucas, of "Star Wars" fame.
And it is Lucas, by no coincidence, who writes the foreword to this month's "EC Archives: Weird Science" Vol 1 ($49. 95, Gemstone Publishing), a gorgeous hardback collecting the first six issues of what is probably the most famous SF comic book of all time. Complete with letters pages and house ads, this reprint volume is just the first of many in a proposed EC Archives line that will show post-Boomers what the fuss was all about.
And all I can say is: It's about time! And space. And robots. And shrink rays. And BEMs. And ...
Elsewhere in October:
_ Based on the winner of the Sci Fi Channel reality show "Who Wants To Be A Superhero?", what will presumably be "Feedback" No. 1 ($3.50, Dark Horse) ships Oct. 4. It's written by comics legend Stan Lee, who hosted and judged the TV show. In a telephone interview, I asked Lee if he would use the real Matthew "Feedback" Atherton from the show, or whip up his own character:
"I created my own guy, but I based him on the real Feedback," Lee said. "So it's 50/50. I had to make a few changes in order to make him a typical comic-book super-hero, but I kept to the real Feedback as much as I could. It was a lot of fun."
_ Speaking of Lee, he writes himself into a conversation with two of his own creations this month, in "Stan Lee Meets Dr. Doom" and "Stan Lee Meets The Thing" ($3.99 each, Marvel Comics). Last month's "Stan Lee Meets Spider-Man" was amusing, and the package was rounded out well with reprints and back-up stories _ a lot of bang for your four bucks.
_ And two of Lee's characters make comebacks this month at Marvel. "Dr. Strange: The Oath" No. 1 (of 5, $2.99 each) returns the Master of the Mystic Arts to his own mini-series after too long an absence. And "The Irredeemable Ant-Man" No. 1 ($2.99) treats a superhero who shrinks and talks to ants with all the seriousness he deserves. Ahem.
(Contact Andrew Smith of the Memphis Commercial Appeal at capncomics(at)aol.com or visit www.captaincomics.us/forums.)
