A trio of Kirby/Ayers 7-pagers reprinted in this issue, giving a nice sample of the range of monsters that rampaged through the pre-hero Marvel line.

Opening up is “I Created Sporr, The Thing That Could Not Die” from TALES OF SUSPENSE #11 [1960], which also provides the Kirby/Ayers cover for this issue. A scientist buys the castle supposedly owned by Doctor Frankenstein in Transylvania (I think someone was mixing their movie monsters there), planning some experiments on growth rays to cure world hunger. Unfortunately, just as he tries his first experiment on an amoeba, the superstitious villagers burst in and take him away, leading the amoeba to grow uncontrollably. Oddly, this was foretold in a local legend about Sporr. Our hero manages to break out of prison, rescue a young boy on crutches and then use his scientific know-how to lure Sporr into some quicksand. Everybody learns their lesson.

These 7-pagers are sometimes a bit unsatisfying in story terms, too quick to really get more than a sketch of events. Still gorgeous, though, and the cover and title page of this story are particular favourites among the Kirby/Ayers stuff, and Sporr’s a great little creature causing havoc on the eastern European landscape.

Next up is “I Am Dragoom! The Flaming Invader” from STRANGE TALES #76 [1960], and from an organic monster we now move to flames. Despite the title, this story is told by sci-fi/horror movie maker Victor Cartwright, who gets no respect, but a great deal of money, for his craft. That all changes when Dragoom, a flaming invader escaped from prison on the planet Vulcan comes to Earth to conquer. Mankind quickly falls to the threat of a ring of flames around the planet, until suddenly Dragoom gets word of some of his fellow creatures, police from Vulcan, arriving on Earth, and flees in fear. All special effects wizardry from Victor, of course.

This one works pretty well. Dragoom’s not that noteworthy, although the panel of him using a city block as a throne is really cool.

And finally, from STRANGE TALES #75 [1960] comes “Taboo! The Thing From the Murky Swamp”. An adventure writer heads down to the Amazon for some new ideas, and ignores local legends about a monster in a forbidden swamp. Never a good idea:

I love that last panel. Silent panels like that aren’t too common in these monster stories, making them all the more striking when they are used.

The creature reveals that it crashed in the swamp while journeying from a distant galaxy, and needed access to all human scientific knowledge to build a new spaceship. The United Nations agrees to this, foolishly as it turns out, since this was all a ruse by Taboo to gather intelligence for an invasion. Joke’s on him, as they planted an H-bomb on the device with the information. Just in case.

I do like that ending. Taboo’s okay, but the real highlight here is the amazon scenery.

I swear, Marvel’s reprint department in the 1970s, sometimes I just don’t know about them…

This issue reprints “Gorgilla Strikes Again” from TALES TO ASTONISH #18 [1961], the Kirby/Ayers sequel to the original Gorgilla story that had been then-recently reprinted in MONSTERS ON THE PROWL #9 [1971] (not “Where Monsters Prowl”, as the note on the splash page says). The story is pretty good, although not as good as the original Gorgilla story, where he got to fight dinosaurs. In this one, Gorgilla feels a kinship with the humans who had recently discovered him. For some reason this kinship doesn’t extend to the people in the port city he sneaks into, or even the people on the boat he hides out in. No, Gorgilla is holding out for his true family, the people of New York City.

On arriving in the city, like most tourists, Gorgilla is feared and hunted, but he remains oblivious to that, and takes in a Yankees game. Meanwhile, some communists decide to take advantage of the confusion and stage an elaborate attack on a visiting foreign leader. Fortunately, Gorgilla stumbles across their plan, and this somehow leads to him chasing the spy up the Statue of Liberty, where a blast from a bazooka downs him. Yeah, I’m not clear on all of it myself. It does look great though. Gorgilla at a baseball game? Beautiful.

One page is edited out somewhere, I’m sure the one that makes the whole thing logical, making this a 12-page story now.

The cover is where it really gets confusing. Originally, the cover to TtA #18 featured art from the splash page of the story. I guess that didn’t feel right in 1971, so of course they commissioned a new cover, right? Nope. They grabbed the Kirby/Ayers cover to TALES TO ASTONISH #24 [1961], featuring the Abominable Snowman. Who doesn’t look that much like Gorgilla, and the scene doesn’t make much sense for this story. And they re-letter a few bits. And to compound the confusion, even though Gorgilla is brown, and the Abominable Snowman is brown, on this cover they re-colour the character white. Someone actually sat down and made these decisions…

Published 1971

This issue introduces Klarion, the Witchboy, one of Etrigan’s most persistent foes over the years. The story opens with Etrigan encountering a “Judge” in puritan garb who is searching for Klarion, and attacks Etrigan with a monstrous Draaga, which makes for a great two page splash. Etrigan defeats the creature but is poisoned, and collapses as Klarion and his cat Teekl appear, showing some control over his transformations by changing him back to Jason Blood.

Various hijinks then ensue in Blood’s apartment, including an attack from a Horigal.

Klarion’s people eventually capture him to put on trial, so he summons Etrigan who is able to defeat them. Klarion tries to overstep himself by controlling Etrigan, which Merlin’s Demon wont stand for.

Fun little story with some weird plot logic, but great monster images, and obviously a lot of thought behind Klarion, only some of which made it onto the page in his few Kirby written appearances.

Mike Royer inks the 20-page story and cover.

Published 1973

Kirby concludes his three part story based on Frankenstein in this issue, as Etrigan destroys the lab of Baron von Evilstein, setting his experimental beasts free. Meanwhile, Randu and Harry manage to get the girl Janie, who has a psychic link with Evilstein’s monster, close to where the gentle creature is being tormented by a mob. Unfortunately Evilstein shows up and attacks, and the creature dies saving his only friend.

Etrigan of course takes the fight to Evilstein, and uses the Philosopher’s Stone against him.

I thought this storyline had a bit more potential than this final chapter realized, but I always do like the classic Kirby mis-understood beast archetype.

Mike Royer inks the cover and 20-page story.

Published 1973

Kirby drew the cover for this later issue of the Simon&Kirby edited title, as well as two 5-page stories. The shorter length stories generally aren’t my favourites, as they tend to be a bit sketchy in plotting, lacking any real characterization or resolution, although often having a few good images. This pair are typical examples.

First up is “An Eye for an Eye”, which is also the cover image (which pretty much gives away any surprise there was in the ending, although it wasn’t a great mystery. It is a great cover, though). A dying rich man, Roger Parris, refuses permission for his eyes to be transplanted to someone else after he dies, insisting he wouldn’t give up anything without getting full value in return.

After his death his assistant, Philip Stern, forges a note giving permission for the transplant, which the doctor quickly performs. When the police discover the forgery they try to find the assistant, only to find that he’s been moving from place to place, always vanishing shortly after a visit from a man in dark glasses before the police get there. Finally they police find the assistant with his eyes removed, and just catch a glimpse of the mysterious man, who looks like Roger Parris, except with Stern’s blue eyes (miscoloured brown in the last panel).

Obviously no real surprise in the quick ending, and the colouring mistake doesn’t help, but even with that the art does have some moments, none better than that creepy first panel.

Later in the issue is “Alive After Five Thousand Years”, a story about two archaeologists who find mummy in a cave, along with a sacrificial dagger and some scrolls that explain that the body is a man condemned for loving a princess (whose mummy was found the previous year and is in a museum in Cairo) and for stealing the Book of the Dead. The younger archaeologist ignores the warnings of his elder and reads the Book of the Dead scroll, bringing the mummy to life and driving the young man insane.

The police don’t believe the story, but eventually the mummy of the princess also vanishes from the museum, with the guard having been killed with the sacrificial dagger and a handprint identical to the one left by the original mummy’s hand left on the sarcophagus.

Mostly good moody artwork (although a few panels look a bit rushed or poorly inked), but the story does need a few more pages and more of a resolution than it had.

Published 1954