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Weird Science-Fantasy
After 22 issues of Weird Science and 22 issues of Weird Fantasy, Bill Gaines decided to combine the two titles into a single comic book named Weird Science-Fantasy starting with issue #23.
EC Classics #7 includes the eight stories that were published in issues #23 (March 1954) and #24 (June 1954). Stories were written by Al Feldstein and artwork was by Wallace Wood, Al Williamson, Joe Orlando and Bernie Krigstein
CONTENTS
The Children (art by Wally Wood)
Fish Story (art by Al Williamson)
The Flying Machine (art by Bernard Krigstein)
Fair Trade (art by Joe Orlando)
...For Posterity (art by Wally Wood)
The Teacher From Mars (art by Joe Orlando)
The Pioneer (art by Bernard Krigstein)
Upheaval! (art by Al Williamson)
EC Classics #7 includes the eight stories that were published in issues #23 (March 1954) and #24 (June 1954). Stories were written by Al Feldstein and artwork was by Wallace Wood, Al Williamson, Joe Orlando and Bernie Krigstein
CONTENTS
The Children (art by Wally Wood)
Fish Story (art by Al Williamson)
The Flying Machine (art by Bernard Krigstein)
Fair Trade (art by Joe Orlando)
...For Posterity (art by Wally Wood)
The Teacher From Mars (art by Joe Orlando)
The Pioneer (art by Bernard Krigstein)
Upheaval! (art by Al Williamson)
- GenresComics
56 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1986
12 people want to read
About the author
Al Feldstein
368 books48 followersAlbert Bernard Feldstein was an American writer, editor, and artist, best known for his work at EC Comics and, from 1956 to 1985, as the editor of the satirical magazine Mad. After retiring from Mad, Feldstein concentrated on American paintings of Western wildlife.
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
February 7, 2019
As I noted in my reviews of previous EC classics (Weird Science & Weird Fantasy) I'm not a very big fan of science fiction, when it comes right down to it, but as I had just finished up reading my box set of The Complete Shock Suspenstories, I figured I would do quick reads of my set of these EC Classics collections (Russ Cochran's next attempt to get the EC material back in front of the public, this time in color - which turns out to be problematic on brighter paper and with highly detailed artwork like Wood's or the feathery touch of Al Williamson, although it works a treat with Jack Kamen's style). Here, we get some samplings from WEIRD-SCIENCE FANTASY (a combination of the two preceding titles due to failing sales - and eventually further changed to INCREDIBLE SCIENCE-FICTION). And away we go...
As with WEIRD SCIENCE & WEIRD FANTASY, you get a nice combination of classic EC twist stories and thoughtful sf of the time. The former include the somewhat weak "Upheaval!" (which starts on a good note - weary space travelers from Earth convinced that the universe seems to contain nothing but inferior life - but when they land on an enormous "living planet"...) and "Fish Story" (Earth spaceship to a water-filled planet is hijacked by the inhabitants who then head back to Earth intending to conquer, and save their race, but things don't work out as planned. Again, neat starting detail - that beings who evolved in a liquid medium consider it to be their "atmosphere" - but a laughing trombone ending). "For Posterity," meanwhile, has two uranium prospectors, kidnapped to an "alien" world filled only with beautiful women, to help repopulate it. It's a non-twist "twist" story, interesting more for what it says about the American male psyche of the time.
"The Children" is also a "twist" story - but one that works out mid-century fears about the future and atomic mutation, as space-pioneers settling a new planet find that their governing body refuses to let the women keep any of their children after birth. Interesting for the resonances. Eando Binder's "The Teacher From Mars" is an obvious, but well-intentioned (and well-illustrated by Joe Orlando) story about racism, using Martians as stand-ins. Similarly, "The Pioneer" (about the easily-upset man who invents the first engine allowing space travel) is to be lauded for its surprise combination of two different genres - this far along you may know where it's going, but it still does a very nice, subtle job getting there. These two ("Pioneer" and "Teacher" seem almost like SF attempts at SHOCK-SUSPENSTORIES material. "Fair Trade" (in which a member of a primitive tribe journeys into the taboo ruins and meets the gods) was a fortuitous read for me, as I had just recently re-read Stephen Vincent Benét's "By The Waters Of Babylon" (aka "The Place of the Gods") - which this uses as a springboard for a bit of obvious - but not unprofitable - elaboration. Finally (in a nice use of the "science fantasy" remit) Bernie Krigstein turns in some nice asian-styled artwork on an adaptation of Ray Bradbury's old-China fable "The Flying Machine" - all about that old saw that "pioneers get scalped." Good stuff.
As with WEIRD SCIENCE & WEIRD FANTASY, you get a nice combination of classic EC twist stories and thoughtful sf of the time. The former include the somewhat weak "Upheaval!" (which starts on a good note - weary space travelers from Earth convinced that the universe seems to contain nothing but inferior life - but when they land on an enormous "living planet"...) and "Fish Story" (Earth spaceship to a water-filled planet is hijacked by the inhabitants who then head back to Earth intending to conquer, and save their race, but things don't work out as planned. Again, neat starting detail - that beings who evolved in a liquid medium consider it to be their "atmosphere" - but a laughing trombone ending). "For Posterity," meanwhile, has two uranium prospectors, kidnapped to an "alien" world filled only with beautiful women, to help repopulate it. It's a non-twist "twist" story, interesting more for what it says about the American male psyche of the time.
"The Children" is also a "twist" story - but one that works out mid-century fears about the future and atomic mutation, as space-pioneers settling a new planet find that their governing body refuses to let the women keep any of their children after birth. Interesting for the resonances. Eando Binder's "The Teacher From Mars" is an obvious, but well-intentioned (and well-illustrated by Joe Orlando) story about racism, using Martians as stand-ins. Similarly, "The Pioneer" (about the easily-upset man who invents the first engine allowing space travel) is to be lauded for its surprise combination of two different genres - this far along you may know where it's going, but it still does a very nice, subtle job getting there. These two ("Pioneer" and "Teacher" seem almost like SF attempts at SHOCK-SUSPENSTORIES material. "Fair Trade" (in which a member of a primitive tribe journeys into the taboo ruins and meets the gods) was a fortuitous read for me, as I had just recently re-read Stephen Vincent Benét's "By The Waters Of Babylon" (aka "The Place of the Gods") - which this uses as a springboard for a bit of obvious - but not unprofitable - elaboration. Finally (in a nice use of the "science fantasy" remit) Bernie Krigstein turns in some nice asian-styled artwork on an adaptation of Ray Bradbury's old-China fable "The Flying Machine" - all about that old saw that "pioneers get scalped." Good stuff.
Displaying 1 of 1 review