Why Golden Age Rules !!!

[General Zod]

I have seen it all and never understood the gruesome stuff. The Night of the Living Dead and worse stuff. Never appealed to me. Give me a superhero that saves a damsel in distress, and I am satisfied with my comic book. The video games. The movies. The comic books nowadays and in past days that contain beheadings, cut off limbs and stuff, appeal to a certain animalistic side of many humans. Like rubber necking looking at an accident on the highway. I never look at accidents on the highway if emergency personal are there or close to being there. Slasher movies with Freddy, Jason and the like. They all do nothing for me although I have to admit I do like the parts where the nicely endowed girls are running around in their underwear.

 

I can not believe how popular Zombie stuff is in comic books. How rediculous the characters look with bodies walking around that are not even connected. How does one speak without vocal chords? Eat without stomachs? See without eyeballs? For those that collect this Zombie stuff, I do not expect it to last long. Where is the long term collectability in it? The old EC stuff at least had SOME semblance of stucture. Monster and mad scientist stuff had some credibility based in science or mythocal fiction. But Zombies? There are some that actually believe in them I know. But they are uneducated backward peoples, or they are making money off of that kind, by producing counter spells to ward off the bad zombies and such.

 

I watched a movie called something about Wrong Turn, or whatever. Talk about dumb. People running around in trees a hundred feet high, hiding from monster looking slasher hillbillies that collect body parts for, well, for no reason really. They get a really really good looking girl and they want to cut her arms off and put her spleen in a jar???????????????

 

No. I just don't get it. Give me something like "The good, the bad and the ugly". Or even Batman 1, and I'm good to go. I even liked "Pitch Black". But The Blair Witch thing. Jason and Halloween, or Nightmare on Elm street, all leave me sick to my eyes.

 

I did watch a lot of this stuff though, because I had a female friend that was "into it", and you know what us guys will put up with in that endeavor. She liked to visit graveyards and "do it" inside those large walk in crypts.

 

Lucky for me, I ain't scared of the dark, nor of Zombies.

 

From my POV, it is all about indulging in fantasy that's stepping outside of conventional reality. I need a break from everyday life now and then, and zombie killing, apocalyptic futures and dark fiction feeds the yin-yang of my soul. I could have chosen to name myself after a superhero, but I find villains far more interesting because of their flaws and sometimes ability to think outside the box of the norm for societal rules.

[conditionfreak]

Okay. But as most comic books nowadays make the point of, hero's and common everyday people also have flaws and can think out of the box.

 

Creepy guys, mad scientists, and gruesome ghouls don't have any more flaws than anyone else. Just just give in to those flaws and the rest of us fight against our flaws and try to not let our dark sides control our actions.

 

Eh, to each his own.

 

I just like being the guy wearing the white hat and helping someone. If I daydream or escape real life for a few minutes (rarely if ever happens), I am sure it will have something to do with being an NBA star, a billionaire and traveling the world giving money away to those worthy, or more likely something to do with good looking females (plurallity intentional).

 

It won't be excaping to something gruesome. No matter how often I just want to choke the out of some spoon.

 

My yang must be broken. I guess I only have a ying (that could cause me problems with those girl fantasies)

[MrBedrock]

Well, when's the last time a comic won a Pulitzer?

 

Maus, in 1992.

 

As a Preacher and Hellblazer fan, I ain't arguing, though.

 

 

Gaaah! I should've Googled first!

Two of the recent Pulitzers for fiction went to novels in which comics and/or fandom played an integral part - The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay by Michael Chabon (2001) and The Brief Wonderous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Diaz (2008).

 

Kavalier and Clay was a great read, and sort of required reading for GA fans here. Didn't realize it won a Pulitzer, though...

As good as Kavalier and Clay was, Oscar Wao may be better. It starts off with a huge reference to the Fantastic Four v. Galactus and continues right through the entire geek fandoy compendium, all while telling this horrendous story of tragedy for one Dominican family. Amazing stuff...

[G.A.tor]

never read either, but will now!

[RockMyAmadeus]

This was great. More bizzare than this to my memory was when D.l.C.K TRACY was after the BROW.

The BROW leaps from a window and lands on a flagpole.

The weight of his body impales him on the flagpole, and he slides down the pole to the ground.

The next day (monday) shows the police standing at the flagpole trying to decide how they want to remove the body.

 

They decide to pull up the flagpole to get the body off.

 

Was the Brow's first name "Kenny"....?

[Senormac]

I kinda think like you conditionfreak.......I don't care for gore.....zombies...or horror......and I want the good guy to win.....and I want the bad guy to die. Nuff said.

 

 

[Senormac]

Going back to the first post about Police Comics, how about the story that first made me see what a genius Jack Cole was.

 

From Police Comics 22, reprinted in Plastic Man Archives Volume 2,

a story called "The Eyes Have It!"

 

Cole changes his style effortlessly between light-hearted slapstick and very dark within this one story.

 

As well as being blown away by how talented the guy was, I also thought that this work was psychologically disturbing and not really for kids at all. Classic Golden Age pre-Code material from one of my favourite creators of that period.

 

You are my friend

[comicparadox]

Going back to the first post about Police Comics, how about the story that first made me see what a genius Jack Cole was...how talented the guy was, I also thought that this work was psychologically disturbing and not really for kids at all.

There is an amazing Jack Cole/Plastic Man book that Chip Kidd did - Cole was a tragic genius. He was the first Art Director for Hefner's Playboy, sadly he took his own life.

[Senormac]

Going back to the first post about Police Comics, how about the story that first made me see what a genius Jack Cole was...how talented the guy was, I also thought that this work was psychologically disturbing and not really for kids at all.

There is an amazing Jack Cole/Plastic Man book that Chip Kidd did - Cole was a tragic genius. He was the first Art Director for Hefner's Playboy, sadly he took his own life.

 

Yea....I have that book. Jack's story truely is a sad one.....cuz he was such a genius. I'm not sure, but I think Jack had a background in the Christian faith.....and understood, or was at least taught basic Bible doctrine as a child.........

something about him working for Hef......pushed him over the edge......and I would'nt be surprised if it was some kind of a GUILT associated with adultery. I mean....he was a married man working for Hugh Hefner..........Thats a tuff row to hoe!!

 

I always think......especially when I go to San Diego......If he were only alive today.....he would be revered as one of the GREAT ONES !!!!

[40sJohn]

I kinda think like you conditionfreak.......I don't care for gore.....zombies...or horror......and I want the good guy to win.....and I want the bad guy to die. Nuff said.

 

 

 

Agree with that Senormac and with your orginial post in this thread! However, I do make exceptions for EC's and DC Bronze Horror...

[shiverbones]

I have been interested in Horror for as long as I can remember. I like it all, but I prefer well done "creepy as hell" atmosphere & suspense. My interest in Gory Pre Code horror is mainly because it BLOWS MY MIND that this material existed in the early 50's, and anyone could read it. There was no "Visual" gore in ANY popular media until comic books. I find it historically fascinating that modern culture's first exposure to this type of visual material was comics. It blows my mind that this sort of cover...

 

 

Was sitting there on the news stands, and I can not Imagine how shocking it truly must have been. It's everywhere now, and we have become immune to it's shock, but I love looking at this material in it's historical context. For that , the more gore, the better, because it's just that much more unbelievable that this is what was in comic books at the time.

[40sJohn]

Wow, what a cover - eye gouging has to be the worst!vv

 

I have to agree with your well stated sentiment on the complete wonder of pre-code horror - especially in a historical context. I am still amazed at what was widely available to kids in the 40's and early '50s with these gruesome covers.

 

 

 

 

[shiverbones]

Another "Eyeball cover" which is more weird than gruesome, but still very surreal & disturbing.

 

[october]

That thing cover has always legitimately creeped me out.

 

Since we are showing covers....OCULAR DISTRESS!!

 

[october]

But Zombies? There are some that actually believe in them I know. But they are uneducated backward peoples, or they are making money off of that kind, by producing counter spells to ward off the bad zombies and such.

 

Read The Serpent and the Rainbow, an interesting account of "true" Haitian zombification. There is at least some factual basis for zombies, who apparently were living humans drugged by a mixture containing the poison Tetrodotoxin, buried alive, dug up and subsequently enslaved. Not exactly the comic book, limbs hanging by a thread undead version, but not 100% fantasy either.

[RockMyAmadeus]

 

 

.

 

Freud would have a FIELD day with this cover.

 

The artist must have REALLY had issues with women.....

 

The symbolism is stunning. I wonder if the artist was aware of it when he was drawing it....

[shiverbones]

I know, that is why I always use this cover as an example of the most extreme these covers can get. It's more than the visual violence, it's all of the psychological weight too.

[Senormac]

What I wanna know is........did that bird lady get the electric chair in the end of th story, or did she get away with it?