From the April 1952 issue of Chamber of Chills Magazine #7.
Wednesday, January 31, 2018
The Seal of Satan
You only have to see the word "Satan" in a title to know how this one's going to turn out for some poor schmuck-- but of course half the fun is getting (down) there! It also helps to have a sizzling hot dose of sexy artwork from Stallman and Giunta! Where's that pen-- sign me up!
From the April 1952 issue of Chamber of Chills Magazine #7.
From the April 1952 issue of Chamber of Chills Magazine #7.
Our hero's real mistake was simply settling for breaking individuals on a one on one basis and then he's got to live with the guilt of their suicide. If he couldn't lose when he gambled, why didn't he just take the bundle from wiping out that slob casino owner who deserved to lose everything, and then go gamble on the stock market or the commodities and make himself the richest man in the world? Oh yeah, I forgot, this is a story where the devil wears a top hat. What am I thinking about trying to apply common sense? hehe
ReplyDeleteSeriously-Flash honestly thought that by burning up his contract, he could beat the Devil? It's NEVER THAT easy!
ReplyDeleteVery entertaining.
ReplyDeleteI think the art is the real winner here. I like how Satan -- and then later Kit -- have elongated faces. It's a clever way to leave them human but also otherworldly looking.
A bunch of great panels, especially on the last two pages, and surprisingly excellent coloring.
I actually think Satan/Kit is hotter than regular Kit :)
So Satan is a mix of Mr. Crime from Crime does Not Pay, 1960's Sinestro, and the intelligence of The Leader, The Incredible Hulk's foe- this poor shlub had no chance.
ReplyDeleteOn the last page Kit reminds me of a femme fatale but I can't think of who right just now. Maybe the name will come to me later on.
Moral, if there is one, you can't cheat a cheater, and you can't win a bet against the granddaddy of gamblers.
All I can really do is chime-in about the art. I love the deceptively simple work, especially all of page four (though, for some reason, the last panel on page two is my favorite). This guy's attention to clothing and character detail is excellent, but isn't as rare as his ability with environment and setting. Speaking of that, I'm quite fond of the Weimar expressionism hellscape on page six, complete with origami bat! And the colors are extraordinary, walking just the right line between representational and field abstraction. I love how the panel colors get darker and darker only to pop for the final-page reveal. That's real strategy at work right there.
ReplyDeleteBut I must tut over the disappointing splash. I mean, illustration shortcuts are an appropriate choice for small interior panels, but you kinda have to draw what you want to depict in that huge first panel. Those poker chips are just lazy.
I think this has been mentioned before, but I wonder how the '50's standard Devil-look came to be.
ReplyDelete"On the last page, Kit reminds me of a femme fatale but I can't think of"
My first though, JMR777, was Vampira, though I know this pre-dates her.
After doing a casual search on the internet, it appears that Kit as she appears on the last page has a close appearance to either-
ReplyDelete-Harley Quinn as drawn in the comic version of Suicide Squad,
-or is possibly a distant family member of Karswell (and if Karswell's family is anything like mine, keeping one's distance from relatives is the only way to save your sanity)
Any other ideas of who Kit appears to be?
Haha
Delete'keeping one's distance from relatives is the only way to save your sanity'
ReplyDeleteToo true! I have "You can choose your friends, but not your relatives" on a t-shirt.
"Flash" Crandall seems like a much less awful answer to "Stud" Kelton in "Death Pact." No matter how callous he is about one of them, he doesn't deliberately cause the suicides, and at least one reason he doesn't quit gambling is because he's sure it won't do any good at this point. In spite of the suicides, I was hoping for a happier ending for him.
ReplyDeleteAnd that puts a seal on January 2018 posts-- thanks for the comments! Lots more on the way in February so STAY TOMBED!!
ReplyDelete