Fans of H.P. Lovecraft's style of modern man facing ancient evil in the form of tentacled terror might enjoy this crazy (and very very sweaty) Rudy Palais tale from the March 1953 issue of Chamber of Chills #16. Metallica fans, you can come on down too... "so let it be written, so let it be done."
This would have made a create 50s b-monster movie, right up there with "Them!"
ReplyDeleteThat said, I doubt submerging something that was very octopus like and indestructible is going to stop it in any manner, whatsoever. Sleep with one eye open, explorers!
Two Palais strangle panels in one story! It's a banquet of flop sweat!
This is a fun one. Love the b-monster things.
That last panel just begs to have a tentacle rising up behind the boat.
ReplyDeleteI'd definitely assumed the splash was taking place underwater--I mean, who expects a flying (six-armed) octopus? Or Palais to skimp on drawing the background for this story's roomiest panel? So the evidence of sweaty brows seemed really absurd to me, quite along the lines of self-parody. I see now that I'm mistaken, and I owe Rudy an apology. Alas.
ReplyDeleteI'm delighted to see the gouts of eyeball blood on that splash, too, of course (ignored by the colorist, likely on the orders of the editor). I think of blood and sweat as intrinsically Palais, but also kind of assumed the grue was a later development for the "anything goes" environment over at Eerie Pubs. Again, I was obviously mistaken.
I just love Rudy Palais' art, by the way. There's little as urgent and dynamic as the top three panels of page two--and that's just a couple of dudes having a chat. All this stuff is totally wonderful! I am really digging the weird the sound effects of the monster, too. ZZZZZZ and SWWWISSH. Is it flapping? Buzzing? Electric? This alien element is so effective.
This feels almost like "At The Mountains Of Madness" by Lovecraft, but with a single scientist and a lot of characters from a "Men's Adventure" magazine.
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