Is everyone enjoying these Atlas Suspense stories? I guess it had been a while since we had ourselves an Atlas Fest around here, and you guys definitely let me know it! And we have a few more to go, including one starring this glamour puss who thinks she's the be all / end all in beauty! Boy, does she ever have a thing or two to learn... from the October 1952 issue of Suspense #23, and featuring some real nice art from Syd Shores.
Hero Monday already again? Yep, and this time it's Frank Borth's lovely Diane Grayton donning the hideous witch mask and turning into her horrific alter hag persona, --The Spider Widow! Definitely an odd change-up from the usual comic book plain Jane who transforms herself into a gorgeous goddess to fight evil, and here The Spider Widow battles a vicious head chopper / shrinker in what would turn out to unfortunately be her final comic book appearance ever. A real shame because a creepy cutie like this (and illustrated by Rudy Palais, no less!) would've really slayed the masses in the pre-code horror boom creeping closer and closer less than a mere decade away. From the October 1943 issue of Feature Comics #72, and be sure to get your socks knocked off again as SW battles the yellow menace in a bondage bonanza, leg show-a-rama over at AEET HERE! That's right, --double feature Spider Widow!
We ended last month with a Tale of Terror, so lets keep it rollin' into December with a deadly double feature from the Golden Age of Charlton comics! And like our last entry, both of these are also illustrated by the wonderfully low-fi hand of Alan Mandel (god, even his signature feels childish, haha...) and we get yet another weirdly wishful variation of the 'ol tragic Monkey's Paw tale, from the February 1946 issue of Yellowjacket Comics #8. And after that, it's time to endure the selfish shenanigans of a thievin' group of brutal bastards, via the April 1946 issue of Yellowjacket Comics #9. Yes, my fellow fiends, --"The Old Witch" strikes again!
Boy, if you thought the supernatural end game motivations of our last story were unfocused and lacked definition, wait'll you get a load of this one! A fine example of Iger Shop art and unintentionally hilarious dialog, as THOIA's February Freak-A-Thon shifts gears a bit again into even more bonkers bridal terror-tory! From the July 1952 issue of Voodoo #2.
If you've been paying attention, the last three story posts have all been from the June 1954 issue of Dark Mysteries #18, and todays A.C. Hollingsworth illustrated tale is no different. In fact, it's been a while since we've had a full issue presentation around here, so let's finish up this 4 course banquet of cut-up corpses, vampire creeps, and (now) cannibalistic brutality! We even have a great Hy Fleishman cover! Hope everyone had a terrific time with this one, maybe we'll do another in Dec!
Ending out the month of September 2022 with a lurid Al Luster jungle jitter Atlas classic, from the September 1953 issue of Spellbound #17. Lots of great leering faces and terrible pointed teeth always populate a Luster tale, and let's see how the great white hunters fair in today's story, though what they're hunting for this time isn't exactly what you'd expect...
