After the last couple of lighthearted horror romps, it's definitely time for something a wee bit more ugly and mean-spirited. Enter the January 1953 issue of Lawbreakers Suspense Stories #10, with Lou Morales illustrating a nicely compact sickie quickie where the moral of the story has definitely got something to do with maybe taking some damn swimming lessons, already! Also, a B/W, half-page filler tale about a gun, and yes, both are from the same great issue...
4 comments:
The thing that makes the mean-spirited ones tick is how many panels they spend on the murder; here we get nearly a whole page, and during that time, the victim needs to be alive, unbelieving, and begging.
I like how Jem is balding, pencil thin, and kind of oily looking, and Eliane is a beauty. This also goes a way into the deck stacking as he doesn't deserve her, which makes the murder more horrendous.
I'm not a big fan of the last page, though, I would have at least pre-shown the blade or shown the rope hitting the blade, the ending loses a bit of it's impact because of that.
I'd like to look up "the devils gun" but didn't find any real information on said gun.
This tale, due to its age and less than ideal printing, gives it the feel of a grimy crime tale found in some of the more lurid pulp magazines of the fifties.
Both the killer and victim ended up as Darwin Award winners since the number one rule of boating is if you can't swim, wear a life vest at all times!
Jem lashing at the water with the rope is hilariously reminiscent of Basil Fawlty giving his car "a damn good thrashing".
I don't know. Pretty sure if I'm holding onto a rope when it snags on something that threatens to jerk me off my feet, well, I'll just let go pretty quick. I mean, I haven't practiced it or anything, I just have faith that's what I'd do under the circumstances. I'm slick like that. Jem on the other hand... well, I guess his fish-cleaned skeleton is still grasping the end of that rope on the bottom of the ocean. To each their own, I guess.
I'd like to see a six page comic story made out of that haunted gun quickie, though. That's a pretty great idea.
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