Monday, February 29, 2016

THE FURTHER SPACE ADVENTURES OF...CAPTAIN ATOM !!!



The Charlton Comics version, my personal favorite, of Captain Atom was Allen Adam. His origin story had Adam working as a technician in a special experimental rocket when it accidentally launched, with him trapped inside. He was atomized when the rocket exploded while entering the upper atmosphere. However, Adam somehow gained superpowers that included the ability to reform his body safely on the ground. He was outfitted in a red and yellow (blue in the first story) costume designed to shield people from the radiation of his nuclear powers. When he powered up, his hair changed to a silverish-white.

Stunning painted cover for Doctor Solar, Man of the Atom #1, was by famed paperback cover artists Richard Powers.
 

Captain Atom's powers were similar other nuclear-powered superheroes, such as Gold Key Comics' Doctor Solar, Man of the Atom & Dell Comics' Nukla (with Joe Gill scripts & Ditko cover & interior art on issue #4.)










Back cover for Space Adventures #34! Fondly remember these ads!
Space Adventures #34  Extra! The Further Adventures of...Capt. Atom"
Captain Atom image on the cover taken from page five, panels 1-2 of interior story.
"The 2nd Man in Space"
Captain Atom goes into space to check on the first Russian cosmonaut and finds himself helping save the Russian.
Written by Joe Gill with Steve Ditko art.
Captain Atom's uniform is yellow in the series for first time.  

From the mid sixties, Capt. Atom appeared in the last three issues of Strange Suspense Stories.

From the late seventies, Capt. Atom appeared in four issues of Space Adventures.
This issue's Captain Atom story was reprinted a couple of times in comic book format, prior to the nice hardcover treatment from DC Comics. First in Strange Suspense Stories #75 & then in Space Adventures #9, as pictured above.  

The slipcover for the DC Comics Action Heroes Archives Volume 1 (of 2.)
The iconic emblem on the hardcover itself. 
Finally, all the Captain Atom stories were best reprinted, both cover and story in DC Comics Action Heroes Archives Volume One & Two. The Captain Atom story from Space Adventure #34 was published in the first volume, the original cover & story. Highly Recommended! 




Roy Thomas' Alter Ego #106 carried a great feature on the Action Heroes of Charlton Comics. Charlton editor Dick Giordano’s long and illustrious career, both at Charlton and DC Comics, is chronicled, accompanied by his art. If you can find it, you'll enjoy it!
 




Here's another long running comic book publication (in a newspaper format) covering the Charlton Action Heroes. Unfortunately Comics Buyers Guide is no longer published. 

The well respected logo for Charlton Comics!


 Live Large My Friends!

Thank You!
Captain Atom was created by writer Joe Gill and legendary artist & writer Steve Ditko!
Personal Data on Captain Atom from DC Comics Who's Who series.




Friday, February 26, 2016

LURED OUT OF WATER -- THE SEAVIEW IS AN OPEN TARGET !!!


The first season of Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea began with Admiral Nelson and the crew of the Seaview fighting against a foreign government in order to prevent a world-threatening earthquake, continuing with a foreign government destroying American submarines with new technologies. This season also had several stories in which the Seaview crew spent the episode dealing with the perils of the open sea. 

Ad for the limited edition DVD of the first season in the UK.

The season also introduced the diving bell and a mini-submarine, as well as the first alien and sea monsters stories. The season ended with the Seaview crew fighting a foreign government to save a defense weapon.

Unfortunately, this feature is not included in the issue #16 reprint or the Hermes Press book.
 










Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea #6  Land-locked, the Seaview becomes an open target as it battles its way to water!
"The Overland Trail"
It's life and death race for the Seaview across land! Admiral Nelson has 48 hours to carry out the secret commands of his sealed orders. 
Art by Alberto Giolitti & Giorgio Cambiotti. 
Begins the Explorers in the Unknown back up stories, running through issue #15. It is about the adventures of the spaceship Hunter I, very much a precursor to Star Trek
Written by Dick Wood with artwork by Giolitti (Star Trek) Studios, Nevio (Star Trek) Zaccara & Jose Delbo (on the last story.) 

"The Overland Trail Part II"
Clearly lured into an inland trap, the crew of the Seaview find themselves under fire! 
Pin-up painted back cover.

Note that the reprint issue shown here, issue #16 came in priced at 15 cents.
This issue was the last issue to complete Volume One of the Hermes Press Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea" The Complete Series. Volume Two completed reprinting the rest of the Gold Key comic book series. 





Nice splash page of the Seaview!

This feature is not included in the #16 reprint issue or the Hermes book.
There's no pin-up on the reprint in Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea #16, or the Hermes book, unsure what page was left out of issue #16 though. Too bad, I enjoyed seeing the art without the logo and print on the Gold Key pin-ups.
"The Overland Trail" story has been reprinted in Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea #16 (minus one page & pin-up back cover) and the Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea: The Complete Series Volume One.  

The cover of the Netherlands edition.

First Explorers in the Unknown story featured Giolitti Studios artwork.
You can read more about the Explorers of the Unknown in a previous blog of mine:
http://beachbumcomics.blogspot.com/2014/10/the-most-awesome-adventures-ever-known.html
(Highlight the address, right click and select open link.)

The pilot episode (on disc one) was show on the DVD edition in color, as opposed to black and white on television.
In the first season, the gritty, atmospheric, and intense series featured story lines devoted to Cold War themes, as well as excursions into near-future speculative fiction. While aliens and sea monsters, not to mention dinosaurs, did become the subject of episodes, the primary villains were hostile foreign governments. While fantastic, there was a semblance of reality in the scripts.

That is one sweet logo!
The first season opening credits depicted Seaview rising towards the surface, and the closing credits played out over a still of the Seaview's spectacular arctic surface, as featured at the start of the original motion picture.


If you are so inclined, noted author Alan Caillou wrote a great action adventure novel, The Dead Sea Submarine, published by Pinnacle Books, with a similar scenario. The private army is on the march... against enemies plotting a third world war in the Middle East. Now comes the invincible Colonel Tobin with his hand-picked, hand-trained collection of the hardest, strongest, most efficient fighters in the world - men who live, work, fight, drink, and love like devils; an odd band of angels...and the best damn bunch since The Dirty Dozen! I would highly recommend it, especially if you like this issue of Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea. Now I need to dig out my copy!

Season One was split into two volumes on DVD.
Live Large My Friends!

Thank You!

The biggest stat of the show to me was the Seaview!