As I’ve said before Smash! was my favourite comic as a kid, it had a wide variety of strips covering funnies, adventures and American superhero reprints. It also had TheManFromB.U.N.G.L.E., a full page adventure where the reader has to work out how our hero escapes this weeks predicament. Smash! wasn't as slick compared to many of its rivals like TVCentury21, but the odd slapdash layout and cheap newsprint paper wasn’t a problem... the comic had guts and edgy humour to compensate!
Here we concentrate on a issue of some significance - #43 dated 26 November 1966…
The Batman stories were from American Sunday newspaper strips rather than the DC comic stable. Batman was a huge hit on TV at the time so it was perfect for Smash's front cover. Here’s a few examples from its 28 pages...
One "tradition" in old British comics is kids being whacked on the backside, usually by dad or a teacher. Corporal punishment was of its time and was over-used as an moral ending in humour strips (if you’re naughty, then you pay the price). Charlie's Choice boasted excellent artwork by the late great Brian Lewis (of later HouseofHammer fame). And a typical spanking scene ensues…
The Rubberman was an adventure strip featuring a home-grown superhero. Art by Alfredo Marculeta…
By this issue, the Incredible Hulk reprints had used up the first six issues of his original mag and were now reprinting the material where he guest-starred in other comics. This is a reprint from Fantastic Four but edited to appear as a Hulk strip. Art by Jack Kirby but panels were resized to fit the larger British page size...
My favourite original British comic strip of all-time is The Legend Testers, and it appropriately appeared in Smash! Eerie stories, and fantastic art by Jordi Bernet, as our two time-travelling heroes, Rollo Stones and Danny Charters investigate artefacts to see if they are real or not. This series of adventures was exciting and pulsating entertainment…
What makes this issue particularly significant is the announcement on the “Marvel style” information page of the 'Power Comics' logo that would start appearing on the covers of Smash! and Wham! (and subsequent companion comics) from the following week. This symbol signified to prospective purchasers that they would be getting a “special” range of stories only available if the comic had the “Power Comics” symbol on it…terrific and fantastic marketing! There's also an announcement about Pow! weekly, which would be on the shelves in early 1967, and the advert for the first Smash! Annual is a nice bonus too…
And last, but certainly not least in terms of significance, is the final episode of Ken Reid's Queen of the Seas! A wonderful strip by a superb artist who is forever linked with the sublime Jonah strip from TheDandy…
Yeah, well, sometimes nothin' can be a real cool hand.
So, on our tour of the history of Batman we now enter the Silver Age. After the introduction of DC Comics' multiverse in the 1960s, it is retroactively established that stories from the Golden Age star the Earth-Two Batman, a character from a parallel world. Batman titles however often ignored that a distinction had been made between the pre-revamp and post-revamp Batmen (since unlike The Flash or Green Lantern, Batman comics had been published without interruption through the 1950s) and would on occasion make reference to stories from the Golden Age. Nevertheless, details of Batman's history were altered or expanded upon through the Silver and Bronze Ages.
DETECTIVE COMICS #235 - September 1956 - The First Batman - In which the origin of the bat-uniform is revealed.
Yeah, well, sometimes nothin' can be a real cool hand.
As with DC's science-fiction comics MysteryinSpace and StrangeAdventures, HouseofMysterywas an anthology title, but what made it different was that its content was mostly horror themed. The content of the early issues was the occult and crime thrillers, plus the odd foray into science fiction. However, with the Comics Code Authority of 1954 being sanctioned (brought about because of public concerns regarding "inappropriate material in comics") horror themes featuring werewolves, vampires etc were banned. "House of Mystery" was therefore forced to re-focus itself as a suspense and science fiction title with sanitised stories. Launched in 1951 it ran for a massive 321 issues before cancellation in 1983.
A final message was left on the letters page - something that didn’t always happen as titles were often unceremoniously cancelled before the next issue was published, leaving readers wondering what had happened to their favourite title.
The first issue contained a Jekyll and Hyde rip-off. Interestingly, the fact it was a first issue was not publicised on the cover, in those days the perception was that the public preferred titles that had a long history which meant that the content was good. Today, of course, first issues are widely promoted and sought after for collectable reasons.
HOUSE OF MYSTERY #1 - December 1951-January 1952 - Man or Monster?
Yeah, well, sometimes nothin' can be a real cool hand.
The Department of Truth is back with a brand new chapter…
WARNING: The content of this comic strip contains very strong language not permitted in the ongoing threads of this site. It also contains themes that some readers may find upsetting. Reader discretion is advised for those who may be easily offended. The content has been cleared for posting by the moderators.
WARNING: The content of this comic strip contains very strong language not permitted in the ongoing threads of this site. It also contains themes that some readers may find upsetting. Reader discretion is advised for those who may be easily offended. The content has been cleared for posting by the moderators.
THE DEPARTMENT OF TRUTH - Chapter Twenty - Silent Majorities - Part Two
And a bonus piece…
The Department of Truth will return when the next issue lands…meanwhile next Thursday sees the beginning of a great new series - what if history had taken a different course than the one we know?
Yeah, well, sometimes nothin' can be a real cool hand.
Sir MilesThe Wrong Side Of The WardrobePosts: 31,047Chief of Staff
Comments
Father Ted…?
If not…
It’s a brilliant series 😁
I may just have watch them all again…😬
I think it’s on the Channel4 app on my Amazon stick so I will give it a go…on 😁
FORBIDDEN TALES OF DARK MANSION #5 - They All Came To Die - Chapter 3
Chapter 4 tomorrow…
Those "record clubs"! I signed up once, unable to resist the opening offer. Ended up buying stuff I didn't want just to fulfil the deal.
I did exactly the same 🤣 didn’t keep my subscription long mind☺️
FORBIDDEN TALES OF DARK MANSION #5 - They All Came To Die - Chapter 4
The concluding chapter tomorrow…
I wonder if it will end the same way as the Christie story did?
That’s a thought 🤔🙂
So, is the ending from the book, play, movie…or something different?
Christie herself gave the play a different ending to the book, and the various films all have their peculiarities.
It's still the judge, though, so yes this is a ripoff. The romance angle is less melodramatic in the book.
Enjoyable read…you just are not sure exactly how it will end…as Barbel says - they all have their peculiarities 🙂
SAUCER COUNTRY Part 10 - 1of 2
WARNING: This story may contain strong language and scenes that may cause distress to those of a nervous disposition.
Continues tomorrow…
Getting very tense. Roll on tomorrow!
Certainly is…👀
Good to see you’re enjoying this story, gentlemen 🙂
SAUCER COUNTRY Part 10 - 2 of 2
WARNING: This story may contain strong language and scenes that may cause distress to those of a nervous disposition.
DUE TO AN INPUT ERROR PLEASE READ PAGE 5 BEFORE PAGE 4
To be continued next weekend…
And the next instalment of The Department of Truth begins on Thursday…
Roll on Thursday 👏🏻 although I am enjoying this…
As I’ve said before Smash! was my favourite comic as a kid, it had a wide variety of strips covering funnies, adventures and American superhero reprints. It also had The Man From B.U.N.G.L.E., a full page adventure where the reader has to work out how our hero escapes this weeks predicament. Smash! wasn't as slick compared to many of its rivals like TV Century 21, but the odd slapdash layout and cheap newsprint paper wasn’t a problem... the comic had guts and edgy humour to compensate!
Here we concentrate on a issue of some significance - #43 dated 26 November 1966…
The Batman stories were from American Sunday newspaper strips rather than the DC comic stable. Batman was a huge hit on TV at the time so it was perfect for Smash's front cover. Here’s a few examples from its 28 pages...
One "tradition" in old British comics is kids being whacked on the backside, usually by dad or a teacher. Corporal punishment was of its time and was over-used as an moral ending in humour strips (if you’re naughty, then you pay the price). Charlie's Choice boasted excellent artwork by the late great Brian Lewis (of later House of Hammer fame). And a typical spanking scene ensues…
The Rubberman was an adventure strip featuring a home-grown superhero. Art by Alfredo Marculeta…
By this issue, the Incredible Hulk reprints had used up the first six issues of his original mag and were now reprinting the material where he guest-starred in other comics. This is a reprint from Fantastic Four but edited to appear as a Hulk strip. Art by Jack Kirby but panels were resized to fit the larger British page size...
My favourite original British comic strip of all-time is The Legend Testers, and it appropriately appeared in Smash! Eerie stories, and fantastic art by Jordi Bernet, as our two time-travelling heroes, Rollo Stones and Danny Charters investigate artefacts to see if they are real or not. This series of adventures was exciting and pulsating entertainment…
What makes this issue particularly significant is the announcement on the “Marvel style” information page of the 'Power Comics' logo that would start appearing on the covers of Smash! and Wham! (and subsequent companion comics) from the following week. This symbol signified to prospective purchasers that they would be getting a “special” range of stories only available if the comic had the “Power Comics” symbol on it…terrific and fantastic marketing! There's also an announcement about Pow! weekly, which would be on the shelves in early 1967, and the advert for the first Smash! Annual is a nice bonus too…
And last, but certainly not least in terms of significance, is the final episode of Ken Reid's Queen of the Seas! A wonderful strip by a superb artist who is forever linked with the sublime Jonah strip from The Dandy…
This weeks birthday comic covers - 7-13 April…
I’ve read a fair few Whoopee & Cheeky comics 😁
So, on our tour of the history of Batman we now enter the Silver Age. After the introduction of DC Comics' multiverse in the 1960s, it is retroactively established that stories from the Golden Age star the Earth-Two Batman, a character from a parallel world. Batman titles however often ignored that a distinction had been made between the pre-revamp and post-revamp Batmen (since unlike The Flash or Green Lantern, Batman comics had been published without interruption through the 1950s) and would on occasion make reference to stories from the Golden Age. Nevertheless, details of Batman's history were altered or expanded upon through the Silver and Bronze Ages.
DETECTIVE COMICS #235 - September 1956 - The First Batman - In which the origin of the bat-uniform is revealed.
Catching up on these, with pleasure. I liked the one about Dr Wayne but we all know whose dad was the first Batman....
As with DC's science-fiction comics Mystery in Space and Strange Adventures, House of Mystery was an anthology title, but what made it different was that its content was mostly horror themed. The content of the early issues was the occult and crime thrillers, plus the odd foray into science fiction. However, with the Comics Code Authority of 1954 being sanctioned (brought about because of public concerns regarding "inappropriate material in comics") horror themes featuring werewolves, vampires etc were banned. "House of Mystery" was therefore forced to re-focus itself as a suspense and science fiction title with sanitised stories. Launched in 1951 it ran for a massive 321 issues before cancellation in 1983.
A final message was left on the letters page - something that didn’t always happen as titles were often unceremoniously cancelled before the next issue was published, leaving readers wondering what had happened to their favourite title.
The first issue contained a Jekyll and Hyde rip-off. Interestingly, the fact it was a first issue was not publicised on the cover, in those days the perception was that the public preferred titles that had a long history which meant that the content was good. Today, of course, first issues are widely promoted and sought after for collectable reasons.
HOUSE OF MYSTERY #1 - December 1951-January 1952 - Man or Monster?
As you say, very Jekyll and Hyde. That hair cream ad is hilarious!
The Department of Truth is back with a brand new chapter…
WARNING: The content of this comic strip contains very strong language not permitted in the ongoing threads of this site. It also contains themes that some readers may find upsetting. Reader discretion is advised for those who may be easily offended. The content has been cleared for posting by the moderators.
————————————————————————————————————————————————————
THE DEPARTMENT OF TRUTH - Chapter Twenty - Silent Majorities - Part One
Continues tomorrow…
Great to have this back 👏🏻
Love this.
Thank you, gentlemen…
WARNING: The content of this comic strip contains very strong language not permitted in the ongoing threads of this site. It also contains themes that some readers may find upsetting. Reader discretion is advised for those who may be easily offended. The content has been cleared for posting by the moderators.
————————————————————————————————————————————————————
THE DEPARTMENT OF TRUTH - Chapter Twenty - Silent Majorities - Part Two
And a bonus piece…
The Department of Truth will return when the next issue lands…meanwhile next Thursday sees the beginning of a great new series - what if history had taken a different course than the one we know?
This is fabulous 🤯
It's a lot for my small brain to take in, too much of it sets off echoes of real world activities and not pleasant ones either.
So yes, more please!
SAUCER COUNTRY Part 11 - 1 of 2
WARNING: This story may contain strong language and scenes that may cause distress to those of a nervous disposition.
Continued tomorrow…
Keep 'em coming, CHB!